CHAPTER 23: CHAPTER 22: TYRANNY IN THE MARKETPLACE

The skinny-faced man breathed a slight sigh of relief at her words, but a hint of difficulty appeared on his face, "Young sir... could you... pay for the wine first, so I can go to the market to buy some stone honey?"

Zhu Yu didn’t expect this family to be so impoverished and quickly felt around in her sleeve, pulling out a small paper package with a few candied fruits inside.

"It might be too late to buy it now. Have your wife soak these candied fruits in hot water and give the liquid to the child.

As long as he wakes up, some porridge will do him good."

The anxious woman, unable to mind her manners, quickly took the candied fruits and ran to the kitchen. Before long, she returned with a bowl of hot candied fruit water. The couple carefully fed the large bowl of honey water to the child bit by bit.

After a while, the child’s breathing grew stronger, his limbs warmed, and eventually, he slowly woke up. He saw his parents and cried weakly, like a mosquito buzzing, "Father, mother, I’m hungry..."

The woman was overjoyed to see her child awake, but tears fell again at his words.

Zhu Yu subconsciously patted herself down and remembered the pastries given to Lu’s servant earlier, and even the candied fruits were used to make honey water for the child. She realized she had neither silver coins nor food left on her.

Lu Qing discreetly took out a piece of silver from his pocket and slipped it into Zhu Yu’s hand.

Zhu Yu hurriedly handed the silver to the skinny-faced man, "Go on, pay for the wine first, and use the rest to buy some food. If he gets as hungry as he was, something serious might happen next time."

The skinny-faced man was both surprised and grateful, "Benefactor, this... this is too much... My wine... only costs a string of coins..."

"Let’s not talk about that now; the child needs it," Zhu Yu glanced at the little boy beside him.

The skinny-faced man looked at his frail child and did not decline. He quickly ran out.

Zhu Yu checked on the child’s condition one more time, ensuring he was well, and comforted the woman with a few words. She held her child close, expressing her gratitude repeatedly, saying it must be heaven’s blessing to send two nobles to save her child from this crisis.

Zhu Yu felt a bit uneasy with her gratitude and told the woman to take care of the child while she and Lu Qing went to sit outside in the courtyard.

"I didn’t expect the people in Qingshui County to be living so poorly..." Zhu Yu looked around, pondering, "On the way here, there were quite a few run-down houses like this.

But speaking of it, earlier at the food stall, you gave the little waiter some silver coins, much more generously than this time."

"Naturally.

The little waiter at the restaurant was lucky to encounter a noble and naturally had a chance to make a little fortune.

But for a household fallen to such a state, if they suddenly had a silver ingot, do you think it would be a blessing or a curse?" Lu Qing asked.

Thinking about it, Zhu Yu realized it indeed made sense.

"Did you not eat your fill earlier? How come you still had snacks with you?" Lu Qing was curious about Zhu Yu, who had pulled out pastries and candied fruits from her sleeves.

Zhu Yu chuckled, "When you’re out and about with real responsibilities, you don’t always have time for meals, so you need something to fill your belly just in case.

See? It came in handy just now."

Lu Qing nodded and said no more.

After a while, the skinny-faced man returned with some food ingredients and handed them to his wife to cook.

"Benefactor, you saved my child’s life today. I’m just a simple man and don’t know how to thank you properly!" The skinny-faced man first gave a deep bow to Zhu Yu and Lu Qing, then looked at the sky, "I truly cannot repay your silver coins. If you don’t mind, please stay and have a meal at my home.

After dinner, when it gets dark, I’ll give you a few more jars of wine. Under the cover of night, it should be less likely for anyone to notice!"

Zhu Yu, initially worried about who else to ask for information, found the proposal perfectly agreeable and readily accepted.

The wife was skillful and efficient, preparing several dishes in a short time.

The freshly bought flatbread was still steaming, the sheep broth was clear with a sprinkle of fresh green onions on top, and there was also a milky white fish soup.

Having no lack of good food in the Zhu Family in Shuo Country and with Lu Qing being a high-born prince of the Jin Country, both Zhu Yu and Lu Qing were not surprised by these ordinary foods.

They did not expect the haggardly-looking woman, dressed in rags, to have such good cooking skills that could make everyday dishes smell so delicious.

"Please have a seat, benefactors, my wife is quite a good cook." The skinny-faced man warmly invited Zhu Yu and Lu Qing to take a seat. As he looked at the fragrant dishes on the table, he couldn’t help but feel a bit sorrowful, "We used to be quite a well-off family; she had good days with me back then... But later we fell to this state."

"Did you suffer from a natural disaster?" Zhu Yu inquired.

In fact, she had a fair idea, for Jin Country had always been prosperous with favorable weather and abundant resources, and it had been years since any disaster capable of bankrupting a well-off family occurred.

Her question touched the skinny-faced man’s sore spot. He sighed and shook his head.

Due to Zhu Yu and Lu Qing saving his child and Lu’s recent troubles, he felt somewhat relieved and openly shared his predicament.

The skinny-faced man, named Wang Shan, originally came from a family that brewed and sold wine for generations. Although not large in scale, they sold it to local restaurants and neighbors alike, earning enough to maintain a comfortable life for the family.

In the Qingshui County area, there were about five or six small wineries like his family’s. Including the surrounding areas of Qingshui County, there were a dozen or so.

They all lived in peace, enjoying comfortable lives, until one day, a new Lu Family, also in the winery business, moved to the city, and everything changed.

At first, no one paid much attention to this, but soon after, the original wineries in Qingshui County began to close down, one after another, ceasing their wine business.

Wang Shan’s family didn’t understand why until one day when the head of Lu’s winery came with some men, smilingly offering a large sum to buy their family’s ancestral wine-making recipe.

Of course, Wang Shan’s family refused, politely declining and sending them away, but shortly afterward, the winery faced issues.

First, ruffians frequently caused trouble, then someone filed a complaint with the government, claiming someone died after drinking Wang Shan’s family-brewed wine.

The wine was sold by Wang Shan’s father, who was taken to the county government. The elderly man defended himself vigorously, but the County Magistrate indiscriminately flogged him.

The elderly man couldn’t withstand such punishment at his age and fell ill after the beating, eventually passing away.

Later, through various sources, Wang Shan heard that Lu’s family schemed behind it all, but feeling helpless, he had no choice but to close the family winery and cease any public brewing and selling of wine.

The other wineries gradually closed as well, leaving only Lu’s winery dominating the entire Qingshui County.

Wang Shan’s family had always made their living from wine-brewing for generations, with not much land to their name. After losing their sole livelihood, he and his brother relied on a few small plots of land to barely sustain their family.

Since the land was too little, the harvest was insufficient to feed the family, so Wang Shan and his brother secretly brewed a little wine, hiding it in their cellar at home, and sold it under the table to familiar old neighbors to exchange for rice money.

Unexpectedly, this secret somehow reached Lu’s family’s ears, and a man from the Lu Family came and beat Wang Shan’s younger brother. He was gravely injured, coughing up blood, and passed away within the month.

After her husband’s death, Wang Shan’s sister-in-law left with her infant child to return to her family in the countryside, unwilling to remain in such a troublesome place. His elderly mother, after suffering consecutive blows, died from hunger and cold.

What was once a joyful family dwindled to just a haggard trio. Wang Shan became increasingly cautious, choosing to endure hunger rather than risk selling the hidden wine.

Had he not seen Lu’s family’s recent troubles and heard Zhu Yu and Lu Qing needed wine for medicinal use, he probably wouldn’t have dared to approach them for a chat.

This chance meeting indeed turned fortunate; otherwise, his child might have starved, leaving the family completely broken.