Chapter 13 Chapter 13 This damn desire to win! ...
Someone let out a low cry of surprise. People paused for a moment, then retreated like a tide, leaving a path in the middle.
Zhang Xiaoman looked back in surprise.
A red figure slowly emerged from the hazy rain and fog, bright and brilliant, so bold and unrestrained that the gloomy sky was almost driven back by this fire.
He didn't hold an umbrella, but instead fiddled with a folding fan, his head slightly raised, his expression lazily yet somewhat aloof. His face, while impeccably handsome, elicited no sense of intimacy.
Only Zhang Xiaoman is different.
"Did you come to see me specially?" she asked excitedly as she ran up to him.
"No." Chen Ling'an still denied it. He walked slowly past her and looked at the terrified Mrs. Zhou. "The real person is here. Cry, shout, tell me what you have wronged me."
How could Mrs. Zhou even make a sound?
With a whoosh, Chen Ling'an suddenly opened his folding fan, startling Mrs. Zhou so much that she trembled all over and shrank back again and again.
At this moment, Zhang Xiaoman's attention was attracted by the folding fan, and he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"First time seeing this? Of course, it's a thirty-six-piece ivory folding fan carved with flowers, birds, and landscapes. The ivory is as thin as paper and hollowed out throughout. The large bone is embossed with mountains, rivers, and trees, while the smaller bone is brushed with shallow reliefs of rare birds, branches, and flowers. All are painted in gold. The knifework is expertly done, and the design is exquisite. It's gorgeous yet not vulgar."
Chen Ling'an waved his fan leisurely. "Not to mention you, even for the palace, there's no ivory fan more valuable than this one."
"How much does that cost?" Zhang Xiaoman blurted out.
Chen Lingan smiled and shook three fingers.
"Three...hundred taels?" After being shocked by the lapis lazuli before, Zhang Xiaoman didn't dare to say thirty taels, and mustered up the courage to guess higher.
Chen Lingan shook his head.
Zhang Xiaoman cried out in surprise, "It can't be three thousand taels!"
Chen Ling'an nodded.
The crowd gasped.
"Oh my god, three thousand taels! For a fan!"
Zhang Xiaoman's eyes widened. "I can't even earn three thousand taels in my lifetime! Goodness me, with three thousand taels, I can buy all the land within a hundred miles of Wangjiawan in Xuanfu."
Chen Ling'an slowly closed his folding fan and sighed with emotion, "Farmers toil their entire lives, barely making ends meet. Those who are better off can only save a few dozen taels at most."
"Even in this wealthy place like Yingtian Prefecture, a well-off family would be lucky to have a few hundred taels of property."
"But the Zhou family easily produced four fans like this!"
Screams rang out one after another, and at this time, not only was there no sympathy in people's eyes, but there was also a lot of hatred.
Chen Ling'an continued, "On February 16th, I will send Chen Shao, the Second Assistant, in the hope that he will be ranked high during the imperial examination and promoted to a powerful and lucrative position in another province. Madam Zhou, am I wrong?"
Mrs. Zhou collapsed on the ground, not daring to raise her head.
Zhang Xiaoman's heart moved when she heard this. February 16th, wasn't that the day when the Zhou family set her up? It turned out that she really had a big leg!
Chen Lingan laughed softly.
"He's also guilty of corruption, embezzlement, and other serious crimes. He's clearly a corrupt official who's plundered the people's wealth, so why is he crying foul?"
"Usury, loan sharking, Qingmiao money, fictitious contracts, and high-flying guns have all been used to your fullest! In your eyes, the common people are nothing but ants. As long as you can maintain your power, their lives and deaths are nothing to you."
Most of the people watching the excitement were ordinary people, who had all been oppressed by officials to varying degrees. When they heard this, they immediately felt the same way.
It is true that when poor people speak out against corrupt officials, they only hear a barrage of curses!
The color drained completely from Mrs. Zhou's face. She didn't dare to argue at all. She just knelt forward and begged for mercy, "Please spare us this time. We won't dare to do it again."
Chen Ling'an said coldly, "Just by crying and kneeling, you can wipe out everything you've done. Where in the world is there such a cheap thing?"
Mrs. Zhou could no longer bear it. She closed her eyes and fell limply to the ground.
Two old women appeared in the corner and walked towards this side timidly.
Chen Ling'an's eyes flashed, and he whispered to Mrs. Zhou, "Since you're so concerned about your husband, why don't you go to the Imperial Prison and accompany him?"
Mrs. Zhou woke up in fright, "No, no, please, sir..."
Chen Ling'an smiled maliciously and suddenly raised his voice, "Mrs. Zhou loves her husband dearly and has volunteered to go to the imperial prison to take care of Mr. Zhou. Of course, I must fulfill her wish."
Mrs. Zhou made a strange sound, "Ugh," and her eyes rolled back as she leaned backward—this time she was really dizzy.
The Jinyiwei never spoke empty words. Immediately, a captain in plain clothes emerged from the crowd, dragged the unconscious Mrs. Zhou away.
The two old women looked at each other, then went home trembling with fear to report the news.
It was too lively to watch, and coupled with Chen Ling'an's reputation, people were somewhat afraid. After whispering to each other for a while, they dispersed in groups of three or four.
Even though Mrs. Jiang kept winking at Zhang Xiaoman, she couldn't suppress the smile on her face. "I told you he was a good person, mother. I think you believe me now."
Mrs. Jiang mumbled a few words and planned to take Xiaoman away from this troublemaker.
However, the troublemaker stood in front of her without moving, bowed slightly and said, "Hello, Aunt Jiang. It's been many years since we last met. I, your nephew, would like to pay my respects to you."
He was such a natural person? Mrs. Jiang smiled distantly, "I don't deserve that."
"My father once studied under Mr. Jiang. Sixteen years ago, when he was transferred to the Imperial College as the chief academic officer, he took my mother and me to visit your house to pay our respects." Chen Ling'an spoke in a low voice, as if he was afraid of disturbing anything.
When Mrs. Jiang heard him mention her father, a sour taste rushed to her nose and tears welled up in her eyes. She nodded as a greeting.
"I remember that day my aunt happened to be back home, holding a plump, delicate baby in her arms. I even held him in my arms and picked pomegranates from the tree." Chen Ling'an laughed. "The little boy was so heavy that my hands were sore. The next day, I couldn't even lift a pen. My mother thought I was being lazy and didn't want to practice calligraphy."
Mrs. Jiang thought about it carefully for a moment, and it seemed that this was the case, but the young master... She looked at Zhang Xiaoman who was jumping for joy beside her, hesitated, and did not say it out loud.
"Mother, mother," Zhang Xiaoman shook Mrs. Jiang's arm, her eyes shining. "You two are old friends. You knew him several years earlier than I did!"
Recalling the past, Mrs. Jiang's heart softened a little, but her tone remained distant. "It was so long ago, I can't remember it." She laughed again, "Master Chen was only four or five years old at the time. What could he remember? I'm sure he might have made some mistakes."
Zhang Xiaoman was extremely surprised. Looking at his mother's expression, she clearly remembered it, so why was she pretending to have forgotten?
Chen Lingan smiled indifferently, "Maybe."
Zhang Xiaoman saw this and immediately felt a mixture of emotions. If it were her, she would definitely be sad and cry, but Chen Ling'an didn't show the slightest sadness. If she said he was cold and heartless and didn't care, she would never believe it.
It can only be because such things happen so often, and people get tired of going through it so many times that they have to let it go.
"You helped me again today." She counted on her fingers, trying to lighten the mood. "Let me count, one, two... Including the first time we met, I owe you five times. How can I repay you?"
Mrs. Jiang frowned and was about to change the subject when a clear male voice rang out, "Aunt!"
Liu Jinshu strode over. Holding an umbrella made it difficult to bow, so he simply bowed and said with a smile, "Mother has been waiting for you for a long time, and was afraid you might get tripped up along the way, so she asked your nephew to come out to greet you."
He was standing between Zhang's mother and daughter and Chen Ling'an. As he turned around, the umbrella happened to block Chen Ling'an's view.
The raindrops on the umbrella almost hit Chen Lingan's face!
Chen Ling'an took two steps back, his face gloomy and he said nothing.
"It's nothing serious. I was just about to leave when you came." Mrs. Jiang was anxious to leave the place where trouble came. While responding to Liu Jinshu, she hurriedly urged Xiaoman to get into the sedan chair.
Liu Jinshu then turned around, but still had no intention of greeting Chen Lingan.
Chen Ling'an chuckled coldly, "Liu Tanhua is indeed late. If he had come earlier, he might have been able to save Madam Zhou. If he had come even earlier, he might have been able to save Mr. Zhou. It's only a few steps away. I'm afraid it would be difficult to explain if Elder Chen asked."
This forced Liu Jinshu to speak, "I didn't arrest the man. If you want to ask, you should ask Lord Chen."
He was a little over an inch taller than Chen Lingan. They were standing face to face, very close to each other, and his eyes were looking down when he spoke.
Chen Ling'an's expression turned even uglier, and he forced a forced smile. "Your father was able to become the Grand Secretary of Jianji Palace because Lord Zhou did a lot of work on his behalf. Are you distancing yourself from the relationship so quickly? Are you trying to protect yourself?"
Liu Jin's face flushed, but he quickly regained his composure. "Master Chen, please be careful with your words. My father's entry into the cabinet is a gift from the Emperor. Where do you put the Emperor with these words? No one in the world can influence the Emperor's decision."
Seeing the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense, Mrs. Jiang secretly thought something was wrong and quickly gave Chen Ling'an an apologetic smile. "We still have to go to the Liu family to deliver a festival gift, so we won't delay your errand. Thank you for helping me out today. My master will come to thank you another day."
Chen Ling'an still gave her face, nodded slightly, and stepped aside to make way.
The raindrops seemed to be sifted through a fine sieve, floating and evenly sprinkling onto the earth, turning into misty moisture that enveloped his body, and the corners of his red clothes swayed in the breeze.
He looked over here, expressionless, his face beautiful but pale.
Zhang Xiaoman lowered the curtain of the sedan chair and felt that his mood was just like the weather.
The sedan creaked and disappeared around the corner of the street. Chen Ling'an remained standing. His loyal henchman, Wu Yong, trotted over, holding an umbrella over his boss's head and chattering, "Don't worry, sir. We've already pried open Zhou's mouth. The Liu family won't be able to survive for much longer. With a little more effort, we'll definitely be able to bring down the Lord!"
"Hmph!" Chen Ling'an shouted suddenly, full of anger, resentment, and unwillingness, which frightened Wu Yong so much that he almost bit his tongue.
"Go buy a pair of platform boots."
Wu Yong lowered his head to look at his boss's boots. "Master, are your boots broken?"
"No, remember to get thick-soled ones, at least an inch thicker than the ones I'm wearing."
It's uncomfortable to wear with the pad so high.
Wu Yong opened his mouth, but seeing his superior's angry face, he closed it.
Chen Ling'an had already walked several steps out when he turned back and gave another warning: "Tell the shoemaker that the boots must not be visible from the outside, and that they don't look like they're walking on stilts."
Wu Yong nodded, confused.
But why on earth!!!
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