Chapter 178: The Eldest Miss Seeks a Husband, Entering the Jia Mansion to Swindle Money

Early morning, the autumn wind blows gently.

After Luo Zijun got up, washed, and finished breakfast, he prepared to head out to the Jia Mansion.

Who would have thought that as soon as he opened the courtyard gate, he would see a figure standing outside.

She was wearing a cyan-green long dress, with a tall, slender figure and a pretty appearance, looking at him with a face full of smiles.

It was none other than the Bai Family Third Miss, Bai Qingtong.

Luo Zijun was taken aback and hurriedly stepped forward, saying, "Does Third Miss have business?"

Bai Qingtong smiled and said, "When I saw Tanchun and the others off yesterday, I heard that you were going to the Jia Mansion today. Since I have nothing to do today, I thought I would accompany you to pay a visit. You wouldn't mind, would you?"

Luo Zijun said, "How could I? Let's go together then."

Bai Qingtong smiled slightly and said, "The carriage is already waiting outside the gate."

As Luo Zijun walked side by side with her, secretly pondering the young lady's intentions, Bai Qingtong explained quite candidly, "It is mainly because I am afraid that if you go alone, you will never come back."

Luo Zijun looked at her with a face full of confusion.

Bai Qingtong said with a half-smile, "That Jia Mansion is a nest of beauties, especially that Lin Meimei. Her talent is peerless, and she possesses a beauty that is beyond compare. Even I find her pitiable and lovely; I like her myself. I am afraid that once you go there, you will fall into that trap and never return."

Upon hearing this, Luo Zijun could not help but smile and said, "I am going to the Jia Mansion to find Master Jia, not to find some Lin Meimei or Jia Meimei."

Bai Qingtong laughed, "I am just afraid that Master Jia will hatch one scheme after another. If you don't want to marry his daughter, he will try to marry off his nieces or nephews to you."

Luo Zijun said, "Third Miss is joking. No matter who it is, I will not want them."

Bai Qingtong smiled and asked, "Really?"

Luo Zijun said, "Of course, I already have a wife."

Bai Qingtong smiled slightly and said nothing more.

The two left the house, and sure enough, they saw the carriage waiting in the alley outside.

Bai Qingtong had only brought one maid, Hua'er.

Besides the coachman driving the carriage, there were two guards.

"Does Third Miss practice martial arts?"

Once inside the carriage, Luo Zijun asked suddenly.

Bai Qingtong said, "Why does Sir ask this?"

Luo Zijun said, "When Third Miss goes out, you only bring so few people. If you were to encounter bad people, it would not be enough."

Bai Qingtong smiled and said, "It is still the period of national mourning, and there are patrol teams everywhere. What bad person would dare to come out at a time like this?"

Luo Zijun fell silent.

A few days ago outside the Royal Palace, he, a dignified expert of the Martial Artist Fifth Realm, had been toyed with by a flower-thief without even noticing; those trashy patrol teams were of no use at all.

Bai Qingtong said, "I have indeed practiced martial arts since I was young, and my strength is passable."

She paused.

She smiled again and said, "Against someone like you, I could fight a hundred, and I could take them out with one punch each."

Luo Zijun: "..."

Seeing his amusing expression, Bai Qingtong could not help but chuckle and said, "Does Sir not believe me? Would you like to try?"

Luo Zijun said, "What is Third Miss's cultivation level now? My brother-in-law seems to be at the Martial Artist Third Realm. Is Third Miss as strong as my brother-in-law?"

Bai Qingtong smiled and said, "A little stronger; I am at the Martial Artist Fifth Realm."

Luo Zijun was stunned and asked in confusion, "Is the Martial Artist Fifth Realm only a little stronger than the Martial Artist Third Realm?"

Bai Qingtong smiled slightly and said, "I was just being modest. In truth, it only takes me one punch to beat your brother-in-law."

Luo Zijun was left speechless.

Seeing his expression, a hint of pride appeared on Bai Qingtong's face, and she smiled, "Does Sir think your brother-in-law is very strong?"

Luo Zijun nodded and said, "My brother-in-law can kill a cow with one punch and shatter the large stone in the backyard with one punch. Third Miss, can you do that too?"

Bai Qingtong smiled, thought for a moment, took a fifty-tael silver ingot from the Money Pouch at her waist, and said, "Can Sir snap this in two?"

Luo Zijun hurriedly shook his head: "How is that possible?"

With a smile on her face, Bai Qingtong said nothing more. With a gentle snap of her two hands, the silver was pulled into two halves as if it were dough, as if she had not used any strength at all.

Hua'er, who was to the side, said proudly, "Sir does not know, but even a lump of iron can be snapped by my Miss."

Luo Zijun was again left speechless.

Bai Qingtong seemed to enjoy his expression and gaze. She placed the two halves of silver in her palm and kneaded them gently; the two halves of silver were instantly kneaded into a ball of dough!

Luo Zijun said, "Third Miss, is this silver of yours fake? Is it made of dough?"

"Pfft..."

Hua'er, who was to the side, started laughing.

Bai Qingtong smiled and handed the silver in her hand to him, saying, "Sir, try it."

Luo Zijun took it, tried hard to snap it, and then placed it in his palm to knead it. His face turned red from the effort, but the silver remained completely unmoved.

Hua'er, who was to the side, laughed until she was holding her stomach.

Bai Qingtong lifted her chin slightly and smiled, "Does Sir still think it is fake?"

Luo Zijun looked at her with a face full of admiration and said, "Third Miss is so amazing."

Bai Qingtong was all smiles.

Luo Zijun returned the silver to her and said, "I never expected that Third Miss, looking so delicate and with such slender hands, would have so much strength."

Bai Qingtong explained, "To be specific, it is Internal Energy. If a martial artist has Internal Energy, their inherent strength is not something an ordinary person can compare to."

Luo Zijun looked at her with a face full of awe and said, "Third Miss is so strong, no wonder you don't need to bring guards. If you get married in the future, you won't have to worry about your husband hitting you. If he dares to hit you, you could send him flying with one punch."

"Pfft..."

As soon as these words were spoken, Bai Qingtong and Hua'er, who was to the side, both let out a "pfft" and started laughing.

Hua'er said, "Even if my young lady didn't practice martial arts, no one would dare to bully her. Who is tired of living and would dare to bully my young lady?"

Luo Zijun said, "That is true."

Bai Qingtong smiled and said, "It is still best to practice martial arts oneself. No matter how prominent the family is or how powerful one's relatives are, there will always be times when they cannot look after you. Only when one has their own ability are they not afraid of anyone."

Luo Zijun deeply agreed: "Third Miss is right."

Bai Qingtong looked at him and said, "Sir is a scholar, gentle and weak. Actually, I think Sir should find a woman who practices martial arts to be his wife. That way, one literary and one martial, that is the perfect match. That Liu, to be honest... is too weak."

As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly realized what she had said. Two blushes immediately surged onto her fair and pretty cheeks, and she hurriedly said, "Sir, don't misunderstand, I... what I just said was not..."

Luo Zijun said, "Third Miss, please do not overthink it. I understand Third Miss's meaning; if one can find a woman who practices martial arts, that is naturally best. However, things like fate come when they come; how can there be room for choice?"

Bai Qingtong smiled with a blushing face and said nothing more.

Hua'er hurriedly changed the subject: "Young Master Luo, I heard from Fenfen that you always liked to bully her, is that right?"

Luo Zijun said, "Of course not, it is she who always bullies me first."

Hua'er laughed: "This servant knew she was talking nonsense. She is so naughty, she dares to bully anyone. How would a gentle and refined scholar like Young Master Luo dare to bully her?"

Luo Zijun said, "Exactly, that girl is clearly twisting the truth and slandering me."

Bai Qingtong smiled: "Once my sister gets married next month, that girl should become well-behaved. At that time, that girl and the two sisters Bai Bai and Qingqing will all be sent as part of the dowry. Once there is a husband, if she still dares to be naughty, the husband will naturally deal with her."

Luo Zijun was silent for a moment and said, "Isn't someone who marries into the family even lower than a servant? How would he dare to deal with her?"

Bai Qingtong said with a smile on her face: "In our Bai Family, even those who marry into the family are proper masters. They do not need to change their surname, and the children born in the future can take his surname. Furthermore, they will not be bullied by servants and will be on equal footing with my sister. As long as he does not bully my sister, no one in the Bai Mansion will dare to bully him. And no matter what he wants to do in the future, our Bai Family will support him."

Luo Zijun was heavy-hearted and managed to squeeze out a smile on his face: "That is quite good." Bai Qingtong smiled: "Yes, I also think it is quite good."

At this moment, the carriage stopped at the entrance of the Rongguo Mansion.

The two got off the carriage and walked toward the main gate of the Jia Mansion.

Someone had already gone inside to report.

Soon, a page boy of Jia She hurried out and said respectfully to Luo Zijun: "Young Master Luo, my master invites you in."

At this time, Jia Tanchun also walked out with her maid. After seeing him, she nodded slightly without speaking and headed toward Bai Qingtong.

Luo Zijun followed the page boy, stepping on the clean bluestone slabs, and entered the front side hall.

In the side hall.

Jia She was talking with Jia Zhen, seemingly about the construction of the Daguanyuan.

Seeing him enter the room, Jia Zhen hurriedly withdrew.

When walking to the door, the two exchanged greetings.

!

Luo Zijun said, "Jia Daren."

Jia Zhen smiled: "Young Master Luo."

After Jia Zhen left the door and had not gone far, Luo Zijun walked toward Jia She and smiled: "Jia Laoye, I have brought the kidney-tonifying and yang-strengthening pills you wanted today."

Jia Zhen, who had just reached the corridor, paused upon hearing this and looked toward the window.

Jia She hurriedly said to the page boy: "Close the door! Close the door quickly!"

The page boy hurriedly closed the door.

Luo Zijun stepped forward, took out four bottles of medicinal pills, handed them over, and said, "Two bottles of Five-Stone Powder, two bottles of Yang-Strengthening Pills, Jia Laoye, please check them."

Jia She couldn't wait to take them in his hands, opened the bottle stopper, and took a sniff. He was immediately full of excitement and said: "It's that scent, it's that scent!"

Luo Zijun took out another 15,000 taels of silver notes, handed them over, and said, "Jia Laoye, these are the silver notes I promised you, please count them."

Jia She hurriedly put away the pills, took the silver notes, counted them carefully, and said with a face full of smiles: "Correct, correct."

Immediately, he hurriedly took out the IOU from his bosom, handed it over, and said: "Zijun, we are now even."

Luo Zijun carefully checked the IOU and nodded: "Indeed, we are even."

Jia She leaned closer to him and whispered: "Young Master Luo, it is not that this old man does not want to let that girl Yingchun out now, it is really that the Old Lady does not allow it. That girl went to the Old Lady herself yesterday and said she wanted to move out. As soon as the Old Lady heard this, she flew into a rage, called this old man over, and gave me a sound scolding, saying that I had wronged that girl, otherwise why would she want to run away from home? The Old Lady absolutely refuses, and this old man has no way."

"However, Zijun, rest assured, that girl is already your person now. You can secretly take her out at any time and send her back at night. If you want to take her out at night, that is also fine, just don't let the Old Lady find out. When the time comes that the Old Lady is tired of her, or when she has been persuaded, you can then take her home and make her a concubine."

Luo Zijun looked at his lecherous face and listened to these cold-blooded and heartless words. He really wanted to punch him in the eyes, but he held back.

This old thing still had value to be exploited.

"Jia Daren, I have good news to tell you. Ziyang Daozhang has returned. I saw him yesterday and asked him for a few bottles of even better medicinal pills."

As soon as these words were spoken, Jia She's eyes immediately lit up, and he was full of excitement: "Really? What better medicinal pills did Ziyang Daozhang give you?"

Luo Zijun said, "Medicinal pills are divided by quality, from one to five grades. The few bottles of pills I gave you are at most fourth-grade pills. But because they were personally refined by Ziyang Daozhang, the effect is very good. What Ziyang Daozhang gave me yesterday are even better third-grade pills. There is Five-Stone Powder for longevity, Nine-Yang Pills for curing all diseases, and pills for strengthening the kidneys and yang. These pills, let alone in our Liang, even in the entire Great Yan, are things money cannot buy. Ziyang Daozhang rarely refines pills now, and I presume Jia Laoye also knows his ability."

Jia She hurriedly said: "This old man naturally knows. Ziyang Daozhang's pills have always been very rare. I heard that even the princes and nobles in Yujing cannot beg for them. Zijun, your luck is too good, that... hehe..."

Speaking of this, he rubbed his hands, gave a hehe smile, and said with a face full of fawning: "Zijun, can you give this old man a few bottles of those third-grade pills?"

Luo Zijun said, "I don't have many either, and I have to keep them for my own use. Also, yesterday when Ziyang Daozhang came to find me, he was seen by Bai Laoye, so Bai Laoye also wanted to buy a few bottles from me, and I have already promised to sell him two bottles."

Upon hearing this, Jia She immediately became anxious: "Zijun, you are so young, eating them is a waste. Besides the ones for Bai Laoye, how many bottles do you have left? Sell them all to this old man, I want them all!"

Luo Zijun pretended to hesitate for a moment and said, "I can sell at most two more bottles here. If Jia Laoye wants them..."

"I want them! This old man wants them all!"

Jia She hurriedly said: "Zijun, did you bring them? Take them all out, this old man can give you some more silver."

Then he whispered: "This old man can also give you a maid, I bought her just last month, she is only fourteen, her skin is so tender."

Luo Zijun glanced at him, hesitated for a while longer, and then somewhat reluctantly took out two porcelain bottles and said: "Jia Laoye, I don't need you to add more money, nor do I need any maid. Ten thousand taels per bottle, you just give me twenty thousand taels."

Upon hearing this, Jia She was startled and clicked his tongue: "Twenty... twenty thousand taels? Ten thousand taels a bottle..."

Luo Zijun said, "Jia Laoye thinks it's expensive? How about this, Jia Laoye goes outside to inquire about the price of third-grade pills first? Not to mention they were personally refined by Ziyang Daozhang, and they are not just any pills, but pills for longevity and kidney strengthening. These are things you can't buy even with silver."

Jia She's expression shifted.

Luo Zijun smiled faintly and said: "As for the effect, Jia Laoye should know better than anyone. Forget it, since Jia Laoye is reluctant to part with the silver, it just so happens that I am also reluctant to sell. I will just keep them for myself to eat, or sell them to Bai Laoye."

Saying this, he prepared to take his leave.

Jia She hurriedly grabbed his sleeve, accompanied by a smiling face as he said: "Zijun, I didn't say I wasn't buying! What are you rushing for? It's only twenty thousand taels of silver; surely you don't think I, a dignified Duke mansion master, can't afford it?"

Having said that, he painfully handed over the fifteen thousand taels of silver banknotes he had just put away, saying: "Zijun, take this fifteen thousand taels first and wait here a moment; I will go get the remaining five thousand taels."

After saying this, he immediately went over to open the door and left in a hurry.

Luo Zijun glanced out the window, withdrew his gaze, and counted the banknotes in his hand one by one.

These were the banknotes he had just given out; the old thing hadn't even warmed them in his pocket before spitting them back out.

For dealing with such an old lecher, the two effects of prolonging life and strengthening the kidneys were tried and true. With the effect of that previous bottle of medicinal pills and the reputation of Daoist Ziyang, even if he made a few fake bottles now, the other party would not notice.

This kind of medicinal pill is mostly a psychological effect.

Even if there is no effect in the future, he will have an excuse.

While he was counting the banknotes, a head suddenly poked in from the doorway sneakily. Upon seeing him, the person hurriedly said: "Young Master Luo!"

After saying this, a figure walked in quickly.

It turned out to be Jia Zhen, who had just left, hadn't gone far, and had been eavesdropping in the corridor.

Luo Zijun pretended to be startled, hurriedly put away the banknotes in his hand, and cupped his hands: "Lord Jia, didn't you just leave?"

Jia Zhen gave a hehe laugh and said: "I didn't go far, I was specifically waiting outside for Young Master Luo, wanting to say a few words to Young Master Luo."

He then leaned close to him, his face full of covetousness, and whispered: "Young Master Luo, I heard you have kidney-strengthening and virility-boosting pills personally refined by Daoist Ziyang?"

Luo Zijun's expression changed, and he hurriedly said: "Who did Lord Jia hear that from? There is no such thing; how could I have medicinal pills refined by Daoist Ziyang here?"

Jia Zhen smiled all over his face: "Young Master Luo, don't lie to me. Uncle She has been radiant and full of vigor lately; I was still wondering, but today I realized it was because he ate pills personally refined by Daoist Ziyang. Young Master Luo, sell me a few bottles too? The price is negotiable; Young Master Luo, just say it, it doesn't matter if you ask for more."

Luo Zijun looked troubled: "Lord Jia, I really don't have any left here."

Jia Zhen hurriedly grabbed his hand and said: "Young Master Luo must have kept a few bottles for himself, right? Didn't Young Master Luo say you promised two bottles to Old Master Bai? How about this, I'll pay extra to buy them, double the price, how about that?"

Luo Zijun still shook his head: "No, no, I have already promised Old Master Bai."

At the same time, he thought to himself: It seems this Ningguo Mansion still has quite a lot of wealth.

After all, this Ningguo Mansion is entirely decided by this person before him, and this person is also the clan leader of the entire Jia Family, so he must still have quite a lot of savings.

Jia Zhen was about to beg further when he suddenly heard a rush of footsteps coming from outside, so he hurriedly whispered: "Young Master Luo, I'll pay twenty-five thousand taels! Twenty-five thousand taels a bottle!"

After finishing, he hurriedly walked toward the door.

At this moment, Jia She returned in a hurry with five thousand taels of silver. Seeing him, he was stunned for a moment and said: "Jia Zhen, why are you..."

Jia Zhen hurriedly smiled: "There were some matters in the garden I forgot to tell you about, Uncle. I just came back, and seeing you weren't there, I chatted with Young Master Luo for a few words."

Upon hearing this, Jia She waved his hand: "Matters in the garden can wait; I have things to discuss with Zijun, you go first."

Jia Zhen hurriedly took his leave.

After leaving the door, he turned his head to look back and thought to himself: Uncle is so anxious; it seems the effect of those pills must be extremely good. No matter what, I must get a few bottles.

Thinking this way, he immediately hurried out of the mansion, returned to the Ningguo Mansion opposite, and then went to the accounting office.

(End of chapter)