FID – Chapter 585

Chapter 585: What’s the Use Besides Showing Off Affection?

“My Lord…” Mrs. Kang shifted her aching knees, waves of discomfort washing over her.

Kang Shiming let out a deep sigh. “Keep kneeling.”

Was he not embarrassed?

As the county magistrate, the master of this yamen, he had always been the one receiving others’ kneeling.

Yet today, in his own domain, under the watchful eyes of all the servants, he had to kneel. The humiliation was so intense that he almost wished he could just slam his head against the ground and end it all.

But what choice did he have?

He had to clean it up the mess his daughter created himself!

They had offended the King of Nanling… Given His Highness’s temperament, he would never let such an offense slide easily, nor would he simply brush it off.

Kang Shiming wasn’t afraid of an immediate outburst from His Highness—he was more afraid of being held accountable later!

A slow, drawn-out punishment would be far more painful!

Inside the guest room, the dinner was lively.

Shi Xianrou had arrived, and with Qian Wanjin growing even more animated, the entire dining table was filled with his endless chatter.

“What a pity I missed that scene today. If only Xiao Shi had woken up earlier,” Qian Wanjin lamented. 

Watching Feng Qingbai put people in their place was pure entertainment.

Shi Xianrou curled her lips and gave him a sideways glance. “Even if I had woken up earlier, you wouldn’t have seen it.”

Cough, cough! A certain someone choked, his handsome face turning redder by the second.

Liu Yusheng shook her head and clicked her tongue. “Scenes like that are best used to torment single dogs.”

“What’s a single dog?”

“As the name suggests, a single dog.”

“Oh! Then that would be Xue Qinglian!”

Xue Qinglian stabbed a piece of meat and shoved it into his mouth.

So… he was a single dog? A dog?!

If it weren’t for the fact that the one who said it was Nannan, he’d poison her so she’d never be able to speak again!

After laughing for a while, Liu Yusheng turned to the man beside her. “The people outside are still kneeling. Are you really not going to let them up?”

“Kang Shiming understands me well,” Feng Qingbai said indifferently. “Just making them kneel is already the lightest punishment.”

Even if he called them up now, would they dare to stand?

Xue Qinglian sneered, “Let them kneel until tomorrow. They raised such a thing and offended the wrong person—it’s only right they take responsibility.”

“Exactly. Giving birth to such a disaster and not even losing his official hat is already a mercy. If you bring a child into the world and don’t teach them properly, that’s negligence.” Qian Wanjin spoke with his mouth full, his words slightly garbled. “Even if he wants to blame someone, he can’t blame anyone else. The one who dragged him down was his own family.”

Since everyone was in agreement, Liu Yusheng just smiled and stopped paying attention to what was happening outside.

After the meal, Shi Xianrou pulled out a thick stack of silver banknotes and handed them to Feng Qingbai. Qian Wanjin who was watching from the side was completely stunned.

“Xiao Shi, how much is that?”

“One million two hundred thousand taels.”

“Thud!” Qian Wanjin fell off his chair, staring blankly at her. “You have that much money, and you’re giving it to Feng Qingbai?! Support me instead!”

Shi Xianrou pulled him up and sighed helplessly. “That’s money that Uncle Qian raised from the capital’s business guilds. He leveraged his position as the wealthiest merchant to pressure them into donating. It’s disaster relief funds.”

“…Next time, I’m just going to go out and suffer through a disaster. Then, that old fox can go raise donations to rescue me,” Qian Wanjin mumbled, still looking dazed.

One million two hundred thousand taels!

She handed it over just like that!

So straightforward!

How many years of business would he have to do to earn that much?!

Under Qian Wanjin’s eager gaze, Feng Qingbai calmly accepted the banknotes. “I’ll thank Master Qian properly when we return to the capital.”

“That’s it? Just a thank you?” Qian Wanjin immediately scooted closer.

“Would you rather I didn’t thank him?”

“No! Who said that?! Wasn’t the selection of the imperial merchant delayed because of the Liu family’s matters in the capital? If you want to thank us, why not give us the imperial merchant title?”

Feng Qingbai pulled up the little girl beside him—who was also staring at the banknotes in a daze—and led her back to their room.

“Hey! Feng Qingbai! Are you giving it or not? Say something!”

His only response was the sound of the door shutting.

Qian Wanjin was livid. He turned to Shi Xianrou and complained, “Look at him! Just look at him! One million two hundred thousand taels! If you threw that into the water, you’d at least hear a splash! And he didn’t even make a sound! This is outrageous! Even the court isn’t this generous with disaster relief funds! Xiao Shi, don’t you think he’s an ungrateful wretch?”

“Idiot,” the single dog, Xue Qinglian, muttered a curse and walked away.

All these couples being all lovey-dovey—it was an eyesore.

What’s the point of finding a partner if all they do is flaunt their love?

Just look at Qian Wanjin. Does he even seem like a man anymore?

Acting all coy like a woman—disgraceful!

He swore that he would never be like that in his entire life!

When Xiao Jinzi started rambling nonstop, there was only one effective way to shut him up—Shi Xianrou simply dragged him back to their room and put her method into action.

Meanwhile, over in Liu Yusheng’s room, she was still sighing in amazement. “I never expected Master Qian to have such a heart.”

People always said that merchants prioritized profit above all else, that everything they did had a purpose.

But this time, she truly believed that Master Qian had donated to Yunzhou from the bottom of his heart.

When Yunzhou was struck by disaster, Qian Wanjin was in the county.

By the time the Qian family received the news, they must have felt incredibly distressed.

So, he donated.

He hoped Yunzhou would be safe.

He hoped his child would be safe.

Feng Qingbai said, “Merchants may prioritize profit, but in times of national crisis, they often act in the most unexpected ways. There will always be those who hold on to their integrity, untouched by corruption or greed. Master Qian is one of them.”

“Everyone who contributed to the disaster relief efforts in Yunzhou is being rewarded. But for a great merchant like Master Qian, what kind of reward could you possibly give?”

Feng Qingbai chuckled. “Are you pleading on behalf of the Qian family?”

“Of course not, I’m just asking. I trust that Your Highness would never favor one over another,” the young girl said earnestly.

“I’ll give it some thought,” the man replied, before lifting her into his arms and carrying her toward the bed, extinguishing the lamp.

That night, the two figures outside the guest courtyard remained kneeling until dawn. Only then did someone inside finally relay a message, allowing them to leave.

Throughout the entire night, even as her parents knelt outside, Kang Ziyu never once appeared—not even for a single glance.

The next day, after finishing lunch, Liu Yusheng and her group bid farewell to Kang Shiming.

During this time, Feng Qingbai had overseen the entire disaster relief effort. The county’s patients had largely received treatment, and the remaining few could be handled by the doctors at various medical clinics. There was no longer any reason for them to stay.

They set off for Yunzhou, arriving in the late afternoon.

At the residence, only Fu Yuzheng, Grandma Liu, and Grandpa Liu were present. Liu Dalin, Liu Erlin, and Liu Zhiqiu had returned to Xinghua Village half a month earlier to repair the houses that had been soaked by the floodwaters. Once everything was in order, they planned to return and bring the elders back.

When the two elders saw Feng Qingbai, they were not surprised in the slightest.

With Xinghua Village having suffered a disaster, if Axiu hadn’t come back, that would have been strange.

Feng Qingbai spent half an hour discussing matters with Liu Zhixia in the study, handing over the funds that the Qian family had raised. After that, he immediately set off for the capital.

At this moment, the city lights had begun to illuminate the night. The dock was no longer as bustling as before; the aftermath of the flood left destruction everywhere. Though it had been partially repaired, the dock had yet to be fully rebuilt.

A cargo ship belonging to the Canal Guild was moored by the shore, its lanterns lit, casting a warm yellow glow onto the river’s surface. The water still looked murky and unsettled.

Feng Qingbai gently embraced his little girl and whispered, “I’m leaving now.”

“Mm.” The small hand gripping his robe loosened bit by bit.

Liu Yusheng understood that many matters in the capital awaited his return. This flood disaster had impacted multiple southern provinces, not just Yunzhou. No matter how reluctant she felt, she had to let him go—when it came to state affairs, personal feelings had to take a backseat.

“Set sail—”