Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 48 The Zhong Family Brothers and Sisters
Aisha sat in the Huji restaurant, put down the Qiamagu mutton soup she had only taken two sips of, and frowned. "Tsk, it's unpalatable. Why is this restaurant so highly praised? There's really not a single dish that suits my taste."

Badan returned and, as usual, ate the table full of leftovers with a slurp of food. He then reported, "Young Master, those two children surnamed Zhong are still hanging around the Tan family all day."

"They are so persistent. Do they really want to repay me?"

"The border was in chaos, and the two children had no protection, so they had a hard time making a living. I guess they thought of the young master as a supporter. Zhong Ming was very clever, gathering information while working. In the end, he didn't want to sell his sister to the Tan family as a maid, so he just let her work as a helper for a vendor selling candied haws and toys, which was also a way to make a living."

"I rescued this kid, and I didn't expect he'd be so useful," Aisha said. "Well, let him get busy. If he does find out anything about Alan, I'll give him a bigger reward. But we still have to be careful about our identities and whereabouts. Don't let him reveal them, or else we'll get into trouble. Those assassins are like hungry wolves, they'll come after anything they smell."

"Right now, the boy seems to be keeping his mouth shut and not rushing into anything. We can let him try again."

"Ah."

Aisha originally didn't expect the two children to be of any help, but out of gratitude for their kindness, he let them do whatever they wanted. As for the princess who was suspected of being sold into the Tan family as a maid, he would find an opportunity to investigate.

Yet, a lingering suspicion lingered within him. The Tan family wasn't exactly a heavily guarded place, so why hadn't Ah Lan attempted to reach him with any information? Was she feeling she wasn't out of danger yet, and therefore hesitant to act rashly? Or was she hiding something? Or perhaps she didn't know how to contact him?

She was his biological sister, the Princess Mohe, entrusted with the important task of marrying into a foreign alliance. How could he turn a blind eye and stand idly by at the slightest sign of trouble? He and Badan had secretly observed the Tan household for days, scrutinizing every maidservant who came in and out, especially those who served Tan Anfu, but they hadn't spotted any sign of Alan. Surely a good person wouldn't vanish into thin air?

Aisha could only think of two possibilities: one was that the Tan family had hidden her away for some purpose, imprisoned her at home and not allowed to show her face; the other was that Alan was no longer with the Tan family and had been sent somewhere else. In any case, they needed to continue searching for other clues to confirm what had happened to Alan.

Taking out the sapphire bracelet from her bosom, Aisha turned the beads in her hand and asked Badan, "How is the gambling son of the Tan family doing?"

Badan replied, "We've figured it all out: the times he goes to the gambling house, his betting preferences, when he's most in need of money, and when he becomes compulsive. Young Master, are you planning to take action against him?"

Aisha stared at the crystal-clear sapphire and said, "It's no use just waiting outside. We have to go inside the Tan family and look for it."
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The Tan family's servant accepted the Zhiyun paper and asked Zhongming to wait at the door. After a while, he came back with a message: "Madam Fu said that the cloth shop owner is becoming more and more ignorant of the rules. Tell her not to just send the paper next time, but also send new cloth together. Do you understand?"

Zhong Ming thought to himself, it was just as the boss said, he had to show off in front of him.

He put on a dull look, scratched his head and said, "I, I'm just an errand boy. How would I know what new cloth is or old cloth? If you have anything to say, go and tell the shopkeeper yourself. Let me tell you to give me money."

The servant cursed, "Hey, you little bastard, you're trying to blackmail me?"

"How can I be blackmailing you? I'm not a clerk in a cloth shop. Everyone in Yunhexiangjie knows me as 'Speedy Little Ming'. For this trip, the cloth shop owner will give me two cents. If I go to ten shops in a row, he'll give me two more. You keep asking me to deliver messages for cloth. How much silver do you plan to pay me?"

"I...you...where did you come from, you little rascal? Get out of here, get back to where you came from!"

Zhong Ming didn't get angry, he just made a face and ran away.

He went back to find Shopkeeper Du to collect the reward for the errand. He also conveyed the servant's words and said in a docile way, "The boss is really so predictable. He even thought of my reply."

Shopkeeper Du was quite fond of the boy. As he calculated the accounts, he said with a smile, "Don't underestimate our boss's young age; he's very experienced in his ways. If our shop were still in the hands of the Tan family, it would have closed down sooner or later. Fortunately, it has become the boss's property, and it will surely prosper in the future. Let's just wait and see how much money we make."

"How did this shop end up in the hands of the owner? Did she buy it?" Zhong Ming asked curiously. "That's not the case." After finishing the accounts, Shopkeeper Du handed him the reward. "The owner is Mr. Tan's youngest daughter, who was raised in the countryside. Mr. Tan gave her our shop as a dowry."

"Dowry? The boss is already married?"

"Hey, this is a complicated story, and you little kids wouldn't understand it." Shopkeeper Du instructed, "Little quick-legged Ming, keep the money safe. Remember, don't show off your wealth."

Zhong Ming put the silver and money in his belt, arms and shoes, then bought two hot Hu cakes, returned to the shabby shack in the north of the city, and shared them with his sister.

Zhong Yun ate with his mouth full of oil: "It's delicious, brother, did you make a lot of money today?"

Zhong Ming smiled and said, "Not bad, just enjoy your meal."

"Brother, you must be very tired after running a lot of distance, right?"

"Not tired at all. Shopkeeper Du takes good care of us. He lets me go to places not far away and pays me generously."

"That's good, hehe."

Seeing that his sister had almost finished eating, Zhong Ming asked, "Have you seen any new maids from the Tan family today?"

Zhong Yun shook her head. "No, Uncle Zhang was selling rattles on that street. I followed him for a day and saw Madam Fu go out to buy rouge, accompanied by two maids." She chewed the Hu Bing and swallowed it. "I looked carefully and saw that it was the same two I've seen before. No strangers who looked like people from the Western Territory."

"It's okay, just watch casually. We're just putting on an act for that Mohe nobleman to see."

"Just for show?"

"Well, that man said he didn't need us, but he still sent people to keep an eye on what we were doing. I've seen that big guy several times, which means he tacitly approves of what we're doing."

"Brother, should we continue to work for that person? Should we repay him for his kindness?"

"Repaying a favor is just a nice excuse. We're just looking for support." Zhong Ming wiped his sister's greasy mouth and said, "That man killed a trafficker, but he's still so fearless. He must be someone extraordinary. If we act smart and loyal, we can help him. Not only will we get a reward, but we might even be recruited by him, and our lives will be better in the future."

"Really? But that person looks a bit scary..."

"Well, I also think it might be dangerous around him, otherwise he wouldn't have been so secretive." Zhong Ming looked up at the leaky shack and encouraged himself, "But we can still try our luck and help him find someone first, but there's no need to rely on him alone. Always doing these opportunistic things is not a solution. We are both too young and easy to be bullied. If we want to survive on the border, we still have to find a good way."

"What kind of connection is considered a good one?"

"What a great connection... Oh, for example, I ran into the owner of Zhiyun Cloth Workshop today. She's Mr. Tan's youngest daughter, raised in the countryside. She's already married. She's so beautiful and capable, and much kinder than her brothers and sisters..."
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　Next chapter: Are you our good contact?

　　
　
(End of this chapter)