Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

Chapter 261 Longing for Good Fortune

Although this young man was demanding a price for borrowing their writing materials at this time, charging one or two taels of silver, he had previously pointed out that they had not come to the capital to seek refuge with relatives. Perhaps he really had some ability and could point them in the right direction.

But if he is a swindler, she only has the small amount of silver that the kind young man gave her earlier, about three taels. If she were to give away a third of it all, she and her granddaughter don't know how long they could survive in the capital.

The old woman was somewhat undecided.

Fang Yanqing's eyes were glued to the silver, and a smile that seemed more real than real gold was on his face. "Old man, on your way from Ning'an to the capital, did you not encounter any robbers or anyone who tried to trip you up?"

Why are they preventing you from going to Beijing to seek justice for your son?

Why did the state officials suppress this matter?

Do you really think that taking your complaint to the Ministry of Justice will clear your son's name?

"How did you know we'd run into trouble?" This time, it was the little girl beside the old woman who asked timidly.

Fang Yanqing patted the crumbs of pastry off the oil paper package, smiled, and pointed two fingers at the little girl's eyes. "Eyes can speak. They tell me that you suffered a lot on your way to the capital and were also taken advantage of because you trusted people too much."

The little girl shrank behind her grandmother, and her eyes suddenly reddened.

The father was convicted and beheaded, the brothers and younger brother were exiled, and the mother hanged herself.

She went to the capital with her sister and grandmother to file a complaint, but they were met with all sorts of obstacles.

Harassed by thugs and blocked by robbers, they desperately escaped. The older sister, to protect them, drew the robbers away, and most likely...

She couldn't understand how her perfectly good family could have turned into this in such a short time.

Is there no justice or fairness in this world?

The little girl peeked out slightly, looking at Fang Yanqing. Her voice was soft and hoarse, filled with an unresolved doubt. She asked, "I've heard many people say that His Majesty is a wise ruler who loves his people, punishes corrupt officials, and restores peace and tranquility to the land."

But...aren't my father, mother, elder brother, elder sister, and younger brother His Majesty's subjects?

Why did it turn out like this?

The teahouse was silent except for the sound of boiling water bubbling over the firewood.

Qin Ji's hand holding the cup trembled, and the scalding tea swelled up, flowing onto the back of his hand and burning it bright red, but he seemed completely unaware of it.

The old woman hurriedly covered her granddaughter's mouth, making a gesture as if to hit her, "Don't talk nonsense!"

The crowd began to offer their own words of comfort and consolation.

"Your Majesty is wise. If your father is truly innocent, Your Majesty will surely give him justice."

"They're just kids, they haven't grown up yet, they speak without thinking."

"Grandpa, you'll have to teach your granddaughter properly from now on, she can't talk nonsense."

The old woman nodded repeatedly, tapping her granddaughter's head, "This child is delirious from hunger, she's not thinking straight."

Fang Yanqing squatted down next to the grandfather and granddaughter, gesturing to the little girl, "His Majesty was only six years old when he ascended the throne, much younger than you. I guess he was only this tall."

The little girl gestured to her chest, bit her lip, and said with reddened eyes, "About the same size as my younger brother."

Fang Yanqing nodded, "It's similar to your younger brother, but back then His Majesty had already become the ruler of the world, with millions of subjects."

"Were there ever times when your parents couldn't take care of your older brothers and sisters, as well as you and your younger brother?"

The little girl seemed to understand but not quite, and looked a little aggrieved. "Is His Majesty unable to take care of everyone? Then why is it our family?"

Before Fang Yanqing could speak, Gu Zhenhe sighed, "The court has long suffered from deep-seated problems. His Majesty has only been in power for two years and still needs time."

The little girl didn't understand these profound truths; she just stubbornly tilted her head back, two lines of tears streaming down her face. "But my father and mother no longer have time. Can they come back to life?"

Qin Ji placed the teacup on the table. After a long while, he silently released the teacup and clenched his fingers into his palm.

Fang Yanqing patted the little girl's head, opened the oil paper package in his hand, and urged, "One tael of silver, would you like to listen to the path I'm about to show you?"

The old woman's gaze swept over the kind young men who were helping her in the teahouse, and finally settled on the young man in front of her who wanted to do business with her.

With the future uncertain, how many more days could an extra tael of silver allow them to survive in the capital?

Can submitting a complaint to the Ministry of Justice really overturn her son's case?

She steeled herself and handed the loose silver to the waiter, saying, "Could you please cut off an ounce or two?"

The waiter skillfully took it, cut off one-third of it, weighed it, and then returned it to the old woman.

The old woman stuffed the silver into Fang Yanqing's hand, pulled her granddaughter to kneel down, tears streaming down her face, "How can I clear my son's name? Please, young master, show me the way! I will never forget your great kindness."

Fang Yanqing carefully tucked the silver into his pocket, then rewrapped the pastries in his hand and stuffed them back into the book box. Only then did he grab one pastry in each hand and pull the grandfather and grandson up. "There's no need for this. You pay the silver, and I'll show you the way. It's a clean transaction, so there's no need to talk about favors."

He whispered a few words quickly in the old woman's ear.

Everyone listened intently, but couldn't hear what he said.

Some people complained, "It's all just for show. Does it even work? Are you just trying to scam me?"

"Yes, they went to the capital to file a complaint, and their families were ruined. They've already suffered enough. If you're going to swindle them out of their money, you're utterly heartless!"

Fang Yanqing patted the old woman's shoulder generously, "The address I mentioned is the address of Shen Jiangliu, the most foul-mouthed and fearless person in the court right now. If you lie down at his door and cry your son's grievances, I guarantee he'll expose this matter and make a huge fuss about it."

Fang Yanqing patted the girl's shoulder again, "Didn't you want to seek justice for your deceased relatives and help them vent their anger? Just find this guy surnamed Shen, you can't go wrong. Let him get all the justice you want, and let him curse everyone he wants to curse, none of them will escape."

The phrase "not a single one can escape" was emphasized, as if afraid the little girl wouldn't understand.

Qin Ji: "..."

Gu Zhenhe's eyes lit up slightly when he heard Shen Jiangliu's name. He originally wanted to exchange glances with Jiang San to confirm, but Jiang San was expressionless with his eyelids down, seemingly lost in thought. Gu Zhenhe looked around the teahouse and ended up meeting Fu Xingjian's gaze.

Gu Zhenhe withdrew his gaze, feeling slightly annoyed.

Lord Shen Jiangliu is upright and incorruptible, and dares to speak out. He was appointed to Ning'an to control the floods in the past and saved the people from suffering. Now that he has become an imperial censor, it is most appropriate for him to report this case to the emperor.

Firstly, he was someone His Majesty had repeatedly promoted, so His Majesty would have some faith in him if he took the lead. Secondly, he was upright and dared to say what others dared not say, so the Ministry of Justice couldn't stop him. Thirdly, having someone His Majesty had promoted take the lead was better than going to the petitioning court; it would at least show that His Majesty was good at choosing people, and it wouldn't be too much of a embarrassment to His Majesty.

This method is indeed ingenious.

Judging from Fang Yanqing's tone, could he have a private relationship with Lord Shen?

How could the upright and incorruptible Lord Shen have such a...frugal friend?

As everyone knows, Lord Shen Jiangliu is the disciple of the great Confucian scholar Jiang Jibai.

I wonder if Fang Yanqing and Jiang Daru have met before.

Jiang San and Fang Yanqing didn't seem to know each other.

As his thoughts raced, Gu Zhenhe coughed lightly, "Brother Fang, please be careful with your words."

The little girl's red-rimmed eyes widened slightly. "Lord Shen! I know him. He protected the long dike of Ning'an, saved the people of Ning'an, and preserved our homes. He is a good official praised by everyone!"

The old woman's hands trembled with excitement. "So Lord Shen has come to the capital to serve as an official. Does that mean my son's injustice is... does that mean..."

The old woman paused as if she had just thought of something, "Could our family's injustice... implicate Lord Shen?"

Fang Yanqing waved his hand, "It's not that easy to implicate him. He's done similar things more than once or twice. One more scolding won't make a difference, and one less scolding won't make a difference either."

"Those who haven't died, those who haven't died, if your insults weren't strong enough, if they weren't precise enough, then make him pay you back that one or two taels of silver."

Everyone: "..."

Qin Ji: "Brother Fang, didn't you just say you were going to give them some food as a bonus? Why did you put it away?"

Who's so inconsiderate?

Fang Yanqing's smile gradually disappeared. He hesitated as he walked to the book box, took out the bag of osmanthus cakes, and reluctantly placed it in the little girl's hand.

The little girl accepted the osmanthus cake.

catch……

I haven't received it.

Fang Yanqing did not let go.

Everyone stared at him with piercing gazes.

Fang Yanqing let go in despair.

Twenty coins, exactly twenty coins.

He hasn't eaten a single bite yet!

Jiang San, I'll remember you. I'll get those twenty coins back from you sooner or later.

Qin Ji took in his second senior brother's reaction, but his expression did not change much.

He's not in the mood for joking around right now.

He was thinking about Poison Master.