In the small courtyard, Lin Ze didn't rush outside. Instead, he took out the cameras he'd set up earlier and began reviewing the footage.
As it turned out, the servants had been very well-behaved.
Perhaps it was also because Lin Ze could arrange jobs for their families.
In any case, while he'd been busy transporting the fish back to the Main World, none of the servants had tried to sneak into the courtyard to spy.
Otherwise, Lin Ze would have had to arrange for some servants who'd seen things they shouldn't to die of illness.
After leaving the courtyard, Lin Ze locked the side room from the outside.
There was nothing important in the room at the moment, but Lin Ze had left a camera there to record whether any servants broke the rules that night.
It was already late. Stars twinkled in the sky alongside the silver moon.
"My lord, are you finished?"
Shitou and Houzi, who had been standing guard at the courtyard entrance, asked excitedly.
"Mm. The materials have been roughly processed. Tomorrow, I just need to take care of a few crucial steps."
Lin Ze spoke calmly, his tone even.
It wasn't that he needed to explain anything to the servants. He was simply laying the groundwork for why he might disappear for a while tomorrow when he went back to the Main World to sell the fish.
"Has anything happened at home these past few days?"
As he headed toward the dining room, Lin Ze asked the two family attendants following him.
"Bandeng came back with a report yesterday afternoon. The buildings planned for the coal mine have been mostly completed. The master craftsmen, Hutou, and Ergou are at the construction site waiting for you to inspect it and settle the remaining payment."
Shitou reported.
The coal mine had indeed been scheduled for completion yesterday, but Lin Ze had been busy with matters in the Main World these past two days, so he'd been delayed by a day.
"The matchmaker, Wang Po, has prepared all the auspicious gifts needed for the proposal. She came by earlier to report that once you returned, my lord, you could pick a day and go with her to make the proposal."
Houzi chimed in from the other side.
That had also been delayed, but some things were more urgent than others.
Clearly, the matters that needed dealing with in the Main World took priority.
After hearing the two attendants' reports, Lin Ze didn't say much.
He went to the dining room first and ate dinner with several maids attending him.
In a feudal society with strict social ranks, if the master of the household didn't eat, the servants couldn't eat either.
As someone with a great deal of empathy, Lin Ze couldn't possibly make everyone go hungry for no reason.
After dinner, Lin Ze bathed, changed clothes, and went to the study to write at a furious pace.
"Shitou, take my letter to the County Government Office and deliver it to Magistrate Li."
As he spoke, Lin Ze handed the letter he'd just finished writing and stamped with his personal seal to Shitou, who had only recently eaten.
The letter didn't contain anything special. It simply invited Li He to join him in inspecting the coal mine tomorrow at noon.
"Yes, sir."
Shitou stepped forward, took the letter, and hurried out.
"Houzi, go to East City Gao Family Lane Gao Residence and deliver a letter to Registrar Gao Fei."
"Xiao Wu, go to South City Sweet Water Lane Liu Residence and deliver a letter to County Deputy Lord Liu."
Lin Ze continued giving orders. The letters' contents were much the same as the one for Li He: an invitation to inspect the coal mine together tomorrow at noon.
The two attendants accepted their orders and left.
After taking care of those matters, Lin Ze sipped his tea and said to another sturdy woman, "Zhang Shi, go to Wang Po's house and tell her to set the proposal for the next auspicious day."
The final work on the coal mine buildings had delayed the proposal.
He'd told people he'd gone back to the mountains because something had come up, so those involved could understand. But now that he was back, he naturally had to give them a clear answer.
Sending word to the matchmaker about the proposal date showed that Lin Ze hadn't changed his mind and that the marriage talks could continue.
If he kept putting off a reply, that would be far too inconsiderate.
"All right, my lord. I'll go right away."
The sturdy woman, who was in her forties, accepted the order and headed out on the errand.
After taking care of everything, Lin Ze went straight to bed.
Early the next morning, he finished his morning exercises.
After breakfast, Lin Ze went straight into the secluded courtyard, pretending to be making MSG.
In reality, he checked the camera footage. Once he'd confirmed that no servants had tried to enter the courtyard the previous night, he opened the Gates to Heavens and returned to the Main World.
It was seven in the morning.
As soon as Lin Ze turned on his phone, he saw a message from Ji Shuqing.
She'd sent it at six that morning.
"Hello, I'm at the Jiangzhou District docks now. Please send me the exact pickup address when you see this."
Lin Ze sent her a location pin and replied, "You're up early. I thought it'd be a while before you got to Jiangzhou."
Ji Shuqing replied instantly: "When I got your message yesterday, I came over overnight. I also contacted some other buyers for you. I'll call them over after I finish picking out the fish. See you soon."
Lin Ze sent one last message: "Okay, no problem. They're all top-quality large yellow croakers."
While they were chatting, Lin Ze checked on the fish in his warehouse. For now, they were all still lively and kicking.
They had food, water, and aeration. There was no reason for them to suddenly die.
After they finished chatting, Lin Ze had just opened the warehouse doors and laid out the electronic scale and other tools for selling fish when a truck specially modified for transporting fish pulled up outside.
Ji Shuqing had dressed simply, in a black blouse and fitted black trousers. As soon as she jumped down from the truck, her whole body froze as if struck by lightning.
At the warehouse entrance stood a young man in a fitted black robe in an ancient style. He looked so familiar.
Wasn't he the young man she'd tried approaching at the airport for the first time, only to suffer a crushing defeat? What was he doing here?
Ji Shuqing had already guessed the answer, but she was somewhat unwilling to face it. She pulled out her phone and dialed the number she'd gotten from Lin Ze through his Flying Bear Chat alt account.
"Hello, this is Lin Ze. My friend just brought the large yellow croakers back yesterday. You got here really fast. Come over and pick out some fish."
Lin Ze silenced his phone and greeted Ji Shuqing with a smile.
Seeing Lin Ze looking as composed as ever, as though nothing had happened between them before, Ji Shuqing felt much less awkward.
"Hello, I'm Ji Shuqing, a buyer for Ji Family Cuisine in Shenjing City."
She showed the poise she'd developed over the past two years at work and acted as if nothing was amiss. "I've bought large yellow croakers in Jiangzhou quite a few times. They're usually shipped out from this area of the docks, so I came prepared. As soon as you contacted me, I headed over."
As she spoke, Ji Shuqing couldn't help regretting her choice.
She'd deliberately picked a simple outfit that was easy to move around in for buying the fish today, but she hadn't expected to run into the young man she'd thought she'd missed her chance with.
She'd barely put on any makeup. She wondered whether she'd leave a bad impression on him.
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