Chapter 322 - Chapter 322: A Box of Banknotes
Chapter 322: A Box of Banknotes
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Chu Qingzhi put the bracelet on her wrist. With the bracelet on, her fair hand looked even more beautiful.
She immediately sent a message to Tang Jinghong. “Jinghong, the bracelet is very beautiful. 1 like it very much. Thank you.”
Tang Jinghong replied quickly, “I’ll bring you something good next time.”
Chu Qingzhi smiled. “Okay.”
The two of them chatted about trivia for a while before getting to the serious matters.
Tang Jinghong’s voice became slightly more serious. “Qingzhi, I’ve already investigated the Shen family.”
Know yourself and know the enemy, and you can win every battle you fight. When Chu Qingzhi decided to deal with Madam Shen, she sent a message to Tang Jinghong and asked him to help her investigate the Shen family.
Tang Jinghong was in charge of an intelligence network. It only took him one afternoon to gather all the information there was about the Shen family.
The Shen family’s situation was very complicated. Old Master Shen and Old Madam Shen had three sons and three daughters. Old Master Shen also had many concubines and illegitimate children…
Madam Shen was the eldest son’s first wife. The eldest son also had many concubines, more than ten children, and dozens of servants…
Madam Shen had two sons and a daughter. The eldest son was the son-in-law of the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War. He was currently a fifth rank official and could be considered to have a promising official career.
The second son was doing business at home. He was average and had basically taken over the family business. He married a wife, took in a few concubines, and had five children.
The daughter was married to the Zhang family in the county, Zhang Ziyang’s cousin.
The wealthy families in the county were all related, so ordinary people could not afford to offend these people.
Madam Shen cared about her eldest son the most. She often sent her eldest son banknotes. Her second son was very dissatisfied with his mother’s bias. Sometimes, he would even quarrel with Madam Shen. The mother and son were not on good terms…
Chu Qingzhi sat on the chair and listened carefully to Tang Jinghong’s low and gentle voice, her index finger tapping lightly on the table.
After hearing Tang Jinghong’s words, a plan formed in her mind.
She did not intend to kill Madam Shen. If a person died for no reason, it would attract the attention of the authorities. So… she wanted Madam Shen to live and watch the things she cared about lose bit by bit.
Madam Shen was vain, prideful, and overbearing. Moreover, the Shen family could enjoy the current glory all thanks to Madam Shen’s family’s help.
Because of this, Madam Shen had the say at home and kept a tight rein on Master Shen. Master Shen was a little timid by nature and never talked back to his wife.
Master Shen had a concubine he liked very much outside. The concubine was already pregnant and was thinking of ways to get a status. Master Shen also wanted to bring her back, but because there was a tigress at home, he did not dare to. At this moment, he was as anxious as ants in a hot pot…
Chu Qingzhi curled her lips and revealed a cold and mocking smile. “Alright, 1’11 start from you.”
At this moment, there was a knock on the door, followed by Wu Yaqing’s voice. “Qingzhi, are you asleep? I have something to tell you!”
Chu Qingzhi reached out and hid the golden-feathered phoenix. Then, she walked over to open the door. “Yaqing, come in quickly.”
Wu Yaqing was holding a box in her arms. She placed the box on the table and patted it. “Qingzhi, let me show you something good.”
Her eyes were as bright as two shining stars.
Chu Qingzhi glanced at it curiously. “What is it?”
“Dang dang dang dang…” Wu Yaqing opened the box excitedly. “Qingzhi, look.”
Chu Qingzhi looked into the box suspiciously. It… was full of banknotes. She was surprised. “Your family sent you banknotes?”
Wu Yaqing nodded excitedly. “That’s right. When 1 was in the northern border, 1 asked them to send me banknotes. They’re finally here. Qingzhi, it’s a million taels in total. Take it.”
It seemed that Wu Yaqing was really not joking when she said she would give her a million taels. Chu Qingzhi rejected. “Yaqing, I don’t want the money.”
Wu Yaqing’s smile disappeared in an instant. She quickly asked, “Is it not enough? Then, I’ll get them to send more.”
Chu Qingzhi held Wu Yaqing’s hand and explained, “It’s not that I think it’s not enough. I treat you as a friend, so 1 won’t take your money. Only those who don’t treat you as a friend will want your money.”
Wu Yaqing said anxiously, “But I’m giving you money because 1 really treat you as a friend. If you don’t want it, doesn’t it mean you don’t want to be my friend?”
There didn’t seem to be a problem with this logic. Chu Qingzhi thought to herself, This young lady really knows how to draw inferences.
“Friendship can not be measured by money. Yaqing, if 1 didn’t treat you as a friend, I would definitely ask you to give me all your money. Those who really treat you as a friend won’t covet anything from you, understand?”
Wu Yaqing thought for a moment and understood. “But I really want to give you money so that you can buy whatever you want. Won’t that be great?”
Chu Qingzhi closed the box. “Yaqing, you can’t let anyone else know about this money. Sometimes, human nature can’t withstand a test. A million taels is enough for ordinary farmers to live for a few lifetimes. If someone with evil intentions finds out, I don’t know what they will do.”
Wu Yaqing nodded. Then, she took out a lock from her purse and locked the box. “Other than me, no one can open this box.”
She looked around and placed the box in Chu Qingzhi’s wardrobe. “You don’t want it, but 1 still want to give it to you. I’ll leave this money here. If you need it in the future, smash it open.”
“Qingzhi, you’re the only one who doesn’t want my money,” Wu Yaqing suddenly said, looking a little sad.
Chu Qingzhi asked, “Who else did you give money to?”
Wu Yaqing frowned slightly. “I’ve given money to those who I considered to be good friends. 1 gave them anywhere from 10,000 to 100,000 taels. When I gave them the money, they were all smiling like flowers. I thought you would be happy too.”
Chu Qingzhi rubbed Wu Yaqing’s head like a caring big sister. “I’m happy because I know you mean it in a good way.”
Wu Yaqing went forward and hugged Chu Qingzhi. “In the past, I thought I had many friends. Now, I know that you’re the only friend I have. They’re just after my money.”
Chu Qingzhi patted Wu Yaqing’s back. The truth was a little cruel. “It’s fine. It’s not too late to know their true colors.”
Wu Yaqing puffed out her cheek and returned to being the lovable little princess. “Qingzhi, I’m going back to sleep. I’m so tired.”
“Good night.” Chu Qingzhi sent Wu Yaqing out.
Wu Yaqing waved at Chu Qingzhi. “Qingzhi, good night.”
After a while, Chu Qingzhi scanned the area with her divine sense and saw that the whole family was asleep. She then turned into a handsome young man in green and left the Chu Village..