The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 989 - 968: Planning (Extra for the reward from book friend ’Starting from the Heart@’)

Chapter 989: Chapter 968: Planning (Extra for the reward from book friend ’Starting from the Heart@’)

The three of them escorted Liu Huan to the Liu family’s doorstep, where they watched him wave goodbye with a radiant smile before heading home.

Because of the delays on the road, by the time they returned home, the sunset had already appeared on the horizon, and Aunt Rong had almost finished preparing dinner.

Zhou Wulang was at home.

Manbao asked, "Fifth Brother, how come you’ve come back?"

"Didn’t you ask me yesterday to inquire about the purchase affairs at the Prince of Yizhou’s residence?"

Only then did Manbao remember this matter and she nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, yes, did you find anything?"

"I found something. I got someone to introduce me and I mentioned I have two pots of rare flowers. I’ve already passed on the message. Tomorrow I have to bring the flowers for them to see. Have you decided on the price?"

"Already decided. Two hundred taels for each chrysanthemum pot and three hundred taels for the ’Chang’e Flying to the Moon,’ which is a bit more expensive."

"That’s not just a bit more expensive," Zhou Wulang asked, "Can they really sell for these prices?"

Bai Shan laughed and said, "Both pots of flowers are quite rare. Brother Zhou Wu, just quote a higher price. Let them bargain down the price, but in any case, it must not be less than this amount."

Both of the highly educated men said so, and Zhou Wulang also felt some confidence. He nodded and said, "Alright, I’ll try to take them tomorrow. By the way, when I just returned, I heard from Liu Gui that you got into a quarrel on the street this morning?"

Manbao and Bai Shan lowered their heads together, and Bai Erlang looked left and right, tiptoeing, trying to slip away, but Zhou Wulang grabbed the collar of his clothes and said, "First tell me what happened, who did you quarrel with?"

It’s true that good things don’t go beyond the gate, while bad news spreads far and wide.

The three, especially Manbao, sighed with a heavy heart and detailed the events that happened that morning.

Zhou Wulang was stunned and asked, "Was that the daughter of a high official?"

Manbao nodded.

Zhou Wulang frowned and said with disdain, "They are high officials and yet don’t they teach their children to read and reason? Blocking people in the street, even the uneducated know not to do that."

Manbao nodded repeatedly and whispered, "I also thought they were very rude, so I couldn’t help but talk back."

"Good for you," Zhou Wulang said, "As long as you didn’t provoke them first. By the way, how high-ranking is their official?"

Manbao replied, "Their father is the Mayor of the Capital."

Zhou Wulang asked, "What kind of official is the Mayor of the Capital?"

Manbao said, "He’s the official who manages the whole capital city."

Zhou Wulang fell silent for a moment before asking, "Isn’t the whole of the capital city managed by the Emperor?"

"Not exactly, the Emperor oversees the entire Great Jin. The capital, like other provinces and counties, is also managed by a designated official."

Zhou Wulang asked, "Those constables and minor officials on the street..."

"They are also under his management," Manbao said. "Strictly speaking, they are under the subordinates of his subordinates."

Zhou Wulang then swallowed hard and said, "Maybe you should still go and apologize to them."

"Fifth Brother, that’s not what you said just now. When did you start acting like Fourth Brother?"

"It’s not like Fourth Brother, this is called ’A wise man does not suffer losses right before him,’ you know? I’m worried about you guys walking on the street and getting arrested by the constables."

Bai Shan reassured him, "Brother Zhou Wu, don’t worry. Their family doesn’t have the guts to do that. We are under the Emperor’s nose here, and besides, we are not entirely without support. Bai Er and I are students at the Imperial Academy. If we were caught, it would surely alarm our libationer."

Bai Shan paused, then continued, "Our libationer’s rank is higher than that of the Prefect of Jingzhao, and we also have Lord Wei."

Manbao nodded, "Yes, we know Lord Wei. We were exchanging letters just the other day; he won’t let us suffer unjustly."

Lord Wei, whom they knew, was currently in the duty room reading the impeachment memorials delivered by Cheng below.

As he read, he felt something was amiss and could not help but frown slightly.

Seeing Lord Tang enter from outside, he stood up and said, "You’ve come at the right time; I have something to ask you."

Lord Tang glanced at the hourglass and said, "You’re off duty, aren’t you? Haven’t you been tired after being on duty for three days?"

It was tiring, but things also needed to be done.

Lord Wei pulled Lord Tang aside and showed him the memorial, "What is this about? It seems somewhat related to Zhou Man and his group?"

Lord Tang flipped through it, nodded and said, "You’re not wrong—it’s Zhou Man and his group."

Lord Wei had been on duty in the palace all day and didn’t know; however, Lord Tang was outside, and he also held the position of Censor-in-Chief at the Censorate, overseeing Censors who specialized in finding faults with officials.

Coincidentally, this memorial was written by one of his subordinates.

Lord Tang looked around to see if anyone was near, then whispered the happenings outside to Lord Wei, "This is old news. When I entered the palace, people outside were saying that Zhou Man, Bai Shan, Bai Erlang, and the young grandson of Minister Liu had kidnapped Yin Huo."

Lord Wei’s brows rose, "Kidnapped?"

Lord Tang nodded, "But after they kidnapped him onto the carriage, the carriage headed straight for the Yin family. Once it reached the Yin family’s gate, Yin Huo got off unharmed."

Lord Wei sighed in relief, then glared at Lord Tang and said, "What good does it do you to scare me you old thing?"

"This is the gossip outside, not something I made up."

Lord Wei then mused, "Since they have reconciled, such a memorial should not be presented. Otherwise, if it’s brought up during court sessions, those three children will be exposed."

Lord Tang had a different idea, he said, "The more you try to hide something, the more conspicuous it becomes—that’s what you’re doing. Today’s incident was no small matter. The Censorate didn’t respond at all; are you trying to tell the world that you’re colluding with Yin Li? Or that those three have special identities?" Lord Tang said, "Sometimes, the more you hide, the easier it is to find out. It might be better to leak some information before others investigate it, making it clear to them. That way, we still maintain control over the situation."

"How much do you plan to leak?"

"I’ve withheld one memorial specifically stating that Bai Shan is the son of the meritorious official Bai Qi. Let the rest be submitted as usual—impeach where necessary, criticize where due. Rest assured, Bai Shan and Bai Erlang because of their father’s favor entered the Imperial Academy; Zhou Man is their Senior Sister. Knowing this, who would care about the identity of their parents or family members? Isn’t Yin Li less relevant than them?"

Compared to Lord Tang in judging cases and understanding human nature, Lord Wei truly fell short, so he hesitated for a moment then nodded.

Lord Tang lowered his voice, "This is also their fate, their luck. While their identities are not entirely exposed, they should accumulate some reputation first. When things come to light, having a good reputation to protect them is better than being thrust forward in plain clothes to take the blows, right?"

Lord Wei paused, then looked at Lord Tang for a while before nodding slightly.

Lord Tang’s face was all smiles, but internally he cursed, "If it weren’t for your impulsiveness in leaking the background of Bai Shan and his group, would I need to exhaustingly plan these things for my son?"

After all, they’re just three kids, we can’t just watch them go to their deaths, can we?