There are no coincidences in this world, only cause and effect.
“That’s right. It still comes down to Tai Ping Residence.”
Inside the room, Xu Maoxiu said.
As night fell, he arrived from outside the city with Xu Bangchui and Fan Sanchou. Fan Jianglin stayed behind with the rest of the men to guard Tai Ping Residence.
Li Dashao, his wife, his mother, and his children had all been taken to stay at Tai Ping Residence, to prevent any further attacks by evildoers. Sun Cai was even more cautious—he hadn’t stepped out of the tofu shop at all.
“After we returned, we asked Li Dashao if he had offended anyone,” Xu Maoxiu continued. “At first, he couldn’t think of anyone. Ah-Song also said that ever since they were young, the couple had always been honest and well-behaved, never argued with anyone, never spoke harshly. Then I asked him—it’s not just about avoiding fights or harsh words. Sometimes, even failing to meet someone’s expectations can be seen as offense. I asked him if, in recent times, he had refused any favors or requests.”
Just then, the maid came in, knelt down, and pushed over a tray of tea.
“Third Young Master, that time we met Sister Ah-Song at Tai Ping Residence…” she suddenly interrupted, as if remembering something.
Xu Maoxiu nodded at her.
“That was it,” he said. “Turns out, Drunken Phoenix Pavilion, or rather the owner of Immortal’s Abode, Dou Qi sent someone to ask Li Dashao to work at his restaurant. Li Dashao refused multiple times. Then came the troublemakers causing a scene at our shop.”
“So Zhu Wu wasn’t the mastermind!” Xu Bangchui shouted.
“Of course not. How could the person behind it all commit suicide?” said Cheng Jiao-niang.
“Why not?” Xu Bangchui asked, stunned.
If they were exposed and saw no way out, maybe they’d want a quick end.
“Because… they want to leave themselves for the ones seeking revenge. Dying too early, too easily—what’s the point in that?” Cheng Jiao-niang said with a slight smile.
What was that supposed to mean?
Xu Bangchui blinked and stared blankly for a moment. His thoughts were tied up in knots.
“You’re teasing me again!” he finally huffed.
The maid chuckled softly, and the heavy mood in the room lifted a little, replaced by lightheartedness.
“So it turns out everything behind this was because of Dou Qi,” Xu Maoxiu said, putting away his smile.
“What the hell does that scoundrel want! We paid him nearly half the money when we bought the restaurant!” Xu Bangchui shouted again, eyes wide.
“Miss even taught his cook how to make Boxiagong better,” the maid added.
“That’s clearly a favor! So why would he treat us like this?” Xu Bangchui grew even more furious. “It makes no sense!”
Everyone grew more indignant as the discussion went on.
“I wouldn’t say it was a favor,” Cheng Jiao-niang said, shaking her head. “People in the same trade are natural enemies. I never intended to be his benefactor.”
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have made ‘eat-as-you-please’…
The maid gently cleared her throat.
“Times are hard. Doing business is never easy. So many people could have targeted him, but why did he single us out? And to go so far, causing Li Dashao all this suffering—it’s just vile,” she said.
“Greed, anger, obsession, and evil—these are just part of human nature,” Cheng Jiao-niang said calmly. “It’s nothing strange.”
“And now you’re defending him?” Xu Bangchui glared.
“It’s just words. Talking is always the easiest thing to do,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied with a smile.
Xu Bangchui grunted and muttered something under his breath.
“But last time, he was clearly frightened—why is he suddenly acting so brazenly again?” Xu Maoxiu asked.
“Because now he knows who’s behind Tai Ping Residence,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied.
People only fear the unknown. Once the fog clears and they see things clearly, there’s nothing left to fear.
“Then you’re in danger,” Xu Maoxiu said, frowning. It seemed the three of them weren’t enough—he’d need to call in another, and if that didn’t work, maybe they should all just take refuge at Tai Ping Residence.
“I’m fine. Someone else is taking the bullet for me,” Cheng Jiao-niang said calmly.
The maid beside her suddenly understood.
“Oh! So that’s why Master Zhou got into trouble!” she exclaimed, sitting upright in surprise.
That day, Zhou Liu-lang had stormed in aggressively, asked one vague question—”Was it you?”—and then left. At the time, it all seemed puzzling, but now it made sense.
With Master Zhou’s standing, it was unlikely he would’ve gotten into trouble out of the blue—especially when he wasn’t even in the capital. Turns out he’d been mistaken for the real owner of Tai Ping Residence.
That’s why revenge had come knocking. That’s why Miss immediately sensed something was wrong.
The maid nodded.
“Then there’s no way this was just Dou Qi acting alone!” she said.
Cheng Jiao-niang nodded in agreement.
“It seems this time, Dou Qi isn’t just using that godfather of his to threaten me,” she said.
Secretariat Editor Liu!
So it wasn’t just about dealing with a few street thugs—this was far more serious!
The maid had just sat down when she suddenly sprang back up.
“I’ll go find the old master. The old master is out, but the master is home,” she said.
“That won’t be necessary,” Cheng Jiao-niang said with a faint smile.
Still not necessary?!
The maid instinctively took a few steps forward.
“Miss, this Secretariat Editor Liu has always had a good reputation in the capital. He has wide connections in the court and great esteem. More importantly, he oversees the appointment and evaluation of officials—he’s not someone to be taken lightly,” she said urgently. “He’s known to be extremely cautious. If he dared to take action, then he must already be thoroughly prepared. Even if Master Zhou returns, I fear he may be powerless.”
Cheng Jiao-niang listened carefully and nodded.
“Good reputation, real power, caution.”
Just when the maid thought she was finally going to agree to seek help from Master Zhang, Cheng Jiao-niang instead repeated those qualities.
“What else do you know about him? Tell me in detail,” she asked.
“Miss, I haven’t spent much time in the capital with the old master. The people I know are mostly those powerful families who are often in the limelight. This Secretariat Editor Liu is known for being low-key and frugal. He rarely accepts banquets or gifts, so he doesn’t draw attention. It was only because of Dou Qi’s incident that I purposely asked around—otherwise, I wouldn’t even know about him,” the maid replied anxiously.
Cheng Jiao-niang nodded again.
“Low-key, frugal,” she repeated. “It seems this man is quite formidable.”
“Yes, very formidable,” the maid quickly agreed. “Then let me go find the master—”
Cheng Jiao-niang shook her head.
“You said it yourself—he’s a cautious man. If he dares to act, he must be completely prepared. He certainly knows that, because of me, the Zhou family has ties with the Chen and Tong families, and that we’re also connected to those still awaiting medical treatment. So he’s not afraid of who I might go to. If he’s doing this, it means he has a perfectly legitimate reason.”
The maid seemed to realize this too. She sat back down, clearly worried.
“What could Master Zhang even do? Plead?” Cheng Jiao-niang shook her head. “Pressure him? He’s probably waiting for that.”
So then… what can be done?
The room fell into silence.
Although Xu Bangchui didn’t fully understand what they were talking about, he could tell they were in trouble.
“Is this ‘Secretariat Editor Liu’ person really that powerful?” he whispered to Fan Sanchou beside him.
“A high-ranking official in the capital—of course he’s powerful,” Fan Sanchou replied in a low voice.
Xu Bangchui let out a snort and looked around at the three people in the room, all lost in thought.
“Smart people always overthink. It’s clear as day—he’s bullying us. It’s his fault. So what if he has power? Everyone’s alone at some point. Just grab him, skin him, toss him in the river—gone without a trace—that’s real satisfaction!” he said.
His voice was naturally loud, and though he tried to keep it down, he was agitated—so much so that everyone in the room could hear what was supposed to be a whispered aside.
“Shut up! Don’t speak nonsense when you don’t understand!” Xu Maoxiu scolded.
Xu Bangchui pouted, feeling wronged, and fell silent.
“But last time, we handled it so cleanly…” he still muttered under his breath.
“How is this anything like last time?” Xu Maoxiu snapped, frowning.
The opponent this time was different. The situation was different.
Last time, they were hidden and had the moral high ground.
This time, they were exposed, and the enemy was in the shadows—untouchable, and completely justified.
Xu Bangchui lowered his head and said no more.
“It’s not really about that,” Cheng Jiao-niang suddenly said.
Xu Bangchui looked up with a bit of hope.
Was she about to agree with him? Like she had last time?
“In this world, sometimes… you don’t need to see blood to kill,” Cheng Jiao-niang said with a faint smile.
