Zhang Manniang had lost weight and looked a little haggard. Something must have happened to make such a stout girl so thin.
Xu Lanyin invited her into her bedroom, asked her to sit on the kang, and took out the osmanthus glutinous rice dates she had made in the morning to entertain the guest.
After eating most of the plate of dates, Zhang Manniang began to tell her sad story.
Her father was doomed to be crippled. The family had spent a fortune bringing in doctors from the provincial capital, but they couldn't cure him. His temper was getting worse, and he'd berate his wife and beat his children daily. Her eldest brother, Zhang Gangdan, wasn't doing well in the police station, being bullied by Constable Jiang (Jiang Laofan) and Constable He. Those close to her family had become distant, and her younger brother, Zhang Tiedan, had been beaten several times, leaving his head bloodied...
Her eyes were red and she shed tears when she talked about sad things.
Xu Lanyin cursed Captain Zhang inwardly, saying he deserved it, that good deeds must be rewarded and evil deeds must be punished. She then advised Zhang Manniang that she was not young anymore and should marry the right man if she found one. She said she should find a husband who treated her well, and that good-looking gigolos were unreliable. She then used her own experience to criticize Gu Wangchen. Now Gu Wangchen was no longer a Juren (an ancient scholar), but a Jinshi (an ancient scholar), and her previous oath had expired.
Xu Lanyin sincerely hoped that Zhang Manniang would leave the Zhang family sooner rather than later. Zhang Gangdan had some connections to the Yiju Restaurant, but she didn't know if he had been recruited into the business. If he had been, the Zhang family would be doomed to be plundered and exterminated. While Zhang Manniang might have escaped this fate if she had married, there was no way that adorable, dark-skinned boy, Zhang Tiedan, could survive.
At the Zhang family's house, Captain Zhang was having a low conversation with his second son, Zhang Tongdan, in the house.
Captain Zhang, who was leaning on the couch, had red eyes, messy hair and beard, and seemed to have lost a lot of weight overnight.
Last night, Zhang Gangdan told Captain Zhang about the situation in the police station. Jiang Laofan and his gang were suppressing him severely. County Lieutenant Sun was just watching the fun, not helping anyone. County Magistrate Wang had been helping him suppress Jiang Laofan, and the County Magistrate of Min seemed to be helping no one, but in fact he was helping Jiang Laofan...
Captain Zhang wondered, "County Magistrate Wang is a cunning man. Why would he disobey Lord Min and help us?"
Zhang Gangdan pursed his lips and told about his work for the Yiju Restaurant. He also said that County Magistrate Wang was in cahoots with him and would definitely do his utmost to help the Zhang family...
He wanted to use this incident to completely pull his father in to achieve great things together. He knew that behind the Yiju Restaurant was not only the Western Xia Kingdom, but also high-ranking officials in the court.
After listening to Zhang Gangdan's words, Captain Zhang looked at him for a long moment, which made Zhang Gangdan's hair stand on end. Then he said, "Go and get some rest. This is a serious matter. Let me think it over. Also, don't tell them that I know about your affairs."
Early this morning, he had called his second son, Zhang Tongdan, home, citing poor health as an excuse. He explained that Zhang Gangdan had been secretly working for the Yiju Restaurant, essentially for the Western Xia Kingdom, for over two years. The shocking attack on Minister Zhou in Hebei two years ago was their doing, and Zhang Gangdan had even helped deliver the letter...
"I'm going to clean up the mess," Captain Zhang said through gritted teeth.
Zhang Tongdan's eyes widened as he whispered, "Clean up the family? Dad, that's my eldest brother. Were we too harsh on him?"
Captain Zhang's eyes were filled with tears as he spoke sadly, "Your eldest brother is my eldest son. I've put a lot of effort into raising him, always wanting to pass on my legacy to him, so that he can protect our Zhang family and make it prosperous in Nanping for generations. If he had killed someone, I could have offered money to save him. I'm not a clean person either, and I've killed people too... But that rebellious son, that fool, actually colluded with the enemy and sold out his country for a few thousand taels of silver and a few nights with one of the top prostitutes in the building. This is a disaster that will lead to the confiscation of our property and the extermination of our entire family. I can't let him ruin our entire family."
Zhang Tongdan also remembered that two years ago his elder brother suddenly got six thousand taels of silver. He said at the time that he had extorted money by catching a "fat sheep", but it turned out that the money was given by Juyi Restaurant.
He said, "Dad, if all else fails, you can take my eldest brother and secretly report to Lord Min. Then, we can seize the Yiju Restaurant and achieve great success."
Captain Zhang shook his head and said, "No, who knows if Mincan is from the Yiju Restaurant... Even if he's not, we can't tell him. That slippery guy won't intervene in truly difficult matters, and even if he wanted to, he couldn't. He's just a small county magistrate. The Yiju Restaurant dared to do such a big thing, so there must be powerful people behind it... We can't let the Yiju Restaurant know that we know about this and are unwilling to follow them, otherwise our family will be in trouble. Gangdan must die, and it must be an accident, so that no one can suspect..."
Zhang Tongdan showed an expression of reluctance and said, "Dad, that's my eldest brother, how can you..."
Captain Zhang suppressed his sorrow, then cursed with a fierce gleam in his eyes, "Stop being so soft-hearted. If Gangdan doesn't die, our entire family, even our entire clan, will perish. After Gangdan dies, I'll take your mother, Manniang, Tiedan, and my grandchildren back to the countryside. You just work hard in the yamen, and no matter how much you're bullied or oppressed, you must take the blame for me. When Tiedan and the grandchildren grow up, our Zhang family will find a way to rise again... Damn it, we can't admit defeat." He added, "I can't read or write, but I built this family fortune by knowing people. Don't look down on young people because they're poor. I made a big mistake by taking action against Zhao Wu. That kid is no ordinary person. If I had won him over earlier, he wouldn't have to be my son-in-law. He'd be a good helper wherever he went, but I personally pushed him to Jiang Laofan..."
Zhang Manniang had lunch at the Xu family's house and had no intention of leaving. Xu Lanyin then went to invite Xu Yulan and Fifth Grandfather's granddaughter Xu Minniang over, and the four young ladies played flying bird chess until the end of the afternoon, when Zhang Manniang reluctantly got up to say goodbye.
She also took Xu Lanyin's hand and said, "Your house is really fun. I'll come again next time."
Just like last time, Xu Lanyin spent twenty cents to ask Fifth Grandpa to send Zhang Manniang home in a donkey cart, and also gave her a purse and two beautiful flowers bought in the provincial capital.
That night, Xu Lanyin, who hadn't washed her face in two days, finally did. This was the first time in her past and present lives that she had only washed once every two days. It was summer, and the sweat on her face was making her very uncomfortable. But the Ruyu Regenerating Skin Cream was too precious to waste. She would apply it every five days, leaving it on for two days at a time.
She looked in the mirror again. Even though the bronze mirror wasn't very clear, she could see that her face was a little more delicate than before. She smiled. It was all worth it.
The next night, Xu Lanyin had just finished washing up and went to bed when she heard Huazi's cry and the sound of pecking at the main door. She got off the bed and opened the door, and it turned out to be Mazi who had returned.
Xu Lanyin happily carried it into the house and took out the note from the small bamboo tube on its leg.
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