Chapter 545 The Arrogant and Overbearing Lord Ye
Since settling in the military camp, Zhao Sanniu has only seen He Xiao once.
On the same day, He Xiao came to find Commandant Shao. He recognized the man's figure and realized it was his master in disguise when he got closer.
He didn't care why his master wanted to see Commander Shao; he just wanted to know where his master lived and what his future plans were, but his master refused to say anything.
Later, he asked Commandant Shao again and again, and only then did he learn that his master had settled down in a village on the outskirts of the capital. He lived there like a farmer, in a thatched hut and on a few acres of thin land.
Cheng Wanwan sighed. The eldest son of the prestigious He family had been forced to this point.
If it were her, would she be content to live such a hasty life? Probably not. She would do everything she could to take back everything that rightfully belonged to her.
But He Xiao was not her. He did not want to confront his original relatives, nor did he want his brothers to kill each other, so he sought a secluded place to live out his days in solitude.
Oh well, as long as I live well, that's enough.
Cheng Wanwan stayed in the military camp for almost an hour before getting up to leave. Zhao Sanniu was reluctant to part with her, and his eyes were red.
However, they agreed that San Niu could take leave to attend Cheng Zhao's wedding and take the opportunity to get together with his family.
The carriage traveled back to the city. About three or four miles from the city gate, there was a small street that had spontaneously formed, where many people set up stalls selling all sorts of things.
Shen Zheng pulled on the reins and stopped the carriage: "Last time I bought some fried pastries here to take back, and Brother Cheng praised them highly. I'm going to buy some for my godmother to try as well."
Zhao Sidan had been in the capital for two or three days and couldn't wait to go out and explore. Even though this wasn't the main street of the capital, he still wanted to go out for some fresh air.
“Let’s go shopping together then.” Cheng Wanwan lifted the car curtain and laughed. “Ninglan, didn’t you say you wanted to eat candied hawthorns from Beijing when we were in Dahe Village? They’re still available this season! Go and buy a few skewers so we can all taste what candied hawthorns from Beijing taste like.”
Ninglan happily went downstairs to buy candied hawthorns.
Cheng Wanwan took Zhao Sidan to look at other things. The variety of goods on this street was quite rich. Perhaps because it was not far from the military camp, there was also a place that specialized in selling weapons.
Zhao Sidan took a fancy to a ring. This ring had a mechanism; pressing it would produce four finger-length spikes that could injure people silently. It was a great self-defense weapon.
Just as Cheng Wanwan was about to pay, she heard Ning Lan's voice coming from afar.
She immediately turned around and saw Ninglan holding several strings of candied hawthorns, about to walk over, but was blocked by a tall horse. A man in his twenties or thirties was sitting on the horse, leaning down and staring at Ninglan with a malicious smile.
Zhao Sidan strode forward. He had studied kung fu for a year, and although he was not as good as Zhao Sanniu, he was still better than the average person.
He stood directly in front of Ninglan, his small frame raised, and said, "Hey, what are you doing?"
"Where did this brat come from? Get out of my way!" the man on horseback scoffed. "I've got my eye on this chick. Anyone who dares to ruin my plans, I'll teach them a lesson!"
Cheng Wanwan narrowed her eyes. At the gates of the capital, right under the emperor's nose, someone actually dared to harass a woman in broad daylight.
She strode over, her eyes cold as ice: "You've taken a fancy to my maid?"
The man on horseback sized up Cheng Wanwan, and after confirming that she had no status, he took out a tael of silver from his pouch and threw it over: "I want this girl."
After saying that, he bent down and tried to pull Ninglan onto the horse.
Ninglan was so frightened that she shrank back.
When she was in the capital, she rarely had the chance to leave the inner quarters and had never seen such a scene before. Later, when she went to Dahe Village, she could go out every day, but everyone in the village was very hospitable and no one had ever said such frivolous things to her. Faced with this lecher, she had no idea what to do except hide.
Cheng Wanwan shielded Ninglan behind her and chuckled, "This young master is too impatient. Even if you want my maid to be a concubine or a maidservant, shouldn't you follow the rules? Besides, I don't know your name or where you live. How can I entrust my maid to you?"
Only after knowing the man's background can we decide on our next move.
The man's face turned cold: "Why are you spouting so much nonsense, you old hag? It's your honor that I've taken a liking to your maid..."
Cheng Wanwan's expression immediately changed.
"Wife"... that's such an insulting term.
She was about to speak.
A horse galloped up: "Lord Ye, you've finally arrived! Everyone's been waiting, hurry over there."
The man surnamed Ye, perhaps out of some concern, glared fiercely at Cheng Wanwan, then looked at Ning Lan, before spurring his horse away. Dust billowed up as his figure quickly disappeared into the street.
As soon as the man disappeared, the uncle selling weapons came over and said, "You guys are really lucky. Otherwise, Lord Ye would definitely have taken him away by force. Countless young girls on this street have been violated by that beast surnamed Ye... sigh..."
Cheng Wanwan simply asked him, "Since Lord Ye is acting so absurdly, hasn't anyone reported him to the authorities?"
“Some people tried to seek justice for themselves before, but Lord Ye is a high-ranking official in the Ministry of War, a sixth-rank official. We commoners can’t afford to offend him.” The uncle sighed. “A sixth-rank official isn’t actually that high. The main thing is that his younger sister is the Emperor’s favorite concubine. The most favored concubine right now, Consort Yun, is his own sister. He’s so arrogant because he has his sister protecting him…”
Cheng Wanwan secretly memorized it: Ye, a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of War, was Consort Yun's older brother.
One can only do things once, not twice. If we happen to meet again by chance and Lord Ye still dares to be so arrogant and domineering, then don't blame her for taking action.
Although she was only a sixth-rank official and had no power or influence in the capital, it did not mean that she could be trampled on at will.
"My lady, I'm alright." Ninglan breathed a sigh of relief. "It's getting late, let's hurry back."
Cheng Wanwan glanced at Ning Lan. This girl's appearance was only average to above average. She didn't stand out in the crowd, and she was dressed very simply. She didn't use any rouge or powder. Today's disaster was completely undeserved.
She said, "Don't go out while you're in the capital. Stay home."
Ninglan nodded quickly: "I have remembered what you said, Madam An."
The group returned to their rented courtyard with heavy hearts. Cheng Zhao sat in the courtyard waiting and, seeing Cheng Wanwan's solemn expression, asked repeatedly, "Second Aunt, what happened?"
With Cheng Zhao's wedding just around the corner, Cheng Wanwan naturally wouldn't bother him with this matter. She smiled and said, "I'm just a little hungry. Ninglan, have someone prepare a meal."
Ninglan nodded and, together with Granny Qi, brought the food up. Cheng Zhao was also eating there, and while eating, he talked about serious matters: "The courtyard of the Reading Pavilion has been leased for three years, located in De'an Lane."
De'an Lane was a gathering place for impoverished scholars. By setting up a reading room here, these children from poor families could benefit to the greatest extent.
He continued, "There are also carpenters available. We can start construction as soon as my second aunt's blueprints arrive."
In the past few days, Cheng Wanwan has looked at many future library designs and drawn some initial drafts. She still needs to see them on-site before making the final decision.
The two agreed to go see the yard the next day, draw up the design within three days, and then immediately find someone to repair and start construction.
While construction was underway, Cheng Zhao was also trying to get literary figures to donate books.
Cheng Wanwan could buy ordinary books with her own money. The books in Dahe Village were purchased by having Master Yu write a list for her, such as the Four Books and Five Classics. However, the literati in the capital city did not lack these common books. In this era, many precious books were copied and circulated. They could not be bought in bookstores, so the only way to enrich the variety of books was through donations.
Donating is indeed a good approach.
But Cheng Wanwan knew that this matter would not be easy to handle, but the process of handling it would also be a kind of experience.
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