Unexpected Wealth, Too

"Yes!"

The Zhen family steward hurriedly acknowledged the order and soon returned with a man who looked to be twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old.

He was Zhen Xiaoren's cousin, Imperial Guard Brigade Leader Zhen Xun.

"Uncle, why did you summon me?"

"Xun'er! You've finally arrived!"

Mrs. Zhen grabbed him by the arm.

"Your cousin was beaten into this state! All four of his limbs are broken! You must stand up for him!"

Before Master Zhen could say anything, Mrs. Zhen was already crying her heart out as she lodged a complaint with Zhen Xun.

Master Zhen then recounted the whole story from beginning to end.

The more Zhen Xun listened, the tighter his brows drew, and his expression shifted unpredictably.

"Uncle, did you just say the person who injured my cousin was named Bai Yan?"

"That's right. I heard he's Ye Youcai's newly acknowledged son-in-law and also a member of the Imperial Guard. What is it? Do you know him, Xun'er?"

"Know him? How could I not?"

Zhen Xun let out a bitter laugh.

"Bai Yan is a newly promoted Captain Bai of the Imperial Guard."

"Although he's young, his strength is formidable. He has already broken through to the innate realm."

"Just today, he openly fought in the Pacification Bureau and severely injured another Captain Bai."

"Uncle, Aunt, we absolutely must not provoke this man!"

At the mention of Bai Yan, Zhen Xun's expression turned grave, his face filled with wariness.

By coincidence, Zhen Xun had also been present when Bai Yan clashed with Zhao Gaozhong that day, and he had personally witnessed Bai Yan cripple Zhao Gaozhong with a single palm strike.

Whenever he thought of Bai Yan's ruthless methods, Zhen Xun's heart pounded with fear.

"He openly fought in the Pacification Bureau?"

"He severely injured a Captain Bai?"

"How could this man be so outrageously bold?"

Upon hearing this, Master and Mrs. Zhen immediately went pale and were rendered speechless.

Compared with what Bai Yan had done in the Pacification Bureau, injuring their son seemed almost insignificant.

He even dared to strike a Captain Bai. What did the mere son of a wealthy merchant amount to?

"He injured a colleague in the Pacification Bureau. Didn't he receive any punishment?"

Master Zhen could not help asking.

He knew a thing or two about the Pacification Bureau's rules and was aware that fighting was strictly forbidden there, with violators certain to receive severe punishment.

Bai Yan had injured someone without being punished. Could it be that he had someone backing him?

Zhen Xun nodded.

"It is rumored that Captain Zheng Haihan thinks highly of Bai Yan and has been nurturing him."

"Not only is this man immensely powerful, but he also has a powerful background behind him."

"Uncle, Aunt, in my opinion, we absolutely must not provoke him."

"Although Cousin is seriously injured, at least his life is not in danger. That already means Bai Yan showed mercy."

"If we provoke him again, disaster may well come knocking."

Master Zhen's face darkened. He remained silent for a long while before finally letting out a helpless sigh.

"We can only let it go. The circumstances leave us no choice. What else can we do?"

After saying this, Master Zhen seemed to have aged ten years. His face was filled with the desolation and defeat of a weathered man.

"Master, you can't!"

When Mrs. Zhen saw that Master Zhen actually intended to abandon their revenge, she became frantic and stamped her feet as she shrieked.

"Our son was beaten into this state! How can we just let it go?"

Before she could finish, Master Zhen sharply cut her off.

"Shut up!"

"It's all because of you! If you hadn't spoiled him rotten, indulging him until he became lawless and never disciplining him properly, how would he have ended up like this?"

"We can't afford to provoke that man. We can only swallow this grievance and keep the peace!"

"If you still want our son to live in safety, then behave yourself and stop entertaining those crooked schemes!"

"If you bring down a great disaster, even I won't be able to save you!"

When beneath another's roof, one has no choice but to bow one's head.

Whether in strength or in backing, the Zhen family was no match for Bai Yan.

They had neither the moral high ground nor the advantage of power. Other than swallowing this grievance, the Zhen family had no other choice.

Master Zhen turned to Zhen Xun, his tone somewhat gentler.

"Xun'er, prepare ten thousand taels in silver notes tomorrow and personally deliver them to Bai Yan. Tell him that my Zhen family failed to teach our child properly, that the boy offended him, and that this old man deeply regrets it. Thank him for showing mercy."

"What? We still have to give him money?"

Mrs. Zhen suddenly scrambled up from the floor and stared at Master Zhen in disbelief.

"Have you grown so senile that you've lost your mind? Forget not avenging our son—you even want to send money to our enemy?"

"I told you to shut up!"

Master Zhen could bear it no longer. He raised his hand and slapped Mrs. Zhen across the face.

"Smack!"

The blow sent her sprawling to the floor. She was left dizzy and disoriented, thin streams of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.

"What do you know!"

Master Zhen's chest heaved violently as he pointed at her and cursed.

"I'm doing this for the Zhen family! For your son! What if Bai Yan only showed mercy on the surface but secretly intends to move against the Zhen family?!"

"I'm sending him a gift to completely dispel his anger! Once he accepts these ten thousand taels in silver notes, it means the matter is over. Only then can my Zhen family truly remain safe!"

"Do you understand now, you foolish woman?"

The more Master Zhen cursed, the angrier he became. At that moment, he truly regretted marrying this woman.

Not only was she jealous, she was also utterly thoughtless.

Aside from having some beauty in her youth and knowing a few vulgar charms, she had contributed nothing to the family or his affairs.

If he had not been young and foolish back then, falling for this woman's beauty trap and losing control long enough to cause a pregnancy, he would absolutely never have married her.

After casting Mrs. Zhen a cold glance, Master Zhen turned to Zhen Xun and instructed him.

"Xun'er, I'll leave this matter to you."

Zhen Xun cupped his hands.

"Uncle, rest assured. Bai Yan doesn't look like a narrow-minded, two-faced man. I imagine he should be willing to let this matter pass."

"That's for the best. That's for the best."

Upon hearing this, Master Zhen finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, he failed to notice that Mrs. Zhen, who had been slapped to the floor, was staring at his back with a poisonous, ghostlike gaze. The murderous intent roiling in her eyes was enough to make anyone's blood run cold.

The following morning, Bai Yan entered the Pacification Bureau's gates at a leisurely pace, chewing on a freshly baked sesame flatbread.

He had just stepped through the entrance when someone approached him head-on.

"Your subordinate Zhen Xun pays his respects to Captain Bai."

"Zhen Xun?"

Bai Yan took a bite of the flatbread. Upon hearing that surname, he instantly guessed the purpose of the other man's visit.

"You're here because of Zhen Xiaoren?"

"Yes. I am Zhen Xiaoren's cousin. My younger cousin was young and ignorant and offended Lord Bai. I've come to apologize on his behalf."

Zhen Xun held himself extremely low, behaving with utter respect.

"This is a token of apology from my uncle to Lord Bai. I hope you will accept it."

As he spoke, Zhen Xun handed over a box of osmanthus cakes.

But Bai Yan knew perfectly well that the so-called token of apology was certainly not merely one box of osmanthus cakes.

Bai Yan waved his hand with a smile.

"I've already decided not to pursue this matter. There's no need for any apology gift."

Zhen Xun hurriedly said, "It was entirely my younger cousin's fault for being reckless and ignorant. This gift was something my uncle repeatedly instructed me to deliver. Please be sure to accept it, my lord."

Seeing that he could not refuse, Bai Yan accepted the osmanthus cakes with an expression of reluctance.

"In that case, I'll accept it."

"Once your cousin has recovered, you must discipline him properly."

"Yongtang City is crawling with powerful figures. Don't think that having you to back him means he can act arrogantly and look down on everyone."

"It was fortunate that he offended me this time. If he offends someone with an even greater background next time, he may not live to see the next day."

"If he isn't careful, he could even bring disaster upon the entire family."

Zhen Xun bowed and respectfully replied, "You're right, my lord. I'll be sure to discipline him strictly when I return!"

"All right, you may go."

With that, Bai Yan nodded and swaggered toward the Captain Bai's office.

Watching Bai Yan's back, Zhen Xun finally breathed a sigh of relief. The great stone weighing on his heart had at last hit the ground.

Bai Yan's willingness to accept the apology gift meant that he would not pursue the matter any further. It was over.

As he walked, Bai Yan opened the box of osmanthus cakes. What greeted his eyes was a stack of silver notes.

Each silver note was worth one thousand taels, and there were ten in total.

"Ten thousand taels. These wealthy dogs really are generous."

Bai Yan happily tucked the silver notes into his robe.

Money that came knocking at his door was money he would be a fool not to accept.

Besides, he truly had no intention of pursuing the matter afterward. His heart was not that narrow.

After all, if he had a grudge, he took revenge on the spot. Who would play that "a gentleman's revenge may wait ten years" game?

Bai Yan could guarantee that after today, he would never lay another finger on Zhen Xiaoren.

As for Zhen Xiaoren dying someday in the future, that would have nothing to do with Bai Yan.