LRAB Chapter 35 Who's a Good Person Who Writes a Diary
Chapter 35 Who's a Good Person Who Writes a Diary
"Miss Zhou..." Russell smiled, and then Zhou Cailing walked to the bookshelf and gently tapped the edge of each row of books. Finally, she pulled open a hidden mechanism inside the bookshelf.
The heavy solid wood bookshelf smoothly moved about three feet to the left, revealing a hidden door in the wall behind it. Behind the hidden door was a short downward passage leading to a secret room.
"Impressive!" Russell exclaimed without hesitation.
This skill is absolutely rare in the world of martial arts.
Zhou Cailing turned back and smiled at Luo Su: "The Zhou family of Wangwu Mountain is a branch of the Gongshu family. We have inherited our skills in mechanical arts. I hope you will forgive us, Young Hero Luo."
Russell cupped his hands in greeting and went into the secret room first.
Compared to the poverty outside, this place is much richer.
Looking around, all you see are valuable items. Not to mention gold and silver jewelry, several antique shelves on one side display a variety of jade, porcelain, antiques, and calligraphy and paintings. While not every piece is a treasure, they are certainly not cheap.
However, Russell didn't care about any of that and went straight to his desk.
This desk is quite elaborate. Russell tapped it, guessing there was a hidden compartment, and decisively looked at Zhou Cailing: "Miss Zhou, please."
"No problem." Zhou Cailing didn't stand on ceremony. She walked to the desk and examined it carefully. In no time, a drawer popped out.
There were only two things in the drawer.
One is a roster of disciples from the Beggars' Sect branch in Shifo City, and the other is Chen Yuebai's work diary and black ledger that Russell needs.
The document details the origin and destination of every single business transaction within the branch over the years.
[On the 19th day of the seventh month of the fifth year of the Xining era, three women and two children were obtained from Yaozhou and sent to Liu, the clerk in Bianliang, for which one hundred taels of silver were received.]
In March of the seventh year of the Xining era, three respectable women of excellent appearance were abducted from Shanju Prefecture in Dali. They were then transferred through Erlong Mountain and delivered to the tent of a Tibetan nobleman. One hundred taels of gold and a pair of jade discs were obtained in return.
In the twelfth month of the first year of the Yuanfeng era, he and the local commander of the local militia disguised themselves as defeated soldiers and robbed the passing caravans of the Liuyun Merchant Guild three times. They split the spoils in half and, with the commander's protection, their business in the city proceeded smoothly...
In September of the second year of the Yuan You era, twelve young children were received from Chengdu Prefecture.
【…】
Nearly twenty years have passed since the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Xining era, and every single event and incident has been recorded in this book.
Russell patted the ledger in his hand, marveling at it.
These days, there are indeed honest people who write the truth in their diaries, which saves him a lot of trouble.
On this journey into the Central Plains, he would inevitably pass by several branch strongholds mentioned in the ledger. Since it was on the way, and he had nothing better to do, he might as well pay them a visit. It would be considered doing justice for Heaven, and it wouldn't take much trouble.
After briefly glancing through the account book, Zhou Cailing's brows furrowed deeper and deeper, her pretty face turning frosty as she angrily said, "How could there be such a malignant tumor in the Beggars' Sect? When I return to Luoyang and see Chief Qiao, I will definitely make him punish me severely!"
"You know Chief Steve Jobs?" Russell looked at Zhou Cailing with slight surprise. This woman had such connections.
"Young Master Luo, that's quite impolite of you to say that." Zhou Cailing feigned anger, pouted, and then slightly raised her chin with a hint of pride: "Although my Wangwu Mountain can't compare to giants like Shaolin or the Beggars' Sect in the martial arts world, it's not some nameless little sect either. We're both in Henan, how could we not have dealt with the Beggars' Sect?"
"That's true, but since you've met Chief Qiao, how come this Chen fellow hasn't met you?"
Zhou Cailing pursed her lips, her tone somewhat matter-of-fact: "Shifo City is just a rural area; I doubt they've even participated in the Junshan Gathering more than a few times."
"Understood." Russell nodded.
Zhou Cailing meant that Chen Yuebai's status was too low, and he was not qualified to know her identity.
With hundreds of thousands of members and branches all over the world, it's perfectly normal for a branch leader in the far southwest border who specializes in shady dealings not to recognize a young lady from a prominent martial arts family in the Central Plains.
Actually, this can be considered a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.
If her identity had been recognized, she would probably have been drowned by now.
Because of the delay, when Russell and Zhou Cailing returned to the courtyard, the girls had already changed and were waiting in the courtyard.
At this time, the Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism had not yet become the official mainstream ideology, and the requirements for female chastity had not yet reached the extreme levels that would be seen in later generations.
While neighbors and relatives may have their share of gossip about these unfortunate women who have been trafficked, most of them sympathize with them, and it is not unthinkable for their families to accept them back home.
Therefore, when Russell offered to arrange for someone to take them home early the next morning, there were only words of thanks, and not a single one refused.
After everything was settled, the girls found a room to sleep in, and Russell returned to the Sun family courtyard to explain the situation to Mu Wanqing.
"So, you're planning to send them back one by one?" Mu Wanqing blinked and asked blankly after hearing this.
It wasn't that she was heartless; it was just that there were over thirty people, including the children. How long would it take to send them all off one by one? She knew that Russell and Kumārajīva had a one-month agreement.
They've already been in Shifo City for four or five days. If they delay any longer, it's hard to say whether they'll be able to reach Henan in a month.
So Russell's solution was to find a suitable person to deliver it on his behalf.
As for who is the right person, Russell already has someone in mind.
The next morning, at the entrance of the Liuyun Chamber of Commerce where Sun Ping worked, Manager Liu patted his chest and assured Russell that he would definitely send all the girls and children home safely, and that he would do his best to support the injured children for the rest of their lives.
Manager Liu's guarantee was not empty talk. On the one hand, he had a good reputation in Stone Buddha City and was considered an honest businessman. On the other hand, the Flowing Cloud Merchant Guild had been harassed and extorted by Chen Yuebai and his gang for the past few years. Their goods had been robbed three times, resulting in significant losses. The two sides had a deep-seated grudge. In a sense, Russell's raid on Chen Yuebai's stronghold was a way of venting his anger on his behalf.
Of course, Russell didn't refuse to pay them when he asked them to do things. He took out half of the land deeds, gold and silver jewelry from Chen Yuebai's secret room and gave them to Manager Liu.
Doing so is not considered breaking the rules.
Manager Liu acted swiftly; before noon, Russell personally watched as carriages, escorted by the Chamber of Commerce guards, departed from Stone Buddha City.
Apart from Zhou Cailing, all the other abducted women have left safely.
As for Zhou Cailing, according to her own opinion, she originally came out to roam the world, and if she went back in such a dejected manner, she would probably be laughed to death by her father and brothers.
She didn't want her family to know what had happened to her, so she asked Russell to cover it up for her, saying it was just a chance encounter on the road and they were traveling together.
Since their destination was Henan anyway, they traveled together, and she could introduce Russell to the culture and customs of the Central Plains.
Upon hearing this, Russell did not refuse.
With Duan Yu gone, he lost a tour guide, and Zhou Cailing happened to fill that void.
"Then let's get ready to go."
At the city gate, watching the last carriage disappear into the distance, Russell let out a soft breath and looked at Mu Wanqing and Zhou Cailing beside him.
They had already said goodbye to Madam Su. With Sun Ping's financial support, the relationship between Sun Ping and Liuyun Chamber of Commerce had changed directly from Party B to Party A. The original contract, which could hardly be called a contract, was thrown into the stove by Manager Liu in front of Russell.
The two women nodded and, together with Russell, mounted their horses.
Well, this horse was also generously sponsored by Manager Liu. It wasn't because he was generous, but mainly because Russell gave so much of it.
Russell gave the reins a tug, and the horse let out a long neigh, its hooves clattering.
"Let's go, Leigushan!"