Late Song Dynasty: From Imposter Magistrate to Emperor Donning the Imperial Robe

Chapter 143 Overdoing

Zhong Mei is still young; in modern times, she would be just old enough to go to university.

When it comes to fighting and wielding a dagger, she's an expert, but when it comes to understanding people's hearts...

She grew up in the mountains and her playmates were all uneducated and rough people, so she naturally lacked this kind of education.

So much so that although Zhongmei felt distressed, she didn't know how to express her feelings and could only choose to escape.

But these emotions of hers come easily and go easily.

With Li Chong's deliberate flattery, Zhong Mei's lingering resentment quickly vanished.

After all, she was the one Li Chong considered trustworthy, while Xie Wenyu and the like were nothing but disloyal outsiders.

"She made you sleep on the floor? Outrageous! Doesn't she know whose territory this is!"

After hearing Li Chong's account of his agreement with Xie Wenyu, Zhong Mei immediately flew into a rage, rolled up his sleeves, and was about to go and confront Xie Wenyu.

"Tsk!"

Li Chong felt a sense of unease and reached out to pull her back: "Don't be so hasty. After all, she's just a weak woman, not like you, a heroine. It's normal for her to feel insecure after what happened last night. Besides, if you won't let me sleep on the floor, do you expect me to sleep in the same bed with her?"

Zhong Mei felt a little embarrassed upon hearing this.

"Heroine... I'm not that amazing, haha."

Judging from her smiling face, she had probably already forgotten all the grudges she had been holding in.

Li Chong smiled slightly. Zhong Mei was indeed impulsive and impatient, but he was also generous and easy to understand, which made it impossible for anyone to feel any ill will towards him.

Holding her small hand, Li Chong calmed down and slowly explained, "Your two uncles are in charge of things in the mountains, so you don't need to worry. They can handle the correspondence. But here in the government office, I have people to serve me in the outer quarters, but we don't have as many people in the inner quarters. I can't do without you for even a moment."

"I really..."

Zhong Mei looked at Li Chong with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.

Before she could finish speaking, Li Chong pressed down on her shoulders and said, "You're important. I need you!"

Their eyes met, and Zhong Mei unconsciously turned her head away as she met Li Chong's intense gaze.

"Alright, alright then," she muttered softly. "Then I'll give you another hand. Look at your skinny arms and legs, you might still fall into a woman's hands without me, and then I'd have to save you."

"Then I'll leave it to you, Lady Zhong." Li Chong cupped his hands in a smile.

Zhong Mei's eyes darted around: "A female knight-errant or something..."

A slow smile crept onto his lips; this title didn't seem so bad.

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After Zhong Mei was dealt with, everything returned to normal. It seemed that nothing had changed, but anyone with eyes could see that the atmosphere in the yamen, especially in the back office where people lived, had changed.

After sending the agricultural "expert" sent by Xue Ming to the mountains, Li Chong devoted himself to his work.

Although Li Chong was the mastermind behind creating auspicious omens, he was completely ignorant of the specific techniques. He could only tell others everything he knew and then wait for the results.

Then, his goal became dealing with Xie Wenyu.

Because he had made a promise to her to stabilize the people, Li Chong had no choice but to devote himself to his work to show his sincerity, even though the summer tax work was already on track.

At night, he also had to figure out how to win over his "wife" and appease Zhong Mei who was standing by.

In the midst of a fulfilling life, autumn has arrived in the blink of an eye.

With the summer taxes being transported to the prefectures and the autumn harvest complete, it was time for the most important autumn tax to be paid.

On the boundless wheat field, Li Chong gazed into the distance, where people were working in the fields.

"I've gotten along pretty well with her these days, and thankfully she hasn't actually reported me. Once I've successfully won her over, I should be able to relax."

Li Chong thought to himself silently.

While I was lost in thought, someone behind me spoke up: "Greetings, County Magistrate."

"Brother-in-law!"

Xue Ming arrived with Xie Wenyou.

Turning around, Li Chong smiled warmly and said, "Wen Zhao is here. Has this kid caused you any trouble these past few days? If you need anything, just let me know. I'll teach him a lesson, or if that doesn't work, I'll have his sister scold him."

Xie Wenyou's face immediately fell: "Brother-in-law, do you really underestimate me like that?"

Xue Ming glanced at Xie Wenyou, then shook his head: "Your Excellency is overthinking it. The eldest son is exceptionally intelligent. He takes care of the escort agency's affairs, which saves me a lot of trouble."

Xie Wenyou then looked at Li Chong triumphantly and raised his head.

Li Chong was speechless, then waved his hand at him: "Ziyi, go play for a while, I need to talk to Wenzhao about something."

"What is it that I can't hear from?"

Muttering a complaint, Xie Wenyou turned and left to watch people farm.

"How's the escort agency's business going? Erlang and his men have made several trips; have the journeys been peaceful?"

Xue Ming's expression turned serious: "It's not good. I thought it was just Yunzhou that was in trouble, but when I went to other places, I found that everything was in chaos. Daming Prefecture is an important town in the north, but the bandits along the way are even more dangerous than the thieves in Yanggu County."

"If it weren't for the county magistrate's prior arrangements and Wu Erlang's exceptional bravery, this trade route would have been really difficult to traverse."

"Hmm." Li Chong nodded thoughtfully.

It seems the world is about to descend into chaos, and unrest is everywhere.

Looking back now, it's fortunate that Li Chong set off alone from Daming Prefecture, because he had a small target and little luggage, plus a bit of luck, otherwise he really wouldn't have made it to meet Cui Shi.

Otherwise, I wouldn't have this opportunity today.

Thinking about it now, Li Chong felt a chill run down his spine.

Li Chong secretly breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Xue Ming, saying, "But since there are risks, the rewards are naturally also considerable. You must have made quite a bit of money after these few trips, right?"

Xue Ming smiled and said, "We have to thank the county magistrate for his help. Even after deducting the expenses for bribing along the way and the expenses of the escort agency, the profit is still enormous. If it can be transported to the prefecture, it will probably multiply several times over."

Li Chong shook his head: "Forget about the prefectural government. Liangshan Marsh is not peaceful lately. We can't travel by water, and it's not worth it to travel by land. Let's call it a day while we're ahead."

"The county magistrate's lesson is correct," Xue Ming said sincerely.

But in reality, he knew perfectly well that the surrounding counties alone were enough to feed his family.

If they were to reconnect with the prefectural capital, putting aside whether they could make money, the wealth alone would be something their family couldn't hold onto.

Expressing his gratitude to Li Chong was merely a way of showing his sincerity and trying to build a closer relationship.

Li Chong didn't care about Xue Ming's little scheme; he had other important business to discuss with Xue Ming this time.

"All things considered, the Xue family has made quite a bit of money this year. With the opening of the trade route and a rare bumper harvest, your father must be ecstatic tonight, right?"

"Well……"

Xue Ming would naturally be hesitant to talk about his own father, but Li Chong's words were true.

"It is all thanks to the county magistrate; my father and I will always remember this."

"Since this is all thanks to me, shouldn't you and your son do something to show your appreciation?"

Li Chong turned to look at Xue Ming, his expression very serious.