In Love With My Fierce Farming Wife!
Chapter 1339: Close at Hand

Chapter 1339: Chapter 1339: Close at Hand

Su Pan’er’s thoughts stirred, and she quietly instructed the attendant beside her.

The attendant received the order and quickly ran off.

Zhang Mei also tilted her head and pondered for a while. "Brother Ruan Qi, I don’t have any impression of that family either. However, if Brother Ruan Qi wants to know, I do know someone who definitely would!"

Zhang Mei smiled proudly.

Her elder brother, Brother Zhang, always worked hard at the dock, and if anyone knew the docks the best, it would probably be him!

"Eh! Zhang Mei, what are you doing here?"

Speak of the Devil!

Zhang Mei was just talking about her elder brother when Brother Zhang, carrying a pole over his shoulders with ropes, approached Su Pan’er’s group with a surprised look on his face.

Once he laid eyes on Su Pan’er, Brother Zhang was stunned.

Earlier, when his younger sister mentioned that Ruan Qi was the Empress, Brother Zhang himself didn’t believe it. But his wife and parents at home had been swayed by the fifty taels of silver that Zhang Mei brought back, so they didn’t care who exactly Zhang Mei was following around.

He had originally thought about making up an excuse to visit the Qin Mansion to see his younger sister but unexpectedly ran into his younger sister walking with a noble lady before he could even act.

When Su Pan’er heard Brother Zhang’s voice, she turned around unconsciously and saw Brother Zhang’s dumbfounded eyes.

The disarmed Su Pan’er shone with charm, noble and brimming with overflowing confidence, making Brother Zhang almost unable to believe that this noblewoman before him was once, just like him, carrying sacks at the dock!

"Brother Zhang, thank you for taking care of me back then. Circumstances had forced me to conceal my identity. I hope Brother Zhang won’t take offense."

Su Pan’er spoke softly.

Brother Zhang’s face instantly flushed red! He felt a deep sense of inferiority and instinctively took a few steps back, as if fearing he might accidentally offend the nobleman.

He stuttered, "I... I mean, sir, what I am saying is..."

"Brother Zhang, didn’t you use to call me Ruan Qi? Let’s just stick with that, Zhang Mei also calls me that."

"That’s right, Brother Ruan Qi isn’t someone petty! Who do you think you are to act all high and mighty, hmph!"

Zhang Mei seemed particularly proud.

She tilted her little chin up in pride at her elder brother.

This made Brother Zhang break out in a cold sweat.

His younger sister had been spoiled since childhood, believing whatever the noblewoman said. Who knows, if she really followed a noblewoman, she could end up chewed up to the point of being left with nothing.

"Ruan... Brother Ruan Qi, ahem, cough cough..."

Brother Zhang couldn’t finish his sentence as he began to cough repeatedly, struggling with calling someone much younger than him "Brother", especially when the person was a woman, a stunningly beautiful and exceedingly noble woman.

Su Pan’er was amused and laughed.

Old Qin was also laughing with joy, his toothless old mouth wide open.

Seeing the night darken, Su Pan’er invited Brother Zhang to a nearby eatery by the dock, taking a seat and ordering some wine and dishes.

Finally, she spoke, "Brother Zhang, just now Zhang Mei happened to mention you, saying you are quite familiar with the surroundings. And here you are."

Brother Zhang entered the eatery, where people occasionally greeted him. Along with the large bowls of wine and hearty dishes being served, he seemed to become much more comfortable.

"What exactly are you referring to when you talk about the surroundings?"

"It’s just across the river from where we were standing earlier."

Su Pan’er rose to her feet and pointed across the river to a cluster of buildings, "Look, it’s over there. That family’s house."

From where Su Pan’er was standing, the house across the river was situated on the higher ground along the bank, providing an unobstructed view of the Shuanghekou dock. With the keen eyes she had developed over two lifetimes, it indeed seemed a prime spot for observation and gathering information.

"You’re talking about that house?"

Brother Zhang laughed, "That house is quite strange. It seems people come and go every day, but no one ever appears at the market to buy food or water. We laborers have discussed it before and find it very peculiar indeed."

As he spoke, he helped himself to a big helping of braised pork.

Laborers, often doing physical work all day long, had much heartier appetites than the average person.

Su Pan’er looked up and ordered another portion of braised pork, then turned back and personally served some braised meat to Old Qin, "Are you sure you’ve never seen anyone buying food? And those people coming and going, can you remember what they looked like?"

"I don’t remember; the people inside come and go without any familiar faces. That’s why we laborers think it’s strange. But strange as it may be, there seems to be nothing particularly unusual about the house from the outside. Once, a friend of mine had a bout of diarrhea when passing by, and inadvertently burst in. He said that as soon as he entered, a large knife was pointed at his shoulder—security was very tight inside. It frightened him so much that he came back pale-faced."

Brother Zhang continued, letting out a regretful sigh, "Speaking of which, it’s quite a shame. My friend must have been scared by what happened inside, and with his legs weak from diarrhea, he rolled down a hill that night on his way home and cracked his head. He lay at the foot of his bed for several days before he breathed his last."

"Are you saying he died?"

Su Pan’er focused on the key point.

"Well, isn’t that death? It’s been a few years since then; I’d completely forgotten about it until you asked just now."

Despite his story, Brother Zhang did not slow down his eating, with large chunks of fat meat swiftly disappearing into his mouth.

This man had entered the house and then immediately suffered a deadly accident by rolling down the hill... It really was too much of a coincidence.

Su Pan’er silently stared at the house across the river, her mind racing. When she turned back, she regained her composure and cheerfully urged everyone to enjoy their meal.

After the meal was finished, Brother Zhang left contentedly.

Before leaving, he couldn’t help but offer several repeated exhortations to an unsuspecting Zhang Mei.

Naturally, Zhang Mei grumbled incessantly, wishing she could sew his mouth shut with a needle.

Watching the interaction between the Zhang siblings, Su Pan’er felt extremely moved. By now, she had also realized that the reason she had agreed to stay with Zhang Mei might well be because her body language was very similar to Little Yanyan’s, giving her an unconscious sense of closeness.

The person she had sent out finally arrived, albeit late.

The information he had gathered was similar to what Brother Zhang had said, "...Your servant tried to approach the house but found a latent danger within. Fearing to proceed and alarm the people inside, your servant came specially to ask for Empress’ instructions. Should we continue our actions?"

Su Pan’er silently watched the house.

At this moment, night had already fallen, and the house was shrouded in darkness. The reflection of the water made the house appear even more mysterious and silent.

"Tell the brothers not to act rashly and alert the other side. They must find a way to sneak in successfully within the shortest time, for I need to know the specifics inside," Su Pan’er instructed carefully.

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