Minglong

Chapter 33 Preventing the Fight
Mudan Pond is located on the north bank of Huaijiang River. As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, hundreds of large and small cruise ships have gathered on the lakeside, and the shore is crowded with people.

In a cruise ship moored on the shore, one can faintly hear the laughter of girls:

"The shadows of clouds on the distant mountains are picturesque, the setting sun casts a rosy glow. Whose house is this on the curved bank of the small bridge? The sound of horses neighing by the fence..."

"Miss Wang is so talented, she's worthy of being the most beautiful lady in Chongwen Academy..."

"Sigh~"

"Hahaha……"

……

The cruise ship was chartered by the Princess's Mansion, and it was filled with young ladies from Chongming River and female students from the academy. Outside the boat were all guards from the palace.

Liu Qingzhi was a well-known henpecked husband among the palace's personal guards. Every day, his wife used some unconventional methods she had gotten from nowhere to torture him until he had no energy left. He had no interest in the dirty jokes about the beautiful women on the ship, and just stood on the edge of the deck, listening to the nonsense of the housekeeper Hou.

The sharp-nosed and monkey-faced steward, whose appearance was so bizarre that he would spoil the fun of the crazy young ladies, stood on the deck, fanning himself with a folding fan. He took in the sight of the lakeside, brimming with life and flourishing with life, and could not help but stroke his mustache and sigh:

"Talented people emerge in every generation. When I attended the Mid-Autumn Festival, I was considered a handsome young man. Now I am old and ugly. If I were to be in this peony pond, I wouldn't even be in the top ten."

?

Liu Qingzhi felt that Butler Hou's stunning appearance could make the monkeys raised by the wealthy families in Wencheng Street look handsome. He might not even make it into the top ten in the beauty pageant on Monkey Mountain, let alone in the Peony Pond.

However, as the chief steward of the Princess's Mansion and the Princess's trusted general, Liu Qingzhi dared not laugh at him and complimented him seriously:
"Mr. Hou, there's no need to underestimate yourself. There are many beautiful men, but how many can the princess appreciate? A man's place in the world depends mainly on his talent. Your talent is truly rare in a thousand years!"

Liu Qingzhi was not exaggerating. The beauty of the Marquis's housekeeper, who could even intimidate Xie Jinhuan, was so stunning that it could only be seen once in a thousand years.

But Butler Hou also knew his own limitations and waved his hand, saying:
"I don't deserve it. If there were a stone of talent in this world, Your Highness would occupy eight buckets..."

At this point, the butler realized that he had forgotten the prince, which was very inappropriate, and added:
"The prince also has eight dou, and I, the marquis, and everyone in the world will share one dou..."

"Uh……"

Liu Qingzhi felt that the seven dou he owed was all caused by the steward Hou, but he didn't dare to say it out loud, so he just kept smiling apologetically.

While the two were chatting idly, Butler Hou suddenly stretched his neck, narrowed his eyes, and looked towards the edge of the peony pond like a weasel looking for chicks:

"Hey~ That Xie kid from the back alley has come to join in the fun. Is that Doctor Lin next to him?"

"Ok?"

After seeing Xie Jinhuan's abilities, Liu Qingzhi was very impressed. Upon hearing the sound, he went to the riverside to look for him. Sure enough, he saw a carriage parked outside the peony pond. Nearby were two people and a bird, walking towards a large ship on the riverside.

Among them, the man was wearing a white robe and had two weapons hanging from his waist. It was obviously Xie Jinhuan.

Although the graceful woman next to him was not clear from the distance, his wife was very familiar with her because she went to the Lin family clinic all day long. She was the female doctor in the clinic.

"It really is Doctor Lin. Could they be in love?"

"Possibly. This guy is quite amazing. He's only been here for a few days, and he's already managed to get such a big white peony. Tsk tsk tsk tsk..."

As the two were watching the gossip from a distance, they suddenly saw Xie Jinhuan walk to a large ship, exchange a few words with the people on the ship, and then an argument broke out. It seemed that they were about to fight.

"Eh?"

Liu Qingzhi frowned: "What's going on?"

Butler Hou didn't understand either. He was just looking around curiously when he heard a noise behind him:
Tread~
Looking back, Princess Changning came out of the boathouse with her maid.

Princess Changning was dressed quite exquisitely for the banquet. She wore a light gold chest-length skirt, a gold bead tassel at her waist, and a bodice embroidered with peacocks and hibiscus. Her figure was petite and round, but her voluptuousness was impressive.

Such stunning beauty naturally attracted many admirers. The surrounding boats and even the lakeside were filled with young men and scholars stretching their necks and showing off their charm, trying to attract the attention of this "most beautiful, rich and white woman in Danzhou".

Seeing this, Butler Hou asked:
"Why did the princess come out? Was she defeated by the gambling god of the academy again?"

Princess Changning had just lost seven games of dice in a row and was feeling depressed. She ignored the words and looked towards the river.

"What's going on over there?"

"Oh. It's that Xie kid who rents the apartment in the back alley. He got into an argument with someone for some reason."

"Xie Jinhuan?"

Princess Changning was intrigued by this. She took the telescope from her maid Duoduo and looked at it from a distance:

"Heh... quite handsome..."
-
A little earlier.

Xie Jinhuan followed the trail from Jiguanling all the way to Mudanchi. Seeing the dense crowds of people and large and small pleasure boats on the river bank, he couldn't help but frown:

"so many people?"

In public, Lin Wanyi no longer dared to rashly use her witchcraft skills. Her eyes were fixed on a large ship on the riverbank: "It seems they have escaped to that ship. What should I do?"

Xie Jinhuan took a quick look at the boat and saw a flag flying on it. Judging from the emblem, it belonged to Jinghua Villa.

Jinghua Villa belongs to the local power in Danyang. Its status in the underworld is not as high as that of Zihui Mountain, but its business is quite big. Most of the boat gangs in the Huaijiang area are named after the Bao family.

Xie Jinhuan had already chased here, so he had to go up and look for them. He took Lin Wanyi and Meiqiu through the dense crowd and came to the bottom of the cruise ship.

Jinghua Villa belongs to a wealthy Danzhou tycoon. The cruise ship they rented is quite large. In the ship's deck, one can hear laughter and singing from the audience.
“Dangdang~…”

Because the guests were all children of wealthy families in Danzhou, the Bao family attached great importance to security. There were more than ten warriors standing on the shore, and people were patrolling back and forth on the deck.

Xie Jinhuan first asked Meiqiu to keep watch in the sky, and then he quickly walked towards the boat. The waiter at the foot of the platform came forward and asked:

"Who is the master?"

Xie Jinhuan didn't want to force his way in, so he came forward and bowed:
"Xie Jinhuan, my father was once a lawyer in Wan'an County. I just encountered several bandits at Jiguanling. One of them fled here and wanted to board the ship to see for himself."

"Uh……"

The manager looked confused.

Wan'an County was a county attached to the capital, and the county lieutenant of Facao was an eighth-rank official, which was already a very high position for people in the underworld, but this "was"...

The steward examined it carefully and said politely:

"Sir, do you have any official letter?"

"I'm not an official. I just encountered a demon bandit on the way and tracked him here..."

"Son!"

The steward raised his hand to interrupt, straightening his hunched back a little:
"This is no small place. The boat is chartered by Jinghua Villa, and the guests aboard are all distinguished. Putting aside the question of 'was', even if your father is truly a county lieutenant in the capital, you, a commoner, have no right to conduct searches and interrogate cases here."

Xie Jinhuan really didn't have the right to search, so his attitude remained calm:

"The demonic bandits are hiding here and could strike at any time. If something goes wrong..."

"what happened?"

Before he could finish his words, a noise suddenly came from the cruise ship.

Xie Jinhuan looked up and saw that a window of the ship's deck was open, revealing a figure.

The figure looked to be in her twenties, dressed in a gentleman's robe, pale and plump with a full beard. In a certain circle, she could be considered a queen...

The steward saw this and immediately raised his hands and said:
"Young Master, this Mr. Xie claims to be the son of the Wan'an County Magistrate. He says there are thieves hiding on the ship and he wants to board and search it."

"Wan'an County Lawyer?"

Bao Fei, the young master of Jinghua Villa, frowned slightly when he heard this and looked back at the room.

The room was full of young men drinking and having fun, many of whom had family members serving as officials. They quickly responded:

"The Wan'an County Attorney's name was Fiji. Three years ago, his surname was Xie, but it seems he was exiled to Lingnan for corruption and bribery."

Xie Jinhuan frowned:
“Who’s talking nonsense up there?”

"You are presumptuous!"

As the host, Bao Fei invited the God of Wealth to the banquet. When he heard this, his face suddenly changed and he flew onto the pedals.

Lin Wanyi was watching from behind, and she hadn't expected these playboys to be so desperate. She quickly grabbed Xie Jinhuan and said,

"Xie Jinhuan, don't be angry. This guy can't be beaten. If he kills him, something terrible will happen..."

"?"

Bao Fei staggered as soon as he landed on the ground, and the thugs around him were even more confused.

After all, when they saw the beautiful woman behind them rushing forward, they thought she was going to grab this fearless young man, but they never expected that she was here to add fuel to the fire!
In front of Jinghua Villa, advising a young man not to be angry, lest he beat the young master to death, isn't that arrogant?

Bao Fei was afraid to use force directly because there were too many dignitaries around him. Naturally, he ignored the woman with long hair and little knowledge. He just looked at Xie Jinhuan coldly:
"Do you know who's sitting there? If it weren't for the nobles in the Peony Pond, I wouldn't be using force. Today, I'm going to teach you how to behave in society! I'm giving you a chance now. Apologize to the young master above. Otherwise..."

But unfortunately, Xie Jinhuan ignored Bao Fei and looked up at the window:

"My father was transferred to Nanning County, Ruizhou, not exiled for corruption. Be careful with your words from now on. If you do it again, this person will be an example to you."

Seeing that the situation was not right, Lin Wanyi hurriedly tried to carry away Xie Jinhuan, who was holding the "best weapon among soldiers", but unfortunately it was too late!
(End of this chapter)