"Tonight, I’ll be the host. Let’s call it a welcome banquet for Brother Lei. Brother Lei, you must do me the honor."
Qi Yuanliang, with a look of heartfelt sincerity, said this to Lei Zheng.
They hadn’t found anything, after all.
Lei Zheng wasn’t in the best mood. Hearing Qi Yuanliang’s invitation, of course he didn’t refuse; he simply waved his hand and agreed.
"Hahaha!"
Seeing Lei Zheng accept, Qi Yuanliang looked even more pleased.
He turned to the other Embroidered Uniform Guards present and said,
"Brothers, if you have the time tonight, come have a drink together. It’s on me!"
"Thank you, Sir Governor!"
No matter if there was something fishy or not, this Southern Governor’s etiquette was impeccable—there was nothing to question about his decorum.
"Sir, are we going?"
Si Nan glanced sidelong at Ye Liuyun.
"Someone’s buying the booze—why not go?"
Ye Liuyun shrugged; he honestly didn’t care much either way.
Besides,
The Southern Governor said it was in the evening, and it was still a while before then. After counting off the numbers, everyone headed home.
Planning to take a good scrub and freshen up.
After being out on the road so many days, even if they weren’t completely marinated, they still carried a bit of travel scent.
...
Back on Ye Liuyun’s end, he’d just returned to his residence.
He spotted a rather lavish carriage parked outside the front gate.
Curious, he glanced at it a couple times before heading in.
"Master, you’re home!"
Soon after he entered, Xing’Er—who’d just received the news—hurried over to greet him.
You could tell that since Ye Liuyun had been away so long, Xing’Er had missed him terribly. Her eyes seemed glued to him, as if afraid that if she looked away for even a second, Ye Liuyun would disappear again.
Seeing Xing’Er like this,
Ye Liuyun couldn’t help but smile and ruffled her hair.
"Don’t worry, Master’s just got back—I won’t be leaving the city for a while."
Even if he had another assignment out of town, it wouldn’t be so soon. No way he’d just return and be sent out again. What am I, a plow horse?
"Mm-hmm!"
Hearing that, Xing’Er grinned and nodded, clearly even happier.
"Oh! By the way!"
At that, Ye Liuyun suddenly remembered the carriage parked outside.
"Is there a guest at home?"
"Uh, it’s Madam’s second brother."
Second brother?
Ye Liuyun tried to recall, but—nope, not a single memory.
Still, he was curious why Sheng Lanzhi’s second brother would show up now.
He shrugged off his outer coat, handing it to a maid beside him.
"Come on, let’s go see."
"Mm."
Xing’Er trotted after Ye Liuyun.
They’d just arrived by the back courtyard—hadn’t even stepped inside—
when a brash, domineering voice rang out:
"Sister, when Father put those shops in your hands, he only asked you to look after them, not keep them. Now that Father’s gone, you ought to hand them over, don’t you think?"
So, it was about the inheritance after all.
Makes sense. While Sheng Li was still alive, none of the kids dared say a word.
But now that Sheng Li was dead, of course someone would start eyeing the family assets.
The shops in Sheng Lanzhi’s hands weren’t many, but they did bring in a good profit. This so-called second brother clearly knew their value and figured he’d come over to try his luck.
"Sister, you’re just a woman—managing so many shops must be too difficult. Let Second Brother take over."
"Heh."
All this time, Sheng Lanzhi hadn’t shown much reaction.
Only at these words did she actually laugh.
High-sounding bullshit—it’s all about getting those shops, isn’t it?
And, "too difficult to manage"? Given what Sheng Lanzhi knew about this second brother—wine, women, and song were all he cared about. If he actually handled things, those shops would probably be sold off in no time.
"Sheng Lanzhi! You—"
Maybe he heard the disdain in her voice, because the guy got pissed off.
He was just about to say more when—
"Ahem, ahem!"
Ye Liuyun cleared his throat and walked in from the courtyard.
Seeing Ye Liuyun, Sheng Lanzhi’s eyes immediately lit up.
Not that she needed him to defend her—
But still, Sheng Lanzhi’s shops were basically his shops, and their earnings were his earnings. This random "second brother" eyeing Sheng Lanzhi’s property?
That was just like stealing his money, wasn’t it?
Looking for death!
The "second brother" was just about to say something else, but upon seeing it was someone he recognized—Ye Liuyun—he actually relaxed a bit.
"Oh, Brother Liu Feng!"
"Don’t worry, if I get those shops, I’ll split half with you. I know you’ve never liked my sister—bet you’re eager to divorce her, eh?"
Clearly, Sheng Lanzhi’s second brother thought he knew Liu Feng’s nature well.
But—
Ye Liuyun gave him a strange look. Whatever he’d been about to say, he swallowed it back.
Instead, he turned to Sheng Lanzhi.
"He doesn’t know?"
"Father only left him a little money, nothing else."
Sheng Lanzhi didn’t find this odd at all.
Ye Liuyun’s background might have been gossip among officials, but not just anyone would know about it.
Frankly, Sheng Lanzhi’s second brother was no more than a spoiled layabout—why would he be privy to that kind of information?
"???"
But hearing Ye Liuyun and Sheng Lanzhi’s back-and-forth, the guy looked completely baffled.
Absolutely no idea what they were talking about.
"Wait, what the hell are you two saying?"
"It’s really simple!"
Forget it—it’s just a pampered punk. Ye Liuyun couldn’t be bothered with useless posturing.
He drew his saber and pressed it right to the guy’s throat.
"Leave now or die."
"You—"
Apparently not expecting Ye Liuyun to answer so directly, feeling the cold blade at his neck,
the guy started to shake and crumpled to the floor.
...
Pathetic.
Whatever. Ye Liuyun sheathed his blade and beckoned Xing’Er over.
"Have the servants toss him out. If he dares show his face again, just have the men beat him to death. I’ll take responsibility for everything."
Idiots like this waste of skin are good for nothing—just sucking up air for no reason.
"Yes, sir!"
Xing’Er grinned, nodding, and went to summon a few house guards.
Sheng Lanzhi watched this with a beaming smile. Even if it was her own second brother, their relationship was worse than with total strangers.
She fluttered her gaze at Ye Liuyun.
This kind of straightforward way of handling things? She loved it.
The decisiveness and clarity Ye Liuyun showed just made Sheng Lanzhi’s heart skip a beat.
This was a real man—nothing like that loser Liu Feng!
...