Grass and mustard reign supreme

Chapter 65 Mountain Lord Passes By (Thanks to Alliance Leader Sanzenin Saito-chan)
Today, the Yang Mansion in Feng'an Fort finally feels like home.

That evening, Chef Zhu, in high spirits, prepared a sumptuous feast.

The new cook has just arrived and isn't officially in charge yet, so he's the one who cooks the communal meals.

Today he also generously added a lot of meat, making it very oily.

Of course, Master Jingyao's dishes were prepared separately.

The dishes were vegetarian, the oil was vegetable oil, and even the pot was washed several times by Chef Zhu.

Chef Zhu is a Buddhist. Ever since he witnessed the young monk's demeanor, Chef Zhu felt that this young monk must be a Bodhisattva reincarnated, and he could not be neglected.

Yang Can, Qingmei, Li the accountant, Leopard Head, Kang Zhengyang, and others were drinking in the small hall.

These people are his core team now.

“Mr. Li, please draft a ‘notice’ tomorrow. This estate owner is summoning the owners and ranchers of Wutian Estate and San Ranch to come to Feng’an Estate for an audience on the Dragon Boat Festival in May.”

Yang Can paused for a moment, then said, "It's a holiday, so let's all get together."

In addition, they were each instructed to bring two copies of the document.

A petition was submitted, demanding an investigation into the wrongdoings of the farms and ranches under its jurisdiction, the recovery of embezzled funds, and the handover of hidden fields and households.

A petition was issued, outlining the affairs of the farms and ranches under its jurisdiction and forecasting the autumn harvest.

Whether to let bygones be bygones or to make their crimes even more serious is up to them to decide.

Li Damu understood immediately and readily agreed.

During this time, Yang Can also went out to formally meet with all the servants of the household.

Halfway through the banquet, Xiao Qingmei took her leave, as she didn't drink alcohol.

After the celebratory banquet for the "opening" ended, Yang Can saw everyone off and then headed towards the back of the house.

The banquet was to be held in the front house, since most of the guests were male. Even if the back house was empty, it was not appropriate to go there.

Yang Can slowed his pace and walked quietly through the back courtyard.

This will be his home from now on, and that will feel especially different.

Every blade of grass, every tree, every tile, and every pillar evokes a sense of familiarity.

Suddenly, a figure flashed through the bushes ahead, and Yang Can immediately became alert.

He immediately gave chase.

The figure turned and twisted before finally stopping at a small pavilion by a pond.

Zhang Yunyi's residence was designed like a garden in Jiangnan, with multiple gates and doors, making it easy to get lost.

This is precisely what aroused Yang Can's suspicion.

He had walked through the entire place with Zhang Yunyi that day, and that's how he remembered most of it.

But why does the figure in front seem so familiar with this place?

A thought quietly surfaced in Yang Can's mind: Zhang Yunxu is unwilling to give up and has sent someone to infiltrate, intending to harm me?
Yang Can was unaware that no matter how complex the buildings here were, they could not escape the few architectural styles of grand mansions.

Therefore, anyone familiar with the architectural layout, even if it's their first time visiting, will not get lost.

Seeing that the person had stopped in the pavilion, Yang Can immediately slipped behind a clump of flowers and trees, and quietly approached.

At the same time, a cast iron plaque was already between his fingers.

Closer and closer, if we continue to get any closer, we'll be easily discovered.

Yang Can stopped and looked closely, his face filled with astonishment.

The person in the pavilion was none other than Jingyao, the young master.

What is Master Jingyao, who always looks so dignified and solemn during the day, doing?
Once Yang Can saw what was in her hand, he was speechless.

Collapsed!

The sacred and inviolable image of Little Master Jingyao in his heart collapsed.

Little Master Jingyao is eating. She is holding a pork hock in both hands and gnawing on it with her mouth full of oil.

Yang Can's lips twitched violently.

This is a young nun who doesn't follow the rules of monastic life!

Or perhaps... she wasn't a nun at all?

Dugu Jingyao held the perfectly cooked and fragrant pork hock, eating with great relish.

This Chef Zhu's cooking skills are really good, no worse than the chefs in my household.

It smells amazing! It smells so good!

Heaven have mercy, it's been so long since I've tasted meat since I escaped.

She fled in haste, without enough money, and couldn't afford to eat well.

Later, she was abducted and sold to human traffickers.

Luckily, she was clever and had a flash of inspiration, so she pretended to be a nun.

Believe it or not, most people in Longshang are Buddhists.

Even those who aren't so superstitious are all wealthy people; they wouldn't spend money to buy into a taboo.

When this girl is dressed up as a god or saint, she exudes a special aura and is indeed very convincing.

So, she was lucky enough to survive until today, when she was sold off by Manager Qian as a "money-losing commodity".

The fact that Master Yang didn't want to keep her made her feel at ease.

She was already on the run and had nowhere to go.

If this Master Yang harbored ill intentions towards her, she really would leave.

But since Yang Can had no intention of keeping her, she felt relieved and didn't want to leave.

Let's hide here for now, eat his food, drink his water, and find temporary shelter.

Today, the lord of Feng'an Fort is holding a grand banquet. The servants and maids who have just been bought all have a piece of meat in their bowls that is tender and delicious, with a good balance of fat and lean meat.

However, she had created such a successful image of a virtuous and eminent monk that Chef Zhu was extra careful when cooking for her.

There was absolutely no meat or fish in it, not even a drop of lard.

In the past, she would have tolerated it.

After all, it wasn't just her who wanted to eat but couldn't; the other slaves couldn't eat either.

But tonight everyone gets to eat meat except her, which is just too much to bear.

Dugu Jingyao stole a pork hock when no one was looking and ran to this quiet spot to enjoy it.

A gentle breeze stirred, the shadows of the trees swayed, and Yang Can vanished from his spot.

He didn't step forward to expose Master Jingyao's false mask.

All he knows now is that this woman is very likely not a nun, but... who exactly is she?

Was she truly a slave girl sold into the country, or a spy who infiltrated it?

Jumping out and directly questioning them will obviously not get you the real answer.

Yang Can had no intention of secretly observing her and patiently waiting for her to reveal her true colors...

His method was simple and direct: get rid of them as soon as possible! As he continued forward, Yang Can's steps gradually became heavier.

I've been in this era for three years now, and I've remained silent for three years!

Three years later, crisis and opportunity came together and came to him.

He is currently the second steward of the Yu family's main branch and the head of Feng'an Manor.
He is the master of these thousands of people, and the king of the surrounding area.

Anyone would feel a sense of accomplishment and fame.

During the dinner tonight, he even felt that although there were still potential crises that had not yet erupted, the current situation was not bad.

He even seemed to be enjoying it.

However, this discovery just now has suddenly tightened the tension in his heart that had begun to ease in recent days.

If this nun came prepared, then someone must be planning something against me, so I must be extra careful!
Alas, my life has truly been like walking on thin ice!
……

"Master, the new batch of 'mountain goods' from Master Shan will arrive in three days."

"Hehe, good, good, Yang Can's calamity has arrived!"

In Zhang Xiaomi's residence, Zhang Yunyi and Wan Tai, master and servant, were having a secret discussion.

Zhang Yunyi knew that Yang Can was using him as a pawn, but he had no regrets and cooperated fully.

He always took the lead in everything. With the new and old kings working together, it was naturally a piece of cake for them to implement something in Feng'an Village.

Meanwhile, the other villages that were observing the situation were also wondering what methods Yang Can had used to train Zhang Yunyi to be so obedient.

The less clear things are, the more complicated their thinking becomes, and the less courage they have to take action.

In this way, Yang Can's capture of Feng'an Village achieved the effect of "subduing the enemy without fighting" against the other five major villages.

Zhang Yunyi was also aware of this.

But he still fully cooperated with Yang Can.

It's simply because his "secret weapon" is an underhanded tactic.

He hoped to use "Master Shan" to kill Yang Can.

In order to maintain the current favorable situation, Zhang Yunyi will remain the owner of Feng'an Manor.

"Let's go in and talk."

As Zhang Yunyi spoke, he gestured for Wan Tai to follow him into the study.

Zhang Xiaomi's house is a large courtyard house with three sections.

The land in Longshang is vast, so this three-courtyard house was built to be extremely spacious and grand.

If it were placed in a place like Jiangnan where land is extremely valuable, it would have to be meticulously crafted within the limited space.

Therefore, the gardens of Jiangnan are adorned with flowers, and every step reveals a new scene.

The Longshang Manor, on the other hand, emphasizes its spaciousness.

No matter how spacious it is, it is still just a three-courtyard house.

The entire Zhang family has now moved in, but it still feels a bit cramped.

What did 'Mountain Master's' people say?

Once inside the study and seated, Zhang Yunyi immediately asked a question.

Butler Wan said, "'Master Shan's' men said that this batch of goods is exceptionally important compared to the past, so they hope that you, sir, will send someone to help them escort the last leg of the journey."

"Didn't you tell them that I'm no longer in charge of Feng'an Village?"

"Of course I said that, but... I didn't make it sound so serious. After all..."

Zhang Yunyi understood. If he made him seem worthless, then he would lose all his usefulness to Master Shan.

He will lose the "Mountain Master" business line in the future.

His biggest source of wealth wasn't even those hidden fields and households, but rather "trading mountain goods".

If the connection with "Master Shan" is severed, even if he becomes the owner of Feng'an Manor again, his strength will likely be greatly diminished.

Zhang Yunyi thought for a moment and said, "So, they think that I can still be of some help?"

Wan Tai said, "They just thought that the lord had just taken over the six major estates and temporarily appointed a steward to act as the estate lord in order to take stock of the acquired properties."

Zhang Yunyi chuckled: "Well, this misunderstanding is quite interesting!"

Wan Tai said, "Master, how do you think we should cooperate with Master Shan?"

Actually, as long as Yang Can doesn't find out, and the 'mountain goods' pass through smoothly, everything will be fine.

Zhang Yunyi thought for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "Tell them not to go through Feng'an Village."

The situation is unstable now, so we'll devise a route for them to bypass Feng'anzhuang.

"Yes!"

"Wait, you still don't understand what I mean."

"Please speak, sir."

"When the time comes, you must make sure that Yang Can's men discover their existence 'accidentally'."

"what?"

"Not only that, we also want to make the two sides fight each other..."

Wan Tai was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized: "Master means, we need to borrow Master Shan's knife..."

Zhang Yunyi's smile was chilling: "Go, make proper arrangements, and don't give yourself away."

As Wan Tai left, Zhang Yunyi picked up his teacup, still wearing that chilling smile.

After witnessing his uncles, sons, and nephews being smashed into mincemeat by stones he had personally selected, Zhang Yunyi had a "great enlightenment."

He suddenly realized that everything he had fought for and protected his entire life for was meaningless.

He didn't become a walking corpse, but rather degenerated into a wild beast.

He now lives only for himself.

Even he didn't know who that "Mountain Master" was.

But he knew that the mountain man's strength was unfathomable.

If Yang Can, in his ignorance and carelessness, offended such an important figure, then...

"Knock knock knock!"

There was a knock on the study door.

Zhang Yunyi frowned. Who would come so late?

He assumed it was Wan Tai returning, so he called out, "Come in."

"Grandpa!"

The newcomer bowed upon entering. Under the lamplight, her face was alluring and her figure captivating; she was none other than Chen Wan, the legal wife of Young Master Zhang.

PS: Starting tomorrow, updates will be from 8 am to 7 pm. Any interruptions will be purely accidental. Please remember to balance work and rest. Happy holidays!

(End of this chapter)