Chapter 67: The Metropolitan Magistrate Arrives at the Door

Following the latest round of bids by the two individuals, the atmosphere in the hall grew lively once again.

With the subsequent dishes of medicinal cuisine, the crowd seemed inspired by the pair's actions. Two factions with lingering grievances began aggressively bidding against each other, adopting a posture of refusing to quit until a clear victor emerged.

The bamboo-hatted man made a few bids in the process, but alas, the crowd's excitement was simply too overwhelming.

Seeing that people were starting to lose their minds, his bids—though by no means low—missed out on the medicinal herbs time and time again.

This wave of enthusiastic reactions secretly delighted Liu Ruifeng, who stood upon the stage. The lowest bidding price for the upcoming auctioned medicinal dishes had reached three hundred taels of silver. If everything went smoothly, the restaurant's revenue tonight might well hit a staggering astronomical figure of four thousand taels of silver.

"The next lot is also the final dish of medicinal cuisine for tonight! Starting bid: fifty taels of silver! The bidding now begins..."

After nearly half an hour, the Jun You Lai auction finally reached its climax. Liu Ruifeng tidied his clothes slightly, cleared his somewhat parched throat, and spoke once more in an impassioned voice.

*Bang.*

Just as Liu Ruifeng's words were trailing off, the main doors of Jun You Lai were kicked open from the outside.

Hearing the commotion, everyone turned their gazes toward the entrance, only to see squads of bailiffs clad in official uniforms and wearing fierce expressions pouring rapidly in from outside.

Standing on the high platform, Liu Ruifeng looked at the scene before him, his words caught in his throat. Uncomprehending of the current situation, he could not help turning his head to look at Shen Xuan on the second floor.

"Young Master Shen? What is happening?"

An Miaoyu, having fully recovered, looked down at the scene below and asked with a hint of worry.

Hearing the inquiry, Shen Xuan's expression turned serious, and his tone carried a trace of puzzlement.

"I am not entirely sure either."

With those words, Shen Xuan stood up and walked toward the lower floor, leaving behind only a faint, lingering afterimage.

"I will go down and see what is going on. Miss An, please wait a moment; I shall return shortly."

Watching Shen Xuan's retreating figure, although An Miaoyu felt a touch of anxiety in her heart, she knew she could be of no help right now. She could only gaze at the situation downstairs and wait quietly in place.

"I wonder what brings all you honorable officers to instruct us at Jun You Lai tonight."

Shen Xuan descended to the ground floor, cupped his fists with a calm expression, and asked the dozen or so bailiffs before him.

Yet, as soon as Shen Xuan's question left his lips, not a single person on the opposite side responded. The bailiffs wore cold and stern expressions, gazing straight ahead without a trace of emotion in their eyes.

Witnessing their arrogant and dismissive demeanor, Shen Xuan's brows furrowed slightly. Just as he was about to say something more,

The sound of footsteps drifted in from outside the restaurant once again. Including Shen Xuan, the crowd once more turned their heads toward the source of the sound.

They saw Zhang Guang, whose face had been beaten into the likeness of a swollen pig's head, walking in with a look of furious resentment. Accompanying him was a middle-aged man of similarly stout build, yet attired in official robes.

"Father! That is the fellow who beat me up like this! Hurry up and arrest him! Let me teach him a thorough lesson!"

Upon catching sight of Shen Xuan, Zhang Guang's expression immediately darkened.

Pointing straight at Shen Xuan's nose, he clamored to the middle-aged man beside him.

"Father knows. Rest assured, Guang'er, Father will definitely seek justice for you."

The middle-aged man patted Zhang Guang's shoulder. After offering a few words of comfort, he stepped forward, locked his gaze directly onto Shen Xuan, and demanded:

"So you are the little punk who beat my son?"

"I am indeed the one who did it. Your precious son lacks manners, going around acting as though everyone else were his parents. Fearing that he might eventually cross paths with someone he ought not to offend, I simply stepped in to help you discipline him."

The moment he laid eyes on Zhang Guang, Shen Xuan knew this matter could not be resolved amicably. Hearing the inquiry from the stout middle-aged man before him, he replied without the slightest bit of politeness.

"What kind of thing are you? What qualifications do you have to discipline my son? Do you even know my identity as an official?"

The middle-aged man's face sank, and he spoke in an extremely displeased tone.

"I have yet to ask."

Shen Xuan's expression remained unchanged as he replied in a calm tone.

"I am Zhang Erhe, the Magistrate of the Great Qian Capital Prefecture! You are the proprietor of this establishment, are you not?"

Zhang Erhe wore an arrogant expression, looking at Shen Xuan with undisguised disdain as he spoke in a deep voice.

"Hiss! So this man is the Capital Magistrate! Proprietor Shen has really kicked an iron plate this time!"

Hearing Zhang Erhe reveal his own identity, a young man dressed like a scholar could not help drawing a sharp breath, his tone filled with deep regret.

"Indeed! This is a high-ranking official of the fourth rank; how could ordinary merchants like us ever afford to offend him? It looks like Proprietor Shen is going to fall hard this time!"

Another middle-aged man of rather exquisite attire shook his head, his tone carrying a trace of pity as well.

The people inside the restaurant murmured amongst themselves, all of them astonished by Zhang Erhe's lofty status.

"I am indeed the owner of this restaurant. I wonder what the honorable Capital Magistrate intends to do."

Shen Xuan was not frightened by the man's identity; his tone remained completely calm.

What a joke. Back in the day, he was the ultimate profligate son of the capital. When it came to official ranks, who could possibly outrank his former prime minister father? Unless it was an official of the second rank or higher, Shen Xuan couldn't even be bothered to look at them.

"Hmph! Very well. This official suspects that your restaurant is involved in gathering crowds for illicit financial gain. I am now going to arrest all of you and drag you back to the yamen for interrogation. As for this restaurant, it is to be sealed up immediately and barred from ever operating again!"

Zhang Erhe let out a cold laugh, the mockery in his eyes undiminished, and spoke in a low, stern voice.

"Our restaurant conducts legitimate business. Where on earth does any charge of gathering crowds for illicit financial gain come from? Since the honorable Capital Magistrate has no evidence on hand, please refrain from spouting baseless accusations here."

Upon hearing Zhang Erhe's words, Shen Xuan's expression chilled as he spoke in a frigid voice.

"Whether there is evidence or not, won't we know once we drag you lot back for a proper interrogation? Well, little proprietor, do you happen to have any objections?"

Zhang Erhe curled his lips in contempt, speaking in a slightly playful tone.

"What! They're going to arrest us too? We only came here to eat a meal! Why are we being dragged into this disaster?"

"That's right, Your Honor! This has nothing to do with us whatsoever! It was all done by this Shen Xuan!"

"Please don't drag me back to the yamen, Your Honor! I have elderly parents above and young children below; my entire family depends on me to put food on the table!"

Upon hearing that Zhang Erhe intended to arrest everyone present for questioning, some of the minor merchants could no longer sit still and began pleading for mercy one after another.

Quite a few people even cast angry glares at Shen Xuan, launching into a continuous stream of accusations.

Listening to the scathing denunciations of the crowd, Zhang Guang's eyes were filled with sheer delight. Gazing at Shen Xuan's gloomy expression, he thought triumphantly to himself:

"Hahahaha, so you dared to hit me, you little punk! You didn't even bother to check whose territory this is. Just a petty owner, yet you dared to make things unpleasant for this young master. Once you are locked in the dungeon, if I don't torture you to death, my surname is no longer Zhang!"

As Zhang Guang entertained these thoughts, the expression on his face grew increasingly ferocious.