Imperial Husband Chapter 96

Chapter 96

Two days later.

Lan Mingzhou clasped his hands with a hint of helplessness. "Your Highness, I have already spoken with the head of the Cheng family. He did not agree immediately, but said he must meet with you personally before he can decide."

Speaking of the Cheng family head, Lan Mingzhou had to admit a certain admiration.

No sooner had Lan Mingzhou arrived at the Cheng mansion than the Cheng family head discerned the purpose of his visit, immediately seized control of their conversation, and even guessed that Lan Mingzhou was acting on someone else's behalf.

To keep the Cheng family standing firm amidst precarious storms and prevent it from being swallowed by other clans, the Cheng family head was clearly no ordinary person.

Li Jin thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement. "Acceptable. I am free during sishi [9-11 AM]. Have him come directly then."

"This official will immediately send someone to inform the Cheng family head."

Upon hearing this, Lan Mingzhou promptly dispatched a yamen runner to summon the Cheng family head.

A short while later.

The Cheng family head arrived at the yamen and bowed to Li Jin and Lan Mingzhou. "Your humble subject, Cheng Qingwu, pays his respects to the two lords."

Not knowing Li Jin's specific identity, Cheng Qingwu used the general term "lord" as a safe address.

Simultaneously, Cheng Qingwu was inwardly astonished. Before coming to the yamen, he had assumed the person behind Lan Mingzhou must be of considerable age and high official rank; otherwise, that person would not have escaped retaliation from the Lan family.

Cheng Qingwu's willingness to agree to meet Lan Mingzhou was a gamble—a bet that the lord protecting Lan Mingzhou possessed sufficient power to contend with the Lan family.

It must be said that the Lan family's intent to deal with Lan Mingzhou was an open secret among those of influence and authority in Zhuzhou, who had even been promised considerable benefits. Otherwise, the Zhang, Chi, and Lu families would not dare to openly oppose Lan Mingzhou, an imperial-appointed official.

However, being young is not without its merits. Perhaps this young man before me can help the Cheng family regain its former glory.

"Take a seat."

Li Jin calmly invited Cheng Qingwu to sit.

Cheng Qingwu did not waste time with false modesties. He nodded to Li Jin and sat down.

"What matter does the Cheng family head wish to discuss with me by requesting this meeting?"

Li Jin got straight to the point.

Cheng Qingwu said, "Naturally, it is to ascertain whether you, lord, are worthy of my Cheng family's full support. Honest men speak plainly. Once my Cheng family truly decides to cooperate with Lord Lan, we cannot escape being targeted by the Lan family."

"The Cheng family head is indeed meticulous." Li Jin picked up a teacup beside him and took a sip. "Then I will also speak plainly. My reason for having Lord Lan seek you out is because I have a complete strategy. Moreover, should the unexpected occur, with my capabilities, protecting the Cheng family would not be difficult."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Qingwu's pupils immediately contracted. "May I ask the lord's identity?"

It was no wonder Cheng Qingwu asked this, because Li Jin's answer had completely taken him by surprise.

After all, the Lan family was the maternal clan of Consort Chun. For Li Jin to speak with such certainty, his status must be equally high, if not higher.

Since Cheng Qingwu had already stepped into this matter, Lan Mingzhou naturally would not allow the Cheng family to withdraw midway. He promptly stated directly, "This lord is the Heir of the Prince of Dingbei."

The Heir of the Prince of Dingbei?!

Cheng Qingwu immediately drew a sharp breath.

The Prince of Dingbei was one of the three feudal princes holding military power. Therefore, with the support of the Heir of the Prince of Dingbei, how could he worry about not being able to restore the Cheng family to its former glory?

Thud.

Cheng Qingwu immediately knelt before Li Jin, clasping his hands. "Your Highness, my Cheng family will spare no effort in assisting Lord Lan."

"Very good." Li Jin nodded. "You will not regret this decision."

___

Seeing Ying Yuan, who had only just arrived now, Li Jin asked with confusion, "A-Yuan, why are you only arriving now? Didn't you say you wanted to meet Cheng Qingwu? He has already left."

"It's fine, I can meet him next time."

Ying Yuan shook his head, then took out a bowl of noodles from behind his back and placed it before Li Jin.

"Longevity noodles?" Li Jin recognized the noodles at a glance and also noticed the burn on Ying Yuan's hand. "A-Yuan, your hand is red. How could you be so careless?"

[Longevity noodles (长寿面 (chángshòu miàn): a traditional Chinese dish of unbroken noodles eaten on birthdays to symbolize a wish for a long and continuous life]

As Li Jin spoke, he was about to take Ying Yuan to rinse it with cool water.

Ying Yuan shook his head. "It's nothing serious. A-Jin, you should eat the longevity noodles first. Today is your birthday."

These longevity noodles were actually taught by Li Jin to Ying Yuan. Later, after Ying Yuan learned, he would tirelessly make a bowl of longevity noodles for Li Jin himself every year on his birthday.

"..."

Looking at the well-presented longevity noodles and Ying Yuan's reddened hand, a peculiar warmth slowly flowed through Li Jin's heart.

"A-Jin, they're best eaten while hot. I tasted them, though they still can't compare to yours, they are still... are..."

"Alright, I'll eat."

Li Jin picked up the chopsticks placed on the bowl and began eating the longevity noodles.

"A-Jin, eat slowly, be careful it's hot." Seeing Li Jin eating so heartily, Ying Yuan repeatedly urged him to slow down, his cheeks unavoidably warming.

"The flavor is very good."

Li Jin's pace of eating slowed due to Ying Yuan's words, but he would not withhold the due praise.

"Really?"

Ying Yuan couldn't help but ask.

Although Ying Yuan had indeed tasted them first and only brought them to Li Jin after ensuring they were acceptable, he was still worried Li Jin might not like them.

"Here, you have a bite too."

Li Jin deliberately scooped some longevity noodles with a small spoon, blew on them, and fed them to Ying Yuan.

"Uh..." Ying Yuan's cheeks reddened further. "N-no need... there's plenty left in the kitchen, I'll eat... mmm..."

Ying Yuan hadn't expected Li Jin to suddenly place the spoon directly into his mouth. He was instantly stunned, completely at a loss for words, and could only stare blankly at Li Jin.

Li Jin asked unexpectedly, "Do you like eating it?"

Temporarily unable to speak, Ying Yuan nodded vigorously.

"Then have some more."

After saying this, Li Jin continued feeding Ying Yuan.

As they say, with one bite, a second soon followed. Ying Yuan quickly accepted Li Jin feeding him the longevity noodles and calmly continued eating, though his long-since reddened ears betrayed him completely.

So adorable.

These words involuntarily surfaced in Li Jin's mind.

It had been several years since he’d last fed Ying Yuan like this.

In an instant, the memory of a younger Ying Yuan—like a little wolf cub from those early days—suddenly rushed into Li Jin’s thoughts and lingered there for a long while.

___

"Is this the yamen?" Wang Dacai looked at the yamen gate without any constables guarding it, feeling something was off. "Maybe we should ask again. Perhaps we've come to the wrong place."

Wang Facai had studied a little and recognized the two old, worn-out plaques hanging high above the gate, which read "Yamen."

"Can't be wrong. It clearly says 'Yamen' in big characters above. Look, Elder Brother, beside it there's even a drum for sounding grievances. This place is definitely the yamen."

"Since we've found the right place, let's go in."

After saying that, Wang Jinhua stepped forward and began beating the drum to sound the grievance.

Their purpose was clear: to report the offense Li Jin had previously caused them. However, aside from Wang Jinhua's eldest and third brothers, no one else from their family came to lodge the complaint.

As for involving Dashu's father, Liu Fugui, Wang Jinhua simply didn't dare.

Liu Fugui was someone who valued his reputation above all. Other matters might be tolerable, but if he knew Wang Jinhua had gone to the yamen to lodge a complaint, he would be the first not to let her off.

So, Wang Jinhua's trip to the yamen was done secretly.

The county yamen wasn't very large. With the drum beating, not only did Lan Mingzhou hear it, but even Li Jin caught some of the noise.

A yamen runner who had just gone to check the situation immediately returned to report to Lan Mingzhou. "Lord Lan, someone is beating the drum to sound a grievance. They say..."

Regarding Wang Jinhua and the others' accusations, the yamen runner relayed every word to Lan Mingzhou without omission, awaiting his judgment. Of course, since Wang Jinhua did not know Li Jin's full name—only that his surname was Li—her account remained vague. Consequently, even the yamen runner relayed the details somewhat ambiguously.

"Have them come in."

Lan Mingzhou didn't quite catch everything, only the gist.

Knowing they claimed to have been bullied by an evil man surnamed Li, he decided to hold court to clarify the matter.

"Your humble subjects, Wang Dacai (Wang Facai), pay our respects to the lord."

"This common woman, Wang Jinhua, pays her respects to the lord."

It was the first time Wang Jinhua and the other two had seen the county magistrate. Far from daring to act as domineeringly as they did in the village, they immediately knelt and spoke with utmost respect, almost kowtowing to Lan Mingzhou.

Looking at the written complaint on the desk, Lan Mingzhou asked directly, "Whom do you wish to accuse?"

Wang Jinhua didn't understand what "whom" meant and instinctively replied, "Uh... Lord, we don't want to accuse anyone."

"It means 'what person,'" Wang Facai shot Wang Jinhua a disdainful look, then continued, "Lord, my younger sister hasn't studied much. Please do not take offense, Lord. Actually, we have come to accuse a man surnamed Li..."

"You mean to say that the sweet potatoes were discovered by you, and later seized by a man surnamed Li?"

As Lan Mingzhou said this, his expression became exceptionally peculiar.

Wang Jinhua and the others didn't notice the change in Lan Mingzhou's demeanor, thinking he believed them. Immediately they grew even more emboldened and eagerly continued their fabrication, "Yes, Lord. We put a great deal of effort into finding those sweet potatoes. But that wretched man surnamed Li—he snuck into this humble woman’s home in the dead of night and stole all the sweet potatoes!"

The corner of Lan Mingzhou's mouth twitched. "Are there any witnesses?"

"Lord, my eldest and third brothers can both testify. Actually, it was they who discovered the sweet potatoes." Wang Jinhua continued turning truth upside down with a clear conscience.

"We beg the lord to uphold justice for us."

Wang Dacai and Wang Facai quickly chimed in, putting on the appearance of being victims of persecution. Any other official might have believed them.

Unfortunately, they had encountered Lan Mingzhou.

Before his true identity was exposed, Lan Mingzhou had witnessed all manner of schemes and deceptions. He immediately recognized the flaws in their story and coldly pressed them further, "Then do you know where the sweet potatoes were discovered? And how are they cultivated?"

Wang Dacai scratched his head. "N-naturally on the mountain. And these sweet potatoes grew by themselves. What need is there for cultivation?"

"A few days ago, a man surnamed Li also came to the yamen and told me about the sweet potatoes. He even knew the cultivation method. And you still dare to claim you discovered the sweet potatoes?"