Chapter 534: Meng Yunhan pesters the Magistrate

"Thank you, Magistrate Zhang." Han Ruochen said, her voice deep and calm yet unshakeable. "I will assume full operational control of the harbour tomorrow morning."

Magistrate Zhang smiled at her. He raised his hand and shook her hand once again before saying, "That’s great! With you taking charge of the docks, I will be at ease. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about someone taking advantage of their power and authority at the docks anymore." Though he had never stopped the tyranny of Old Scar, it did not mean that he was unaware of what was going on at the docks. Old Scar had been causing quite a mess at the docks, and he had received quite a lot of complaints regarding him, but he didn’t make a move because he knew that there was no point.

Old Scar was the only one who was experienced enough to handle the matters of the docks. With Han Ruochen taking over, he did not have to worry about anything. After all, this woman was the one who had cleared the devil’s teeth channel. Even if someone wanted to make a fuss, they had to first see what Han Ruochen was capable of. And that was all that mattered!

"Then I shall take my leave," said Magistrate Zhang, with one last shake of her hand. "I came here in a hurry; now that I have given you your reward, I believe it is time for me to take my leave." He had tonnes of work waiting for him; he only came here because of Old Master Xu. If that man had not insisted that he should be the one to award Han Ruochen, then Magistrate Zhang would have never come to this small fishing village; after all, he was the magistrate of the county!

These things were dealt with by the vice magistrate and not him.

"Why are you leaving in such a hurry, Magistrate Zhang?" When Meng Yunhan heard that Magistrate Zhang was leaving, she immediately bumped Han Ruochen to one side and walked forward. "Magistrate Zhang, if you don’t mind, you can stay with us for lunch. My youngest daughter—Ziyan—come here," she hurriedly motioned for Han Ziyan to come forward before turning to look at Magistrate Zhang. "She cooks really good egg noodles; if you don’t mind, then you can come to our house and have some of them."

Magistrate Zhang turned to look at the woman who was speaking to him. Though he did not know who this woman was, he had a feeling that this woman was up to no good. After all, what kind of people had he not seen? Han Ruochen had reopened a new wave of maritime trade for the country and had brought considerable economic benefits. But she had done it at the expense of her life; what if she ended up dying?

And yet this woman had not even asked whether Han Ruochen was alright or not.

"There is no need." Magistrate Zhang was smiling politely, but there was a hint of distance in his eyes. It was clear that he was unwilling to get close to Meng Yunhan. However, he underestimated Meng Yunhan’s shamelessness. Even though she knew that the magistrate did not want to get close to her, she was unwilling to let him go. After all, this was a rare opportunity! If she could get acquainted with the magistrate, then there was a good chance that she would be able to use him to help Yun Xinye.

With him by his side, would Yun Xinye even worry about anything?

"Magistrate Zhang, why are you in such a hurry?" Meng Yunhan smiled brilliantly. "It’s just a matter of a few minutes. My daughter can cook in a matter of a few minutes. You must also be tired after running around for so long. Sit down and rest for a few minutes, Magistrate Zhang." Even though she knew that Han Ziyan couldn’t cook, Meng Yunhan was willing to lie because she knew that as long as she could stop Magistrate Zhang, someone would be willing to cook for him.

She would love to see who would refuse to cook for the magistrate once she stopped him.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Han Yong was embarrassed to death. How could Meng Yunhan do such a thing? She was actually pushing Han Ziyan in front of the magistrate. Who did she think the magistrate was? Was he lacking people who would be willing to cook egg noodles for her?

This was simply too embarrassing.

"What am I doing?" Meng Yunhan glared at Han Yong, and with her thick skin, she continued, "The magistrate came to our house, and yet you have not even thought about offering him a glass of water. I am only doing what you fools did not do." She then continued with an oblivious smile, "Magistrate Zhang, what do you say? It’s just a matter of a few minutes."

Magistrate Zhang pursed his lips. He had no idea what to do. He only came here to offer a reward to Han Ruochen because of his old master, but who would have thought that he would actually end up being caught up in a family drama? His entire demeanour turned awkward, and he looked at Han Ruochen. He hoped that she would be able to get him out of this trouble. After all, this woman was able to open the channel that was filled with bombs and mines—surely, she would be able to deal with her own family’s nonsense. This should be an easier task for him.

"Madam Han, I appreciate your hospitality. But I have other matters to attend to."

"But it won’t take long!" Meng Yunhan insisted. "Our Ziyan cooks are really good. She has been looking forward to showing you her skills in cooking for ages. It has been her dream! After all, you are one of the most honest magistrates of the county. Please listen to me, Magistrate Zhang. Just give us a few minutes."

Standing beside her, Han Ziyan immediately lowered her head shyly. Her pale pink dress accentuated her delicate figure, while one hand rested protectively on her belly. She was not worried about this baby, but she was indeed worried about herself. The doctor told her that if she lost this child, then there was a good chance that she would end up losing the ability to become a mother. This was something that she was worried about the most. Thus, even if she did not care about the child, she wanted to make sure that things would not go badly for her.

However, she still said in a soft voice, "Mother, don’t embarrass the magistrate. If he is busy, we should not force him to stay."

Her words sounded considerate, but she had already stepped forward to block the magistrate’s path. It was as if he tried to leave; she would end up holding his legs.

"Magistrate Zhang, I might not be good at many things... I am quite good at making egg noodles. If you take even a few bites, I will be happy."

Her eyes were shining with expectation.

Now that Han Ruochen had taken the chance to get close to the magistrate, she could not stay behind. She had to make sure that this man would be charmed by her even more than he was with Han Ruochen.

However, what she did not know was that Magistrate Zhang was used to seeing such antics. He was not fooled by her, and what was more, he was a man who appreciated ability more than anything. Since that was the case, why would he even pay attention to Han Ziyan? What did the girl have other than a good face and the ability to pretend?

"What are you two trying to do exactly?" Han Yong could no longer contain himself.

Meng Yunhan turned to look at him. She jumped and glared at him. "What do you mean? What am I doing? Don’t tell me even inviting the magistrate to a little breakfast is a crime now."

"He is here to honour Ruochen, not to judge Ziyan’s cooking. How could you ask him to stay behind and eat a meal when he has already told you that he is busy!" Han Yong snapped his voice turning colder when he heard how his mother was shamelessly trying to cling to the magistrate.

Han Yichen turned to look at Meng Yunhan and snapped, "Can’t you let your own daughter enjoy a moment of recognition without dragging Ziyan into a spotlight?"

Han Ziyan’s eyes immediately reddened.

"Father, I didn’t mean to steal Sister Ruochen’s limelight. I only wanted to do something nice for the magistrate."

"Then why are you standing in front of him, preventing him from leaving?" Han Yong retorted.

"Enough!" Meng Yunhan snapped. "Ziyan just wants to cook something. Why must you bully her like this? She only wants to make something for him out of kindness."