The beginning of the story of the Tang Dynasty's Imperial Son-in-Law: A rhinoceros comes knocki

Chapter 113 Princess Chang Le Makes a Move

Cheng Chumo's heart skipped a beat. One of these two things was a genuine investigation, and the other was blatant pressure.

Yuwen Ren was merely an eighth-rank county magistrate; how could he withstand such pressure? "Father, what are you trying to do—"

"Isn't he trying to please both sides?" Cheng Yaojin sneered. "Then I'll let him know that he can't afford to offend me, Cheng Yaojin."

He paused, picked up his teacup, and took another sip. "Go. I want to see Yuwen Ren's attitude before dark."

Cheng Chumo responded and was about to walk out.

Just then, the gatekeeper rushed in, looking hurried: "Your Excellency, two people have arrived outside the manor. One is Zhou Xia, the apprentice of Master Wang, and the other is the carriage driver—Chen Laosan from the palace. They say they have important business to discuss with you."

Cheng Yaojin's brow twitched slightly. Chen Laosan? Why is a member of the Thousand Bull Guard involved with Zhou Xia today? Did Princess Chang Le go to the manor?

"Let them in."

A moment later, Zhou Xia was led into the back garden.

He was covered in sweat, his clothes were stained with mud, and he was clutching a plain white envelope tightly in his hand, with a red paper pasted on the seal.

"Duke Cheng—Duke Cheng," Zhou Xia said breathlessly, bowing slightly. "This is what Lady Li asked me to give to Young Master Cheng. She said you'll understand once you see it."

Cheng Chumo took the envelope, tore it open, and pulled out the paper inside. His eyes lit up at the first glance.

"Father! Look!"

Cheng Yaojin took the paper and looked down at it. It was an adoption document issued by the Lantian County government.

The inscription reads: Wang Zhihuan, a native of Taiyuan, is a farm owner in Lantian Township. He took in three orphans of Liu the carpenter from Liuhe Village: Liu Dalang, Liu Tiedan, and Liu Xiaoman.

All the necessary paperwork is complete, all the required documents are in order, and the documents have been legally registered. The document bears the official seal of Lantian County. The date is five days ago.

Cheng Yaojin's fingers paused slightly.

He flipped the paper over and over twice to make sure the seal, signature, and date were all correct, then slowly raised his head.

"This was done by Lady Li?"

"Yes," Zhou Xia said. "Li Niangzi said that when she came to the farm and saw the three children, she thought of this matter."

She sent someone to the county government office to complete the paperwork, and the date was set a few days ago. She said—Young Master Cheng will understand once he sees it.

Cheng Yaojin remained silent for a moment. Then he folded the paper, put it back in the envelope, and handed it to Cheng Chumo.

A smile slowly crept onto his lips—no longer the cold smile from before, but a sly, playful one, like that of an old fox.

"Chu Mo, the two things I just mentioned don't need to be done."

""

Cheng Chumo was taken aback.

"This is enough." Cheng Yaojin patted the envelope on the table. "Go to Lantian now and find Zheng Tong. Have him take this to the county government office and give it to Yuwen Ren in person."

"This is a formality arranged by Master Wang, and it was completed a few days ago, but he hasn't had time to collect it from the county government yet. Please, Magistrate Yuwen, take a look."

He paused, then added, "Be polite. But let Yuwen Ren know who's behind this document."

Cheng Chumo took the envelope, turned around, and strode away.

Cheng Yaojin leaned back in his chair, picked up his teacup, and slowly took a sip. (Li Niangzi)

He silently repeated the name in his mind.

Five days ago, Princess Chang Le went to the farm and saw the three children. She went back and had the formalities completed.

It wasn't something they did after Wang Zhihuan got into trouble; it was done in advance. That thoughtfulness, that foresight, that composure.

Cheng Yaojin put down his teacup and gently shook his head.

He recalled that he had almost taken action against Yuwen Ren just now—to investigate his case, make threats, and force him to comply.

With his status as Duke Lu, crushing an eighth-rank county magistrate would be no more difficult than crushing an ant.

But now it's unnecessary. Because that piece of paper is more effective than his pressure.

After all, if it can be done openly and legitimately, who would bother to do something like using power to oppress others?

Wasn't Yuwen Ren trying to please both sides, neither offending the Cheng family nor trying to curry favor with those above him?

Now he doesn't even have a chance to curry favor.

With all the necessary procedures completed and in compliance with the law, the reason he gave for summoning Wang Zhihuan no longer exists.

He had no choice but to release them, and he released them sheepishly.

Cheng Yaojin looked up at the sky.

The sun was already setting in the west, and the autumn sunlight filtered through the leaves of the jujube tree, creating dappled patterns.

He suddenly remembered something: Princess Chang Le was at the farm at that moment.

He guessed right.

farm.

More than an hour ago, when the carriage came to a stop at the gate of the courtyard, Chang Le was still thinking about the three children.

The envelope she was clutching was the adoption document.

Before leaving home today, she had Chen Laosan bring it from the palace, intending to hand it over to Wang Zhihuan once they arrived at the farm.

She had been thinking about this for several days and had been looking for an opportunity to give it to him; today was the perfect day.

As always, Sizi was the first to jump off the car, holding a rattle-drum and running into the yard.

Chang Le followed behind, about to enter, when she suddenly realized something was wrong. The courtyard was too quiet.

There was no quacking of Tie Dan feeding the geese, no sound of Da Lang reciting his lessons, and not even Ah Huang came out to greet them.

Xiaoman came out of the kitchen with red eyes. When she saw Changle, her lips trembled and tears fell.

"Lady Li—the Manor Lord—the Manor Lord has been taken away by the county officials—"

Chang Le almost dropped the envelope in her hand.

She felt her heart suddenly drop, as if she had missed a step.

The hand contracted uncontrollably, leaving white lines between each finger.

"When did this happen?" Her voice was more steady than she had imagined, but only she knew that it was steady because she was desperately trying to suppress it.

"This morning—three bailiffs came, saying that the county magistrate had invited the manor lord for questioning."

Xiaoman wiped away her tears, "The Master of the Manor went with them and hasn't returned yet. Brother Banxia went to Chang'an to find Young Master Cheng, but—but there's still no news—"

Chang Le's heart sank to the bottom. The county government office. A summons.

Wang Langjun lived a quiet and law-abiding life in Lantian, practicing medicine and helping people, and never made enemies.

The only reason someone could be summoned by the county government is because of those three children.

She closed her eyes briefly; her palms were sweaty.

"Lady Li," Xiaoman was still crying, "Will the master be alright? Will he be locked up? Will he be beaten?"

""

Chang Le crouched down and took Xiao Man's hand. "No, it won't happen," she said, her voice a little softer than before, but still steady. "How long has Ban Xia been in Chang'an?"

"It's been almost two hours."

Chang Le stood up, about to ask something else, when the sound of donkey hooves came from outside the courtyard gate.

Zhou Xia tumbled off the donkey's back, covered in sweat. Seeing Chang Le, she paused, then exclaimed, "Lady Li? What brings you here?"

"Banxia," Chang Le didn't answer his question, but asked directly, "Have you found out why Master was summoned?"

Zhou Xia gritted her teeth: "I guess—it must be about the three children. Master took them in but didn't register it with the county government."

This is the law of the Tang Dynasty: adopting an orphan requires registration; otherwise—otherwise, it would be considered harboring a person illegally.

As expected. The weight on Chang Le's heart suddenly lifted at that moment. It wasn't anything else; it was just a matter of paperwork.

Her hands slowly loosened, and her knuckles, which had been clenched so tightly they had turned white, now relaxed one by one.

She could even feel her tense shoulders sinking, as if someone had pulled her back from the edge of a cliff.

"Madam Li, don't worry," Zhou Xia continued, "I've already gone to find Young Master Cheng, and Duke Cheng has sent someone to Lantian to plead for him."

"No need to wait any longer." Chang Le interrupted him, her voice lighter and her tone more composed than before.

She looked down at the envelope in her hand. It was plain white, with a red paper sticker on the seal. She had originally planned to give it to Wang Zhihuan today.

Before she came, she was thinking that when she arrived at the farm, she would give him the documents and remind him to pay attention to these things next time.

Unexpectedly, this trip came at just the right time.

"Banxia," she handed over the envelope, "take this and go to Chang'an now to find Young Master Cheng."

For example, the paperwork that Master Wang arranged for his three children was completed a few days ago, but he hasn't had time to go to the county government office to collect it yet.

Please ask him to take this document to the county government and bring your master back.

Zhou Xia took the envelope, her fingers trembling: "Madam Li, this is—"

"The adoption papers," Chang Le said. "I had someone go to the county government to get them done a few days ago. The paperwork is complete, and the date was a few days ago."

Zhou Xia was stunned. He looked at the thin envelope in his hand, then at Chang Le's calm face.

This Lady Li was usually quiet and didn't talk much, but she had already taken care of everything before her master's accident.

"Madam Li, when—when—"

"When I came to the farm and saw these three children, I thought of this incident."

Chang Le's tone had become calm at this point, "Young Master Wang took them in out of kindness, but kindness alone is not enough. All the necessary procedures must be followed."

"Why didn't you say so sooner?" Zhou Xia's voice was choked with emotion.

"I was going to give it to him today." Chang Le didn't seem to care about Zhou Xia's attitude; she knew it was just concern making her confused. She glanced at the envelope in her hand. "I didn't expect it to arrive in time."

Zhou Xia clenched the envelope, bowed deeply to Chang Le, and then ran out of the courtyard gate.

Chen Laosan's carriage was still waiting at the door.

Zhou Xia climbed onto the carriage, which kicked up a cloud of dust and disappeared at the end of the official road.

Chang Le stood at the courtyard gate, watching the carriage disappear into the distance.

Sizi appeared beside her at some point, tilted her little face up, and shook her rattle: "Big sister, where did our handsome brother go? When is he coming back?"

Chang Le looked down at her younger sister and reached out to ruffle the little tuft of hair on her head. "Soon," she said, her tone truly steady this time. "Guoguo will be back soon."

She turned and walked back into the courtyard, sitting down on the stone bench under the jujube tree. Xiaoman poured her a bowl of cool tea, which she picked up and drank.

The tea is this year's new tea, with a faint orchid fragrance, just like the one I had last time.

She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes for a while.

She still remembered the panic she felt just now.

The feeling of falling from a great height, the feeling of sweaty palms and a heart pounding like a drum—she had never felt anything like it before.

She opened her eyes and looked at the jujube tree, cats and dogs, and busy children in the yard.

She put down her teacup, a very faint smile appearing on her lips. She didn't even realize it herself.

Lantian County Government Office, Signing and Signing Room.

Yuwen Ren sat behind his desk, with Wang Zhihuan's files spread out in front of him.

He has read it several times and can recite every single word.

But he was still looking. Not at the content, but at the thought. Thinking about what to do next.

The Cheng family has already come.

Zheng Tong pleaded with him in person, but he neither agreed nor refused.

He left Wang Zhihuan waiting for most of the day, just to see if anyone else would come besides the Cheng family.

But so far, apart from Zheng Tong, no one else has come.

Could the Cheng family be Wang Zhihuan's biggest backer? If so, then he has nothing to fear.

Although the Cheng family is powerful, they have laws and regulations in their hands, so they can't do anything to him.

He could keep dragging it out until Wang Zhihuan admitted his mistake and until his superiors gave him instructions.

As he was thinking, he heard hurried footsteps outside the door. The sun was setting; it was already evening.

Wang Hu pushed open the door and came in, looking much more nervous than usual.

"Sir, someone has come outside."

"Who?"

"Cheng Chumo, the eldest son of the Duke of Lu's family, and County Magistrate Zheng have also come."

Yuwen Ren's fingers paused slightly. It wasn't just Zheng Tong; it was Cheng Yaojin's eldest son who had come in person.

He didn't panic. Cheng Chumo's arrival showed that the Cheng family valued this matter.

But what good is it if he takes it seriously? He has the law and the rules at his disposal, and the Cheng family can't do anything to him.

"Please let him in."

A moment later, Cheng Chumo strode into the signing room, followed closely by Zheng Tong.

Cheng Chumo was dressed in a close-fitting outfit with a jade pendant hanging from his waist. His overall demeanor clearly indicated that he was from a noble family.

But his face didn't show any arrogant arrogance; instead, it carried a polite smile.

"County Magistrate Yuwen." He cupped his hands in greeting.

Zheng Tong stood to the side and slightly behind Cheng Chumo, without sitting down.

A faint smile played on his lips, not a polite one, but the kind of smile one gives while watching a show.

His gaze lingered on Yuwen Ren's face for a moment before shifting away, as if what happened in the signing room had nothing to do with him.

Yuwen Ren withdrew his gaze, but his heart sank even further. Zheng Tong's silence was even more unsettling than his words.

"Young Master Cheng," Yuwen Ren also cupped his hands in greeting, "I didn't know Young Master Cheng had the honor of your presence. What brings you here?"

Cheng Chumo took the envelope from his pocket and placed it on the table. "County Magistrate Yuwen, this is the paperwork that Master Wang has prepared for the three children."

It was processed a few days ago, but I haven't had time to come to the county government office to pick it up yet.

He paused, then pushed the envelope forward. "Please have the county magistrate review it."

Yuwen Ren looked down at the envelope.

The envelope was plain white, with a red paper pasted on the seal; there was not a single word on the paper.

It looked ordinary, nothing special. But he didn't reach out to take it.

He was thinking, "The paperwork was completed a few days ago? How is that possible?"

His men kept watch on the farm for five whole days.

Wang Hu reported back daily, and he knew Wang Zhihuan's itinerary perfectly—farming, gathering herbs, teaching, repairing chicken coops, never stepping into the county government office.

He couldn't possibly go through the formalities.

Where did this document come from?

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