Chapter 564 - 210: Brother and Sister Meet (Part 2)
Chapter 564: Chapter 210: Brother and Sister Meet (Part 2)
"We call each other brothers. What’s yours is mine, and what’s mine is yours. My dear brother, just take it and use it. Think of it as a small token of my regard..."
After some back and forth, Fan Ju finally accepted the purse and the silver notes, and the two left the restaurant together.
Only after watching Fan Ju stumble into the place where he was staying did Gong Yuanxiu turn and head back.
The attendant beside him finally let a pained expression show on his face. "What a deal for that wretched pauper. My lord, you’re too much. Ten taels of silver would have been enough to send him on his way. Why did you have to give him so much at once?"
"You don’t understand. What Fan Ju can accomplish is worth far more than two or three hundred taels of silver."
"What can Fan Ju do? My lord must be referring to him going to the capital to file an imperial complaint, right? I’m not optimistic about it. For one thing, neither Mr. Sheng nor Mr. Xu is short on silver. If Zhao Jing wanted to bribe them, he’d need a mountain of gold. To think that Fan Ju’s complaint could take down Mr. Sheng and Mr. Xu... I’m afraid that’s impossible. I fear my lord will end up suffering a double loss."
"Hmph. How could I not see all that? But I’ve bungled my current assignment..."
’Was instigating Fan Ju to file a complaint in the capital really about taking down Zhao Jing and Sheng Mingchuan?’
’That was part of it, but not the whole story.’
’He was doing it to curry favor with the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and, by extension, the Empress Dowager’s faction behind him.’
’If they seized this opportunity, they could successfully launch an attack.’
’If all goes as expected, Sheng Mingchuan is set to succeed Mr. Zhou as the next governor after he retires.’
’But if a scandal about exam cheating were to break out before the new year, could he still secure that governorship?’
’Sheng Mingchuan would naturally clear his name of such a stain, but the time wasted would be more than enough for the Empress Dowager’s faction to exert its influence and install their chosen candidate in Heyuan Province.’
’Taking down Sheng Mingchuan would weaken the Royalist Party and deflate their arrogance.’
’Pushing Zhao Jing into the spotlight, meanwhile, would serve to attract Mr. Tao’s enmity.’
’Mr. Tao would then be too preoccupied to cause trouble for him, allowing him to escape reprimand and save his own skin.’
Of course, Gong Yuanxiu would never reveal these calculations to his attendant.
He simply offered a cryptic smile and chuckled as he looked toward the Prefectural Magistrate’s Office. "Sheng Mingchuan, oh, Sheng Mingchuan. This time, I’ll make you capsize in the gutter."
...
Two days before the Lu Ming Banquet, Xu Shiling finally returned to Xinghuai Prefecture.
The day he arrived at the Prefecture, he was about to gallop straight to the Chen family’s residence the moment he passed through the city gates, without even dismounting.
Xu Yanlin, who met his uncle at the city gates, eagerly invited him to ride in the carriage.
Xu Shiling just said, "It’s true I’m your elder, but I’m not necessarily in worse shape than you. You’ve probably forgotten all the skills our ancestors passed down. Your uncle is different, though. I still draw a bow three hundred times every day."
Xu Yanlin nodded.
’I can tell.’
’Otherwise, his uncle wouldn’t be so robust, looking almost like a military general.’
’Alright, then. If his uncle didn’t need it, he would just ride by himself.’
But Xu Shiling then pointed at him with his riding crop. "You get on a horse, too. How am I supposed to find your aunt if you don’t show me the way?"
Xu Yanlin: "..." ’Honestly, when faced with such an eccentric elder, he could only resign himself to being put in his place.’
Xu Yanlin took the reins from a servant, swung himself onto his horse, and pointed. "Head to the crossroads and turn left, then take a right. You’ll find Orchid Alley. It’s very close—it would take about the time to drink a cup of tea to walk there. On horseback, it won’t even take half that time."
"Enough nonsense. Just lead the way."
Xu Yanlin: "..."
They soon arrived at the entrance to Orchid Alley. Xu Shiling, who had been so impatient the entire way, was suddenly in no hurry.
He reined in his horse, his gaze profound as he stared at the second house in the alley. "Your aunt lives there?"
"It’s the absolute truth."
"And you’re sure she bears a strong resemblance to your grandmother?"
"When have I ever lied to you? You’ll know once you go and see for yourself."
The alley wasn’t actually that narrow. While it would be inconvenient for a full-sized carriage, a sedan chair or a horse could certainly pass through.
There was no one else in the alley at the moment, so they could have simply ridden their horses in.
But Xu Shiling dismounted anyway. Seeing this, Xu Yanlin naturally hurried to do the same.
They tossed the reins to the servants behind them and proceeded on foot.
Their pace grew slower and slower, until Xu Shiling stopped dead in his tracks, just over ten meters from the Chen family’s home.
Xu Yanlin didn’t urge him on.
He knew his uncle was feeling the anxiety of a long-awaited homecoming.
’The first time he himself had come here, hadn’t he hidden at the alley’s entrance for nearly an hour, only steeling himself to approach his aunt when he saw her come out to see someone off?’
’He had barely spent any time with his aunt. He was only two or three years old when she went missing, not even old enough to form memories. If even he had found himself unable to take that step forward, then how much more difficult must it be for his uncle, who had been the closest to their aunt since childhood?’