Chapter 55: Doll's Kiss

  It's raining outside, and there aren't many customers at the Shengchun Hall pharmacy. The doctor who usually sits in the hall has gone to attend a junior's wedding today, so Geng Yunwai rolled up his sleeves and personally went to the front hall to take pulses for patients. His medical skills were learned after marrying into the Sun family and aren't particularly impressive, but they're passable.

  The one who came to see the illness and grab medicine was Wu Hui Guang, the Zhaomo official of Qingzhou Prefecture. Mr. Wu put his hand on a towel and let Gengyuan examine his pulse while complaining: "I just returned from Director Feng's funeral, it's been gloomy for two days, my heart feels a bit stuffy, take a good look."

  "Don't worry, sir. It's an old problem of yours. You've had it for years, so it can't be cured overnight. However, alleviating the pain is relatively easy. If you just calm down and don't get too worked up over things, your condition will improve by half."

  "This principle of thrift I naturally understand."

  Mr. Wu said, "But I'm a person who likes to get to the bottom of things, and once I encounter something, I can't help but speak out. Take today for example, at Director Feng's funeral, I ran into a monk who couldn't even recite sutras properly, and I just couldn't bear it, so I ended up arguing with him. Alas, thinking about it now is really heartbreaking. Director Feng was a steady and capable person, always getting along with others while in office, he was a good man. Now that he's dead, the funeral is so poorly arranged, the monk even recited the prayer for the deceased incorrectly, how can his soul be reincarnated?"

  Geng Xin withdrew his hand, began to write with a brush, and said without lifting his head: "I heard that Feng Jianxiao died of acute intestinal obstruction, struggled up at night, accidentally knocked over the oil lamp, and caused a big fire? Alas, years of savings, all burned out, fortunately, the adults and several colleagues helped, otherwise it would be difficult to buy a coffin. The adults are not easy either, just do their best, as the saying goes, life and death are destined, wealth and nobility are in heaven."

  Wu Hui Guang pouted and said: "Darn it, darn it"

  He looked around and leaned over, saying in a low voice: "Old Geng, you're a straightforward person, so I'll let you know, but don't spread it around. Feng Jianzhi was...".

  He chopped down with his hand like a knife, and said with a hiss: "It's so easy to kill someone, just one chop and the person is gone, it's that simple."

  "What?"

  Geng Xiaonian's hand trembled as he put down his brush, and he exclaimed in surprise: "Feng Jianxiao was murdered? Heaven, this is a murder case! Feng Jianxiao was an official, killing an official is like rebelling against the emperor, how could someone dare to do such a thing? Ah, if he was indeed killed by someone, why did everyone say he died of a sudden illness?"

  "It's all because of Prince Qi causing trouble again."

  Wu Zhaomo leaned in and said mysteriously, "Because of the assassination attempt on Yang Wenyuan last time, the king summoned several high-ranking officials from the prefecture to scold them severely. He said that if things continued like this, he would have to take charge of Qingzhou's affairs himself. This time it was the Qingzhou gentry who were assassinated, and now even the officials of the prefectural government are being killed? If word gets out, what will happen? The high-ranking officials don't dare to spread the news, so this matter must be kept confidential between us."

  "Yes, yes, yes, don't worry, sir. My old self's mouth has always been tight-lipped, no matter how big the thing is, I can keep it in my heart and will never spread it out to others."

  Geng Xin nodded and handed the prescription to the young shopkeeper. The young shopkeeper went to fetch the medicine, wrapped it into three packages with a string, and sent it back. Geng Xin presented it with both hands, handing it over to Wu Zhaomu, personally escorting him to the eaves of the roof, smiling and saying: "Lord Wu, have a good trip, and please don't worry about anything."

  Wu Hui Guang held up his umbrella and said, "I understand. Today I'll go to Linglong Mountain. I have a lot of feelings about this. When people die, it's like a lamp going out - everything is over. So while we're still alive, let's live well..."

  Geng Yun stood outside, his sleeves rolled up, under the eaves of the dripping roof, watching Wu Zhaomu's swaying back as he walked away. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind: "Kill? Can I kill? Others can kill, why can't I? A person dies like a lamp going out, and that's it."

  His hands, which were hidden in his sleeves, suddenly clenched into fists. His face flushed red with an unprecedented idea, and his breathing became heavy: "Feng Jianxiao is an official, to avoid Qi Wang's rebuke, the government can even cover up Feng Jianxiao's cause of death, let alone Yang Xu, a mere student. Not just him, but also that cheap woman, and that little cheap woman, if I were to kill them all at once..."

  Geng Yun's eyes sparkled with excitement as he trembled with anticipation: "Not only can I avenge my past humiliation, but from now on, I'll get to taste the thrill of being in charge... With the mysterious assassin lurking in Qingzhou and the authorities reluctant to publicize the unsettling news, this is a heaven-sent opportunity..."

  Geng Yuanwai's excitement grew as he thought about it more, and a somewhat ferocious smile gradually spread across his face. At this time, Li Da Yin returned with a limp, and as soon as Geng Yuanwai saw his shadow, he immediately lowered his eyelids and restored his numb and ruthless appearance, slowly turning back to the medicine hall.

  For Xia Liu, the following days were very calm. He was busy taking care of his own business and started to look for a replacement for the black pot, while trying to transfer and sell his own industry as much as possible.

  And all this was under the pretext of wanting to return to Jiangnan for a wedding, and to show great loyalty to King Qi, saying it was to go to Beiping to purchase fur, animal tendons and other goods.

  Xia Yu had already reported the details of his trip to Yanggu to King Qi, and when he helped people in Putai County, he didn't hide it either. He also casually mentioned the matter of breaking the waist card. A piece of card, King Qi naturally wouldn't care about it, but hearing that he would have to wait until the ninth winter to solve the problem of the source of animal skin and tendons, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

  Fortunately, his land speculation was going on like wildfire, and he had obtained a large sum of money from it, so he didn't have to worry about the payment for the time being. He did not expect that Xia Xun would voluntarily advance the funds for purchasing fur, beast tendons and other items, and under the emotional impact, Qi Wang readily agreed to Xia Xun's request to return to Jiangnan for his wedding. As a result, Xia Xun's request to choose someone to take care of business for Qi Wang during his absence was also smoothly approved.

  The King of Qi was satisfied, and in the following days, Xia Jiu began to take care of the sales route for the iron. Fortunately, although he had not been involved in business before, he was not a complete outsider either. With Xiao Jing Tang's help as a financial expert, after several days of hard work, this matter finally became clear. Yang Wen Xuan's business was on track, and his subordinates were all capable people who didn't need him to be personally involved. With the rules in place and the route established, there were naturally people who would take care of his business properly.

  He immediately spread the news that he would return to his hometown next spring to get married while drinking with friends in business circles. Xiao Jing Tang heard this news from outsiders and was overjoyed, rushing to see Master Xia as if flying. As soon as he saw him, he said tearfully: "Master finally agreed to return to his hometown, Master agreed to start a family and career, and old Xiao can rest assured. It's been many years, many years since you didn't come back..."

  Before this, through Zhang Thirteen's description, Xia Xun felt that Yang Dingkun and his son Yang Xu, as well as their family, seemed to have some unknown grudges. He also clearly remembered that when he officially replaced Yang Wenxuan to come to the Yang Mansion, Xiao Guanshi had told him to solve the lifelong major event as soon as possible, return home in glory, and welcome his daughter-in-law. It seems that Yang Xu's relationship with his hometown is very complicated.

  The truth of all this, only the person in front of him, Xiao Guan, could know more clearly. Since Xia Jun was going to Jiangnan, he had to understand the grudges and grievances of the Yang family first. As for his fiancée, whom he still knew nothing about until now, he was also full of curiosity. So he immediately comforted him with warm words: "Uncle Xiao, don't cry, this is a good thing, why be sad?"

  Xiao Jing Tang wiped away tears and said: "Yes, yes, old Xiao is happy, very happy."

  Xia Xun pressed him to sit down and said, "Uncle Xiao, my father used to mention our hometown, but it was vague. At that time, Wenxuan was young and couldn't remember much. Now that we're planning to go back, Wenxuan wants to hear Uncle Xiao tell us about our family's affairs in detail. When we return to our hometown, we'll have to meet the elders of our clan. How should we treat them to grasp the proper etiquette? And my fiancée, who I haven't married yet...

  Xia Liu said, having already prepared his speech in his heart. Yang Wenxuan's father had passed away five years ago, and even if he had told his son about the family feud in his final year, Yang Wenxuan was only sixteen at the time. He could barely be held responsible for understanding such things at that age. Xiao Guanshi had already confirmed that he was indeed the young master of the house, so even if Xia Liu misspoke, it wouldn't arouse any suspicion.

  Xiao Jing Tang did not suspect, in fact Yang Xu was told by his father about the feud with the family when he was young, and later grew up, his father stopped mentioning it, but although he didn't understand the details, Yang Wen Xuan also understood that he and his father had suffered greatly from the family, so he never liked to mention hometown affairs.

  As soon as Xiao Jing Tang heard the question, he said with a mix of bitterness and excitement: "Yes, Master has been telling stories about his hometown since he was young, but only occasionally when he got drunk. Master understood that his father had suffered greatly at the hands of his clansmen in his hometown, so he never mentioned anything about it again, even delaying his return to his hometown to get married. Master shouldn't have done this, and from now on, he should treat Mistress well."

  He sighed and said, "Young master left his hometown at a young age and has had no contact with them for many years. The Young Mistress's family doesn't even know if you're alive or dead, or where you are now. Fortunately, Old Xiao remembers that you left home at the age of six, and the engagement was arranged when you were five years old. At that time, the Young Mistress had just been born, so this year she should be around 16-17 years old. There is a marriage certificate, the Young Mistress's family won't arrange another marriage for her so soon."

  Xia Fu couldn't help but ask: "Uncle Xiao, how much do you know about that wife of mine who hasn't even entered the door yet?"

  Xiao Jing Tang burst into laughter and said: "When Old Xiao followed Master to Qingzhou, Young Madam was still a baby drinking milk. How could Old Xiao understand Young Madam's affairs? However, Young Madam's maiden family home, Old Xiao does know. Our family's Young Madam is indeed the daughter of a truly prominent aristocratic family."

  Xiao Jingtang pursed his lips and said with a proud expression: "That's someone from the Chen family of Yangxia, Shangshui County!"

  PS: Exhausted from running around all day, Guan Guan can work hard for a whole day and still be reluctant to give up a single ticket. Are you kidding me? ^_^ I want your person, I want your heart, I want your monthly pass