The backer of Yu Fu Xiang was Ying Lian. The three characters "Yu Fu Xiang" were even written by Emperor Qianlong himself. In the Qing Dynasty, the Imperial Household Department was the royal household, with three major textile manufacturing bureaus under it. They were all engaged in royal business, and it was extremely difficult for anyone who was not a member of the royal family or had a very powerful backer to obtain such a lucrative position.
At this time, Yinglian was in his prime and had already become the fourth-rank Imperial Textile Commissioner of Jiangning. His future was bound to be limitless. Meanwhile, Lord Ji was a fifth-rank Imperial Censor. Under his very nose, Yinglian's Imperial Incense was stolen, and he was duty-bound to take responsibility.
Lord Ji waved to his subordinates, who understood and helped the manager of Yu Fu Xiang to his feet, brushing the dust off his clothes.
The shopkeeper of Yufuxiang glared fiercely at Jiang Yun and the others, and said, "Lord Ji, these villains not only robbed us, but they are also unreasonable and domineering. When we tried to reason with them, they attacked us, saying that they hate government soldiers the most and want to beat them up one by one. Your Excellency, you must do us justice."
"Hmph, in this prosperous Qing Dynasty, under the clear and bright sky, let's see who dares to be so arrogant."
Lord Ji's dark face flushed red, and he snorted unhappily. Then, his gaze swept over Jiang Yun and the other three with lightning speed. When he saw Jiang Yun, Ji Xiaolan did not recognize him.
"Take them all! Take them all!"
Lord Ji shouted sternly.
His men rushed forward, ready to take down the four men. Liu Qing, Liu Hong, and Xiao Yanzi exchanged glances and nodded in tacit agreement. They appeared calm on the surface, but in reality, they clenched their fists in secret.
"Wait a minute."
Before Jiang Yun could speak, Xiao Yanzi tilted her pretty little head and interrupted, "Sir, we don't know this person. He's just watching the fun. Please don't wrong an innocent person."
Little Swallow pointed at Jiang Yun and said to Lord Ji, "What a wonderful little swallow! She is truly loyal and righteous." Jiang Yun was immediately moved and said, "What a good little swallow! She is truly loyal and righteous."
"Yes, sir, we will take responsibility for our actions and will never implicate the innocent."
Liu Hong continued.
"Sir, if you want to take something, take it from us. This man's martial arts skills are mediocre. With his limited abilities, he doesn't deserve to be a thief."
Liu Qing looked at Jiang Yun with disdain and said dismissively, but in reality, he was trying to exonerate Jiang Yun, which made Jiang Yun like the three of them even more.
As they were talking, Lord Ji's men stepped forward. Xiao Yanzi and the others pretended to be resigned to their fate. When the first soldier walked up to her, Xiao Yanzi suddenly exerted her strength and threw a punch at the soldier.
'Smack!' Jiang Yun blocked Xiao Yanzi's punch, took her little pink fist in his hand, and took the opportunity to stroke the back of her hand while she was exerting force. It felt soft, tender and delicate, and it felt so good.
Why are you stopping me? Are you stupid?
Little Swallow stared wide-eyed, frowned and questioned Jiang Yun. She was a very carefree person, and even when Jiang Yun grabbed her fist, she didn't realize that Jiang Yun was deliberately taking advantage of her.
"You'd be foolish to fight with the soldiers. Don't move, let me handle this."
Jiang Yun smiled firmly at Xiao Yanzi.
"You want to handle it? Who do you think you are? They're officials, they're not reasonable."
Liu Qing said disdainfully, a layer of resentment in his eyes as he looked at Jiang Yun. If it weren't for this brat stopping Xiao Yanzi, according to the plan, they would have already defeated these soldiers and made their escape.
"Young master, we appreciate your help, but it's better to deal with these soldiers with our fists."
Liu Hong also looked incredulous. She didn't believe Jiang Yun could deal with officials unless he was a "second-generation official." However, Liu Hong and her friends were used to seeing "second-generation officials" running rampant, and had never heard of a "second-generation official" standing up for them as thieves.
Therefore, in Liu Hong's and others' view, Jiang Yun was just showing off, and he was showing off to an extreme degree.
"Summon Ji Xiaolan to see me!" Upon hearing Jiang Yun's voice, Ji Xiaolan immediately knelt down beside Jiang Yun.
"This servant Ji Xiaolan pays his respects to Master!" Jiang Yun had already come to Ji Xiaolan's side and helped him up.