PNB Chapter 176 The Zheng Family
Chapter 176 The Zheng Family
Madam Han had a very good impression of the young girl in front of her. Although she was clearly a peasant girl, she did not show any signs of being petty or unsophisticated in her manner.
He is well-mannered and speaks eloquently; if he has not been taught before, he is extremely intelligent.
“Miss Meng, just ask away. If you and Young Master Xie hadn’t come to me, it would have been quite a hassle to find Ling’er. If Ling’er had been injured or ill, I would not have been able to die in peace.”
Madam Han quickly replied, "Mother, what are you saying? You're really making your daughter-in-law feel too embarrassed."
During the conversation, Meng Fuqing learned that when Old Madam Han was seriously ill, it happened to be the time when Madam Han was about to give birth. The newborn Han Ling'er was brought to Old Madam Han's bedside. In her delirium, Old Madam Han opened her eyes and saw Han Ling'er smiling at her.
Strangely enough, after that, Madam Han's condition gradually improved, and her newborn daughter, Han Ling'er, became her most precious treasure.
Meng Fuqing smiled and said, "The old lady is in good health and will surely be able to accompany Miss Jiu as she grows up safely."
These words struck a chord with Old Madam Han, and she smiled broadly, "Thank you for your kind words, Miss Meng. Please speak, Miss Meng."
Meng Fuqing explained the situation of the group before saying, "We have traveled a long way to find a place to stay in Jing'an Prefecture, but we recently heard that Jing'an Prefecture is no longer accepting refugees, and we don't know what to do."
Upon hearing this, Old Madam Han and Madam Han exchanged a glance, and for a moment no one spoke.
Seeing this, Meng Fuqing's heart sank, sensing that resolving this matter would not be easy.
"If it's just Miss Meng and Young Master Xie's families, it won't be difficult for them to settle down in Jing'an Prefecture. Even if they want to settle down in my Qingzhou City, I can put in a good word for them."
"But it's not easy to accommodate all of you in Jing'an Prefecture."
Meng Fuqing asked again, "Besides Jing'an Prefecture, are there any other places in the nearby prefectures or cities that take in refugees?"
Madam Han shook her head. "The plague is raging. The lives of the refugees are lives, and the lives of the people in the city are also lives. It's a choice between the two..."
At this point, she stopped talking and said to Meng Fuqing, "Miss Meng is in a predicament, and I naturally cannot turn a blind eye to it, but I can only do my bit to help."
My Han family is related to the Qiao family, the current Prefectural Commandant of Jing'an Prefecture. I can write a letter and send it to Jing'an Prefecture; perhaps that can help us negotiate a little.”
Meng Fuqing immediately stood up and bowed, "Thank you so much, Madam, for your great kindness..."
Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by Old Madam Han, "If Miss Meng wants to draw such a clear line, how should the Han family repay you for saving Ling'er?"
After sitting and talking for a while, Meng Fuqing took his leave.
When he met Xie Jin again, Han San, who had seen him off from the mansion, was by his side.
Xie Jin used his height and long legs to block Meng Fuqing's way, cupped his hands in farewell, but some shameless people still insisted on stepping forward to look him over.
Han San, slightly drunk, laughed in a rather unserious manner: "It's truly unbelievable that someone as radiant as Miss Meng, who shines like the bright moon, is just a peasant girl."
"I heard you'd like to settle in Jing'an Prefecture? That might not work for others, but if it's Miss Meng, I have a good idea. Would Miss Meng like to hear it?"
Before he even got close, Meng Fuqing could smell the alcohol on him.
Taking a step back, Meng Fuqing said, "Young Master Han, you flatter me."
I used to think that clothes make the man, but today I suddenly realized that even someone dressed in fine silks and jeweled shoes can be easily seen as having a shabby exterior. I've certainly broadened my horizons.
Xie Jin couldn't help but smile upon hearing this.
Han San had a high alcohol tolerance; although he reeked of alcohol, his mind was clear, though his reactions were a bit slow.
Meng Fuqing's words slowly circled in his mind, his smile froze on his face, and he looked at the ungrateful peasant girl in front of him in disbelief.
"you……"
"Add one more: repaying kindness with enmity."
"I……"
“He’s full of wine, women, wealth, and power; he’s idle and lazy, always chasing after women; his character is questionable.” Meng Fuqing shook his head. “This kind of person should be reincarnated into the animal realm so he can be of some use.”
"How dare you insult me?!" Han San was already furious, his face turning ashen, and only then did he manage to utter a single sentence.
"This is the lesson I have learned today. Young Master Han, please do not overthink it."
After saying that, Meng Fuqing took the reins from the servant, mounted the horse, and looked down at Xie Jin, asking, "Young Master Xie, aren't you leaving?"
Xie Jin could no longer suppress his smile. He suppressed his smile and turned to look at Han San, whose face was turning red and white. "Young Master Han, we shall take our leave now. Until we meet again."
The three rode away swiftly into the night, leaving Han San alone, his breath rumbling with rage, the smell of alcohol emanating from his head.
Xie Jin, who had already left, felt it wasn't enough. He instructed Mu Sheng, "Find a chance to beat up Han San."
Meng Fuqing glanced at him but didn't say anything.
Mu Sheng silently prayed for Han San, thinking, "Of all people to mess with, he had to mess with his master and Miss Meng."
"Yes."
After Mu Sheng left, Meng Fuqing said to Xie Jin, "The human traffickers' backers are the Zheng family."
"The Zheng family? It seems the Han family and the Zheng family don't get along. Han San once said when he was drunk that the Zheng family is shameless and seeks fame and fortune."
Meng Fuqing seemed to understand something, "Then that makes things easier."
Xie Jin understood. "Miss Meng wants to visit someone?"
"Thank you for your assistance, Young Master Xie."
The two returned to the inn, made a point of showing their faces to the innkeeper, let Shan Qiyu know they were safe, went back to their room to change into black clothes, covered their mouths and noses, and then slipped out of the inn through the window.
When the two of them acted together, the servants guarding the courtyard were knocked unconscious even faster.
They first went to the storeroom, and then the two of them went to the Zheng family's study.
Xie Jin kept watch outside, while Meng Fuqing quickly searched the entire study with vines. Finally, he found a mechanism under the desk, which, when opened, revealed some correspondence and account books.
After quickly glancing through the contents, Meng Fuqing tossed the ledger into his spatial storage.
The two arrived and left quietly, without attracting the attention of the Zheng family.
The way back would pass by the Han family. Meng Fuqing handed the account books and correspondence from her spatial storage to Xie Jin, asking him to deliver them to Old Madam Han.
"It's related to human trafficking. The Zheng family takes a cut from the human traffickers in Zhannan and the places that buy and sell 'skinny horses' in Jing'an Prefecture. Whether a person is sold as a child or as an adult, the Zheng family can probably profit from it. It's a good business."
Xie Jin nodded thoughtfully, "Others might keep things from us, but Old Madam Han, who almost lost her granddaughter, might not."
With witnesses and physical evidence readily available, now is indeed a good opportunity if one wishes to bring the Zheng family down. At that point, the power struggles within the Qingzhou Prefecture bureaucracy will be none of our concern.
“However,” he hesitated for a moment, “the Han family might be able to guess that it was us who did it.”