Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 561 General Jia, please pass on a message: I want to join the group.
"The King of Qin has been made Crown Prince!"

Inside the Pear Fragrance Courtyard, Aunt Xue recounted the information she had gathered.

"We, the Xue family, don't know if we can get in touch with the King of Qin."

"If we could curry favor with the King of Qin, we wouldn't have to worry about anything in the future!"

Aunt Xue has gradually emerged from her grief.

After all, her son was dead, but life had to go on.

If Lord Xue hadn't died so young, she might already be trying to conceive.

After all, compared to a man who hides his emotions deep inside and may never mention them in his entire life, it's a different story.

A sentimental woman may have a very intense emotional outburst at first, but she usually recovers quickly.

"Tadpole has sent a letter saying he will arrive in the capital soon."

"When he arrives, we, mother and daughter, will be considered... What's wrong with you?"

Aunt Xue looked at her absent-minded daughter with a puzzled expression. "Why is she acting like she has lost her mind?"

Holding a round fan, Xue Baochai, sitting dejectedly to the side, forced a smile.

"Mom, I'm fine."

"I just didn't sleep well and I'm a little sleepy."

Aunt Xue didn't think much of it, assuming her daughter was genuinely unwell.

After saying a few words about Xue Ke and the others returning soon, he got up and went out.

Their family belonged to the eldest branch of the Xue family, specifically the branch of Xue Gong.

Previously, Xue Gong was ostensibly a royal merchant, but in reality, he was the emeritus emperor's eyes and ears in Jiangnan. He was the undisputed head of the Xue family.

This gave them the opportunity to take over the Xue family's main business.

Although Xue Pan was a scoundrel before, he still had a certain status.

Shops in various places are more or less obedient to orders.

But now that Xue Pan is dead, even though he had a posthumous child, the shopkeepers in various places are not fools. After hearing the news, they began to outwardly comply but inwardly defy him.

Those with a conscience will at least hand over some of their profits.

Those without conscience simply say they're losing money and have no cash.

As for the unscrupulous ones, they've even started plotting to swallow up the shops.

Faced with this situation, even though Xue Baochai was exceptionally capable, as a woman, she could not go out to inspect the shops and check the accounts.

Left with no other choice, they had to summon Xue Ke from Jinling to handle the matter.

Upon seeing Aunt Xue leave, Xue Baochai, who had been forcing herself to stay upright, suddenly went limp and slumped onto the table, sobbing silently.

"Girl~"

Her maid, Ying'er, knelt down beside her, filled with self-reproach.

Yesterday, when she went to the East Road Courtyard, she was taken away and sent away, putting her young mistress in danger.

Later, realizing something was wrong, he rushed back, only to witness the young lady's utter humiliation.

She helped Xue Baochai change into a new outfit before setting off to return.

Ying'er felt extremely guilty about this.

"I'm fine."

Xue Baochai forced a smile and replied, but tears still streamed down her face.

How could it be okay?

If only Yuanyang and Qiutong were there, it would be embarrassing but not a big deal, since they are both women.

Yes~
The thought of Lin Dao's astonished expression as he stared at her soaking wet clothes filled Xue Baochai with shame.

I really have no face to live anymore.

She was a noblewoman from a high-class family, not a shrew from the village.

You can imagine how the man felt when he witnessed such a shameful scene.

"It's all that beast's fault!"

Ying'er had no idea what her young mistress truly cared about.

I thought it was out of hatred for the beast Jia She.

Ying'er was also cursing incessantly.

"That young master Lin dragged that beast away; I wonder if he buried him."

At that time, Lin Dao dragged away the unconscious Jia She, and Xue Baochai, who was in a state of extreme shame, did not pay attention to it.

Looking back now, all I can do is hope that Young Master Lin will show mercy and not kill me.

Although he wished Jia She would be torn to pieces, he couldn't die now.

Otherwise, if the authorities investigate, they can easily find out what happened to them.

If that's the case, then their reputation will be completely ruined.

Women are clearly at a disadvantage in this regard.

Even if someone has embarrassed themselves before, only a few people know about it. As long as they keep quiet, they can pretend they don't know.

But if the news gets out and becomes known throughout the city, she will truly have no face to live with.

Even if she couldn't bear to commit suicide, she would definitely have no chance to find a suitable husband afterward.

The fact that Xue Gong was able to get a second wife is all thanks to his utmost efforts.

It was precisely because of these worries that Xue Baochai was so absent-minded.

The image of one person constantly lingered in her mind.

"General Jia."

"In life, one must be pragmatic."

Inside a safe house in the south of the city, Lin Dao used a dagger to cut off a piece of mutton and stretched it out over a charcoal brazier to roast.

Pick up the pepper, chili powder, and salt shakers next to me, sprinkle on the seasonings, and they sizzle.

"If you still don't tell me before I finish eating the barbecue..."

Lin Dao gestured to the table next to him, where a hammer, axe, tweezers, saw, pliers, and other tools were laid out.

"Then don't blame me for being ruthless."

Jia She was seriously injured.

Half of his face was swollen like a pig's trotter, with the skin torn and the flesh exposed.

He was missing half of his teeth, so he spoke with a lisp.

Most importantly, he suffered a concussion.

Although Lin Dao controlled the force of his slap earlier, he didn't kill him with it.

However, the convulsions caused Jia She to suffer a concussion, leaving his brain a mess and resembling a state of dementia.

Jia She could hear Lin Dao's words and wanted to respond.

But the first thing she opens her mouth is "Ahhhhhh~~~"
Lin Dao sighed as he chewed on some roasted mutton.

That was a bit too much. Could it have caused him to become mentally impaired?

If he really became a useless person... Thinking of this, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes.

He was kept on so that they could make contact with the powerful and influential group behind him.

If it no longer serves this purpose, then it should naturally be eliminated.

Through long-term tempering, Lin Dao's heart had long since become as hard as stone.

Keep what's useful and use it; get rid of what's useless to avoid wasting food. This applies not only to Jia She, but also to emperors and princes.

Perhaps Jia Yuan and Jia Yan bumped their foreheads underground, or perhaps their concussions gradually improved over time.

Jia She, who was tied to the chair, saw the fierce glint in Lin Dao's eyes.

It was a look in their eyes, the kind that seemed poised to unleash a predatory gaze.

Jia She struggled to speak, saying, "I was forced into it too!"

He speaks with a lisp and his words are unclear.

Fortunately, Lin Dao could still understand.

Holding the dagger, Lin Dao continued slicing the meat, then simply said, "Explain yourself clearly, speak slowly."

"I'm not in a hurry, and you don't need to be either."

Jia She then recounted the entire story in detail.

It's nothing more than the fact that the nobility group seems to be making some big move and urgently needs a huge sum of money to buy off its members.

Each family possessed considerable wealth, but their cash reserves were limited.

After all, wealthy and powerful families are not just landlords and rich people; they value resources even more.

With money, people tend to invest more, in land, shops, networks, and even people.

Unlike nouveau riche who hide their silver in cellars.

Although they managed to scrape together some money, it was far from enough.

Because what they wanted to bribe was the army.

No matter how vast the wealth, it is never enough in the face of an army.

To win over the army and make them fight for you, you really need to spend a huge amount of money.

Moreover, the soldiers don't accept any gifts, promises, or even incense offerings; they only accept money.

The noble families pooled together a huge sum of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.

However, this amount was still a drop in the ocean compared to the 200,000+ in the books and the more than 100,000 troops still under the embezzlement of funds.

It's only natural that the Xue family would be targeted.

After listening to Jia She's account, Lin Dao nodded repeatedly.

This happened pretty much as he had predicted.

These nobles who were determined to fight the emperor to the death were probably the same ones who launched the mutiny during the hunting expedition at Tiewang Mountain.

The most important element of a mutiny is the soldiers.

Without soldiers, what's the point of a mutiny? It's just courting death.

Standing up, Lin Dao walked towards Jia She, dagger in hand.

Jia She was so frightened that he was trembling like a leaf and couldn't hold his urine.

"Don't kill me!"

"I'll give you all my money~"

"All my women are yours~"

"My daughter, my concubines, my wife, my maids—they're all yours!"

Tears streamed down Jia She's face as he pleaded repeatedly.

Having lived a life of wealth and luxury, when faced with real difficulties, they simply cannot withstand them.

"General Jia has misunderstood."

With a flick of his dagger, the ropes binding Jia She snapped.

"I need your help to contact the righteous men who are resisting the tyrant, so why would I kill you?"

With a gentle smile, Lin Dao patted his shoulder, holding his breath. "General Jia, could you please pass on a message? I wish to cooperate with you all to deal with the tyrant."

Having finally regained his composure, Jia She became somewhat hesitant and submissive.

"This is a big deal, and not just anyone can get involved."

"I believe you, but they don't."

Such matters as mutiny and rebellion must be handled with utmost caution.

How could we possibly agree to let just anyone join us?

Lin Dao smiled even more broadly, "It's alright."

"General Jia can tell you all my true identity."

"Huh?" Jia She was stunned. "What's your identity?"

"I travel the world."

Lin Dao's smile widened. "His nickname is the Dragon of Hunhu Lake, Wei Xiaobao!"

After a moment of silence, Jia She looked as if he had seen a ghost.

"You're the notorious traitor Wei Xiaobao?!"

No wonder~ No wonder~

"So that's why you're so capable."

"If that's the case, then they will definitely agree."

The imperial court appointed Wei Xiaobao, the number one rebel, to join them, and the nobles who were plotting a coup were naturally willing to do so.

Lin Dao asked curiously, "How could you, with such a timid nature, dare to do something like this?"

Upon hearing this, Jia She immediately showed a look of indignation.

"Back in my day~"

When he was young, he associated with the Prince of Loyalty and Righteousness.

After all, almost all the nobles at the time believed that he would inherit the throne, and their sons and daughters naturally flocked to him to curry favor.

But who would have thought that the loyal and righteous Prince Qian Sui would ruin everything?

That incident affected many families, including the Jia family.

It was only after the Jia family handed over the governor of the Beijing Garrison and the Beijing Garrison, which they had controlled for generations, that they were able to escape.

Correspondingly, the future of Jia She and others also vanished into thin air.

For so many years, he could only be a good-for-nothing who idled away his days.

How could I possibly swallow this resentment?

Those nobles who participated in the plot back then and were retaliated against are now the main force behind the conspiracy.

Jia She was not a key figure, and others did not trust him.

So he only got the job of raising funds for the military.

Lin Dao suddenly realized, "So that's how it is."

He used the dagger in his hand to lift up one of Jia She's hands.

He explained to them, amidst their puzzled gaze.

"You have to give an explanation for what you did to Miss Xue."

"Don't be afraid, the pain will subside in a while. I've prepared the best medicine for you."

The next moment, Jia She's shrill screams, like those of a pig being slaughtered, echoed from inside this secluded safe house.

"My hand~~~"

(End of this chapter)