sovbooks Chapter 22, Good brother, you're really something!
Chapter 22, Good brother, you're really something!
What happened last night was terrifying, but also incredibly surprising.
It has to be said that this potent medicine is truly effective. Cao Wenda is so excited that his hands are trembling. If he could monopolize such a cure-all medicine, how much money would that cost? How much merit would he have to make?
He was leaning against Lin Zhou's shop, the table laden with the finest food.
"Quickly, Brother Lin, try this. It's a carp-shaped quilt noodle dish. Eat the meat first, then the whiskers. It's a taste of a thousand years, the authentic Bianjing style."
"This is going too far, a year of great disaster."
After he finished speaking, he felt like he had touched on something, but he couldn't remember what it was...
"The medicine from yesterday was incredibly effective; its reputation as a potent and deadly drug is well-deserved. This formula..." Cao Wenda's expression changed drastically. He took a deep breath and personally poured Lin Zhou a full glass of wine: "Could you give it to your brother? I promise you won't suffer any loss."
"Oh, Brother Cao. How should I put it? There are ancestral precepts in my family. This recipe is the foundation of our family's livelihood for generations. Don't worry, brother, I will make the medicine exclusively for you. As long as I live, this recipe will not be lost. I'm not joking with you. I didn't even tell my uncle the truth. He asked me if I had the family recipe. I said it was passed down to my brother, but I don't have any brother."
Upon hearing Lin Zhou mention Si Hou, Cao Wenda's eyes darted around, but he didn't say anything more. Instead, he turned around and pointed to a girl who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old next to him: "I'll give this maid to Brother Lin. It's not right for you not to have someone to warm your bed."
"Oh no! No, no, no!" Lin Zhou quickly waved his hands, saying, "How can this be!"
He really didn't dare to take it. Putting aside the risk of being monitored, he was a hot-blooded young man. If it started with warming his bed or something, wouldn't that be forcing him to commit a crime?
"If you refuse, you'll be disrespecting your brother!" Old Cao said, then began to use moral blackmail: "This maid was carefully chosen for you by your brother, costing a full one hundred taels of silver, and she's a virgin. If you don't want her, I'll have someone put her in a sack and sink her into West Lake."
"Fuck your mother..." Lin Zhou cursed inwardly, narrowing his eyes as he glanced at Cao Wenda. He had no doubt that this bastard was capable of doing such a thing to establish his authority, and this woman was most likely a spy he had planted.
Either her family is under control, or Lao Cao has some leverage over her; whatever the reason, Lin Zhou is currently going through the "treating guests" phase, which involves either hosting a banquet, beheading, or taking in servants.
"Do you have any plans after noon, brother?"
"I'm planning to go check out the southern part of the city."
Old Cao nodded: "We should check it out, see how effective the medicine is, and whether it has caused a relapse. Remember, don't wear that Taoist robe of yours anymore, or something bad will happen. Alright, brother, I have important business to attend to. I came today to prepare a few dishes for you and then send this maid over. I'll be relying on you a lot in the future, hahaha... I'm off."
He left after he finished speaking, leaving Lin Zhou and the young woman alone in the room, staring at each other.
In this chilly season, the young woman was wearing only a light gauze long gown with a bodice underneath. The bodice was even thinner than the disposable blue underwear Lin Zhou wore at the bathhouse. She stood there shivering and trembling.
"No..." Lin Zhou looked at her with a wry smile, "What exactly did he want from sending you here?"
"Sir, these are the rules..."
Lin Zhou sighed and took his thick cotton coat and draped it over her: "Sit down and have a drink with me? It would be a waste not to eat."
The young girl didn't say "no," and Lin Zhou sat down after speaking: "Thank you for your kindness, sir."
She instinctively tightened her clothes, lowered her head and stared at the table, neither touching her chopsticks nor speaking. Lin Zhou hesitated several times, because this girl looked to be no more than fifteen or sixteen, maybe even younger. For a die-hard fan of adult films like *Lady's Tale*, such a greenhorn was simply not interesting.
"What's your name?"
"Sakura Song".
"Eagle Bro? Holy crap, that's a pretty badass name... A bald eagle, huh?"
"Green-headed Cherry Blossom..."
Lin Zhou hummed in agreement and scratched his chin: "What kind of eagle is a green-headed eagle? An owl, you know?"
"It's not a cat head, it's not a cat head, it's a flower head..."
"Flower head..."
Lin Zhou pictured an owl dyed in a trendy, youthful style, which puzzled him, but he showed respect...
"You go upstairs to sleep later, okay? I'm going to the south of the city."
"I will obey your orders, sir."
"Let's eat..."
Yingge felt that this new master was a bit strange, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. In particular, when she saw him clean up his own dishes after finishing his meal, she was equally puzzled, but she still showed him considerable respect...
After getting rid of Brother Ying, Lin Zhou strolled towards the south of the city with his hands behind his back. He didn't think it was a bad thing to have a girl by his side, especially a pretty one. What young man doesn't have a little vanity? Having a girl in a bellyband by his side would make him look good at gatherings or something.
To be honest, if Lin Zhou hadn't been shocked by the scene in Nancheng yesterday, and if he hadn't deeply abhorred these endless cannibalistic methods, he would most likely have surrendered, succumbing to the sugar-coated bullets of feudalism.
This life is too good... I'm provided with good food and drink, and I even have a beautiful woman who is obedient to me to play with. I don't have to experience the hardships of the working class or think about the emotional journey of a broken country. It's pure fun!
But that thought vanished the moment he stepped into the southern city. Although he had arrived at night, some people still recognized him.
He kowtowed repeatedly along the way, tears streaming down his face, calling him benefactor, savior, little deity, savior from suffering... all sorts of titles, familiar and unfamiliar, were thrown at him.
Human hearts are made of flesh and blood. In a place where the perceived temperature is less than five degrees Celsius, seeing a child under ten years old, barefoot and wearing only a thin shirt, kowtowing to him with gratitude and profuse thanks, all just so that he can continue to live such a difficult life.
The shock was so intense that he felt inexplicably frustrated. When he got back, he was determined to tell Director Zhao and the others everything that had happened here, to see if he could mobilize more resources. If not, he would have to treat them like comfort dogs. What he had seen and heard here had truly caused him to have an emotional breakdown.
Arriving at the Xu Family Ancestral Hall in the south of the city, several large pots were set up, with boiling water inside. Several roguish men were adding water to the pots, while a few others were dismantling a house, throwing the dismantled firewood into the stove.
Xu Shang stood there with his hands on his hips, his back to Lin Zhou, staring blankly at the demolished house.
"Hey, isn't this Brother Xu? What are you doing showing off in broad daylight?" Lin Zhou took a deep breath and walked forward with a smile: "I heard you really demolished the ancestral hall?"
Xu Shang glanced at him sideways and pointed to the house that was being demolished: "That's my family's old house."
"Awesome..." Lin Zhou was immediately filled with respect. No wonder this guy could be the head of the underworld in Lin'an City; he really knew how to handle things...
"Thank you very much, brother. I will remember your kindness." Xu Shang bowed to Lin Zhou and said, "If you ever need my help in the future, just let me know."
Lin Zhou opened his mouth but couldn't say anything coherent. He just stood with Xu Shang, hands on his hips, watching the old house being demolished bit by bit.
"How's the situation?" Lin Zhou suddenly asked. "Nothing went wrong, right?"
"It's a miracle drug. From yesterday until now, no one has died from the disease, and those who were seriously ill are gradually recovering. If it weren't for you, they..." Xu Shang smiled, but his smile was full of bitterness, a kind of embarrassment that he didn't know how to express.
Lin Zhou looked around and quietly pulled out two fist-sized bottles from his pocket: "This is enough for about five hundred to eight hundred people. The amount used per use is about the size of an ear pick. Dilute it with water, and halve the amount for children. Don't let anyone find out."
Xu Shang quickly shoved the two porcelain bottles into his arms. The two men looked like secret agents making a rendezvous. He gave Lin Zhou a deep look, pursed his lips, and nodded solemnly.
"Alright, I should go report now." After saying that, Lin Zhou suddenly changed the subject: "Could you deliver a letter to your cousin for me?"
"What is it?"
"Tell me that Cao Wenda has arranged for me to meet a young woman. I don't know what to do. I'll ask him if he has any ideas."
Xu Shang's eyes turned cold, and he made a beheading gesture. Lin Zhou immediately grabbed his hand: "Hey~~~ it's not worth it, it's not worth it. She's just a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl in the prime of her life, she didn't do anything... why would you kill her?"
"Brother, don't blame me for being talkative, but keep your head down, or you might end up in serious trouble."
"I understand, thank you, Brother Xu."
After returning from Nancheng, Lin Zhou went to see Cao Wenda again and talked about the effects of the medicine.
"In that case, Brother Lin, you'll probably be quite busy. The Ministry of Revenue reported the epidemic to the court today, and disaster relief will likely begin within three to five days. If it succeeds, the Emperor will reward those who have contributed, and you'll probably receive a share as well."
"Thank you so much for taking care of me, brother."
"Hahaha, no problem, no problem, everything is fine. So, little sister, is little brother satisfied?"
"Great, these are fragrant and soft little cakes. The name is a bit too imposing though, Eagle Bro, it's kind of cool."
"Huh? Sakura, where's the domineering aura?"
"Well...maybe...I think it's pretty domineering."
Cao Wenda found the young man in front of him strange, so he asked, "I also have a girl here named Yingchun, would you like her?"
"Hey! Bro, you can't yell like that!"