A stew of the Red Chamber

Chapter 23: A Stone Stirs Up Waves

The rear building of Rongxi Hall has a reverse-facing room.

Wang Xifeng sat regally on the kang (a heated brick bed), bathed in the golden sunlight filtering through the window screen. After listening to the reports from the several steward wives, she gently waved her hand.

After the steward's wife left, Fang Chongping'er smiled and said, "I didn't expect that this Brother Qing, who looks so big and burly, is actually so thoughtful and knows how to get along with people. He knows how to use public office for private gain and please the old lady."

Then she chuckled and said, "However, catching thieves is the real task. This is putting the cart before the horse. Besides, the old master rarely goes out, so I'm afraid all his efforts will be in vain."

Ping'er hesitated for a moment, then said, "Not exactly. Now, the sweeping and cleaning of the main streets have already reached two miles away from here. I heard from outside that the entire western city needs to be cleaned up."

"Huh?" Wang Xifeng was taken aback at first, then raised her hand to press Xi Chang's neck, shook her head from side to side, and laughed, "He knows he can't make things too ugly, but making such a big fuss, isn't he afraid of causing resentment and inciting public anger!"

"This..." Ping'er hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping herself.

Wang Xifeng frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Grandma, you don't know this, but I heard that these people were all hired by Uncle Qing."

"What?" Wang Xifeng sat up abruptly, stunned. "Hired? Is he out of his mind? Spending so much money to hire someone to clean... what's the point?"

He originally intended to say that with this money, he would be better off taking care of himself, but when the words were about to come out, he felt that it would be a bit unseemly, so he changed his mind at the last minute.

However, on second thought, Wang Qing must be very wealthy to be so extravagant, and he might actually have one or two 'Wisdom Pattern' items.

Ping'er understood the implication and quickly explained, "It wasn't his own money. A while ago, Master Qing led the men from the West City Military Command to catch thieves and raided several gambling dens along the way. They confiscated all the gambling funds."

In the past, Wang Xifeng was always confident and resourceful when discussing various matters. However, this time she made several mistakes, and she was somewhat embarrassed. She said sullenly, "What catching thieves? I think they're probably after the money in the gambling den!"

Although Ping'er could see that she was a little embarrassed, she still forced herself to say, "Grandma has misunderstood Master Qing. He not only injured the thief, but he also almost caught him."

"Oh?" Wang Xifeng immediately became interested. "Tell me about it quickly."

This gang of thieves would come to the Rong Mansion to cause trouble every ten days or half a month, and had long become a major concern for Wang Xifeng.

Upon hearing that Wang Qing had injured the thief, he felt a sense of relief and no longer cared about the fact that he had repeatedly miscalculated.

Ping'er understood Wang Xifeng's thoughts best. She embellished the hearsay about catching the thief and concluded with regret, "It's a pity that Master Qing was unfamiliar with the area and was able to escape the thief's cunning and detours."

Wang Xifeng nodded in agreement and said, "I didn't expect him to actually have some skills."

Ping'er laughed and said, "That's right! These days, there are patrols from the West City Garrison outside both our mansions. I heard that Master Qing has even sent people to search for loiterers. That gang of thieves hasn't been causing trouble in the West City area for a while. Everyone's saying they're afraid of Master Qing and don't dare to come!"

Upon hearing this, even Wang Xifeng, who had never believed in ghosts or gods, couldn't help but clasp her hands together and say, "If that's really the case, then thank goodness!"

"This servant congratulates you, Madam. With Master Qing in charge, even if we can't catch those thieves, they certainly won't dare to cause trouble in our mansion."

Ping'er gave a graceful curtsy, then hesitated, "But..."

Wang Xifeng was in a good mood and didn't give her a hard time, calmly asking, "But what?"

Ping'er organized her thoughts for a moment, then hesitated before saying, "But... I just heard from Wang'er that the person who lent money on behalf of Grandma at exorbitant interest rates has also been arrested, and some of the principal that hasn't been lent out yet, as well as the interest that has been collected, have been confiscated."

"What!" Wang Xifeng's face changed drastically, and she immediately cursed, "You little hussy! No wonder you were rambling on and on earlier; you were just trying to say nice things to him!"

Ping'er quickly begged for forgiveness, saying, "This servant wouldn't dare. Everything this servant said is true. If Madam doesn't believe me, just find someone and ask them!"

Wang Xifeng breathed a sigh of relief, then asked with suspicion, "Could it be that Wang'er and the others conspired to falsely report a deficit?"

"Grandma is overthinking it. Even if Wang'er had the guts of a million, he wouldn't dare touch your money. Besides, Master Qing is right here in our mansion. Wang'er and his wife both know that. He came here earlier to ask me if we could ask Master Qing to get the money and the person out of the house."

Wang Xifeng remained noncommittal, instead asking, "How much was lost?"

"Ni Er is still being held in the West City Military Command, and Wang'er doesn't know either."

Wang Xifeng's expression shifted between anger and uncertainty as she said, "Wang'er didn't tell anyone outside that I was the one who lent out this loan sharking money, did he?"

Ping'er considered for a moment and said, "Although I didn't dare to mention Grandma's name, since it was Wang'er who came forward, it shouldn't be hard to guess."

Wang Xifeng rubbed her temples, pondered for a long time, then glanced at Ping'er and said, "A while ago, I told you to visit him more often. How many times did you go? How did he treat you?"

"This..." Ping'er lowered her head and remained silent.

Although Wang Xifeng kept saying that even if Jia Lian was dissatisfied, Wang Qing's place was still a way out.

However, she knew very well that Jia Lian was also a jealous man, and now the couple's power struggle had already caused Jia Lian to be dissatisfied with Wang Qing.

If I were to rush to Wang Qingyuan's place again, it would only make things more difficult to resolve.

So he thought he would delay for a while until the couple cleared up their misunderstanding, and then go, which would cause less trouble for Wang Qing.

Therefore, apart from delivering dinner once as ordered, I never went there again, and even my daily necessities were delivered by others.

Seeing her head bowed and silent, Wang Xifeng, instead of being angry, laughed and said, "Good! Good! No wonder you kept speaking well of him before; it turns out you little hussy have fallen for him! I never thought my casual remark would lead to you taking a liking to him!"

"Grandma! I didn't..." Ping'er hurriedly denied it.

Wang Xifeng sneered, "No? Could it be that I misread you? You're not worried that Second Master will be jealous and cause him trouble. Rather, you're worried that if Second Master finds out, he won't like you anymore. That's why you're outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant towards me, to make you appear loyal to him, so that Second Master will favor you more?"

Ping'er understands Wang Xifeng, and Wang Xifeng understands Ping'er just as well.

In short, this not only blocked Ping'er's escape route but also forced her to accept the situation.

Ping'er was speechless for a moment, caught in a dilemma, and could only stammer.

Wang Xifeng didn't press her. She looked Ping'er up and down a few times before saying in a pretentious tone, "Since you're so considerate of him, he should reciprocate and repay Miss Ping. Since Wang'er asked you to inquire, why not go and help Wang'er with the matter instead of bothering two people?"

"I..." Ping'er said with a bitter expression.

Wang Xifeng, however, didn't give her a chance to refuse. She raised her hand and interrupted, "You not only brought him meals, but also provided for his household expenses. It was such a small favor; shouldn't you show him no consideration at all?"

Ping'er knew there was no way to refuse, so she could only say, "But how should I bring it up?"

Wang Xifeng laughed and said, "That's easy! Just say that the flood washed away the Dragon King Temple, and that person is Wang'er's relative. Ask him to be lenient and let him go, releasing him along with the money. Your Miss Ping will be extremely grateful and will express her gratitude later."

She deliberately emphasized her gratitude and affection, leaving Ping'er unable to discern her true meaning, and causing her to become increasingly alarmed.

Wang Xifeng teased him, then added, "When you brought him food last time, didn't you say he was all about his sister? You should go and test him to see if he's two-faced."

As he spoke, he tapped the kang table beside him with his finger and said seriously, "However, if he doesn't know about the usury, that's fine. But if he asks, try to deny it if you can. If you really can't deny it, just say that you and Wang'er did it behind my back. Do you understand?"

……