Becoming a Saint by Leisure Reading - Chapter 68

“Uncle, help…” A figure rushed into the lobby, saw Chen Luo sitting in the center, leaned over, and bowed. Ji Zhong took a slight step forward, standing between the other party and Chen Luo.

　　Almost at the same time, there was a sound of footsteps outside the house, Chen Luo raised his head, and saw Wang Li following behind with a team of guards. As he ran, Wang Li shouted, “Lu Tong, don’t startle the earl…” As he said that, he also ran to Chen Luo and saluted, “I have seen the earl.”

　　Chen Luo looked puzzled: “What’s the matter?” After speaking, he looked at the figure kneeling on the ground and asked, “Who is he?”

　　To be honest, after crossing into this world, it was the first time he saw someone kneeling and worshiping another person.

　　”Earl, forgive me.” Wang Li said helplessly, “This person is Lu Tong, and he is the steward of Sanxi Village.”

　　”Sanxi Village?”

　　”Yeah, didn’t His Majesty reward you with an Imperial Villa the day before yesterday? The Secretary of Internal Affairs finally settled on Sanxi Villa, just outside the capital, surrounded by three streams, it is most fertile.”

　　Chen Luo nodded, his nickname was East Flow, and the Department of Internal Affairs gave him the Sanxi Villa so it corresponded.

　　”Then he is…” Chen Luo pointed to Lu Tong on the ground.

　　Wang Li sighed: “The rules of Huangzhuang are the quotas that must be turned over every year. If there is any leftover, it will be a reward. The rest of the trivial matters will be ignored.”

　　”This Lu Tong has a good heart. Whenever he encounters a stray child, he will give them housing in the current imperial villa. Today I was ordered to go to inspect the place, and I found that the imperial villa’s inner residence is housing no less than 200 young children.”

　　”Under normal circumstances, as long as he can pay enough shares, this matter can be ignored. But this Sanxi Villa is already your lord’s private property, so he can no longer do this.”

　　”Hearing that these children were to be dismissed, Lu Tong was anxious and had to beg in front of you for mercy. I wasn’t able to stop it on time, so…”

　　Chen Luo glanced at Wang Li, he is not a fool, Wang Li came up as if he had nothing to do with it but if he said that he didn’t connive with Lu Tong about this, he would not believe it. But how to handle this matter, he has another scruple in his heart.

　　He called Ji Zhong to his side first and whispered a few words. Ji Zhong nodded and walked out of the house quickly.

　　Then, he looked at Lu Tong who was kneeling on the ground: “Tell me, how can I save lives?”

　　Hearing Chen Luo’s voice, Lu Tong quickly kowtowed again, not daring to look up, and said, “Uncle Hui, in the past, Sanxi Villa handed over 10,000 taels of silver to the Internal Affairs Department per year, when the harvest in the villa is good, deducting the daily expenses, we can only collect more than 11,000 taels in total.”

　　”The old slave begged the uncle to keep the old slave to continue to manage the Imperial Villa and let those children live in it. The old servant is willing to hand in 12,000 taels a year. If there is one or two less, the old servant will use his life to apologize.”

　　Chen Luo raised his eyebrows: “Tell me, you can collect at most 11,000 taels a year, how can you promise me 12,000 taels a year?”

　　Lu Tong was well prepared and said: “The old slave will give back part of the leased land when he goes back, and let the children farm it. Ten children can do the work of an adult, and they can always raise some income. The old slave also has some savings, if that is still not enough……”

　　When Lu Tong said this, he suddenly closed his mouth and clenched his hands.

　　Chen Luo knew it in his heart: “If it still doesn’t work, then sell some children to raise money, right?”

　　Hearing this, Lu Tong suddenly raised his head, with tears streaming down his weary face: “The old slave doesn’t want to… But if there is no shelter in the Imperial Villa, these children will have no way to survive…”

　　”Earl…” Wang Li interrupted at this time, “I also know what they plan to do. But it’s not that Lu Tong wants to sell the children, it’s the children who volunteered… The old slave also went to see them. The youngest child is three or four years old, and the oldest is Eleven or twelve years old, if they happen to meet some auctioneers, if they are lucky, they will become slaves to a big family. If unlucky, then they will probably not grow up anymore…”

　　Chen Luo sighed in his heart, waved his hand, and said to Lu Tong, “Get up first, wait a moment.” ”

　　Lu Tong looked at Chen Luo suspiciously, and Wang Li frowned: “If the Lord asks you to get up, just get up, hurry up. “

　　Lu Tong quickly stood up and stood aside with his hands clasped.

　　…

　　After about an hour, Chen Luo leaned on the seat to make up for lost sleep, and Ji Zhong came back tired.

　　Ji Zhong walked up to Chen Luo and told Chen Luo’s investigation results: “I have already gone to inquire, this Lu Tong has been taking in orphans for three or four years, and they didn’t gather together suddenly. When the children are thirteen years old, they will leave on their own. , there is nothing suspicious about the numbers.”

　　Chen Luo just nodded. He had asked Ji Zhong to investigate when Sanxi Villa started to take in children. If Lu Tong wanted to occupy the Imperial Villa, he would ask Wang Li to accompany him to perform a play, and a group of children would be invited to perform. What if they took advantage of his compassion?

　　In addition, it is necessary to prevent Sanxi Zhuang from being a charitable organization on the surface and a base for human trafficking behind the scenes. If you agree to it, you will not be an accomplice.

　　Fortunately, the news Ji Zhong brought back gave him reassurance.

　　”Since this is the case, it’s easy to handle.” Chen Luo shook his head and looked sideways. I have to say that Wang Li’s professionalism is really good. I asked him to sit, but he didn’t sit, and stood for more than an hour, just like no one else. It was Lu Tong, who was able to do the same as Wang Li, which surprised Chen Luo a bit.

　　”Okay, let’s go…” Chen Luo stood up and walked out. Wang Li quickly asked, “Uncle, where are we going?”

　　”Go to Sanxi Villa to see the children!” Chen Luo smiled and looked at Lu Tong who was nervous, “There is no need to retire the rented land, the Imperial Villa can continue to let the children live, but the children have to work for me, don’t worry, they’ll get paid for their work…”

　　Lu Tong had a look of joy on his face, and then another worry, and asked, “Forgive the old slave, what does the Lord want them to do? The old slave is afraid that they will ruin the earl’s major affairs.”

　　”It can’t be broken!” Chen Luo knew that Lu Tong was worried about the child, and smiled lightly: “I want them to be the little man who sells newspapers…Bah, little connoisseur!”

　　…

　　Red Sleeve Academy.

　　A pair of beautiful eyes stared at the Wei Lan Lake in the academy, and the owner of the beautiful eyes sighed softly. Her elder brother is a student at Zheliu Academy. At noon, he talked to her about the article “Du Shiniang” that caused Zheliu students to break through in succession. Because of the limitation of heaven, only a general outline can be repeated, but only a few sentences of generality made her yearn for it.

　　”Do you want to skip class and go to Beifeng Building? I don’t know if Mr. Nan will narrate “Du Shiniang” again.” The woman picked up a stone and threw it into the lake, “Or start a petition to let the head of the academies go out and find the Lord of Wan An?”

　　”Diefei, why are you in a daze? Do you miss your lover?” Another charming voice sounded, the woman named Diefei turned her head and saw a figure jumping towards her. The two groups of giants are quite spectacular.

　　”Stop jumping, I’m dizzy!” Cheng Diefei spat, “What lover? How can you talk about these things?”

　　The “giant” woman came to Cheng Diefei’s side, grabbed Cheng Diefei’s arm, embedded it in the middle of her chest, and said with a smile, “How can I say that? My father said that love between men and women is the most logical thing, and only hypocrites would avoid it like snakes and scorpions!”

　　”Your father is a great scholar, and everything he says should be learned. You are just a little girl, and you don’t know how to be ashamed…” Cheng Diefei scratched Liu Mengrui’s nose, “If you are like your father, able to produce a line like ‘my belt is getting looser every time, for the beauty, I am willing to be miserable…” then whatever you say, I will acknowledge.

　　”Humph…” Liu Mengrui twisted her body arrogantly, the sensuality on her chest made Cheng Difei’s pretty face blush. Liu Mengrui didn’t notice it, and said, “It’s just this word, my family door has been flooded by all those aunts, and I’ve been living in the academy for two months…”

　　”Okay, okay, didn’t you go to Xiuhe’s cultural meeting? Why did you come to me instead?”

“I almost forgot.” Liu Mengrui knocked on her head, “The academy issued an announcement saying that it would recruit Confucian scholars who have entered the realm of ‘the pen and the dragon and the snake’ to transcribe a Yawen article, and a credit will be awarded for writing a hundred times. I came here specially to ask you to come with me.”

“What article is it, do you know?”

Liu Mengrui thought for a while: “It seems, what is it called “Laughing in the Wind”…”

“What a weird name, do you know which great scholar wrote it?”

“Well…not a great scholar, like some Earl called Wan…”

“Lord of Wan An?”

“That’s right, that’s the name.”

Cheng Diefei pulled his hand out of the soft trap and walked straight towards the school…