Yang Xi drank several cups of tea in succession. Feng Chuli ordered someone to refill the tea, and murmured, "A few days ago, I saw Madam Yang and chatted for a while. The old lady has a deep resentment towards you. She said that you always leave early and return late, and you can't even see a trace of yourself on weekdays, let alone come home for a meal."
"It's been a while since I've been back. I'll go back and see them when I have some free time in a few days." Yang Xi picked up a book nearby and flipped through it, his words tinged with helplessness.
Feng Chuli glanced around, dismissed the two maids waiting outside the door, and asked softly, "Are you still troubled by Qian Rushan's matter?"
Yang Xi pursed his lips, looked at Feng Chuli, and nodded.
Feng Chuli sighed, looking at Yang Xi with a serious expression, "If this continues, when will it ever end?"
Yang Xi gripped the teacup tightly with three fingers, his sharp eyes revealing a ruthless intent. "He died such a tragic death, almost losing his family. Even if I have to search until the end of time, I will make those who harmed him pay the price!"
“Yang Xi…” Feng Chuli looked at Yang Xi’s fierce expression. At that moment, even if he had a thousand words of advice, he silently swallowed them and could only quietly stay by his side.
Yang Xi finished his tea and, without lingering, stood up with his long blade. "Chu Li, thank you for the tea. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
"Walking so fast?" Feng Chuli chased after Yang Xi and saw him to the door. He hesitated for a moment before stammering, "Yang Xi, Miss Qingyu hasn't seen you in a long time. Since you've come all this way, why don't you go and see her? She's mentioned you to me several times."
Yang Xi immediately shook his head without the slightest hesitation, "The Tang family is holding a housewarming banquet at their new residence in a few days. I have already promised Uncle Tang that I would attend the banquet. It's not too late to see you then. I'm going now, you can go back."
"But..." Before Feng Chuli could finish speaking, Yang Xiren had already disappeared. Feng Chuli stood at the door, seemingly able to imagine the girl's disappointed look, and finally let out a regretful and helpless sigh.
After leaving the Tang residence, Yang Xi headed straight for the government office, but when he was still two alleys away, he heard a sharp commotion.
Who is causing trouble again?
He stopped and looked over, catching a glimpse of two young men, their faces still showing signs of immaturity, being surrounded by several servants from the Tang family, each wielding a wooden stick.
Yang Xi's gaze fell on one of the two boys, his eyes fixed, and he asked in a question-and-answer format: "Zhou Baoyu."
"You two brats, don't be so stubborn. Take this little bit of money and go home, and that'll be the end of it. We won't pursue it further. But if you take this to the authorities, don't blame me for not showing any mercy!"
Zhou Baoyu's arms were pinned behind his back. Because he had been doing heavy work for the past few days, his arms were limp and he couldn't muster any strength.
He glared at them and roared, "We agreed on fifty copper coins a day. Tiger and I have worked here for two days and one morning, so we should each get one hundred and fifty copper coins! But you only gave each of us seventy-five copper coins. You must have pocketed the rest! I'm going to report you to the authorities!"
Tiger wasn't about to back down, and retorted, "That's right, we'll report you to the authorities!"
The servant who spoke let out a contemptuous laugh, “Our master has already shown great compassion by giving you seventy-five copper coins. I never expected you to be so greedy, even wanting to take this to the authorities. Who do you think you are? Since you won’t listen to reason, then taste the stick!”
After speaking, his eyes hardened, and he raised his hand to signal, "Men, beat him!"
"Let me go! You're going too far! Help! Someone help me!" Baoyu and Huzi struggled with all their might, and just as the hard wooden stick was about to hit them, Yang Xi walked over and scolded, "Does Steward Feng know that you're using Master Tang's name to bully and oppress people?"
Upon seeing the newcomer, the servants immediately put away their sticks and stood dejectedly to the side. "Head Boss Yang."
When Baoyu saw that it was Yang Bantou, who had saved him several times before, he immediately broke free from the men's grasp, pulled Huzi behind Yang Xi, and pleaded, "Yang Bantou, help us! Please help us!"
Yang Xi looked at the two disheveled people, lowered his eyes, and asked calmly, "What happened to you two?"
"Foreman Yang, they hit us!" Before Baoyu could finish speaking, the head servant, worried that Baoyu and Huzi might say something detrimental to him, preemptively threw mud at them, "Foreman Yang, it's nothing serious. Just two lazy brats trying to cheat us out of money by working here. You tell me, they don't work, yet they want money? Where in the world is there such a good deal? Besides, we've already paid them, but they're still not satisfied. Out of desperation, we resorted to these extreme methods."
"You're completely twisting the truth and talking nonsense! We agreed on fifty coins a day, but you only paid us half the wages for the work we did. You're clearly taking advantage of our young age and pocketing the rest of the money!" Baoyu looked at the servant's face and wanted nothing more than to rush up and tear his mouth apart.
Yang Xi's cold gaze swept over the two boys, whose clothes were covered in dirt, mud, and sawdust. Without needing to ask further, he could guess that they knew the whole story.
He blocked Baoyu's way, saying, "You don't need to worry. I have a close relationship with Steward Feng of the Tang family. You can find out how much you were paid by asking him. If it's a lie, then you deserve to be beaten. If what you say is true, I will personally go to Steward Feng to seek justice for you, and you will receive every penny you are owed."
With someone backing him up, Baoyu straightened his back and replied cooperatively, "Alright! Headman Yang, I'll listen to you!"
Mentioning Feng Chuli, the servants exchanged glances, then lowered their heads guiltily, not daring to look at Yang Xi.
Yang Xi stared coldly at them. "I'll ask one last time, how much more pay do you owe them?"
The head servant, fearing that the matter would be reported to his superiors, smiled awkwardly, stood up hesitantly, presented a money bag with both hands, and pleaded with snot and tears streaming down his face, "Chief Yang, I know I was wrong. There are a total of one hundred and fifty copper coins here, all of them."
Yang Xi glared at him sharply, took the money pouch, and turned to hand it to Baoyu, saying, "Open it and see if the amount matches up."
“Good!” Baoyu took the money bag, counted it twice with Huzi, and said happily, “Yang, there are no more or less copper coins, not a single one missing.”
Seeing that the matter was over, the servants knelt down in fear. "Headmaster Yang, please spare us! We will never dare to do it again. Please don't tell Steward Feng, or our lives will be in danger."
Looking at these cunning and treacherous servants, Yang Xi felt both hate and pity for them, so he let them go. "You may leave!"
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