Chapter 218 This favor must be repaid.
As soon as she finished speaking, Zisu leaned forward again and whispered a few words to Li Nanke.
Li Nanke looked surprised.
"The second young master of the Left Prime Minister's residence? Are you sure?"
Zisu nodded.
“I slipped some money to the waiter at the restaurant. The waiter knows the Left Prime Minister’s family. When I came out, I even heard the Marquis call him Second Young Master Han. There’s no mistake.”
Li Nanke was somewhat bewildered.
Although she didn't know much about court affairs, she knew that civil officials and noble families were not on good terms.
The civil service considered themselves to be of high moral character and looked down on the sons of aristocratic families who rose to power through hereditary privilege. Similarly, the aristocratic families looked down on the aloofness and arrogance of the civil service.
Especially for families like the Marquis of Anping's mansion, which had already declined and held no real position in the court, civil officials looked down on them even more.
"Unfortunately, there are guards outside the private room, and the waiters are not allowed to serve inside. I cannot get close to the private room, so I cannot find out more information."
If only Zilan were here today; she's more clever than me, and might have found out more useful information.
Zisu looked annoyed.
Li Nanke began to ponder it seriously.
Marquis Anping usually only indulges in buying and selling antiques and rarely associates with officials in the court. How did he suddenly become involved with the Left Prime Minister's residence?
She couldn't figure it out for a moment.
At this moment, Song Yi brought in Tao's mother and Zilan.
"The stir-fried mutton with scallions and chicken noodle soup you wanted are here. They were made by Tao's mother herself. Eat them while they're hot."
Tao's mother ladled a bowl of chicken soup noodles and placed it in front of her.
"Fortunately, the young lady instructed me this morning to simmer chicken soup over a low flame to nourish her body. The chicken soup was ready, otherwise, if you wanted to eat chicken soup noodles, you would probably have to wait a long time."
The fragrant aroma of chicken soup wafted into Li Nanke's nose, and his stomach began to rumble.
I couldn't wait to take it and enjoy it with the fresh, tender, and succulent stir-fried mutton with scallions.
While eating, I listened to Song Yi and Tao's mother talk about their family matters.
"Have you sent the monthly allowance to the second wife's family? Now that Madam Sun is gone, we have a new concubine, and the allowance is different from before. Have you handed it over properly?"
Tao's mother nodded with a smile.
“Yes, I delivered it myself. When I arrived, Aunt Chunlan was packing the Second Young Master’s clothes, and there were four or five trunks on the ground.”
Upon hearing that I was delivering the monthly allowance, Aunt Chunlan accepted it with a broad smile. I counted it out with her in person and asked her to put her fingerprint on the account book.
Li Nanke swallowed the noodle in her mouth, a look of confusion appearing on her face.
"My second uncle left after only a few days back, so why did he bring back so many trunks and baskets?"
Madam Tao: "Is the Second Young Master still leaving? From what Aunt Chunlan said, it seems he's not going back to Nanyang."
Song Yi was surprised.
"I didn't hear him say he wouldn't return. Could it be that his term in Nanyang is up?"
A thought suddenly flashed through Li Nanke's mind.
If Li Yao's term is up, then it will explain why my grandfather wanted to cultivate relationships with people from the Left Prime Minister's office.
Li Yao needs to re-select officials in Bianjing, and this matter falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel.
The Ministry of Personnel was placed under the jurisdiction of the Left Chancellor!
It seems that Marquis Anping wants Li Yao to choose a better official position!
After Li Nanke finished eating a bowl of chicken soup noodles, he instructed Zilan.
"Sister Zilan, please keep a close eye on Grandfather and Second Uncle. If there's anything unusual, please tell me."
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Go and find out if anyone knows that I went to the blacksmith's shop today."
She had a gut feeling that the incident with the startled horse had nothing to do with the Xue family.
Zilan responded.
She ate two small bowls of chicken soup noodles, her tummy was full, and then she put down her chopsticks.
Song Yi patted her, "Mother will walk with you in the yard to help you digest your food, then you can take a nap before going to Mr. Huang for class."
Because of the frightened horse, Song Yi felt uneasy and personally stayed by her side until she fell asleep before going about her business.
Li Nanke didn't sleep soundly. In his dream, he felt like he was still being tossed around in the frightened carriage. He woke up after sleeping for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
She sat there blankly for a while, lost in thought, before letting Zisu comb her hair again and taking her prosthetic leg to Zhiguan Hall.
"For me?"
Zhou Huai'an looked at the prosthetic limb handed to him, his beard trembled, and he looked surprised.
Li Nanke nodded and urged, "This thing is very heavy, Grandpa Zhou, please take it quickly."
Zhou Huai'an's hand trembled slightly, then he quickly withdrew it.
"Fine, once I've repaid my debt, I'll..."
Huang Sheng couldn't stand it and suddenly rolled his eyes.
But he only has one good eye, so rolling his eyes is a bit difficult for him.
Having failed to roll his eyes, he reluctantly took the prosthetic limb from Zisu's hand and shoved it in front of Zhou Huai'an.
“Just take what’s given to you. What’s with all the fuss? I can’t stand you educated people. You’ve read a lot of classical Chinese, but all you do is act pretentious!”
"I......"
"What do you mean 'I'? I'll just give it a try. Who has time to be so dramatic in life?"
Huang Sheng snorted coldly, ripped open his empty trouser leg, opened the brass buckle on the prosthetic leg, wrapped the soft flesh of his knee with the leather at the joint, and then fastened the entire prosthetic leg on.
The whole set of movements was smooth and quick. Zhou Huai'an was still in a daze when Huang Sheng had already put it on for him.
"Don't just stand there, get up and walk around!"
Huang Sheng helped Zhou Huai'an to his feet.
Zhou Huai'an stood up blankly, not yet used to his new leg, and staggered, almost falling over.
Huang Sheng grabbed him.
"Hey, you old codger, you're not used to hopping around on one leg, are you? Suddenly you have a new leg and you're not used to it?"
Zhou Huai'an pursed his lips and remained silent.
During his stay at Zhiguan Hall, he spent his days either fetching water to wash clothes or helping to copy and record accounts.
There was no time to rest. By the time I lay down at night, I was exhausted and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Only today did he realize that he hadn't thought about how to die for many days.
"Don't just stand there, let's go and see."
Huang Sheng's urging brought Zhou Huai'an back to his senses. He took a deep breath and tried to shift his weight forward.
Although the leather covering his knees had a soft lining, it still rubbed against his stump, making a rustling sound and causing a sour, stinging pain.
He lifted his leg and took a step forward, then stopped, sweat dripping down his temples.
Zhou Huai'an didn't stop, but took another step forward, then stopped and looked at Li Nanke.
Li Nanke's eyes sparkled like stars in the sky as she clapped her hands happily.
"Great, Grandpa Zhou can go now."
Then he changed the subject, "However, this favor must be repaid, Grandpa Zhou. The prosthetic limb has been installed and returns are not accepted."
Li Nanke stood with his hands behind his back, tilting his head back to look at Zhou Huai'an, a sly glint in his round eyes.
Zhou Huai'an looked at himself standing steadily on the ground, his trouser legs down, and there was no way to tell that he was disabled with one leg missing.
He inexplicably felt his eyes getting wet and hot.
Although this little girl kept saying she wanted to help him die, she is now asking him to repay her kindness. But he can sense the kindness hidden in her heart.
Zhou Huai'an's lips trembled, and he said in a hoarse voice, "I...I'll pay it back!"
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