Being an emperor is not something he can do, so he can only rely on his connections.

After embarking on the return journey, Mu Tou seemed troubled and frowned the entire time. Finally, unable to suppress his inner doubts and dissatisfaction, he asked the young master beside him, "Young Master, did you really give a full two hundred taels of silver to those scoundrels so easily? I really can't understand it, and I feel extremely unwilling to accept it!"

Zhang Jingwei, however, had a nonchalant expression, his lips curled up slightly as he replied nonchalantly, "Wood, many things in this world can't be measured simply by whether you're willing or not. Don't worry, there will be plenty of opportunities to make them suffer in the future."

Mu Tou's eyes widened, and he shouted in disbelief, "But, that's a full two hundred taels! With my worth, that amount of money could buy a hundred people like me!"

Faced with Mu Tou's excited reaction, Zhang Jingwei simply smiled and reassured him, "Just be patient and calm down. Believe me, before tomorrow, we'll hear good and satisfying news."

After hearing this, Mu Tou felt that the young master was deliberately keeping him in suspense, and a trace of anger rose in his heart. He raised the whip in his hand angrily and lashed it at the donkey's butt under Zhang Jingwei's crotch.

Zhang Jingwei was startled by the sudden whip and shouted, "Ouch! Slow down! Don't go so fast, or you'll fall!"

However, by this time, Mu Tou had already stopped caring about anything else and was running as fast as he could. He was running so fast, even faster than the donkey. From a distance, the whole scene looked extremely strange - as if it was not the donkey carrying the people, but Mu Tou who was struggling to drag the donkey along.

In this way, the master and servant rushed towards Yunzhou City at lightning speed. Despite their speed, it was already dark when they arrived at Yunzhou City, and the city gates had long been closed and a curfew was in effect.

With no other choice, the two could only find a place on the outskirts of the city to rest for the night.

……

This time, the Tian family brought two families to the party, each driving two ox carts. Along the way, the dust flew up and the wheels clattered.

Mrs. Tian, ​​who was sitting in one of the ox carts, looked at the scenery along the way, and couldn't help feeling a little longing in her heart: "Head of the family, we finally have some money now, and our lives are much more comfortable than before. Why don't we learn from my eldest brother and his wife and move to the city to live." There was a glimmer of anticipation in her eyes, and she seemed to be imagining the prosperous and lively life scenes in the city.

After hearing this, the man from the Tian family frowned and said, "Why are you so confused, wife? What would happen if others knew that our family is rich? Especially those poor relatives, they would come to us like cats smelling blood to borrow money! Then, we won't be able to live a peaceful life!" As he spoke, he waved his hands, as if a group of poor relatives were already rushing towards him.

Mrs. Tian thought about it and felt that what her husband said made sense, but she was a little unwilling: "But there are so many people going to the Yang family today, I'm afraid this matter can't be kept secret. When we return to the village and everyone spreads it, won't everyone know it?" She looked ahead worriedly, muttering to herself.

The man from the Tian family slapped his thigh and said, "Oh! My wife is really thoughtful. In this case, we have to think of a solution quickly. Let's go and find my cousin first!" After that, he raised the whip in his hand and urged the old cow to speed up.

At this moment, the old man on the ox cart behind shouted loudly: "Third brother, why don't you go back to the village?" It turned out that this old man was the fifth uncle of the man from the Tian family.

The Tian family man quickly turned around and said, "Fifth Uncle, I have something urgent to do and need to go to the military camp to find my brother. Why don't you and the others go back to the village first?"

However, Uncle Wu was suspicious and thought to himself, "Could it be that this Third Brother wants to keep the two hundred taels of silver for himself?" So he turned to look at his son sitting next to him and whispered, "No, son, we have to follow and see what's going on."

Tianjia Village and Yuquan Township are less than 20 miles apart, and the road is easy to travel on. Even with an ox cart, it takes half an hour to get there. However, the third son of the Tian family and his wife changed their route and went to Bingtun. Bingtun was not far away, but there was no road leading to Tianjia Village, so they had to return to the main road.

……

In this military settlement, the supply of soldiers is scarce, the military farms are scattered, and the captains here generally don't like to take charge of things. Now that the chess and card officers have also left their official positions, they have simply become hands-off managers, handing the military settlement over to their general flag officers. Therefore, in this military settlement, these flag officers are the bosses.

A soldier hurried over to Tian Xiaoqi, bowed, and reported, "Tian Xiaoqi, someone is looking for you outside. They say it's your brother, Tian Shou."

Tian Xiaoqi frowned slightly, a hint of displeasure showing on his face, and responded impatiently: "How many times have I told you, now that I am an official, you must call me Sir when you see me from now on!"

The soldier hurriedly nodded and bowed, and replied with great trepidation, "Yes, sir! I will remember this. Please be magnanimous and don't argue with me."

Tian Xiaoqi snorted lightly and waved his hand, saying, "Forget it, since it's my brother who came to look for me, bring him in quickly."

The soldier took his orders and trotted all the way to the camp gate. At that moment, the Tian family members were standing there, shivering in the cold autumn wind. A soldier walked out of the gate, glanced around, and asked loudly, "Who is Tian Shou?"

Tian Shou quickly took a step forward and replied, "It's me, little brother. I wonder how your lord would respond?"

The soldier replied expressionlessly, "My Lord has ordered me to bring you in alone."

Hearing this, Uncle Tian's fifth uncle immediately became anxious and shouted, "How can this be? We are a family, why can't you let us go in together?"

The soldier's eyes grew cold, and he held his spear in his hand. He shouted sternly, "How can you disobey the Lord's orders? The Lord has only allowed him in alone. If you dare take another step forward, don't blame me for being ruthless and killing you!"

The remaining few people in the Tian family wilted on the spot.

Tian Shou followed the hurried footsteps of the soldier in front of him all the way. There were only sparse tents and a few idle soldiers along the way. Finally, he came to a relatively quiet tent and met his cousin.

Tian Shou excitedly shouted, "Acai!" However, before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Tian Xiaoqi. Tian Xiaoqi said seriously, "Third brother, this is the army. You must not be so casual. You must call me sir!"

Tian Shou was slightly stunned, but quickly reacted and smiled, saying, "Master Tian, ​​it's really not easy to see you." Tian Xiaoqi frowned and replied impatiently, "Third brother, if you have anything to say, just say it directly. Don't beat around the bush."

Tian Shou chuckled, stepped forward and lowered his voice and said, "Acai... Oh no, Lord Tian, ​​I have a good news for you. Didn't your eldest brother hang himself a few days ago? His daughter-in-law and nephew have divorced, and I extorted a full two hundred taels of silver from the Yang family today!" After saying that, he raised his eyebrows complacently.

Tian Xiaoqi's eyes widened after hearing this, and he exclaimed in disbelief, "Two hundred taels! So much? It's almost as much as my salary for ten years!" Tian Shou nodded quickly, patting his chest and guaranteeing, "It's absolutely true!"