Chapter 10, Inadaptability

Thank you, Lord Xie, thank you for your mercy! The group of young girls was momentarily stunned, and only then did they realize that Zhu Dapeng truly did not wish to pursue the matter of the spilled face wash. They all expressed their gratitude in unison and hurriedly scrambled out the door.

What is all this? Zhu Dapeng was momentarily stunned, disoriented by the pleas of the young girls. Seeing the blood seeping from the corner of the opponent's forehead, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration, slammed his hand down on the table, and shouted loudly: "Shut up! All of you stand up immediately! I will count to one, two, three, and anyone who hasn't stood up by then will be dragged out and beaten to death! One ... ... "

The sound of a basin falling to the ground echoed, swiftly pulling his soul out of a state of confusion. Immediately following, the cries of the young girls rose in unison, "Please, sir, have mercy!" "Oh, sir, have mercy! I did not mean to!" "Sir, have mercy, I will clean it up right away and prepare you anew!"

The adults have good hearts; these few will surely have better fortunes in the future! Mr. Su, however, did not find his words particularly dull. He smiled inwardly and continued to flatter in a low voice. "When I was a bowman, I had to drag corpses from the street corners to the mass grave outside the city every day with my apprentices. Almost all of them were around their age! They either died at the hands of their masters or, having lost all will to live, hanged themselves. On the busiest mornings, we would have to drag away four or five. Alas, it is truly a tragedy, a tragedy!" They either died at the hands of their masters or, having lost all will to live, hanged themselves. On the busiest mornings, we would have to drag away four or five. Alas, it is truly a tragedy, a tragedy!

You ancient people! Looking at the flustered figures of the young girls, Zhu Dapeng couldn't help but shake his head repeatedly. In the daydreams of Zhu Dapeng, a homebody in the twenty-first century, he had imagined more than once that he suddenly traveled back to ancient times, becoming a wealthy and powerful young master, purchasing five or six beautiful maidservants to attend to him closely, having everything handed to him during the day, and at night sharing a bed. Now that he was truly being served by five or six maidservants, he realized that the life of commanding servants did not seem very pleasant. At the very least, he could not adapt to a group of beautiful young girls kneeling and bowing for trivial matters, nor could he accept that his kind words were taken as having ulterior motives.

"Why would the authorities care about matters that yield no profit?" Mr. Su glanced deeply at Zhu Dapeng, shaking his head with a bitter smile. "Moreover, even if the authorities wanted to intervene, they would need a reason! These maids from wealthy families are bought and raised by the pawnshops from a young age. Their parents are long forgotten, and their status is as lowly as that of livestock. If they happen to encounter a good master, they consider themselves fortunate; if they are unfortunate and are cruelly mistreated to death by their masters, it is no different from killing a kitten or a puppy. Haha, throughout history, have you ever seen the authorities demand compensation for the lives of kittens or puppies?"

In the midst of the atmosphere, the two young girls previously designated by him entered, carrying a wooden bucket with a cloth. They first wiped the water stains on the floor thoroughly, then bent down and cautiously asked: "My lord, shall the meal be served to your bedroom? Or would you prefer to be assisted to the front hall for dining? The weather is a bit cool, so if you choose the front hall, I would like to offer you an additional garment for your feet"

It is strange that as soon as he got angry, Mr. Su immediately fell silent. He first muttered a low thank you, then quickly walked to the desk, sitting on the edge of the chair with half of his bottom, feeling anxious and fearful.

Although the memories of Zhu Bashi have been nearly integrated, Zhu Dapeng still finds himself somewhat unaccustomed to the vocabulary of medieval Chinese. After hesitating for a moment, he walked over to the table and sat down, quietly instructing, "There's no need to go to such trouble. Just bring the food here. Please add an extra set of chopsticks and a bowl for Mr. Su to join us!"

"Indeed, adults possess the heart of a Buddha!" Mr. Su, who witnessed the entire process, suddenly set down his brush and remarked with a hint of emotion, "If it were Mahama, these girls would either be dead today or at least suffer a great deal!"

"If I tell you to eat, then just eat. Why so much nonsense!" Zhu Dapeng said impatiently, slamming the table and shouting.

"Isn't it just a bucket of water spilled? Just wipe it dry with a cloth! It didn't splash on me, so why are you all so scared?" Zhu Dapeng knew that his absent-minded appearance had frightened the young women, so he smiled and took the initiative to absolve them.

Damn it! Apart from muttering curses under his breath, Zhu Dapeng did not know what else he could say! The status of a servant was even lower than that of livestock, a notion that almost everyone accepted as a matter of course in this era. The Mongol Yuan government, aside from suppressing rebellions, had only one remaining function: to extort money. In his memory, Zhu Eighty-One's sister had been beaten to death. Zhu Eighty-One had always been troubled by this, yet until the end of his life, he never had the courage to confront his sister's cheap husband at their doorstep to demand an explanation from that family. The Mongol Yuan government, aside from suppressing rebellions, had only one remaining function: to extort money. In his memory, Zhu Eighty-One's sister had been beaten to death. Zhu Eighty-One had always been troubled by this, yet until the end of his life, he never had the courage to confront his sister's cheap husband at their doorstep to demand an explanation from that family

Aren't you going to prepare the meals yet?" Zhu Dapeng waved his hand again, shooing the two bewildered young women out the door. He then glared at Mr. Su and harshly commanded, "Sit up straight! Don't slouch like a beaten dog! You are someone who has read books, just like the *illustrations*, so why are you as spineless as a worm?"

"Indeed, good people cannot be trusted!" Zhu Dapeng secretly sighed in his heart, forcing a wicked expression, and pointed to the two young girls closest to him, "You, and you, go find a rag and clean the floor! The rest of you, prepare meals for me. Damn it, I've been toiling all morning, and I'm about to starve!"

Hanfu, small theater, photography club. And that study committee member who tirelessly arranged the rented wigs strand by strand on her head. How many years ago was that? Zhu Dapeng thought he had long forgotten it completely... yet the moment he saw that face in the mirror, it surged within his heart like a tide

Mr. Su, feeling a chill from the glare he received, quickly straightened his posture as requested. He then stole a glance at him and cautiously explained, "It is not that the young ones are weak, but that etiquette must not be neglected. To be granted a banquet by you, sir, is such an honor. If it were so easily accessible, it would lose its value. In the future, if you wish to show favor to the worthy..."

Is Zhu Baishi really an alternate-dimensional projection of Zhu Dapeng? Or is Zhu Baishi's soul reborn as Zhu Dapeng in another world? In the next moment, Zhu Dapeng fell into a state of confusion... His eyes glazed over, and the hand holding the bronze mirror trembled, trembled, trembled...

He would have been better off not trying to excuse himself; as soon as he did, the young girls turned pale with fear. One by one, they knelt on the damp floor, their heads knocking against it with a resounding "thud! thud! thud!" "Sir, please show mercy; this servant dares not do it again, truly dares not!" "Sir, spare this servant this time, and I will forever be grateful for your great kindness and virtue!"

And in the illustrated book "He is a beast, I am not!" Zhu Dapeng turned his head and shot him a glance, responding irritably. Just a moment ago, when he was at a loss as several young girls cried, this fellow did not come to help but instead stood by watching the commotion. Now that the trouble has been resolved, he has come forward eagerly to flatter him, which is truly tiresome.

"It is unjust! It is unjust!" Mr. Su slammed his head against the ground, causing the wooden floor to tremble violently. "I truly did not mean to treat you as a puppet. I really did not! At that time, I had no other options. If I had stepped forward myself, given my previous status, Zhimali would have certainly ordered the complete destruction of Luomaxiang without even asking. Sun Thirty-One and Wu Twenty-Two, along with a few others, are also from the yamen; their involvement would have been the same!" If I had stepped forward myself, given my previous status, Zhimali would have certainly ordered the complete destruction of Luomaxiang without even asking. Sun Thirty-One and Wu Twenty-Two, along with a few others, are also from the yamen; their involvement would have been the same!

"I dare not, I dare not!" Mr. Su continued to wave his hands vigorously, "My lord, you are treating the worthy with respect, but I cannot disregard the rules. Otherwise, those below will follow suit, and our left army will be thrown into complete chaos. Furthermore, in front of you, I cannot dare to call you 'Mr.' anymore. You are the master, and I am the servant; between master and servant..."

Come on! Zhu Dapeng couldn't keep things to himself any longer and was too lazy to continue beating around the bush with Mr. Su. He curled his lip and said with a cold smile: "As for the things you did in my name this morning, I don't see how any of them were good for me! You just think I'm a fool, easy to manipulate, so you pushed me to the front to be your puppet..."

Eating is just eating, there is no need for so much fuss! After dealing with him for a while, Zhu Dapeng has somewhat understood how to speak to someone like Mr. Su. This guy is just a lowlife; the more fierce you are with him, the more secure he feels inside. "I let you eat because I am afraid you might faint from hunger and recklessly give me ideas that would prevent me from overcoming the current obstacle! Furthermore, when you speak to me in the future, put away the tricks you use with that group of bastards in the government. First, I do not like this tone. Second, the more you use this approach against me, the more I suspect you have ulterior motives!"

No wonder I always feel that Zhu Bashi is very familiar in my dreams. That is clearly another version of myself, a self that exists in a different time and space, one that has been worn down by the mundane world, losing all vitality.

Your Excellency, please see! Upon hearing this, Mr. Su immediately jumped down from his chair and once again knelt down with a thud, saying, "My loyalty to you, my lord, can be testified by the sun and the moon. I can swear to heaven that if I have any harmful thoughts towards you..."

"I dare not, I dare not!" Before the two young maidservants could respond, Mr. Su jumped up as if he had stubbed his toe, waving his hands like a windmill towards Zhu Dapeng, "What merit do I have to sit at the same table as the Governor? I would be utterly crushed, utterly crushed. Please, Your Excellency, I implore you to retract your command!"

Before the first number was finished, the young girls all jumped up as if wound up like toys. Standing in front of him, they were half-bent and trembling as if sifting grain.

It is just a meal, what is there to fuss about! Zhu Dapeng felt quite uncomfortable, furrowing his brow slightly, and added in a low voice, I estimate that you have been busy since last night and haven't had time to eat. It is just right for you to have a meal with me, and then we can continue discussing the details of our visit to Sesame Li

"Goodness, they really went through with it!" Zhu Dapeng was taken aback again, staring wide-eyed as he asked, "Why are you only responsible for disposing of the bodies? In matters of life and death, doesn't the government intervene?"