Volume 5: Fellow Traveler Chapter 784: Believe It Without Doubt
Fortunately, Prince Jiangdu did not hear this... As for whether Mr. Song heard it or not, it doesn’t matter.
When Zhang Shou heard Ah Liu recount the conversation between Ye and King Jiangdu, as well as Ah Liu's own words to Ye, he couldn't help but laugh and cry. Although Mr. Song seemed very bold and tough when he argued with Princess Yongping, it was because it involved the greatest persistence of this young man who seemed to go with the flow.
But if it was something else, Mr. Song would not have insisted so much. Ever since he knew that Lady Hailing was very supportive of him opening sugar water shops all over the capital, and said that she would marry him in the future, and was willing to give all her dowry to help him, Mr. Song, overjoyed, almost raised his hands and feet to say that he would let his wife decide everything else after marriage...
For example, regarding his future child, Mr. Song once solemnly promised the Princess of Hailing that he would let the child make his own choice. If the child wanted to take the imperial examination, he would do his best to support him, but if the child wanted to follow the path of his father-in-law, the King of Jiangdu, and enter the government through favor, he would never stop him. Of course, if his son also wanted to follow his path...
Mr. Song said that he would be happy to have a successor, but he was also a little worried about whether his son would be laughed at. Therefore, he would definitely be happy to see his son be healthy and at least be able to fight to protect himself. Because every time Mr. Song mentioned that he was tied up and beaten by Mr. Song, he would often be full of anger, thinking that if he could fight, he would definitely be able to break through the siege.
Knowing that he was thinking too far ahead, Zhang Shou smiled at Ah Liu and said, "Well, the matter of King Jiangdu has come to an end. The Fourth Prince and Zhang Chen should have found a clue as well. Let's go!"
Ah Liu nodded gently, then asked again: "Master, do you still want to ride in the same car with King Jiangdu?"
Zhang Shou was stunned when he heard this, then he chuckled, "Different cars. He probably didn't sleep well for a few days, so this trip back is a good way to catch up on some sleep. I talked , and I talked a lot just now, so my mouth is dry, so I want to save some energy on the way back. By the way, with the guards of King Jiangdu here today, you don't have to worry about safety on the road anymore, right? Just go back with me in the car."
Ah Liu hesitated for a moment, but when he thought of the group of petty thieves sent to Shuntian Prefecture, a gloomy look appeared on his face. He had ordered Zhu Hong and others to send the people to Shuntian Prefecture, and Song Tuiguan also took it very seriously and immediately arranged an interrogation. The results of the interrogation were beyond his expectations.
It was not a conspiracy or premeditated plan. They were just desperate and wanted to rob people. They even planned to kill them after kidnapping them. In other words, those people were so vicious that they didn't care about their lives.
But in a peaceful and prosperous era, it would be fine if this reckless thief was a well-known thief, but he was not. Among the few people, there was a bankrupt loom owner, a former idler whose wife was a weaver but suddenly lost her job and died of illness, a long-term worker who was driven out by the master, and a man who lost all his property after a patient appeared in his family...
He still remembered what Zhang Shou had told him: for ordinary people who lack the ability to bear risks, an accident is enough to deprive them of their stable lives and plunge them into an abyss from which there is no recovery.
However, Ah Liu did not intend to tell Zhang Shou about the follow-up of the incident. Because Zhang Shou was drowsy and dozing off the whole time, and because of Zhu Ying's appearance afterwards, he did not pay much attention to the robbers. Therefore, he even specifically informed Song Tuiguan and told him to handle the matter according to the law and not to make a big fuss.
Since there were people who went bankrupt or even lost their jobs because of those machines , Zhang Shou might feel guilty. But how could he be blamed for this?
So, with thousands of thoughts running through his mind, Ah Liu only said one simple word: "Okay."
When Zhang Shou saw that Ah Liu really went to give a few instructions and then accompanied him into the carriage, he sat down and leaned back comfortably, smiling and said, "Yingying has been married for quite a few days, and you, as the housekeeper, have been in charge of her people for quite a few days. Come on, tell me about your achievements and difficulties."
This kind of daily training of Ah Liu's conversation was the only entertainment for Zhang Shou when he was bored in the village. And it was from that time that he liked to talk to Ah Liu, who was not good at speaking. Back then, he could only say three or four words at most, but now, whenever necessary, Ah Liu would talk more and more.
It was the same at this moment. Even though his voice was flat and his expression was expressionless, Ah Liu still carefully recounted his life as a housekeeper, which was not exciting at all. However, Zhang Shou still felt good when he heard Zhu Hong and others trying to integrate into Zhang Garden, as well as Ah Liu's poor but interesting interactions with them.
Suddenly, he realized something. This boy with thick eyebrows and big eyes, Ah Liu, had betrayed the past very early and established a good relationship with Zhu Ying. Was he thinking that even if Zhu Ying married in with a large group of people, it would still not shake Zhu Ying's position as the housekeeper?
Thinking of this, Zhang Shou couldn't help laughing and pointed at Ah Liu: "You look honest, but you're smarter than a ghost! Zhu Hong and others who grew up in the Duke of Zhao's mansion look smart, but they're actually more honest than anyone else. How can they beat you!"
In response to Zhang Shou's comments, Ah Liu's expression was unusually calm, but his words were full of dominance: "They can't beat me, so of course they have to obey me."
If it is really about who can fight and then determine the status, then what is the point of using tricks? Zhang Shou knew that even if Ah Liu's tricks were simple and crude, they often hit people's hearts directly. He couldn't help but smile and shook his head, and then asked nonchalantly: "Let's not talk about Zhu Hong and other sensible people, but what about others? You know, when we first moved to Zhang Garden, we borrowed people from the Duke of Zhao's mansion to help. Did anyone look down on those little guys at home who have no experience and qualifications?"
"The inner courtyard is managed by the eldest lady. Someone has been expelled back to the Zhaoguogong Mansion for being too talkative." Without explaining the specific reason, Ah Liu simply mentioned it. Then he suddenly realized something and coughed again, "The young lady said that the outer courtyard will be handed over to me. So on the first day when you went to worship at the ancestral temple, I asked Yang Hao, Zheng Dang and the other little guys to form a formation and fight Zhu Hong and the others."
After changing the way he addressed Zhu Ying in what he thought was the most natural way, Liu curled his lips and said, "Many people watched the game , but the little guys won."
This time, it was Zhang Shou who was surprised. Zhu Hong and other guards who were named Zhu and of the same generation were considered the top group of people in the Zhu family of Zhaoguogong Mansion. How could they be so arrogant that they only sent out Zhu Hong or two people, and they ended up being beaten up by a group of little guys and lost in public?
Even if those little guys were taught by Hua Qi... the people in Zhao Guogong's Mansion should be taught by Hua Qi, right? One side was trained for a few months at most, while the other side may have been influenced by Hua Qi for many years. How could they have such a result?
Zhang Shou was reflecting on whether he had neglected the family affairs because he indulged himself in the gentle world after marriage. He only heard Ah Liu say quietly: "I asked Zhu Hong and his friends to send out six people. Yang Hao and his friends, plus those I recruited before, made a total of twelve people. They used the unique skills taught to them by the madman..."
Seeing Zhang Shou looking up at him in astonishment, Ah Liu couldn't help but feel the veins on his forehead throbbing, but he tried his best to appear calm: "The twelve of them used a wire mesh to wrap Zhu Hong and the others up tightly."
Even though Zhang Shou had already guessed in his heart that Yang Hao and Zheng Dang must have found another way to defeat Zhu Hong and others, and maybe even used some tricks. However, such a trick was still beyond his expectations.
He couldn't help but sit up straight, but then frowned. "It's impossible for one person to carry a wire mesh. Only one person can carry it, and then everyone can cooperate with each other when the enemy is unprepared. Only then can the person be wrapped up. There are twelve people in Yang Hao's group. How can they cooperate so well? Zhu Hong and the others should have brought swords, so they won't break the seal and get out?"
"And...how thin can the wire be for wire mesh these days?"
Zhang Shou accidentally used the word "these days" as an adjective. This was certainly his oversight, but it was true that the metal smelting technology of the time was at that level. Steel wire was hard to come by. If it was a steel wire net that could wrap six people, how big would it be when it was unfolded, how heavy would it be, and how difficult would it be to unfold? He really couldn't help but feel surprised.
If it were really so effective and easy to use, we would have heard of it appearing in certain applications.
Ah Liu knew Zhang Shou's personality. After hearing him ask so many related questions in one breath, he said seriously, "Of course it's impossible for all of them to be steel wire. It's just that some of them are mixed in. In addition... since it's a competition, Zhu Hong and the others took the initiative to propose using wooden swords and knives, so Yang Hao, who was leading the team, took advantage of the opportunity."
This is really... one side wanted to be tolerant out of style, while the other side really wanted to win. No wonder it ended up like that!
Thinking this in his heart, Zhang Shou sneered and said, "Do those little guys of Yang Hao feel embarrassed after this?"
"They were very proud." Ah Liu used five words to describe the victors' mental state. He then paused, as if listening to the noise outside. After a long while, he said lightly, "Then I gave Zhu Hong and his men real swords and asked them to beat up these tricky guys. Of course, they refused, so I did it for them."
As soon as these words were spoken, Zhang Shou felt as if everything in front of him suddenly became clear.
He said, with Ah Liu's character, how could he take such a victory won by trickery seriously? It would be more logical to scold and beat up the little guys who got carried away. However, the next moment, Ah Liu added: "Then I rewarded each of them with a piece of bacon for coming up with this way to fight the enemy, and punished them to find a way to repair the net by themselves."
After the beating, he was rewarded, and after the reward, he was punished again... If it were someone else, they would probably be at a loss for this incredible treatment, but fortunately, everyone in Zhang Garden had long been accustomed to it. Moreover, he really deserved to be punished for taking out a backup plan just to look cool.
At that moment, he smiled and gave his young butler a thumbs up in approval: "Not bad, not bad, Ah Liu, you are becoming more and more like a good butler."
Ah Liu took such praise for granted. Even though many people thought that Zhang Yuan's personnel arrangement was a joke, he always felt that he was a good housekeeper. Therefore, he smiled again and said seriously, "Master, the family is bigger now and there are more people. I want to divide up many things so that I don't have to take care of so many things."
"Well, it's up to you." Zhang Shou became the hands-off boss without thinking twice, and then said with a smile, "Just like I entrusted the Tiangong Workshop and all the money and property including the entire Zhang Garden to Yingying, I will leave all the people in the family to you. I trust you."
Zhu Hong, who was outside the car, could of course hear Zhang Shou and Ah Liu's conversation, which was completely open to outsiders. He envied Ah Liu's ability to speak freely in front of Zhang Shou, but he was also impressed by Zhang Shou's trust in people and his full delegation of power. Of course, when he heard that Zhang Shou had handed over everything at home to Zhu Ying, he felt that Zhu Ying's vision in choosing a husband was indeed outstanding.
Even among the wealthy families in the capital, it was considered upright if one did not covet his wife's generous dowry, let alone handing over all his property to his wife.
Zhang Shou really treated Zhu Ying the same way as before the marriage. The master and the eldest son really acted like villains in vain...
The King of Jiangdu slept all the way, Zhang Shou and Ah Liu chatted all the way, and as for lunch… Since the King of Jiangdu said when he set out from Baijia Village that he had no appetite and wanted to return in a hurry, Zhang Shou and Ah Liu just ate a few snacks with their food boxes in the carriage. Therefore, when the group finally arrived in the capital, it was only a little after the early afternoon.
The King of Jiangdu did not even delay at all. After being woken up, he hurriedly opened the curtains and talked to Zhang Shou for a few words, then rushed back home without stopping. For this reason, he even urged the driver to drive the carriage as fast as possible, and strictly prohibited the guards from returning early to report the news. No one expected that he would return so quickly. Several gatekeepers in the King of Jiangdu's mansion were even bragging happily when the carriage came and stopped.
Until someone saw a carriage suddenly stop, the curtain was lifted, revealing the black face of their king.
Being caught so easily by their own king, the several doormen who had finally managed to relax were almost going crazy. However, before they could come forward to apologize, the King of Jiangdu suddenly got out of the carriage with rare agility, ignored them at all, and rushed in like a gust of wind after jumping off the carriage. Faced with this scene, the head doorman who hurried out was immediately horrified.
He immediately asked the guards, "Why did the king come back so early? Why didn't you send someone back to report earlier?"
A group of palace guards looked at each other, and finally an older one stood up and said, "Your Majesty followed Scholar Zhang to a village near Tongzhou, where he met the Fourth Prince and the eldest son of Duke Qin, Zhang Chen, and also met Miss Ye. It seems to me that Your Majesty has been persuaded by Miss Ye, and he should have changed his mind." He must have come back to surrender to the county lord!
