The Incense Monopoly Order

Chapter 14 The young man's eyes are burning

"Let me go! Can the police arrest people at will? I haven't done anything wrong!" The man who sold the girl shouted at the top of his voice.

When ordinary people see the police arresting someone, the first thing they do is not to shout, but to be frightened and cautiously beg for mercy.

The man was captured, and the young woman who was about to be sold wanted to escape when she saw the opportunity. Shang Mingshu and her servant stopped her and asked, "Where are you going, Madam Xia?"

"Your father stole my wife's money, you are not allowed to leave!" He Sui opened his arms to stop him angrily.

"Madam, please be kind and let me go. You saved my life today, and I will repay you by working like a slave in my next life!" Madam Xia bent down and begged.

"I have no shortage of cattle or horses." Shang Mingshu looked at her with a smile.

"Third Madam, do you think this is your gold bead?" After searching the bodies, the officers found the same gold beads on several people. Each gold bead was engraved with two short and one long horizontal lines. There were twenty beads in total, worth about five or six hundred silver coins.

"It's exactly what belongs to my wife." He Sui counted them, "no more, no less."

"Take everyone away." The leading officer waved his hand.

"Don't forget this one." He Sui nudged the young woman who was about to be sold. "I suspect they're a gang, performing a big show on the street, waiting for people to gather and then stealing from the rich and powerful who are looking for fun!"

"Don't talk nonsense, you bitch! We didn't have any!"

"We don't know each other, they framed us—"

"Sir, I really didn't steal anything. I don't know why this gold bead is with me."

"Take them all away and bring them to the yamen." The officers took everyone away forcefully and invited Shang Mingshu over in a friendly manner.

"Madam Shang, it's me." The blackmailed young man nervously moved closer to Shang Mingshu, his eyes as bright as lacquer looking at her eagerly.

"You are..." Shang Mingshu only felt that the young man in front of her looked somewhat familiar. She offered help not because she felt familiar with him, nor because she saw injustice.

It was also a coincidence that the person standing next to her when she squeezed in for the first time had a tattoo of a coiled snake on the back of his neck. One of the people who chased her at the dock that night also had this tattoo.

She searched silently and found that these people were obviously a group. The father and daughter were pulling each other, and this group of people were secretly fanning the flames.

"Madam Shang, don't you remember me?" The young man's clear and sincere eyes were obviously lost, but they brightened again in a moment. "Madam Shang saved me under the bright lanterns during the Lantern Festival."

Shang Mingshu suddenly realized: "It's you."

No wonder she felt that he looked familiar. This year's Lantern Festival was particularly lively. Many wealthy families set up stages, invited music teachers, hung lanterns high for lantern riddles, and invited folk acrobats.

Several minor accidents occurred. Shang Mingshu happened to see a wooden stake with countless lanterns hanging on it fall down. A young man ran over and stood in front of an old woman who was pushed to the ground. She rarely felt compassion and kicked the wooden stake to the other side where there was no one.

At that time, she was anxiously looking for her aunt and did not stop.

"It's me, it's me, Cheng Mian. I'm a student at Ziyang Academy. My parents died young, and I have two older brothers, none of whom are...still married." Cheng Mian's handsome face flushed as he spoke, his hands trembling beneath his robes as he tried to remain calm. "I should have come to thank you for saving me sooner, but I don't know where you live."

Shang Mingshu saw through the young man's eager and unconcealed thoughts at a glance.

Ziyang Academy is the most famous academy in the entire Huizhou Prefecture, and students who can enter it have good future prospects.

The third child in the family, also surnamed Cheng, studied at Ziyang Academy. His parents died young...

"Cheng Sanlang's family is in She County?" Shang Mingshu knew the identity of the young man in front of her.

"That's right. She County is a place of picturesque scenery, thriving Confucianism, and a prosperous people. Madam Shang..." "Puff." The usually steady He Sui couldn't help but laugh out loud. Seeing Cheng Sanlang blushing, he covered his lips with his sleeve and said, "Mr. Sanlang, my wife is also from She County."

Cheng Mian's eyes brightened even more: "My wife and I are from the same hometown, it's really fate..."

After meeting Cheng She that night, Shang Mingshu sent people to investigate the Cheng family. She was worried that the Cheng family was secretly dealing with the Japanese pirates.

The three brothers of the Cheng family are Cheng Qin, Cheng She, and Cheng Mian.

Cheng Qin ran a dental clinic, Cheng She was a businessman, and Cheng Mian studied hard.

The Cheng family was quite wealthy. Although they were from the same county but different village, Shang Mingshu had long heard that Cheng Sanlang was quite talented in studying. Her teacher had said that he would definitely pass the imperial examination this year, and he was only seventeen years old.

He will be on the list again in the next spring examination, become famous at a young age, and have a bright future.

The old man in the family wanted her to marry into a rich family for the sake of the family. She did not resist. If the business was not doing well, how could she live a rich and carefree life?

However, official families would not easily marry the daughters of merchants. Either they were illegitimate children who would not enter official career and deal with menial affairs, or their families were in financial difficulty, so it would be better to say that they were marrying a rich woman than marrying a wife.

How could she rely on a family like this? She still had to deal with a lot of troubles.

The young man in front of him is quite good. The Cheng family is engaged in business themselves and will never look down on merchants. Once Cheng Mian enters the official career, Cheng Qin and Cheng She will do their best to pave the way for him. The Cheng family's reputation in Kyoto is counted in the entire state.

After thinking about this, Shang Mingshu couldn't help but become much more patient with Cheng Mian.

After getting some response from Shang Mingshu, Cheng Mian's heart was pounding. He had to clench his fists behind his back to stay awake and avoid being abrupt.

Cheng She rushed over after receiving the news. At the gate of the yamen, he saw his younger brother following Shang Mingshu eagerly. His amorous look made him grit his teeth.

"Second brother, this is Madam Shang. It was Madam Shang who saved me during the Lantern Festival." Cheng Mian ran over as soon as he saw Cheng She, introducing him to him with a beaming look on his face. "Thank you Madam Shang for saving me today..."

"Second Master Cheng." Shang Mingshu nodded.

Cheng She also politely returned the greeting, and several people followed him into the yamen.

Everyone who was brought in cried out for innocence, and Shang Mingshu didn't say much. Her things were found on several people, and facts spoke louder than words.

Cheng She heard the whole story from Cheng Mian and immediately realized that there was something fishy about this group of people.

He hesitated for a moment before walking to Shang Mingshu's side and asked, "Third Madam, where is the weakness of this group of people?"

Cheng She had only met Shang Mingshu twice, which was enough for him to understand this young lady. He would definitely not help his younger brother out of kindness.

"Why should I tell Master Cheng?" Shang Mingshu held the round fan given to her by Lin Yuanyuan, covering half of her face. Only a pair of shrewd and dark eyes were revealed, which was particularly intimidating.

"Why don't you just tell me what you want, Miss San?" Cheng She didn't want to test the waters with Shang Mingshu.

"Okay, okay." Shang Mingshu was also straightforward. "Next year at the tribute market, can Master Cheng cede a certificate?"

Cheng She stared at Shang Mingshu quietly for a long time with a deep gaze before he suddenly smiled: "Okay."

The joy of accident!

Shang Mingshu's face was filled with joy. She lowered her voice and said to Cheng She, "The silent man has a tattoo on his neck that looks just like the Japanese pirates who chased you and me that night."

(End of this chapter)