From a tuberculosis patient to a martial arts master

Cao Wanhai stood in the corner, dumbfounded, and it took him a long time to recover.

What you hear and what you hear are two different things; only by seeing it for yourself can you truly understand its significance. Who is Second Master Jiang? The second-in-command of the Jiang family, a man of high status, yet he was humble and polite in front of Zhu Hong. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly:

It's ridiculous to compare yourself to others!

Both of them were government officials, but after only a few days, young Hong had already made the powerful clans bow down to him.

"Serve tea."

Zhu Hong did not reply directly, as if he had not heard.

Lin Ji agreed and soon brought over two bowls of tea. The tea was coarse, and the bowls were rough; it was not proper at all.

Jiang Cong picked up his teacup, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.

When did he ever drink coarse tea or rotten leaves?

When entertaining guests at the Jiang residence, the least they serve is dragon and phoenix dumplings, which are from the neighboring Jianzhou. The water is boiled in a silver pot, but the bowl in front of me is pitch black, with leaf stems floating around. If you didn't know better, you would think it was hot pot water.

"Second Master Jiang".

Zhu Hong raised his fingertips slightly and said calmly, "Please."

Jiang Cong suppressed his displeasure and took a sip.

The tea soup was coarse and astringent.

It smelled like firewood, and it made me nauseous.

But he was there to ask for a favor, not to enjoy tea. The slight awkwardness on his face vanished in an instant. He smiled, put down his teacup, and said, "Good tea."

Zhu Hong also picked up his teacup and slowly took a sip.

When I put it down, there was still more than half left at the bottom of the bowl.

He didn't speak, but leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the tea leaves floating in the bowl, as if those few coarse leaves held some profound knowledge.

The atmosphere became quiet for a moment.

Outside the barracks, the faint snorting of mules and horses could be heard.

Before long, Jiang Cong felt extremely uncomfortable. He had seen many situations, and he had never felt so awkward sitting opposite Zhang Bo. But this young man was neither warm nor cold, neither salty nor bland, and just kept him waiting. It was as if he had come to ask for an audience, and the man was only giving him a courtesy visit.

I can't take it anymore.

"Lord Zhu," Jiang Cong bowed slightly and spoke first, "Have you thought about what we just discussed?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Hong raised his eyes and glanced at him.

After a long silence, he said:

"Second Master Jiang," he said unhurriedly, "you just said that the box contained a thousand Yang Stones?"

Jiang Cong's eyes lit up, thinking things were starting to look good:

"Exactly."

"There are still 100,000 taels of silver outside the door?"

"right."

Zhu Hong nodded, placed his hands on the table, and said solemnly, "Then I will thank Madam Jiang for her kindness on behalf of the yamen."

"You're too kind, Lord Zhu."

Jiang Cong was overjoyed and quickly said, "Then..."

"Why not inspect the goods first?"

Zhu Hong interrupted him, stood up, walked to the ebony box, and bent down to gently open the lid.

The lid of the box was opened, and a gentle, warm breeze wafted out.

The orange-red yang stones in the box were neatly arranged. The slanting sunlight shone through the window, making them glow like amber, with a subtle shimmering light within them. Zhu Hong gently picked up a stone, weighed it in his palm, and nodded slightly.

After calmly weighing the dozens of coins.

They examined each one in detail.

Jiang Cong sat there, forcing a smile on his face, but he was already getting a little impatient.

How could anything given by the Jiang family be counterfeit or inferior?

"It's acceptable."

Zhu Hong gently closed the box lid, turned around and called out, "Lin Jizhi, Cao Wanhai."

"exist!"

Lin Jizhi and Cao Wanhai rushed over upon hearing the call.

"The silver outside the door, you two will check it one by one." Zhu Hong's eyes held a deep meaning as he glanced at Jiang Cong and slowly said, "By the way, don't make any mistakes in the calculation. If there's even the slightest discrepancy, you two will be held accountable!"

When he spoke the last words, he glanced at Jiang Cong.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Cong was both angry and annoyed; his face turned purplish-red, resembling the color of pig's liver.

"Alright!"

Lin Jizhi responded and pulled Cao Wanhai outside.

"You, all of you."

"I'm talking to you guys. Bring all the boxes down and put them away!" Lin Jizhi, having been given a critical order, did not disappoint. He rushed through the door and gave a series of instructions to the people Jiang Cong had brought.

The Jiang family members looked at each other, then turned to the steward.

The stewards dared not cause a scene. The Second Master hadn't spoken yet; negotiations were still ongoing. If they started a disturbance now, disrupting the important matter, they would only suffer the consequences. So they said:

"Move them all down."

Upon seeing this, Lin Jizhi's eyebrows furrowed, and he shouted, "Didn't you hear what your manager said! Are you still standing there, deaf or stupid?"

"Move it now!"

Cao Wanhai, carrying a silver chest, was dumbfounded. "Lin Monkey, you...you've learned quite a bit from that kid Hong, haven't you?"

"Hmph, that's right."

Lin Ji knew: "Cao Heizi, fortunes change, and you're out of touch."

"Get out of here!"

Cao Wanhai spat and slammed the silver box on the ground: "Hurry up and check the goods."

Suddenly, there was a great commotion outside the door.

One hundred and thirty silver chests gradually piled up into a small mountain in the open space in front of the barracks. Their gleaming silver light was dazzling in the afternoon sun, and several hangers-on counted them, occasionally calling out, "Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen..."

Jiang Cong listened to the sounds coming from the courtyard, his heart filled with mixed emotions:

"If I had known I would be humiliated like this, I would have just called some of the clan elders. Why did I bother coming here in person?"

now.

Jiang's dignity has been completely trampled upon.

He took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, straightened his posture, and was about to speak.

"Second Master Jiang".

Zhu Hong suddenly raised his hand, made a light tapping motion, and said calmly, "No rush, let's take it one sentence at a time." He tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest and smiled slightly.

"The silver hasn't been fully verified yet."

"Wouldn't it be better to discuss serious matters after everything has been properly checked and received?"

Jiang Cong's expression stiffened, but he forced a smile and said, "Lord Zhu is right, it was I who was impatient."

Zhu Hong nodded and said nothing more.

His gaze fell on the window, as if he were admiring the lively scene of boxes being moved outside.

Outside.

Lin Jizhi kept shouting, thoroughly enjoying himself. Cao Wanhai was initially uncomfortable, but as blood dissolves in water, he quickly followed Lin Jizhi's lead and started shouting as well.

Jiang Cong sat there, feeling like he had thorns growing under his buttocks.

Sitting is awkward, standing is awkward.

He picked up the bowl of coarse tea, took a sip, and found the tea to be cold and bitter. He frowned and put the bowl down.

"Why is time moving so slowly?"

I don't know how much time passed.

It might take the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, or it might take longer.

The curtain was lifted, and Lin Jizhi strode in, a little sweat on his forehead, but a smile on his face.

"Lord Zhu, the investigation is complete."

He stood in the center of the classroom and announced loudly, "One hundred thousand taels, not a single tael missing, the silver ingots are of pure quality and the weight is also correct."

Zhu Hong nodded slightly and looked up at Jiang Cong.

"Second Master Jiang".

His tone remained calm, revealing no emotion. "Apologizing to the government is no problem."

Jiang Cong felt somewhat relieved and cupped his hands in greeting, saying:

"How dare the Jiang family use inferior goods as superior ones? That would be a great disrespect to the government."

Zhu Hong's lips curled slightly, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"Then, I'll have to trouble the Jiang family."

Jiang Cong heard this and his tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

Although the words were polite, he had at least accepted the gift. He picked up the bowl of coarse tea, took another sip, and the astringent taste melted on his tongue, making it not so difficult to swallow.

He put down his teacup and cleared his throat.

Jiang Cong was about to continue the conversation when he said, "Lord Zhu, you flatter me. Jiang..." He had only just begun to speak.

"As for Young Master Jiang Feng..."

Zhu Hong leaned back in his chair and suddenly took over the conversation, "We can't release the person yet."