Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 171 - 86: Shen Liu Sets Conditions_1
Dead of night, seeking makeup.
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The fake Shen Liu and Xia Tuozi were sprawled on the ground at this moment, like two lumps of mud, completely devoid of the arrogance they’d had while bullying Lian Manman and the other children.
"Oh? Who are they?" Shen Liu asked, "Let them speak for themselves."
"When the Lord asks a question, you’d better confess the truth quickly. If you dare to utter a single lie, you know what will happen." The young man went up and kicked the one masquerading as Shen Liu first.
It was then that the fake Shen Liu tremulously raised his head, not daring to look at Shen Liu, his eyes glancing off to the side, noticing the Steward who was following behind Shen Qian.
"Steward Liu, it’s me, Shen Qiang, Uncle Liu, please save me." The fake Shen Liu called out in a hoarse voice.
Seeing the fake Shen Liu not responding to Shen Liu, but instead making a gesture of seeking help from Steward Liu, the young man immediately chopped a hand along the fake’s waist. The fake Shen Liu shrank up in pain on the spot.
"Steward Liu, do you know him?" Shen Qian asked Steward Liu, puzzled.
Steward Liu was rather embarrassed.
"I... I didn’t recognize him for a moment," Steward Liu replied, bowing. With the fake Shen Liu’s face swollen and bruised, it wouldn’t be surprising if someone less familiar with him failed to recognize him.
"... His name is Shen Qiang, he is the son of Eldest Madam Liu’s wet nurse. His father has long passed away, and he works in the outer courts of that Mansion. However, I had no idea that he would come here," Steward Liu explained.
"I see," Shen Liu said after hearing this. He tapped his fingers on the table lightly and questioned Shen Qiang, "Then who was it who granted you the surname Shen, and when? Who gave you the audacity to impersonate me and tarnish both my name and the Shen family’s reputation?"
Shen Qiang had just been chopped by the young man of shorter stature and had nearly passed out from the pain, yet strangely, he couldn’t produce the slightest sound. As the pain subsided a little, he found himself able to speak again.
"I, I would never dare, truly, there has been some misunderstanding, I have been wronged." This time Shen Qiang did not dare to speak rashly, only crying out his innocence repeatedly. But the moment he laid eyes on Lian Manman and the other children sitting there, he suddenly fell silent. Fortunately, quick thinking saved him, as he pointed at Xia Tuozi beside him, "Master Shen Liu, it was Xia Tuozi, he arbitrarily called out, wanting to bully others by relying on power. Master Shen Liu, I would never dare to use your name, I would never dare to do wrong."
Shen Liu said nothing, just sitting there slowly savoring his tea. After a while, another person dressed as an Attendant came in and reported to Shen Liu that inquiries had been made at the market and it was confirmed that Shen Qiang and Xia Tuozi had been using the name of Sixth Master Shen to run rampant, bullying not just the Lian siblings.
Shen Liu nodded slightly, continuing to sip his tea.
"Have you anything else to say?" the short Attendant asked Shen Qiang.
"... It was Xia Tuozi, he wanted their peanuts without paying. It was also Xia Tuozi who started to beat the children there. I didn’t do anything, and I even got beaten up by them," Shen Qiang pointed to the bruises and cuts on his face and arms as he spoke.
Shen Liu glanced over at Shen Qiang and then at Lian Manman and the others, his gaze flickering imperceptibly.
Xia Tuozi, hearing all the blame being shoved onto him by Shen Qiang, became anxious and started to stutter his own defense.
"I was just at the farmstead, serving the gentlemen from the Mansion, I wouldn’t dare to not serve them well. It was he who asked me to call him Master Shen Liu, it was he who took advantage, and even took a pair of Jade Bracelets from someone’s stall at the market."
Shen Qiang and Xia Tuozi started arguing, each trying to shift the blame onto the other.
"Enough, both of you," Shen Liu interrupted, clearly growing impatient listening to the two.
What had happened was simple: Shen Qiang, emboldened by his connection to a certain wet nurse in the Shen Mansion, had thrown his weight around in the countryside, while Xia Tuozi, seeing the benefits of sucking up to Shen Qiang with his impressive ties, flattered Shen Qiang to gain favor. And that’s how this mess came about.
Lian Manman originally thought that Shen Qiang must be a descendant of the Shen Family, but it turned out he was merely the son of a nursemaid. Judging by his attire, the wealth of the Shen Family was evident. However, impersonating Shen Liu, cheating for food and drink, and not even paying for peanuts—this was just too lacking in class.
Having been impersonated and involved in such deeds, Shen Liu must be furious. Lian Manman thought this and stole a glance at Shen Liu. Shen Liu remained calm and composed, showing no signs of anger on his face, but the servants attending the room had all adopted a much more solemn demeanor than before.
"...The household has become such a mess with such lawless people. Take them to the market and give each a flogging of sixty lashes," Shen Liu spoke in a low voice.
Lian Manman was startled—sixty lashes could kill a person. Wasn’t the punishment too harsh? Just as Lian Manman thought to speak up, she caught a glimpse of Shen Liu and immediately shut her mouth.
Shen Liu’s decision to deal with the situation this way wasn’t because these two had bullied them, but because they had impersonated him, showing great disrespect to him and the Shen Mansion. There might even be deeper reasons, which were beyond her detection.
That’s how Lian Manman felt, and Lian Zhizhi, Wu Lang, and Xiao Qi were even more ill at ease. They were all kind-hearted children, and the worst punishment they could imagine for these two was a spanking, just so they wouldn’t bully them anymore.
"Sixth Master, we don’t mind that he bullied us," Wu Lang stood up and said to Shen Liu.
The simplicity of the country boy in Wu Lang was immediately apparent. He also knew that the Shen Liu before him was of no ordinary status, with the power to decide life and death with a word. Yet he didn’t want anyone to die because of them. Wu Lang didn’t think as deeply as Lian Manman; he believed that Shen Liu wanted to punish these men mainly because of their involvement.
Shen Liu’s phoenix eyes slightly lifted as he shifted his gaze to Wu Lang, sizing him up from head to toe.
Under Shen Liu’s gaze, Wu Lang felt as if he were being pricked by ten thousand needles, but he still looked straight into Shen Liu’s eyes, without flinching.
"What is your name, and would you like to follow me?" Shen Liu suddenly asked.
"Ah?" Lian Manman gasped in surprise. What was Shen Liu up to? Had he taken an interest in Wu Lang? This might be a good opportunity for Wu Lang, as those addressing Shen Liu as "My Lord" indicated that he held an official title. Following him could lead to a great future. But Shen Liu was too mysterious; considering the danger he had faced last time, Lian Manman worried that Wu Lang could be in danger too. If that were the case, it might be better to stay at home and farm the land, living a safe life.
"My name is Lian Jihong, also known as Wu Lang," Wu Lang answered truthfully, "Apart from my father, I’m the only able-bodied person in my family, so I must stay home to take care of them."
Lian Manman hadn’t sorted out her thoughts when she heard Wu Lang already responding to Shen Liu in this way. That was good; Wu Lang was only twelve, still a child. Lian Manman heaved a sigh of relief. A look of regret appeared on the face of the short-statured youth.
Then someone dragged Shen Qiang and Xia Tuozi away. Maybe it was because Shen Liu seemed so calm and nonchalant that it wasn’t until they were being dragged out that they realized sixty lashes meant their lives were at stake, and both of them started to scream. A quick-witted attendant next to them pressed a spot on each of the men, silencing their screams before they could fully emerge.
"My Lord, how should we deal with those thugs downstairs?" a short-statured young attendant asked.
"Bring them too, twenty lashes each," Shen Liu ordered, his phoenix eyes glancing briefly and lightly over Lian Manman’s face, "...Then escort them to the County Yamen, take my token, tell the County Magistrate, in my words, that if these people dare to commit any more crimes, they shall be severely punished."
"Yes," the young attendant replied, and left.
"These two servants are from the Shen Mansion, and having injured you, the Shen Mansion should duly compensate," Shen Liu said slowly, looking at Lian Manman.
Was Shen Liu going to compensate them for medical expenses?
Lian Manman blinked, was this an opportunity to make some money? Could she ask for a substantial sum?
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