Chapter 91: The World’s Foremost Villain Minister

Chapter 91: The World's Foremost Villain Minister

Yet the situation did not improve; crops in the fields yielded no harvest, and many families ran out of food.

Following this, grain prices soared, and a large-scale famine began.

Some chose to enter the city in search of work, seeking a way to survive. Others could only wait at home for death.

He carried Ye'er all the way to Lingquan Town, entering the city before the gates were sealed.

Then he began a life of begging within the city.

In the end, Ye'er still died, starving to death in his arms.

He thought he would die too, but he didn't. Instead, he was saved by rebels.

Indeed, after winter set in, Lingquan Town suffered from banditry.

Mountain bandits recruited a large number of displaced people, attacking Lingquan Town and nearly wiping out the surrounding villages.

It was during that time that he was saved by the bandits, but the bandits had no good intentions.

That vile creature harbored despicable thoughts towards him.

He fought for his life to prevent that beast from succeeding.

Then, ten days later, taking advantage of the imperial army's attack on the city, he found a way to personally eliminate that beast, earning himself a commendation.

Afterwards, he gained the favor of the commanding officer, following him back to the capital and becoming his advisor.

Later, he stepped into the limelight, gradually becoming an existence that all the capital's nobles feared.

Subsequently, people said he bewitched the emperor, slaughtered innocents indiscriminately, and was wicked-hearted, the world's foremost villain minister, one whom everyone had the right to kill.

But he didn't care. To repay the kindness of being recognized, he was willing to endure those slurs.

Moreover, his first half of life was unbearably stifling. After gaining power, he sought comfort, why should he care about reputation?

Then, he died.

Killed by an assassin, who introduced themselves as the offspring of a loyal minister he had executed.

Anyway, he couldn't remember the specifics.

When he died, he wasn't actually sad, rather, he felt a sense of relief.

Because during that period, the emperor he considered his confidant rebuked him.

And in court, there were those who listed a hundred of his crimes, trying to force the emperor to deal with him.

He knew his retribution was coming soon.

Plus, during that time, he seemed to have been poisoned, often dreaming of his parents, Yun'er, and Ye'er.

They all said they missed him and hoped to be reunited with him.

He thought, maybe if he died, he could truly reunite with his family?

Then, he was reborn.

In this life, his father was gone, but his mother, Yun'er, and Ye'er were still alive.

His leg was also injured.

The only difference from the previous life was that the woman hadn't died and had changed her disposition.

He suspected, initially thinking that the woman might be like him, reborn.

But later he negated it, after all, their personalities and knowledge were vastly different.

Then, he basically confirmed that the woman must have possessed someone else's body.

After these days of living together, he wasn't afraid of her being a wandering spirit.

Now that they were under the same roof, he didn't mind helping her, guiding her through the upcoming crisis together.

As for what happens after that, we'll see when the time comes...

Mr. Wang pondered for a moment.

"Three hundred taels... If it's in the eastern part of the city, it will be difficult to find a good one. The courtyards in the other directions are cheaper. If you want a better courtyard, you're more likely to find one in the western part of the city," he said.

There were quite a few illegally constructed houses in the west of the city, where many townspeople outside the town rented houses, resulting in a poorer environment there.

It was because of this reason that the courtyards in the west of the city were lower in price than other places.

On the east side of the city, most of the residents were wealthy households in town, with a better environment, and naturally, the courtyards were more expensive.

As for the south and north of the city, the closer to the central area, the more expensive the courtyards, and the further out, the prices would decrease accordingly.

"The west side then," Song Que said.

When the mountain bandits entered the city, they targeted the wealthy households first.

Living in the east of the city was not a good choice.

As for the south and north, the bandits' minions didn't spare them much either.

On the contrary, the west side had the most poor people.

The bandits, finding nothing of great value in their searches, naturally lost interest in further raids.

"Also, it would be best to keep some distance from the city center," Song Que added after a moment's thought.

Mr. Wang was taken aback.

Looking at Song Que, he suggested, "With three hundred taels, you could buy a place in the western part of the city, not too far from the city center." He assumed that Song Que was worried about insufficient funds.

In his view, Song Que was, after all, a scholar. If conditions allowed, he wouldn't want to live next to the poor.

"It doesn't need to be close to the city center, just separated by one or two streets from the residential area," said Song Que.

Seeing Mr. Wang about to speak again, Song Que continued, "After all, I have to live after buying the courtyard. I have no substantial assets and can only act within my means."

Mr. Wang nodded, finally refraining from further persuasion.

"In that case, I'll ask someone to help inquire for Master Song over the next few days. If there's a suitable—"

"You may inform my wife," said Song Que.

Mentioning his wife, his expression was somewhat peculiar.

Hearing this, Mr. Wang also gave Song Que a strange look.

Seeing him maintain a normal demeanor, he quickly composed himself.

Earlier outside, Master Song seemed to be quite disdainful of his wife, but now he spoke of her quite naturally.

Well, at first, he did think that Master Song marrying such a wife was somewhat...

But through their many interactions, he found that Lady Qin wasn't completely without merit or redeeming qualities.

On the contrary, she was graceful and eloquent.

Plus, every time he saw her, she was selling goods, which showed that she was a hardworking woman.

Unfortunately, she was indeed a far cry from being a match for Master Song...

"Alright." Collecting his thoughts, Mr. Wang agreed to handle the matter.

Then he discussed the specific details of the transaction with Song Que.

Song Que ultimately promised to deliver a volume of books every two days.

And Mr. Wang would pay Song Que fifty taels each time, until the last volume, for which he would pay forty taels.

After reaching an agreement, Song Que didn't leave.

He stayed in the bookstore and started reading.

Meanwhile.

After seeing Song Que off, Qin Xiaoyao went back to find Li Danni and Liu Daniu.

Then he took them to Lai Fu Restaurant to deliver the goods.

After the delivery, Qin Xiaoyao asked the couple if they could buy a cart on their own.

He then gave them the bamboo rat skins and some straw shoes, instructing them to take them to the general store and to deliver today's straw shoes to Qin Dazhuang and Aunt Li.

Only then did they part ways.

Not daring to waste any more time, Qin Xiaoyao hurriedly went back to Nan City to sell the straw shoes.

His beautiful husband was still waiting for him in Lingyun Bookstore, and after he sold today's straw shoes, he had to go pick him up.

Perhaps due to bad luck, Qin Xiaoyao found that the more anxious he was to sell the straw shoes, the less smoothly things went.

As he saw fewer people on the street, Qin Xiaoyao grew anxious.

Finally, he decided to lower the price for the last dozen or so pairs of straw shoes.

At seven coins for two pairs, he quickly sold out the remaining straw shoes.

After selling the straw shoes, Qin Xiaoyao tidied up and prepared to leave, pushing the cart.