Chapter 35 – Fourty Thousand; A Debt Collector’s Story

When Wang Lao Taiye saw that the Master had arrived, he quickly asked his wife to help him up. It was strange. the Third Wangye clearly had a gentle temperament and is scholarly and refined. However, when others approach him, they dare not make trouble. This is probably the bearing of a prince. No wonder even after he fell into such a state, Xiao Guifei and the Crown Prince still wanted to put him to death.

Lao Taiye cupped his hands and wanted to beg a few words, but saw that the Third Wangye entered the residence without even glancing sideways, without giving him a chance to speak. The two old faces looked at each other with regret. If they didn't come in person, they might retreat, but after seeing their grandson's amazing talent, they must not give up.

The words the Third Wangye had spoken just now had not been exaggerated in the slightest. The talents of his grandson were truly that amazing. There wouldn’t be another one for the next 500 years. Whoever had such a descendant in their family should raise and nourish him well, but then their family, actually moved him to a small rural courtyard from a young age and left him to his own devices. In the end, they even chased him out and two servants actually stole him away.

"Lin shi, that bitch! If only she hadn’t repeatedly engaged in pillow-talk with Xianggan, he wouldn’t have sent You Shu off to a rural courtyard! A man must marry a virtuous wife, this is really not wrong!" Lao Taiye trembled with anger. If Lin shi was right in front of him, he would’ve hacked her into pieces! However, he had given her to his grandson and couldn’t renege on it. He only hoped that his grandson could dispel his anger and recognise his ancestors and return to the clan after disposing of Lin shi.

The two seemed to have aged ten years older overnight. They helped each other and returned to their Fu. Due to the death of his son and grandson which were both equally extremely unsightly and had bad reputations outside, the funeral was very simple. Only after placing the coffin at home for three days and waited with hope, but in the end, the eldest grandson never returned. There were just as few people who came for the memorial service. Even only two or three clan members came. After carrying out the funeral ceremony, they hurried away, as if they were afraid of being infected by bad luck.

As the clan's reputation was damaged by the two, the clan could not afford to lift their heads, and had no choice but to move out of the Capital and return to their hometown all within two or three years. Only the old Wang couple were reluctant to part with his eldest grandson and refused to leave no matter what. Of course, these are matters that will be spoken of later and not to be mentioned here.

Although Ji Changye was meeting with friends outside, his heart was always on You Shu. When he remembered that he was yearning for Song shi to return to the Capital, he felt very depressed. After bidding everybody goodbye, he quickly returned and just happened to run into the old Wang couple. After entering the gate, he ordered in a cold voice, "In the future, anyone surnamed Wang is not allowed in! "

The gatekeeper hurriedly agreed.

He went straight into the main courtyard and saw a woman who was trussed up kneeling on the limestone slate under the scorching sun. His face sank and he walked around only to see that it was Lin shi.

"Master, should we drag her away?" Ah Da and Ah Er whispered.

"No need, kneel." Across the window, I saw the boy sitting upright behind the desk and writing carefully, with a few black marks on his face. Ji Changye didn’t know why but his mood improved in an instant. Lin shi raised her head and smiled with eyes full of pleading.

Lin shi originally thought that the Third Wangye was kind and he could not bear to see a big man like You Shu punish her. Who would have thought that he would be so cold, staring at her as if he had already regarded her as if she’s dead. I’m screwed, I’m screwed!  If she knew that she would fall into the hands of these two demons, she would’ve killed herself earlier! She despaired in her heart and softly lied on the ground.

Blu: When Lin shi refers to killing herself, she meant killing herself through slamming her head against the pillar. I couldn't really fit it in there without the sentence loosing its impact *sigh*

Hearing the sound of familiar footsteps, You Shu looked up and habitually squeezed out two small dimples on his cheeks. He never smiles, his expression is always serious, but when he is in a good mood, his eyes will shine like starlight, appearing not only clever and cute but also very sweet. No matter how troubled Ji Changye was, as long as he sees such a young man, he will automatically feel happy.

Throwing all the thoughts behind him, Ji Changye hurriedly walked into the study and picked up the young man's essay and poem to read. You Shu clasped his hands behind his back and raised his head, like a schoolboy waiting for the teacher to lecture. He can’t help it. He had been taught since young till now and had already formed his own habits.

Just then, a black-clothed guard arrived in a hurry, took out the token and flew into the study past Ah Da and Ah Er, whispering in Ji Changye's ear. Ji Changye's face didn’t change, but after the other party left, he ordered in a deep voice, "You two immediately send You Shu out of the Capital and take Song shi and the others away."

Although Ah Da and Ah Er had misgivings, they did not dare to disobey. They directly covered the mouth of the youngster who inquired repeatedly about the reason, and brought him away to the small village where the Song shi lived. Then secretly bought an ox cart and prepared to leave that very night.

"I won't leave unless you tell me what happened." You Shu pushed away the wooden box that Ah Da was handing over.

Song shi and company were also extremely anxious. Not because of him but because the box was full of silver banknotes, land deeds and house deeds, and another letter to Song shi, asking her to take care of You Shu on his behalf. Song shi overlooked on arguing why an outsider would ask her to take care of You Shu, because Ji Changye's behavior is not like letting You Shu establish himself but like a dying person entrusting his son to someone else. The contents of this box was enough for You Shu to spend well for a few lifetimes.

Ah Da and Ah Er had already obtained the message from a pigeon when they were on the road. They knew that there was trouble in the Capital, but they couldn't tell the teenager in order to stop him making extra trouble for the Master.

"You Shu, be obedient. Let’s quickly leave. Your safe departure from the Capital is the greatest help for the Master. If you do not leave, he will have to deal with the situation in the Capital while worrying about you. How can he do both?" Ah Da leaked it the moment he spoke.

You Shu widened his eyes and hurriedly said, "The situation in the Capital has changed?"

Ah Er firmly elbowed Ah Da, blaming him for not shutting his mouth, and then reached out to drag the boy, wanting to force him onto the ox cart. It has been a long time since You Shu had acted shamelessly and now he played the same old trick, which widened Song shi and company’s outlooks. They first saw him holding the table tightly, then his fingers were pried open by Ah Da and then clung onto the door frame. Ah Da and Ah Er had no choice but to cooperate and lift him up together, so he wildly kicked his legs. His mouth making a racket with both his hands dug straight into their nostrils, making them cry internally.

"You Shu, you have to be good. Master is doing all this for you. Please don’t be noisy, we have to get out of here as soon as possible, otherwise it will be too late."

The more they persuaded, the more You Shu became worried. His small face turned red, and suddenly his strong waist wriggled up and down like a fish. Ah Da and Ah Er couldn't hold him. He actually turned over and landed on the ground, grabbed the ox cart and went towards the Capital.

Ah Da and Ah Er scolded this little brat in their hearts, but they were also moved by his loyalty. Since he knew that the Capital had changed, he would definitely know that the situation of the Master was unfavourable and worrying. At this time, he is still unwilling to escape, but is much better than those who kick people when they are down. The Master did not spoil him in vain.

The two knew that the young man held the heart of the master and was treasured so. How can they let him go back to court death? They used their qinggong to catch up with the ox cart, hand chop him unconscious and took him away under the cover of night.

Blu: qinggong - a form of Chinese martial art

When You Shu woke up, he found that he was on a cargo ship, there were torrents of water below, and mountains in the distance, and layers of fog on the sky. He didn't know where he was. He calmed down and said, "I won't run, but you have to tell me what happened to Master."

It was already early in the morning the next day, and Ah Da and Ah Er stayed by the boy’s side the whole night, worried that he would wake up in the middle of the night and jump into the river, and had to keep close to guard him. Not to mention, this kind of thing can definitely be done by the little brat. He has a kind of silly enthusiasm, and once he makes up his mind, he will stop at nothing to do it.

Ah Da looked at Ah Er, and Ah Er thought about it. He actually found a rope to tie the boy up. Then he frankly said, "Just yesterday, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, and the Seventh Wangye ate at the same table. After that, they fainted and the imperial physician diagnosed that the three had been heavily poisoned."

"So they suspected it was the Master? Is Master that stupid?" You Shu expressionlessly sneered.

"It's not important whether he is stupid or not, as long as the Emperor is convinced then it’s a success." Ah Da clenched his fists and voiced indignantly. "After the three of them were poisoned, the steward of the inner palace commited suicide to escape punishment and left behind a letter written in blood, saying that he was the late Empress’ confidant and was entrusted with a task by the late Empress when she was on her death bed, which was to hide by the Emperor’s side as Master’s servant. He also wrote that this poisoning was directed by the Master."

Ah Er sighed and looked pale.

You Shu could see the link from the words and action of the two, and hesitantly spoke, "Could it be that, this inner palace steward really is the confidant of the late Empress?"

Ah Da and Ah Er nodded bitterly. "Yes, he is indeed a spy who has been placed next to the Emperor by the late Empress. He has slowly climbed to the position of steward in recent years, and the late Empress has indeed asked him to take care of the Master. However, the Master feels that his heart is changeable. He has never been in contact with him since he was exiled. This time I don’t know who he was bribed by, but he set up such poisonous schemes to frame the Master. What is more hateful is that in addition to that blood letter, he also left a lot of forged evidence, and among them, many of them were secret letters between the late Empress and the Master. Although, no evidence can be obtained from the handwriting.”

Being able to bribe the steward of the inner palace by the Emperor’s side, it can be seen that the late Empress had remarkable skill, but the person who set up this trap is even better. Still don't know where he learned about the relationship between the steward and the late Empress, and how he forged the letters. But now, it’s now meaningless to investigate them. Being able to bribe the person closest to him to poison him, this obviously had touched the Emperor's bottom line. If the accusation is carried out, then the Master will head towards disaster.

You Shu’s heart beat madly. He already knew that he couldn’t rescue the Master by himself. But he couldn’t help looking at Ah Da and Ah Er with hope, “Then why are you guys with me? Mastere has been in the Capital for many years, there is bound to be reliable people.”

"There is, but when the master was arrested, there were a few who went whichever way the wind blew, and the Master’s people were all cleanly exposed. The Master's people were either arrested or dismissed, and it was difficult to protect himself. We will send you to Quanzhou then we will gather the troops and return to raid Tian Prison." Ah Da and Ah Er have already revealed their will to die in their words.

Most of the forces left by the late Empress were hidden in Jingzhou and the authority to control the army lied with the Master. As soon as the Master went there, they would be like hidden dragons entering the sea, stirring the Heaven and Earth. However, distant water cannot put out a fire close at hand. Even if Jingzhou's army immediately sets out, it will take several months to reach the Capital. How can they afford to wait?

You Shu collected his thoughts and asked, "I want to ask you how sure are you that you can rescue the Master safely?"

The two answered after a long silence, "50%."

Only 50%? That is to say, once they go, it’s either live or die. After You Shu thought for a while, he finally made up his mind, "Send me back, I can save the Master."

"Definitely not!" Ah Da and Ah Er vetoed but suddenly exclaimed.

They saw that the rope the boy was bound in had untied itself, as if an invisible hand was controlling it. This hand pushed open the window and threw the rope into the river. Seeing that it was very windy near the river surface, it did not forget to close the window again.

“Splash!”

The sound of something falling into the water made Ah Da and Ah Er suddenly awaken, and simultaneously stuttered, "Saw, saw a ghost!"

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TRANSLATOR'S CORNER

Blu: Is You Shu gonna reveal his powers? owo