Chapter 59

Linglang, upon hearing Fan Yishang's words, swayed her delicate and graceful body, then sternly shouted, "Fan Yishang, you... you get out of here...!" Her voice was filled with resentment and sorrow.

Fan Yishang not only did not leave but took a step forward, sneering, "Su Linglang, although my elder brother is dead, the Fan family still exists. As long as the Fan family exists, you are still a part of it, and you can't run away...!" He pointed around, smugly saying, "You're right, everything here belongs to you, Su Linglang, but it also belongs to my elder brother. My elder brother is gone, but I, his younger brother, am still here. When the elder brother dies, the younger brother takes over. My elder brother's things are naturally mine!"

Han Yuan, who had been silent, finally could not hold back and stepped forward to rebuke, "Second Young Master, it was your Fan family who wronged the Great Eastern Merchant. The Great Eastern Merchant was already magnanimous for not holding it against you. You... you are now humiliating the Great Eastern Merchant. Do you have any conscience?" The old man's face was full of anger, clearly deeply detesting Second Young Master Fan.

Chuhan, listening from behind, finally understood that Linglang was a married woman, and it seemed that her husband was Fan Yishang's elder brother, the eldest son of the Fan family.

However, from their conversation, it seemed that the eldest son of the Fan family had already passed away, making Linglang a widow.

At this moment, Chuhan also understood why Han Yuan had been somewhat polite to Second Young Master Fan when they met at Yipinxiang. It was clearly because of this relationship.

However, looking at the current scene, it seemed that the relationship between Linglang and the Fan family was far from harmonious. Chuhan did not know the underlying reasons, but he understood why Han Yuan had not stopped him from dealing with Fan Yishang that day. It was clear that there had been long-standing grievances between the two sides, and they only maintained a superficial politeness.

Seeing Han Yuan step forward, Fan Yishang's face immediately turned sour. He pointed at Han Yuan and cursed, "You old thing, I still have accounts to settle with you. Don't be in a hurry to jump out. I'll deal with you later!"

He was referring to the incident that had recently occurred at Yipinxiang.

At this moment, the thin Third Elder also stood up from his chair, chuckling, "Great Eastern Merchant, you are being unreasonable. As the old saying goes, 'If you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog.' Since you entered the Fan family, you are a part of it, whether alive or dead. You can't run away. Second Young Master is right. When the elder brother dies, the younger brother takes over. The eldest son is gone, but Second Young Master is still here. Now that the Fan family is managed by Second Young Master, you, as a part of the Fan family, should follow his orders...!"

"Shut up!" Su Linglang's body swayed, seemingly unable to support herself, showing the immense pain she was enduring. However, she still stood firmly in the courtyard, angrily shouting, "I, Su Linglang, have no ties with the Fan family... you... you all get out of here...!" After saying this, her feet felt weak, and Han Yuan, seeing this, hurriedly went over and supported her, urgently asking, "Great Eastern Merchant, are you... are you okay?" He helped her sit down on a nearby chair.

Fan Yishang stroked his chin and said, "Don't worry, I didn't come here to take over your winery... I heard that Heshengquan is opening its cellar today, and I need to entertain some important guests. I want to take some fine wine from here. Heshengquan's inner cellar can produce a thousand jars of Bamboo Green Wine each time. I don't need much, just five hundred jars...!" He chuckled and said to Linglang, "Sister-in-law, I'm sure you won't refuse this small request, right?"

The Heshengquan workers immediately showed signs of shock.

The Bamboo Green Wine from Heshengquan was not the small jars sold in the shop but large, twenty-pound carved jars. This Bamboo Green Wine could sell for about one tael of silver per pound in the market, but when wholesalers bought it from Heshengquan, it was between six and seven cash per pound. The profit margin was enormous, and Fan Yishang's request for five hundred jars amounted to ten thousand pounds of fine wine. Even if sold at a low price, it would easily fetch seven to eight thousand taels of silver.

His demand for nearly ten thousand taels of silver worth of wine was truly outrageous.

Linglang, sitting on the chair, calmed down slightly and coldly snorted, "As long as I, Su Linglang, am here, you won't take a single jar of wine from Heshengquan!"

"Sister-in-law, you are asking for trouble!" Fan Yishang's face turned cold, sneering, "Since I'm here, I didn't plan on leaving empty-handed. I'm here to take what is mine, and I'm informing you out of respect. Even if you disagree, you can't stop me from taking the wine!"

The green-faced Fourth Elder laughed, "Second Young Master, you're right. Heshengquan has a share of the Fan family. Taking what is yours is only natural. You are a friend of our Bayili Hall, and we will fully support you this time!"

Seeing the situation turn dire, Han Yuan turned around and shouted loudly, "Everyone can see that the people from Bayili Hall are being too aggressive. They are here to rob Heshengquan. Are we going to stand by and let them run wild here?"

The workers looked at each other. If it were someone else causing trouble at Heshengquan, with over a hundred workers, they would not be afraid. However, today, the people from Bayili Hall, whom everyone hated and feared, had come.

Among the over a hundred workers, a few brave men stepped forward. One of them called out, "Brothers, we can't let the people from Bayili Hall run wild here. The Great Eastern Merchant has always treated us well. Now that the winery is in trouble, we can't just stand by...!" Before he finished speaking, there was a loud "crack" that startled everyone.

It turned out that while the man was speaking, the green-faced Fourth Elder had suddenly stomped hard on a chair. The force of his stomp was immense, intended to intimidate.

His leg strength was impressive. The stomp shattered a large, carved rosewood chair into pieces, scattering them on the ground.

This display of strength was met with cheers from the Bayili Hall people, while the Heshengquan workers who had stepped forward were filled with fear and involuntarily retreated.

The Heshengquan workers were hardworking and peace-loving people. They did not like to cause trouble, but seeing how the people from Bayili Hall were being too aggressive, a few of them had been moved to act. However, the green-faced Fourth Elder's display of strength had a significant intimidating effect, and no one dared to step forward.

Linglang, sitting on the chair, coldly snorted and said with disdain, "Showing off your skills here, do you want to start a fight at Heshengquan? Fine, I'll tell you now, if you want to take a single jar of wine from here today, you'll have to step over my body...!" Her voice was soft but her tone was resolute.

At this moment, a commotion was heard from outside the gate, and a cold voice shouted, "Who is causing trouble at the winery? What audacity!" As the voice spoke, several people rushed in. The leader was dressed in black, wearing a square hat, and carrying a large knife at his waist. He strode into the courtyard, flanked by several gray-clad constables.

The Heshengquan workers, seeing the constables, immediately felt relieved. With the presence of the government officials, the people from Bayili Hall would not dare to act recklessly.

An old man rushed in from behind the constables, quickly walking to Linglang's side, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and said, "Miss, don't worry. Magistrate Hu has sent constables here. They won't dare to act recklessly!"

Linglang then stood up and gave a polite bow to the leading constable but did not speak.

At this moment, Chuhan, standing in the crowd, frowned slightly. He recognized a couple of the people who had entered. The leading constable was the same Huang Constable who had recently investigated the death of Feng Ergou in Liujia Village. The old man who had rushed in was also familiar, having been seen during the boat ride from Fenglin Ferry in Taiyuan Prefecture, known as "Old Su." At that time, Old Su and a maid had accompanied Linglang back to Yunshan Prefecture.

However, later, when Lin Daier and her group had hijacked the boat, all the passengers and crew on board had been forced to drink a knockout drug. It seemed that the group had eventually managed to escape.

As Huang Constable and his men entered, the ruffians from Bayili Hall were somewhat flustered, but Fan Yishang and the green-faced Fourth Elder remained calm. Fan Yishang even smiled and greeted Huang Constable with a bow, "Huang Constable, what wind brings you here?"

"Second Young Master?" Huang Constable looked suspiciously at Fan Yishang, then coughed and said sternly, "Second Young Master, someone from Heshengquan reported to the yamen that someone had broken in and was causing trouble... Could it be that you brought people here to cause trouble?" He gripped his sword hilt and said sternly, "Second Young Master, although we are familiar, I must say this clearly. Magistrate Hu governs Qingliu County with integrity and diligence, ensuring the safety of the people. We, as his subordinates, must assist him in governing Qingliu County. You know what I do in Qingliu County, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Fan Yishang bowed repeatedly, "Huang Constable maintains the peace in Qingliu County. The people of Qingliu live in peace and prosperity, thanks to Magistrate Hu's governance and your efforts!"

Huang Constable coldly snorted, "Second Young Master, I don't want to hear flattery. I've been in this position for four years, upholding justice and fairness, seeking the well-being of the people... Today, you brought a group of people to Heshengquan. Are you really here to cause trouble? If you can't give me a good reason, I'll have to take you to the yamen!"

The Heshengquan workers, seeing Huang Constable uphold justice, were even more pleased.

Fan Yishang chuckled, coughed, and said, "Huang Constable, you are right, but you might have misunderstood... I came to Heshengquan today not to cause trouble, nor to break into a private residence."

He leaned in and smiled, "Huang Constable, does Heshengquan belong to the Su family or the Fan family? You must investigate this clearly!"

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