Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 512 Imperial Censor Lin ~ Only by living can you protect your daughter~
Jiangdu County, Yangzhou Prefecture.

"As the saying goes, 'Three lifetimes of misfortune, to be a county magistrate attached to the city.'"

"Having committed evil deeds in three lifetimes, he was sent to the provincial capital."

"His evil deeds were so numerous that he became a concubine of the emperor in the capital."

Walking through the bustling city of Jiangdu, Lin Dao quipped, "Yangzhou is the richest city in the world, but Jiangdu County is located in the same city as the prefect and the salt administration, so it must have much less income."

Never look down on a county magistrate; he's a marquis of a hundred li!

During the Zhou Dynasty, many vassal states were not this large.

In ancient times, when information was scarce, the county magistrate was essentially the real bigwig who could decide life and death within the county.

Yangzhou is wealthy.

It not only had the convenience of the Grand Canal, but also the income from the Lianghuai Saltworks.

Salt merchants were incredibly wealthy; even a minor county magistrate could amass a fortune.

However, the magistrate of Jiangdu County lived in the same city as the prefect and the salt administration office.

Salt merchants, grain transport gangs, and smugglers all paid tribute to the prefectural government and the salt administration.

As for Jiangdu County, it will probably only get a tiny bit of attention.

Jia Lian, riding a horse to the side, smiled awkwardly, unsure of what to say.

Lin Dao truly came from the mountains; he had absolutely no respect for the imperial court.
How dare they make fun of an official of the imperial court like that!
Following behind them were several horse-drawn carriages.

They were transporting Miss Lin and various items.

In ancient times, wealthy families, especially truly wealthy families, needed to prepare all sorts of things before going out.

From chamber pots to toilets, from bedding to food boxes, from clothes for all seasons to silver charcoal, and so on.

After all, productivity was low in ancient times, and it was difficult to buy suitable items.

The luxurious lifestyle of the wealthy and powerful is something that ordinary people can only dream of.

After traveling for a while, we finally arrived at the Salt Administration Office.

The Lin family members who went to the dock to pick up the people went up and spoke with the salt guards at the gate.

They immediately opened the door, removed the threshold, and let the carriage in.

The Salt Administration Office was not as luxurious as I had imagined.

Although it was almost the wealthiest government office in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, it looked quite ordinary.

After all, ancient government offices were not built with the principle of simplicity; they would not build extremely large and luxurious government buildings with domes and claim to be in the Baroque style.

Lin Dao and Jia Lian stayed in the front yard.

Seeing that Lin Dao had no intention of leaving, Jia Lian grinned and took the initiative to lead him to the flower hall.

If he doesn't leave, Miss Lin will have to pull back the curtain as soon as she gets out of the carriage.
Among wealthy and powerful families, unmarried girls are the most honored.

Of course, if rebel armies, peasant armies, or barbarian tribes broke into the city and entered the house, all the rules would become a joke, and they would directly push people onto the bed and tear off their clothes.

Compared to the main hall, the flower hall is more private.

It is often used for informal meetings, such as receiving relatives.

Without a doubt, Jia Lian was a relative of the Salt Commissioner, and was his eldest nephew.

After a short rest, the Lin family servants served them fragrant tea.

After drinking several cups of tea and waiting for quite a while, the butler finally came to invite them.

The salt commissioner first had a long chat with his daughter, whom he hadn't seen for several years, to rekindle their family ties before meeting Jia Lian.

Lin Dao then got up.

"Brother Zihou~" Jia Lian's expression was strange, and he hesitated to speak.

In situations like this, you shouldn't follow along.
It's really inappropriate.

"It's alright." Lin Dao waved his hand. "I heard that the Salt Commissioner is ill."

"My medical skills are divine; perhaps I can help with the treatment."

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian blinked, then blinked again.

Didn't you say you studied alchemy? How come you've become a medical genius?
He didn't ask, and Lin Dao wouldn't ask either.

After exchanging a few words, the two went to find the Salt Commissioner.

There were quite a few people in the salt commissioner's room.

Several women of varying ages, ranging from their thirties to their teens.

These are the concubines of the Salt Commissioner.

After Miss Lin's mother passed away, the Salt Commissioner was indeed not Xu Xian, who was known for his loyalty and righteousness.

But he never lacked concubines; he never did.

In addition, there were several elderly and young people in the house, who were members of the Lin family's ancestral clan.

In this day and age, if someone has no offspring, someone from the clan will come and smash a basin and beat a banner, while simultaneously inheriting their estate.

The rest of the people in the room were all grieving, except for these few members of the Lin family, who were definitely not from the government, because the smugness on their faces was hard to suppress.

As for the old women, maids, and housekeepers, they can be ignored.

Not far from the bed, there was a screen.

There's someone behind the screen; it must be Miss Lin.

Uncle-in-law~~~

With tears welling up in his eyes, Jia Lian cried out and rushed to the bedside, wiping away his tears and sobbing.

The salt commissioner, lying on his bed, struggled to raise his hand and gently stroke Jia Lian's hair.

"Thank you for bringing Yu'er back from so far away!"

"Life and death are predestined; there's no need to be so fussy."

"Is everything alright at home?"

Jia Lian, sobbing, responded with choked words.

The two engaged in a question-and-answer session, presumably following procedure.

After all, they only get to see each other once every few years, and they probably don't even exchange letters regularly.

What feelings could there be?
Lin Dao stood not far away, carefully examining the salt inspector on the bed.

He had deep eye bags and his eyes looked slightly cloudy.

His complexion was bluish, and he was thin.

The hand that touched Jia Lian's head, in particular, was dry and thin.

At least on the surface, it certainly looks like it's terminally ill.

After reading it, he turned his head and glanced at the screen.

According to the portal, this world must have come for the little girl behind the screen.

However, Lin Dao is not a rule-abiding person; he will take some initiative and spontaneous actions according to changes in the environment.

The interior of the room suddenly changed.

A young member of the Lin clan suddenly spoke up, "Uncle~"

"Now that my aunt is back, let's give her her dowry!"

"We need to quickly sell off the rest and take them back to our hometown in Suzhou."

Things are so expensive here in Yangzhou!

Miss Lin's dowry mainly consisted of what her mother had left behind.

There's also the makeup done by the Salt Commissioner. The Lin family had been marquises for four generations, and Lin Ruhai himself was a third-place scholar in the imperial examinations and had served as the Salt Commissioner for many years.

The family has accumulated an astonishing amount of wealth.

Of course, most of them are real estate.

Books and paintings, antique furniture, precious medicinal herbs, real estate and land, etc.

People from my hometown of Suzhou don't need these things; they need money.

These items are difficult to sell and will take a long time.

They didn't have much time to stay in Yangzhou.

Therefore, in the eyes of these clansmen, since their aunt had returned, it was perfectly reasonable to take her share and then quickly sell the rest for money to take back to their hometown to enjoy.

Different perspectives lead to different views on things.

What seemed reasonable to these tribesmen was like a bombshell to the others in the room.

The salt commissioner narrowed his eyes and remained silent.

Jia Lian looked up, his eyes filled with anger.

Several concubines, with tears in their eyes, sobbed softly.

A soft sound came from behind the screen.

For a moment, the room was filled with an eerie atmosphere.

At this moment, Lin Dao made a move.

He stepped forward and came to the young clansman.

The young man looked at him with suspicion. "Are you a servant of the Jia family? What are you doing?"

Lin Dao raised his hand and slapped the young man across the face.

The young man spun 360 degrees on the spot and stumbled to the ground.

He stepped forward, reached out and pulled him up, using his other hand to grab him from both sides.

'Clap clap clap clap~ Clap~'

After several slaps, the young man's teeth were flying out and his face was covered in blood.

It was only then that everyone realized what was happening.

The salt inspector opened his eyes.

Jia Lian covered his head in astonishment.

The concubines gasped and covered their mouths in surprise.

The old women, maids, and stewards were shouting and yelling.

From behind the screen came another soft sound.

Several other members of the Lin clan rushed forward in a panic, ready to attack.

Lin Dao raised his leg and kicked them all out the door, one after the other.

Then he carried the limp young man to the door and threw him out.

He closed the door and turned around.

Finally clean.

Everyone in the room was looking at him.

Lin Dao stepped forward and stood before the Salt Inspector, his expression calm.

"Imperial Censor Lin, I need to take samples to analyze your condition."

The salt commissioner stared at him.

After a long pause, he finally asked, "Who are you?"

"Lin Dao, courtesy name Zihou, is a cultivator who practices in the mountains~" Jia Lian hurriedly explained, recounting the process of their encounter.

The salt inspector's gaze remained calm throughout, and his expression did not change after listening.

He looked at Lin Dao again and said, "I'm terminally ill."

"You're not dead yet." Lin Dao shut him down with one sentence. "As long as a person is alive, there's still hope."

"If you die, then you lose everything."

“You saw it too.” Lin Dao pointed to the door. “You’re not even dead yet, and your people are already humiliating you like this.”

"What will happen to your daughter after you die?"

"Are the people in her maternal grandmother's family all kind and good?"

"Who knows, they might live a life of constant hardship, enduring nightly torment until dawn, ultimately perishing young!"

"Therefore, the one who can truly protect a daughter in this world is still the living father!"

These words truly moved the Salt Commissioner.

His only remaining blood relative is his daughter.

I really can't imagine what my daughter's fate will be if she dies of illness.

He subconsciously glanced at the screen not far away.

Behind the screen, soft sobbing could also be heard.

Jia Lian opened his mouth, wanting to say that the Jia family would not mistreat them or anything like that.

But some things, some words, really are...
In the end, he said nothing.

"you."

Lin Dao looked down at the salt inspector and asked, "Do you want to live?"

Of course I want to live.

Who would willingly die if they had someone to care about?

The salt commissioner looked troubled. "I'm terminally ill."

"That's my business!"

Lin Dao waved his hand, interrupting again, "If they can be saved, they can be saved; if they can't be saved, there's no loss."

"Why bother with all this nonsense?"

"Ha~"

The salt commissioner even burst out laughing.

This young man exuded an air of authority and dominance, and his words carried a convincing quality.

"In that case, I naturally wish to live."

He then asked, "How can I treat him?"

"We need to determine what illness you have first."

Lin Dao took out his phone to take a picture. "We need to take a sample."

"Blood, hair, urine samples~"

"Only after the disease is confirmed through laboratory analysis can the appropriate medicine be prescribed."

"If it's a terminal illness~"

Upon hearing this, the salt commissioner's face fell. "That's my fate."

You've misunderstood.

Lin Dao waved his hand, "If it's a terminal illness, I can ask my master for help."

(End of this chapter)