Chapter 457

"Whoever can't tolerate this child will use someone else's hand!"

Dai Zhi Shang snorted coldly. Don't think that just because he doesn't interact much with Wei Yuan, he doesn't know what kind of person Wei Yuan is—he certainly does.

It's because he's been wandering the pleasure quarters all year round, and Wei Yuan loves to abuse his authority for personal gain, often finding excuses to visit brothels and privately meet with the top courtesans of the major brothels.

He could be considered a kindred spirit, often hearing those close sisters complain about Wei Yuan, thus understanding better than anyone what kind of person Wei Yuan is.

From just now, when Wei Yuan, under Yu Die's pressure, produced a 'Gentleman's Words' handed down by a great scholar as a gift, forming a good karma with Wang Ping'an, he felt something was off.

That doesn't match at all—the complaints of those close sisters about Wei Yuan.

Feeling something off, he pondered for a long time, listening to the detailed introductions given by one close sister after another about this Wei County Magistrate.

He immediately guessed what kind of purpose this beast Wei Yuan had in offering the 'Gentleman's Words' to Wang Ping'an as a gift!

"The person who can't tolerate this child most..."

Lü Tu muttered to himself, his words not yet finished, his face drastically changing, he exclaimed in surprise: "Young Master Dai, are you talking about that daughter of the prime minister?"

At this moment, in the Zhang family hall, aside from him, Dai Zhi Shang, Yu Die, and Liu Dongzhu, there was no one else; the Zhang family members, Zhang Village clansmen, and Wang family members who had originally gathered in the hall had all gone off to their own affairs, so there was no worry that their conversation would be known to outsiders.

He would suspect that the prime minister's daughter intended to harm Wang Ping'an's life, because she had sent people from the capital to harm Liu Dongzhu and her child; not only him, but even the influential families of Fengyin Commandery and even Qingzhou would know about it.

Those who don't know...

All that can be said is that they lack the qualification to know this!

One also doesn't know whether this news came from the Qingyang County magistrate's office or was deliberately leaked by the prime minister's daughter.

It's simply to let everyone in Qingzhou know the prime minister's daughter's attitude toward Liu Dongzhu and her child.

It makes clear that trying to connect through Liu Dongzhu to gain ties with Wang Ruhai is impossible.

Furthermore, it warns them not to think of befriending Liu Dongzhu and her child—accurately speaking, it's about investing in Wang Ping'an.

Hoping for Wang Ping'an to replicate his father's achievements!

Young in age, he passed every stage of the imperial examinations, until his name appeared on the golden list, ranking as the third-place winner.

At this moment.

Besides the prime minister's daughter, he couldn't think of anyone else who would be adverse to a newborn child!

Dai Zhi Shang remained silent; he knew that Wei Yuan was almost certainly planning to use the prime minister's daughter's hand to harm Wang Ping'an's life, and also to seize this opportunity to curry favor with her, but he couldn't say this, as he belonged to a family and didn't want to implicate them because of this.

"I said it already—I've only just met this Wei County Magistrate, but I can tell at a glance what kind of person he is."

"How could he possibly just take out a 'Gentleman's Words' handed down by a great scholar for no reason? I thought his brain had been squeezed by a door, which is why he'd do something so out of character."

"Turns out he had this idea in mind!"

Yu Die gave a cold snort; in fact, long before, when Wei Yuan produced the 'Gentleman's Words' for Wang Ping'an, she had suspected something fishy, which is why she reminded Lü Tu. Although she sympathized somewhat with Liu Dongzhu and her child, she could not constantly accompany and protect them, she said with a smiling eyes:

"Lü Qianhu, aren't you wanting to take this child as your disciple? This is a great opportunity; if you can protect his life and keep him from dying by the prime minister's daughter's scheming, I believe Lady Wang will surely agree to let her Ping'an become your disciple."

"Lord Lü, your kindness, I appreciate it!" Lü Tu opened his mouth, about to say something, but before his words could come out, Liu Dongzhu interrupted:

"Wei County Magistrate, he couldn't be as bad as you think; he gave me this 'Gentleman's Words' out of goodwill, hoping our Ping'an would become a Confucian gentleman."

"He is the parent-official of Qingyang County, and our Ping'an is also a commoner of Qingyang County; if our Ping'an succeeds, it will bring glory to him as well!"

"Dongzhu sister..."

Dai Zhi Shang's face showed only strangeness; he never expected Liu Dongzhu to say such a thing, and just as he was about to remind her that she thought too highly of Wei Yuan, Liu Dongzhu cut her off before she could finish speaking:

"Lord Lü, you are a Thousand Commander of the Demon-Suppression Bureau; although I don't know much about the Bureau, I know you have many important matters, and the safety of the entire populace of Fengyin Commandery rests on you."

"How could you possibly waste time on my Ping'an over a mere suspicion of something that might not even happen?"

"My mother is still the best!"

Wang Ping'an let out a slight sigh; compared to Dai Zhi Shang's incomprehension, how could he possibly not understand his mother's thoughts?

Don't be fooled by how nicely his mother speaks; she is not stupid. She saw Wei Yuan's actions just now, so how could she not know what kind of person he is, and how could she not know that the words spoken by Dai Zhi Shang and his companions are utterly true.

His mother also believes that whatever vicious prime minister's daughter will surely harm his life.

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This matter.

It's not like this hasn't happened before!

His mother will pretend to be foolish, not wanting to implicate Lü Tu—who let his mother know better the power of the prime minister's mansion?

His so-called Chen Shimei father, at least a scholar, had made rapid progress in the imperial examinations, likely harboring many hopes for his future; how could his mother not come to understand the prime minister, the highest of officials?

No matter how capable Lü Tu is, he's merely a Thousand Commander of the Demon-Suppression Bureau in Fengyin Commandery; his mother might not know the Bureau's strength, but she knows that within the realm of Daxia, there are more than a hundred prefectural cities similar to Fengyin.

Even if the Demon-Suppression Bureau's Thousand Commander is formidable, without some special connection he likely wouldn't even have the qualifications to enter the prime minister's mansion.

Yu Die saw Liu Dongzhu's worry; even if Liu Dongzhu disguised herself well, her motherly concern for her own child is hard to hide, and she said with a smile:

"Lady Wang, don't worry about this Lü Qianhu; since he clearly knows your situation and still dares to take your Ping'an as a disciple, it shows he isn't afraid of retaliation from that prime minister's daughter, or even the prime minister's mansion."

"So let him protect your Ping'an; could it be that you actually want your Ping'an to die at the hands of that prime minister's daughter?"

"This, this, this..."

For a moment, Liu Dongzhu hesitated, torn between worrying that Lü Tu might provoke the prime minister's daughter and worrying about her own Ping'an's safety.

Lü Tu said solemnly: "Lady Wang, you needn't worry about me; since I dare to take your child as a disciple, I don't fear retaliation from the prime minister's daughter."

(End of chapter)