Chapter 108
Chapter 108
Lin Zhuo’s head felt like it was about to explode. When he opened his eyes and saw Wang Lian’s sinister smile, his mind went blank. And then he saw Wu Zhaozhong? He would have rather fainted on the spot. His fiancée’s uncle had seen such a scene. While this man didn’t hold immense power in the Count of Jing'an's Estate, he was a highly respected elder—and a very conservative one at that.
“Lin Zhuo, how can you show your face after committing such an act?”
Wu Zhaozhong finally roared. A chill shot through Lin Zhuo’s entire body, and a cold sweat broke out on his back. In that instant, thoughts of his future and fortune eclipsed his shame. He immediately pushed Wang Lian’s body away, fell to his knees before Wu Zhaozhong.
“Uncle, please listen to my explanation. Hear me out. I was framed…”
“Your Excellency, please grant me justice.”
Unexpectedly, Wang Lian, who had been at the edge of the bed, knelt before Wu Zhaozhong even faster than Lin Zhuo. He crawled forward, grabbing Wu Zhaozhong’s legs and weeping.
“Recently, Lin Zhuo kept sending people to find me, so I thought it must be something important and came to see him last night. But this beast got me drunk and forced himself upon me. Your Excellency, I, Wang Lian, may have been stripped of my official honors, but I was once a scholar and even served as a registrar in Xuanwu City.
Lin Zhuo, I will report you! I will report you!”
In that moment, Lin Zhuo was utterly dumbfounded. Before he could even open his mouth, Wang Lian had beaten him to the punch. Just then, Shen Lang spoke up.
“Wang Lian, though you and I are enemies, a man like me, born with a sense of justice, cannot stand by and watch such a tragedy unfold. I will support your case against Lin Zhuo, so do not fear for your life. I will have soldiers from the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate protect you as you go to the Prefect’s office and the Governor’s office to file your complaint. I will ensure they give you a just verdict. Even royalty is punished like a commoner for breaking the law, so how can a mere Deputy Commander of a Thousand escape punishment?”
Shen Lang said with a righteous expression.
“I refuse to believe there is no justice in this world. I refuse to believe that a scholar’s purity and dignity can be trampled upon in vain.”
At that, Lin Zhuo finally reacted to Shen Lang’s words. He glared at Shen Lang with eyes full of venom and asked in a hoarse voice.
“Shen Lang, did you set me up?”
“What does this have to do with me? You were the one who told me yesterday that I had to come today and offer a formal apology before you would release the innocent soldiers of my Count of Xuanwu’s Estate. I rushed over early this morning, never imagining I would witness such a horrific scene.
Men! Protect Scholar Wang Lian. Even if he has wronged me, he is still a distant relative of our Count of Xuanwu’s Estate. We cannot allow him to be trampled on by others. Wang Lian, I will take you to the Prefect’s office now and help you file your complaint.”
As Shen Lang finished speaking, he waved his hand. Jin Zhong and the others brought a cloak to cover Wang Lian and prepared to escort him to the Prefect’s office to file his suit.
“Wait!”
The one who spoke to stop them was none other than Wu Zhaozhong of the Count of Jing'an's Estate. In that instant, he too realized that Lin Zhuo had been trapped, that this was all Shen Lang’s scheme.
Shen Lang asked him, “Do you have any wisdom to impart, elder?”
Wu Zhaozhong could not let Shen Lang take Wang Lian to the Prefect’s office. Although the wedding had not yet taken place, Lin Zhuo was known as Wu Youyou’s fiancé. If Shen Lang took Wang Lian to file a complaint, the matter would spiral out of control. It would create a shocking scandal, and the reputation of the Count of Jing'an's Estate would suffer a massive blow.
“What do you want?”
Wu Zhaozhong asked directly.
“A dozen cavalrymen from the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate were detained by Commander Lin for no reason. I have come to retrieve them.”
“Nonsense…”
Lin Zhuo instinctively started to refuse, but Wu Zhaozhong cut him off.
“Let them go.”
Lin Zhuo was stunned, but he dared not disobey Wu Zhaozhong. He released all of the cavalrymen from the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate. A moment later, the dozen men appeared before Shen Lang. Their faces were a bit haggard and their bodies bore some wounds, but at least their lives were not in danger. Jin Jianniang’s clothes were not disheveled, suggesting she had not suffered any disgrace. She looked the same as ever. The moment she saw Shen Lang, her face turned bright red, and she fidgeted, not knowing where to put her hands or feet, making it impossible to tell she was a highly skilled warrior.
*I have sinned again. So many women are in love with me; being handsome is truly a burden.*
“Commander Lin, I’ll be taking my leave. This Wang Lian is so pitiful, and I worry you might kill him to silence him, so I’ll be taking him with me as well.”
With that, Shen Lang left with the dozen cavalrymen and Wang Lian. But wasn’t this out of character for him? Shen Lang was someone who never took a loss. The cavalrymen of the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate had been imprisoned and even whipped, so why did he leave without enacting some vicious revenge? Shen Lang did so to not spoil the fun that was to come. It would take time for the terrifying disease to incubate within Lin Zhuo’s body after his tryst with Wang Lian. *You said you would kill my family, so I will be sure to kill your family—the one you have yet to create.*
***
After Shen Lang left with Wang Lian and the others, the main hall of the commandery was cleared. Lin Zhuo quickly found his clothes and knelt before Wu Zhaozhong.
“Uncle, I was framed.”
Wu Zhaozhong immediately cut off his excuse.
“Lin Zhuo, being framed is far more shameful than publicly cavorting with a male lover. Do you understand?”
Wu Zhaozhong’s words clearly highlighted the difference in thinking between commoners and nobles. Nobles didn’t care if someone’s private life was messy or if they slept with men, but they had to be competent. Being framed, however, implied incompetence, and that was the greatest sin of all.
“Do you know why you were framed? Because you let your success go to your head. After becoming our Wu Clan’s son-in-law, you felt as if you were floating on a cloud, thinking you had a great backer and could do as you pleased. Look at what you’ve done since returning to Xuanwu City. The first thing you did was call your friends to show off and boast. If your desire to flaunt yourself hadn’t been so great, how could Wang Lian have succeeded?”
Wu Zhaozhong’s words hit the nail on the head. When Lin Zhuo reflected on his recent actions, he felt deeply ashamed. He used to be an extremely clever person. Why had he suddenly become so reckless?
“A young man must watch his own feet, not the sky. Otherwise, he will take a great fall. Of course, since you are young, a small injury is nothing. Falling now can at least serve as a warning that a fall from this height is not yet fatal. But in the future, if you fall from a greater height, you will be shattered to pieces.
Playing with a male lover is no great matter. Many among the nobility do so. The key issue is that you have shown incompetence this time, disappointing us. How can we trust you with important tasks in the future? How can we believe that you can represent the Count of Jing'an's Estate in Xuanwu City, or even in Nujiang Commandery?”
Lin Zhuo immediately pressed his forehead to the floor.
“Uncle, please enlighten me.”
“What has happened today can be considered a big deal, or it can be a small one. Whether you will proceed with the marriage to Youyou depends on her father. Do you know what to say when you meet him?”
Lin Zhuo kowtowed once more.
“Please tell me, Uncle.”
“When you meet the head of the Wu Clan, do not make any excuses, and do not say you were framed by others. Simply say, ‘I will turn my shame into strength and strive harder!’ You must desperately reflect on your arrogance to seize the opportunity for revenge against Shen Lang. Reflect on your faults, magnifying them ten, a hundred times over. Show more pain and disappointment than anyone else, and voluntarily offer to dissolve the engagement with Youyou. Only then might a path to survival open for you.”
Lin Zhuo was filled with admiration. The Count of Jing'an's Estate was truly remarkable. Even an uncle who did not hold a key position possessed such profound wisdom.
“If, even after doing so, the clan head’s mind is not changed, then you must draw a sword and declare your intent to take your own life, saying that even in death, you will not bring disgrace upon the name of the Count of Jing'an's Estate. When you declare your suicide, you must be decisive and slash your own neck fiercely. But you must remember to avoid the main artery. You should practice with a wooden sword a few hundred times.”
“My father-in-law has been the leader of a military faction for a long time and has seen countless people. No matter how convincingly I act, wouldn’t he see right through it?”
Wu Zhaozhong sneered.
“Of course, he will see through it. How could a person truly be willing to kill themselves? It is precisely because he will see through it that you must act this way.”
Lin Zhuo kowtowed and asked again, “Please enlighten me, Uncle.”
“The clan head will know your suicide attempt is an act, but he will also see that you have a talent for shameless acting. Do you know what is most important in politics? It is acting.
Furthermore, what does slashing your own neck as if you truly intend to die prove? It shows that you are ruthless enough. A man who is ruthless to himself will be even more ruthless to his enemies. If you show that you are skilled at acting and ruthless to yourself, the clan head will see you in a different light. And if he thinks you are worth cultivating, he will allow the marriage with Youyou to proceed.”
*Brilliant, truly brilliant.*
Lin Zhuo was in awe.
*To think that an uncle without a prominent reputation possesses such unfathomable wisdom. Are all nobles this formidable? Good. I will learn from them and grow stronger. Shen Lang, just you wait. Once I catch my breath, I will repay today’s humiliation tenfold.*
Wu Zhaozhong added calmly, “Prepare yourself to go to Jing'an City to meet the clan head. While you’re at it, tell your father to give me three times the money he promised me!”
***
Inside the Count of Xuanwu’s Estate.
“Father-in-law, that Wu Zhaozhong fellow… he seems like a real piece of work.”
The Count’s brow twitched almost imperceptibly. He felt the phrase ‘a piece of work’ was highly inappropriate. But he knew by now that the world had to adapt to Shen Lang, not the other way around. The Count had already come to terms with this son-in-law’s ‘unique’ abilities.
*Sigh! What a pity. Why isn’t Shen Lang my biological son? No, it’s not a pity. He is like a son to me. In any case, this boy is a good child. A very good child.*
The Count explained to Shen Lang.
“Of course, Wu Zhaozhong is formidable. Over twenty years ago, he fought with the current Count of Jing'an for the position of heir.”
Hearing this, Shen Lang and the Count of Xuanwu, as if by agreement, both glanced at Jin Mucong, who was not far away.
Shen Lang and the Count of Xuanwu sighed in unison. If the Count had another son, the fatty could have lived his life without a care.
*This fatty is being punished by copying books again. Sigh!*
*The Count of Jing'an's Estate has two outstanding sons who fought a bloody battle for the succession at that age, and you’re here copying books? Jin Mucong, you fatty. You basically stumbled into the heir’s position with your eyes closed. This world is truly unfair.*
Feeling their gazes, Jin Mucong flinched and asked timidly, “Why are you looking at me?”
Ignoring Jin Mucong’s question, Shen Lang asked the Count of Xuanwu, “So why did that Wu Zhaozhong lose?”
“He couldn’t have children.”
*Ah! How tragic! No matter how brilliant you are, you can’t become a lord if you can’t produce an heir.*
Suddenly, Shen Lang grew a little worried for himself. He had been reading so diligently under the wall lately that he worried he might have overexerted his body and would be unable to have children in the future.
*Spit, spit, spit! I take it back! Don’t jinx it, don’t jinx it!*
Just then, a commotion was heard from outside. Why was there another disturbance? A moment later, Jin Zhong came in to report.
“My Lord, Young Master. An elder representing the peasants of the fief has requested an audience.”
Did you hear that? Jin Zhong addressed only the "Lord" and "Young Master," not the heir, Jin Mucong. But Jin Mucong didn’t mind at all. Whenever something important happened, he would dismiss himself before others could, thinking he wasn’t the man for such matters.
*I don’t care about what you guys are doing. Copying my homework is my whole world.*