He tricked his amnesiac partner into becoming crippled.

Chapter 246 The Marquis Has No Clever Heart 23

The county magistrate was a decent official, neither particularly good nor bad. He did his job well and occasionally received some money to supplement his family's income.

He had seen too many officials come and go. If he encountered a decent one, he couldn't bear to see him suffer, and Shaliu County would remain the same. But if he encountered a bad one, who would embezzle money and then leave, Shaliu County would have to endure another famine.

Hopefully, the new superior will be a good one.

After briefly understanding the situation, Wen Yan made a decision. Although Shaliu County was so poor that it was almost in a disaster mode, she still found some benefits in it.

First of all, there are not many scholars here, and there are no famous people in the family. The common people are illiterate, so whatever the county government says goes. In other words, she has a lot of say here.

Secondly, Shaliu County was too poor. Other counties had some local gentry or powerful figures, but Shaliu County had none. It was simply too poor to afford education. Those with power and influence had long since used their connections to leave, leaving behind only the powerless and without influence.

Wen Yan comforted herself: It's okay, there are advantages to being poor. Look, I'm in charge right away.

"Clang"

When the wind blew, the county government office signboard began to tremble and then fell off.

The county magistrate, unfazed, picked up the plaque quickly and handed it to a servant, instructing him to find some nails to secure it.

Wen Yan inhaled: How miserable.

The county government office was quiet, with almost no piled-up affairs. Wen Yan thought for a moment and then took Liang Jinglan to stroll around the city with the county magistrate.

Along the way, the county magistrate stole several glances at Liang Jinglan. With his sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, his tall and imposing figure cast a shadow over others. When he looked at people, his eyes held a cold, bloodthirsty light, like a general who had been baptized in blood.

The county magistrate dared to ask, "Sir, who is this gentleman beside you?"

“He’s mine…” Wen Yan hadn’t figured out his identity yet, so she raised an eyebrow at him and changed the subject: “What do you want to be?”

Liang Jinglan was already very satisfied with being able to eat, live, and go out with Wen Yan; external titles were meaningless to him.

He's not greedy; he's content with tangible benefits.

Liang Jinglan softened her voice: "It's up to you to decide."

Wen Yan smiled slightly: "His surname is Liang. He is my personal military advisor and the most important person to me."

The county magistrate's heart was in his throat, but then he felt relieved. When Wen Yan asked Liang Jinglan what he wanted to be, he thought the other party wanted to smuggle goods to gain power, but he had been overthinking it.

However, it seems that Military Advisor Liang is happier without authority than with it.

After spending three days exploring the entire Shaliu County and gaining a thorough understanding of its local customs and culture, Wen Yan made her next plan.

It's time to meet the wealthy businessman from Shaliu.

When Wen Yan finally had time to meet with the wealthy businessmen, they were overjoyed and rushed to the banquet.

They had heard that a new magistrate had arrived in Shaliu County, and they were filled with anxiety, fearing that if they accidentally offended the official, they would lose their business and end up in jail.

During the banquet, upon hearing Wen Yan mention needing money, he immediately sent her money.

It's good that they took the money; now that they've taken the money, they can't deal with them anymore.

"This money is not for me to take; it is a donation from everyone to the people of Shaliu, to do practical things for them."

"Yes, Your Excellency is truly a good official, loving the people like your own children!"

"Yes, with adults in Shaliu County, there is finally hope!"

"..."

Anyone can say nice things, whether you believe them or not is another matter. As for the county magistrate who amassed wealth as soon as he took office... they exchanged glances, those who understood understood.

The night in Shaliu was silent, with only the faint twinkling of stars.

After a few drinks, Wen Yan felt warm and lay back on the couch, watching Liang Jinglan change her clothes and blow out the lamp. Before long, she was embraced in an even warmer hug, and a fluffy head nuzzled against her chest.

"Yanyan, you smell of alcohol."

"Hmm, it's inevitable to have a few drinks when meeting wealthy businessmen." Wen Yan's voice was lazy as she touched his somewhat rough hands and held them, slowly stroking them.

Liang Jinglan gave a muffled "Mmm," and said, "Don't drink too much alcohol; it's bad for your health."

He cherished her long-term illness even more than she did, following every doctor's order. In comparison, Wen Yan seemed like a stubborn, disobedient person. Fortunately, she had him.

"Okay, I'll listen to Jinglan."

Her voice was clear and bright, and the lingering aroma of wine was particularly intoxicating. She pulled her hand away from his grasp, touched Liang Jinglan's face, and gently kissed his cheek: "Jinglan is really good."

Liang Jinglan blushed and her heart raced as she coaxed him. His dark eyes stared at her intently, while he placed his other hand on the other side to support himself so as not to press down on her.

Wen Yan told him about the development plan for Shaliu County. After learning what she was going to do, Liang Jinglan's hand trembled and he almost fell down and hit her.

Unbelievable, too embarrassing to talk about:

"Wha...what? You want to sell aphrodisiacs?"

After looking into her eyes repeatedly to make sure she really wasn't just saying it, Liang Jinglan fell silent.

His male nature made him alert, and he immediately spoke up, sounding aggrieved: "Was it because I didn't do well enough?"

Wen Yan was taken aback, then burst into laughter: "What are you thinking? Do I need to tell you how amazing you are?"

Liang Jinglan coughed lightly.

"Besides, this is a great business opportunity. Shaliu County is guaranteed to become rich." She had investigated and found that Shaliu County had all the raw materials for aphrodisiacs, not only in abundance but also in particularly good condition!

Isn't this just blatantly setting up a money-making scheme?

Although it doesn't sound good for court officials to sell medicine.

"And we don't just do the pharmaceutical business."

In the end, Liang Jinglan was persuaded. Actually, it wasn't that he was persuaded; he nodded eagerly after Wen Yan had only said two sentences.

Shaliu County is too poor, there are pirates at sea, and crops on land don't grow well. There are many difficulties, so she will solve them one by one. First is the saline-alkali land. She has a way, but she needs manpower.

Ordinary people are busy making a living, so they naturally can't work for free. The money they get from wealthy merchants is a preparatory fund for other businesses and cannot be touched.

If only there were free labor.

Wen Yan was filled with melancholy.

Her ears twitched, and she heard very light footsteps on the roof tiles outside. Her mind started racing.

Here comes the free labor.

He exchanged a glance with Liang Jinglan, who gestured for him to be quiet and slowly gripped the long sword beside the bed.

With a broken window and leaping tiles, dozens of masked men in black rushed in, their presence overwhelming, and began hacking at the two people on the bed.

Liang Jinglan ran a few steps forward and blocked with his long sword. Several men in black fell to the ground. The men in black were ruthless in their attacks, and one of them was aiming for the face with a short sword. Liang Jinglan dodged to the side and then kicked the man in black in the chest. The man in black flew out and knocked down a large number of men.

Stools and tables were used as weapons, and dozens of people fought back and forth with Liang Jinglan. Wen Yan leisurely poured herself a cup of tea and watched the show.

It wasn't until the men in black suddenly realized something was wrong—why hadn't Liang Jinglan killed them?

Is he too confident in himself, or is it simply that he doesn't need to lift a finger?

The thought had barely formed when my limbs began to feel weak all over. My mind finally realized: it was Chinese medicine.

Clang, clang, clang—the sound of weapons hitting the ground.

Thump, thump, thump—the sound of people falling to the ground.

They were conscious, but unable to move their bodies. They stared wide-eyed as Wen Yan called in people to pry open their mouths, remove the medicine, feed them more medicine, and force-feed them water, all in one smooth motion.

Wen Yan sighed, "I'm a really nice person, I was worried you wouldn't be able to swallow the poison."

poison!!

The man in black's eyes were bloodshot.

"Hiss, that's too fierce." Wen Yan seemed startled and took a big step back.

Upon hearing this, Liang Jinglan stood up, slapped the glaring man in black to close his eyes, and turned back to say softly, "Alright, that's enough."

The others froze: ... (trembling)