When the madam saw how generous the man was, she almost laughed her powder off her face: "Alright, come quickly and take this young master upstairs. Young master, please wait upstairs for a moment. I will definitely arrange the most beautiful girl to go to your room."
Song Anxin went upstairs and chose a private room next to Jiang Liu and the others. He went in and quickly pressed his ear against the wall where they were, trying to hear some news.
A moment later, a woman dressed in a thin green dress entered. The woman was startled by her appearance. Song Anxin tossed her a silver ingot and said, "Just sit there and don't disturb me."
The woman, having spent a long time in the world of pleasure, knew exactly what Song Anxin was up to. She chuckled and went to the side to open the window: "Young master, come here and listen. The windows on both sides are close together, so you can hear it more clearly from here."
Song Anxin had only been listening for a while when she heard a commotion next door and was worried she couldn't hear what they were saying. She went to the window and, sure enough, she could hear the conversation clearly. She smiled at the woman in green and said, "Thank you, but this matter..."
The woman, being quite perceptive, said, "Don't worry, young master, I won't tell anyone. We all know the importance of keeping quiet in our line of work. I'll just play the zither here, young master, please feel free to do so."
After saying that, she sat down and played the zither, ignoring Song Anxin's careful listening to the sounds from next door.
Young Master Jiang and Lin Gangzi were flirting with the beautiful young women, while Young Master Zhang seemed to dislike the scene and remained silent.
After listening for a long time, the other end finally got to what she wanted to hear.
"Come on, Zhang Jing, don't pretend to be so serious when you come here. The girls will be heartbroken. Let's have a drink. Girls, fill his glass. Zhang Jing, I have to thank you properly. You really found me a treasure this time."
"Congratulations, Young Master Jiang. The Jiang family will surely reach new heights this time," Zhang Jing said, raising his wine glass, but his eyes remained unfathomable.
"Hahaha, Zhang Jing, you're such a good helper in our family. But why didn't we force Lin Fengshou to tell us himself instead of waiting for his mother to come? Now I have to wait until tomorrow."
Zhang Jing said, "Given Lin Fengshou's personality, he would never say it even if he were beaten to death. But his mother is different. How could a mother bear to watch her son die?"
Jiang Liu laughed even more arrogantly: "You're really something, aren't you? I never thought there would be such a treasure in that remote and impoverished place. Lin Gangzi, you're not so bad after all, you lackey."
Lin Gangzi, with a woman on each side, was drinking and having a good time. Upon hearing this, he immediately said, "I must thank Young Master Zhang for recognizing my talent and giving me this opportunity. However, you two gentlemen must be careful of Lin Fengshou's mother. This Second Aunt Lin has suddenly become increasingly clever for some reason. Several times she has managed to escape from the traps I set. I'm afraid..."
"Hmph, what are you afraid of? A country woman can only act tough in your village. I don't think she's very smart to have raised such a stupid son. He even got drunk when signing the contract and didn't even know he signed three copies," Jiang Liu said disdainfully.
"Yes, yes, Young Master Jiang is indeed clever. You must keep this contract safe and don't lose it."
Jiang Liu glared at him, his eyes already tinged with drunkenness: "What are you worrying about? How could you possibly get lost in my arms? Only you sisters can get close to me, right? Hehe."
As he spoke, he began to harass the women surrounding him, spewing vulgarities.
Lin Gangzi replied with a forced smile, "Yes, yes, of course such an important thing must be carried with you at all times."
Zhang Jing said, "Since Lin Gangzi said so, we shouldn't let our guard down. I think that woman is indeed different from ordinary country women. Lin Gangzi, you should go to Fourth Master now and tell him to quickly transfer that batch of goods and clean it up. He will be paid the money as agreed before."
Lin Gangzi was enjoying a romantic moment, and although he was reluctant to leave, he still got up and hurried off to take care of his business.
Upon hearing the name Fourth Master, Song Anxin realized that he was the one who had been collecting protection money from Fengshou. "Oh, so it turns out that Young Master Zhang's rescue of Lin Fengshou was also premeditated."
She knew her chance had come. Once outside, she told Lin Fengnian to follow Lin Gangzi closely and see where the Fourth Master's mansion was.
She returned to the Red Mansion, took a sip of tea, and said, "This is Miss Lv Fu, right? Could you please ask your neighbor for a small favor?"
Green Fist stopped playing the zither and smiled, "Young master's busy work must be no small matter. The girls in the brothel are just trying to make a living and can't afford to offend these important people."
"Your reward will definitely satisfy you after the job is done," Song Anxin said, putting down her teacup.
Green Plucked her fingers and began to play the zither again, her voice broken and fragmented: "The girls in the building are no good, but I do know someone who can help you."
Following Lü Fu's instructions, Song Anxin found the person she was talking about in a secluded alley corner. The person looked very thin, and his hat was covering his eyes, so Song Anxin couldn't see his exact appearance. He leaned lazily against the wall as if he knew someone would come looking for him.
“I was introduced by Miss Lv Fu. The eldest son of the Jiang family has three contracts in his possession. Could you help me steal them?” Song Anxin asked directly.
The man shifted slightly and said, "Jiang Liu, the eldest son of the Jiang family, will leave Chunhong Pavilion around midnight. Where will I find you then?"
Song Anxin told him about the inn she was staying at, and she figured this person probably worked with the girls in the Red Chamber to do things for others.
After paying the deposit, she returned to the flower street and happened to run into Lin Fengnian, who was looking for her.
"Mother, I know where that place is."
"Let's go!"
Soon they arrived at a secluded alley. The Fourth Master's house was quite large. Song Anxin led Lin Fengnian around to the backyard of the house.
"In a bountiful year, you squat down and lift your mother up."
"Mother, is this really okay? I'm afraid you'll be in danger."
Song Anxin calmly said, "How can you get what you want without taking some risks? Don't worry, go ahead and wait for your mother. She will come out safely."
After saying that, she jumped off the wall. The backyard was full of livestock and piles of miscellaneous items, and there was no one guarding it. Even so, Song Anxin carefully walked along the base of the wall. She stopped by a patch of dry grass and lit a tinderbox.
After doing all this, she crouched in a corner with some cover and quietly watched the fire grow bigger. Soon someone discovered her.
"Fire! Fire in the backyard!"
The entire mansion was thrown into chaos. Soon, a large number of people rushed over from the front to put out the fire. Taking advantage of the chaos, Song Anxin sneaked into the front yard and saw a scarred man leading a group of his henchmen towards the back yard.
"What are you doing?! How could there be a fire in the backyard?!"
"I don't know either. I heard from the servants that the fire is quite big. Fourth Master, let's go take a look."
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