Life in prison was dull and monotonous. Now, they all looked over towards Fang Zichen as if watching a show.
A sharp pain shot through him, and only then did Zhang Huaiwen realize what Fang Zichen had done to him. His eyes turned bloodshot. "You... you dare hit me?"
"So what if I hit you?" Fang Zichen ignored Zhang Huaiwen's struggles, yanked his hair, and forced him to look him in the eye. "I'm hitting you precisely. You motherfucker, you dared to have someone drug me? Have you lived too long and want to taste dirt?"
With my looks and qualities, did this guy even look in a mirror before leaving home? How dare he try to steal my partner?
What was he even thinking?
Did he think that just because his family had a few lousy coins, he stood a chance? His house is already full of wives and concubines; he couldn't even get through them all in a week if he slept with a different one each day, and yet he still wanted to seduce Zhao Ger and be a sea king.
[海王 (hǎi wáng): lit. Sea king; fig. a person, typically a man, who romantically dates multiple people at once, akin to a player who casts a wide net]
He glanced at Zhang Huaiwen. Zhang Huaiwen's hair was now disheveled, some strands stuck to his face, his clothes were messy, his facial features were utterly ordinary, like a shriveled bean that had weathered all four seasons.
Just this???
Just this, and he dared to hit on Zhao Ger? Pah!
Only the good-looking can be called 'sea kings'. Someone like Zhang Huaiwen probably only qualifies as a 'sea ghost'.
[海鬼 (hǎi guǐ): lit. Sea ghost; fig. an extremely low-quality, unreliable online shopper who constantly haggles, returns products, and leaves malicious negative reviews]
After leaving the magistrate office the previous day, he had sought out Wang Xiaohu. He asked him to find out what kind of good-for-nothing this Zhang Huaiwen really was.
Wang Xiaohu had worked at the Zuixiao Restaurant for several years. Customers came and went, and those who served meals were the best at gathering information.
Wang Xiaohu waved his hand dismissively when he heard the request. "What's there to investigate?" he said. "I already know all about this Zhang Huaiwen."
A native of Heyang Town, a Tongsheng in the 16th year of the Guangjing era.
Second in the county exam, third in the prefectural exam, known as the pride of Heyang Town.
This 'pride'... Fang Zichen had indeed heard of him earlier, from customers who said this man had exceptional literary talent, was handsome, and had an extraordinary bearing.
But Fang Zichen never expected that the 'pride of Heyang Town' would be such cheap goods.
It seemed Heyang Town must be really short on people!
His strength was astonishing. Zhang Huaiwen was like a chick held by the scruff of its neck, gripped firmly by the other party. His struggles seemed utterly insignificant.
"Let me go," he glared viciously at Fang Zichen. "Just wait until I get out, I will definitely not let you off!"
Fang Zichen patted his chest. "Ooh! I'm so scared!"
Zhang Huaiwen: "..."
The other prisoners, always eager for entertainment, burst into loud, hearty laughter at the scene.
After speaking, Fang Zichen grabbed Zhang Huaiwen again and slammed him against the wooden bars. Zhang Huaiwen was already badly hurt from the first impact; this time, the pain nearly made him black out.
Zhang Huaiwen had never suffered such humiliation in all his life. He was so angry his face turned crimson, his expression almost twisted.
Seeing that Fang Zichen seemed intent on further humiliating him, he said, "Do you know who my sister is?"
He hoped that bringing up Zhang Huaini would make Fang Zichen think twice.
But Fang Zichen seemed to have eaten a bear's heart and leopard's gall. Hearing this, he didn't restrain himself but instead became even more arrogant.
[吃了熊心豹子胆 (chī le xióng xīn bào zi dǎn): lit. to have eaten a bear's heart and a leopard's gall; fig. to be exceptionally bold or audacious.]
Fang Zichen felt nothing but contempt for a family that would use their own daughter to gain favor.
Furthermore, Zhang Huaini was merely a concubine. What real status did that give her?
Even if Zhang Huaini was highly favored, a concubine was still a concubine. In the Daxia dynasty with its strict rules, concubines could never achieve the legitimate status of a principal wife.
Their status was only slightly higher than that of maidservants. Fang Zichen had heard that among some wealthy families, young masters would even exchange concubines as gifts, considering it an elegant practice.
There was a wealthy merchant from Fu'an Town who, after his business failed, had sold off all his concubines without a second thought.
There was a common saying: 'Better to be a rich man's concubine than a poor man's wife.' But in reality, a concubine's life was precarious. While young and beautiful, they served at their master's pleasure. If the principal wife was tolerant, their existence might be bearable. But if the wife was jealous or harsh, a concubine's life could become miserable.
In their later years, when age had faded their beauty, having a child for support was manageable. Those without children would mostly be sold off.
But being old, unable to work, and with looks gone, who would buy them?
Zhang Huaini was offered to Magistrate Jiang by her family when she was eighteen. Magistrate Jiang was over ten years older than her; it was a classic case of 'an old cow eating young grass'. If Zhang Huaini had been forced, Fang Zichen might have pitied her. But this Zhang Huaini was clearly no pushover.
It was said that within two years of entering the family, she gave birth to a son. The year she was pregnant, the legitimate wife, Lady Gu's eleven-year-old son, died after accidentally falling into the water while playing in the back garden. Two months later, the nine-year-old illegitimate son also died mysteriously.
Magistrate Jiang now only had two sons and one daughter. One son and one daughter were born to Zhang Huaini, the other was born to a maidservant.
When this matter came out, no one seemed to find anything particularly wrong with it.
However, after the incident with Madam Yang and having seen so many dramas about palace schemes, Fang Zichen felt it was obvious that Zhang Huaini was involved. He only had to think with his toes to see the connection.
An eleven-year-old boy, the legitimate son of a county magistrate, was far too old to be playing in a way that would lead to such a simple accident.
Moreover, the small ponds in the rear gardens, meant for growing flowers and appreciation, were often shallow on the sides and deeper in the middle. It was possible for a small child to fall in and drown, but an eleven-year-old child, at the very least around 1.2 to 1.3 meters tall, how could he still drown?
Besides, children in even moderately wealthy families always had servants watching them. It was unthinkable that the county magistrate's own son did not have a single servant by his side.
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