Lu Zhongfu was silent for a long time this time, seeming to be immersed in memories of the past.
Xiao Zimu didn't rush him, he just sat on the chair and waited for him to speak again.
After a long time, Lu Zhongfu waved to the groom.
The groom came over, and Lu Zhongfu pulled him to kneel down and said to Xiao Zimu, "This is the villain's son, his name is Lu Xuchang."
After Lu Zhongfu made the introduction, Lu Xuchang kowtowed to Xiao Zimu and said, "Master Zheng is a good official. He treats villains very well, and he is even more helpful in saving lives. The villain cannot watch him go to jail, so he I beg my father to tell His Highness the truth."
"A good official? His greedy money is enough to confiscate his house and wipe out his family, you know?" Xiao Zimu chuckled, with a hint of sarcasm in his laughter.
"Your Highness, who among the officials today dares to pat his chest and say that he has never received any gifts?" Lu Xuchang asked Xiao Zimu seriously.
Xiao Zimu was so speechless that he didn't know how to answer.
"Your Highness, Mr. Zheng has never done anything else besides amassing money. If he is really violating the law, does Mr. Xue still need to do these tricks behind his back?" Lu Xuchang looked directly at Xiao Zimu with clear eyes.
"How did he save your life?" Xiao Zimu agreed with his statement, but asked him another question.
"I had chickenpox five years ago, and everyone avoided me like the plague.
My father asked Mr. Zheng to give me some silver to buy medicine for me. After learning about it, Mr. Zheng personally took my father to the mansion to get the medicine, and also took me to the mansion for rest.
During the time when the villain was in coma due to chickenpox, Master Zheng stayed with the villain.
He also coaxed the villain to say that chickenpox was nothing to be afraid of. He had had it once when he was a child, so he knew how to cure the chickenpox, as long as the villain took the medicine obediently.
If it weren't for Mr. Zheng, the villain wouldn't have survived that year and would have died long ago. "Lu Xuchang looked grateful.
"Then how do I treat you well?" Xiao Zimu's face showed a hint of emotion.
“Lord Zheng has never treated villains as subordinates.
The villain would occasionally go into the house with his father, and if he bumped into him, he would always reward him with some of his son's delicious and fun things.
He also encouraged the young man to study hard and not to let his father down.
Your Highness, how can a villain allow such a gentle man to suffer unjust injustice
Mr. Zheng loves money, which is because he has suffered too much in the past.
Mr. Zheng married many wives and concubines because when he was down and out, he couldn't even find a matchmaker who came to propose marriage.
However, he never preyed on the people.
It was because Mr. Xue ordered him to increase taxes and money for the first time and was decisively rejected by Mr. Zheng that they did these tricks behind Mr. Zheng's back. "The expression on Lu Xuchang's face was a little complicated.
That is to say, he was wronged for Zheng Zhongguang, and he was also unfair to him.
The boy was only fourteen or fifteen years old, and his face still looked immature, but his words were so mature that it made people feel distressed.
"How do you know this?" Xiao Zimu knew that Zheng Zhongguang had not been accepted by the Ju family and could not even enter the family tree.
But, isn’t there still the Zheng family
How come there is such a past.
"At that time, the villain had just recovered from chickenpox. After recovering from the serious illness, he was very attached to Mr. Zheng. He often drank alone, and the villain would help him pour wine. Perhaps because the villain was young, he had no scruples and would follow him after he got drunk. The villain talked about a lot of things from the past. The adults forgot when they woke up, but the villain remembered it." Lu Xuchang had a layer of distress on his face.
I am afraid that Zheng Zhongguang himself did not expect that he could save a child casually back then, but now he is desperately trying to save himself.
He learned that Lu Xuchang had chickenpox in his mansion. He recalled the time when he had chickenpox when he was a child, so he took Lu Zhongfu to get medicine, and even asked him to take his son to the mansion for recuperation.
When he first saw Lu Xuchang, he seemed to see himself when he was a child.
At that time, Zheng Yuanji had not yet brought Ju Meishan back to his home, and took the young him to work in someone else's mansion.
He got chickenpox and was scorned by everyone around him.
Therefore, when he learned that Lu Xuchang had chickenpox, he ordered Lu Zhongfu to take his son into the mansion.
When he saw Lu Xuchang again, he felt as pitiful and helpless as when he followed his father into another family's mansion.
Therefore, he loved Lu Xuchang very much.
And it was precisely because of this love that Lu Zhongfu was able to stand up at this moment.
Risking disobedience to Xue Xiuguo and avenging him.
Causal loop.
Gifts of roses, hand left lingering fragrance.
Xiao Zimu helped the little boy up, touched his face that had not grown yet, and promised him gently: "If he really hasn't done it, I will keep him safe and sound."
"Thank you for your great kindness, Your Highness." Both father and son expressed their gratitude to Xiao Zimu at the same time.
"For the safety of you two, don't let others know about our meeting tonight." Xiao Zimu ordered them.
"This slave knows." Lu Zhongfu replied respectfully.
"Then I'll go back. I know this well." Xiao Zimu nodded, stood up and prepared to leave.
"Let Chang'er take His Highness back." Lu Zhongfu asked him for instructions.
Xiao Zimu nodded and did not refuse.
Lu Xuchang followed him out of the house, drove a carriage and quietly sent Xiao Zimu back under the cover of night.
Then he stood waiting in the corner outside the inn door, as if he had never been out.
After Xiao Zimu returned to the inn, he ordered a hidden guard to secretly protect Lu Zhongfu, lest the news leak out and he would be assassinated by Xue Xiuguo.
The next day, Xiao Zimu would pretend that nothing had happened, and with Yin Guangbo and the others, they would continue to register the tenant farmers one by one and sign their names to receive the seeds.
At the second watch in the evening, he would sneak out of the house again, and Lu Xuchang would drive a carriage to take him to the courtyard house.
He ordered Lu Zhongfu to sort out the evidence he could collect over the years that Xue Xiuguo was corrupt and violated the law.
Before dawn, Lu Xuchang took advantage of the darkness to take him back to the inn.
During the day, he still pretended that nothing happened and continued to lead them to distribute seeds to the people.
On the night of the third day, Xiao Zimu sneaked out of the house again during the second watch.
Stepped onto Lu Xuchang's carriage again.
But tonight, when Lu Xuchang arrived at the courtyard, he was shocked to find that the candlelight in the house reflected the silhouettes of two people on the window paper.
Lu Xuchang was shocked, stretched out his hand to stop Xiao Zimu, and whispered to him: "Your Highness, please leave quickly. Master Xue may have discovered our whistleblower."
Xiao Zimu put his hand on his head, caressed his cheek gently, and said something warm to him.
"Don't be afraid, His Highness is here."
(End of chapter)