The Blessed Farm Girl Has a Spatial Storage-Chapter 345: Arriving in Suzhou

345 Arrival in Suzhou

Wei Zijian complained angrily, "His face didn’t look evil. He was just fat and clearly looked sick, so I approached him! Ah, and I’m a physician, not a swindler! And he claims he’s the second master of the Fei Clan. Well, I’m the third young master of the Wei family then."

Zhao Yue closed his fan and tapped his palm. "We were robbed on the river this time because that Young Mister Fei was making trouble, which delayed us. From the looks of it, none of those Fei Clan members are any good. With such wicked people, wouldn’t it be better if he just stayed sick? Ignore him."

Wei Zijian, however, was still very resentful. "But he hit me! Look, my stomach is all red from where he kicked me."

Zhao Yue tapped Wei Zijian’s head with his fan and chuckled. "When your master arrives, let her avenge you. For now, we need to find a way to get some money and fill our stomachs."

Wei Zijian thought this made a lot of sense and nodded in agreement.

Finally, after everyone put their heads together and brainstormed, they came up with an excellent way to earn money—street performing!

「—」

So, when Zhao Zhitong and Qiao Muchen arrived in Suzhou, they saw Zhao Yu and the others performing acrobatics on the streets.

Zhao Zhitong and Qiao Muchen stood in the crowd, watching Zhao Yu skillfully wield a broadsword while Zhao Yue boasted about his "iron head" stunt and breaking stones on his chest, all while holding out a bowl for money.

At that moment, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Hey, there’s fire-spitting over there!"

Instantly, the surrounding people rushed off to watch the fire-spitting.

Zhao Yue shouted in exasperation, "Hey, hey! You were just watching! You haven’t paid yet! Pay up before you go!"

Just then, DING! A crisp sound echoed as a piece of broken silver landed in the bowl. Zhao Yue was about to launch into a flowery speech of gratitude when he looked up and saw Qiao Muchen and Zhao Zhitong standing before him, struggling to suppress their laughter.

In an instant, Zhao Yue looked as if he had found his way home.

He was deeply moved. "Oh, my dear benefactors! You two have finally arrived! If you hadn’t come any sooner, we would have starved to death on these streets!"

Zhao Zhitong thought Zhao Yue was exaggerating; she hadn’t noticed him looking starved at all. In fact, she felt he looked even fatter than before.

Just then, Zhao Yu, Wei Shulan, and the others also spotted Zhao Zhitong. They immediately began packing up their stall and jogged over.

Wei Shulan exclaimed, "Tongtong, you’re finally here!"

Zhao Zhitong asked in surprise, "What happened? How did you all end up in such a sorry state?"

Zhao Yue sighed. "Ah, it’s a long story."

Qiao Muchen said flatly, "Then keep it short."

Zhao Yue feigned a broken heart. "You’re so heartless! We’re suffering so much, you know." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Qiao Muchen retorted, "Fine, don’t tell us then. I’ll ask Wei Shulan."

Zhao Yue quickly grabbed him. "No, no, no! I’ll talk, I’ll talk! So, we’d just entered the city when we ran into pickpockets..."

He then vividly recounted how they had lost their money pouch, how they had resorted to street performing, and how they had even competed with others for business, all of which made Zhao Zhitong chuckle.

Zhao Zhitong remarked, "I never imagined you all would have such an eventful time in just a few days."

Wei Shulan smiled. "You can say that again! It’s been quite an adventure. My skin has certainly gotten thicker through all this."

She continued, "But the most impressive one was Zhao Ya. She sold a piece of embroidery for five taels of silver, and that’s what saved us from sleeping on the streets."

Zhao Zhitong instantly beamed with pride. "Of course! Sister Yaya’s embroidery skills are exceptional. Selling it for only five taels was a bargain!"

Zhao Ya laughed shyly. "Little sister, you’re exaggerating."

At this moment, Wei Zijian ran over and began to complain, recounting how unreasonable Mr. Fei had been and how he had hit him.

"Master, you must avenge your disciple!" he pleaded.

They’d just entered Suzhou City and had already run into the Fei Clan again. It seemed likely they would have many more dealings with them in the future.

Zhao Zhitong comforted Wei Zijian, and then the group prepared to head back.

Qiao Muchen and Zhao Yue needed to report for their new positions.

So, they split into two groups: one headed to report for duty, while the other returned to the inn to pack their belongings and check out.

「—」

Qiao Muchen’s new appointment was as the Suzhou Judge. He would be a subordinate to high-ranking regional officials, such as military governors, surveillance commissioners, and defense commissioners, assisting them in managing governmental affairs.

Zhao Yue, on the other hand, was to be an assistant judge, serving as Qiao Muchen’s deputy.

Although their journey had been delayed, they hadn’t missed the deadline for reporting to their posts. The two of them went to pay their respects to the Military Governor of Suzhou.

There, they discovered that the Military Governor of Suzhou was an old acquaintance—Li Yu, a student of Song Renying.

They had met years ago during the suppression of the locust plague in Anyang County. Li Yu had been by Elder Song’s side at the entrance of the County Government Office and had consistently addressed Elder Song as ’Esteemed Teacher.’ Consequently, Qiao Muchen had a very vivid memory of him.

Although many years had passed, and Li Yu now looked more weathered and experienced, his facial features hadn’t changed much.

Upon hearing Qiao Muchen’s name, Li Yu recognized him immediately. This was mainly because Elder Song had praised Qiao Muchen highly, a fact Li Yu had always remembered.

Li Yu smiled and said, "My Esteemed Teacher sent a letter a few days ago, mentioning I would soon receive a capable assistant. I never expected it to be you! It seems I truly have gained a competent aide!"

At that moment, Qiao Muchen understood that his appointment as the Suzhou Judge was likely due to Elder Song’s influence.

Once they were officially instated, the two began to familiarize themselves with the work procedures under Li Yu’s guidance.

Meanwhile, Zhao Zhitong, along with Zhao Ya, Wei Shulan, and Yang Yunniang, first explored Suzhou City before returning to the inn to pack their things and check out.

Looking at the bustling streets, Zhao Zhitong couldn’t help but remark, "Suzhou is truly prosperous."

Zhao Ya nodded. "It is! Oh, Master, was Suzhou this bustling before?"

Yang Yunniang sighed wistfully. "Yes, it was. But it’s been several years, and so many places have changed that I barely recognize them. The transformation is immense."

Chatting among themselves, they hurried towards the inn.

However, just as they had packed their belongings, checked out of the inn, and were preparing to leave, their path was suddenly blocked.

"My lord, that’s her! I bought this embroidery from her!" a woman cried out, pointing at Zhao Ya.

Following the voice, they saw a portly, middle-aged man accompanied by a group of thugs blocking the inn’s entrance. The woman who had spoken stood beside him, still pointing at Zhao Ya.

Zhao Zhitong quickly surmised the situation: the woman must have bought the embroidery from Zhao Ya, and somehow this portly man had seen it and tracked them down. But judging by the thugs he had brought with him, it didn’t seem like he was here to purchase embroidery from Zhao Ya; rather, he looked like he was looking for trouble.

Sure enough, they heard the portly man shout, "Men, seize this insolent little wench who doesn’t know her place and dared to steal my Fei Family’s needle skills!"

Zhao Zhitong’s expression turned cold. She immediately pulled Zhao Ya behind her and said sharply, "Hold on! On what grounds are you seizing her? Do you have any evidence?"

At that moment, Wei Zijian sidled up, whispering pitifully, "Master, that’s him! That’s Mr. Fei! I treated his illness, and not only did he refuse to pay the consultation fee, but he also hit me!"