Chapter 141: Chapter 128: Something Amiss
Dongshan City, Prefecture Bureau.
Prefect Pei Jian’s study.
"Mr. Dong, this year’s fundraising for the Lantern Festival in Dongshan City amounted to 180,000 silver taels from donations by local merchants and wealthy families..."
"Mr. Zhuo, this year’s lantern festival should be the first one I’ve hosted since taking office, right?" Pei Jian asked.
"Yes, Mr. Dong." His aide, Zhuo Qingfeng, who he brought from Li Jing and is one of his trusted confidantes, replied.
"How much silver coins did my predecessor raise for the last Lantern Festival?"
"About 350,000 taels!"
"Even a Prefect who is about to retire could raise 350,000 silver taels to organize this Lantern Festival, and in my first year of term, it’s less than 200,000. Is this meant to humiliate me?" Pei Jian said.
This was a topic Zhuo Qingfeng found difficult to respond to.
"Who donated the most in previous years?"
"It was Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion, followed by the Ye Family. Other families would look at the amount donated by the Ye Family, donate a bit less, and fill in a number on the roster..."
"Forget it. Use all this money on the Lantern Festival. I want to show the people of Dongshan City who truly cares for them as their official guardian." Pei Jian instructed. This annual Lantern Festival was a tradition where the Prefect would use it as an excuse to raise funds from the city’s merchants and wealthy households, though in reality, most of the donated money ended up in the Prefect’s pocket, with only a small portion used for the festival. This was an open secret everyone understood.
No one would audit these accounts, and typically, an outgoing Prefect, even if he wasn’t corrupt in other matters, could still leave with tens of thousands of silver in wealth.
Thus, everyone wanted to become an official, as few could resist the allure of this virtually free wealth.
"Master, Steward He from Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion requests a meeting!" Pei Jian’s attendant came to report.
Pei Jian glanced at his aide Zhuo Qingfeng, clearly puzzled as to why someone from Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion would suddenly come at this time.
"Invite him to wait in the side hall." Pei Jian instructed.
"Yes."
"Mr. Dong, perhaps I should meet with this steward from Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion to probe his intentions for you?" Zhuo Qingfeng suggested.
"No, I’ll go myself." Pei Jian considered for a moment but then rejected the idea.
Just as Pei Jian reached the door, he suddenly remembered something and instructed his attendant: "Has Second Young Master Rui returned? If he has, have him wait for me in the study."
"Second Young Master went out early and hasn’t returned yet."
"Is he out fooling around with Mr. Xue again?" Pei Jian’s face darkened, asking sternly.
"This servant does not know."
"Fine, if he returns, have him come see me immediately." Pei Jian waved his hand and strode toward the side hall in the front courtyard.
...
Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion, Mr. Xue’s room.
Ye Shengyuan was urgently brought over. After examining Mr. Xue’s injuries, he inhaled sharply. With injuries like these, aside from trying to save his life, there’s nothing else to think about.
Fortunately, they managed to save the essential part of him; otherwise, even in death, he wouldn’t be a "complete" man, which would be too tragic.
Mr. Xue was bound in a large "大" shape on the bed with cloth strips. He was in such pain that if left to move on his own, his lower body might continue bleeding, and if it wasn’t stopped, he might lose his life.
He was very weak now, with a soft wooden stick in his mouth, which was essentially a horse bit to prevent him from biting off his tongue due to unbearable pain...
"Shengyuan, how is Mr. Xue’s condition?"
"Mrs. He, the situation is not promising. Mr. Xue probably won’t be able to be a man again. The assailant was extremely adept, cutting off his essential part with a single stroke. They even kindly stuffed a towel at his lower body to slow the blood flow considerably. Otherwise, by now, I would have been helpless." Ye Shengyuan sighed, looking at the voluptuous and beautiful Mrs. He.
"Well, saving his life is good enough." Mrs. He showed no trace of sorrow but nodded and said, "Shengyuan, treat him. No matter how much it costs, or how expensive the medicine, I’ll procure it for you."
"Alright, I’ll write a prescription for Mr. Xue now." Ye Shengyuan said.
"Shengyuan, please keep Mr. Xue’s injury confidential and not speak of it externally; it concerns the dignity of Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion." Mrs. He moved behind Ye Shengyuan, her tender body leaning close and said, "You must come often over the next few days; Mr. Xue must not have any issues."
Ye Shengyuan’s body slightly trembled, and his hand holding the writing brush shook uncontrollably, splattering several black dots on the paper. He understood Mrs. He’s implication: "Alright, Mr. Xue has caught a cold and is bedridden. I, Ye, will be visiting daily for consultation upon her invitation..."
"Once you finish writing the prescription, don’t hurry to leave; I have other questions to ask you..."
"Alright."
...
Lin Mansion, inner courtyard.
On the embroidered bed, Sun Youwei’s eyelashes trembled slightly, an evident sign of awakening. She had slept long enough.
She’d slept from noon until it was dark.
"Junior Brother, how did I fall asleep? How did I... get home?" Sun Youwei immediately recognized it as her own boudoir.
"Senior Sister, are you okay? Is there anything uncomfortable?" Lin Miao asked with concern.
"No, I only remember drinking a cup of tea from the monk at Shanglin Temple, then feeling sleepy and soon falling asleep. After that, I remember nothing." Sun Youwei recalled, seeming to only remember these.
Lin Miao breathed a sigh of relief; forgetting was indeed a good thing.
"Senior Sister, are you hungry? Shall I have Mrs. Luu make something for you to eat and bring it over?"
"Yes, alright." Sun Youwei nodded, actually feeling a bit hungry. Although the vegetarian dishes were tasty, they lacked substance and weren’t filling.
"Junior Brother, what about the stuff we bought today?"
"Don’t worry, I brought it all back; I’ll bring it to you shortly." Lin Miao said softly.
"Thank you, junior brother."
...
In the study, Si Miaoxue emerged from the secret passage.
Today’s events, for her, were just a small thrill in a usually uneventful life. If not for the mission, she would actually enjoy wandering the Jianghu.
Docility and stability were never words in Si Miaoxue’s "dictionary."
If she were a docile woman, she wouldn’t have boldly climbed into Lin Miao’s bed. She was like a wild, untamed leopard.
"Did you tell her the truth?"
"No, she was asleep the whole time and didn’t know what happened. Why should I put such cruel things in front of her?" Lin Miao shook his head.
"Without telling her, she won’t be prepared for similar situations in the future. Can you protect her every single moment?" Si Miaoxue asked.
"That’s why I plan to adopt a group of orphans and train them to protect Senior Sister and the safety of this household," Lin Miao said.
"When you finally train them, how long will that take?" Si Miaoxue said, "What you need to solve is the urgent problem."
"So, do you have a good solution?"
"The Snow Mountain Sect—you’re Bai Feng’s lifesaver, and now you’re cooperating with the Su Family. It should be no problem to borrow some people from the Su Family to protect Sun Youwei," Si Miaoxue said.
"Aren’t your people available?"
"The Snow Mountain Sect’s people are in the open; my people are in the shadows. This combination suits you, doesn’t it?" Si Miaoxue replied.
"How do you explain this to your subordinates?"
"That’s not something you need to worry about."
"As long as Senior Sister stays within my sight, her safety shouldn’t be a problem. I will consider Bai Feng and the Su Family," Lin Miao nodded and said, "I hate owing favors."
"So, I’m just supposed to help, right?" Si Miaoxue pouted, dissatisfied.
"You’re different; you’re family."
"That’s more like it," Si Miaoxue said, "I’m hungry. Will you cook me a bowl of noodles?"
"What?" Lin Miao was stunned. Si Miaoxue suddenly making such a request left him at a loss.
"You cooked noodles for your Senior Sister; I want the same."
"You’re already an adult, still playing childish tricks?"
"Just answer whether you’ll cook or not?"
"Fine, considering you helped me a lot today, I’ll cook noodles for you, and add two eggs, okay?"
"That’s wonderful. Come over to my place to cook; I’ve set up a small kitchen in the attic..."
Si Miaoxue’s little schemes were written all over her face. Lin Miao and Sun Youwei were not yet married, so until they marry, they won’t be together. Besides, Sun Youwei’s health wouldn’t permit it. So, as long as no one else competes, she could at least have him to herself for two years.
Thinking about having two exclusive years felt exhilarating. This was her special time.
...
The Dongshan Prefecture office.
After meeting Mr. He, Pei Jian returned to the inner courtyard study. Zhuo Qingfeng, his advisor, hadn’t left; he was waiting to ask about his return.
"Mr. Dong, what did the steward of Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion come for?"
"Mrs. He suddenly wanted me to introduce her to Mr. Lin," Pei Jian replied, still puzzled.
"Those two are unrelated. Besides, hasn’t Mrs. He always seen Ye Shengyuan for her consultations? Does she want to change physicians?"
"I doubt it." Pei Jian shook his head. Though he’d only been stationed here less than a year, he was familiar with some situations in Dongshan City.
The relationship between Ye Shengyuan and Mrs. He was closely connected. Rumor has it that when she sees him, he doesn’t allow others to be present. This is true not only at Shengyuan Hall but also within the mansion.
Given Mrs. He’s age, with the Marquis absent, her close interactions with Ye Shengyuan inevitably raise suspicions.
Apparently, Mrs. He’s mysterious "headache" illness emerged only after returning to Dongshan City. No such issue was heard of when she was in Li Jing.
The Marquis of Li Jing likely sent her back to oversee the old mansion because he couldn’t bear seeing her. Without Mrs. He nearby, wouldn’t he be more at ease?
"Mr. Dong, did you agree?"
"Do I have any reason to refuse?" Pei Jian replied awkwardly.
"Mr. Dong, there’s definitely something going on here. I’ll investigate right away," Zhuo Qingfeng nodded and quickly stated.
"Master, Second Young Master has returned."
"Let him in," Pei Jian ordered, his expression turning stern.
"Father, why did you urgently summon me back?" Pei Rui walked into the study, visibly displeased.
"Were you with Mr. Xue today?"
"No, we only met briefly in the morning before parting. He said he was going to Shanglin Temple to offer incense and pray. I’m not interested in that, so I didn’t go with him," Pei Rui said.
"Master, just got word. Mrs. He had urgently summoned Patriarch Ye to the mansion this evening!" A servant hurried in to report.
"Mr. Dong, since Mrs. He summoned Ye Shengyuan, why would she need you to introduce Mr. Lin?" Zhuo Qingfeng questioned.
"Find out immediately what Ye Shengyuan’s business is at Marquis Lingyang’s Mansion!" Pei Jian commanded solemnly. With years in office, he knew well that anything unusual usually indicated a hidden agenda.
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