Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 576 The details
As soon as Yang Kuan spoke, many people in the room showed nervous expressions, and some even gripped the daggers at their waists.

Master Wu, seated at the head of the table, laughed and asked, "Young master, where did you get that idea?"

Yang Kuan waved his hand: "Don't call me 'my lord,' just call me by my name. How dare we, lowly people, be treated with such respect?"

As he spoke, he picked his teeth with his chopsticks and spat out the shredded meat, causing the people around Master Wu to frown.

Yang Kuan didn't care. He poured himself another bowl of wine, took a big gulp, and then continued, "Since you're here to deliver a message, you should naturally find out what's going on."

“Your husband, when I met him, he had just climbed out of the ditch. He hadn’t eaten for a long time. If I hadn’t given him half a piece of bread and let him mingle with the beggars to beg for porridge at the temple, he would have starved to death long ago.”

At this point, Yang Kuan stared wide-eyed at Master Wu: "With such a large family business, surely there's no one else in Bianjing besides him? Then why has he fallen into such a predicament? Isn't he just abandoned?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Yang Kuan laughed, his face full of smugness: "So, I'm not afraid of you messing with me. Anyway, without me, you won't be able to find him. If I hadn't seen him all alone, why would I dare to come and make this money?"

"We're all people who can't stand the light of day, so let's stop guessing and it's pointless."

Before Master Wu could say anything more, Yang Kuan grabbed the maid who came to deliver the vegetables and tried to pull her into his arms. His oily hands groped everywhere, causing the maid to scream in surprise. The maid managed to break free with great difficulty, but Yang Kuan didn't seem to mind. Instead, he chuckled and went to get some meat to eat.

Master Wu, sitting in the main seat, gradually became serious. Wu Er, who had rushed back, seized the opportunity to step forward and said, "We saw the Xie family. The Xie family has guards around them, and the imperial soldiers are also patrolling the area. We didn't have a chance to make a move."

Master Wu nodded, and seeing Yang Kuan chewing without any restraint, he could tell that his son was in a difficult situation at this moment.

“Those officials have gone too far,” Wu Er said in a low voice, so that only Master Wu and he could hear him. “Now that we’ve successfully brought our young master back, we’re going to rebel…”

Master Wu stopped Wu Er from continuing.

Yang Kuan also let out a burp, wiped his hands with the handkerchief next to him, and then said, "Actually, Master Wu, you don't need to think too much. People like us are just doing things for money. After the job is done, I won't cause you any trouble. I will take my people and leave Bianjing. You will never see me again."

"However, you must make sure you have enough money for the journey. I still have a few brothers under my command, and I need to take them to find a place to continue making a living. What do you say, Master Wu?"

Master Wu said, "Money is no object."

Yang Kuan immediately raised his hand to interrupt: "It's not that it's easy to say, it's that we have to say it now."

Master Wu was interrupted by Yang Kuan again, but he was still not angry: "How much money does Brother Yang want?"

Yang Kuan leaned back lazily in his chair: "Of course, the more the better, but... I can't take too many copper coins with me, you'll have to exchange them for gold..."

Yang Kuanzai carefully examined Master Wu's face before saying, "At least two hundred taels of gold, of course the more the better. I can take it all with me at once."

The others in the room showed some anger, but Master Wu laughed: "Good, good, good... You're a bit like me when I was young. I was like that back then too. I had to carry all my money with me. As long as I was alive, the money had to be with me. When I died... it didn't matter anymore."

Yang Kuan hadn't expected that asking for so much money would only make Master Wu more enthusiastic. After a moment of stunned silence, he said, "Don't think you can fool me with a few words. In short, without money, there's no need to say anything. Even if you kill me, I won't do anything for you."

Master Wu shook his head: "Money is the easiest thing to give. You're right. Two hundred taels of gold in exchange for my son's life is only fair. In this world, without some money to protect yourself, you're at the mercy of others. No one is more reliable than money. Even a lowly servant can torture a person to the point of wishing for death." He stared at Yang Kuan: "Do you think I'm telling you this to deceive you? We've experienced these things ourselves."

After Mr. Wu finished speaking, the people around him nodded subconsciously.

“When I was leading these brothers to make a living, I experienced even more hardships,” Mr. Wu rolled up his sleeves, revealing a long scar on his arm. “My son was spoiled. I told him not to go out and work, but he wouldn’t listen, and this is the result.”

"At my age, I had no choice but to come and save him."

Master Wu poured a cup of tea, raised it to Yang Kuan and said, "I know the rules. Regardless of whether you save my son or not, I will give you a sum of money if you come to deliver this message."

As soon as he finished speaking, the person next to him immediately placed the prepared bundle in front of Yang Kuan.

Master Wu held out his hand: "There are five strings of copper coins and fifteen taels of silver inside. There are also ten pearls, each worth at least five taels of silver. I was worried that the items were too heavy for you to carry, so I made this special arrangement."

“Copper coins can be used for travel expenses, which will be enough for you wherever you go. The silver is just scraps that have been cut off, and any shop will accept it. As for those two pearls, they are not particularly eye-catching, and you won’t attract attention if you go out to sell them.”

"If you are unwilling to help me rescue people, you can leave with these things after you tell me where my son is. If you are willing to help me, I will give you two hundred taels of gold as you said. If you have nowhere to go, you can come with us."

"I can't guarantee that you won't face danger in the future, but as long as my son and I are alive, I will make sure you live a comfortable life. If you have the ability, I will let you have even more."

Yang Kuan frowned. Everything was supposed to go according to his plan, but Master Wu changed the course, leaving him somewhat at a loss.

After a long pause, Yang Kuan said, "You think you can get away smoothly just by leaving Bianjing? If we go with you, will we have to hide from the authorities from time to time?"

Everyone else in the room started laughing.

Master Wu said, "Who do you think we are? Are we all being hunted by the imperial court? If it weren't for that unworthy son showing his face in public this time, giving the authorities a handle to use against us, we wouldn't be stopped anywhere we go."

"In other words, we'll take him away from here and let him hide, and then we'll go about our business. The pearl in your hand is what we're selling."

"Once things calm down, you can also come with us to do business."

Yang Kuan licked his lips, then suddenly remembered something and said sarcastically, "You've all been ostracized, where are you going to do business?"

“That’s because our master didn’t want to break ties with them before,” Wu Er said. “Now that our young master is in trouble, we will definitely demand an explanation from them.”

"They still have quite a few people in Bianjing, so they might as well secretly inform the court and take advantage of the chaos in Bianjing to rescue the young master."

There is one more chapter

(End of this chapter)