Chapter 366

What, I'm impulsive!

It's not that I'm impulsive at all!

Look at his letter—what does it say: "If you wish to discuss border affairs in detail, you must prepare a full ten thousand taels of silver before you can even begin the conversation"!

Ten thousand taels! Ten thousand taels! And that's just the threshold for "deep talk," not the whole! Who knows how much more bribe money Bai Liren will demand later!

What can I use to satisfy him? Bai Liren dares to demand ten thousand taels from me today; tomorrow he'll dare to step on my head and take everything from my husband and children!!!

Furious

Du Shanü was indeed also furious

Before meeting the visitor, she perhaps also guessed that Bai Liren was a major corrupt official, but she truly never imagined—

This Bai Liren is actually this greedy!

After tallying up all her possessions, scraping together whatever she could, she could only come up with five thousand taels, and yet they open their mouth demanding ten thousand taels?

Even, this ten thousand taels is obviously just a beginning, not enough to secure Bai Liren's wholehearted loyalty...

This truly strangled Du Shanü's lifeline

Du Shanü doesn't want kin to kill each other, that's true, but deep down she actually fears something more—...

Even after giving the money, she still has to fight

By then, all the silver she gives away will turn into knives pointed at her

Even, the silver used to buy those knives is hers!

"Wise Lord, please calm your anger; you are pregnant, and it is truly inadvisable to provoke conflict."

Chen Weifang again placed a cup of clear water beside Du Shanü's hand and advised softly:

"Bai Liren is inherently a corrupt official; you have heard of this before, so you should have some idea in your heart."

"Moreover, now that they can name a price, it shows they truly don't care about Guangzhou Prefecture; as long as the price is right, they might genuinely have the intention to sell...... If they only named a low price, that would actually be untrustworthy."

"Today, just because of one sentence, you want to send them away without distinguishing right from wrong; that is indeed too rash of you."

Corrupt officials, corrupt officials—being corrupt for a moment is not skill; being corrupt consistently is skill

Bai Liren's path to office had many setbacks, but once he became an official, he could stand firm for years, even climbing all the way to high office through corruption, attaining the same position as Ruansizong, who has family backing behind him...

This person certainly has something unusual about them

Today they proactively sent someone to visit and named a price; if the Wise Lord could really come up with this sum, the bribery route...... might actually be feasible

Du Shanü also understands this reasoning, but just thinking about that amount of silver makes her anger uncontrollable; leaning back, she sighed:

"How could I not understand these principles? It's not that I won't let Bai Liren name a price, but...... he shouldn't name it too high!"

She went to great trouble to have Liu Ji loot several thousand taels of silver, and even managed to raise funds by selling goods, emptying her pockets to come up with five thousand taels

Liu Ji, for five thousand taels of silver, was even willing to let his brothers obey her commands for a year...

But Bai Liren, with just one sentence, easily demands a bribe of ten thousand taels from her!

Where is she supposed to get silver?

Since there's no silver, what room is left for maneuver?

To beg and haggle with people?

Today Bai Liren isn't even here in person—who can make the decision!

This bribery matter, given the current circumstances, is clearly impossible

Unless...

Unless...

Wait for a miracle?

Bai Fugui came dusty and weary, and left dusty and weary

Even after being 'invited' out of the government office, his whole face remained blank—

To be honest, although he had experienced quite a bit of this sort of thing when his family was weak before, since his father gained office, he has never seen anything like this!

What on earth is the situation with the master of Yongzhou's chief official?

Isn't it said not to look at the monk's face but at the Buddha's?

Isn't it said that in war between armies, envoys are not killed?

If you don't give him even a little face, aren't you afraid he'll go back and exaggerate, causing both sides to bear a grudge?

Bai Fugui doesn't understand; he only feels that ever since he saw that 'female lord,' everything has gone off track

After all, he's over fifty, and he truly has never encountered such a strange thing!

How could anyone revere a woman as their lord?

That youngster in spring, being young and clueless, could it be that Chen Weifang, this old slick officialdom veteran, doesn't understand either?

Most crucially, that female lord wants to drive people away, and yet there isn't even a single person to advise her!

What does that indicate?

At least it shows that the female lord's grip on her subordinates is extremely firm!

Others toward her only dare to appease, not dare to remonstrate or obstruct!

Strange, Yongzhou; strange, the government office; strange...... the officials of Yongzhou

Bai Fugui pondered left and right, still somewhat puzzled; coincidentally, the white family's homegrown servant who had come with him to Yongzhou and had been waiting outside saw him come out and immediately asked respectfully:

"Old Follower Uncle, if you need to instruct us where to stay, just send someone to let us know; why come out yourself?"

"We don't know what our group is supposed to do now..."

Bai Fugui has been a longtime attendant beside his father since the father's youth, and in the Bai household he could also make some decisions for his father

Although he often goes out to run errands for his father, making it inconvenient to take charge of household affairs, he has always been a very respectable person

The servant's term "Old Follower Uncle" is both flattery and respect; in the past, it would naturally be quite satisfying

But Bai Fugui today already had a head full of doubts; hearing this, he only replied in an unpleasant tone:

"What foothold? There's no such foothold!"

"Let's go; this Yongzhou Zhoufu doesn't know good from bad—we'll head straight back to Broad Prefecture."

The young servant who had been chatting with him first froze, then panicked, thinking he must have misheard:

"Old Sui Bo, what are you saying?"

"We just entered the city this morning!"

If Old Sui Bo hadn't just met a young man, chatted with him, and then turned straight for the prefectural office, they ought to have gone looking for an inn to rest.

It's thanks to them following all the way to the prefectural office, still thinking the chief official here was preparing to welcome them in, who would have thought that not even a two-hour period had passed before they turned around and wanted to leave?

Could it be that the chief official of Yongzhou Zhoufu is driving them away?

In this world, there actually exists such a principle?

Bai Fugui was also at a loss, feeling a bit displeased, but since the front of the prefectural office wasn't a place for long talk, he only said:

"If they don't welcome us, we'll just go back—what's the point of stubbornly staying?"

"Once we return and report everything to the master, the master will naturally decide......"

The servant, though reluctant, dared not defy, and quickly nodded in agreement.

However, after the young servant had walked a few steps, he noticed that the master behind him hadn't followed, and hurriedly asked:

"Old Sui Bo, what is this......"

Bai Fugui turned his head, casting aside the scene he had just seen, and muttered:

"It's nothing, nothing—I just vaguely recall that the young servant serving inside the prefectural office looks somewhat familiar......"

"But I must have been mistaken—let's go."

A single word settles it.

Though the words were simple, the journey was arduous—truly no simple matter.

Although there is a considerable water route from Yongzhou to Broad Prefecture that spares the trouble of horses and carts, the distance between the two prefectures is still no short haul.

Bai Fugui rushed to Yongzhou in half a month, not even stopping for water, then hurried back to Broad Prefecture.

He considered himself an old man who had endured plenty of hardship in his life; in the first half of his life, attending at the master's side, he had suffered plenty of humiliation, and being driven out wasn't all that infuriating......

But the constant jolting of the boat's sails along the way, once it ended, genuinely stirred up a spark of anger in him.

Especially, tossing and turning on the boat amid the sounds of sails and vomiting, unable to sleep, he kept thinking more and more about the tea he hadn't drunk and the resentment he hadn't let go of.

Thus, Bai Fugui, supporting his aching old bones on the verge of breaking, the first words he spoke upon returning to the Bai family were:

"Master! The chief official of Yongzhou Zhoufu...... she truly doesn't regard you at all!"

?? Next chapter has this month's bonus update, a double-length chapter combined into one!

? Today's plot is really exciting, hope everyone votes more, there will be bonus updates next time! Thanks, dear ones!