"How come there are two city lords in one Qinfeng County?" Chen Mo asked pretending to be very interested.
"Haha, the young master must have come to visit from another county!" The boss said with a smile: "After the governor of Ma County in the old city was promoted, Fan Dong, the deputy city lord of the new city, took his place, and Du Hang was always the deputy mayor of Qinfeng County in the new city. The city lord."
"Their positions are all in the fifth rank, and no one can control anyone. The Chu State court also knows about this and has no intention of mediating. Usually, the salaries and taxes collected from Qin Feng County are doubled..."
Chen Mo nodded, looking very understanding, and said: "As the saying goes, profit is a knife that kills people without blood. Can these two city lords live in harmony?"
"Haha..." The fat boss laughed heartily and said: "It's just a decent thing, but there will definitely be no less conflicts behind the scenes. It's just that if people don't tell them, how can we know!"
"Haha." Chen Mo's face also twitched, and the two quickly went up to the seventh floor. This was the cost of Chen Mo's five taels of silver to stay for a few days, and he was also personally accompanied by the boss.
This was due to Chen Mo's extraordinary momentum and generous spending. The boss wanted to make friends with him, but others would not have received such treatment.
"Then again..." The fat boss seemed to be talking to himself: "Qinfeng County may not be peaceful recently. The two city lords jointly chose a piece of wild land to the north of the suburbs, which is close to There is a small stream, green mountains and green water in a pleasant environment. Both parties are thinking of building an attic nearby and giving it to horses to walk on. I don’t know what the outcome of this matter will be.”
"Can I fish?" Chen Mo asked suddenly.
"Of course it can." The fat boss also said: "But not now. The two sides should be confronting each other. No one is willing to give in. Master, it is better not to go there rashly."
"Oh fine."
Chen Mo's residence is located in the last room on the seventh floor. The side facing the street is very lively. There are many freehand paintings of scenery hanging on the walls on both sides of the corridor. Chen Mo didn't take a few steps when his expression suddenly froze and he splashed ink. Stopped in front of the landscape painting.
He was familiar with this painting because it was his own handwriting.
When he went to the temple to hide from the rain on a rainy night, the landscape in the outside world was like this. He wrote down and drew a picture of Li Caier, a lively and innocent young girl in the flower season, who presented it to the Li Mansion.
"This painting is very special." Chen Mo said after thinking for a moment.
"If you like it, brother, just take it away." The fat boss said with a smile.
Chen Mo said: "Well, I'll give you a tael of silver, but you also have to do a small favor. I want to know where I bought this painting and who sold it. Is this difficult for you? ?”
The fat boss looked stunned for a moment, then quickly returned to normal, and said with a smile: "It's a trivial matter...it's a trivial matter. Let me rest in the room for a while. A servant will contact you later."
"Thank you." Chen Mo thanked him, and the fat boss stopped there. Chen Mo pushed open the red painted door of this residence. The space inside was very spacious, with a dressing table, tiger-grain wood tables and chairs, a screen inlaid with jade, Wealthy and purple jade couches are all available.
The room was filled with the faint fragrance of orchids. Chen Mo walked to the desk, ground some ink in the inkstone, dipped his pen into the ink, and wrote a poem casually. He paused in his heart and followed the previous words. Wrote it again.
In this way, two letters with identical handwriting were born.
Chen Mo didn't wait long when a servant knocked on his door softly, "Come in." He said. Outside the door was a fat man who was fatter than the innkeeper. He kept turning two emerald green orbs in his hand, making a creaking sound.
Seeing Chen Mo, the man slightly cupped his hands and said, "Liu Zongyuan, the shopkeeper of Cuizhuyuan, I wonder if the young master is here to give you any orders?"
Chen Mo said: "Sit down." The latter sat down politely. "Actually, it's not a big deal. The painting hanging in the inn was a work I gave to an old friend. I wonder if the person who gave it to me as a pawn, Shopkeeper Liu, still remembers it?"
"Oh?!" Liu Zongyuan suddenly looked shocked: "I didn't expect that the master's painting skills would be so mature at such a young age..." Seeing Chen Mo looking at him, Liu Zongyuan knew that he was off topic, so he coughed and said : "Of course I know about this painting. This painting was pawned by Li Caier, the former young lady of the Li Mansion."
Chen Mo knew he still had something to say, so he didn't interrupt. As expected, Liu Zongyuan continued:
"Hey, Li Mansion, it's hard to describe. Their family sent away an immortal seedling more than ten years ago. Logically speaking, it should be a great happy event. But unexpectedly, this immortal seedling offended a very powerful person. The family, the huge Li Mansion...Oh, I won’t mention it anymore.”
Chen Mo's eyes flashed and he said: "When immortals fight, will it also affect the fish in the pond?"
Liu Zongyuan said: "This is also due to Li Cai'er's miserable life. Before the accident, she married the second young master of the Guo family. Unfortunately, the guy was a short-lived ghost and died not long after. The Guo family was worried that the immortal's affairs would affect them. So I expelled Li Cai'er from the Guo Mansion, and she has a child herself, which is quite difficult to endure."
Chen Mo was silent for a long time after hearing this: "Does Shopkeeper Liu know where they live?"
"Hehe, I didn't know at first. But I heard from shopkeeper Hong that a big shot with great hands and eyes came to Shengcai Building today. I came here to find out. The location is in this letter. You should keep it, sir."
Chen Mo chuckled and said, "Thank you for your hard work." After saying this, he handed over a bunch of copper coins and argued with Liu Zongyuan several times before the latter accepted it with satisfaction and left.
"Li Cai'er..."
Chen Mo poured himself a pot of tea and muttered.
...
The dregs of the new city were returned to the old city intact. Since the League of Against the Water purged the slums, they have disappeared in the new city. They have been replaced by the dark corners of the old city, which have become a breeding ground for violence and poverty.
It was already dark when Chen Mo arrived at the slum. According to the location in the letter, he found that this place is a low-lying building. It only takes a heavy rain to fill most of the yards here.
If it weren't for poverty, no one would come here to suffer.
Chen Mo knocked on this ancient wooden board - it could still be called a door. In fact, he could detect with his spiritual sense that there was a woman washing clothes in the yard, and a child of seven or eight years old was washing clothes. Focus on practicing martial arts.
"Who is it?" the child said warily to the outside.
Chen Mo said: "Li Caier, open the door."
"Mom, why did he call you by your first name?" The child said to the woman in an innocent manner, and the woman also looked at the door suspiciously. People nearby called her Guo Lishi, who would call her What's her original name?
The wooden board opened with a creak, and the child and the woman looked at the unexpected stranger at the same time. Chen Mo did not say a word, but looked at each other for a few seconds. Li Caier was the first to say uncertainly and doubtfully: "You... Are you Chen...?"
"Haha, the scholar who once painted for you." Chen Mo introduced himself, which made Li Cai'er feel flustered and embarrassed: "Ah! Master Chen, it's you! Come on...please go inside and rest for a while. Bar!"
As the woman spoke, she opened the wooden door and warmly greeted Chen Mo and walked inside. Taking the opportunity, Chen Mo also saw Li Caier's cheek clearly.
More than ten years have passed, and many wrinkles have been added to this innocent girl. Her skin is yellow and has an unhealthy dark color, and there are many small red spots on her neck. Chen Mo knows , which is often caused by living in a humid environment.
There are wet water marks everywhere in the yard, and there are criss-crossed clothes drying lines covered with colorful, large and small thick-lined clothes. Near the corner of the earthen house, there are four tanks soaked in saponin water. There is a large pile of clothes that must be packed away before midnight.
Chen Mo saw it, but didn't say anything more and followed Li Caier and her son into the earthen house.
The room was even more basic, with only a few necessities for daily living. Chen Mo withdrew his gaze, touched the child's head, and said calmly: "What were you doing just now?"
The child first glanced at Li Cai'er timidly. After seeing that there was no danger, he said hesitantly: "I'm... I'm... boxing."
"What kind of punch was it?" Chen Mo asked again.
"Yes Yes...."
The child was so frightened that he stammered. Li Cai'er quickly apologized and said with a smile: "The child is playing randomly. There is a martial arts instructor nearby. This child always peeks when he is fine..."
Chen Mo nodded and sat down on the wooden stool next to him. He picked up the pot on the table and prepared to pour water. However, it was dry and there was not a drop of water in it.
Li Cai'er's face immediately looked like she was bleeding from embarrassment. She immediately let the children go to play in the courtyard while she hurried to boil a pot of water in the back.
"Li Caier, don't bother." Chen Mo said, "I'll sit down for a while and then leave."
Without the child here, Li Cai'er said with shame: "I made the immortal laugh."
Chen Mo said: "It seems that you have not had a satisfactory life these years."
After hearing this, Li Caier sighed and said:
"I don't care anymore, I just feel sorry for Yu'er, it should have been the young master's life..." She didn't finish her words, but she stopped talking about it.
Chen Mo looked into her eyes and said, "What do you think I am going to do here today?"
"Whatever the Immortal Master does is destined to happen. How dare a woman from the Nu family offend Tianwei." Li Caier smiled and said calmly.
Chen Mo also smiled: "It sounds like you are an obedient person of God's will."
While the two were talking, there was a sound outside the door that sounded like someone was breaking in, along with a few obscene words and curses. The voice sounded like that of a rough man, and he seemed to have been drunk. generally.
Both Chen Mo and Li Cai'er heard it. At this time, the child named Yu'er also ran back in fear and said in a panic: "Mom!! That person is here again!"
Chen Mo looked at Li Cai'er's reaction. She first confessed to him, then went straight to the yard and picked up a thick stick for beating clothes. She stood in the yard with her son, staring closely at the people outside the door. move.
Chen Mo also walked out: "Child, open the door." He said calmly. However, Guo Yu thought he had heard wrongly and froze on the spot.
Li Cai'er knew that Chen Mo was very capable, and he had a reason to dare to say so, so he also instructed the child to open the bolt on the door. Sure enough, a strong force rushed straight into the door, and what came in was a man smelling of alcohol. The vicious man.
"Huh?" The drunk man's eyes lit up, and he said with a sinister smile: No wonder Widow Li is so brave today, it turns out that there is a pretty boy behind you to support you, hahaha! "
"Shut up! Get out immediately!!" Li Caier's face turned cold and she said in a strong tone.
The drunk man laughed loudly and said: "Widow Li! It was you who opened the door, and it was you who told me to get out. What do you want? Come...come and talk to me!"
As he spoke, the drunk man rushed over to hug Li Cai'er. At this time, Chen Mo said: "Let's go and do some serious business."
As soon as he finished speaking, a piece of broken silver was accurately thrown in front of the drunkard. The latter's eyes lit up at that time. This was one penny of silver! !
"Haha, pretty boy! This little money... you just want... to send me away?!" The drunk man looked as excited as seeing a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered, and said aggressively: "It's not enough! Get more!" point!!"
Chen Mo laughed when he heard this, and said leisurely: "You are quite courageous."
"Why is there so much nonsense?!" the drunkard yelled impatiently: "You little brat! Pay me the money quickly!"
Chen Mo took another tael of silver from his arms and threw it to him, and said in a kind tone: "Your life is only worth this, take it when you see it. Don't let the white-haired person give away the black-haired person."
How could a child like Guo Yu understand what Chen Mo meant? He only saw this thin young man giving money to this scoundrel. He felt very aggrieved. Why didn't he beat him up severely?
No matter how bad it is, if you use the money to hire a few coaches, you can save yourself from being bullied!
But Li Cai'er only felt panic in her heart. He was going to kill someone! Painter Chen is going to kill someone! I'm going to kill someone to help myself out of trouble! !
The drunk man had already been dazzled by money. He rushed towards Chen Mo desperately. He knew that this man must have more than this in his arms!
Even if you break the law today, as long as you do it cleanly and use this kid's money to manage your relationship, nothing big will happen in the slums!
Chen Mo sighed, raised his hand, and the drunkard lay straight on the ground, as if he had fallen asleep drunk.
"You guys carry him out."
As if Chen Mo had done something insignificant, he turned around and returned to the earthen house. Li Cai'er was so frightened that her whole body trembled. She grabbed the drunk man's shoulders with trembling hands and threw him in front of the door together with the child.
Guo Yu looked at the dead drunk and asked doubtfully: "Mom, is he asleep?"
...
Li Cai'er, who was still in shock, returned to the room. Chen Mo saw her and said, "Don't think about it anymore. I will handle this matter. You have more important things to do tomorrow. Take this painting."
Chen Mo threw it away casually and put the splash-ink landscape painting on the table: "Tomorrow, first go to Fan Dong's residence, then go to Du Mansion, enter in the name of offering treasures, and ask each other about this painting of Zhao How much silver are Ping's paintings worth? Just come back and tell me in the end."
"Dufu...Fandong..."
Li Cai'er could tell that these were the names of the two city lords of Qin Feng County. Is Painter Chen still related to them? When she was in her boudoir, she only knew that Chen Mo had a good relationship with her brother...
Chen Mo didn't wait for Li Cai'er to speak, and added a lot of things after the meeting, such as when someone asked where Zhao Ping was, how to answer, or what is your relationship with Zhao Ping, where did the painting come from, Chen Mo was all Once the answer was given.
Two hours passed by in a flash, and he could no longer stay here. Chen Mo asked Li Cai'er and his son to stay in the Shengcai Building for one night, so as not to cause any trouble in their lives.
And he himself found the monks who were in charge of the nearby states and counties and informed him, so that he would not report the matter truthfully and cause a little trouble to the Fuyun Sect.
.
