The Demon-Slaying Grandmaster

Chapter 101: Using Power to Pressure Others
Li Jingxiao thought about it carefully, if what Jia Lian said was true.

It is indeed a good deal for farmers to use game to offset half a year or even a year's land rent.

After all, there is a lot of slack time during farming every year, and in the 1950s and 1960s in China, the Northeast was known for "hitting roe deer with a stick, scooping fish with a ladle, and pheasants flying into the rice pot."

Although this may be an exaggeration, it also shows that there was indeed a lot of wild game at that time.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, there must be more game in the north.

Every year, hundreds of game animals from the Jia family’s farm outside the pass are shipped to the capital, and the Jia family consumes them themselves.

Giving gifts to relatives and old friends can also save a lot of money spent on entertaining and seeing off guests.

Otherwise, you would lose money every year just to eat wild boar, deer or other game, and it would be impossible to give them away every year.

Even if it's for face, it's better to buy it directly in Beijing.

Li Jingxiao smiled and nodded to Jia Lian, no longer caring about the topic. His eyes couldn't help but fall on an old man who was about fifty years old.

This person is Wu Jinxiao.

From the landlord's perspective, this person is a typical example of a loyal but treacherous person.

However, at this time, the Ning and Rong mansions had not yet declined to the level they would be a dozen years later.

Therefore, this old fellow and his brother Wu Jinyi were not so bold as to extort money in the farms of Ning and Rong Prefectures in Liaodong.

At the beginning, he was just like Lai Da and Lai Er, the two chief stewards of Ning and Rong mansions, who only took and used a little.

Gradually, he discovered that the owner was unable to find any problems in the accounts, which gradually led to his greed.

The time when the Lai family really made a fortune was probably when they were building the Grand View Garden.

No, it can be said that anyone with a little status in the Jia family made a lot of money from this matter.

The public funds were emptied and one person was enriched. If it were Li Jingxiao, he would also take the opportunity to make a fortune.

Anyway, the money belongs to the Jia family. Only what goes into your pocket is yours.

If anyone really wants to blame someone, then blame Jia Zhen and Jia Zheng, the two heads of the household, who can't even intimidate the servants in their home.

Wu Jinxiao saw Li Jingxiao staring at him for several seconds, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat, as if he was being stared at by a ferocious beast from Liaodong.

I was so scared that my whole body was covered with goosebumps. It was winter and cold sweats broke out on my forehead, back and palms.

Li Jingxiao calmly withdrew his gaze, and pointed at the deer and roe deer with Jia She, Jia Zheng and Jia Zhen, wondering in his heart whether he could get some money from the two brothers of the Wu family.

People like this who betray their masters and their clients will not feel any burden even if they are killed.

As for helping the Jia family clean out the termites in their house, Li Jingxiao had no such idea.

It’s no problem to help out for the sake of being a relative. Li Jingxiao will not worry about the future of the Jia family.

It's not his responsibility.

Besides, even if you worry too much, people may not thank you.

Maybe they blame you for being too nosy.

Moreover, if the Jia family had not been on the decline, Jia Zhen would not have chosen to be laughed at by others and would rather give such a beauty as You Sanjie to himself.

He even wanted to give You Erjie to himself.

What he couldn't imagine was that the idea of ​​having one son inherit two branches had even persuaded his cheap cousin.

The Rongguo Mansion would not rush to marry Jia Yuanchun to himself just because of Jia Zhen's idea.

Thinking of this, Li Jingxiao suddenly felt that his approach to the Jia family was actually the same as Wang Ziteng's.

I don't want to see the Jia family fall and affect myself.

But he also absolutely does not want to see the Jia family rise again.

After bidding farewell to the Jia family, Li Jingxiao rode his horse and looked back at the two huge stone lions outside Ningguo Mansion from afar.

I thought to myself, no matter who you are, you cannot escape the cycle of prosperity and decline.

Through the Jia family, we can actually see that the Great Zhou is also on the decline.

No wonder there are so many refugees a dozen years later.

Perhaps, I should make some preparations for the future.

After all, in a dozen years, I will only be in my thirties.

For the first time, Li Jingxiao felt that even if he did not rebel, he should make some preparations just to protect his wife and children.

However, on second thought, my cultivation level will definitely be countless times stronger than it is now in a dozen years.

Therefore, cultivation and strength are the most important.

As long as he is strong enough, no matter who becomes the emperor, he has to win him over and show goodwill to him.

On the contrary, raising the flag of rebellion is putting the cart before the horse.

When he returned home and saw his delicate and beautiful wife and two beautiful concubines, his mood finally returned to normal.

Qin Keqing, feeling a little worried, stepped forward and took off Li Jingxiao's cloak that was used to keep him warm and windproof.

Pretending to be indifferent, he asked about what happened at the Jia family's banquet today.

As soon as Li Jingxiao heard this, he knew that his daughter-in-law was worried that he would be dazzled by the prosperity and power of the Jia family and would favor Jia Yuanchun in the future.

He smiled and hugged Qin Keqing, then lowered his head and kissed her.

Fortunately, the three Jingxi sisters and Qin Zhong were sent away to rest early by Qin Keqing.

After smelling the fragrance for a long time, Li Jingxiao finally left his wife's red lips.

Smiling, he stretched out his hand and gently pinched Qin Keqing's pretty face, "Don't worry, Madam. I love you so much that I won't get tired of you.

From now on, I will treat you and Erfang Yuanchun equally, do you understand?"

After her husband revealed her secrets, Qin Keqing shyly hugged Li Jingxiao's waist and hid her pretty face in his arms.

But all the worries of the whole day disappeared without a trace.

For Qin Keqing, her background was far inferior to that of Yuanchun, the eldest daughter of the Jia family.

The power of my mother's family is completely incomparable to that of the Jia family.

It is already the best outcome that Li Jingxiao can treat everyone equally.

After a while, Qin Keqing muttered softly, "My lord, I will obey you from now on. Please don't let me down."

Li Jingxiao nodded without hesitation and kissed his wife on the forehead.

"You are so well-behaved, sensible, and beautiful as a fairy. Your husband can't bear to leave you alone in the empty room."

Qin Keqing embarrassedly hit Li Jingxiao lightly on the chest.

Li Jingxiao continued, "In the future we will have children, lots of children.

There will also be grandchildren, great-grandchildren and many great-grandchildren.

"With four or five generations living under one roof, even when I'm old and can't walk anymore, I still want you to stay by my side, okay?"

Qin Keqing's heartbeat had already accelerated after hearing what Li Jingxiao said, and her eyes were full of anticipation and love.

She hugged her man tightly with both hands, smiled and nodded, "Don't worry, my lord, I will always be with you."

Baozhu and Ruizhu on the side did not feel jealous at all. The two girls had already recognized their position.

Looking at the couple's figures, I secretly thought that if I could grow old with my master and mistress, my life would not be in vain.

That night, Li Jingxiao did not go to Baozhu and Ruizhu to practice martial arts, but instead hugged Qin Keqing and slept until dawn.

This night was also the most peaceful and comfortable sleep Qin Keqing had since she got married.

However, after dawn, Li Jingxiao woke up and saw his wife still sleeping soundly.

I got up carefully. Baozhu heard the noise and hurried in with toiletries.

He just put down the copper basin and took the robe to help Li Jingxiao put it on.

Li Jingxiao embraced him and soon the two of them engaged in a battle of fists, kicks, grappling, and swordsmanship for more than ten minutes.

Although the fighting was quiet, Ruizhu was still woken up.

Li Jingxiao chuckled and pulled Ruizhu, who was pretending to be asleep, up.

Started to check her progress in martial arts training over the past few days.

After washing up and getting 100 experience points, Li Jingxiao felt refreshed.

He walked out of the main house with a smile and was practicing boxing in the yard. Baozhu and Ruizhu cleaned up the house and came out to watch him practice boxing.

However, after just a few words, Li Jingxiao persuaded him to go back to his room and take a nap.

Not long after, the three Jingxi sisters and Qin Zhong came to the central courtyard with their maids.

I saw my eldest brother boxing alone with no one to take care of him.

Jingxi hurriedly asked his maids Chuntao and Xiaju to take charge of preparing breakfast.

Then she rolled her eyes at Li Jingxiao, blaming him for being too indulgent towards her sister-in-law and the two personal maids who came with her as a dowry.

How can there be a daughter-in-law or maid who sleeps in every day?
At the very least, Baozhu and Ruizhu should serve their eldest brother.

Jingxi couldn't help but give Li Jingxiao a blank look in the middle of the yard.

His father had been ill for many years. Although Jing Xi had not systematically studied medicine, he had come into contact with many medical prescriptions during the years he had spent in the uncle's mansion.

I have also read some medical books.

Unfortunately, because no one taught me, I couldn't understand many of them, but I also knew that Li Jingxiao went to the yamen to handle official business every day.

I have to see patients in the afternoon and practice martial arts. If I continue to lose control, I will definitely hurt my body.

But as a girl, how could I possibly say this to my elder brother?

I thought to myself that I could only mention it to my sister-in-law.

Then he instructed the maid to stew an old hen for Li Jingxiao as breakfast.

While having breakfast in the morning, Li Jingxiao watched Jingxi personally serve him a bowl of chicken soup, and his appetite immediately increased.

For a young man like him who is fifteen or sixteen years old, all that matters is whether it tastes good or not, not whether it is greasy or not.

He picked up the bowl and took a sip, then picked up a meat bun and started eating. He praised Jingxi several times, and Jingxi then smiled.

While instructing the maid to prepare food for Jingyue, Jingrong and Qin Zhong, she stood beside Li Jingxiao, constantly serving him chicken soup and picking up refreshing side dishes with chopsticks.

Qin Zhong was envious of her thoughtful look, while Jing Yue and Jing Rong pouted.

The two little girls thought to themselves that when they grew up and were able to stand and pick up the buns and side dishes on the table, they would also help their big brother with his meals.

Li Jingxiao was happy that Jingxi took such good care of him, and he ate with peace of mind.

Ten or twenty minutes later, Li Jingxiao, who was full, put down his chopsticks. Jingxi had already taken the towel handed to him by Chuntao and placed it in front of Li Jingxiao.

Li Jingxiao took it, wiped his mouth, and asked with a smile, "Big sister is so virtuous, who knows which stinky boy will get the advantage in the future."

Jing Xi blushed at these words, and said in dissatisfaction, "Brother, what nonsense are you talking about? I won't marry anyone, so as not to be bullied."

Li Jingxiao laughed and said, "I still have to get married, but how could my sister be bullied?

Not to mention that Big Brother will slowly teach you more advanced Kung Fu in the future, but before you get married, Big Brother will definitely help you to make my brother-in-law obedient."

"I'm not going to pay any attention to you," Jing Xi was so shy that she couldn't stand still. She ran towards the middle courtyard with a blushing face.

And subconsciously I wanted to complain to my sister-in-law.

Fortunately, Qin Keqing went to bed early and slept well last night, and Li Jingxiao practiced martial arts with his sisters and brother-in-law for more than an hour.

When I entered the main living room, I saw that Qin Keqing had not only gotten up, but also washed, dressed, and walked out of the bedroom with the help of several maids.

Let’s not mention what the aunt and sister-in-law said.

Li Jingxiao smiled and told Jingyue to supervise Jingrong to learn to read and Qin Zhong to study, then he got up and went to the yamen.

When they arrived at the yamen, Li Jingxiao saw Zhao Junming standing outside the lobby as usual, and nodded to him with a smile.

After entering the lobby and taking a sip of tea, he said, "Two things."

Zhao Junming clasped his fists and waited for instructions.

Li Jingxiao said slowly, "First, send someone to Jizhou to look for the three Shi Delong brothers.

It's been four days, and there's still no news.

Second, take your men to the imperial farm in the south of the city and investigate a scoundrel named Zhang Hua.

This man seemed to be the son of an official, but his family had fallen on hard times, and I heard he was involved in gambling.

He hangs out with a bunch of ruffians all day and has been kicked out of the house by his father.

Check it out carefully."

Zhao Junming's heart tightened. The meaning of the last sentence "check it carefully" was already very clear.

He clasped his fists and said, "Don't worry, sir. I will make sure to thoroughly investigate this man's entire ancestry."

Li Jingxiao waved his hand and said, "Okay, this guy didn't offend me."

Although Li Jingxiao was thinking about You Erjie, he could not tell his subordinates that he had fallen in love with someone else's fiancée.

He also wanted to use his power to force the other party to cancel the engagement.

So I can only say that it was Ningguo Mansion who asked me for a favor.

Looking at Zhao Junming, he continued, "The people in Ningguo Mansion think that Zhang Hua is a gambler and not worthy of Sister-in-law You's half-sister.

Ask me for help and check Zhang Hua.

I agreed to this only for the sake of our relative. You can check it out, but don't do it yourself.

What to do in the end is entirely up to Ningguo Mansion."

Zhao Junming nodded. Many gamblers ended up losing their wives and children due to gambling addiction.

There are also many people who sell their wives to pay off debts.

There are even some who act as pimps themselves and let their wives be secret agents.

Therefore, Zhao Junming did not doubt his master at all, nor did he feel tired. After all, there was really nothing to do in the yamen.

Practicing martial arts all day long actually feels like having something to do, so I treat it as a pastime.

Li Jingxiao said again, "Although it's the Ningguo Mansion that's asking for your help, if Zhang Hua hasn't done anything wrong, don't frame him. Just come back and report."

Zhao Junming couldn't help but secretly say "what a pity" in his heart.

Helping your boss with dirty work is actually an opportunity.

It’s a pity that my master is too kind-hearted.

However, Zhao Junming did not dare to disobey Li Jingxiao's orders, let alone act on his own.

And think about it, it is common for a gambler who was kicked out of the house by his own father to steal and commit crimes.

If you get together with a group of ruffians, it is not surprising that they extort money and bully the good people.

There's no need to frame someone like this, as we'll definitely be able to find some problems.

He saluted and left the house.

He ordered Han Qi, the tenth, and Yang Lin, the eleventh, of the twelve guards around Li Jingxiao, to take two small flags with them to Jizhou.

He also repeatedly reminded us that finding talent is the key point, and if we encounter any abnormalities, we should return them immediately.

Go back to Beijing and ask the adults for the decision.

Han Qi and Yang Lin clasped their fists and nodded, saying "I understand". They called for help and rode to Jizhou.

Zhao Junming watched the two captains leave with a small flag, then he called a dozen Jinyiwei from the Zuo Zhenfu Division and rode their horses to the imperial farm in the south of the city.

(End of this chapter)