Chapter 369 : Mr ChenTranslated byきつねonAugust 10, 2022

Yuxi talked to Hao Dazhuang about making cotton clothes and pants for the children. “I’ve been busy these days, and I forgot to tell you something. I have asked someone to go to Xinping City to buy cotton, and that person will return in a few days. You go back and register the height of these children. Then hire some people who can make cotton clothes and pants. When the cotton arrives, they will start working on them. It is also a bit chilly these days. The sooner the cotton clothes and pants are done, the faster these children will escape from the cold.”

Hearing this, Hao Dazhuang’s eyes showed some surprise. However, he was also a little worried. “Madam, the cost will be too high.” By now, more than two hundred taels of silver had been spent, and making cotton clothes and pants would cost even more.

Yuxi smiled. “You don’t have to worry about that. I can still get the money for making cotton clothes and pants.” She did not take silvers from the public accounts to establish this school. She took them from her own private account.

Hao Dazhuang immediately said, “I will go back and hire some people.”

Yuxi nodded. “Since it’s started to get chilly, put two more pots of charcoals fire in the school buildings. But we have to pay attention to safety. Make sure doors and windows are not shut tight, and there must be gaps. In addition, be sure to pay attention to the health of these children. If some of them are infected with a cold, they must wait until they are well before they can go to school. Otherwise, it will be easy for them to infect the other children.” The food did not cost much, but if they all got sick, the medical expenses would be expensive.

Hao Dazhuang shook his head after hearing this. “Madam, don’t worry. These children are in good health, plus they have half a day to practice martial arts so they won’t catch a cold so easily.” He believed that Yuxi was acting too worried. These little brats were not so delicate.

Yuxi frowned. Looking at Hao Dazhuang’s dismissive expression, even when her heart was very uncomfortable, she didn’t show it on the surface. “You still need to pay attention to this.” It seemed that this school could not be handed over to Hao Dazhuang to manage. With such an attitude, how could he be in charge of the school?

Before Hao Dazhuang left, Yuxi had someone give him a package and said, “This is what I prepared for Mr Chen. You help me deliver it to him.”

Hao Dazhuang hesitated before stating, “Although Mr Chen lives a hard life, he never accepts gifts from others.”

Yuxi smiled as she said, “Just send it over. He will accept it once he sees what’s inside. But this matter, only Mr Chen should know it. Do not tell others.” Scholars were very much aloof from politics and material pursuits. They would not accept any charity from others, which they found to be insulting. Therefore, Yuxi did not give things away carelessly.

Mr Chen looked at Hao Dazhuang bringing him a big parcel, and his face turned a little unpleasant. “Didn’t I tell you a long time ago not to send things over?”

Hao Dazhuang said with a smile, “This package is not prepared by me, but by my Madam. She said that you will accept it when you see what’s inside.”

Mr Chen was suspicious, but Hao Dazhuang still opened the parcel. The package contained some bacon and sausages, with some dried goods like red dates and mushrooms, in addition to a four-square box.

Hao Dazhuang took the box out of the package with a grunt and said, “It’s quite heavy. I do not know what was put in it.” After saying that, without asking Mr Chen, he opened it. It was not that Hao Dazhuang didn’t have any manners. He was just worried that Mr Chen wouldn’t even look at the things inside, stuffed the box back into the package and told him to take it back.

Inside the box was a book, a writing brush, ink, papers, ink-stone, and two taels of silver. In addition to that, there was a letter placed beside them. Hao Dazhuang took out the letter and handed it to Mr Chen.

Mr Chen took the letter and opened it to read it. After he had finished reading, he was lost in his thoughts.

Hao Dazhuang also did not dare to talk much, so he stood in the room and waited. After a long time, Hao Dazhuang saw that Mr Chen still did not say anything and spoke, “Sir, if there is nothing else, I will go back first.”

Mr Chen came back to his senses, nodded and said, “Okay!” As for what was written in the letter, he didn’t tell Hao Dazhuang half a word.

After leaving the house, Hao Dazhuang murmured, “I don’t know what Madam wrote in the letter to make Mr Chen accept those things.”

Mr Chen’s wife, Wan Shi, saw her husband had unprecedentedly let Hao Dazhuang leave things behind, so she couldn’t help asking, “Husband, what did Madam Yun write in her letter?” At the time Mr Chen met with mishaps, Wan Shi had been married to Mr Chen for less than a year and had not yet given birth to a son or a daughter. Wan Shi could have left Mr Chen then, but instead, she followed him to Yu City. The two lived together for ten years, and she gave birth to a son and a daughter. Although life in Yu City was difficult and extremely miserable, Wan Shi never complained.

Mr Chen replied, “Madam Yun asked me to copy the book, and the rest of the things were given as payment.”

Wan Shi, who was not at all insightful, asked with some disbelief after hearing this, “Just copying books? She didn’t say anything else?”

Mr Chen shook his head. “No. But if I’m not wrong, copying books is only the first step. Madam Yun’s real purpose is to get me to work for Yun Qing.”

Wan Shi’s face instantly changed. “Husband, we have to hurriedly return the things.” Yun Qing was surrounded by dangers, and she hadn’t forgotten that the man who had defected to Yun Qing that day had ended up being assassinated and died. If her husband also defected to him, he would lose his life at any time. She would rather have a miserable life than be afraid all the time.

Yun Qing wanted to recruit Mr Chen before, but it didn’t work. It was one thing for Mr Chen to have scruples in his heart, and then there was Wan Shi’s disagreement.

Mr Chen shook his head. “Madam Yun didn’t say anything else. She just asked me to copy the book. Anyway, it’s winter now, and there is nothing else to do. Getting paid just from copying a book can also subsidise our family, and you also do not have to work so hard.” The remuneration given by Madam Yun was enough for the family to have a good year.

After ten years of marriage, how could Wan Shi still not know her husband’s temperament? Thus, she hurriedly said, “Husband, I would rather suffer as long as our family is safe and sound.”

Mr Chen shook his head and said with a bitter smile, “It’s not a question of suffering or not. If there is no one to shelter us, I am worried that I can’t protect you and the children.”

Wan Shi looked at Mr Chen, not understanding what he meant.

Mr Chen lowered his voice as he explained, “Our Yun-er is already nine years old and will be a big girl in a few years.” Mr Chen’s daughter, Chen Yun, had inherited all the good qualities of her parents. Although their family had a hard time, and the child was only nine years old, no one stopped praising her when they saw her. Mr Chen had been a little worried about her future before, and now, after hearing about the death of a civilian daughter forced by the Fourth Master Xu, he became even more uneasy. Her old man was still a civilian, and he was still a convicted criminal. If someone hit his daughter in the future, he couldn’t even protect her.

Wan Shi’s face also changed. Since her daughter looked too good, she did not dare to let her go out for fear that her daughter would be abducted and sold. “But if you join Yun Qing, it is also very dangerous. If something happens to you, what will happen to the three of us?” Speaking of this, Wan Shi’s tears started to stream down.

Mr Chen shook his head and comforted her. “There is no hurry. Madam Yun did not say that I should serve the General right now. Moreover, whether Madam Yun sees me or not is still a matter of opinion.”

Wan Shi looked up and asked, “What do you mean by that?”

Mr Chen said, “Madam Yun is not a simple woman. If she thinks I have true talent, she will certainly offer a bargaining chip that is enough to impress me and make me work for Yun Qing.” By the same token, she would not have used him if she did not think he had genuine talent.

Seeing his wife’s confused face, Mr Chen explained, “If she wants me to serve Yun Qing, the minimum requirement is to guarantee our safety.” Even if he had a contingency for himself, he had to ensure that his wife and children lived worry-free, safe, and smooth lives.

This sentence was understood by Wan Shi. “Husband, you want to defect to Yun Qing?”

Mr Chen nodded his head. “The times are different now. If I don’t defect to Yun Qing, I can’t protect you and the children.”

Wan Shi was anxious. “There are so many families in Yu City, like the Fu family, the Zhao family, and the Rong family, all of which we can rely on. We don’t necessarily have to rely on Yun Qing.” As for the most prominent Qin family in Yu City, Wan Shi didn’t say anything. Because she knew that her husband loathed the Qin family.

Mr Chen shook his head. “The Fu family can’t make it, and General Zhao has a lot of aides around him, so I won’t be used much with them there. But Yun Qing is different. He does not have any assistants, so I can be relied upon when I join him. What’s more important is that Yun Qing has Madam Yun, who can also assist him. Yun Qing is good at fighting, but his wife is good at strategy and has a long-term vision. They complement each other and will be able to do great things together.” Not to mention that Madam Yun was a woman; men generally had never thought of starting a school. Let alone actually get it up and running. Although it was now temporary, he was very sure that the so-called temporary was only a delayed strategy. And the founding of the school not only can buy hearts and minds and won fame but also recruited talent. One shouldn’t look at these children being young right now. When they grew up, they would be Yun Qing’s loyal supporters. In the future, this would be a huge boost that others couldn’t ignore. From here, it could be seen that Madam Yun had an extremely long-term vision. By following such a person, one would have a bright future.

Wan Shi didn’t know much about these things, and she didn’t want to know. She just wanted her family to be safe and sound. But looking at her husband’s glowing appearance, Wan Shi couldn’t bear to stop him anymore. From the moment they arrived at the northwest, this was the first time she saw her husband look so excited. “In that case, you have to perform well. Let Madam Yun know that you have real talent.” Her husband was talented. She couldn’t let his talent be buried like this. Of course, there was also worry in her heart that the couple couldn’t protect their children. It must be said that the case of the Fourth Master Xu had caused a great shock to them, husband and wife.

Mr Chen looked at Wan Shi and said, “Okay.” After saying that, he added, “You don’t need to worry. The General’s residence is heavily guarded. I will be fine if I really live there.” Furthermore, if these people could rush to the General’s residence, the first person they would want to kill would surely not be a small staff member like him, but definitely Madam Yun. As for the safety of Madam Yun, Mr Chen was not worried at all. He heard Hao Dazhuang say that Madam Yun was surrounded by strong martial arts people to protect her.

Looking at his wife’s nod, Mr Chen also breathed out a sigh of relief. But now there was a problem. To get Madam Yun’s attention, he had to show his true talent. Otherwise, everything would be in vain.