Chapter 209 - Untitled
“Lord Zuo An.” As soon as the person saw Zuo Shaoqing, he immediately put down his teacup and stood up with a bow.
Zuo Shaoqing walked to the seat of honor and sat down. Then, he raised his head and asked with a smile, “You are …?” What was this old man doing here?
“Wang Xu, this time, it's all thanks to Lord Zuo and Master Lu for saving the lives of my father and my son. They've come to thank you!” Master Wang was dressed in sackcloth, and even though he had been tidied up meticulously, it was still difficult to hide the exhaustion and old look on his face.
Zuo Shaoqing guessed that Wang Family would be in chaos for a while after he returned. He did not believe that this person could be so magnanimous and allow others to bully his wife and children.
Should he give this person a hand? He would treat it as repaying Wang Zhenhai's favor.
“So it's Master Wang! I've heard a lot about you!” Zuo Shaoqing wasn't unfamiliar with Wang Xu. He also had a stack of information on Wang Family in his study, and among them, there was a biography of Wang Xu.
He was the first person who came to thank him. Just by this point, Zuo Shaoqing already felt that this person was not that bad of a person.
It was Wang Xu's first time seeing such a young official, and he heard that this young man was actually Wife of Duke Zhen. If it wasn't for the repeated confirmation, he would have thought that what he was stepping on wasn't the ground of Great Yang.
The two of them greeted each other nonchalantly. Wang Xu had been immersed in the shopping mall for many years, so his words were extremely beautiful. He didn't have the vulgarity and treachery of a wealthy businessman, so he could easily win the other's favor.
However, he was currently penniless and couldn't bring out a proper gift. The tea he brought with him was even from his old friend's shop, which made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
“This humble one will always remember sire's saving grace. In the future, if there is anything this humble one can use, this humble one will do my best!” Zuo Shaoqing was a bit surprised by his confidence. Logically speaking, a man who suddenly knew he lost his family business and his wealth would be depressed for a while, but from Wang Xu, he didn't see a shred of pretence. Even if he was wearing cloth clothes, it was not to be underestimated.
“Master Wang is serious. Master Lu had been ordered to build a navy so he was irreconcilable with the pirates to begin with. Saving both of you is something he should do, it's not like he can save his life.”
Zuo Shaoqing quickly calculated in his heart. If Wang Family was owned by Wang Xu, with his kindness towards him, it would be much more convenient to help in the future.
As the richest person in Crane City, the resources at hand were unimaginably rich. Having such a friend was not bad at all.
The moment he returned to the city, he found out that all of the shops under his name had been changed. The servants of Wang Family had also been cleaned up, and the only people left inside and outside of Wang Family were his second brother's people.
His second brother had climbed onto Prefect Lin, which was why he was able to use illegal means to change the inheritance right. Seeing that Prefect Lin was about to fall, it wasn't hard for the shop under his name to get it back.
His father had already passed away, and his mother had leaned towards second brother. The deadline for the test that day had passed, and in name, he had already lost.
It wasn't that he didn't want to admit defeat, it was just that when he thought about how his little brother tried to exterminate him after he went missing, and how his wife went crazy, Wang Xu couldn't stop the hatred in his heart.
If you are not kind, then I am not righteous, Wang Xu had to obtain Wang Family for himself.
After chatting for a bit longer, Wang Xu didn't ask for help. The first time they met, he only wanted to leave an impression on this lord.
In his current situation, if he were to ask for cooperation, it would only make others look down on him.
“The two sons of this commoner were left in great pain on the island. It was all thanks to the medicine prescribed by the master's family that they are almost fully recovered.”
“That's good. Since the two gongzis aren't feeling well, I'll have the doctors check them every now and then until they are cured!” Since someone was going to throw out an olive branch, Zuo Shaoqing had no reason not to.
The two chatted very harmoniously. When Lu Zheng returned, the two of them had already started addressing him as “Uncle Wang” and “nephew”, as if they were long-lost relatives.
Lu Zheng carried Zuo Xiaolang and, seeing that there was a guest around, he didn't mind. He bent over and kissed Zuo Shaoqing's cheek.
However, Zuo Shaoqing was a bit embarrassed. He glared at Zuo Xiaolang and hugged him well.
“This is …” Little gongzi? “This is cute …” Wang Xu looked as if he was struck by lightning, blankly looking at the little boy in Zuo Shaoqing's arms. He had watched Wang Zhenhai grow up, so he clearly remembered his childhood appearance.
Other people might think that Zuo Xiaolang and Wang Zhenhai were at most seventy percent alike, but in Wang Xu's eyes, they were like a different person.
However, he did not lose his composure because of the storm. Instead, he buried his doubts in his heart.
Zuo Shaoqing introduced him to Lu Zheng, said a few words to him and tactfully saw him off.
Wang Xu walked out of the Cao Sect in a daze. The first thing he did was not go home, instead, he went to find an old friend that he had known for many years.
“Did you let him see it on purpose?” Zuo Shaoqing touched Zuo Xiaolang's head and asked Lu Zheng.
Lu Zheng didn't answer, but said: “My son always has to go out to meet people.”
“Aren't you afraid that he will find out something?” The things that happened in the Wang Family back then were not untraceable.
Four years ago, Wang Zhenhai's official wife was pregnant. He was only 16 years old at the time, the most interesting age. There were a lot of concubines in the family, including one that he liked the most.
Where there are women there are fights, not to mention in the back yard where men have wives and concubines. It's not a coincidence that Wang Zhenhai hasn't left a son and a daughter yet. It's the masterpiece of that concubine.
She traded the dead baby for the son of official wife, and then bribed the midwife to secretly carry the baby out of the house. She originally wanted to send the baby far away, but she didn't expect that the person who did the work would directly throw the newborn baby into the forest.
That was why it was said that Zuo Xiaolang being able to live to this day was practically a miracle. Ever since Zuo Shaoqing found out that the concubine still remained in Wang Family, he became extremely disgusted with the current patriarch of Wang Family.
“So what?” Lu Zheng stared at Zuo Xiaolang and asked, “Do you know who your father is?”
Zuo Xiaolang was having a lot of fun grabbing Zuo Shaoqing's hair. When he heard Lu Zheng's question, he revealed a smile and wrapped his arms around Zuo Shaoqing's neck, “This is my father!” As for his father, he didn't like him.
Lu Zheng did not comment on his biased approach, “Then you have to be sure!”
Zuo Shaoqing happily gave him a kiss and then talked business with Lu Zheng.
“The imperial reports and people have all been sent away?”
“Yes, fast riding. We will arrive in the capital in five days.”
“With the Emperor's intelligence network, his speed should be slightly faster than this.” Zuo Shaoqing rubbed his chin, looking forward to the Son of Heaven's reaction.
“Naturally, we can't rely on just our words alone.” Lu Zheng said softly. There were some things that a one-sided testimony was not enough.
Zuo Shaoqing held his son and sat on his lap. He blinked and asked, “Who do you think will be the next Crane City Prefect?”
Lu Zheng put the big and small thing in his arms, lowered his head to press it against the little guy's forehead, and ignored the little guy's beast-like vigilant eyes, “I don't care about these things, it doesn't matter who it is.”
“There's something I've wanted to do for a long time …”
“Hmm?” Lu Zheng had a smile on his face. His palm slid down and pressed down on the small of his back.
Zuo Shaoqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. “What are you thinking?” He slapped Lu Zheng's hand away, indicating that he still had something else.
Lu Zheng put his hand down in disappointment. Ever since he had a son, his status had plummeted. If he didn't use a forceful method, Zuo Shaoqing would never let him be intimate in front of his son.
He slouched back in his chair and asked unhappily, “What do you want to do?”
“The Ministry of Works President won't be able to hold on for long, right? I don't want to be under the weight of such a man in the future. “
“Which seat do you want?” Lu Zheng showed a rare surprised expression.
Zuo Shaoqing rolled his eyes again, patted his face and teased, “Did the pirates beat Master Lu silly? Do you think I have the qualifications to do so? “
Forget about his qualifications, with his age, would the people and officials of Great Yang accept a fourteen year old second rank paper? Are you dreaming?
Lu Zheng took the opportunity to bite his hand into his mouth, using his tongue to lick the tip of his finger. “If you really want it, there's nothing impossible about it.” If it was the positions of the other departments, no matter what he exchanged for Zhan Yuanfeng, he would not agree. But for the position of Ministry of Works, honestly speaking, it was hard for him to get Zhan Yuanfeng to compromise.
Zuo Shaoqing knew that he had done what he said. From the moment he knelt in front of Emperor Tianfeng and used all his efforts in exchange for the marriage edict, which astonished everyone, he knew that this man could do things beyond his imagination for him.
“Hurry up and erase the calculations in your mind! If you dare to get one for me, I won't accept it! Do you want my glorious name to be ruined? “
“Didn't you ruin your illustrious reputation when you married me?” Now that the people of the world were talking about Zuo Shaoqing, how many people truly admired his talent?
Zuo Shaoqing's mouth twitched, “You want me to regret marrying you?”
Lu Zheng coldly spat out two words: “In your dreams!”
Zuo Shaoqing really didn't know how the topic came to this ridiculous topic. Returning to the main topic, he told Lu Zheng his plan, he couldn't sit at the seat of Ministry of Works, but he wanted to help Liang Qi sit at this place.
“Him?” Lu Zheng's expression turned strange, “I think you should ask him personally for his opinion before making a decision!”