nownovels Chapter 35 Mission
Chapter 35 Mission
It was the golden autumn season, the sun was shining brightly, but the mornings were already a bit chilly.
At breakfast that day, Meng Chen was seated with Cui Butong on his left and Qi Yun on his right.
"I think I've figured it out. You need to try to break through every nine or ten days." Qi Yun had already summarized his experience.
"Senior brother, do you have any tips?" Cui Butong took out a piece of beef from his pocket, gave half to Meng Chen, but not to Qi Yun.
Cui's family were tailors; their family wasn't particularly well-off, but they weren't poor either, and they could afford to cook for each other from time to time.
Cui's talent was outstanding among the apprentices, and he passed the first test in just half a month, which earned him high praise from Master Du.
Meng Chen accepted the beef without hesitation and casually said, "It's nothing more than being diligent, hardworking, and daring to think and act."
"It's been over two months since I broke through the first barrier, but I still see no hope," Qi Yun sighed, then looked at Cui Butong and asked, "Young Master Cui, how are you?"
Qi Yun had always disliked Cui Butong's obsequiousness, but he only ever smiled in front of her and was very friendly in his daily conversations.
"I'm not sure yet, let me prepare for a few more days." Although Cui Butong said this, there was clearly some confidence on his face.
"It's better to be careful," Qi Yun suddenly whispered. "I heard that Senior Brother Gao tried to pass the third level at the Zhengxin Boxing Gym yesterday, but failed. He got a bit angry and broke the leg of the servant who brought him food last night."
Meng Chen knew that Qi Yun was reminding him to be careful and not to run into Gao Yuan.
The two exchanged a knowing glance and then went back to eating.
After breakfast, there were unexpected guests again.
"It was Madam Di who sent a maid to find you."
Du Ren put his hand on Meng Chen's shoulder and whispered, "According to the rules, since she has decided to sponsor you, she should give you money and goods every month. It's been almost a month now, and I reckon it's time to give you the money."
Meng Chen didn't have a single copper coin on him and had been wanting to get some money to spend for a while.
Of course, money isn't important.
Moreover, now that Yangyu will regain its brightness, Meng Chen wants to go out for a walk. Otherwise, if he stays cooped up in the martial arts school, he won't even know what Gao Yuan has done, let alone eliminate any potential threats.
"When you get there, call her 'sister-in-law,' and say lots of sweet things!" Du Ren said with the air of an experienced man. "You know how to charm a woman! I don't need to teach you that, do I?"
Meng Chen patted his chest and said, "I understand!"
Seeing Meng Chen's confidence, Du Ren thought to himself, "Is this kid going to eat someone's widow?"
"Remember this: we only want money, don't seduce her! She's a member of the Yan family. It's fine if we make a few bucks, but if you cheat on her, the Yan family will tear you apart for the sake of their reputation!" Du Ren solemnly warned.
"What are you talking about?" Meng Chen said seriously, "Senior brother, I only like young and beautiful women. Di Shi is young, but not beautiful enough."
"..." Du Ren smacked his lips and said irritably, "You've really picked a route! Go to the back door, there are people watching the front door."
Meng Chen obediently went out from the backyard and saw that Di's maid was waiting for him, but the maid seemed unhappy, and he didn't know why.
"What brings you to me, Madam?" Meng Chen asked tentatively.
The maid simply shook her head and said, "Young master will know when he goes."
Meng Chen didn't ask any more questions and went with the maid to the Di family's residence.
Upon entering the main hall, not only was Madam Di present, but also a man.
The man looked to be about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, dressed as a scholar, but his face was bruised and swollen, clearly indicating that he had been beaten.
"Sister-in-law, this is..." Meng Chen knew that receiving this money today would probably not be pleasant.
"Alas." Madam Di sighed and then explained the reason.
It turns out that before her marriage, Ms. Di had considerable property, including land outside the city, shares in three shops inside the city, and a cloth shop.
Ever since Di got married, these businesses have been managed by the man who got beaten up.
This person's surname was Xiyuan, and his given name was Lin. He was a distant cousin of the Di family.
However, recently, the rent from the land outside the city has not been collected, the three shops have not paid interest, and the cloth shop has been disturbed by idlers and hooligans every day, making it impossible to continue doing business.
Xiyuanlin was beaten up by idle hooligans at the cloth shop yesterday.
"When my late husband was alive, he never suffered such injustice." As she spoke, Madam Di began to cry.
Meng Chen felt this was a bit outrageous. "Your sister-in-law is in trouble, and this is a disgrace to the Yan family. Why not ask the Yan family for help? Isn't Yan Long's wife, Madam Sun, here? I heard she brought quite a few skilled men. Besides, Clerk Gao was promoted by Yan Long. If Clerk Gao says something, who would dare to criticize your cloth shop again?"
Madam Di shook her head and said, "My sister-in-law is not close to me and even dislikes me. I went to Laolongtan to find her myself, but she refused to see me and wouldn't let me see my father-in-law. I asked my late father and husband's old friends and relatives, but they were all unwilling to help."
Upon hearing this, Meng Chen suspected that Yan Long's wife was behind it all. Otherwise, the Yan family hadn't fallen yet; who would dare to harass a widow?
But why? Meng Chen couldn't understand these things between the sisters-in-law either, but since Di was weak, it was probably Yan Long's wife who was stirring up trouble.
"I went to see your eldest brother, but he couldn't do anything either. He just told me to wait for my uncle to come back," Madam Di added.
"That's wise advice," Meng Chen immediately agreed with Li Xiangsheng's suggestion, saying, "No matter how petty Sun is, Yan Long would never stand by and watch someone bully his own brother's wife."
"But Yan Long hasn't come back yet!" west Yuanlin suddenly said.
Meng Chen had a bit of a headache. He couldn't sort out these family matters, and only asked, "Why did my sister-in-law summon me here? Is it to have me disperse those idle hooligans?"
"Those people are all tough nuts to crack. Even if we drive them away today, they'll come back tomorrow." Seeing that Madam Di was still crying, Xi Yuanlin went up and gently patted her back, then continued, "I'm a useless scholar, I can't help with anything. But Fangmei and I are really at our wits' end, and we can't find anyone to help us, so we thought of you. We wanted to trouble Brother Meng to investigate those idle scoundrels and ruffians to find out who they are. We don't ask to drive them away, we just want to know who is trying to harm us."
As he spoke, west Yuanlin took out a coin and presented it with both hands, saying, "Consider it payment for your tea, young brother."
Meng Chen wasn't the type to hate someone because of their family. Although Yan Hu was wicked, his wife was truly a kind and gentle person, even weak and easily bullied.
Besides, one is bound to be obligated to accept gifts. Meng Chen had already formed an alliance with the Di family by receiving their assistance last time. Now that they're offering gifts again, there's even less reason for him to refuse.
Since it wasn't going to be a fight or anything, Meng Chen accepted the money, which was about twenty taels.
"Brother Meng, you are a good person." Madam Di wiped away her tears. "My cousin and I only want the truth, we just want to know who harmed my family. Please be careful and don't get into any conflicts. If it really doesn't work out, don't force it. If you get hurt, I will have no way to atone for my sins before the Dao Ancestor."
After talking for a while, they saw Meng Chen off at the West Garden.
"Young brother, if you truly find out the truth, I will offer you a gift as a token of my gratitude," said west Yuanlin.
"That's such a decent person!" Meng Chen's enthusiasm grew even stronger, and he said, "Allow me to investigate for a few days."
Meng Chen made a plan: to take this opportunity to track down Gao Yuan's whereabouts and see if there was a chance to make a move.