Chapter 748 Benefactor
The man who came out from the shadow of the gate was wearing a fur coat from Beiling. The bone pendant on his waist made a sound when he walked. Although he walked with the gait of a dragon or a tiger, his figure and appearance were those of a person from the Wei Dynasty.
When Song Jinxiu saw him, it was like seeing a relative, and his previous gloomy and cold demeanor disappeared completely.
"Didn't Brother Zhang send a message saying that you were left in Wei because of someone's mischief with that shipment, and that you wouldn't be able to return before the New Year? Why are you back now?"
He had just asked a question, and before the man could reply, he saw that the fur hat on his head was covered with snowflakes. He quickly took two steps forward and came closer.
"How long have you been here, Brother Zhang? Why don't you go in?"
"Not long, just a moment."
The man grinned, revealing a row of white teeth, and his breath was white.
"When I came here, someone in your house said you were out for something, so I didn't want to rush in and disturb you, so I waited for you outside. What a coincidence! I didn't stay there for long before you came back."
Song Jinxiu's face darkened when he heard this. Although the person in front of him was smiling when he spoke, as if he had just arrived, he was clearly standing under the eaves in front of the door, and there was still a layer of snow on his head and body. Not only was his face red from the cold, but his lips were also black when he grinned.
Song Jinxiu's eyes flashed with anger. He was about to say something, but when he met the man's clear eyes, he quickly suppressed his anger and quickly stepped forward to pull the man aside and said:
"What do you mean by disturbing or not? Brother Zhang is an honored guest. I would be so happy if you could come every day."
"It's cold outside, Brother Zhang, come with me."
The gatekeeper opened the door quickly upon seeing Song Jinxiu return. When Song Jinxiu led his men into the inner room, where the surrounding lights were bright, he saw that the clothes of the man opposite him were mostly wet. His eyes grew increasingly angry, but his expression remained friendly: "Brother Zhang, your clothes are wet. Why don't you go in and change first?"
"No need, my robe is thick..."
"No matter how thick it is, it can't withstand such cold weather. Beiling is bitterly cold. If you catch a cold, you'll be seriously injured. Besides, I haven't seen Brother Zhang for a while, and I still want to have a good chat with you. I can't let you reminisce with me like this, right?"
The man hesitated for a moment, but seeing Song Jinxiu's serious expression, he could only reluctantly agree: "Okay, I'll listen to Master Song. I'll go change."
Song Jinxiu frowned when he heard this: "What do you mean by sir or not? Didn't I tell you to call me Huaiyu? Otherwise, call me Jinxiu."
"This doesn't make sense..."
"What's wrong with that?"
Song Jinxiu said directly, "When I was being hunted, if it weren't for Brother Zhang risking his life to save me, I would have died long ago. You are my great benefactor, my second parent. If you call me sir again, wouldn't that be an insult to my face?"
He would remember for the rest of his life that he was hunted down after escaping from the capital. The imperial court sent people to capture him, and he almost died at the hands of those people several times.
If he had not luckily hidden in Zhang Bin's caravan and been taken all the way to the border town, he would probably have died long ago, not to mention meeting Xiahou Ling's men later.
Seeing Zhang Bing across from him, full of hesitation, Song Jinxiu said, "Is it that Brother Zhang looks down on me, a traitor who defected to another country, and thinks I'm too cowardly to be your friend?"
"Of course not, I never thought of it that way!"
Zhang Bing became anxious upon hearing this and quickly explained, "I know about your past experiences, and I know you were forced into it. As a child, how can you make decisions about your parents' affairs? You simply took a wrong turn and were forced into a corner. It's probably because of them that you were dragged into this situation. Besides, my background is even more humble than yours, so how could I look down on you?"
Seeing that his face was flushed with anxiety, Song Jinxiu raised his eyes to look at him and said, "That big brother Zhang still calls me sir?"
Zhang Bin paused for a moment, then said helplessly, "Okay, Jin Xiu."
"That's right."
Song Jinxiu finally smiled. Seeing that his hair and clothes were damp, he quickly said to the person beside him, "Take Brother Zhang downstairs to change his clothes, and then tell the kitchen to bring some hot food."
After the others were taken to the side room, the smile on Song Jinxiu's face faded.
"Someone come."
Someone came in quickly from outside.
"grown ups."
"Everyone guarding the gate tonight will be taken away and beaten with thirty sticks. Tomorrow they will be sold to the slavery office!"
The man was instantly shocked: "Sir, you..."
"Why, I can't even deal with the servants in the mansion?"
Song Jinxiu looked at the man in front of him and said, "I know you were selected and sent here by the people in the Imperial Master's Mansion, but since you are in this mansion, you are my slaves, Song Jinxiu. Let alone just giving you thirty lashes and selling you to the slave yamen, even if I beat you to death, what will happen?"
"Or do you think your Imperial Master would turn against me for a few human slaves?"
The man trembled and his face turned pale: "I dare not."
When he lowered his head, he no longer had the doubts and shock he had just felt. This was because he knew the Imperial Master too well. Not to mention that they were not considered confidants of the Imperial Master's Mansion. Although they were ordered to monitor Lord Song, the new noble in the court, they were just people picked up from the slaves by the Imperial Master's Mansion.
If this batch dies, we can just send another batch over. How could the Imperial Master turn against Lord Song for them?
Song Jinxiu looked at him trembling and said coldly, "The Imperial Master may look down on me and treat me like a dog he can command at will, but it's not your turn to trample on my face. Zhang Bing is my honored guest. If you dare to treat him like this again, I will let you know how easy it is to die."
The man knelt on the ground and said, "I dare not."
Song Jinxiu's face was full of disgust: "Get out."
The man kowtowed quickly, then hurriedly got up and retreated.
When Zhang Bing came out from the side room after changing his clothes, the hostility on Song Jinxiu's face had disappeared.
The charcoal basin in the room was burning, and the room seemed particularly warm after the cold faded away. Song Jinxiu took off his cloak and sat at the table. The originally empty table was already filled with smoking hot food.
After Zhang Bin sat down, Song Jinxiu personally scooped him some hot soup. Only after he took a sip of the hot soup did Zhang Bing sigh.
"It's better to come back. I was almost scared to death along the way."
Upon hearing this, Song Jinxiu asked, "Brother Zhang, is your business trip not going well this time? I was worried for a long time when you sent me the message. Have you resolved the issue with the goods?"
Zhang Bing sighed unhappily, "Don't mention it. The situation in the Wei Dynasty is tense. Previously, the war in the south was raging, and I could have taken advantage of the chaos to make a fortune. But then the fighting suddenly stopped, and the Wei Emperor launched a massive requisition of supplies, even mobilizing all the merchant ships from the north and south."
"You know there were some contraband items in my cargo, but unfortunately I ran into their merchant ship and was immediately seized by them. Luckily, I ran away quickly when I saw the situation was not right, otherwise I would have lost my life."
He took a sip of the hot soup, feeling very unhappy.
"I lost a lot this time. All the money I earned in the past few years was lost."
Song Jinxiu had only asked casually, but his expression changed after hearing Zhang Bing's words: "Brother Zhang, you just said that the Wei court is requisitioning merchant ships?"
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