Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 246 The Imperial Historian Zhao Zhao
The rain fell even harder in Chang'an the following day.

The remaining yellow leaves on the tree all fell off overnight, sticking to the mud and impossible to pull out.

When Zhou Zhao entered the left courtyard, a row of oil-paper umbrellas was already neatly arranged in front of the door. She lifted her foot to step over the threshold, but couldn't help but step back and look around in front of the corridor. "Did I step into the underworld, or did my eyes become clouded with ghostly mist?"

Otherwise, how could such a horrifying scene have been witnessed in broad daylight!

"You silly boy, all you do is spout nonsense. Do you think the King of Hell has as many case files as we do?"

Hearing that familiar voice, Zhou Zhao stretched out his leg, then pulled it back in.

Not only was the floor of the left courtyard polished to a shine today, but even the tables that were previously scattered haphazardly and the files that were piled up so messily that you could practically bury yourself in them were now neatly arranged.

The strong, almost intoxicating smell of alcohol that had filled the room was gone, replaced by a perfectly normal incense.

Although it still can't be described as elegant, it was indeed incense burned!

That's nothing compared to what's truly terrifying: a handsome middle-aged man was standing in their left courtyard.

The man was wearing the robes of a court official, his beard was clean-shaven, and his hair was combed so meticulously that Zhou Zhao suspected even flies would squeaking on him. "So slippery!"

"Zhou Zhao, why aren't you getting in here yet! Have you been promoted to court clerk and now you don't recognize this old man anymore!"

Hearing the familiar cursing, Zhou Zhao breathed a slight sigh of relief. She stepped inside and circled around Li Youdao.

"Are you perhaps a spy from the Court of Justice? Did you forget which face you were supposed to use when you went out this morning? Go and change it! Where is my unshaven, drunken, unkempt master who snores as soon as he falls asleep?"

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he suddenly reached out and pinched Li Youdao's face.

Without even thinking, Li Youdao reached out and pinched Zhou Zhao's face.

"Let go!" Li Youdao's words were somewhat indistinct.

"You loosen your grip first!" Zhou Zhao took the opportunity to pinch and twist again and again. She only wished that her fingernails were not knives, so they could not cut through the skin hanging on the person's face.

The old man and the young man were locked in a stalemate, neither willing to let go, staring at each other with wide eyes.

Suddenly, Li Youdao exerted force, looked into Zhou Zhao's eyes and said, "Thank you!"

Zhou Zhao knew that Li Youdao was referring to Li Youzhi.

"If you hadn't used so much force, I would really thank you!"

Li Youdao glared angrily at Zhou Zhao, "Me, use force? Why don't you say that if my face were a wine jar, your fingernails would poke holes in it!"

"Let go!"

"Let go first!"

"Let's loosen up together!"

"one two three……"

After shouting the three words, neither of them let go.

Good guy!
Zhou Zhao stared at Li Youdao. This was what it meant to be evenly matched!
As she was thinking, she heard a series of clapping sounds coming from the doorway. "Hey, the Court of Justice may not have much of a reputation, but you two court officials don't have to just peel it off and throw it away! With your thick and hard skin lying on the ground, I'm worried that even a dog would break its teeth if it accidentally gnawed on it!"

Zhou Zhao and Li Youdao simultaneously released their grip and glared at Min Zangzhi at the door.

Today, this fellow was carrying a fan adorned with a hundred flowers, looking incredibly smug. Standing next to him was Chang Zuoping, who looked constipated.

Behind the two were a large group of minor officials from the Court of Justice. Chang Zuoping's gaze swept over Zhou Zhao, then over Li Youdao, and finally landed on Min Cangzhi, the peacock standing beside him. His face darkened even more.

"What are you all doing blocking the doorway? Do you think you're all pretty girls, putting on a show every time it rains? Get out of my way, all of you! You've got nothing better to do!"

Chang Zuoping was worrying when he suddenly heard a rough and irritable voice behind him. The veins on his forehead throbbed, and he gritted his teeth and shouted "Xu Yun!"
Hua Zhi was a notorious shrew in Chang'an.

It was quite a strange story. She and her husband were a well-matched couple in terms of social standing. But on their wedding night, her husband abandoned her to pursue his lover. Huazhi couldn't stand this humiliation, so that very day she tied up her husband and his lover and made them kneel in front of the mansion gate.

It was pouring rain that day, and I heard that the eyebrows that my sweetheart had drawn on had been washed away by the rain.

If anyone from her husband's family tried to stop her, she would hold a butcher's knife to their neck and force them to kneel in front of the mansion gate.

Her husband's family couldn't stand it anymore and came to the Court of Justice to file complaints again and again. She even slammed a butcher's knife into the threshold of the Court of Justice. She hadn't hit anyone or killed anyone. Her husband's family just liked to worship the rain god, and she, as the new bride, dared not and could not stop them...

In the end, the matter was left unresolved, and every time it rained, a row of her husband's family members would kneel in front of her door.

The people of the Court of Justice also recalled the butcher's knife on the threshold.

The crowd dispersed immediately. Xu Yun saw Shangguan, and his distorted face softened. He cupped his hands in greeting to Chang Zuoping, "Lord Zuoping."

Chang Zuoping's veins throbbed.

"Tao Shangshan has gone to the Right Court. Zhou Zhao will take over his position as Court Clerk. The three of you are all working in the Left Court, so you must work together."

As he spoke, he glanced at the red marks on Zhou Zhaotong and Li Youdao's faces, then at Xu Yun, who was always seething with rage... and at the flamboyant Min Zangzhi...

Chang Zuoping suddenly felt completely unwell.

He used to think that Tao Shangshan was not a Legalist, but rather a practitioner of Huang-Lao philosophy, and he disliked that Tao Shangshan was not energetic.

Nowadays... any subordinate who doesn't cause trouble is considered a top-notch subordinate.

He doesn't deserve good subordinates.

Chang Zuoping thought for a moment, then rubbed his temples. "You already know about Chen Jiyuan's affair. The Court of Justice is hiding remnants of the previous dynasty; Li Tingwei has completely lost face."

If any of you discover anything unusual, please come to the prison to find me at any time.

As Chang Zuoping spoke, he took out a waist token, threw it to Zhou Zhao, and then hurriedly walked outside.

"Lord Zuo Ping, you've got a blister on your lip from the heat! This won't do. My daughter Ayou made some tea bags, shall I bring you some?"

Upon hearing Min Zangzhi's shouts, Chang Zuoping quickened his pace, almost as if he were fleeing in panic.

After he walked away, Zhou Zhao looked at Min Cangzhi suspiciously, "When did Sister Chu You learn to make tea bags?"

Chu You was obsessed with arithmetic and architectural mechanisms, and knew nothing about anything else.

Min Cangzhi chuckled, fanning himself rapidly. "She didn't do it! I'll buy some cooling tea from the doctor; I can use that to exchange for betrothal gifts with Chang Zuoping..."

Zhou Zhao's gaze towards Min Zangzhi changed completely. Good heavens!
Even the bandits of Black Tiger Mountain aren't as ruthless as you! No wonder Chang Zuoping ran so fast, he's practically been skinned alive!
This shameless villain!
Zhou Zhao thought for a moment and said to Min Zangzhi, "Chang Zuoping is not as good as Ji Yun."

Min Zangzhi's eyes lit up, and he strode out. But as he reached the door, he turned back to Zhou Zhao and said insincerely, "Congratulations on becoming a court official."

Zhou Zhao was about to make a sarcastic remark when he saw Min Cangzhi shake the Hundred Flowers Fan in his hand, turn around and wink at Zhou Zhao, "You also want some cooling tea? You don't need to offer betrothal gifts, just add some dowry for Ayou! We're already so familiar, let's skip the cooling tea!"

Zhou Zhao was utterly speechless. This was exactly what it meant to get something for nothing!

Min Zangzhi is getting married, she must be ecstatic!