CH 81

Chapter 81: Muddy Waters

“Since you have to go to Yunyang City every month for a follow-up consultation, wouldn’t it be inconvenient for you to return to the mine again?” Ren Yaoqi asked with a smile.

Zhu Ruomei scratched his head, then suddenly realized that the action was a bit indecent, and immediately put his hand down again, “I can plead with the steward of the mine, and I will do more work on weekdays ……”

Ren Yaoqi shook his head: “You should concentrate on serving your mother, your sister is only ten years old. Although she is capable, I’m afraid she won’t be able to take care of your mother. My father has already instructed the steward to return the deed of sale to you, so it is not difficult for you to find a better job in Yunyang. Why don’t you take your mother and sister to stay in Yunyang City, so that the medical consultations can go more smoothly?”

Ren Yaoqi knew that people who sold themselves in the coal mine were either foreigners who had fled or people whose families were very poor and in need of money. Zhu Ruomei was working in the Ren Family’s coal kiln because he was desperate for money to treat his mother’s illness. A young man of Zhu Ruomei’s stature would be given a lump sum of 20 to 30 taels of silver as a buyout for his labor.

Given the choice, few people would have been willing to work in the mines. There had been a few cases of labor desertion in the Ren Family’s mines in the past, which had left the masters of the Ren Family in a state of distress.

Zhu Ruomei was silent for a moment before looking up and saying, “Then I will pay back the thirty taels of silver that the Ren Family gave me in the first place.”

Ren Yaoqi tilted her head and thought, “How about this? I want someone to help me with an important matter, and I can’t leave it to someone else. If you feel sorry for me, how about you help me with this matter, and consider it as a return of the thirty taels of silver?”

Zhu Ruomei immediately said, “Fifth Miss, if you have something to do, just let me know, I can’t ask you for silver.”

Ren Yaoqi looked disappointed, “If that’s the case, then I can’t ask you to do something for me, I’d better find someone else. It’s just that this matter is a bit urgent, and I don’t know if I can find someone suitable and reliable.”

After thinking for a moment, Zhu Ruomei compromised and said, “Then please give me your orders. I will undoubtedly help you to get the job done. I will also keep my mouth shut.”

When Ren Yaoqi saw that he had agreed, she could not help but smile faintly.

At the time she and Zhu Ruomei were in the pavilion, Ping Guo, Sang Shen, and her other maids were standing outside the pavilion.

Although servants were passing by from time to time, they didn’t dare to look around when they saw their master resting there, so they hurriedly bowed and passed by.

Ren Yao and Zhu Ruomei were still talking. If their voices were lowered, they could not be heard from the outside.

Ren Yao gave a detailed explanation to Zhu Ruomei. Afraid that he would not be able to remember, she repeated the names of several important people, places, and events.

“Have you memorize it?” Ren Yaocheng asked uneasily.

Zhu Ruomei frowned slightly and recited what Ren Yaoqi said twice in his heart before nodding, “Don’t worry, Fifth Miss. I’ve remembered everything clearly. The places you mentioned are detailed and the people are all named, so it’s not hard to find them. I will disguise myself to ensure that even my mother will not recognize me.”

He was perplexed by Ren Yaoqi’s request. However, he understood that there were many things in a large family that could not be revealed to outsiders, so he couldn’t ask too many questions. He merely thought that he must help Ren Yaoqi by doing the job properly.

When Ren Yaoqi was certain that he had memorized it, she was relieved.

If this Zhu Ruomei was truly the same Zhu Ruomei she had heard of in her previous life, then he must have some real skills. Otherwise, Xiao Jingxi, who was known to be “a man of infinite wisdom”, would not have given him his back door.

She just didn’t know if Zhu Ruomei will still have the same future as he did in his last life after she interfered so much in this one. A lot of things are about destiny. If she interferes and leaves him with nothing to do for the rest of his life, that would be a real pity.

With this in mind, Ren Yaoqi nodded with a smile and said, “In that case, you can go back first. It will probably take a day or two to do this. Can you make arrangements with your mother?”

“I will rush back to Yunyang City to explain to my family. Please don’t worry, Fifth Miss.”

“If there is something I can help with at home, let Mrs. Yuan come and speak to me.” Ren Yaoqi instructed.

Zhu Ruomei thanked again solemnly. Then she excused herself and left the house.

Ren Yaoqi sat alone in the Yiran Pavilion for a while, seeming to be in a daze. The maids outside the pavilion wanted to come in but dared not.

Until Ren Yaoqi gently stroked her skirt and stood up, saying gently, “The wind is rising, go back.”

Later that afternoon, Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua were both in Li’s house listening to Matron Zhou’s lecture on the ways of the family, while Li sat on the kang next to her making soft boots for Ren Shimin.

Xi’er suddenly came running in from outside.

Matron Zhou frowned and scolded with a stern face, “What are you doing in such a hurry? Where have you learned the rules?”

Xi’er said, “This slave just heard the concierge’s mother-in-law talk about the Han Family. She said the Han Family started to quarrel.”

When Li heard about the Han Family, she immediately looked up and asked in surprise, “What? The Han Family? What is the Han Family quarreling about?”

Matron Zhou knew that Li was very happy with the Han Family’s marriage and did not care to lecture the maid on the rules, so she also looked at Xi’er and waited for her to say the rest.

“A dozen or twenty people came from Jizhou at noon today and went straight to the Han Family’s house. It’s been a year since the Han Family moved to our town, but they’ve always kept a low profile and haven’t had any guests, so everyone was a bit surprised. Those people were still making noise along the way, so some people with intentions followed to watch the fun.”

“The 20 or so people were invited into the Han residence by the Han Family’s steward. Then they told the public that those people were relatives from Jizhou. Not long after they entered, there were noises and commotion inside. Later, even the Old Master Han and Young Master Han who were out were called back in a hurry.”

As Li did not let the two sisters, Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua, go out, they sat there and listened.

Hearing this, Ren Yaohua frowned and asked, “Since they are from the old family in Jizhou and were invited in by the Han Family’s steward, they must be telling the truth. Why did the Han Family have such a quarrel with relatives from their hometown?”

Xi’er said, “Some people said that from what those people from Jizhou said, it seemed that Master Han had secretly sold some of the Han Family’s assets but the Han Family had been kept in the dark. Now that they know about it, they’ve come to make trouble.”

Li put the half-finished sole in her hand into the embroidery basket and said with some surprise, “How can this be?”

“Don’t the members of the Han Family know how much property there is in the Han Family? Why only after being sold that they came forward and complained?” Matron Zhou also felt a little strange.

“It seems to say that many years ago there was a woman in the Han Family who had married a sea merchant in her early years. But then she returned to the Han Family because her husband and son had both died in a shipwreck. It is said that the aunt had saved a lot of valuable treasures, and since she had no children, after her death she gave her possessions to the family members who had taken care of her. But those things were considered the public property of the Han Family. It was not long before the Khitans invaded Yanbei and all those valuable treasures were seized by them, so no one from the Han Family had ever seen those treasures. Only some old people in the Han Family occasionally tell the juniors how this aunt was rich back then, and had many good things. Formidable people only listened to it as a story and didn’t take them seriously.”

Matron Zhou shook her head and laughed: “Clearly this can not be taken seriously. I once heard of a ragtag family bragging that their ancestors used to pave their roads with gold bricks, and that even the toilet they used to pay respects was made of pure gold, but unfortunately, the Khitans took it all away. No one believed this story, but the younger members of the family loved to hear it, and in the end, the rumors became more and more sinister.”

Xi’er shook her head, “The Han Family originally heard it as a joke and didn’t take it seriously. But a few days ago someone in the Han Family learned that a treasure that was originally only found in legends had been secretly sold by Master Han to a foreigner not long ago. Only then did the Han clan make a scene, saying that the legend was true. Only the aunt’s treasure had not been taken away by the Khitans but had been hidden for personal use by the Han Family patriarch. Then eventually the previous patriarch, Han Jianping, passed them on to his daughter and son-in-law.”

Everyone couldn’t help but look at each other, and Li said, “This, this is unlikely, right?”

“Oh, they were talking on the road that it was no wonder that Old Master Han had accumulated such a large Family fortune in just a few decades. They originally thought it was because of Old Master Han’s capability to work hard, but now it seems that it should be due to the light of the old ancestors of the Han Family. They’ve come this time to ask Old Master Han for a statement.” Xi’er lowered her voice a little and said.

“What do you think?” Ren Yaohua was silent for a moment, then suddenly turned her head to ask Ren Yaoqi, who was sitting by the side listening with rapt attention without expressing her opinion.

Ren Yaoqi returned Ren Yaohua’s smile and shook his head, “After all these years, whether or not that’s the case can’t be said. After all, no one has honestly seen that aunt’s belongings …… well, except perhaps a few?”

Ren Yaohua couldn’t help but frown slightly upon hearing this, “You believe that too?”

Of course, Ren Yaoqi did not believe it, it would be strange if she did.

However, she still returned, “Whether I believe it or not, it doesn’t matter at all. What matters is that some people in the Han Family believe it.”

Perhaps those certain people didn’t all believe it, it was just that believing it would give them a lot of benefits, so they all believed it without fail.

“Besides, we don’t know if Grandparents were believe it or not.” Ren Yaoqi added with a tilt of her head.

“What could Grandparents’ belief or disbelief have to do with those in the Han Family?” Ren Yaohua was puzzled.