Chapter 00249: Young Master He Is Not a Proper Man
# Young Master He Is Not a Proper Man
Chapter 249
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 249: Young Master He Is Not a Proper Man
"You haven't really been aware these past few years, have you? You've been living well all along?"
The problem is, now I know.
Village Chief Liang felt a wave of despair wash over him, as if a pair of malevolent eyes were watching him from outside.
What would happen when night fell?
"Just offer more prayers, and that child died in the water, so they can only appear from the water in the future. When you're free, just stay away from the water," He Lingchuan, not being an expert on this matter either, said.
"When Elder Liang returns, you can ask him."
Village Chief Liang's spirit lifted.
That's right! There was now a capable person back in the village!
He Lingchuan paid him no further mind, going outside to call for Yanlang and Shan Youjun, ready to ride out.
But just then, several fine horses galloped into the village.
The riders carried themselves with a demeanor different from that of peasants.
Especially the leader, a man in his early forties, wore a tall hat and had narrow eyes, his features strikingly similar to those of Village Chief Liang.
As they entered the village, nearby villagers gathered around them, smiling and welcoming them.
Some even kneeling and calling out, "Immortal of the Land!"
Such treatment was worlds apart from how He Lingchuan and his party were treated.
Who could it be?
He Lingchuan immediately thought of the guests from the mansion, those who had feasted on his father's wealth at the noon banquet—no, it was the guests from Chuan Yun Pavilion, Elder Liang.
Seeing them, Village Chief Liang became even more spirited, quickly stepping forward, "Fourth Brother, you've returned!"
Elder Liang gave him a slight smile and turned his gaze toward He Lingchuan and the others, their eyes meeting.
So, Village Chief Liang proceeded to make introductions.
He Lingchuan wore a cheerful smile, "I've long heard of your esteemed self. Elder Liang, did you enjoy your chat with Manager He at noon?"
In reality, he had taken advantage of Manager He holding up Elder Liang to pressurize Village Chief Liang, and was consequently blocked by Elder Liang.
There was indeed a hint of awkwardness.
But what kind of person was He Lingchuan? He hid this awkwardness well.
Elder Liang nodded and smiled.
He Lingchuan waited for a few moments but did not receive a reply.
Huh? Didn't my father say that the guest from Chuan Yun Pavilion was mute?
The disciple behind Elder Liang stepped forward and, in a serious tone, said, "Apologies, Master is currently practicing a closed mantra, he rarely speaks. If there is something to say, I can convey it."
He Lingchuan let out a long "oh," showing no discomfort, "If he can't speak, then don't force it. It's fine. I've already finished what I needed to do. You guys catch up on your brotherly feelings, I'll take my leave."
After smiling at everyone, he turned and mounted his horse, heading towards the village outskirts.
Once their figures had vanished, Elder Liang extended his hands, signaling.
This gesture was well understood by all, and the watching crowd quickly dispersed, afraid to linger and interrupt.
The respect they showed Elder Liang far exceeded what they showed Village Chief Liang.
Everyone understood that the prosperous life of Shuangyu Village relied greatly on this Daoist elder before them.
Once inside the house, Elder Liang gestured to his brother using hand signs.
He had been practicing his closed mantra for twenty years, but rarely returned home, and so Village Chief Liang was not well-acquainted with sign language, having to look to Elder Liang's disciple.
"Inquiries from Master: Did the government send these people to handle that matter?"
Village Chief Liang hesitated slightly, sighing, "Yes, but please don’t be angry. They had quite valid points, so I... I…"
He stammered, noticing his brother’s keen gaze, and continued, “I stamped it.”
Elder Liang gestured a few more times, and the disciple translated, “This is a village matter; you can decide.”
He hadn’t returned once in years, receiving offerings from elsewhere.
What relation did village affairs have with him? If it weren’t for the village elders using his influence as a banner and asking him to speak to the new manager, he wouldn’t want to get involved in such murky waters.
“Good, good,” Village Chief Liang repeated, grinning, “Then I’ll go find the village elder right away.”
Having made his decision, he would claim that compromising with the government was Elder Liang's intent, leaving no room for other elders to object.
Even if there were disagreements, they wouldn't dare voice them in front of Elder Liang.
Elder Liang shook his head, watching his brother's back.
He understood well what his brother was thinking.
"The newly appointed magistrate, who clearly promised you well at the table, secretly sent people into the village?" The disciple seemed aggrieved.
Elder Liang gestured again.
“Instead, is it... respect?” Why was the Master not angry? “I do not understand.”
Elder Liang gave a smile and offered no further explanation.
Meanwhile, He Lingchuan and the others had walked two to three hundred steps along the mountain path when Zhou Seifu couldn't help but speak to He Lingchuan, “Young Master He, that Elder Liang just now probably already knows.”
He Lingchuan recalled Zhou Seifu's obsequious smile earlier, saying, "We are handling official matters. He’s just an ordinary villager here. Why worry about nothing?"
That reasoning was clear, but reality was stark.
Zhou Seifu gradually figured out the young master’s temperament, choosing not to argue further, and instead asked the question weighing on his mind, “That water ghost from Shuangyu Village, was it really killed by the village chief?”
“What water ghost?”
“You just mentioned…”
He Lingchuan snapped the whip, “I was just lying to him, do you believe that?"
"..."
He believed it.
“When Village Chief Liang was fooling around with the third daughter-in-law by the river, there was more than one audience member in the small thicket.” He Lingchuan said leisurely, “He drowned the child dressed in yellow, thinking that by killing the witness, he would eliminate future troubles. But he didn’t expect that child’s companion was hiding in the reeds nearby, too frightened to move, who not only witnessed the affair but also observed him committing the crime.”
“After Village Chief Liang left, the companion ran home, recounting everything to their parents.” He Lingchuan paused, “Fearing the village chief's authority, naturally they wanted him to keep quiet. As a result, not many people knew about it.”
Zhou Seifu suddenly enlightened, “So that’s how it was! Then how did you come to know?”
“That little witness's parents were among the seven villagers selling their land to the official who recruits soldiers. They were about to leave anyway, and the buyer was part of the government, so they simply wrote down this account and tucked it into the deed of sale.” He Lingchuan chuckled softly, “They had bottled it up for quite some years, unable to express it.”
It seemed the villagers had quite a lot of opinions about the village chief behind the scenes.
The official who recruited soldiers saw this account and submitted it to He Chunhua.
After reading it, He Chunhua calculated his next steps, which was why he had sent He Lingchuan to handle this matter.
Zhou Seifu laughed, “From now on, Village Chief Liang won't even dare to wash himself easily.” To Village Chief Liang, wherever there is water, there could be a water ghost.
“That will depend on whether Elder Liang has enough power to exorcise the village chief's inner demons,” Young Master He originally wanted to gather more evidence.
With so many eyes in the village, the village chief's private matters couldn’t be concealed without a trace.
However, Elder Liang had rushed to the state government today to plead the village's case, and at He Chunhua's order, his eldest son had to come quickly.
Reaching the outskirts of Xinxiang, Zhou Seifu held those precious deeds and bid farewell to He Lingchuan.
This Young Master He's way of doing things truly was...
Laid-back.
*****
When He Lingchuan returned to Dunyu, the sun had already begun to set.
Upon stepping through the door, Lao Mo ushered him into the meeting hall.
There was a new guest present, and even He Chunhua and his wife had to accompany them personally—
Lord of Songyang Manor, Li Qingge.
There was a small pile of nut shells on the table, indicating that Lord Songyang had already been there for quite a while.
Seeing her, He Lingchuan was momentarily taken aback before directly pointing to He Chunhua, “My apologies, Lord Songyang, it was Manager He who suddenly sent me out on a mission!”
Li Qingge had already agreed with him that she would come by today to look at the broken sword.
In fact, this agreement had been postponed twice, as Li Qingge had been exceedingly busy.
As a result, He Chunhua had assigned an urgent task to his eldest son, so He Lingchuan hastily left with his subordinates and forgot to inform Li Qingge that today’s meeting had been postponed.
Lord Songyang had arrived as promised but found no one, so she had to chat with He Chunhua for quite a while before he returned.
As for why Madam He was also present, He Lingchuan could guess that just by thinking about it.
He Chunhua jokingly scolded, “Truly my good son!” throwing his father under the bus right away.
Li Qingge smiled, showing no impatience, “No worries, Young Master He has important matters to attend to. I’ve already discussed several exchanges with Manager He.”
He Chunhua explained, “Xiazhu Mansion will hire seven disciples from Songyang Manor for positions in the mansion and military.”
Li Qingge nodded, “We cannot allow Chuan Yun Pavilion to take the lead.”
He Chunhua then asked his eldest son, “How did you handle the matter of Shuangyu Village?”
“All settled. The village seal is stamped on the deed, Zhou Seifu happily returned,” He Lingchuan said with a smile, “As I was just leaving the village, I encountered a man wearing a tall hat, eyes turned skyward. Could he be Elder Liang?”
“After I had lunch with Elder Liang, he returned to Shuangyu Village,” He Chunhua sipped his tea, “He came this time to pay a visit on behalf of Chuan Yun Pavilion and recommended a dozen outstanding disciples to me.”
Understood, it was a visit of courtesy.
But why send a mute to come?
However, as Chuan Yun Pavilion held a strong reputation in the North and He Chunhua was a newly appointed official, he had to give Elder Liang some face.
In He Lingchuan’s eyes, the relationship between the Daoist sects and the government bore some similarity to that between universities and the government.
Many talents nurtured by the Daoist sect aimed for careers in officialdom.
Both sides had their needs; thus, He Chunhua treated Elders Liang and Li Qingge with great respect and courtesy.
He Lingchuan glanced at Li Qingge.
She was too young, often making people forget she was the head of a sect, standing on equal footing with the master of Chuan Yun Pavilion.
“By the way, since Sun Fuping was executed, the position of National Teacher is vacant,” Li Qingge said again, “I’ve heard news from the capital that the list of candidates has been released, with three individuals. I hope this time, my lord can select a good National Teacher.”
He Chunhua's gaze flickered, “Your lordship is truly well-informed. Among the candidates, which one do you favor?”
“These three are all exceptional talents and have connections,” Li Qingge pondered, “Relatively speaking, I favor Fan Ke and Yan Lixin; the final National Teacher will likely emerge from among them.”
“Our nation originally had three National Teachers; removing one, Sun Fuping, still leaves two.” He Chunhua smiled, “The capital's environment is a hundred times more complex than here in Dunyu. The one who can ultimately rise to the position of National Teacher must possess both strength and influence.”
(End of Chapter)