Zhang Fang turned to glance at the Lin family and casually nodded, “That’s the plan.”
Hao Zhuang and Shi Houdi understood the situation better now. The two of them stopped persuading Zhang Fang.
Lin Zheng had slowly gotten up from the ground and moved over to his two daughters, speaking softly, “Did you hear that? That young man is the son of Prime Minister Zhang! I’ve heard that Prime Minister Zhang was over fifty when he finally had a son—he only has this one! And now, he’s been exiled! As long as Prime Minister Zhang is still in court, this Young Master Zhang will eventually return to the capital! You two must seize this opportunity and catch him!”
The further they walked, the more criminals they encountered; in the end, there would be all kinds of people. It wasn’t just Lin Zheng who had his eyes on this fat piece of meat, others would too. The sooner the Lin family approached Zhang Fang, the more trust they could gain, allowing them to secure their foothold!
Lin Qiaoqiao bit her lip and lowered her head in silence.
Lin Yue Rong picked up a charred piece of wood from the ground, planning to use it to outline her eyebrows and to make herself look more presentable. After that, she would look for an opportunity to approach Zhang Fang.
Mao A Niu returned from outside with the children and, with a serious expression, told Zhang Fang, “Young Master Zhang, we are willing to work for you! Just please give us food to eat and don’t hit us!”
Zhang Fang nodded in satisfaction and offered them some pastries.
Some of the children devoured the pastries hungrily, like Zhu Bajie devouring ginseng fruit; before they even had a chance to savor the taste, the pastries were gone. Meanwhile, two children ate very slowly, taking tiny bites as if cherishing each morsel. The children who finished first gazed enviously at the slower eaters, their eyes filled with greed but making great efforts to restrain themselves.
Zhang Fang observed them and asked, “So, how did you all become beggars?”
Mao A Niu began to recount each child’s story. He was the first to become an orphan after his parents died and uncles seized their house, forcing him to wander. The other children became orphans after a flood left them homeless and uncared for. They had been wandering for years, and Mao A Niu, having been bullied during his struggles, organized these children together to survive and support each other. This is why these children regarded Mao A Niu as their big brother and followed his lead.
From this, it was clear that Mao A Niu was resourceful; Zhang Fang could provide for them and give orders but would not safely trust them.
“Next time we enter the city, I’ll treat you all to meat and get you some nice clothes; just clean yourselves up quickly,” Zhang Fang said while casting a glance toward the Lin family.
Although he was speaking to the children, he was keeping a close watch on the Lin family’s reactions. Lin Zheng kept on speaking to his two daughters, one of whom seemed distracted while the other was using a stick to outline her eyebrows, seemingly trying to prepare herself to charm him?
“Thank you, Young Master!” Mao A Niu and the others expressed their gratitude, their eyes filled with anticipation, and their hearts filled with dreams of a new life.
“Alright, get some rest! I need to relieve myself.”
Upon hearing this, Hao Zhuang unlocked his handcuffs. Knowing that this young master preferred to be alone when he relieved himself, neither Hao Zhuang nor Shi Houdi followed him.
Seeing Zhang Fang step outside alone, Lin Zheng felt it was the right opportunity, immediately nudging Lin Yue Rong and saying, “Quick! We must seize this chance!”
Lin Yue Rong took a deep breath, put down the stick, and got up with Lin Qiaoqiao, shyly telling the officer that they needed to use the restroom.
The officer from Mozhou fixed his wicked gaze on the two sisters, urging them, “Hurry up!”
As men, Lin Zheng understood exactly what that look from the officer meant. He quickly shouted, “I need to use the restroom too!”
The officer’s expression immediately soured, and he scolded Lin Zheng harshly, “Hold it in!”
Lin Zheng became agitated, saying, “I can’t hold it much longer!”
The officer rolled up his sleeves, losing interest abruptly, and began to physically reprimand Lin Zheng with punches and kicks.
Lin Yue Rong pulled on Lin Qiaoqiao and hurried outside.
The other two officers from Mozhou noticed them leaving, exchanged glances, and then shared knowing smiles as they followed after them.
Outside, Lin Qiaoqiao grasped Lin Yue Rong’s hand and whispered, “Are we really going to do something so shameless?”
Lin Yue Rong had made up her mind and told her, “Even if we don’t try to seduce that Young Master, we’ll likely end up being mistreated by the officers.”
Throughout their journey, Lin Yue Rong had noticed the way those officers looked at them. Rather than wait to be humiliated by the guards, they may as well try to charm Zhang Fang. At least Zhang Fang was young and handsome, and despite being a criminal now, he surely had a much better status than they did!
Lin Qiaoqiao was stunned by this thought, her scalp tingling and her body shaking with chills.
“There’s some noise over there; he must have gone that way. Let’s go,” Lin Yue Rong said, pulling the dazed Lin Qiaoqiao toward Zhang Fang’s direction.
However, upon reaching that spot, they found no one there. Lin Yue Rong was puzzled and began to look around. Strange, she had clearly heard sounds coming from over here just now!
Zhang Fang, hiding in the shadows, saw the two sisters coming to find him and decided not to reveal himself.
“Let’s look around,” Lin Yue Rong said, releasing Lin Qiaoqiao’s hand, confident that Zhang Fang was nearby.
Lin Qiaoqiao stood still, struggling to accept her current fate.
Just as Lin Yue Rong seemed close to finding him, Zhang Fang noticed two officers from Mozhou coming, likely to order the sisters back. However, these two officers stealthily approached the standing Lin Qiaoqiao from behind, quickly covering her mouth and pushing her down, pinning her to the ground.
Lin Qiaoqiao was horrified, her eyes filled with fear; she wanted to struggle and push the officer off her, but she suddenly felt weak and her body stiffened.
“Hurry up! Get it done and call me over!”
“What about the other one? You go find her!”
The officer standing by had no choice but to look for Lin Yue Rong.
Lin Yue Rong heard the commotion, thinking it was Zhang Fang, peeking out to see an officer on top of Lin Qiaoqiao, tearing at her clothes!