Chapter 46

The restaurant has just opened, and now that this has happened, it is unclear whether it can be sublet. Fortunately, the stall has been handed over to Brother Liu Si and Brother Wang. The food stall is not conspicuous, so it is unlikely to be found.

Baozhu hesitated for a long time before asking her mother, "Mother, you haven't told my aunt about the marriage, have you?"

The room was silent. Everyone knew this was a good match, and no one wanted to implicate the Dong family. Lady Xu, feeling reluctant, neither accepted nor refused, simply pretended to forget the whole thing. She felt a pang of pain, feeling sorry for Baozhu and resentful of the Sun family's deception.

"Don't delay, go and explain it. After all, my uncle is related to the Song family. The two families prosper together. If anything goes wrong, the Song family will be the guarantor. If they sever ties with our family, that's fine. But if there is a marriage dispute, the Sun family will take a bite out of it." Baozhu sighed, feeling depressed.

"We still don't know what will happen tomorrow, so go and tell her at night."

I think if my uncle was not unwilling to sever ties with the Zhen family, he would not have fined someone and suspended him from his job.

Just as Baozhu expected, when the Dong family asked to go to the Song family, the Song family said that as long as they distanced themselves from the matter, the suspension issue could be eased. If they were still involved, they would probably be dismissed instead of suspended. The Guanglu Temple was originally responsible for banquets and sacrifices. Although it was not an office with real power, it was a place where one could lose their head if something went wrong. No matter how careful he was, it would not be difficult to point out his mistakes.

But the Dong family was unwilling, so Song Pingshi had no choice but to give up. Aunt Dong was already worried, and when she heard Madam Xu say that the marriage was off, she felt even more upset.

"I just don't believe that the Sun family can cover the sky with one hand in Bianjing. Can they be more powerful than the emperor?" Aunt Zhen stroked her face and cried in Xu Niangzi's arms. "What kind of thing is this? Baozhu is smart and sensible, I-"

Madam Xu shook her head. "It's not because of the Sun family. It's just that Baozhu herself doesn't want to get married. That girl is very opinionated, and no one can force her to do something she doesn't want to do."

"If that's the case, why didn't you come earlier or later, but rejected the marriage when the Sun family came knocking on your door?"

Dong Hengzhi heard his aunt was coming home and was about to greet her, but when he reached the door he heard these words and rushed out to the Zhen family without caring about his appearance. Aunt Zhen was about to say something, but Madam Xu waved her hand.

Let him be, Baozhu will explain it to him.

"Now, if we can protect one family, it's one family. The Sun family is angry that the Zhen family doesn't take them seriously. At worst, they can hide again. After all, they have land in Xuzhou, so hiding in Xuzhou is not a bad idea. The Sun family has just been transferred to Bianjing, and they can't be transferred to Xuzhou again. The world is so big—"

Thunder rumbled in the sky and rain fell heavily.

Dalang opened the door and saw Dong Hengzhi standing outside. He looked into the room and Baozhu nodded at him. Dalang then went back to his room. Baozhu also found the doll that he had given her on his birthday last year and put the pearl back on it.

For her birthday this year, he gave her a string of beads with a buckle woven on top with silk thread. When he gave it to her, he said that he had woven it himself and told her not to dislike it.

After putting the two things together, Baozhu straightened her expression and smiled again.

"My mother said yesterday that marriage depends on mutual affection. She told me that marriage still depends on fate. Since it depends on fate, it cannot be forced."

"You and I are not three-year-old children. The Sun family is powerful, and my uncle has been an official for more than ten years, which is not easy. It is better to save one family than to let both families be crushed to death."

"I hope my cousin will pass the imperial examination this spring and have a smooth career."

Baozhu had her own plan in mind. If this matter succeeded, it would be the best. If not, the two families would break off their relationship, and the Sun family would not be able to find the Dong family in the future.

A flash of lightning illuminated the faces of the two people. Baozhu's face was as resolute as ever, while Dong Hengzhi took the box in a daze and walked into the night like a wandering soul.

Aunt Zhen saw the man soaking wet and sighed, "You shouldn't have gone to Baozhu at this time. If the marriage fails and someone catches you giving something in private and spreads gossip, it won't be a problem for you, but it will be a big problem for Baozhu."

Aunt Zhen and Madam Xu looked at each other and blamed her for telling Dong Hengzhi about this matter early on and telling Hengzhi that she would go to the Zhen family to propose marriage after the spring examination.

He was happy every day. Since the Zhen family came to Bianjing, he had been studying more seriously than before. He knew that it was unreasonable for Dong Hengzhi to go looking for Baozhu tonight, so no one could bear to blame him for his current behavior.

"We can't let my brother-in-law lose his official position now, otherwise both families will be in dire straits." It was late at night, and Xu Niang wanted to go home. "The most urgent thing is to ask my brother-in-law to find someone to reinstate him. We can't let both families fall together."

Aunt Zhen's eyes were red with anxiety. "The master has been out and hasn't come back yet. Let's go to the Song family tomorrow. Yuanniang has just added a child to the Song family, and Hengzhi is a scholar. If the Dong family falls, it won't be good for his family. I think he can do his best."

"Now that things have come to this, we must not let our emotions get the better of us. The most important thing is to help our brother-in-law keep his official position."

It was raining outside, so Aunt Zhen asked Hua Bo to drive the car to take the person home.

There were bursts of spring thunder and raindrops fell like a bead curtain.

Pei Yanqing felt a little embarrassed, having already bumped into the Zhen family's private affairs twice. It wasn't something he wanted to hear, but he just happened to hear the voices and walked out, and saw the scene of "Fate Has Ended".

There was a knock on the door of the Pei family's courtyard. The slight sound was almost insignificant in this thunderstorm. Baozhu was hesitant and looked around like a guilty thief.

The sound of the copper rings clicking on the wooden door hit his heart again and again, and Pei Yanqing opened the door.

Baozhu's face showed a determination to fight to the death. Since it was useless to endure, give in or hide, she might as well fight it out.

"Sir Pei, I have a favor to ask." The wall of this courtyard was built later, and the eaves are narrow, so they cannot block the slightly heavier rain. The rain fell heavily, hitting Baozhu's forehead like a thread, and then falling to the ground along her thick eyelashes.

Pei Yanqing picked up the oil-paper umbrella from the corner and held it above her head.

"you say."

Baozhu hadn't expected that he wouldn't ask what it was about. The words she was about to say were stuck in her throat, but now that her thoughts were clear, she could speak more fluently.

"I heard that the imperial court was in turmoil this year, and a number of officials from Jiangnan fell. My mother said you warned her. I guess there's someone behind the corruption case who's very perceptive."

"Those corrupt officials have been nurturing these parasites for years, yet they're only being slaughtered this year. The year before last, the government allocated a large sum of money for the floods. I guess they're filling the treasury's empty treasury, and also serving as a warning to others."

Pei Yanqing looked straight into her eyes. He knew she was smart, but he had never thought she was so wise. She had put together the general idea in just a few words. He did not show his surprise on his face, but pretended to listen attentively.

"Last year, the eastern part of Jiangnan was hit by a devastating snowstorm, the likes of which occurs only once in decades. The accumulated snow caused a disaster, and allocating silver for disaster relief is another fortune. Clearly, the government has no reason to be dissatisfied with the amount of money. The Sun family has been a prominent family since the previous dynasty. Although they declined somewhat later, they rose again with the rise of Emperor Taizu. The wealth of a family like this must be incalculable. If the Sun family can be brought down, the haul would be no less than that of the corruption case that shocked the government and the public."

"What's in it for me?" Pei Yanqing asked after she finished listening.

"Of course there are benefits. You've worked so hard to finally get before the emperor. A corruption case this serious only happens once in years. Now, using the Sun family as a springboard to help the emperor relieve his worries will surely earn your respect."

"You're so brave, aren't you afraid that I'll report you?"

"If you are reporting me, I will marry into the Sun family as a concubine. Then, with some advice from my wife, your official career will be over." Baozhu's face was a little angry, but the threat was just blurted out and did not have any weight. Instead, it made Pei Yanqing almost laugh out loud.

Looking at the tough look of the person in front of him, Pei Yanqing asked her what her plan was.

"Since the Sun family was suddenly transferred to Bianjing, I think the one who originally thought he was going to be promoted will be suppressed. He was already dissatisfied with someone coming to his head for no reason. My Lord now has a lot of weight with the emperor. You only need to whisper a few words to the person who was originally supposed to be promoted, and someone will find a way to bring him down. There's no need to even fabricate a crime for him. All you need to do is present to the emperor the good deeds done by the Sun family's nephews in Gusu, and the Sun family will have to bear the consequences even if they can't bear it."

Baozhu gnashed her teeth. If the Sun family wanted to destroy her family, she would risk her life to severely damage the Sun family. She said that marrying into the Sun family was absolutely impossible.

Even if nothing succeeds this time, when Jinming Lake opens in March and the emperor comes to visit, she will submit the petition to the emperor even if it means she gets killed in the garden. She does not believe that the emperor will not order a thorough investigation in front of the people of Bian Jing.

As long as they are willing to investigate, the Zhen family can escape the disaster. Baozhu was in a state of confusion. As for her, she was a person who had lived one more life.

"Don't worry, I'll help you."

Upon hearing this, Baozhu suddenly felt relieved. Only Pei Yanqing could talk to the emperor. In the past few years since her uncle came to Beijing, he had seen the emperor very few times. At most, he had only met the officials of the Guanglu Temple who were responsible for banquets and sacrifices in the palace.

But Pei Yanqing often went in and out of the palace. He was appointed by the emperor himself and only took orders from the emperor. Even the Ministry of Personnel had no right to interfere.

Thinking of this, Baozhu felt that her threat just now was ridiculous. This matter was quite risky, but she never thought that Lord Pei would actually agree to it. Perhaps it was because her mother had done good deeds in the past and treated Lord Pei very well, so he remembered the favor.

Baozhu's mind was empty, and she staggered twice, almost falling. In the end, she forced herself to return to her own courtyard. Baorong came to meet her from a distance with an umbrella. Seeing this, Pei Yanqing stopped and watched the person walk around the corner and disappear before closing the door.

When Madam Xu came back, she saw the whole family sitting in the house. Ah Xiu and Jiang Shi also moved a stool and sat down. She sighed.

"Young Master Jiang's family is in Xuzhou. We'll take a boat back tomorrow. If Ah Xiu wants to stay in Bianjing, she'll have to find another place to live. If she has nowhere else to go, she can go to Xuzhou with Young Master Jiang. Girls, don't go to remote places. Rent a house in the city. With your skills now, you can at least support yourself."

Ah Xiu shook her head and handed the cloth bag to Madam Xu. "My life was saved by the ladies. Now that I'm in trouble, asking me to leave would be a disparagement. I've saved some money these days, madam. Take it with you so you can find a job."

Although she had asked Lord Pei for help, the matter was so dangerous that Baozhu only mentioned it to Madam Xu at night. As soon as she finished speaking, she collapsed and developed a high fever at night. She called in a doctor, who said it was due to excessive worry and the evil wind entering her body.