Jing Zhe led Hanhan at a jog and soon arrived at the Zhang family's gate. When they passed the Zhang family's winery, Jing Zhe realized that something had indeed happened. When he came a couple of days ago, there was a constant stream of people coming and going outside the Zhang family's winery; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it was a sea of people.
The staff at the distillery were usually busy, but today was unusually quiet, with few people coming and going. Even the staff were idly leaning against the door, covering their mouths and yawning.
As Jing Zhe arrived at the Zhang family's gate, just as he was about to knock, Zhang Xuexian's roar came from inside the courtyard.
Jing Zhe lowered his hand and listened intently.
"Get out! Get out of here!"
"Big brother, don't be angry!"
At the same time, a strange male voice rang out.
"Brother, why can't you just consider what I'm saying? Fine, I admit I stole the brewing process for this strong liquor, but think about it, the process is so simple, even if I don't steal it now, someone else might steal it in the future, right?"
"..."
Zhang Xuexian didn't speak, but his heavy breathing revealed his anger.
"Brother, I've heard about it too. The guy who gave you the recipe for strong liquor is called Jing Zhe, right? He seems quite famous. Even I, a rough man in the countryside, have heard of him. He won first place in the Mid-Autumn Poetry Competition, right? The Zhang Family Distillery even does business with the royal family. Sounds pretty impressive, doesn't it?"
Suddenly, the man changed the subject, saying, "But have you ever considered that the reason you got the royal business is because you have strong liquor, not because of the Zhang Family Distillery brand! If others can also produce strong liquor, then the royal business won't just belong to the Zhang family anymore; it could be the Wang family, the Li family, or the Zhao family?"
"You're talking nonsense! The reason Zhang Family Winery was able to become a royal business is because of Jing Zhe! He is highly valued by His Majesty. As long as he's around, this royal business can only belong to Zhang Family Winery!"
After Zhang Xuexian finished speaking, the man sneered again.
"Hehe, do you really think His Majesty values him that much? Didn't he win first place in the Mid-Autumn Poetry Competition and also defeat the Third Prince of Southern Qi, thus saving Princess Mo Chen from marrying into Southern Qi? That's quite an achievement, isn't it? Logically speaking, since His Majesty values him so much, he should definitely bestow upon him a particularly high official position, right? Guess what it is?"
"..."
Zhang Xuexian remained silent, and the man laughed loudly, saying, "He's the editor-in-chief of some newspaper, I've never even heard of him. He's just a lowly fifth-rank official. How can you say His Majesty values him so much?"
"No...impossible..."
The news that Jing Zhe had been appointed as the head of the newspaper was only known to the high-ranking officials in the court; the common people were naturally unaware of it. Zhang Xuexian had thought that, given Jing Zhe's family background and his performance at the poetry gathering, he wouldn't be assigned a minor official position of the fifth rank.
So I was instantly stunned.
Seeing this, the man pressed his advantage, saying, "Since you're my elder brother, I'll tell you the truth! I've already handed over the liquor-making technique to the Prince of Jin's heir! The Prince of Jin's heir has the Prince of Xiang backing him up, and he's also His Majesty's nephew. If he can make the liquor, do you think the royal business will still go to you?"
"Furthermore, not only will the royal business be taken over by the Prince of Jin, but the city's—no, even the entire An Kingdom's liquor market—will fall under his control! So you might as well sell the Zhang Family Distillery to the Prince of Jin as soon as possible! Otherwise, you'll suffer heavy losses later!"
"You're dreaming! He's already lied to me once, and now he wants to lie to me a second time?"
"Oh dear, I've heard about that too. It's all a misunderstanding!"
The man smiled and said, "Actually, the Prince of Jin's heir often says that he did that kind of thing because he liked Xiaoyu too much, but he won't do it this time! Xiaoyu, what kind of person is the Prince of Jin's heir? It's a blessing for our Zhang family that he has taken a liking to you. How can you refuse him so easily?"
"Uncle, since you like the Prince of Jin's heir so much, why don't you let your daughter marry him?"
Zhang Xiaoyu's icy voice also rang out.
"..."
The man was clearly taken aback, then angrily retorted, "How can a young lady like you be so disrespectful? No wonder you dared to refuse even the Prince of Jin's heir; you have no manners at all! If your uncle had a daughter, he would have given her to the Prince of Jin's heir long ago! He wouldn't be so foolish!"
"Get out of here!"
Zhang Xuexian roared again, and his wife's voice could be heard pleading, "Master, please don't!" It seemed that Zhang Xuexian was so angry that he was about to take action.
The man snorted again, "I'm only here to advise you because you're my elder brother! If you remain obstinate, you'll regret it later!"
"..."
...
"Oh dear—did I come at the wrong time?"
At this moment, Jing Zhe pushed open the door and entered.
Looking up, besides the familiar Zhang Xuexian, Madam Zhang, and Zhang Xiaoyu who was so excited to see Jing Zhe that she shed tears, there was also a man who looked to be about forty or fifty years old, dressed in a brocade robe that looked out of place. Judging from his appearance, he did resemble Zhang Xuexian in some ways. Based on what he had heard from outside, Jing Zhe guessed that he must be Zhang Xuexian's younger brother.
When that person saw Jing Zhe, his brows furrowed.
"You've come at the worst possible time! Can't you see we're talking? You didn't even knock, don't you know any manners?"
Jing Zhe smiled and said, "Isn't it the right time? Okay, then I'll... wait in the yard."
As he spoke, Jing Zhe gave Hanhan a wink, and Hanhan sullenly closed the door.
"..."
The man's eyelids twitched. He suddenly felt that Jing Zhe was not someone to be trifled with, especially that burly man; he seemed like he could really hurt someone if he hit them…
Then he looked at Zhang Xiaoyu and asked, "Who is he?"
"This is--"
"I am an admirer of Xiaoyu, and I have come here because of her reputation, hoping to catch a glimpse of her beauty!"
"..."
Zhang Xiaoyu was initially angry and aggrieved, but after Jing Zhe said those words, she became shy again.
Upon seeing this, the man's face darkened.
"Hehe, just as I guessed! No wonder you rejected the Prince of Jin's son right away. Did you take a fancy to this pretty boy? Let me ask you, what's so good about this pretty boy besides being better looking than the Prince of Jin's son? Can good looks put food on the table?"
He disliked Jing Zhe at first sight and vaguely felt that Jing Zhe and Zhang Xiaoyu were a good match. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be just as he had imagined, so he scolded him in a fit of rage.
"..."
Zhang Xiaoyu pursed her lips and didn't reply, which made the other person even angrier.
"You seem young, and probably haven't experienced much in life. Let me have a good talk with you!"
With a serious expression, Jing Zhe cupped his hands and said, "Please enlighten me!"
Seeing that Jing Zhe was still quite polite, the man's expression softened slightly: "What does your family do?"
"Both parents died, and I am all alone."
Yes, I live at home, while my sister lives elsewhere. That answer makes sense!
"Both parents deceased?"
Upon hearing this, the man's expression turned amused.
"Heh, so you want to live off our family!"
"..."
————
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