Chapter 16 He died so tragically!
Song Jin likes vibrant colors; even in her blue robe, she stands out as the most beautiful one among the bamboo groves.
With her eyebrows raised and her expression carefree, she swaggered out amidst Jiang Qian's shouts, stepping on the grass.
From afar, she spotted a group of familiar faces. The first thing she noticed was the tallest, cold bamboo, and then...
Hey, that ugly freak with a bruised and swollen face, that's the bastard, right?
Song Jin held her head high and strode over, showing no sign of guilt.
Don't worry, she has her own ideas.
Song Jin had already prepared his response, and his words were on the tip of his tongue when he saw Song Xingzhi stumble and fall to the ground, his voice cracking.
"father?"
She immediately laughed, grabbed the timid Jiang Qian who was stumbling towards her, ignored him, tossed him aside, clapped her hands, and swaggered off.
"Hey, who's this? Why are you being so polite? I can't be your father, can I?"
Everyone: ...
Without giving them a chance to speak, she turned to Jiang Qian and angrily accused him.
"What heinous thing did this man do to beat him up like this? Even if he did something wrong, you can't do it like this. We're the ones who went to the authorities, so we can't resort to vigilante justice. And you even brought him to the tea plantation. What, are you planning to secretly sell the tea plantation to settle this for you?"
One sentence stunned both groups of people
"What? I hit him?" Jiang Qian screamed. How come he didn't know? No, he immediately waved his hands, explaining in a panic.
"It wasn't me, absolutely not me! I wouldn't even kill a chicken, how could I possibly hit someone?"
Song Jin suddenly realized: "I knew your wife killed your chicken! How could you, looking like a coward, possibly kill a chicken?"
Jiang Qian instinctively said, "Why wouldn't I dare to kill? I just can't bear it, I can't bear it. Song Jin, don't slander me."
Song Jin raised an eyebrow: "Slander? You overestimate yourself."
...
Seeing that the two were going off on a tangent, Song Xingzhi, who had been lying on the ground, stood up with a grimacing expression. His swollen, bruised face couldn't hide his shock; he even rubbed his eyes and hissed in pain a few times.
"How is this possible?" Song Xingzhi murmured, unable to resist taking a few steps forward, wanting to see more clearly.
These eyes, this nose, this face
The more Song Xingzhi watched, the more terrified he became. Even amidst Song Jin and the others' chaotic conversation, he would take a step back, as if he had seen a ghost.
Everyone was completely baffled.
After all, before, he could boast that he would grind people to dust and tear them apart by five horses.
Li Qingshan stood to the side, watching the woman who had suddenly appeared. His lips twitched. He remembered that he had stopped this person outside to get cold. How did she get in?
But what was attracting his attention more now was Song Xingzhi's unusual behavior. He was a little confused and asked, "Master, what's wrong with him?"
Could it be that he's been blinded by beauty again?
However, based on Li Qingshan's observations over this period, this person preferred the gentle and docile type of beauty. The person in front of him, on the other hand, was bright, flamboyant, and unrestrained—clearly the kind of person not to be trifled with.
It doesn't seem right.
Qi Zheng stood to the side with a cold and stern face, and asked in return, "Having lived in the capital for so many years, have you ever met Chief Minister Song?"
Li Qingshan was even more bewildered, but he still honestly shook his head: "How could a lowly military officer like me be qualified to see Lord Song?"
Qi Zheng's expression immediately turned serious as he scrutinized Li Qingshan, his old acquaintance. He remembered that back in their days at the镖局 (bodyguard agency), this man had been full of vigor and ambition, even wanting to venture into the martial world with him.
I never expected that when we met again, this person would be like a block of wood.
The imperial court is indeed unfathomable.
Qi Zheng's expression was inscrutable as he said in a deep voice, "Lord Song is handsome and dignified, a model of a scholar."
Li Qingshan: ……
He's not smart, but that doesn't mean he's stupid.
Haven't you ever seen him or heard of him?
The terms "ruthless, heartless, and treacherous traitor" are what scholars most frequently use to describe them.
Seeing that he remained silent, Qi Zheng continued, "Those who resemble him by three parts are above ordinary people; those who resemble him by seven parts..."
Li Qingshan asked, "How about seven-tenths?"
Qi Zheng glanced at the arrogant and unrestrained woman over there, his expression inscrutable, and said in a deep voice, "She resembles her seven parts; she's just unlucky."
Li Qingshan was bewildered: "Huh?"
Why can't he understand?
However, he didn't need to understand; that's just what Qi Zheng said.
He hadn't expected to see Song Jin here. Back when he met him at Wenyuan Academy, he had noticed that this person looked remarkably like the current Grand Secretary Song Shang.
However, although they share a 70% resemblance, their expressions and demeanor are completely different, reducing the similarity to only 50%, making it difficult for unfamiliar people to connect them.
Especially in this remote county, very few people who had been to the capital had ever met the Song merchant. Of those who had, only a handful held him in goodwill, thinking it was a coincidence and having no other intentions. They couldn't fathom how treacherous people could be or how many despicable things they might do.
Qi Zheng had heard of Song Shang's reputation in the martial arts world in his early years, but he didn't take it seriously at the time. Martial arts people believed anything they heard; even a long snake appearing by the lake could turn into a dragon. He always thought those stories were exaggerations.
Later, after a brief encounter, a merchant from Song came to his door and took him back to the capital to verify his identity.
Having spent time with the man, he had a general understanding of him. On the surface, he was gentle, refined, and elegant, but in reality, he was tough, ruthless, and vicious. Yet, he acted without shedding blood, making him a very terrifying person.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to firmly hold the position of Grand Secretary for eighteen years since the founding of the dynasty, second only to the emperor. Even though most people hate him, they also fear him and dare not say a word against him to his face.
What pleases his enemies most about this man is that he is over forty years old, yet has no biological children, his backyard is empty, and he is only accompanied by a few adopted sons.
The Great Yan Dynasty places great importance on blood ties, and the difference between an adopted son and a biological son is vast. To outsiders, he appears utterly alone and isolated, which is something to be applauded and delighted about.
But now, it seems a little unexpected thing has happened.
Qi Zheng had originally planned to investigate further, but he hadn't expected to run into them now. He glanced at the shocked and incredulous Song Xingzhi and knew he was probably no longer of any use.
Although royal infighting is constant and fraught with danger, they are still royalty. Except for the one mentioned above, everyone else treats them with utmost respect, not to mention their wealth and treasures.
Qi Zheng returned to the royal family in less than a year, and his family's wealth had increased from nothing to that of a local tycoon. His annual salary was two thousand taels of silver, not including the income from his estates and fields.
Therefore, regardless of Song Shang's motives, he was still someone who had done him a favor.
...
Song Xingzhi was completely unprepared. Seeing someone who looked so much like his father gave him the creeps. He forgot all about being beaten or being a petty thief; his mind was a little reeling.
He asked in surprise, "You, your surname is Song?"
Song Jin crossed her arms, placed her feet on a nearby rock, and raised her chin: "What, is that not allowed?"
Song Xingzhi's shock gradually subsided. Looking at her messy, arrogant posture, he hesitated, but his words turned into cautious hesitation.
"Your dad"
Song Jin's phoenix eyes narrowed slightly. A thought flashed through her mind as she recalled her mother's earlier strange behavior, but she quickly suppressed it.
We'll have to see the specifics later, but she's certain that today's matter should be over.
She raised her lips, becoming even more arrogant, and said, "My father? He died a long time ago. What, does he owe you a debt? Every grievance has a beginning, every debt has an end. If you have something to say, go down and talk to him yourself."
That wooden figure, it's as if it has a face that's both proper and polite, a face that's cultured, it's incredibly wild.
Song Xingzhi, who preferred gentle and delicate women, felt a pang of guilt and reminded her, "Young lady, watch your words."
Song Jin chuckled: "A grown man like you should just shut up if you can't speak properly."
As she spoke, she picked up the skewer that had been lying to her side, shoved it into her mouth without any regard for her image, and began to crunch away.
Song Jin continued biting while observing the group, seemingly oblivious to their presence, and asked in an annoyed tone.
"This is my family's tea plantation. What are you all doing barging in? And you even dragged my manager into it. Joking aside, he's a coward who wouldn't actually do something like that. And you people from big cities can't just accuse people like that."
Song Xingzhi no longer cared about that; his attention was initially drawn to Song Jin's face, and now, his gaze was fixed on the corner of Song Jin's mouth.
On barbecue skewers
The skewer was about half an arm's length long, and it was skewered with bamboo worms, grasshoppers, bee pupae, and honeybees.
Song Xingzhi spotted the large, round-headed, round-bellied bee at a glance, let out a brilliant screech, rushed over, snatched the skewer, and looked sadly at his beloved bee.
"What are you doing here?! What?! What?! I'm so sorry, Xiao Jin, you died such a terrible death..."
Song Jin stood there, her lips smeared with oil and spices, eagerly anticipating Song Xingzhi's miserable end, until the name "Xiao Jin" appeared. Her smile vanished, and she stared at the man expressionlessly.
Then, she snatched the skewer back, shoveled everything off it with her bare hands, stuffed the rest into her mouth, and kept only the delicate, lifeless wasp corpse in her hand.
She chewed her lips and threatened, "If you don't want it in your stomach, change its name."
Everyone: ...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
