Dandy Escapes From Marriage - Chapter 28

During the meal, Liu Shu heard the sound of soldiers patrolling outside and suddenly remembered another matter: “What about the bandits? Has the government sent troops to capture them?”

 

“They did.” Shen Keliang said in a cold voice, “They sent fifty men, went out for a night, and then came back, saying the bandits were too cunning.”

 

“Fifty men?!” Liu Shu was shocked. It wasn’t an exaggeration; his family’s guards numbered more than fifty.

 

“Yes, the new prefect took office, and the county magistrate had to go to pay respects. It’s inevitable to have soldiers escorting on the way.” Shen Ke explained.

 

“In that case, it seems that this bandit problem won’t be solved.” Liu Shu didn’t care. These officials were always like this. They rushed to take credit for anything good, but when it came to problems, they just brushed them aside. They were good at networking though.

 

Shen Ke turned to look at Hui Shang. Hui Shang had been away from town these days, going to beg for alms, heading towards the direction where the bandits roamed. He said, “For now, it seems that these bandits only rob gold, silver, jewels, and crops, and won’t harm lives.”

 

“So County Magistrate Fang is slack, and the common people can only suffer losses.” Shen Ke paused and asked, “Any news about the new prefect?”

 

Hui Shang shook his head. “I only heard that County Magistrate Fang knows nothing about him, so he’s very anxious. Maybe this prefect was transferred from elsewhere, so his network hasn’t been investigated in detail.”

 

“In that case, the new prefect has no connections and influence here, so it’s time to establish authority and make achievements.” Shen Ke made a plan in his mind.

 

“I’m done eating, you guys continue chatting, I’ll go help Big Brother the wickerworker.” Liu Shu put down his chopsticks and walked out. When he reached the door, he suddenly turned back, “I’ll come find you after I’m done. Don’t wander off.”

 

“Okay.” Shen Ke thought to himself, who’s the one wandering off anyway?

 

“Don’t miss me too much.” Liu Shu added.

 

Hui Shang watched him leave, then turned to Shen Ke with a complex expression. “Why are you two so close?”

 

Shen Ke coughed lightly and poured him a cup of tea. “Here, drink more hot water.”

 

Back at the market, Liu Shu took over the shift from the wickerworker.

 

Before long, several girls came. He remembered them; last time, they gathered and sent a representative to inquire about prices, and he ended up selling several items at once!

 

This time, the girls surrounded him again. The older one asked about prices while inquiring, “Young man, how old are you? Where do you live? How many acres of land does your family have? How many siblings do you have? Are you married?”

 

With each question, the girls blushed, staring at Liu Shu intently.

 

Liu Shu: …I just want to make money from you, and you want me?

 

But Liu Shu had a good sense of smiling, always welcoming with a smile, patiently answering their questions: “I’m seventeen, a country boy. My family doesn’t have much land, so I have to come out to help my big brother sell these things. He stays up late every day making these items, his hands are all calloused, but these baskets are really useful. Look at how cute these bamboo rabbits are, he’s really skillful.”

 

The girls immediately shifted their attention to the bamboo rabbits, touching their heads and picking up the baskets, while the older girl kept her focus, asking again, “Young man, are you married?”

 

“Not yet.” Liu Shu smiled. The girls looked up at him, blushing, and nudging each other, but then he continued, “My big brother isn’t married yet either. I have to wait for him. He’s skilled and reliable, just lacking a wife to manage things for him. May I ask where you charming girls are from? Are there any marriage prospects? How many acres of land does your family have? How many siblings do you have? Are you married?”

 

The girls: …

 

The brave girl leading them asked, “Where’s your big brother? Let him come out and let us have a look. What if my sisters take a liking to him?”

 

“He’s gone to eat. He’ll be back in a while. You can look at the goods first.” Liu Shu introduced.

 

So when the wickerworker returned, he found several beautiful girls standing in front of his stall, each one gazing at him, which scared him and made him hesitate to approach.

 

“Big Brother, you’re back!” Liu Shu waved, “Come on, come on!”

 

The wickerworker walked back to his stall, finding several pairs of eyes fixed on him, making him feel like his rough face was being grilled by flames.

 

“Is this your big brother? He doesn’t look like you at all.” The leading girl observed, while the younger ones instinctively hid behind her, looking at this somewhat fierce-looking man in fear.

 

“Indeed, we’re half-brothers.” Liu Shu joked, “But his craftsmanship is really impressive. If you want to buy, I’ll give you a discount.”

 

“Okay, keep your word.” The leading girl bought a bamboo basket and handed the money to the wickerworker. He hesitantly reached out his hand, withdrew it halfway, wiped it on his clothes, and then reached out again to accept the money.

 

The girl suddenly smiled at him, whispered something to her sisters, and then left.

 

After she left, the wickerworker put the coins away, raised his head, and found Liu Shu looking at him with a meaningful smile.

 

“Big brother, remember to shave next time.” Liu Shu laughed and pulled his beard, “Don’t scare off the girls.”

 

The wickerworker lowered his head in embarrassment. “Um… I do look scary.”

 

“Hey, I’m not talking about that.” Liu Shu turned his head and happened to meet the gaze of the leading girl, chuckled, “I mean, you might have good luck with the ladies soon.”

 

“???” The wickerworker’s lips trembled slightly. “Don’t scare me.”

 

Liu Shu burst into laughter.

 

Suddenly, a few raindrops fell on his face, and it started to rain heavily.

 

The vendors shouted and packed up, scattering in all directions in an instant. Liu Shu quickly gathered the remaining baskets with the wickerworker and ran to the nearest eaves to take shelter from the rain.

 

The rain was heavy and fast, pouring under the eaves, quickly soaking their pants.

 

Liu Shu held up the baskets, looked up at the darkening sky, not knowing when it would stop.

 

“Make way! Please move aside!” At this moment, a carriage came speeding by.

 

Liu Shu found the coachman somewhat familiar. As the carriage passed by him, the curtain lifted slightly, revealing half of Zhang Mosheng’s face.

 

Soon, the carriage stopped, and the coachman turned around and shouted, “Young Master Xiao Wu, get in the carriage to avoid the rain.”

 

Liu Shu asked the wickerworker if he wanted to join, but the wickerworker dared not and said he would wait here until the rain stopped.

 

Left with no choice, Liu Shu ran alone with the bamboo baskets and got into the carriage.

 

Just as he got on, Shen Ke, who had just rushed over with an umbrella, witnessed him leaving in a carriage. He walked over to the wickerworker and asked, “Where did Xiao Wu go with?”

 

“He went with Miss Zhang.” The wickerworker replied.

 

Shen Ke looked in the direction where the carriage disappeared, furrowing his brows slightly – that wasn’t the direction of the Zhang family.

 

“Such a coincidence.” As soon as Liu Shu got on the carriage, a maid handed him a handkerchief. He took it and wiped the water off his head, thanked her, and noticed Zhang Mosheng staring blankly somewhere, absent-minded.

 

“What’s wrong with her?” Liu Shu asked the maid in a low voice.

 

The maid’s complexion wasn’t good either, and she whispered, “Master Fang sent someone to propose marriage again.”

 

“Why not just refuse?”

 

“The problem is, he said that from now on, only he will come to propose marriage from the Fang family. He’s not afraid to pester Miss for a lifetime.” The maid said.

 

It was clearly a threat. Even if others had the intention, they didn’t have the courage. Who would dare to challenge the son of the county magistrate?

 

Mr. Zhang was also worried, but he couldn’t afford to offend him. If there were no other marriage proposals, he might agree to this marriage, preferring to marry than to make enemies.

 

Liu Shu glanced outside, the heavy rain showed no signs of stopping, and he asked, “With such heavy rain, where are you going?”

 

“I don’t know, Miss said she wanted to relax, but who knew it would start pouring as soon as we left.” The maid said.

 

Liu Shu suddenly said, “Are you planning to run away?”

 

Zhang Mosheng finally reacted, her fingers moved slightly, silently looking at him.

 

“But that doesn’t make sense. If you’re running away, why bring me along?” Liu Shu immediately denied this answer, “What do you really want to do?”

 

“I…” Zhang Mosheng’s eyes were empty, “I don’t know. I just want to go out and take a look. Maybe when I come back, I won’t be able to go out again.”

 

Liu Shu understood her implication, “Are you planning to compromise?”

 

Zhang Mosheng lowered her eyelids, “My family is here.”

 

Liu Shu suddenly realized that they were somewhat in the same boat, but the Zhang family couldn’t compare to the wealth of the Liu family, and he was far from the person in the capital. He could boldly run away, but if Zhang Mosheng dared to run away and not come back, the Zhang family would suffer.

 

“If you want to go out and take a look, there’s no rush. Let’s deal with Fang Qiong first.” Liu Shu said.

 

Zhang Mosheng looked at him puzzled, “Deal with him?”

 

“In consideration of your good nature, I’ll help you deal with this kid.” Liu Shu raised an eyebrow.

 

“How are you going to deal with him? He’s the son of the county magistrate, and he has soldiers protecting him wherever he goes.” Zhang Mosheng frowned.

 

“Don’t worry, I won’t use force. I have my own way.” 

 

Liu Shu whispered a few words to her, and Zhang Mosheng looked somewhat uneasy, “Can you do it?”

 

“It’s almost a sure thing.” Liu Shu assured her, “So, you go back to the Zhang residence first, prepare what I need, and I’ll come to pick it up tomorrow.”

 

Zhang Mosheng bit her lip, intending to advise him to reconsider, but she saw the eager look in his eyes, as if he couldn’t wait any longer.

 

The carriage changed direction and headed towards the Zhang residence. After stopping, Liu Shu opened the curtain, took the umbrella handed over by the servant, and jumped out of the carriage, holding the umbrella for Zhang Mosheng behind.

 

The two shared an umbrella and whispered as they walked up the steps. They heard the maid calling out, “Young Master, Master Ke.”

 

Both of them looked up and saw two people standing at the gate, their expressions heavy.

 

“Where did you go in such heavy rain?” Zhang Moyang asked displeased.

 

“Just went out for a stroll.” Zhang Mosheng replied.

 

“Go back quickly.” Zhang Moyang pulled her inside.

 

Zhang Mosheng turned her head, glanced at Liu Shu, and nodded, indicating for her to go in first.

 

Shen Ke, who was completely ignored throughout the exchange, muttered to himself, “…”

 

“Let’s go back too.” Liu Shu stepped forward, smiling as he squeezed under Shen Ke’s umbrella.

 

Shen Ke tightened his fingers.

 

As they walked into the rain, he asked, “Where did you two really go?”

 

“Just around, really just around.” Liu Shu said.

 

Shen Ke naturally didn’t believe it. Who would wander around in such heavy rain?

 

Just now, he learned about Zhang Mosheng’s situation from Zhang Moyang and guessed that she wanted to escape, but she might have been persuaded back by Xiao Wu halfway. As for how he persuaded her, Shen Ke had no way of knowing, and Xiao Wu seemed unwilling to tell him.

 

“You…”

 

“What?”

 

“Nothing.”

 

“I have to come back to town tomorrow.” Liu Shu said.

 

“What for?”

 

“To help Zhang Mosheng with a small favor. I’ll tell you after it’s done.” Liu Shu said.

 

Shen Ke glanced at him for a while before nodding, “Okay.”

 

The two returned to the inn first. Their lower bodies were all wet, so they asked the waiter to prepare a charcoal basin, and they stood around it to dry their clothes.

 

Liu Shu rubbed his hands and glanced sideways at another pair of slender hands, stared for a moment, subtly moved his hand away, then grabbed a few of Shen Ke’s fingers.

 

Shen Ke turned his head, looking at him wordlessly.

 

Liu Shu pretended to be innocent, looked up at the sky, but didn’t let go of Shen Ke’s hand.

 

Shen Ke was about to speak when footsteps sounded outside the door, followed by Hui Shang pushing the door open, “County Magistrate Fang has already taken people to Huai Prefecture, he…”

 

Before he could finish his sentence, his gaze fell on the intertwined hands of the two, “What are you two doing?”

 

Liu Shu finished teasing, calmly withdrew his hand, “It’s raining, just warming his hands.”

 

“It’s good to have a brother. My hands are wet too, quickly warm them for me.” Hui Shang came in as well, extending his damp hand with an innocent look.

 

Liu Shu: “…”