Chapter 72 Chapter 72 She wanted to be intimate with him.
The carriage bumped along in the night, and the smell inside the carriage was as sticky as unmelted honey, with a hint of drunkenness from the aroma of wine.
Chu Yuanhe was stunned. The soft lips did not leave immediately after touching them. Instead, they went deeper because he did not resist.
The fingers that were hooked on his collar exerted force again, pulling him towards herself. Zhao Qingyi hummed unconsciously twice, and her kiss was filled with the ignorance and coquettishness of drunkenness, biting his lips wantonly.
It was a little clumsy at first, as if just to declare sovereignty, and she rubbed against him eagerly, awkwardly but boldly prying open his teeth that were slightly parted in surprise.
Chu Yuanhe couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, and all the thoughts of trying to restrain himself were burned away in this active and passionate kiss.
The illicit identity, the contraceptive soup, and the Jiang family dancer all vanished into thin air at this moment.
He didn't want to think about anything. The urge to take the initiative swept over him like a flood that broke through a dam.
Chu Yuanhe responded to the kiss almost immediately, even more passionately than her own feelings. He held her slender neck with one hand and tightly wrapped his other around her waist, holding her firmly in his arms.
Lips and tongues were no longer a gentle comfort, but a plundering tactic like conquering a city. He entangled with it with a long-pent-up desire, exchanging each other's breath.
Zhao Qingyi would not have been able to bear it in the past, but under the influence of alcohol, facing his strong response, she did not retreat but instead moved forward, tightening her slender fingers clinging to his shoulders.
"Husband..." She sobbed softly between gasps, "Don't be angry... Can we continue to pretend to be husband and wife?"
She wanted to be close to him and didn't want to see other women near him.
Chu Yuanhe was helpless. He never thought she still remembered that incident. "I'm not angry. I just don't want you to get hurt."
Before this, he had always thought things were too simple, and believed that he had the courage to bear the consequences. As long as Zhao Qingyi was willing, he could marry her at any time and give her the highest honor. Even if they had children, he would raise them. As an emperor, he could have a few princes and princesses.
But reality slapped him hard in the face. In her eyes, he was just a mistress who could not be seen in public.
He has never revealed his identity, and she has never thought of marrying him.
After making love, she thought it was contraceptive soup. If that was the case, why go to that step and end up hurting both herself and others?
"Banpan, I want to be with you forever." He leaned over and touched his forehead with hers. After a long moment, he slowly asked, "After we return to Beijing, will you marry me?"
Zhao Qingyi was in a daze, and only instinct drove her to rub against his arms. She was obviously not very sober.
I don’t know if he really couldn’t hear or was just pretending not to hear.
“…”
Chu Yuanhe sighed, supported her lower back and straightened her body.
Zhao Qingyi was quite comfortable lying on his legs. When she was forced to sit up straight, she frowned and twisted uneasily, mumbling, "You...why don't you kiss me?"
The little hand reached out to his clothes and tore them apart, as if to say, "If the mountain doesn't come to see me, I will go to see it myself."
Chu Yuanhe's suppressed anger was provoked by her again. He pushed the little face buried in his collarbone and said, "Stop messing around."
Zhao Qingyi had never heard such harsh words before, especially coming from him. All the grievances she had felt for the whole day burst out in an instant, and tears as big as beans fell down her face.
She felt that Chu Yuanhe had changed and he would never refuse her.
Could it be, just because of last night...
Zhao Qingyi struggled in her mind, but soon made up her mind and began to take off her clothes.
Chu Yuanhe was stunned and quickly pulled back her half-lost clothes. His expression unconsciously became more serious.
This is in a carriage!
"How many drinks did you have?"
It seems that I can no longer let her drink as much as she wants. How much does she have to drink to become so unconscious?
"Not much..."
She held up three fingers. "Just... two cups?"
Chu Yuanhe: "..."
Zhao Qingyi didn't want to dwell on this issue and continued to undress.
Her mistress was angry, and she just coaxed her and she was fine. This was her sincerity.
Chu Yuanhe tried to stop her, but after a long while she showed no sign of stopping, so he simply pulled out his belt and tied up her two slender white wrists.
Now Zhao Qingyi's hands were unable to move, and she could only lean on his shoulder and sob, murmuring only the four words "You are angry".
She was making so much noise that the narrow carriage was filled with muffled noises from time to time.
The coachman was from the Jiang family. Hearing the noises of the struggle and the woman's sobbing, a mischievous smile spread across his face. He secretly thought that this Master Yuan really didn't care about food and meat. He couldn't wait to have sex with the dancer right in front of his sister...
It seems that Lord Yuan is not a good official. He went back to report to Mr. Jiang.
Zhao Qingyi made a fuss for a while, but finally couldn't resist the sleepiness and fell asleep with her hands tied on Chu Yuanhe's body, with his loose smock still draped over her shoulders.
When they returned to the county government office, several yamen runners came out to greet them, and they saw Chu Yuanhe getting out of the car holding his sister.
Zhao Qingyi buried her little face in the man's chest, and the shawl wrapped her whole body tightly, so no one could see anything about her.
The yamen runners were a little surprised, and the groom was also a little surprised. He thought that Lord Yuan was holding a dancer.
When the curtain was opened again, the dancer was seen lying in the corner, also asleep.
this……
The groom was unsure for a moment.
"My sister is drunk and I have to take care of her. Please send the girl down to rest." There was nothing wrong with Chu Yuanhe's words. Between the dancer and his own sister, of course his sister was more important. Besides, the yamen was full of bad men and there were no maids to serve them. He couldn't just leave his sister to someone else to take care of.
The bailiffs quickly responded, carefully helped the dancer down, and carried her to the room in the backyard, then they retreated tacitly.
Once Lord Yuan has settled his sister, he might go out with the dancer again. It would not be appropriate for them to stay here.
Shortly after the backyard gate was closed, several secret guards appeared and carried the dancer away. The next morning, news spread that the dancer had escaped.
When Mr. Jiang learned about this, he immediately suspected that Chu Yuanhe had done something wrong. However, when he asked the coachman, the coachman said that there had been noises in the carriage last night. Could it be that the dancer was not attentive enough and was...
What a good county magistrate! He even wants to play tricks on him.
Mr. Jiang sneered disdainfully. He had seen people as smooth as Chu Yuanhe who pretended to obey him but actually disobeyed him. Since soft tactics didn't work, he would try hard tactics and let this little county magistrate know how powerful he was.
—
After Chu Yuanhe took office, he sent County Magistrate Zhou to fetch the files of Qiantang County in recent years. County Magistrate Zhou's attitude towards him was obviously much colder, and he did not have much hope for his actions.
Chu Yuanhe read through the file quickly and suddenly asked Zhao Huaiyi, "Master Zhao disappeared within this county, and it happened just this month. Why are there no relevant files?"
County Magistrate Zhou hadn't expected him to ask Zhao Huaiyi the first question, so he said unhappily, "The files were destroyed. Just a few days before you took office, the warehouse where the files were stored suddenly caught fire, and many files couldn't be saved."
He stopped talking just enough, wanting to see Chu Yuanhe's next attitude. If the other party was just going through the motions and was destined to go along with Jiang Yuanwai and the others, there was no need for him to say too much. As the saying goes, people with different ideologies cannot work together.
Chu Yuanhe said "Oh" lightly and continued to read the remaining files.
County Magistrate Zhou was stunned for a moment, then became angry. It was really just superficial work, so perfunctory!
"Lord Zhao is a senior official of the current government, an imperial envoy personally appointed by His Majesty. He came here to benefit the people. Now that he's missing, isn't Lord Yuan worried at all?"
Chu Yuanhe didn't say anything, and County Magistrate Zhou could only swallow his anger, his heart gradually becoming numb with despair.
Chu Yuanhe had a lot of things to do right now and didn't have the time to explain things to anyone. He spent half a day looking through the files in the county government office and found that almost all the files on major cases were destroyed. For example, the mysterious deaths of previous county magistrates could no longer be verified.
He then turned his attention to the household registration office. The yellow book and fish scale map book stored in the household registration office needed to be submitted to the capital and could not be destroyed easily. Chu Yuanhe soon discovered a clue.
According to past practice, the imperial court would usually exempt taxes for the second year after a disaster. However, this year is the first year of the new policy, and there have been major changes in the tax law. Chu Yuanhe urgently needs to verify the results, so he did not exempt taxes in several wealthy counties including Qiantang, and asked Zhao Huaiyi to come with a secret decree to carry out the task, mainly to take the enemy by surprise.
However, the royal party was very cunning and knew his plan in advance. They found ways to exploit loopholes in the new policy and exploited the people by "discounting silver". They hoarded a large amount of silver in advance and forced the people to buy grain, rice, silk and other goods at low prices in exchange for silver to pay taxes. In the end, it was still the people who suffered everything.
The new policy failed to achieve the desired results, and the people continued to suffer. Instead, the wealthy families took the opportunity to make a fortune from the people. How could the young emperor tolerate this?
Chu Yuanhe's face gradually became gloomy. To make matters worse, he also discovered an important case that was related to the Meng family.
Meng Jiawen...is in jail.
—
"What did you say?"
Zhao Qingyi took the warrant given to her by her mother and asked about the news about the Meng family along the way. Before leaving Beijing, her mother specifically reminded her that if she had any difficulties, she could seek help from her cousin Meng Jiawen. She never thought that after asking around, she learned that her cousin Meng Jiawen was involved in a silver smuggling case and was taken away by the government half a month ago.
After the current emperor ascended the throne, he opened the sea market. Any merchant who was approved by official documents could go to sea. As the royal merchant, the Meng family had merchant ships going out to sea almost every year. They always abided by the rules and never made any mistakes.
But just half a month ago, the Meng family's merchant ship returning from overseas was found to have silver that had not been reported to the court. The amount was so huge that it even alarmed the prefect, who directly skipped Qiantang County and arrested the person.
Zhao Qingyi was horrified.
No wonder the businesses that used to be dependent on the Meng family have switched to the Jiang family. It turns out that they want to draw a clear line with the Meng family. Judging from the time, the news of my cousin's imprisonment should have been sent to the capital.
My father is missing, my cousin is in jail, and I don’t know how chaotic the situation will be for the Zhao and Meng families.
The one who revealed the news to her was none other than the Cao Gang, which used to be on good terms with the Meng family. This gang is a mixed bunch and well-informed.
Zhao Qingyi forced himself to cheer up and asked about the whole story of the disappearance of Imperial Envoy Zhao Huaiyi.
Upon learning that his father had been ambushed and disappeared near the land temple in the south of the city, Zhao Qingyi was extremely grateful. He gave the other party an ingot of silver and couldn't wait to go to the south of the city.
There were two disguised secret guards following Zhao Qingyi. Under their protection, she found the land temple in the south of the city.
Unlike other places, the south of the city is a gathering place for all kinds of people. It is a place that the powerful and wealthy will never set foot in. Most of the people walking around are homeless and ragged, and there are countless beggars on the streets.
It is hard to believe that such a prosperous county could still harbor so many poor people living in darkness.
Zhao Qingyi vaguely guessed why his father disappeared here. It was normal for him to get involved in this place if he wanted to rebuild people's livelihood and implement new policies, and this gave outsiders the opportunity to take action.
Zhao Qingyi asked along the way and finally found the land temple. The small temple was hidden in a narrow and dark alley. As soon as she entered, she couldn't help feeling nervous.
Although Chu Yuanhe comforted her and told her that there were secret guards protecting her father's safety and that the people from the Meng Family Escort Agency were also guarding her father, when Zhao Qingyi saw the dark bloodstains remaining on the ground, her eyelids could not help but tremble violently.
She slowly squatted down and touched the blood that had already dried on the ground.
There was so much blood, which showed the chaos that day. The disappearances were all premeditated massacres!
At the same time, a veiled woman passed by the alley. After taking a few steps, she seemed to catch a glimpse of a very familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. The woman slowly stepped back and looked sideways into the depths of the alley.
Zhao Qingyi was still squatting on the ground, looking dazed, with only half of her gentle profile exposed.
The veiled woman's pupils trembled violently.
It's her! It's really her!
Zhao Qingyi... How could Zhao Qingyi be in Qiantang!
Zhao Manyi's immediate reaction was to cover her face and run away. She hid under the wall, her heart beating wildly. The maid who accompanied her was surprised and asked her what was wrong with concern.
Zhao Manyi didn't speak for a long time. After a while, she came to her senses, covering the scar under her veil.
She is no longer Zhao Manyi, nor is she the concubine's daughter of the second branch of the Zhao family. She is the daughter of the Qiantang Jiang family and the eldest daughter of the Jiang family.
Qiantang is her biological father's territory, so she doesn't have to be afraid of Zhao Qingyi at all.
Realizing this, Zhao Manyi's nervously beating heart gradually calmed down. When she looked up again, there was only endless hatred in her eyes.
She was about to stick her head out again to see what Zhao Qingyi was doing when the other person's voice floated out from the alley.
"Hurry back."
Zhao Qingyi spoke in a hurried tone and quickly walked out of the alley under the escort of secret guards on both sides.
Zhao Manyi turned around hurriedly. The other party did not notice her and quickly left the south of the city and headed towards the east.
Watching her figure gradually moving away, Zhao Manyi made a quick decision and followed her.
Zhao Qingyi almost staggered out of the land temple. She had to go back and tell Chu Yuanhe the news, so she trotted all the way with her skirt lifted up.
Zhao Manyi, who was behind, mixed in the crowd and chased after him relentlessly, not stopping until he reached the vicinity of the county government office.
The reason why they didn't get any closer was that the county government office was now almost completely blocked by people holding sticks.
In fact, just by looking at their clothes, you can tell that they are all poor people from the south of the city. In previous years, they had to pay taxes in kind to the court. This year, the court implemented a new policy, eliminating many tedious details and using the silver conversion method instead, allowing the people to pay the corresponding amount of silver according to the land they obtained.
However, for ordinary people, silver is a rare commodity, especially in the past one or two months, when the government and merchants suddenly bought back a large amount of silver, so that they had no silver on hand and could only exchange what they had with the government. But the government was cruel and there was no fixed amount of grain and copper coins to exchange for silver. Many people emptied their homes and still could not exchange for an equal amount of silver. Now that the physical goods are gone and the silver cannot be raised, they can only sell their land.
If they lose their land, what will they eat and drink next year?
With nowhere else to go, this group of displaced people gathered together, holding sticks and demanding an explanation from the government. The scene was extremely chaotic.
Chu Yuanhe had just taken office when he encountered such a difficult situation.
Zhao Qingyi was extremely worried. Under the protection of the secret guards, she barely squeezed into the county government office. Chu Yuanhe just came out from inside. When the two met, worry was in their eyes.
Chu Yuanhe gave her a soothing look and was ready to step forward to settle the matter, but unexpectedly, Jiang Yuanwai was faster. As soon as the people started shouting, Jiang Yuanwai came with a group of servants to drive them away.
Chu Yuanhe secretly thought that this was not good.
As expected, Mr. Jiang came to make things worse. His appearance and expulsion aroused public anger. Many people accused him of collusion between officials and businessmen, and called them birds of the same feather. Some even took out several baskets of rotten vegetable leaves and rotten eggs and threw them at the county government office.
Chu Yuanhe protected Zhao Qingyi and retreated a few steps, barely avoiding the attack.
"What should we do?" Zhao Qingyi didn't even have time to talk about his cousin.
Chu Yuanhe's expression was unusually calm. "Let them make a fuss."
Zhao Qingyi was quite surprised and let them make a fuss...
"If we don't make a big fuss, it will be really hard to deal with." Chu Yuanhe had a faint smile on his beautiful thin lips.
Zhao Qingyi looked around and knew that now was not a good time to ask questions, so she could only choose to believe him for the time being.
Jiang Yuanwai, along with his servants and over ten yamen runners, managed to stabilize the situation. Later, he bypassed the county magistrate, Chu Yuanhe, and promised the people, "Rest assured, everyone. The suffering of the people of Qiantang is ultimately due to the new policy. This new policy is truly tyrannical. Lord Yuan has seen it all and will definitely report this to the court. Everyone, please be patient, please be patient."
The people don’t care about the new or old policies. What they care about are the tangible benefits. As long as they can make ends meet, they dare not cause trouble at the county government office.
The leading man refused to accept the situation and started shouting while holding a stick.
Mr. Jiang's previous pleasant expression changed, and he shouted coldly, "Everyone, this is the county government office! It's the government office! If you continue to make trouble and anger Lord Yuan, you will be in big trouble!"
The noisy people finally quieted down, looking at each other, waiting for someone to take the lead and make a decision. Seeing that they had calmed down, Mr. Jiang quickly asked his servants to distribute some silver and money to the people who were making trouble. After using both kindness and force, the people stopped making trouble and dispersed.
"Sir Yuan, I'm sorry to have frightened you." Mr. Jiang stepped forward with a smile, and while paying his respects, he stuffed a stack of banknotes into Chu Yuanhe's arms to calm him down.
"Qiantang is not big, but it's not small either. The villagers, because of our long-term friendship, are willing to give my Jiang family some face. Next time you encounter this situation, feel free to come find me. After all, you are new here and unfamiliar with the place. It's always good to have someone to look out for you."
Mr. Jiang's words were full of meaning. He then bowed to Chu Yuanhe and said, "I heard that the dancer you presented to me last time ran away. I failed to train her well. I will send you a few more someday."
Chu Yuanhe looked at the banknotes in his arms and suddenly smiled. He put the banknotes into his sleeve and said, "In that case, thank you, Mr. Jiang."
Mr. Jiang immediately smiled broadly and said, "Then I'll take my leave."
After watching Mr. Jiang and his group leave, Chu Yuanhe took out the stack of banknotes and counted them. There were actually five hundred taels.
After a moment's thought, he handed it over to County Magistrate Zhou.
County Magistrate Zhou was horrified and immediately threw the banknotes away, avoiding him like a scorpion. "A gentleman has his ways and his ways. Don't even think of bribing me with this kind of money!"
"County Magistrate Zhou, can't you see the situation clearly?" Chu Yuanhe found it amusing. "Among the people who caused trouble today, how many do you think were instigated by Mr. Jiang?"
County Magistrate Zhou pursed his lips and said nothing, just staring at him vigilantly.
"Mr. Jiang is putting pressure on me. He wants to tell me that I can't do it alone. In Qiantang, without his Jiang family, I, the county magistrate, am nothing." Chu Yuanhe was still laughing when he said this.
County Magistrate Zhou thought he must be crazy, "Then how can you still laugh?"
"Why can't I laugh?"
Chu Yuanhe shrugged. "Isn't it good for me to go along with them? Look, if he lets a little slip through his fingers, it's five hundred taels, enough for you and me to have enough food and drink for eight lifetimes."
"you--"
County Magistrate Zhou felt deeply humiliated and glared at Chu Yuanhe with disappointment in his eyes.
When the other yamen runners saw the two officers arguing, they quickly dispersed, fearing that they would hear something they shouldn't. They were just low-level clerks in the yamen and wanted to live a few more years.
In the end, County Magistrate Zhou was defeated and left angrily holding his official hat.
Zhao Qingyi returned to the house and couldn't help but sigh, "This County Magistrate Zhou seems to be a good official, but he's a little too upright."
"Not only is he upright, but he's also good at talking." Chu Yuanhe took a sip of tea and spoke bluntly. If Zhou Xun was better at talking, he would consider recommending this person to the Censorate.
Seeing his relaxed expression, Zhao Qingyi figured he had already made plans for the situation. After a moment's hesitation, she told him about her cousin's imprisonment. "...The Zhao family has no roots here, and with what happened to the Meng family, can you find a way to save my cousin?"
The Meng family was definitely framed. If it was a frame-up, the verdict had to be overturned. However, if the person was gone, overturning the verdict would be useless. She had to save Meng Jiawen's life first.
Chu Yuanhe is the Prince of Pingxi County. Given his status, if he is willing to step forward, there may be room for maneuver.
"Don't worry, they won't act rashly." Chu Yuanhe knew about the Meng family's case before her and had already sent letters to the Censorate and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. There would be a result soon.
Furthermore, although Meng Jiawen is a businessman, he is the only legitimate son of the Meng family and the future head of the Meng family. His life is more valuable than that of an ordinary official.
"If King Qi wants to do something, he will need a large sum of money. Only by keeping Meng Jiawen can he have bargaining chips with the Meng family."
Having said that, Zhao Qingyi was still worried that the other party would do something desperate.
Chu Yuanhe held her cold hand and asked, "Are you tired after going out today?" He saw a thin layer of sweat on the tip of her nose.
Before Zhao Qingyi mentioned it, she didn't feel anything. It was only after he reminded her that she felt the soreness in her calves.
"I checked the land temple where my father disappeared. There were signs of a fight and blood. I ran back in a hurry..."
"Sit down and let me take a look." Chu Yuanhe helped her sit on the bed and bent over to take off her shoes and socks.
Zhao Qingyi was embarrassed at first and wanted to refuse.
"Do you want to be estranged from me?" Chu Yuanhe blocked her response and she withdrew her hand in disappointment.
Chu Yuanhe sat on the footstool and placed her feet, which had taken off their shoes and socks, on his legs. He held her ankle with one hand and gently rotated her soles with the other. The warm touch came from the center of her feet, and she couldn't help but curl up her toes, half in comfort and half in embarrassment.
Chu Yuanhe lowered his eyes, his expression focused, "Does it hurt?"
Zhao Qingyi shook her head, her cheeks inexplicably hot, "Much better..."
Chu Yuanhe's hand moved up along her ankle again. Feeling that the silk pants were in the way, he simply rolled up the trouser legs, revealing a section of her fair and slender calves.
Zhao Qingyi's face turned even redder.
Chu Yuanhe still looked serious. He placed his rough palm on her calf and massaged it slowly in circles with extremely gentle movements.
Zhao Qingyi always felt that his movements were more like caressing, especially that movement...
No matter how I look at it, it looks familiar, as if it has landed somewhere else with her before...
His thoughts began to fly around, and Zhao Qingyi couldn't help but slow down his breathing, and his breath was slightly trembling.
But the soreness in my calves has indeed been relieved a lot.
"Does your thigh hurt?" Chu Yuanhe suddenly asked again.
Zhao Qingyi nodded subconsciously without thinking much. She was a spoiled young lady from a noble family. She usually traveled in a carriage or a sedan chair and rarely ran or jumped. But she had just run from the south to the east of the city, which made her very tired and her legs ached everywhere.
Chu Yuanhe stared at her slightly red face, his eyes gradually darkening.
She has a really big heart.
When her trouser legs were rolled up to her knees, a chill came in. Zhao Qingyi suddenly woke up and hurriedly pulled down the hem of her skirt to cover herself, "No, no need..."
"Don't move."
Chu Yuanhe held down her bent knees and straightened her legs again. "There's no one else here, why are you shy?"
"Really, no need..." Zhao Qingyi was thin-skinned and her face was already red at this moment. She whispered, "I, I sweated today and haven't showered yet..."
She could sense his intimacy and didn't really want to reject him.
"If you want, wait until I finish my shower and then..." She couldn't continue playing the role of brother and sister.
Under Chu Yuanhe's increasingly scorching gaze, her voice grew weaker and weaker, and she felt extremely ashamed.
Before she could finish, Chu Yuanhe suddenly stood up and pushed her down on the couch.
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