73 Gold Ingot

◎There's a way to save County Magistrate Ye◎

Deng Yingyun casually said, "I hired someone to frame her, so what?"

Han County Magistrate stood up in disbelief and demanded, "How could you make such a decision on your own? Who will come forward? But it's a done deal? If not... you and I are afraid..."

"Don't worry about that," Deng Ying said. "The people I'm looking for are naturally tight-lipped."

County Magistrate Han nearly collapsed. He clenched his fists and slammed them heavily on the table, staring at him intently: "Are you hiding anything else from me?"

They originally obeyed the orders of the Yuezhou prefect, but now that he died, the two of them are tied to the same rope, so they really shouldn't act rashly.

Deng Ying spread out his hands and stretched them in front of him, his meaning was self-evident.

But County Magistrate Han was on the verge of madness. He slapped his hand and said through gritted teeth, "I told you! I don't have any hundred-year-old ginseng! No!"

Then, he rushed to the wardrobe in the inner room as if he had been injected with chicken blood, lowered his head and rummaged around for a while, took out a shiny object, and threw it at Deng Ying's feet with a "clang".

——Gold ingot.

Deng Ying bent down to pick it up, looking at the old furnishings in the room, then at the heavy gold ingot in his hand with amusement. He stood up and said sarcastically, "I knew you, County Magistrate Han, could help me. All the things I did for you before are worth it. Farewell."

"Stop!" Hearing this, County Magistrate Han's heart trembled, and he suddenly rushed in front of him. "It's best for you to keep the matter of forcing the former county magistrate of Lingnan County to yourself forever."

The former magistrate of Lingnan County was greedy for a comfortable life. For the sake of his career, he specially became a disciple of the prefect of Yuezhou, hoping to get some advice from the prefect.

However, County Magistrate Han had no idea that one wrong step would lead to another. The Yuezhou prefect had introduced Deng Ying to him. At that time, he did not know that Deng Ying was a bandit, but only thought that he was an aide to the prefect. It was not until last winter when people in Lingnan County frequently starved to death that County Magistrate Han realized that these were all caused by Deng Ying.

Deng Ying secretly poisoned the people and fabricated the tragic scene of starvation. Everything went as Han Xiancheng wished. The former county magistrate was arrested, and he could also climb up the ladder.

But they didn't expect that this year the emperor was blessed with a princess and granted special favor to all students to take the imperial examination again. The vacant position of the Lingnan County Magistrate was unexpectedly occupied by Ye Yunzhao.

Deng Ying weighed the gold ingot in his hand and said with a kind smile, "County Magistrate Han, I've already arranged your path to promotion. When Ye Yunzhao first arrived, he was in a daze, looking as if he was dying. I thought I wouldn't hinder your career, but... then I came up with a good idea, and it seems to be working very well."

"What?" County Magistrate Han was stunned. He grabbed his collar with both hands and said belatedly, "What method? Explain it clearly! How can you act on your own and do things for me?"

"How can you make the decision on your own? Aren't you trying every possible way to get promoted?"

"Of course I helped you threaten Ye Yunzhao. Women are really timid. So I-"

Deng Ying pulled his hand away, put the official sword at his waist on his neck, and said with a smile:

"After a threat, she changed her previously muddle-headed ways and started making farm tools and taking in refugees. In just three or four months, I've seen quite a bit of success. Now she's in jail, and she'll never get out. Doesn't this achievement just fall squarely on the shoulders of you, County Magistrate Han?"

As soon as Deng Ying finished speaking, County Magistrate Han felt his head spin. He closed his eyes tightly, his face pale as ashes, and knelt on the ground. He suddenly grabbed his hair and pulled it in disbelief, his breathing becoming increasingly rapid until he could no longer hold back and roared out:

"Crazy...you are crazy..."

Seeing him like this, Deng Ying naturally didn't bother to care about him anymore. He put the knife back into the sheath and turned to leave.

He hadn't fully revealed his inner thoughts just now. He had previously worked for the Yuezhou prefect in exchange for a single, century-old ginseng root. But Honglang had become a burden, and he no longer cared about saving him. He simply hoped the prefect would forge household registration documents for him and Feijiu, so that they could live out the rest of their lives in peace.

But the Yuezhou prefect was unwilling, so Deng Ying sneered and he cut his neck with a knife, blaming Ye Yunzhao for the incident. One was to clear himself, and the other was to sell out the Han family.

This is really a good way to have the best of both worlds. Deng Ying smiled and raised his head, looking at the drifting mist in the mountains, and thought: It would be nice to hold hands with Fei Jiu in the future and become a hunter in the mountains.

But he didn't know that County Magistrate Han in the room was staring at him: Deng Ying must be eliminated!

*

After Cuihua and her group arrived at Chen's house overnight, Chen Jingshan first learned that Ye Yunzhao was imprisoned. He immediately sent someone to deliver a note to the prison to comfort her, telling her not to give up on herself. In addition, since she was an official appointed by the court, it was not easy for her to confirm the matter.

After Butler Zhang arranged for the group to stay, Chen Jingshan did not sleep all night.

The next morning, he went to Ruyi Tower to check the account books as if nothing had happened, but when he reached the dessert shop, he stopped and turned in.

When the saleswoman at the dessert shop saw him, she hurriedly said, "Oh, my! Why has Shopkeeper Chen come here in person? If there's anything you want, just send a servant to let me know, and I'll definitely deliver it to your door myself."

Most of the customers of the dessert shop are women, so there are no waiters in the shop. Instead, there are three or five saleswomen instead. One reason is to make it convenient for the ladies and wives of wealthy families to make purchases, and the other is to provide a refreshing and quiet atmosphere so as to enhance the style and popularity of the shop.

Chen Jingshan asked, "Is Shopkeeper Liu here? I have a business matter to discuss with her."

"Shopkeeper Chen, please move to the private room. I'll go fetch the shopkeeper right away." The saleswoman led the way for him and instructed the maid beside her, "Make a pot of Snow Tip Yellow Bud tea."

Chen Jingshan waited in the private room for a while, and then Manager Liu came in with a pot of tea.

The woman in satin bowed and said politely, "Master, do you have any instructions for me?"

"sit."

Shopkeeper Liu sat aside, pouring tea for the two. Chen Jingshan took the teacup and said quietly, "Has anyone come to the shop these days to inquire about news?"

This was a strange question, as who would come to a dessert shop to inquire about information? However, Shopkeeper Liu was a man who made a living among the shrewd people, so he understood the deeper meaning of the question in an instant.

She said cautiously, "Are you asking about that girl? If it's about this, then I can guarantee that nothing will be leaked."

Chen Jingshan drank the tea in one gulp, frowned slightly, pinched the teacup, and murmured, "I know..."

Shopkeeper Liu was afraid that he would be worried, so he immediately knelt down and said, "Boss, you are my savior! How could I betray my benefactor?"

In her early years, Aunt Liu was the cook in the home of a corrupt official. Later, the corrupt official was murdered by his colleagues, and the blame was placed on her. If Chen Jingshan hadn't known she was from Lingnan County and hadn't used his connections to save her, Aunt Liu would have been killed long ago.

Chen Jingshan knew the twists and turns inside, and immediately raised his hand to help her up, saying, "Aunt, I never doubted you, but that girl has been arrested by the government office... Even if the government office doesn't have solid evidence, they will always have some rumors. If you don't leak the information, there's no guarantee that the people in your shop will follow your lead."

Aunt Liu was startled. "Don't worry, Boss. The ladies and maids in the shop won't gossip about anything. I'll go check it out right away, just in case."

Chen Jingshan's brows were still etched with worry as he warned, "I have something else to do. If anyone asks why I'm here, just say that I've signed a contract with Ruyi Restaurant and will be supplying them with Lotus Golden Silk Cheese every day."

"Yes." Aunt Liu was about to see him out when she suddenly remembered something: "Boss, could it be that the prefect's servants said that..."

"Do you have any suspicions?"

Aunt Liu said solemnly, "Yes, when I entered the prefect's backyard that day, I ran into the kitchen maid at the back door. She seemed to have some doubts about the girl's identity."

"I understand. Thank you, auntie." After saying that, Chen Jingshan hurried out.

*

The sky was dark, but the lights in Chen's house were bright.

Chen Jingshan sat in the seat of honor, while Cuihua and others sat beside him. Before they could speak, a man in black came in from outside the house.

Madam Cuihua shuddered, startled by him. Liu Dazhuang, who was standing beside her, suddenly stood up and asked, "Who is it?"

The man in black clasped his fists towards Chen Jingshan and said, "Boss."

Liu Dazhuang and Cuihua were stunned and turned to look at him in shock.

"Brother Dazhuang, sit down." Chen Jingshan said and beckoned to the man in black.

The man in black handed him a secret note.

Chen Jingshan took the note and slowly unfolded it. His frown relaxed slightly, and he used the oil lamp on the table to light the secret note. Seeing this, the man in black leaned over and whispered a few words to him before leaving.

"Brother Jingshan, what's written on it?" Madam Cuihua asked impatiently.

Chen Jingshan didn't explain directly, but changed the subject: "I have a solution."

Madam Cuihua suddenly stood up and said in surprise, "Is there a way to save County Magistrate Ye?!"

"yes."

Chen Jingshan looked up and said to Butler Zhang outside, "Prepare the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone."

After a while, a piece of commonly used ribbed paper was spread on the rosewood carved square table.

"Prepare a piece of rough-edged bamboo paper." Chen Jingshan said.

Butler Zhang was a little confused. Ribbed paper was the master's favorite paper, so why did he want to change it now? He still used this cheap and common rough-edged bamboo paper, but he still spread a piece as ordered.

Chen Jingshan picked up the pen with his left hand, quickly wrote two lines on the paper, lifted it up and shook it twice, and after confirming that the ink was dry, he quickly rolled it up and stuffed it into a thin paper tube.

He put his finger to his lips and blew hard. The whistle sound became fainter and farther away in the night. The man in black just now turned over and entered the house, holding the thin paper tube in his hand, and quickly disappeared into the vast night.

Madam Cuihua looked at his actions with some curiosity and said, "Brother Jingshan, please tell me quickly! How can we save County Magistrate Ye?"

"Sister Cuihua, just wait patiently."

Having figured out a way to resolve the situation, Chen Jingshan finally let go of the burden that had weighed on his heart for days. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. His gaze passed through Cuihua and Liu Dazhuang, probing directly and casually, saying:

"This must be the doctor Li that my sister-in-law mentioned a few days ago, with superb medical skills."

【Author’s words】

Chen: This is the guy who wants to steal my wife! [Scared]

Li: Are you talking about me? (simple.gif)