Chapter 466 - 178: Hiring a Cat (Part 2)
Chapter 466: Chapter 178: Hiring a Cat (Part 2)
"If I’m what?"
Chen Wanqing wanted to ask, ’Jing, are you up to no good?’
But she decided against it. Right now, she was more interested in the "cat-hiring" notice.
"With the humble offering of salt-cured fish, we sincerely seek to hire one feline. Duties: to guard the study and expel all manner of rodents. Rules: shall not steal from the kitchen, shall not sing loudly at midnight. A full belly of fresh fish and a warm bed will be provided. Will not be struck without cause, nor given away lightly. We wish to treat this cat as family, and never fail in our duty to it..."
The notice also listed the address of the person hiring the cat, as well as their name.
When she saw the five words "Mr. Yin, Prefectural School Teacher," Chen Wanqing was utterly dumbfounded.
"Even if Mr. Yin’s family wanted to hire a cat, they wouldn’t need you to write the notice for them. Jing, you..."
"Sister, you can’t just let him give me a hard time without letting me cause a little trouble for him in return."
An expression of both "I knew it" and "I’m speechless" crossed Chen Wanqing’s face. "But he’s your instructor. It wouldn’t be good if you truly offended him, would it? Besides, this so-called ’tormenting’ of yours... if you look at it from another angle, isn’t it a sign that he values you...?"
"I’m also very concerned about his books and his sleep. So, I took the liberty of sincerely hiring a feline to visit his home and clear out his rodent infestation."
"That’s... really not necessary, is it? By revealing Mr. Yin’s identity, think of how many parents who want to get their children into the prefectural school but have no connections will come knocking on his door..." ’This is going to be a huge headache for Mr. Yin.’
Unfortunately, Chen Wanqing didn’t dare say these words out loud.
Because Zhao Jing put on a wronged, helpless, and heartbroken expression.
Even though he was clearly the one in the wrong, at that moment, she felt as if *she* were the one who had made a mistake.
"Alright, alright. Do what you want. But just this once. Don’t let it happen again."
"Okay."
That afternoon, several old serving women from the Zhao Family were given a task. Each took some paste and two "cat-hiring" notices and went to post them in the most populated areas of the city.
The women were illiterate, but to prevent a situation where they’d be asked what the notices said and know nothing, thereby ruining their master’s plan, they memorized the text.
"You know, it’s actually quite interesting."
"Only our master could come up with something so elegant."
"What do you mean, ’our master’? Didn’t you see what’s written on the notice? It’s for Mr. Yin, who lives in Xinghua Alley..."
"Right, right. Look at my memory. I almost got such an important detail wrong."
As for how Zhao Jing knew that Mr. Yin lived in Xinghua Alley, his classmates from Yueli Hall had told him.
Since Mr. Yin was trying to bully them with his exam questions, the classmates of Yueli Hall, united by a common enemy, had dug up all the details of his life once again.
He had an affair with another noble lady, which made Mrs. Yin sick with anger. Although Mr. Yin quickly coaxed Mrs. Yin back into a good mood, a knot of resentment remained in her heart. When Mr. Yin was demoted and sent to Xinghuai Prefecture, Mrs. Yin did not accompany him.
To prevent Mr. Yin from being completely unrestrained in Xinghuai Prefecture, Mrs. Yin had specially promoted one of her dowry maids to the status of a concubine to keep an eye on him for her.
To further prevent Mr. Yin from bringing too many women into the household, Mrs. Yin had even bought him only a three-courtyard residence when helping him set up his home—in the eyes of a young lady from a prominent family, a three-courtyard house was barely large enough to accommodate the master himself.
But this is getting off-topic. The point is, Mr. Yin was a philanderer by nature. After gaining the reputation of a third-place scholar, countless young women wanted to use his high status to get ahead.
And since Mr. Yin was the type to never refuse anyone, the very situation Mrs. Yin had tried so hard to prevent still came to pass.
Mr. Yin had lodgings at the prefectural school, but he returned home every day.
He would either summon a few women from his back courtyard to serve him wine and food, or simply go to the brothels to enjoy himself. He lived a life of utter debauchery.
Today, Yin Xichen had been invited to a banquet at a restaurant...
Zhao Jing didn’t plan on telling Chen Wanqing this piece of information.
He was even less prepared to tell his beloved sister that he had another move planned. He wanted "good things to come in pairs" as payback for Mr. Yin’s "special attention."
In any case, after the cat-hiring notices were posted, the old serving women returned quickly.
"It was so lively! As soon as they heard the prefectural school’s instructor wanted to hire a cat, people got all excited and went to fetch their own. It didn’t matter if they were big or small, newly bought or ones they’d raised for years—everyone wanted to give their cat to Mr. Yin."
"And those who didn’t have a cat at home immediately went out to buy one. By the time we were heading back, the price of cats at the catteries had already gone up."
"What are you all talking about? What cattery? What price increase?"
Mrs. Zhao and Xiang’er heard the commotion and came into Chen Wanqing’s courtyard. They had arrived late and only caught the last part of the conversation, having missed what was said before.