That night, Old Zhao secretly crept into the room of Young Master Zhang and his companions, releasing sleeping gas. Once he confirmed that everyone inside was unconscious, he ordered the servants to bind their hands and feet. Initially, the servants hesitated to act, but Old Zhao lied, claiming it was the order of Old Master Zhang, prompting them to proceed.
The following day, Young Master Zhang woke up, jolted by bumps and jolts.
He opened his eyes and discovered he was in a horse-drawn carriage! His hands and feet felt numb and he couldn’t move! Looking down, he realized he was bound!
Young Master Zhang: !!!
Who dared to kidnap him!
No! Who would dare to kidnap the young masters of the Zhang family!
Because Young Master Zhang’s second brother was also nearby, every one of them had been bound.
Young Master Zhang wanted to shout for help, but his mouth was gagged and he couldn’t speak at all!
Summoning all his strength, he struggled, but his body was already drained. After just the slightest movement, he was left gasping for breath, dripping with sweat, like a stranded fish on the shore.
Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother had drunk quite a bit the night before, and the bumpy motion made his stomach churn. He couldn’t hold it in and tried to vomit, only to find he couldn’t open his mouth! The filth had to be disgustingly swallowed back down.
When he opened his eyes, Young Master Zhang’s second brother was stunned: !!!
What was happening!
Bound hands and feet! He widened his eyes, looking left and right, and found Young Master Zhang and Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother lying at their feet!
The brothers had been kidnapped!
But wait! They had been sleeping at home last night; how could the bandits be so bold as to invade the city and kidnap the young masters of the Zhang family!
Where was the fifth brother? Was he alright?
Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother turned his head vigorously, crashing into Young Master Zhang, and then turned again, bumping into Young Master Zhang’s second brother.
Young Master Zhang’s second brother woke up from the impact, opening his eyes, his gaze dazed as he looked at Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother.
“Woo woo woo!” Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother tried to make a sound.
“Mmm mmm!” Young Master Zhang responded to Young Master Zhang’s second brother.
Seeing their state, Young Master Zhang’s second brother was momentarily taken aback, thinking he was dreaming, and closed his eyes to go back to sleep.
Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother, feeling speechless, once again used his face to bump into Young Master Zhang’s second brother.
Young Master Zhang’s second brother felt this didn’t seem like a dream; he opened his eyes again, looking confused as he met Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother’s gaze.
“Woo woo woo woo woo woo!” Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother made an excited sound, bringing Young Master Zhang’s second brother back to awareness!
Young Master Zhang’s second brother was bewildered; what was happening? He wanted to speak but found he couldn’t open his mouth!
Young Master Zhang’s second brother: ???
Looking down at the still-sleeping Young Master Zhang’s third brother, Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother awkwardly used his bound feet to poke him, trying to wake him up, “Woo woo woo!”
To no avail, Young Master Zhang’s third brother merely turned slightly in his sleep, snoring soundly, showing how deeply he was asleep!
Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother felt a headache coming on and glanced at Young Master Zhang.
Young Master Zhang shook his head, indicating he felt weak and drained. He couldn’t even lift his legs anymore.
Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother had no choice but to look at Young Master Zhang’s second brother, signaling him to help him poke Young Master Zhang’s third brother and wake him up.
As he bent down, Young Master Zhang’s second brother finally realized his hands and feet were also bound! After a moment of confusion, he slowly lifted his feet, trying to poke Young Master Zhang’s third brother like Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother.
With the combined efforts of Young Master Zhang’s second and fourth brothers, Young Master Zhang’s third brother finally woke up.
Blinking his eyes, Young Master Zhang’s third brother looked blankly at them, unaware of what game they were playing. He tried to speak but found he had no control over his words.
Young Master Zhang’s third brother: ???
He widened his eyes, surprised and confused, not knowing what was happening at that moment.
When Old Zhao delivered them to the most remote Taoist temple, it was already evening. The weary birds had returned to their nests, and there was no smoke from cooking fires.
“Fifth Young Master, Old Zhao has brought you here,” Old Zhao thought to himself that he had to oversee matters for the Zhang family and couldn’t be away for too long. He sincerely hoped that the Young Masters could truly mend their ways.
As the sunset fell on Zhang Fang, he smiled, saying, “Alright, you all can go back. When you have news of my father, come find me again.”
Old Zhao nodded and had someone help Young Master Zhang and the others down from the carriage.
Recognizing the footmen as Zhang family servants, Young Master Zhang was instantly furious, glaringly intimidating them with his eyes. If only his mouth wasn’t gagged, he would have surely shouted insults and taught them a lesson!
The servants, with stiff faces, nervously covered the young masters’ heads with black cloth bags as they helped them out of the carriage.
Before Old Zhao mounted his horse, he turned to glance at Zhang Fang and the others.
His gaze fell on Zhang Fang, and he suddenly felt that Fifth Young Master seemed to have matured overnight. He understood the gravity of the situation!
Whether or not this would succeed in helping the young masters change their bad habits, it was a good thing that they had the heart to correct themselves!
Six footmen each took charge of Young Master Zhang, Young Master Zhang’s second brother, and Young Master Zhang’s fourth brother, leading them up the mountain. The other two footmen were dragging Young Master Zhang’s third brother from the front and pushing him from behind. One more, named Wang Zhuang, stayed beside Zhang Fang, whispering to him.
This Taoist temple was hidden deep in the mountains, very secluded. Previously, Old Master Zhang had fallen in love with Madam Zhang upon seeing her here. Therefore, the temple had received donations from the Zhang family over the years and had been well maintained. Unfortunately, due to its remote location, few knew about it, and there were not many pilgrims visiting.
Zhang Fang planned to conduct a month-long training session here to help these brothers quit their indulgences in eating, drinking, and gambling.
Chatting with the footman named Wang Zhuang along the way, Zhang Fang learned a lot of information. The current situation indeed had both internal and external troubles.
Foreign merchants were increasingly invading the markets, with Western countries requiring large amounts of China’s tea, silk, and porcelain. However, China had little interest in Western goods. This led to an imbalance in the trade exchanges. The only thing the foreigners could trade heavily with China was foreign cloth. To protect local textile businesses, the court had previously implemented policies that restricted the entry of foreign fabrics, which made the foreigners dissatisfied and even served as an excuse to send troops into the country. The external situation had been quite tense in recent years.
Recently, regarding opium, the court was rife with controversy. Some proposed a complete ban on opium, while others opposed the idea outright. The opium trade was a political game played both domestically and internationally. Whether or not the court issued an edict banning opium entirely, the foreigners had reasons to initiate further conflict. The wolves’ hearts were well known to all.