The Ning Family Young Patriarch summoned Ning Ze again and asked about the progress of his task to approach the Tassel-Haired Wanderer.
Ning Ze braced himself and gave his report.
Bang!
Young Clan Leader Ning Xiaoren was so furious that he snatched up the inkstone from his desk and hurled it out.
The inkstone struck Ning Ze's forehead, immediately drawing blood.
Ning Ze did not dare wipe it away. His knees went weak, and he dropped straight to the floor, wailing, "Young Clan Leader, it truly isn't that I, Ning Ze, haven't tried! I really gave it everything I had, but that Tassel-Haired Wanderer simply wouldn't yield to oil or salt!"
"My abilities are far too lacking. I truly cannot complete a task like this."
"You think too highly of me, Young Clan Leader. You have vastly overestimated me. I simply have neither the confidence nor the ability to handle such an errand."
Ning Ze did not dare mention the Yellow Family Three Ghosts at all. That had been entirely his own decision.
He had long wanted to cast off this task. Since the situation had already gone rotten beyond all measure, he might as well throw caution to the wind, admit that he was incapable, and say it outright—he could not do this job!
"You, you, you!" The Young Clan Leader's finger shook with rage. For a moment, he could not find any words for the shameless Ning Ze.
Leaning back against his chair, he panted for a long while before sweeping out a hand. "You cannot even handle such a simple errand! Fine, I'll give it to someone else. Get out! The sight of your useless face gives me a headache."
Ning Ze hurriedly took his leave, only to be called back by the Young Clan Leader when he reached the door.
"Wait!"
Ning Ze's heart skipped a beat. He turned and bowed. "What instructions does the Young Clan Leader have?"
The Young Clan Leader softened his tone. "I looked over the list for this Grand Examination. Ning Zhuo is on it as well."
"He placed thirty-first this time. As his uncle, what do you have to say about that?"
Ning Ze wore a bitter smile. "Speaking of Little Zhuo, I am deeply troubled as well, Young Clan Leader."
"The child has grown up and now thinks his wings are hardened. After yesterday's examination, he fell out with my wife and me."
"Alas, perhaps because Little Zhuo lost both parents at a young age, we did not do enough, and that made his temperament strange and solitary. He is exceedingly stubborn. He refuses to take the back door or let us pull strings for him, because it would make him lose face."
The Young Clan Leader's gaze sharpened. "Hm?"
"Ning Ze, you know very well that Ning Zhuo's father, Ning Zhong—your own younger brother—was my lifesaver. I promised that couple I would take good care of Ning Zhuo and help him cultivate properly."
"The child does not understand. Do you not understand either?"
Ning Ze quickly bent at the waist. "Young Clan Leader, I understand what you mean. I will return at once and persuade Ning Zhuo to change his mind."
"Mm!" The Young Clan Leader waved a hand and delivered his final ultimatum. "If you cannot even handle this little matter, then you are no longer qualified to serve as purchasing manager!"
It felt as if a massive stone weighed upon Ning Ze's heart as he returned home with a dark expression.
When Ning Zhuo's Aunt Wang Lan saw him, she immediately cried out, "Husband, how did you get injured!?"
"Naturally, the Young Clan Leader beat me." Ning Ze sighed.
Grandmother said resentfully, "That Ning Xiaoren is unbelievable! If he is so capable, why doesn't he recruit the Tassel-Haired Wanderer himself? What kind of skill is it to do nothing but order his subordinates around?"
As Grandmother complained, she gently applied medicine to Ning Ze's forehead wound.
The pain from the wound made Ning Ze's mouth twitch. He gave a cold snort. "Fortunately... I finally managed to use this opportunity to throw away that scalding hot potato."
"But Ning Xiaoren gave me another matter to handle."
"Alas, it is that mess involving Little Zhuo!"
Ning Ze briefly explained it.
After hearing him out, Grandmother's brows shot up. She looked like a cat with its fur standing on end. "What? We really have to spend money and pull strings to get him into the Family Business?"
"No, I refuse!"
"How much money would that cost?"
"We have raised him for so many years and brought him up. That was already difficult enough. Now we have to spend money too?"
Grandfather sighed. "He attends the academy without tuition fees. There are only a few living expenses, which are hardly worth mentioning."
"Besides, before his mother died of illness, she left behind a sum of money."
Grandmother shouted, "Have you lost your mind? That money is ours!"
"Back then, Ning Zhuo's mother was lying in her sickbed. She held my hand and gave me that money."
"You were there at the time, and so were several other clan elders."
"Ning Zhuo's mother said it plainly enough. That money was not child support for Ning Zhuo. It was a gift of thanks for us!"
"That money should be ours. We can use it however we please."
Grandfather gave a cold laugh. "Precisely because of that, we cannot mistreat Little Zhuo."
"After all, I am his own uncle. He ranked thirty-first this time. If I do not make arrangements for him, I cannot justify it."
Grandmother gritted her teeth, her brows standing on end as she stubbornly refused. "If you want to take out such a huge sum of money, you might as well kill me first."
"That little brat who never lets anyone rest, and that greedy ghost Ning Xiaoren, should both die!"
"Head of the house, can't you see it yet? Ning Xiaoren specifically brought this matter up to make you give him gifts, use his connections, and arrange for Ning Zhuo to enter the Family Business."
"What kind of creature is that man, what thoughts does he harbor—do you still not know?"
"He is narrow-minded, coldhearted, and faithless. A promise made openly yesterday may be forgotten today under some excuse."
"Before, we thought that having this connection would make things easier. But whenever we went to him for help, either he shoved us from pillar to post, or he demanded money."
"To get you the position of purchasing manager, we asked the Young Clan Leader for help. How much did he demand from us? Three full times what he took from others!"
"Now he wants to use Ning Zhuo's matter as an excuse to extort another fortune from us."
"Heh, if he truly remembered the debt of saving his life, why had he never once shown Ning Zhuo concern or offered him any comfort in all these years!? If he truly wanted to repay that debt, he would personally make the effort and arrange for Little Zhuo to enter the Family Business. He is the Young Clan Leader, after all."
"Hypocritical. Truly far too hypocritical!"
Grandfather let out a long sigh. "Sigh, do you think I do not understand? His meaning was perfectly clear. I failed at my task this time. If I do not take this chance to curry favor with him and give him gifts, he will strip me of my managerial post!"
Grandmother could scarcely believe it. "Head of the house, you are just yielding like this? Letting him extort our family?"
"You have a son."
"Ji Er needs to cultivate too, and he needs cultivation resources. What can we give him? We cannot even satisfy him with pastries from the Golden Cuisine Hall."
Grandfather's face darkened as he barked, "Nonsense!"
"Even the chief manager cannot eat Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake as a snack."
"Do not panic. Let me think this matter over carefully."
Ning Ze was filled with resistance toward spending money and pulling strings to send Ning Zhuo into the Family Business.
Compared with his wife Wang Lan, he was not particularly distressed over the money. What he cared about was his own dignity.
Ning Zhuo had fallen out with the couple and was exceedingly stubborn. Yet Ning Ze now had to rush to find him a good position. Was that how an elder behaved?
Wasn't that clearly the behavior of a servant?