Chapter 152 - 129: The Scheme
Shanyang Prefecture, an outer residence of the Xue Family.
Xue Bing stood before a desk, engrossed in his calligraphy.
With each stroke of his brush, large characters—sharp and full of vigor—appeared on the paper.
"This brush, made from tiger tail hair, is too aggressive. It doesn’t align with the strategy of showing weakness to the enemy. Remember to swap this for a rabbit-hair brush next time."
Xue Bing looked at his own calligraphy with satisfaction, then shook his head and gave an order to the person beside him.
Then, after a moment’s thought, he added, "Let Liu Chuanzhi in."
"Yes." The person beside him bowed in acknowledgment before silently retreating.
Once the man had left, the serious expression on Xue Bing’s face vanished, replaced by the cynical, debauched look of a profligate son.
He then deliberately mussed up the tidy desk. Beneath a few books, he had even placed an erotic painting.
Only a corner was visible, but it was conspicuous enough for anyone to spot at a glance.
Soon, a knock sounded at the door.
After receiving Xue Bing’s permission, Liu Chuanzhi entered. He first bowed to Xue Bing in greeting.
But as he lowered his head, his gaze swept across the desk and caught sight of the exposed corner of the erotic painting.
Liu Chuanzhi immediately sneered inwardly. ’Just as I thought, a good-for-nothing silk-pants. People like him are so easy to "use."’ He then offered a "respectful" greeting.
"Well? Is that man willing to cooperate with me?"
Sitting in the main seat, Xue Bing set down the book he was pretending to read and asked.
"Alas, Young Master Xue, I said everything I could, but that Fang Yue doesn’t know what’s good for him. He has no respect for Eldest Young Master Xue at all. He even said... well, the words were rather unpleasant. It’s better if I don’t repeat them."
At this, Liu Chuanzhi put on a troubled expression.
"What did he say? Speak freely. I won’t blame you," Xue Bing said magnanimously, waving his hand with a nonchalant air.
"He said... that Eldest Young Master Xue is an uneducated profligate, a scoundrel who uses his family’s status to bully the weak. He also called you a swine..." Liu Chuanzhi racked his brain, carefully selecting the most insulting phrases he could think of before spitting them out.
As he spoke, he carefully observed Xue Bing’s reaction. Seeing the young master’s face grow darker and darker, he grew increasingly delighted.
’Hmph, Fang Yue, oh, Fang Yue. You brought such misery upon my family. Now, prepare to receive this little gift I have for you.’
"Hmph! That bastard! A mere Martial Scholar from the countryside dares to slander me like this? He deserves to die!"
Xue Bing roared in fury. Seemingly unable to contain his anger, he grabbed the inkstone from the desk and hurled it violently.
"OOF—"
The inkstone accurately struck Liu Chuanzhi in the stomach, the brutal force sending him flying backward to the ground.
In that instant, Liu Chuanzhi felt a churning, agonizing pain in his gut. He nearly threw up the breakfast he had just eaten.
"Oh? Are you alright? Someone, quickly, take Liu to see a doctor!"
Xue Bing quickly got up, helped Liu Chuanzhi up from the floor, and asked with feigned concern.
Soon, Liu Chuanzhi was led away by Xue Bing’s men to see a doctor.
"Young Master, this Liu Chuanzhi is just trying to sow discord. He never even contacted Fang Yue. He was, however, plotting something with people from the Sanfu Chamber of Commerce."
At that moment, a man in tight-fitting black clothes emerged from the shadows of the room and spoke respectfully to Xue Bing.
"I know," Xue Bing said with a slight smile. Gone was any trace of the profligate son; his eyes were sharp, his demeanor one of complete control.
"Then, Young Master, why did you...?" the man in black asked, confused, but he was cut off before he could finish.
"Liu Chuanzhi is an idiot, but even idiots have their uses. At the end of the day, he’s a Scholar, and he happens to have a grudge against Fang Yue. That makes him a perfect tool for a frame-up."
Xue Bing gave a cold smile, then whispered something to the man in black beside him.
"The Young Master is brilliant!"
The man in black nodded, bowed respectfully, and then slowly retreated back into the darkness.
Xue Bing was left alone in the room, his expression unreadable.
"Since you took that wooden staff, we’ll see if your life is hard enough to survive this tribulation in Bai Xingqiu’s place."
Xue Bing smiled faintly, then tidied his desk and resumed practicing his calligraphy.
~~~~~~
Meanwhile, over at Bai’s Clinic...
After speaking with Bai Li, Fang Yue had learned that Bai’s Clinic was the ancestral property of the blind young woman.
She had inherited the property and taken in a few pitiful street children, who were now the five little ones at the clinic—two boys and three girls.
On a typical day, Bai Li treated the local residents to earn a living, managing to just barely sustain their lives at the clinic.
"It’s getting late. I should be going."
They had been chatting for a while, and it was already approaching noon. Fang Yue felt it would be impolite to stay. Their lives here were simple, and his appetite was enormous; he was afraid their provisions wouldn’t even be enough for him alone.
"Ah, you’re leaving already? I... why don’t you stay for a meal before you go?"
Bai Li stood up, instinctively turning in Fang Yue’s direction, looking somewhat flustered.
"There’s no need. I still have things to attend to."
Fang Yue politely declined and then left.
~~~~~~
Over the next few days, Fang Yue spent his time wandering around Shanyang Prefecture.
He was either searching for good food or observing the local customs and culture.
Life was comfortable and leisurely.
The prosperity of Shanyang Prefecture was on a much higher level than Xiahe County’s; it was larger in scale and more flourishing.
With so many people coming and going from all directions, all sorts of news converged here, which broadened Fang Yue’s horizons considerably.
One day at noon, feeling tired from his walk, Fang Yue looked up, saw a tavern not far away, and went inside.
"Did you hear? The war in the Northwest against the Barbarian Race was lost. The Qilan Mountain defensive line collapsed, and the Barbarians advanced seven hundred li overnight. More than half of Kunlan Prefecture has fallen into enemy hands."
"That news is already outdated. The latest I heard is that King Kaoshan, Yang Lin, has already pushed back the Barbarian army, retaking three hundred li of lost territory. The two sides are now in a stalemate around the West Emperor Mountain region."
He ate his food, drank his tea, and listened to the idle chatter of the nearby patrons.
’This is Shanyang Prefecture City, after all,’ he thought. ’Back in Xiahe County, I’d almost never hear any news from outside Shanyang Prefecture.’
Or rather, by the time he did hear it, the news would already be several months old.
This was the nature of ancient times. The transmission of information was extremely restricted and incredibly slow.
He even recalled from memory a time when the Central Dynasty had already been overthrown, but the soldiers guarding the border forts remained unaware for decades, still holding their posts.
"Bah, why talk about things so far away? Shanyang Prefecture is tens of thousands of li from Kunlan Prefecture. Who knows when those Barbarians would ever make it here? If you want to talk about something, we should talk about the major event that just happened right here in Shanyang Prefecture City."
"What major event?"
"Heh heh, did you know a major case has come up in Shanyang Prefecture this past month?"
"Are you talking about that big child trafficking case? Didn’t the investigation conclude that some beggars in the city formed some kind of gang, kidnapped a child, and performed the horrific act of maiming them to use them for begging money? Weren’t those beggars already publicly executed, flayed, and stuffed with straw?"
"Heh heh, you only know one part of the story. I heard that there’s actually someone else behind this case..."
The two men’s voices grew softer, but Fang Yue could still hear them clearly.
It turned out that not long ago, quite a few children had gone missing in Shanyang Prefecture. The Government Office eventually traced the case to some local beggars.
The official story was that these beggars had kidnapped the children, maimed them, and then used the disabled children to elicit sympathy and beg for money.
Such a vile act drew the wrath of both gods and men, and Shanyang Prefecture City executed quite a number of beggars.
After that, there were indeed no more child trafficking cases in Shanyang Prefecture.
This naturally seemed to prove that the beggars were, in fact, responsible.
However, according to the man’s story, some unmarried women had also disappeared, but their numbers were fewer than the children, so their cases were overshadowed.
Another point: if the case was solved, why were only a few victims recovered? Had the hundreds of missing children really all been brutally murdered?
And not a single one of the women was ever found either.
The whole affair was full of too many questions that didn’t hold up under scrutiny.
But precisely because no similar cases occurred after the beggars were killed, most people were convinced that they were the culprits.
"Alright, alright, stop talking nonsense. The Government Office has already confirmed it, so don’t keep running your mouth. Be careful someone doesn’t overhear and the government officials punish you for it."
The two men at the next table, already half-drunk, soon paid their bill and left.
A little while later, Fang Yue finished his meal as well.
He paid his bill and left, preparing to continue experiencing the culture of Shanyang Prefecture. He also planned to buy some gifts, as he would be returning to Xiahe County in a couple of days.
He had just stepped out of the tavern and hadn’t yet decided which way to wander.
"Excuse me, please let me through."
A familiar voice rang out. Fang Yue turned to see the young woman, Bai Li.
"Bai Li?" Fang Yue said.
"Oh, it’s you."
Bai Li followed the sound of his voice and "looked" toward Fang Yue, a surprised expression clearly on her face. She obviously hadn’t expected to run into him here.
"What are you doing here?" Fang Yue asked.
"I have a patient, so I’m making a house call. His family member was supposed to guide me, but a moment ago the man said he had a stomachache and left. I haven’t seen him since. I was about to wait for him by the side of the road," Bai Li said.
Hearing this, Fang Yue smiled faintly. He was afraid Bai Li had been tricked.
’If someone in his family really needed urgent medical care, he wouldn’t be gone for this long.’
’I just don’t know why someone would go to the trouble of deceiving Bai Li.’
Fang Yue didn’t expose the lie and instead waited with Bai Li for a while.
Just as he expected, no one came back.
Bai Li now clearly realized she had been deceived, and a look of vexation crossed her little face. But it vanished in an instant.
Bai Li then smiled and said her goodbyes to Fang Yue. "I have to get back. I still need to cook for the children."
With that, she stood up, tapped the ground with her bamboo cane, and prepared to leave.
"Let me walk you back."
Fang Yue stood up and shook his head, deciding he should escort the young woman home.
It was still some distance from where she lived. If she went alone, there was no telling how long it would take her to get back.
’I have nothing else to do anyway, so I might as well see her home.’