met free Page 99
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Qiong Ying frowned and said, "Why don't we just find a place to put her down?"
"Young lady, you may not know this, but this woman is Madam Cai's maid. When the Cuiyun Tower caught fire, they abandoned Madam Cai and escaped alone."
Shi Qian chuckled and said, "When I left, Madam Cai had already been rescued by the government officials. If this woman is found by Madam Cai, she's probably in big trouble!"
"Then..." Qiongying's face immediately showed difficulty.
"In my opinion, why not just let this woman keep Jinlian company?"
After Shi Qian finished speaking, he winked at Zhao Yuan.
"Brother, how about this?"
Uh, could it be that Qian kidnapped Li Ping'er just because I glanced at her a couple of times yesterday?
They really are brothers!
Zhao Yuan was feeling somewhat sentimental when he suddenly saw Qiong Ying looking at him suspiciously.
He quickly composed himself and said with a serious expression,
"Let's take her with us first. Once we're in a safe place, we can ask her if she has anywhere to go!"
After thinking about it, Qiong Ying realized that this was indeed the best solution at present, so she did not object further.
The group hurriedly left Daming Prefecture City, and after meeting up with Pei Xuan outside the city,
The group headed south together.
......
In the city of Daming Prefecture,
Seeing that Madam Cai had been successfully rescued, everyone from Liang Zhongshu to Wang Tongpan breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing that Liang Zhongshu's expression had softened and he was clearly in a much better mood,
Judge Wang hurriedly stepped forward and told him about Zhao Yuan's challenge to Lu Junyi.
"Useless! If we had reported this earlier and mobilized the Imperial Guards to ambush them, how could those bandits have escaped!"
Liang Zhongshu glared angrily at Wang Tongpan.
If it weren't for the gold, silver, and antiques that Magistrate Wang frequently sent to his home...
Liang Zhongshu wanted to chop this bastard to pieces!
"More than a dozen yamen runners have died. How am I supposed to report this?"
"Well, Your Excellency, wasn't Cuiyun Tower on fire?"
Judge Wang, with a shameless grin, said, "Weren't all those yamen runners killed while putting out fires?"
"You're clever!"
Liang Zhongshu snorted irritably.
"By the way, is it really true that Lu Junyi had no collusion with the Liangshan bandits?"
"Judging from their real sword-fighting match, and the fact that the bandit even injured Master Lu, it shouldn't be..."
Before Judge Wang could finish speaking, Secretary Liang interrupted him.
"In three or four months, it will be my father-in-law's birthday. Last year, the birthday tribute was robbed halfway and its whereabouts are unknown. My father-in-law was furious and wrote a letter scolding me. This year's birthday gift must not be wrong, but now, the gift has not been collected. Magistrate Wang, do you know what to do?"
The words have already implied it so clearly.
Judge Wang understood immediately and quickly assured him.
"Rest assured, Your Excellency, I will have Lu Junyi make up for the missing birthday gift!"
Chapter 129 The Golden Lotus is Complete
An ancient town in the southeast of Daming Prefecture.
When Zhao Yuan and his group arrived here, they saw that there were no pursuing troops from Daming Prefecture behind them.
So they simply went into town to rest.
The local officials and gentry, seeing that people from the Grand Commandant's office in Tokyo had arrived,
They quickly vacated the best inn in town for Zhao Yuan and his group to rest in.
Even ordinary soldiers have a place to rest.
In the lobby of the inn,
"Ah, being an official is fucking comfortable!"
Bian Xiang couldn't help but exclaim, "When we arrived at our destination, we were waited on hand and foot, and even given gold and silver for free! The officials here are truly generous!"
His current position is that of a military officer in the Grand Commandant's office, so the officials of Guzhen Town are naturally eager to befriend him.
In just a short while, he presented the equivalent of two or three hundred strings of cash.
This made Bianxiang, who had spent more than half a year robbing in the mountains to finally scrape together a thousand strings of cash, feel deeply moved!
"Generous? This is all hard-earned money from the people!"
Pei Xuan, standing to the side, said with a stern face, "They give you two or three hundred strings of cash, and then they can squeeze two or three thousand strings of cash out of the common people!"
"Damn it, I thought these bastards were generous! Turns out they only gave me 10%!" Bian Xiang complained.
His words immediately darkened Pei Xuan's face.
Fortunately, this Iron Hole clerk also knew that Bianxiang was born into a farming family and his moral character was naturally not high, so he did not hold it against 047.
At this moment, Qiongying's female soldier Xiaohuan suddenly strode into the hall.
Tell Zhao Yuan that the woman Shi Qian brought out of Cuiyun Tower has woken up.
"Brother, go see the beauty!" Shi Qian joked.
Bian Xiang, Deng Fei, and the others were also there, making a fuss.
"Don't talk nonsense!"
Zhao Yuan glared at everyone: "Let me find out if that woman has any other places to go. If she does, whoever brought her here will send her back!"
Although collecting all of Jin Ping Mei is indeed very exciting,
But reality is not a game, and Li Ping'er is not a two-dimensional character.
Of course, they couldn't forcibly take her to Liangshan.
Upon hearing Zhao Yuan's words, Shi Qian's face immediately fell.
Pei Xuan, standing to the side, nodded in satisfaction.
In fact, even if Zhao Yuan hadn't said it, this Iron Gatekeeper had originally intended to offer the same advice.
......
Zhao Yuan followed Xiao Huan into Qiong Ying's guest room,
Then they saw Pan Jinlian there, on the bed to the side.
Li Ping'er was wrapped in a quilt, looking at everyone with a face full of terror.
"Sir!"
Pan Jinlian curtsied and quickly brought Zhao Yuan a stool.
Qiongying puffed out her cheeks and said, "Brother, this lady seems to be frightened. She doesn't believe anything I say to Sister Jinlian!"
"If it were you, and you woke up to find yourself in a strange place surrounded by strangers, you would naturally be scared too," Zhao Yuan asked casually.
"What's there to be afraid of? If they're good people, then so be it; if they're bad people, then just fight our way out!" Qiongying snorted.
"Qiongying, you are very capable, but how many women in the world can be as brave and capable as you?"
Upon hearing Zhao Yuan's praise, Qiongying blushed and hid to the side, beaming with delight.
Pan Jinlian looked at her with a smile, but there was a hint of envy in her eyes.
After calming Qiongying down, Zhao Yuan then turned his attention to Li Ping'er on the bed.
"Madam, do you still remember me?"
"you......"
Li Ping'er paused for a moment, then carefully examined Zhao Yuan for a couple of seconds.
"Aren't you the wealthy man I bumped into on the stairs of Cuiyun Tower yesterday?"
"It's good that my wife remembers."
Zhao Yuan nodded and recounted the fire at Cuiyun Tower, and how Shi Qian had rescued Li Ping'er.
Of course, details like who started the fire are things that can be omitted if possible.
"We're not too far from Daming Prefecture now. If you have a place to stay, just tell me, and I'll have someone send you there."
"Daming Mansion?"
Upon hearing this, Li Ping'er panicked immediately. Forgetting about the difference between men and women, she quickly grabbed Zhao Yuan's arm.
“I absolutely cannot return to Daming Prefecture. If Madam Cai catches me, she will know that I abandoned her when the fire started, and she will surely bury me alive in the back garden to be used as fertilizer!”
"What? Buried alive?"
The others in the room were immediately alarmed.
"Is Madam Cai really that ruthless?"
Qiongying exclaimed in surprise, "How could they treat a maid like this?"
"I am not really an ordinary maidservant,"
Li Ping'er, her face pale and her expression panicked, explained...
"Madam Cai was jealous by nature. She never allowed the maids and servants in her household to get close to the Grand Secretary. If she found any maid breaking the rules, she would beat her to death and bury her in the back garden."
"In order to cover up her jealousy and prevent outsiders from spreading rumors, she arranged for the Grand Secretary to take me as a concubine, but she forbade him from touching me. Although I had the title of concubine, I lived with my foster mother every day."
"Even so, Madam Cai has long looked down on me. Now that I have made such a mistake, if I return to Daming Prefecture, I will only face death!"
By the end, Li Ping'er was in tears, pleading desperately.
"I don't want to die yet. Please, sir, take me in. I can do anything, from serving tea and water to making the bed!"
"This..." Zhao Yuan hesitated for a moment.
He was naturally willing to take in Li Ping'er and collect the complete Jin Ping Mei.
But for some reason, Qiongying didn't like Li Ping'er very much.
Zhao Yuan would never risk upsetting those around him for the sake of a strange woman.
He wanted to ask Qiongying for her opinion, but when he turned around,
The young girl's eyes had reddened at some point, and Pan Jinlian beside her was wiping away tears.
Before Zhao Yuan could speak, Qiong Ying preemptively offered her advice.
“Brother, this sister is so pitiful, let’s keep her.”
"My lord, although my life is tragic, I am not yet in danger,"
Pan Jinlian, who was standing nearby, also pleaded, "This sister has suffered much more than I have. My lord has always been kind-hearted, so please let this sister stay!"
It was one thing for Qiongying to plead for mercy, but Pan Jinlian actually said the same thing...
Zhao Yuan's expression immediately became somewhat strange.
He recalled that in *Jin Ping Mei*, Pan Jinlian and Li Ping'er were mortal enemies.
They fought tooth and nail for the emperor's favor.
Even Li Ping'er's eventual death was directly related to Pan Jinlian.
Now look at the scene before us where Pan Jinlian is pleading for Li Ping'er.
Indeed, life is unpredictable!
"Fine, since you have nowhere else to go, then come with us. Just don't regret it later!" Zhao Yuan nodded.
Upon hearing this, Li Ping'er quickly got out of bed, her eyes filled with tears, and bowed in gratitude.