HomeJia YeChapter 172: Cunning

Chapter 172: Cunning

The Third Master Cheng arrived alongside the officials from the Ink Affairs Bureau, as he was the plaintiff and naturally had to be present.

At this moment, everyone from the Tian household stood at the entrance. Second Young Master Tian held the tribute ink license, ready to present it. Everyone wore solemn expressions, creating quite a ceremonial atmosphere.

“We, the Tian family, have held the tribute ink license and worked diligently, not daring to make the slightest mistake. These past two years, we have not failed to meet Your Excellence’s high expectations. However, when my elder brother acted recklessly and associated with criminal elements in the past, he disgraced both the tribute ink and the Tian family, betraying Your Excellence’s deep kindness…”

At this point, Second Young Master Tian spoke with his head lowered respectfully. Though his words came out somewhat stuttered, they gave the impression of genuine remorse and sincerity. This caused several officials from the Ink Affairs Bureau to stroke their beards and nod in agreement, thinking that the Tian family’s attitude was quite appropriate.

This was truly a strategic retreat to advance. The meaning behind Second Young Master Tian’s words was to tell others that the past incident was entirely Tian Benchang’s fault and had nothing to do with them. Additionally, he was suggesting that in these past two years, the tribute ink produced by the Tian family had been without flaw—if not merit, at least there was an effort—hoping the Ink Affairs Bureau would show leniency.

This move wasn’t bad, Zhen Niang thought, as she glanced at Tian Ronghua standing behind Second Young Master Tian. This must have been Tian Ronghua’s idea; she was quite shrewd. Like last time, when Second Young Master Tian offended Li Fuquan, Tian Ronghua made a swift decision to break his leg in apology, which helped resolve the situation.

Knowing about that incident, Zhen Niang couldn’t help but be amazed. Such decisiveness required not only cunning but also ruthlessness. To be honest, if she were in that situation, she couldn’t have done what Tian Ronghua did.

However, until now, the Tian family’s situation hasn’t given Tian Ronghua much room to maneuver. Now, after several changes in the Tian family, Tian Ronghua finally had some say in matters.

“Official Liu, Second Young Master Tian’s words are very sincere. Although the Tian family’s methods of obtaining the tribute ink license were not honorable in the past, that was ultimately the doing of the Tian family’s eldest son. Moreover, Elder Tian is now in prison, which can be considered punishment enough. These past two years, the Tian family has been diligently producing tribute ink without any mistakes. Their hard work and contributions cannot be erased. In my opinion, why not just give them a stern warning instead of revoking their tribute ink license?” At this moment, a young master around twenty years old stepped out from the crowd and spoke. He had good features, though his face was pale and his eyelids were swollen, giving him a somewhat sickly appearance.

“Ah, it’s Third Young Master Xu,” someone in the crowd who recognized him said.

“Haha, with the Xu family supporting the Tian family, this matter will be interesting to watch,” another onlooker said with schadenfreude.

Zhen Niang watched from the crowd, frowning. Third Young Master Xu had shown up. She had heard much about him recently but hadn’t expected the Tian family to bring him into this.

This Third Young Master Xu and Second Young Master Tian were working in concert. However, his intervention seemed quite reasonable and logical, with a hint of the “suffering flesh” strategy.

Zhen Niang couldn’t help but look at Third Master Cheng, who stood beside Official Liu with a serious expression.

She understood now. The Tian family was first making a strategic retreat, then having Third Young Master Xu speak up—it was all carefully orchestrated. Their goal was to keep the tribute ink license, which would give them a significant advantage in next year’s tribute ink competition. After all, previous tribute ink manufacturers usually continued their role if there hadn’t been any major incidents.

For Third Master Cheng to restore his family’s reputation, he needed to strip the Tian family of their ink rights. Otherwise, everything would be futile.

“Hmm.” Official Liu, having received many favors from the Tian family, was naturally happy to do them this favor. However, with the plaintiff still beside him, he turned to ask Third Master Cheng, “Elder Cheng, what do you think of this matter…”

“I only ask: was the divine judgment reasonable? Was it correct? Was it proper?” Third Master Cheng asked sternly, pursing his lips.

Third Master Cheng’s three consecutive questions left Official Liu speechless. Since Daoist Yunsong had been ordered executed by the emperor, the divine judgment was clearly baseless.

However, the old man’s inflexibility was putting him in an awkward position between both parties, and Official Liu was becoming quite displeased.

“Catching adulterers! Catching adulterers!” Just then, shouts came from the direction of the Cheng family ink shop. Several stout women were seen chasing a man and a woman, wielding shoe soles and clothing beaters. The woman being chased had disheveled hair and looked quite disheveled.

“What’s going on here? Don’t you see Official Liu is present?” A yamen runner scolded, stopping the crowd.

“Sir, my husband is an ink worker at the Cheng family shop, and that whore is their kitchen maid. She seduced my husband—just watch me beat her to death!” The leading woman shouted, forcefully pushing the surrounded man.

The man cowered and crouched down.

“Sir, it’s false! I didn’t seduce her husband,” the disheveled woman cried.

“Didn’t seduce? Then what were you two doing behind the building? Look at these clothes, all undone—have you no shame?” The women catching the adulterers snarled.

The disheveled woman could only cry and beg the official to help.

“Get out, get out! Official Liu is conducting business here and has no time for such trivial matters. Get out of here!” Seeing that the adulterers hadn’t been caught in the act, making it an unsubstantiated case, the runner knew what was important and drove them away.

The Cheng family ink shop’s people arrived and dragged everyone back, looking furious.

Meanwhile, various rumors immediately began circulating.

Watching this scene, Zhen Niang’s heart sank. She had worried about such a situation, and it had still happened. Looking at what had just transpired, this matter was clearly just a chaotic disturbance—a farce. To others, it was just an amusing tale, but for the Cheng family, it had become something unclear and difficult to explain.

Without a doubt, this scene had been arranged by the Tian family, deliberately meant to cause trouble.

The Tian family’s methods were quite low.

Given Official Liu’s position, he naturally wouldn’t inquire into such matters, though he did cast an interested glance at Elder Cheng beside him.

Elder Cheng, however, remained composed as if nothing had happened.

“Elder Cheng, it seems the judgment of ‘Cheng ink being impure’ might not have been entirely baseless after all,” Third Young Master Xu said with a laugh.

“Is Third Young Master referring to this adultery performance? Hmm, it was performed quite well. If the young master enjoys such shows, this old man can find people to perform another for you—not just one, but four or five shows wouldn’t be a problem. But what’s the point? This old man finds it beneath him to engage in such things,” Elder Cheng replied with a serious expression.

The old man’s response was incredibly sharp. Indeed, this adultery scene was far too coincidental, and anyone with sense would know it was the Tian family’s doing. However, most people faced with such a situation would become angry and try to explain themselves. In such matters, whether explaining or investigating would be inferior approaches.

Elder Cheng’s response not only effectively dealt with the situation but also left much to the imagination—this was where the old man’s cunning lay.

Third Young Master Xu was left looking awkward after Elder Cheng’s words.

“Your Excellence, this old man’s complaint seeks only to establish proper order. Otherwise, incidents like today’s will become common. Your Excellence is well-versed in the classics and knows that a person’s standing in the world depends not on results but on following the Way. Without the Way, the world loses its order and thus its fairness and justice. This old man today only seeks fairness in the tribute ink competition,” Elder Cheng bowed to Official Liu as he spoke.

Official Liu hurriedly returned the bow. In ancient times, age was respected, and the elderly were usually exempt from such formalities in most situations.

“Hmph, fine words indeed, but isn’t Third Master Cheng’s action just about creating momentum for next year’s tribute ink competition? What fairness and justice?” Second Young Master Tian sneered from the side.

“Very well, then I hereby announce that the Cheng family will withdraw from next year’s tribute ink competition. This should spare you from accusing me of using my age to bully the young,” Elder Cheng responded almost immediately.

Elder Cheng’s words created huge waves of surprise.

Tian Ronghua’s face turned pale. Her planning, combined with her second brother’s disruptive tactics, had seemed likely to preserve the tribute ink license. But now, with Elder Cheng burning his bridges, it appeared the Tian family would lose their license.

At this moment, Zhen Niang finally understood—the old man was quite crafty indeed. No wonder Elder Cheng had insisted on filing the complaint without fear of offending the Ink Affairs Bureau; the Cheng family had already planned to give up next year’s tribute ink competition.

At the same time, Zhen Niang couldn’t help but admire him. This was truly the way to restore the Cheng family’s reputation. She had previously thought Elder Cheng was just being stubborn. Despite knowing the timing wasn’t right, he still insisted on filing this complaint. Now thinking about it, how could someone who had lived to his age and navigated the business world for so many years truly be so inflexible?

If that were the case, this complaint would have been filed when the incident first occurred, not delayed until today.

His action was meant to revitalize the Cheng family.

When the Cheng family lost the tribute ink competition years ago and received the “impure ink” judgment, it was a major blow. Additionally, in recent years, with Elder Cheng’s poor health, the Cheng family hadn’t made any significant moves and showed signs of decline.

Elder Cheng’s current action restored the family’s reputation, inspiring everyone in the Cheng family, while also allowing them to focus on their work, looking ahead to the glory of Cheng ink in the Wanli years. It was truly a case of “three years without flying, then soaring to the heavens; three years without crying, then making a sound that shakes the world.”

Moreover, with the Cheng family withdrawing from next year’s tribute ink competition and the Tian family losing their license, even if they were to compete for tribute ink next year, it would be a point of criticism. Thus, the Li family had become the ultimate beneficiary.

However, this also meant the Li family now owed the Cheng family a favor. In future tribute ink competitions, if the Li and Cheng families were to compete, the Li family would need to repay this debt of gratitude.

Elder Cheng truly never made a losing deal, Zhen Niang thought, scratching her head and grinning—the old man was formidable indeed.

“Elder, this isn’t necessary,” Official Liu said from the side, not having expected things to develop this way.

“Official Liu, no need to persuade me. This is the decision of our entire Cheng family,” Elder Cheng said.

At this point, Official Liu had nothing more to say. His previous dissatisfaction with the Cheng family had dissipated, and he ordered the confiscation of the Tian family’s tribute ink license. He did offer some words of encouragement, as was appropriate for an Ink Affairs official.

Finally, the grievances between the Cheng and Tian families over the tribute ink competition from two years ago reached a conclusion.

The crowd dispersed.

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