In the county town, the already overwhelmed clerk met with Jin Yu out of consideration for the past relationship between the two families. Upon learning Jin Yu's purpose, he couldn't help but doubt his ears, "What did you say? Deyilou killed a servant of the Jin family and wants me to take charge?"
Could this excuse be any more clumsy?
“That’s right,” Jin Yu cupped his hands in greeting. “Master, our two families have a long-standing relationship. This time, you must stand up for the Jin family.”
Upon hearing this, the clerk calmed himself down and then said, "Nephew, the county office has been very busy lately. The magistrate has been waiting in the back hall. I rushed over as soon as I heard you were here, and I only had a moment to spare. I understand what happened. I'll explain in detail another day. I'll go back to my work now."
After saying this, the advisor left in a hurry without waiting for Jin Yu to react.
Seeing this, Jin Yu became puzzled. "Did she agree or not? Let's go home and ask Mom!"
After confirming that Jin Yu had left, the advisor's face turned completely cold. "That brat from the Jin family, he courted death and tried to drag me down with him. Does he think everyone else is as stupid as him?"
“Master,” Inspector Niu asked suspiciously, “what’s the Jin family up to now? We can usually let them clean up these messes, but now that someone’s watching us, we can’t afford to get into trouble!”
"That idiot from the Jin family actually wants to pay attention to the trouble at Manlou," the advisor shook his head. "I don't know if he's just recklessly bold or brainless. Does he really think Ping'an County is his backyard, where he can do whatever he wants?"
"They actually want to cause trouble at Yimanlou?" Inspector Niu took a breath. "Are they crazy? As long as the courtesan is in power, how can the Jin family possibly touch Yimanlou?"
"Who knows what he's thinking?" the advisor said, taking a sip of tea. "He's probably upset about being humiliated by Manlou and wants to get revenge."
However, the madam of Yimanlou was a woman of principle; she had never done anything out of line over the years, and the excuse the Jin family made was completely untenable.
“They know it themselves, otherwise they wouldn’t have come to you.”
“I’m not going to get involved in this mess,” the advisor shook his head. “Jin Yu has pawned his most profitable restaurant. The Jin family is already on the verge of collapse. This incident might cause them to fall into complete ruin.”
"Not necessarily. Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. It might last a few more years."
"Maybe!"
Their voices grew softer and softer until they were almost inaudible.
After returning home, Jin Yu recounted the whole story to Madam Jin, and then voiced his doubts, "Mother, did Master agree or not?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Jin was also unsure, "Usually it's your father who deals with him, I'm just a woman and I don't understand these things."
He paused, then asked thoughtfully, "Did he accept the silver notes?"
That hundred taels was already considered Madam Jin's most prized possession.
It hurt my heart, but I still took it out.
After all, if things are done well, the returns will be ten or a hundred times greater.
Upon hearing this, Jin Yu secretly pinched the silver note in his sleeve, then smiled and said, "I gave it to you, Master, and put it into your sleeve right then and there."
"That's fine then," Madam Jin breathed a sigh of relief. "Since the saying goes, if you take someone's money, you should help them get things done. Now that you've accepted the money, you should help us get things done."
Hearing this, Jin Yu was somewhat unwilling and tentatively asked, "What if they confiscate it?"
"What?" Mrs. Jin looked sharply at her son. "He didn't accept it?"
"No, no," Jin Yu said nervously, "He'll take it. Who doesn't love money? How could he not take it!"
Having received so much money from my family in the past, I'll also give a small token of respect this time, just a little less. It should be fine, right?
Although Jin Yu was uneasy, he didn't take it to heart.
The advisor's relationship with the Jin family wasn't something that had just started recently; it was a decades-long friendship that wouldn't be ruined by a hundred taels of silver.
Besides, I already gave him a set of writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone, which is enough.
"That's good," Madam Jin said, unaware of her son's unusual behavior. "Since he accepted the money, it means things are settled. As for his hurried departure, perhaps he really had something to attend to. I heard that some important people came to the county government, and he was probably busy serving them."
“In that case,” Jin Yu’s excited eyes gleamed with a hint of malice, “let’s go to Deyilou now.”
He's determined to teach those bastards a lesson!
"Bilian, bring me the veil. Today, I, the lady, will personally take charge!"
She had long hated the sluts in the brothel, but she didn't want to lower herself to deal with them.
Now that someone has run into her, it would be against her nature not to vent her anger.
Because of these hidden thoughts, Madam Jin acted quickly and arrived at Deyilou in no time.
Before even entering, he fanned his nose in disgust, "It really is a fox's den; I can smell a foul stench even before I step inside."
Hearing this, the madam was very angry. "Oh, who do we have here? It's the eldest mistress of the Jin family. It's true that Deyilou is a den of foxes, but we can't help it because Master Jin likes us. He comes to fawn over us foxes every few days. We've tried to persuade him so many times, but he won't listen. It's really a difficult situation for us."
After a deliberate pause, the madam flicked her handkerchief and sneered, "Some people act all high and mighty, yet they can't hold onto their own men's hearts. They're not even as good as us vixens!"
Her words were very satisfying to the girls in the brothel, and even their gazes towards Madam Jin softened somewhat.
These hurtful words made Madam Jin's face turn pale, and she couldn't help but curse, "You're just a bunch of worthless bastards who actually think they're human. My master is just playing around with you, but you take it seriously. Don't you realize that if he had even a shred of sincerity towards you, would he let you stay in this degrading place?"
These words struck a nerve with the courtesans.
If there were even the slightest hope, no one would want to degrade themselves like this. But those stinky men, no matter how sweet their words are in bed, are the kind of people who turn their backs on their partners once they've taken their clothes off.
"How ridiculous," the madam sneered. "No matter how much you say, it can't hide the fact that you're incompetent at keeping your own man. So what if you're behaving badly? He didn't eat a single grain of rice from Madam Jin, why are you worrying about it? You should spend more time managing your own son and stop doing such shameful and improper things!"
"She dared to swindle my money and then twist the truth like this, she really is a slut," Jin Yu said angrily. "Mother, don't waste your breath on her, let's get serious!"
“Indeed,” Madam Jin patted her head. “I was foolish to stoop to the level of a bunch of lowly hussies. Once they’re arrested, I’ll see if they’ll still be so stubborn!”
After speaking, Madam Jin gave a wink, and the servants immediately stood at attention.
She stepped forward, her gaze sweeping over Meiyu as she examined the goods. After nodding in satisfaction, she spoke slowly, "This morning, you killed an old servant of the Jin family. I have already reported it to the authorities. This matter will not be so easily resolved!"
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