Chapter 400

Chapter 400 The Mysterious Owner of the Ruby

If he was just an ordinary maid, he might have believed the two court runners’ words. If a maid failed to get any information from the Yamen but accidentally got information from somewhere else, she would definitely take the news for real and tell her Master in a hurry.

But he was not an ordinary maid!

“Tell me about it!” Qu Moying smiled. She had been expecting a loophole in this matter. If there was no loophole, she would have to go to court.

The second branch of the Ji Family was behind this matter. It seemed that they didn’t want to go to court either.

If they went to court, more people would know about this matter, making it more likely to be a suspicious case. It would be good for both parties if this thing could be settled in private before going to court.

As for the other party’s tough attitude, it was just for show.

Qu Moying could now basically confirm her guess. She was uncertain before, but she could confirm it now.

“Those two court runners’ voices were neither high nor low, but they deliberately mentioned Yue’s Gold Pavilion. They acted furtively. It was obvious that they wanted to say something, but they didn’t want others to hear. However, it was natural for a maid to stop and listen to their conversation after hearing them mention Yue’s Gold Pavilion. After all, I didn’t get any news from Yamen before. I might hope to get some unexpected news from them.”

Seeing Qu Moying’s expression, Yu Dong felt more at ease. He no longer hesitated and even analyzed the matter, “They mentioned an address. They said that the plaintiff is living over there. He is said to be a big merchant from the North. He is very wealthy and generous.”

“He is from the North?” Qu Moying raised her eyebrows. She really felt surprised this time.

“How could Xiao get hold of a merchant from the North? Where exactly did he come from in the North? Is he from the northernmost place or just a place farther north than us? This is totally different.”

Yu Dong said, “Yes. He is said to be from the North. It sounded like he had a strong background. But I didn’t hear the specific details!”

The address that the two court runners mentioned was not far away. It was a place not far from Yue’s Gold Pavilion. Qu Moying failed to find the plaintiff after spending some effort, but she didn’t expect that he lived not far away from her.

“You go there and take a look later.” After thinking it through, Qu Moying made a decision in her heart. “Just act like an ordinary maid who tries to find out the truth.”

Acting like an ordinary maid meant that Yu Dong should hide casually and be discovered by others. He should act like he didn’t notice others, and he couldn’t use his secret guards.

Now that the bait was released, Qu Moying thought she should bite it first and wait for the other party’s next move.

Yu Dong immediately understood that this was the best way not to expose themselves. “Lady, I will go and check it out later.”

Since Yu Dong was going there like an ordinary maid, he might not necessarily be able to find anything. Since someone led him there on purpose, what he would see might be what others wanted him to see. But Yu Dong didn’t mind because he believed that he could see what others couldn’t see.

He was prepared and was not afraid of what those people would show him.

At noon, Yu Dong left Qu Mansion and went straight to Yue’s Gold Pavilion. After walking around Yue’s Gold Pavilion, he went to the address mentioned by the court runners.

After turning two streets, he saw a large yard. Outside the yard, there was only a door plate with “Zhao Mansion” hanging above the door. It looked very simple and did not look like a big family.

However, such a big yard was not a place an ordinary person could afford.

Yu Dong looked over at the door. There was no one. The door was tightly closed, and no one entered.

Yu Dong rolled his eyes and went to a small bun shop opposite Zhao Mansion. He ordered a bowl of tofu curd and two steamed buns for lunch. They were simple but adequate.

The business of the bun shop was not bad. It was full of people. Yu Dong ate slowly with his eyes fixed on Zhao Mansion across the street.

Finally, when he finished eating the two buns and began to drink the tofu curd, Zhao Mansion’s side door opened, and carriages came out from the mansion one after another. Each carriage seemed to be filled with goods, and each of them was pulled by a man in front and pushed by a man behind, but it still moved slowly.

The noise over there was quite loud, attracting the attention of the people in the bun shop.

Someone sighed, “Is Zhao Mansion transporting goods again?”

“Yes. Although its Master has just arrived in the capital, he doesn’t seem to be an ordinary merchant. I heard from the people in their mansion that he is going to open a few big shops in the capital.” Someone answered. People who had lunch in this bun shop were mostly regular customers. They had seen such a scene several times in the past few days.

They saw it when they looked up in the past few days. Besides, the Master of Zhao Mansion was a newcomer to the capital, so there were many discussions about him.

Yu Dong asked curiously as he pointed to Zhao Mansion, “What does the Master of Zhao Mansion do for a living?”

Someone answered Yu Dong, “I heard that he is a big merchant from the North. I don’t know what specific business he is doing. But he is really rich. These goods don’t seem to be ordinary ones. I heard that they are worth a lot of money.”

“That’s right. I heard that the ancestors of this family served as an official in the prime of the previous dynasty. However, this family declined afterward. Even so, it is still a big family because it has a solid foundation. An ordinary family can’t compare with it. I’m afraid that even many aristocratic families in the capital can’t compare with it.”

Another person shook his head and sighed.

Yu Dong also sighed. “It seems that the Master of this mansion is really capable. I wonder what kind of person he is?”

“There are two Masters. They are a pair of siblings, a brother and a younger sister. I have never seen the young lady, but I have seen the young master. He is young and handsome.” The one who answered this time was the owner of the bun shop. He seemed interested in this topic, and he answered with a smile.

He had been here for the longest time, and of course, he had seen the most.

More and more people were interested. “Is he that handsome? Is he married?”

The owner of the bun shop said with a smile, “I don’t think he is married. I haven’t heard that there is a young madam in this mansion. Of course, he might have gotten married, but his wife hasn’t come to the capital yet. After all, he hasn’t been here for a long time. This mansion used to be empty, and he moved in just recently.”

Yu Dong’s heart skipped a beat. “How long has he lived in there?”

The owner of the bun shop answered after thinking for a second, “About half a month!”

Yu Dong had finished drinking the tofu curd. He stood up and walked out of the bun shop. He stood outside the shop and looked over at Zhao Mansion. There were already more than ten carriages outside Zhao Mansion, and each of them was full of goods. It seemed that the Master of Zhao Mansion was trying to show him that he was really wealthy.

He wouldn’t agree to settle the case in private if he could not gain great benefits.

Of course, he showed that he was really wealthy, so the priceless ruby was also true.

Ordinary people could not possess that kind of ruby. Although the value of the set of rubies couldn’t compare with that of Yue’s Gold Pavilion, it could be equal to half of the value of Yue’s Gold Pavilion if it was of top quality.

Thinking of this, Yu Dong frowned and turned to leave.

“Sister, please wait!” Suddenly, Yu Dong heard a voice behind him. He turned around in surprise and saw a lad servant, who looked slightly younger than him, standing behind him with a smile.

Yu Dong asked calmly, “What’s the matter?”

“Sister, you seem to have something to do. I saw that you kept looking at our mansion. Is there anything I can help you with?” The lad servant asked with a smile. He seemed to be kind and amiable. In addition, he was very young, which could make people let down their guard.

Yu Dong looked him up and down and pointed at Zhao Mansion. “Are you from this mansion?”

“Yes, this is our young master’s mansion. Our young master has just arrived in the capital. He did not know anyone. Sister, which mansion are you from?” The lad servant looked at Yu Dong curiously.

Yu Dong didn’t change his clothes. He dressed like an ordinary maid, so others could tell that he was a maid at a glance.

“I heard that something happened between your young master and a shop in the capital, right?” Yu Dong asked. He had already figured out something. Since he was lured here, what was waiting for him was naturally a well-planned scheme.

But was this person really sent by the Ji Family’s second branch?

Yu Dong was not sure. This lad servant seemed to be cautious. He did not seem like an ordinary person, so he was more likely to be sent by Princess Ji.

“Sister, are you talking about the thing related to Yue’s Gold Pavilion?” The lad servant asked in surprise. He carefully looked Yu Dong up and down and suddenly became alert. “Do you work for the owner of Yue’s Gold Pavilion?”

“Yes!” Yu Dong nodded. “Your Young Master sued my Master, didn’t he?”

“That’s because the people in your store broke my young master’s ruby. Do you know how precious that ruby is? It was passed down from our young master’s ancestors. It has gone through chaotic times. It was difficult to preserve it. But your store’s people broke it. Our young master is very angry. He is determined to deal with this matter seriously.”

The lad servant was furious and said angrily.

“If it goes too far, it’s not good for both mansions.” Yu Dong didn’t act tough. After all, it was his side’s fault, so he could not be tough.

“Even if it’s not good, we have to let the Yamen trial this case anyway. We can’t just let it go.” The lad servant spoke righteously for his Master. It seemed that he wanted to take Yu Dong to court right away.

Yu Dong’s attitude softened even more. “Can’t we sit down and have a talk about it?”

“Sit down and talk?” The lad servant looked at Yu Dong in confusion. “Can you make the decision?”

Yu Dong said with a flattering smile. “Of course, I can’t make the decision, but I can go between my Master and your Master and try to let them have a talk. After all, we really didn’t do it on purpose.”

The lad servant asked again, “Your Master wants to negotiate?”

Yu Dong said, “She has the intention to negotiate!”

The lad servant was silent for a moment. His expression softened a little, but he looked hesitant. “Your Master wants to negotiate, but our young master doesn’t necessarily want to talk about it. He just wants to vent his anger. He can’t accept that the treasure from his ancestors is ruined in vain. He feels guilty.”

“Our Master can compensate you. We don’t have to go to court. It is not good for Yue’s Gold Pavilion’s reputation.” Yu Dong said sincerely as if he really wanted to settle it privately, and he seemed more and more guilty.

“I am a servant. I can’t make the decision on this matter, but I can talk to the people around Young Master.” Seeing Yu Dong like this, the lad servant hesitated for a moment and finally appeared to be willing to compromise.

Yu Dong was overjoyed!