Ning Yue comforted his Elder sister, saying, “Elder sister, don’t panic, let’s sit down and talk about what’s wrong.”
“As long as I am able, I will not spare any effort.”
Ning Yue’s perfectly timed assurance finally made Ning Qian stop crying.
Zhang Qi Ming, his Elder sister’s husband, who had been looking grim, also softened his expression upon hearing this, thinking, “This little Yue has a pure nature; he hasn’t gone bad after all.”
Ning Qian began to recount the events, accompanied by soft sobs.
Zhang Qi Ming occasionally supplemented, his words mostly blaming his good-for-nothing younger brother.
Human joys and sorrows are not the same; Ning Yue only found it noisy, but he patiently listened until the end, and then he understood what had happened.
It turned out that this morning, Zhang Qiguang went out for a stroll and, seeing a beautiful woman, wanted to go up and talk to her. Normally, he should have left after being rejected.
But Zhang Qiguang, conceited in his charm, still followed persistently, sticking to her like a dog-skin plaster.
Finally, he angered the Princess, who was unwilling to reveal her identity. With a single command, he was apprehended by her guards, reported to the authorities, and thrown into the military prison.
Coincidentally, it was the prison of the Yongwang Garrison.
“It’s actually that Duke’s daughter?!” Ning Yue was secretly startled.
Duke Wu had served on the northern frontier in his early years, achieving great military feats. Later, because he had lived in the north for a long time and was unwilling to retire to the imperial capital in the south, he remained in Gu City.
This Princess was the Duke’s cherished daughter. As a child, she was frail and was raised in the palace. The late emperor was very fond of her, and her title as Princess was personally bestowed by the Emperor.
Everyone in Gu City knew the Princess was beautiful, but few had actually seen her.
Ning Yue secretly admired his brother Qiguang’s discerning eye.
Then he heard his Elder sister beside him, clutching his sleeve tightly, asking softly, “Little Yue, can you please intercede with your superior and ask the officials to release Qiguang? This child has been pampered since he was young and cannot endure hardship.”
Ning Yue couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh; this couple really thought highly of him.
Facing their eager gazes, Ning Yue replied, “Elder sister thinks too highly of me. Duke Wu is such a distinguished person. Let alone my direct superior, even if the Qianhu of this Garrison came, it would be useless.”
Not only would it be useless, but half of the high-ranking officers in these garrisons had fought alongside the old Duke. If they were to hear of this, brother Qiguang wouldn’t just face a few beatings or a few years in prison; he would likely have all five of his limbs broken.
“I told you it was useless to find him, but you insisted on coming, wasting so much time dawdling.” Zhang Qi Ming flung his sleeve, pulling Ning Qian, ready to leave.
Elder sister Ning Qian’s expression also cooled considerably, her sobs gradually ceasing, and her previously leaning body slowly straightened, releasing his sleeve in the process.
“However, if we can find someone we know to pass a message into the prison, I imagine it could spare Qiguang some suffering,” Ning Yue added.
“Then do you… do you know the head jailer? I imagine since you both serve in the military, you should have some connections, right?” The Elder sister’s face instantly softened again. She was about to grab her cousin’s sleeve, but Ning Yue subtly dodged her.
Ning Yue said, “The head jailer of the Yongwang Garrison is surnamed Xie. I’ve dealt with him twice; he’s a very stingy and difficult person to get along with. However…”
Ning Yue paused here intentionally, looking at Zhang Qi Ming, who had stood up and then sat back down, and said, “However, since brother-in-law has been in business for a long time, I imagine he’s quite familiar with the important and influential figures in Gu City. You can certainly ask someone to try, which will save us from wasting time dawdling here.”
“What important figures do I know?!” Zhang Qi Ming didn’t expect karma to strike so quickly.
He neither wanted to be looked down upon by the poor soldier Ning Yue, nor did he want to truly miss this opportunity to save his younger brother.
For a moment, he was speechless, frozen on the spot.
Ning Qian glanced at Zhang Qi Ming and spoke to ease the atmosphere: “Little Yue, your brother-in-law is just anxious, so his words were a bit harsh. We are family, so don’t be angry with your brother-in-law. When your mourning period is over, I will definitely help you find some good girls.”
“Is that true?!” Ning Yue asked in surprise.
“It’s true, it’s true, as long as you can help Qiguang this time,” Ning Qian replied solemnly.
Ning Yue smiled and said, “Then, Elder sister, I’ll believe you this once.”
His Elder sister smiled along and said a few more casual words, and the atmosphere in the hall relaxed.
Ning Yue, however, suddenly frowned and said, “However, that Xie Qing is the eldest son of the Xie Family and has seen the world. For this entrustment, without at least a thousand taels of silver for bribes and arrangements, it will likely be difficult to succeed.”
“How much?!” Ning Qian’s voice immediately rose by three points upon hearing this. “A thousand taels? Do they think my Zhang Family prints banknotes or something?!”
“Let’s go, let’s go. If this can’t be done, then so be it. Who told that scoundrel to bring it upon himself.” Ning Qian stood up and pulled Zhang Qi Ming, ready to leave.
Zhang Qi Ming’s mouth also twitched violently, but he still shook off Ning Qian’s grip on his sleeve, walked towards Ning Yue with a look of shame, and then grabbed Ning Yue’s arm, “Little Yue, I misspoke just now. I apologize first, but Qiguang must be saved no matter what.”
“I left in a hurry just now; here are eight hundred taels of silver notes. Take them for now. I only ask that Qiguang suffers less. If it’s not enough, you can take more from the Zhang Manor!”
“Little Yue, don’t worry, when I go back, I’ll have your Elder sister carefully select, and in the future, I will definitely find you a young lady from a good family!”
“I’m counting on you for Qiguang’s matter!”
Zhang Qi Ming fumbled in his sleeve pocket for a long time before finally taking out the money and handing it to Ning Yue, then he pulled Ning Qian and turned to leave immediately.
“Brother-in-law, isn’t this inappropriate? You can’t expect me to pay for this out of my own pocket!”
“Brother-in-law, I don’t have much private money either, please don’t make things difficult for me.”
Ning Yue remained still, only calling out from the doorway.
However, Ning Qian and her husband turned a deaf ear, hurrying forward, eventually even breaking into a run.
This scene made Ning Yue click his tongue in wonder.
Once outside the Garrison gate, Ning Qian flung her sleeve, her face instantly changing, and she immediately scolded Zhang Qi Ming, “You spent so much money for your good-for-nothing brother, you’re really generous!”
“Before, you always talked about how glorious it was to work with the He Family, and how profitable it would be in the future. How come when trouble actually arose, you still needed my brother to help?!”
Zhang Qi Ming said with a bitter smile, “My dear, if not for this, it would be hard to explain to the old man, and the He Family is a prominent aristocratic family from the south, but they’ve only recently arrived in Gu City. Their connections might not be fully established yet, otherwise, they wouldn’t have entrusted us with transporting things into the city.”
After explaining, he changed the subject, saying, “I just didn’t expect that even though little Yue’s official position isn’t high, he can actually build connections with the jailers. He might even rise further in the future, so we should try to get closer to him.”
“Pah, get closer to what? Have you forgotten that when he visited last year and sparred with Li Protector, he couldn’t even defeat him when Li Protector fought with one hand tied behind his back? It was truly embarrassing.”
“And those eight hundred taels of silver, he’s probably going to pocket at least half, isn’t he? You only heard people say that Jailer Xie is difficult to deal with, but who knows the truth of his words?”
Ning Qian was meticulous, and although her words were harsh, she had guessed most of it correctly.
Zhang Qi Ming said in astonishment, “No… it can’t be, can it? They’re relatives, how could he do such a thing?”
Ning Qian rolled her eyes and said, “What ‘it can’t be’? If you really believed him, would you have only given him eight hundred taels?”
“Heh!” Zhang Qi Ming slapped his thigh in regret, exclaiming that he had been hunting geese all his life, only to have his eyes pecked out by a goose.
He had thought giving eight hundred taels was a huge bargain, but he never expected his cousin to be so black-hearted.