Be a small county magistrate in ancient times

Chapter 590 Why Not Do As You Please

"Lord Hua need not worry about Lord Zeng. He must have foreseen this fate the day he accepted the money."

Hua Rujin looked at Meng Changqing for a while, then said, "Alright."

The two groups of people arrived at the gate of the prefectural government office and saw that the carriages for returning to the capital were already prepared. A yamen runner from the prefectural government hurriedly came over to greet them, "Sirs, please lead your horses to the back gate. There must be no obstruction here."

"Alright." Meng Changqing dismounted and handed the reins to Xi Bei. "Could you please go and keep an eye on our horses?"

"Do not worry."

Hua Rujin wasn't wary of the government officials and simply threw down the reins and walked towards the last blue cloth carriage.

Meng Changqing then noticed that the person next to the carriage was Zeng Jing, who was wearing shackles.

Hua Rujin walked quickly to Zeng Jing, but a thousand words were stuck in her chest. In the end, she could only say, "Take care of yourself."

"My lord," Zeng Jing said, shaking Old Master Hua's hand with emotion, "thank you for taking care of my family these past few days."

The woman carrying luggage next to Zeng Jing also thanked Hua Rujin.

"Don't say those things, this is all I can do."

Even from a great distance, Meng Changqing could hear Hua Rujin sighing.

Zeng Jing also noticed Meng Changqing. "Lord Meng..." he hesitated, "Lord Hua, please don't get too close to a sinner like me."

“You’ve misunderstood,” Hua Rujin explained for Meng Changqing. “You know he’s not someone who’s afraid of gossip; he just has a lot on his mind.”

Zeng Jing immediately said, "I was overthinking it. But as I said before, sir, you should go ahead and do your work."

Hua then bid farewell to Zeng Jing and his family. Just as she turned to leave, she saw Meng Changqing walking towards them.

Earlier, seeing Meng Changqing looking unhappy at the gate of the prefectural government, I thought she wanted to avoid Zeng Jing, but now I know that's not the case.

"Lord Zeng," Meng Changqing greeted the person beside the carriage.

“Lord Meng, please don’t address me like that,” Zeng Jing said. “I am now a prisoner.”

Meng Changqing said, "The specific handling hasn't been decided yet, and you are still the county magistrate." Unlike Hua Rujin, Meng Changqing's words showed no sadness. "Things have already come to this, so you can rest easy now."

These words were puzzling. Zeng Jing and his family looked at Meng Changqing with puzzled expressions, while Hua Rujin repeatedly gave Meng Changqing meaningful glances.

Meng Changqing accepted it and smiled at Zeng Jing, saying, "They've already gone completely bad, what else can we do? Don't worry."

Zeng Jing smiled wryly, "Lord Meng is right." He took a deep breath, "I am completely relieved." He looked at his wife and said apologetically, "I've dragged you into this."

Mrs. Zeng shook her head, carrying her luggage, "Husband and wife are one. No matter where you go, I will always go with you."

Meng Changqing didn't know what to say to someone like Madam Zeng. She wanted to say, "You're telling him now that husband and wife are one, did he ever think about that when he took a concubine? If he had, would he have been willing to let you take a young and handsome man instead?"
Surely they wouldn't want to? If that's the case, then they're not husband and wife as one.

Meng Changqing wanted to wake her up, but he knew he didn't have the ability to help her.

In this situation, once Madam Zeng realizes what's happening, she will likely feel even more pain.

"Madam is kind and righteous," Meng Changqing said, bowing to Madam Zeng. "But kind and righteous people are often not as happy as those who follow their own desires. Take care on your journey."

After saying this, Meng Changqing turned around and went into the government office.