Chapter 84: Chapter 83: Outsider Man Comes Knocking
According to the gift list, Lin Wanwan prepared various return gifts, all a third more generous than those on the list. She prepared them based on modern gift-giving logic, unsure whether this was customary in the Great Tang era. These detailed historical issues are difficult to trace in historical records.
While Lin Wanwan was busy in the house, a stranger walked into the courtyard.
Kun Lun immediately stepped forward to block him, glaring fiercely at the visitor, while Hua Nong approached and asked, "Who are you?"
The visitor hastily bowed, showing a flattering smile, and said, "I am Shan Xinrong from Xiaoxi Town, a good brother of Lin Mengli, here today to visit the noble lady."
Hua Nong replied strangely, "You are Mengliâs brother, you should go find him, why come to visit our lady? She wonât casually meet others."
At this, Shan Xinrong took out some coins from his sleeve intending to slip them into Hua Nongâs hand. Hua Nong quickly stepped back, and said angrily, "What are you doing? Go away."
Kun Lun, who had been watching fiercely from the side, immediately stepped forward, grabbed Shan Xinrongâs collar with one hand, and within moments threw him out of the courtyard.
The commotion drew the attention of the nearby Lin Mengbo family, who quickly emerged and coldly demanded, "Who are you? Why are you in our clan? Get out of here!"
Regardless of who it was, anyone thrown out by Kun Lun had to be expelled from Lin Family Manor as well.
"Who, who caused trouble?"
"Ouch!" Shan Xinrong scrambled up from the ground, not even bothering to dust off, and faced the burly men instantly surrounding him from Lin Family Manor, shouting loudly, "Misunderstanding, misunderstanding, itâs truly a misunderstanding! Iâm Lin Mengliâs friend, just here to bring him New Yearâs gifts! Really!"
"You know Mengli? What does that have to do with Teacher Lin? Why werenât you at Mengliâs house and instead got thrown out by Kun Lun?"
"You look sneaky, youâre nothing good!"
"Hurry and get lost!"
"No, no, no, itâs not, Iâm not bad, I, I, I, I really am the, the..." Shan Xinrong stuttered in panic, and the more he stuttered, the more he was beaten, unable to speak clearly, surely feeling guilty.
Amidst the kicks and punches from everyone, Lin Mengli was hastily summoned by Tiezhu from the Lin Mengjin family.
"Uncle, itâs that guy up front, hurry, he was thrown out by the Kunlun slave of Teacher Linâs house."
Upon hearing Tiezhu relay the message, Lin Mengli was furious. This Shan Xinrong was really unreliable; itâs been told that the baking soda wonât be sold anymore, and he should go back. Yet he said he would leave, and actually came straight to Lin Wanwanâs house, utterly absurd.
Shan Xinrong, driven to flee desperately, caught sight of Lin Mengli and immediately howled, "Brother Mengli, come quickly, tell them Iâm not a bad guy!"
Lin Mengli hurried over, raging, "How did you offend Teacher Lin? How dare you come directly to her house?"
Shan Xinrong quickly grabbed his arm and hid behind him, pleading innocence, "I didnât even see Teacher Lin, how could I offend her? I just wanted to pay a visit."
Lin Mengbo berated, "You vile creature, how dare you visit Teacher Lin? Did you send a calling card? Get invited? You dare to barge in, youâre lucky not to be beaten to death!"
Lin Mengli didnât help him, grabbing him and saying, "You said youâd go back, is this how you do it? I told you the baking soda isnât for sale, you still wonât give up, right? Dare to directly seek our Lady Wanwan, you really donât understand the rules as an outsider, do you?"
Shan Xinrong quickly apologized, "Yes, yes, yes, itâs all my fault, but I didnât even see Teacher Lin, and then I was thrown out by Kunlun; I had no chance to offend her."
Lin Mengjin coldly responded, "Barging in without a calling card, this isnât offending? The courtyard door of Teacher Lin is open for us clan members, but you, as an outsider, dared to come casually."
"Indeed it was reckless of me, this is my fault, and you are right to beat and scold me." Shan Xinrong dared not argue further, seeing the fierce expressions of the group around him, hinting they could easily beat him up again, he could only submissively admit his mistake.
It truly was his fault; in Xiaoxi Town, he wouldnât dare act so recklessly. His indiscretion at Lin Family Manor came from his belief that in a remote area like this, there werenât any rules to follow.
He hadnât realized a place like this could harbor a golden phoenix, assuming Lin Wanwan was just a merchant woman running a small business. After all, Lin Mengli, her clan mate, was merely an inn staff.
The batch of baking soda Shan Xinrong bought from Lin Mengli was now used up. He had approached Lin Mengli several times hoping to continue purchasing, offering to pay more, but Lin Mengli refused.
Now Shan Xinrong had to use reserved old dough for fermentation when making steamed buns, which was not as effective as before, so he was eager to buy more. However, since the Lin Family Manor had started selling steamed buns themselves, Lin Wanwan naturally wouldnât bother with selling simple baking soda, given she didnât lack money.
Unable to acquire the secret formula, Shan Xinrong not only wasted the New Yearâs gifts but also endured a beating, leaving Lin Family Manor defeated.
Watching him leave, Lin Mengli felt embarrassed as he approached Lin Wanwan to apologize.
"Lady Wanwan, Iâm sorry you were alarmed today; itâs all my fault. Had I known he would act so rashly, I would have ushered him out."
Having already heard the whole story from Hua Nong, Lin Wanwan smiled, "It was a trivial matter, Brother Mengli, no need to worry."
She no longer extracted those ingredients herself, simply acting as a time-space middleman, buying finished products from modern times, which were of good quality and convenient. Todayâs incident prompted her idea that these could serve as New Yearâs gifts too.
She immediately prepared a bottle each of yeast and baking soda, placing them in the pile of New Yearâs gifts for the external family.
Old Chen, who pretended deaf and dumb throughout, had been hiding in a side room and didnât come out; watching the masterâs house being laughed at isnât what a good servant should do.
In his view, this was all due to having too few servants. Without a gatekeeper, with the courtyard door wide open, the intrusion of outsiders was inevitable. In a true noble house, he mused, such reckless intrusion wouldnât be possible; only in rural areas could this happen.
No matter how wealthy, grown in the countryside, wouldnât stand on the stage. Alas, the Xiaos marrying the Lins was a huge mistake, the Lins are not what they used to be anymore.
Lin Wanwan naturally wouldnât care about a servantâs thoughts; she just wished to live freely and independently. Othersâ opinions were of no consequence to her.
Anyway, everyone at Lin Family Manor was unconditionally on her side; protecting their own was a tradition of Hou Taoâs Lin family. Internal fights might happen, but never let outsiders bully them.