https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-309-The-Hall-Official-s-Family-Legacy/12918562/
Chapter 310: Plum Blossom Lane
Chapter 310: Plum Blossom Lane
Long before Hu Ma began to understand these matters, early one morning, Plum Blossom Lane in Mingzhou City was bustling with activity.
Plum Blossom Lane was just a small alley located in the western part of Mingzhou City, with only seven or eight households on either side.
These seven or eight households were all quite wealthy, with businesses spread throughout the city, but they rarely showed their faces. Instead, they employed a group of specialized servants and managers to manage their properties, while their own children stayed indoors, uninvolved in worldly affairs.
Every day, they merely studied, taught their children, practiced arts, and cultivated themselves, as if they lived in a small, secluded world behind closed doors.
Occasionally, they would interact with people from the Mingzhou government office, but they mostly kept a low profile and remained unknown to most.
However, in the entire Mingzhou City, when people mentioned Plum Blossom Lane, they were actually referring specifically to one family—the family of Master Mei, whose pawnshop was located at the front, and behind which was a small courtyard where they lived.
This pawnshop was different from others; it never accepted poor people's cotton-padded jackets and pants, nor did it deal in gold, silverware, antiques, or paintings. It occasionally took in old items.
And they only accepted dead pledges, not live ones.
The items they took in were peculiar—memorial tablets, incense burners, copper coins, broken bowls, and even some funerary objects. But once placed in this pawnshop, they never lacked buyers. From time to time, people would come and pawn broken bowls or incense burners at prices that ordinary people couldn't imagine.
There were even those who offered high prices to have the pawnshop help them update their family genealogy or engrave memorial tablets.
The prices were ridiculously high, but it was said that doing so would ensure peace and ward off malevolent spirits.
Most of the time, when visitors came, they had to enter the pawnshop first, state their purpose, and most of them didn't need to go into the small courtyard behind. Their matters were resolved in the pawnshop itself.
However, on this particular morning, someone hurriedly pushed a roofless carriage into the lane, knocking on the door frantically, causing a series of noises that disturbed the lane's tranquility.
After a while, a young servant in a green robe opened the door, frowning and about to scold them.
"Where is the master?"
The knocking black-robed mage hurriedly said, "Quickly, I have an urgent matter."
Seeing that it was him, the young servant couldn't scold him. The gate opened, allowing these people into the courtyard.
The small courtyard wasn't large, but it was elegantly designed with a rockery and flowing water.
An elderly man in a white inner robe sat in a rattan chair, sipping tea and fanning himself with a palm fan. Next to him was an ancient well with a pair of goldfish, one red and one blue, swimming in the dark water.
From time to time, he pinched a red, grain-like object and dropped it into the well, watching the fish compete for food.
Upon seeing the black-robed mage enter, he didn't speak but continued fanning himself. The mage hurriedly knelt down and said, "Master, something has happened."
He seemed afraid of being scolded and quickly continued, "It's the son-in-law of the Huai'an Wei family, surnamed Zheng. He is originally from our Mingzhou City, and he once passed the scholar exam. Later, he was chosen by the fourth branch of the Wei family to become a son-in-law."
"This time, he returned to bring his ancestors' memorial tablet, but unexpectedly, he was possessed by a malevolent spirit from the village. My abilities are insufficient, so I can only ask you to take a look..."
"The Wei family..."
The old master slowly raised his head and glanced at the roofless carriage surrounded by people behind him, his expression turning grim. "If it were just an ordinary malevolent spirit, you wouldn't need to come to me. But if it's a troublesome matter, remember that we are the Fragrance Hall, and we only distribute blood offerings to the elders..."
"Please, master, save his life..."
Hearing his words, the Wei family's servant immediately knelt down. "My master's life is in danger, we're desperate!"
The old master didn't respond to the servant but instead frowned.
The black-robed mage also hurriedly said, "Master, the malevolent spirit isn't powerful, and I can handle it. But something went wrong."
"Last night, I wanted to help him, but I encountered a strange junior magistrate..."
"I remembered your instructions and didn't provoke him."
"..."
"Hmm?"
Hearing this, the old master slightly straightened up and said in a low voice, "What did he look like?"
The black-robed mage hesitated, then hurriedly described Seventh Auntie's appearance, emphasizing the unusual procession.
He was actually afraid that he had misjudged and been fooled, but he didn't expect that after hearing his detailed description, the old master would take a deep breath and look at him with a serious expression. "You didn't provoke him, and that was the right thing to do."
"Your abilities are limited, and you don't know about the matters of Mingzhou. The situation here is more complex than you think."
"As early as last winter, I was no longer the only junior magistrate in Mingzhou."
"..."
"Ah?"
The black-robed judge was taken aback and said, "Then who came? I didn't hear any noise. Which department or hall was it from?"
"..."
The old master sighed and didn't answer. Instead, he waved his hand and said, "Bring the person here for me to see."
The others hurriedly pushed the carriage over, and the old master took a brief glance at the nobleman, who had a dazed expression, and his face also showed a hint of worry.
"My master has only been possessed by a malevolent spirit. We just need to exorcise it, but last night, I don't know what happened, but it's as if something is blocking the way, not allowing us to save him."
The old servant, who had been anxious all night, now in the city, clearly carried a hint of complaint. He bowed again to the elderly man from Plum Blossom Lane and said, "I beg the old master to save my master. Could it be that even in Mingzhou City, there is no longer any order?"
"You are a hall official, specifically in charge of these malevolent spirits. Could it be that you really want to watch as my master is harmed by the spirit?"
"..."
The elderly man, his face full of wrinkles and wearing a white inner robe, simply looked at the nobleman in the carriage.
He saw that the nobleman had been plagued by malevolent spirits for a long time. By now, his face had already turned pale, his eyes were wide open, and he would laugh maniacally at times, cry in pain, and then suddenly start singing.
"Bring me the brush and ink!"
The old man didn't rush to say anything. He picked up the brush and ink and drew a few strokes on the nobleman's forehead, faintly outlining the shape of a simple talisman.
The noble lord suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze slightly clearer, quickly displaying an expression of anxiety and fear. But before he could even open his mouth to say something, he suddenly closed his eyes again and fell into a deep sleep.
Only then did the old man turn to look at the servant, shaking his head slowly. "Although I am only in charge of incense distribution, I am not afraid of them. It's just that you still don't know that Mingzhou City is no longer the same as before."
"Last year, there was a disturbance caused by the Green Robe Brotherhood, but a master came and slew the malevolent spirit, establishing order. Since then, who would dare to cause trouble again?"
"..."
Of course, he understood that slaying the Green Robe wasn't a big deal.
Everyone knew that the Green Robe was working for the noble Meng family. To dare to kill the Green Robe and then scare the Meng family's noble into leaving without even setting up a procession was truly frightening.
However, he naturally wouldn't mention this to a servant of the Wei family, to avoid inadvertently inviting trouble.
Sighing softly, he glanced at the Black Robe Mage kneeling beside him, seemingly reproachful, and shook his head. "As for the hall official you encountered, someone had already noticed him earlier, but no one knows his background or true intentions..."
"Now that he has revealed himself, he must be the one who was sealed."
"And that noble, who knows how long he has been hiding in Mingzhou City without getting involved in anything, but now he suddenly sends someone to stop us from saving your master. What are we supposed to do?"
The old man's face grew increasingly worried as he sighed. "If we get involved, aren't we just asking for trouble?"
"This... this..."
The old servant was already sweating with anxiety, his expression incredulous. After a long while, he suddenly raised his head and looked at the old man with a hint of disrespect. "Is the Wei family's son-in-law going to be killed by a vengeful spirit right here in Mingzhou City?"
Hearing this, the elderly man from Plum Blossom Lane slowly shook his head and sighed. "Everyone has their fate..."
"Do imperial kin never die from illness?"
"..."
Upon hearing these words, not only was the old servant surprised, but even the Black Robe Mage was taken aback.
The previous night, he had encountered that strange hall official, sensing something amiss. So, he had wisely returned.
He had thought that if he couldn't handle it, his master would surely have a solution.
But who would have thought that his master, who had always been kind and had especially good relations with the aristocratic families and government offices, would be so resolute and cold this time.
The nobleman was indeed plagued by malevolent spirits, which was a difficult situation. But he believed that his master would have a solution. Yet, to his surprise, his master didn't want to get involved and even spoke such obvious words of refusal, saying that everyone had their fate?
The atmosphere became tense after these words.
Amid the silence, the old servant stood there, seemingly deep in thought. Suddenly, he clenched his teeth and said in a low voice, "The son-in-law cannot die!"
Everyone around him was startled and looked at him, their eyes already showing displeasure.
As a servant, even if he was from the Wei family, saying such words without warning was disrespectful.
"The son-in-law cannot die."
But this old servant seemed unaware of the dissatisfaction in the eyes around him. His expression turned solemn as he said in a low voice, "Perhaps the hall official doesn't know that my son-in-law didn't just come back to clean the ancestral home and pay respects to his parents. Actually..."
He seemed to be under some pressure, as if he was touching upon some secret matter.
After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Actually, he came to retrieve the ancestral memorial tablet and then head to Huai'an Prefecture to assume his official position."
"The Wei family has arranged for him to become the county magistrate of Li Yuan County in Huai'an Prefecture. The date has been set, and he is to go and assume his duties. How can this matter be resolved now that he has suddenly been plagued by malevolent spirits?"
"..."
"What?"
Upon hearing this, the old man's face changed slightly, looking at him in disbelief.
(End of Chapter)
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