Chapter 3609 — Who Really Calls the Shots!
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
And he actually welcomed them to come gawk again? Did not even mind losing face? That bastard—it was enough to make one's blood boil! Truly, there were limits to what could be endured; if an uncle could bear it, an aunt still could not!
To keep from making an even greater fool of himself, Meng Jueming waved his hand for the rest of the newcomers to disperse, while he himself watched Xu Lingchong's darkened face with the utmost caution.
"Meng Jueming, as the newcomers' steward of Azure Cloud Pavilion, are you just going to stand there and watch him strut about like that? If you haven't the ability, then get out of that seat instead of wasting good food—I am sure there is no shortage of men willing to step up and deal with Wei Zhao!" Xu Lingchong glared at Meng Jueming in fury.
When he had first heard that Meng Jueming had kicked Wei Zhao straight into Number Ten, the dead mining zone, he had thought the man might be a talent. Now it was plain that he was nothing but a useless fool and a dunce!
Seeing Xu Lingchong turn his humiliated rage upon him, Meng Jueming instantly cast his earlier worries to the back of his mind and broke out in a cold sweat. He was nothing but a petty steward at the very bottom—how could he withstand the fury of a young master like Xu?
And what was more, Meng Jueming had only just sensed a hint of acceptance from Xu Lingchong. If he mishandled this now, then in the future Xu Lingchong would sooner ignore him than look his way!
Luckily, Meng Jueming still had a small man's quick wit about him. His eyes rolled, and he said, "Young Master Xu, do not be hasty. Wei Zhao managing to dig out so much fine jade from the dead mining zone two days running—I reckon there must be some trick to it. Very likely he has stumbled onto a high-grade ore vein!"
Xu Lingchong nodded thoughtfully. There was something to that analysis. Even if it was Number Ten, the dead mining zone, it was after all only a region drawn up by men; in essence it still ran together with the other high-grade mining zones. True, the jade yield there had always been low, but that did not mean good jade was entirely absent. If Wei Zhao really had, by blind luck, stumbled onto a high-grade ore vein, then it was hardly strange at all for him to pull fine jade from the dead mining zone several days in a row.
Seeing Xu Lingchong accept this, Meng Jueming's spirits rose at once, and he pressed on with his advice: "So I say we first move him to another mining zone to wear him down for a few days. Once we have a clear picture of just how Number Ten yields its fine jade, it will not be too late to think up a way to deal with him. What does Young Master Xu think?"
"That... well, it is not out of the question," Xu Lingchong said, stroking his chin.
Much as Xu Lingchong wanted to deal with Wei Zhao, his station made it impossible for him to strike at the man directly. And given his position, even if he meant to deal with Wei Zhao, the method could not be too crude or heavy-handed—otherwise, even if he eventually trapped Wei Zhao, once word spread he would become a laughingstock among the other young masters and ladies. So if Wei Zhao was to be dealt with, it had to be done in such a way that no one could find the slightest fault with it!
The plan Meng Jueming proposed would take some time, but Xu Lingchong could well afford the patience of a few days.
"Very well. I leave this matter to you. If you handle it well, I will have Hu Yunfeng reward you; but if you botch it, then you can figure out your own fate." Xu Lingchong shot Meng Jueming a glance. Until a better method came to mind, letting Meng Jueming—this local snake of a steward—deal with Wei Zhao was a rather clever move.