Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 55: Money-Grubbing Ghost

When the gamblers saw Master Ma San coming, they immediately stopped playing and dared not make any more noise.

They were well aware of the reputation of Master Ma San. He was a ruthless man with great power, and was not someone that ordinary people like them could offend.

When Lu Zheng saw the owner of Changping Casino coming over, he took Wenbao first.

The steward quickly whispered a few words to Ma Gui and informed him of the situation.

Ma Gui couldn't help but look at Lu Zheng for a few times, then said, "My gambling house usually has a lot of people coming and going, all kinds of people. If he gets involved in something unclean, it's possible."

He looked at the gamblers again, clasped his fists, and said, "Ma, your management is inadequate, and I apologize to everyone here. From last night to this morning, if any of the customers have lost money, my gambling house will return it all. Regardless of whether you win or lose, each person will be compensated with five taels of silver. I hope you will come to my business again in the future!"

When the gamblers heard this, they couldn't help but feel happy. No matter what, they didn't lose their capital and they could get five taels of silver, which meant they made a profit.

Ma Gui then said to Lu Zheng, "Thanks to this little brother's reminder, we'll temporarily close our gambling house today to find someone to remove the bad luck. We'll reopen tomorrow... Manager, please take us to settle the accounts! Please come with me for some tea, and I'll also have a thank you gift."

Lu Zheng thought to himself that this Mr. Ma San was very capable and he suppressed the matter with just a few words.

But he is not so easy to fool. The more he acts like this, the more it proves that there is something fishy going on.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Forget the tea as a thank you... I'm a helpful person. Why would you need to hire someone else? I'll clear the bad luck from your gambling house. If there are any ghosts, I can easily deal with them."

Ma Gui's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this. He smiled and said, "This is my gambling house's business. There's no need to trouble you, little brother. If there really is a ghost, we can handle it."

"Then let's look for it in front of everyone. Maybe one of the guests is deliberately causing trouble?" Lu Zheng said.

When the people who were originally planning to collect their money heard this, they suddenly felt that things were not over yet and couldn't help but want to join in the fun.

Ma Gui frowned and strode to Lu Zheng.

He lowered his voice and said, "Young brother, you should be a scholar. I, Ma, respect scholars the most... My brother works in the Kaiyang County government and is a close confidant of the county lieutenant. If you are a scholar from this county, perhaps you would recognize me. Why do we have to make things awkward?"

"It's not easy for me to run this business. I have to manage everything. If I really find something weird, I won't have any customers in the future. It will be hard to explain."

As he spoke, Ma Gui took out a heavy purse and wanted to secretly give it to Lu Zheng.

Lu Zheng took a step back and smiled, "Is Third Master bribing me or threatening me?"

Ma Gui looked displeased and asked, "What do you want?"

Lu Zheng said calmly, "Nothing, I just wanted to take care of it to prevent the ghosts from causing trouble."

Ma Gui said coldly, "You are just a scholar, you have no right to come to my territory. I wonder if you can tell me your name and I will visit you someday."

"Lu Zheng, from Kaiyang County." Lu Zheng said.

After saying that, Lu Zheng took out a rosewood identity card from his arms.

Ma Gui was shocked when he heard this, and looked at the sign in Lu Zheng's hand, and suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

When someone heard Lu Zheng's self-introduction, they exclaimed, "Lu Zheng? You're the talented scholar from our county!"

When the others heard this, they also reacted quickly.

In the past two days, the story of a scholar from heaven and earth in Kaiyang County has reached them.

It is said that the scholar Tiandi was extraordinary. He showed literary spirit when he first became a scholar. He was expected to become a high-ranking official in the future. He was also as close to the county magistrate as uncle and nephew.

"You..." Ma Gui's throat was blocked and he didn't know what to say.

He knew very well that with just a casual word from Lu Zheng to the county magistrate, not only could he dismiss Ma Gui, but even his brother's job could be erased. Lu Zheng put away his ID card and took out a piece of paper and spread it out.

"The Third Master said that a scholar like me couldn't manage it, so can I manage it now?"

Ma Gui stared at the document that Lu Zheng took out. It was written by the county magistrate himself and had a bright red official seal on it.

The meaning of the content is that if there is chaos caused by humans, ghosts, demons and monsters, Lu Zheng can perform the duties of the official and no one is allowed to interfere or stop it.

Previously, Lu Zheng was worried that people and demons would collude to cause chaos, and he had no power to deal with it, so he asked Li Yuan to write a document and also took up a nominal position in the county government.

Seeing Ma Gui dumbfounded, Lu Zheng said, "Third Master, please say something."

Ma Guihu's body trembled, and even his burly body bent down.

"Young Master, you are insulting me. I am just a commoner..."

Lu Zheng said softly, "So, do you want me to investigate carefully, or do you want to be honest? My time is very valuable."

Ma Gui understood that the matter could not be resolved amicably, so he made up his mind and turned to look at the manager next to him.

"Mr. Lu said this place is not clean. Could it be that you did something behind my back?"

"I..." The steward stammered, looking panicked.

Seeing this, Ma Gui kicked the steward to the ground and said angrily, "Looking at your appearance, you must be guilty. Tell the truth!"

The manager understood that Ma Gui was using him to get in the way, so he immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed profusely.

"Third Master, please spare me! I was foolish for a moment. I wanted to make more money for the gambling house, so I… I invited a greedy ghost back… I was blinded by greed!"

Everyone was shocked when they heard this. It turned out that ghosts really existed.

Ma Gui was furious and kicked the steward again, cursing, "You bastard, you actually did this behind my back? Are you trying to ruin the reputation of my Ma family?"

The manager was kicked twice and was shaking on the ground in pain, almost unable to breathe.

Lu Zheng said calmly, "Third Master, please don't let anyone kick you to death. There will be no evidence against you."

Ma Gui's expression changed, and he said with a smile, "Sir, you are joking. I am just angry, so I am holding back... Sir, just call me Ma Gui."

"Where is the ghost?" Lu Zheng looked at the butler on the ground.

The steward said weakly, "In the cellar of the woodshed, the locked woodshed. I have the key..."

Ma Gui picked up the steward and said, "Take us there!"

The steward had a painful look on his face and walked to the woodshed with a frivolous step. He opened the door with the key in his trembling hand.

Seeing a group of spectators following behind him, Lu Zheng said, "Everyone should stay away. You just stayed up all night and your energy and blood are insufficient. If you are possessed by a ghost, it will be troublesome."

Upon hearing this, Ma Gui asked someone to guard the door and not let anyone else get close.

The steward came into the woodshed, lifted the wooden board of the cellar, and whispered, "It's just a little ghost. It can't hurt anyone."

Lu Zheng walked closer and looked into the dim cellar. He found a pottery jar in the cellar, which was somewhat similar to the jar he saw in the abandoned Taoist temple.

(End of this chapter)