Water Margin: Did we kill Zheng Tu today?

Zheng Tu and Wu Yueniang took their seats in the back hall, with maids serving them fragrant tea and snacks.

Wu Yueniang remained as dignified and elegant as ever, dressed in a simple and elegant moon-white ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), her shapely and slender legs pressed tightly together without leaving a single gap.

With her slender back straight, like a pine or bamboo, she sat gracefully in a rosewood armchair, truly embodying the image of a proper matriarch.

This Wu Yueniang was the daughter of Wu Qianhu, the Left Guard of Qinghe County, and was only twenty-five or twenty-six years old. Because she was born on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth of August, her nickname was Yuejie. After she married into the Ximen family, everyone called her Yueniang.

She was virtuous and capable by nature. On the surface, she was completely obedient to her husband, but as the mistress of the house, she was very opinionated and managed all the household affairs of the Ximen family in an orderly and meticulous manner.

Ximen Qing spent his days indulging in debauchery, drinking and making merry with his cronies, and frequenting brothels, yet the Ximen family's business only grew bigger and bigger.

While Ximen Qing's cunning and ruthless methods, which allowed him to operate in both the legal and illegal worlds, were crucial, they were also inseparable from the methodical management of Wu Yueniang, the matriarch of the household.

Whether it was money accounts or household affairs, everything was handled perfectly.

Wu Yueniang took a sip of tea with her full, red lips, her phoenix eyes silently taking in Zheng Tu's appearance and demeanor.

"Of all the 'brothers' my husband used to associate with, not one of them has a conscience or any ability. Those like Earl Ying and Xie Xida are nothing but idle, good-for-nothing ghosts who come to harass us every day. My husband says that we've become sworn brothers so we can rely on each other, but I'm afraid we'll still have to rely on ourselves more often in the future. If we were to rely on them, it would be like putting a puppet on a stage—it would be missing a breath."

But this man in front of me... is quite rare.

What do you think of Zheng Tu's appearance?

He was robust and strong, with sharp eyes. He sat with a steady and upright posture, and spoke neither servile nor arrogant, showing none of the glib and obsequious manner of people like Ying Bojue.

"He looks like a strong, capable man, not the cunning type. He's a reliable and honest fellow. I wonder where my husband met him..."

Wu Yueniang blinked her beautiful eyes, put down her teacup, and said gently, "So it's Uncle Zheng in person. My husband drank too much today and is now drunk and lying in his room. I'm afraid he can't come out to have tea with you, Uncle. Please forgive any inconvenience."

The magnificent scene Zheng Tu had just witnessed in the Buddhist hall was still vivid in his mind. Now, seeing it alongside the dignified woman before him, who was observing the proper etiquette and manners of a mistress, truly calmed him down.

I feel like I have a vague affinity for Prime Minister Cao.

Cursing himself inwardly, Zheng Tu subtly averted his gaze and smiled, "Sister-in-law, what are you saying? Brother Ximen and I hit it off immediately, how could I blame him? It's just that I'm bothering you, shamelessly asking for a cup of hot tea from you."

Wu Yueniang smiled slightly and nodded, feeling even more favorably disposed towards Zheng Tu: This man looks honest and kind, but he knows how to speak, and he is neither humble nor arrogant.

Just as I was about to say something more, I suddenly heard hurried and flustered footsteps coming from outside the hall!

Immediately afterward, the servant Dai'an stumbled in, his face deathly pale, sweat pouring down his forehead. He knelt down with a thud, his voice trembling: "Auntie! Something terrible has happened! The herbal medicine shop on South Street... has been surrounded!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Yueniang's heart tightened, and her brows furrowed slightly, but she still kept her voice steady and asked in a deep voice, "What's the panic? What did that herbal medicine shop do? Why is it surrounded? Tell me slowly."

Dai'an, panting heavily, replied, "It's...it's that gang of hooligans from the county! The leader is called 'Street Rat' Zhang Laizi. He led about ten scoundrels and blocked the shop entrance, insisting that our herbal medicine shop sells fake medicine and is harming people's lives!"

Without a word, they chased away the customers and overturned the counter! They even smashed a lot of medicinal herbs! The shopkeeper, Old Zhang, tried to stop them, but they pushed and shoved him, knocking him against a pillar, and his forehead was bleeding! The neighbors couldn't stop them; they all said it was their business, and sent someone to report this, hoping that the magistrate would send someone to manage the situation!

Upon hearing this, Wu Yueniang frowned even more deeply, inwardly cursing her bad luck.

She was always in charge of the household, managing only money and accounts, and domestic affairs. Dealing with scoundrels and bribing officials was always handled by Ximen Qing himself.

But now Ximen Qing is drunk and unconscious, and most of the guards in the manor have been sent to the estate outside the city to escort grain, so there is no one available for the time being!

The herbal medicine shop on South Street is one of the Ximen family's businesses. If those hooligans really cause a big fuss, losing money is secondary; the more important thing is that their reputation will be ruined!

She hesitated for a moment, then said to Dai'an, "Go down first and tell the neighbors that the Ximen family knows about this and will send someone to handle it immediately. Tell them not to panic and not to go forward, lest they get hurt."

Dai'an replied "Yes," got up, and hurried off again.

Wu Yueniang then turned to Zheng Tu, her pretty face showing an apologetic expression, and said softly, "Uncle Zheng, I'm really sorry. Something unexpected has happened at the manor, and I have to go and deal with it. I'm afraid I won't be able to properly entertain you today."

Although she didn't show it on her face, her delicate hand holding the handkerchief unconsciously tightened a little.

Wu Yueniang was, after all, just a woman. Even though she was shrewd and capable in managing the household affairs, she couldn't help but feel flustered when faced with such a sudden disaster.

At this moment, her priority was to stabilize the situation. As for how to handle the situation, she would wait until Ximen Qing was sobered up with the hangover soup before leaving it to him to deal with.

As for the time wasted, the money lost, and the reputation damaged, we can only let it go and not worry about it.

As for reporting it to the authorities, the thought only flashed through my mind before I decisively dismissed it.

That Zhang Laizi was just a street thug. If he didn't have any backing, how dare he lead a group to surround the Ximen family's shop? There must be someone behind this.

These kinds of everyday matters can only be resolved with everyday methods.

Just as he was pondering this, Zheng Tu stood up and said, "Sister-in-law, I just overheard that servant saying that some hooligans are causing trouble. Brother Ximen is drunk, and there's no one to help in the mansion. If you don't mind, I'd like to go and see what's going on."

Wu Yueniang was taken aback. She looked up at Zheng Tu, a hint of gratitude flashing in her beautiful phoenix eyes, but she shook her head and said, "How could I trouble Uncle Zheng? Those scoundrels are all habitually fierce. Uncle Zheng is a guest; if anything were to happen to him, how could I explain it to my husband?"

Her refusal was genuine.

Although grateful to Zheng Tu for stepping forward at this moment, he did not really think that this "Uncle Zheng" could solve any problems.

Although he looked strong and burly, those troublemakers were far from being weak. They were all street thugs who had been in and out of the county jail several times.

Even if Zheng Tu had some strength, could he possibly fight ten men at once, let alone defeat that group of ten or so ruffians? Even if he managed to win, he would probably suffer serious injuries and damage his body!