Chapter 1311 - 5: The Invitation
Yun Chu picked up her bundle and bid farewell before leaving.
Though the Minister of the Ministry of Justice allowed Yun Chu to leave, he hadn’t completely let go of his suspicions and instructed the government officials to keep following her.
Yun Chu hadn’t realized she was being tailed by the officials before, but this time she noticed, though it was of no use.
If they want to follow, let them follow.
After a couple of days with nothing to show for it, naturally, they’ll stop.
However, she would still visit her mother in the Ministry of Justice Prison.
When Yun Chu returned to the inn, the last glow of sunset disappeared beyond the horizon.
The innkeeper kept her room for her, and Yun Chu paid for her lodging and asked the young servant to send two dishes upstairs.
All day, she had barely eaten anything and just ran around hitting walls; she was utterly exhausted.
The officials stationed themselves outside the inn, instructing the innkeeper to watch Yun Chu for them, which he dared not refuse.
The officials spent the night outside the inn feeding mosquitoes.
They slept poorly, their heads heavy and foggy.
Yun Chu slept soundly; for several days, she hadn’t had a peaceful night’s sleep. Now that she had seen her mother and brother, though the situation was dire, it was somewhat reassuring to her heart.
She had to sleep well to have the energy to find help to save her mother and brothers.
She lamented her shallow understanding of officialdom, not even knowing her father’s friends, having no idea whom to turn to for help.
After eating a bowl of porridge and two small buns in the morning, Yun Chu went out to the street.
With two officials trailing her, she dared not carry gifts to seek help, only wandering the streets with them in tow.
The officials, carrying out their duties, did not dare slack.
Wherever Yun Chu went, they followed.
Yun Chu wasn’t in the mood to shop but had to put on a facade of being very interested in it.
As a girl, she had an interest in rouge and hair accessories, but now disguised as a man, she could only look at things men liked.
Just as she was looking, a large cabbage suddenly flew towards the back of her head.
It hit Yun Chu’s head with a buzzing crash.
A fight had broken out, and she, an innocent bystander, got caught in the crossfire.
And the one fighting wasn’t just anyone; it was none other than Second Young Master Shen of the Jibei Marquis Mansion.
Having been away from the Capital for over half a month, he hadn’t shown his face around, not expecting that someone would dare mock him as a toad desiring to eat swan meat behind his back.
Hmm.
Lady Ji Bei was searching throughout the Capital for a wife for her son.
The man’s cousin was one such candidate; Lady Ji Bei rather liked the girl, and it seemed her parents were considering marrying her into the Jibei Marquis Mansion.
However, they were thinking of marrying her to Third Young Master Shen, not Shen Junshan.
The man had deep feelings for his cousin, and thinking the girl he loved would marry another, especially someone like the dissolute Shen Junshan, he was indignant and cursed Shen Junshan a few times.
Unfortunately for him, Shen Junshan overheard.
Shen Junshan was already troubled by his own marriage, unable to find someone while his mother pressed him to meet his future wife; he was already at wit’s end.
Someone bumping into him when he was in such a foul mood—weren’t they just asking for a beating?
Unfortunately, Yun Chu got caught up in this, standing in the wrong place and got hit by a cabbage.
The cabbage was thrown by the man at Shen Junshan, kicked away by him, and coincidentally hit Yun Chu.
Yun Chu rubbed her head, her vision darkened, unable to make out who was who for a while.
When she finally saw clearly, the man had already fallen to the ground, with Shen Junshan pinning him down with a foot on his chest, "Have the guts to say what you arranged about me behind my back again."
"I guarantee I won’t kill you."
Surely, he wouldn’t kill him; killing someone in the street would land one in prison.
However, beating half to death was also a definite outcome.
The man dared not say a word, repeatedly begging for mercy.
Yun Chu originally glared at Shen Junshan, but when he looked up, her heart skipped a few beats.
It’s him!
What a narrow road for enemies to meet.
After stealing his brocade robe, silver note, and horse, running into his father wasn’t enough; now she had bumped into him too.
Before hadn’t been so bad, but now she had already spent two thousand taels out of the ten thousand silver note she took—she couldn’t pay it back anytime soon.
Unable to afford trouble, she could only hide.
Yun Chu turned and walked away, Shen Junshan called after her, "Don’t go!"
How could Yun Chu not go?
Terrified of being recognized, she took off running.
Shen Junshan couldn’t care less about the man under his foot and took off after Yun Chu.
Yun Chu ran with all her might, but Shen Junshan caught up with her easily.
Grabbing her shoulder, he asked, "Why are you running?"
"No, nothing," Yun Chu quickly replied.
Her voice trembled.
Shen Junshan looked at the cabbage leaves on the back of her head and removed them for her.
Though he was rather dissolute, the person was innocently shopping and got hit by a cabbage because of his kick—he had to apologize.
It was just that his beating had been a bit fierce, scaring the person into not daring to breathe.
Shen Junshan patted her shoulder, "I’ve never seen someone with such a good temper as you."
"I just like making friends with people with good tempers."
"I’m set on making you my friend."
"Come, let me treat you to a meal."
Yun Chu, "..."
"No, no need," Yun Chu quickly said.
Shen Junshan, in a brotherly manner, hooked her shoulder as they headed to the tavern.
As for apologies, Shen Junshan didn’t plan on saying them; it didn’t fit his dissolute nature.
Treating her counted as the apology just right.
Yun Chu, lacking the strength to truss up a chicken, had no room to resist as Shen Junshan dragged her to the tavern.
The more she tried to avoid, the harder it was to hide.
Had she known, she would have worn her servant clothes out; a noble Marquis Mansion young master wouldn’t lower himself to brother-up with a servant.
She only had one set of servant clothes and they were still drying after washing.
The officials hidden in the shadows had pounding heads now.
They hadn’t expected that the person Lord Minister instructed them to watch had befriended the Second Young Master of the Jibei Marquis Mansion.
Though they were merely officials, they knew their Lord Minister had a good relationship with Marquis Jibei.
It was thanks to Marquis Jibei’s recommendation that the Lord Minister could secure his position.
The Second Young Master of the Jibei Marquis Mansion befriending the person they were supposed to watch meant they needed to extend some courtesy to him, right?
The officials turned and headed back to their office to report to the Minister of the Ministry of Justice.
At Drunken Immortal Pavilion, in a private room on the second floor—
Inside the room, sitting were two young noblemen, drinking and chatting.
Hearing the commotion, a guard walked to the window to look.
But the distance was a bit far, so he couldn’t see clearly.
When Shen Junshan and Yun Chu approached, the guard saw Shen Junshan’s face clearly and furrowed his brows, "Master, it’s him."
The man in the dark brocade robe who was drinking looked over.
The guard added, "It’s the man who snatched your robe that day."
The other man curled his lips, "Who had the guts to rob your brocade robe, daredevil?"
"I’d like to know too," the man said coldly.
"I didn’t expect to run into him in the Capital."
The guard glanced out the window, stating, "He’s entering the tavern."
This was a delivery right to the doorstep, then.
The two men left the private room, intending to go downstairs to catch him.
Just as they reached the staircase, they saw Shen Junshan coming up.
"Cousin, it’s him," said the man in the dark brocade robe.
The other man spun his folded fan in a circle, smiling, "I truly didn’t know the Second Young Master of the Jibei Marquis Mansion had a penchant for blocking the road in just underpants to rob people of their brocade robes."
The man was none other than Second Young Master Shangguan Tong of Duke Chong’s Mansion.
The man in the dark brocade robe was his cousin, Young Master Zhou from the Zhou Family.
Shen Junshan missed noticing the men, still cheerfully chatting.
Hearing Shangguan Tong speak, his smile instantly froze.
He looked up, his eyes locking with those of Young Master Zhou.
Recalling the day he was robbed, Young Master Zhou wanted to give Shen Junshan a lesson.
However, on that day, he couldn’t do it himself, but his cousin could.
Shen Junshan shook his folded fan, unfazed by Shangguan Tong’s words.
The robbery was real, nothing to deny.
But Yun Chu’s heart was a mess.
She hadn’t expected that, with her clothes torn that day, upon stealing someone’s brocade robe, she caused the person to end up in just underpants, blocking the road...