Vice Envoy Yang was amused by the man's shameless behavior and turned to Gu Yaoniang, saying, "I called you here just to inform you that this matter exists. In the future, don't be too ostentatious."
Gu Yaoniang wanted to retort, "How can you do business without being high-profile? If you're discreet, how will customers come to your shop?"
Yet, judging from his tone, Vice Envoy Yang seemed to be speaking on his behalf. Arguing with him now would be impolite, so he swallowed his words.
Vice Envoy Yang pointed at the man kneeling on the ground and said, "You, stop pretending! The doctor has already examined you, that's enough."
The man continued to groan in pain, and Vice Envoy Yang's face darkened. The man, however, dared not truly defy the government and reluctantly submitted.
Seeing that he had learned his lesson, Vice Envoy Yang said with satisfaction, "I will not hold your recent disturbance in front of the government office against you, nor will I hold the owner of Jin Yu Lou against you. You may leave now."
The man was taken aback, somewhat reluctant, but afraid that if he continued to pester them, he would be detained, so he had no choice but to get up and leave.
Seeing that he was indeed limping, Gu Yaoniang couldn't help but worry: "Sir, are you really alright? If it's really because of our Jin Yu Lou, we can compensate him with some silver."
Vice Envoy Yang gave her a deep look and said, "No need! Madam Gu, if you are kind to this kind of person, you will be easy to bully! It's better to use your money wisely."
-
Even after getting into the Zhaocai restaurant and sitting opposite Gu Xingzhi, Gu Yaoniang still didn't understand what was going on.
If the government had already determined that this person was the troublemaker, why did they summon me in such a hurry, only to have me do nothing? They didn't even have me sign a guarantee.
After hearing her recount the whole story, Gu Xingzhi gave a cold smirk: "Vice Envoy Yang is trying to curry favor with us and ask for benefits."
Gu Yaoniang was taken aback, raising her eyebrows slightly: "Second Uncle, are you saying that he deliberately used this matter to test my attitude?"
Let's see how this young man, the new boss of the Gu family, behaves. Does he understand the old rules, and will he be willing to offer him benefits?
Gu Xingzhi nodded: "He's a coward, yet greedy. He never dares to protect troublemakers, but he's also unwilling to give up any benefits. In a situation like today, he would send that person away no matter what, but he would still ask you for some benefits, not wanting to end up with nothing."
Gu Yaoniang couldn't help but laugh—she had always thought he was just and honest, and she had found it somewhat contradictory that such a good official was greedy. Now it seemed that he simply didn't have the guts to be unjust, which made sense.
"So, does that mean even if I don't give him any gifts today, he won't dare to cause me any trouble in the future?"
As Gu Yaoniang thought about it, she found it extremely amusing and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Gu Xingzhi looked at her and gently shook his head: "You're getting better and better at managing your life."
But since their gesture of goodwill was so obvious, the Gu family naturally couldn't pretend not to understand and just let it slide. They had to show some appreciation.
The uncle and nephew discussed for a while in the carriage. Under Gu Xingzhi's guidance, Gu Yaoniang drafted a list and secretly sent someone to prepare gifts for Vice Envoy Yang.
-
The darkroom was dimly lit, greatly limiting vision, but it stimulated hearing, making it exceptionally sensitive.
A person was being supported on a wooden frame taller than a person.
At this moment, he had just woken up from his coma and was warily looking around at everything.
He wasn't disheveled at all; his clothes were neat, just as they had been when he appeared at the silver shop. Even the wrinkles hadn't increased much.
In the dim light, he could vaguely see someone in front of him.
And it wasn't just one person.
They're probably here to interrogate me. They should be from the Lu family, maybe even the Gu family?
Actually, he didn't care much. Originally, going on this trip, taking the voucher he had snatched from the Gu family to exchange for silver from the Lu family, was extremely risky, even if it was a genuine exchange.
Moreover, nowadays, what two large trading companies would use vouchers to do business? These vouchers are mostly just bait to lure them in.
Unfortunately, his master wanted to see what the Gu and Lu families were up to and figure out what was going on with this redemption ticket. So he had no choice but to take the bait.
Actually, he couldn't understand what these masters were up to.
They all come from respectable backgrounds and should be earning a considerable monthly salary. Yet, they insist on taking money from their pockets.
I really don't understand.
It's hard to understand.
But he doesn't intend to figure it out.
There's no way around it, you have to obey orders... Thinking is the least important thing.
He squinted, looking at the figure in front of him.
Lu Zhaoan was also observing the person in front of him. He was clearly in deep trouble, but he seemed completely unconcerned. It wasn't a display of fearless bravery, but rather indifference.
They didn't care if the operation failed, they didn't care about their master's explanation, and they didn't care if they were subjected to severe torture.
The two remained silent, facing each other.
Finally, the man tied to the frame couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "Who is it?"
Lu Zhaoan composed himself and said, "Now that you're here, can't you guess who I am?"
"Young Master Lu?"
The man subconsciously wanted to raise his hand to scratch his head, but then he remembered that he was currently restrained. His ten fingers moved unconsciously, rubbing against the hemp rope on his wrists, which hurt a little.
These rich kids are so annoying! They're always pretending to be profound.
He showed no awareness of being under someone else's roof, and even displayed an inappropriate disdain. He was knocked unconscious with a blunt object at the Lu family's silver shop. Who else could he have met as his master there besides Boss Lu and his second son?
Unable to see the impatience on the man's face, Lu Zhaoan calmly replied, "Exactly."
The man chuckled upon hearing this.
Lu Zhaoan didn't ask him what he was laughing about, but simply asked, "Who is your master?"
The man shook his head: "Young Master Lu, you know, we people in this line of work can't tell you that."
Lu Zhaoan looked at his hands leisurely; they appeared very slender in the dim light.
He casually replied with an "Oh," and then asked, "Really? Why? Do you have something on him?"
The man was clearly taken aback, but refused to speak.
Seeing that he did not answer, Lu Zhaoan said unhurriedly, "It's alright. Even if you don't say, I can guess who it is."
His lips parted and he uttered a name.
The man was genuinely shocked: "How did you know?"
Lu Zhaoan didn't take it seriously: "In the entire Shuojing City, how many people would dare to plot against me and succeed? And after succeeding, there's only one person who would dare to test me so openly."
I don't know whether to call it boldness or stupidity.
He had only been guessing at first, but the person's reaction confirmed his guess.
Lu Zhaoan got up and walked outside, instructing his subordinates, "Take care of it."
He then left without looking back.
As he wiped his hands, he said to Afu, who had been following him, "Go tell the Gu family that the commercial draft has been found."
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