Natural disaster at the beginning: I will lead the system to build a safe zone

Shi Zhengde had never expected to see his eldest daughter, who had been separated long ago, here again, and she seemed to be doing better than his father.

He was wandering aimlessly on the street when he suddenly saw a lot of people gathered around a tea stall not far away, as if someone was arguing.

Since he had nothing to do, he curiously went over to take a look. At first, he thought the female voice in the quarrel sounded familiar, but he was standing behind the woman and could not see her face.

Later, he was pushed to the front and finally could see the woman's appearance clearly. However, Shi Wanqing now looked much more haggard than when he saw her in the capital. He looked carefully for a while before hesitantly shouting.

Not to mention Shi Zhengde's surprise, Shi Wanqing was also very surprised when she heard her own name and looked over in confusion, but saw Shi Zhengde.

Because of this episode, she didn't bother to continue arguing with the tea stall owner. She threw five hundred coins to him and squeezed out of the crowd amid his cursing and walked in front of Shi Zhengde.

"Dad? Why are you here!" Shi Wanqing asked in surprise.

"That's what I wanted to ask you, why are you here, and what about the master you just mentioned?" Shi Zhengde asked with a frown.

Shi Wanqing looked around. Because of the quarrel just now, there were many people gathered here. It was not a good place to talk, so she suggested: "This is a long story. Dad, let's go to the restaurant over there and sit down and talk slowly."

Shi Wanqing took Shi Zhengde to a well-decorated restaurant on the street and asked for a private room to sit down. If it were before, she would definitely not be willing to come to such a good place to eat, but now she met her father. She had no money, but her father must have some!

While waiting for the dishes to be served, Shi Wanqing asked first, "Dad, why are you alone? Where are mom and brother?"

When mentioning Fang and Shi Chengzhi, Shi Zhengde looked a little desolate: "They... they are already dead."

Hearing this news like a bolt from the blue, Shi Wanqing's eyes widened: "What? Why did he die? When did he die?"

Shi Zhengde told Shi Wanqing in detail everything that had happened to them since they separated from the capital. Of course, he unconsciously concealed the fact that he had remarried, or rather, married into the family of the Lord of Liangzhou as his son-in-law.

Mainly because he found it difficult to talk to his daughter about this matter, so he said that he was appreciated by the Lord of Liangzhou City and was originally working in Liangzhou City, but because of an accident in Liangzhou City, he came to Cangwu City.

Shi Wanqing was naturally kept in the dark. After all, Shi Zhengde still had authority in her heart, and she would never have thought that her father would marry into another woman in order to survive. At this time, she was only filled with sadness after learning of the death of her mother and brother, and felt supported after meeting her father.

After Shi Zhengde finished speaking, he took a sip of tea and asked, "I have finished talking about my business. What is the situation on your side?"

Shi Wanqing also picked out the important things about how she drifted from the capital to Qinghe County and then to Cangwu City. Of course, she was too embarrassed to tell her father that she had given herself to an old man as a concubine, but she said that County Magistrate Wu had lost his wife and had taken good care of her along the way, and it was not easy for a weak woman like her to live, so she agreed to marry him when he asked her to marry him.

It can be said that this father and daughter have an extraordinary tacit understanding on this matter.

Sure enough, after listening to this, although Shi Zhengde was somewhat dissatisfied with his daughter finding a man who was almost his own age as her husband, he accepted it with a pinch of his nose since at least he was married to her in a formal way and the man treated her quite well.

"It's enough to know that you are doing well. Let me visit your home next time I have the chance." Shi Zhengde pretended to be a kind father. He didn't go there to care about how Shi Wanqing was doing, but because he just heard Shi Wanqing say that her husband was now the chief clerk in the yamen. Although he was a low-ranking official, he had some connection with the yamen. If Zhao Zhong's approach didn't work, he wanted to try his son-in-law.

Shi Wanqing was naturally happy to hear him say this: "Father, just tell me whenever you want to come. I will go home today and tell my husband that I met you. By the way, where are you sitting now? If you are free, we must visit you first."

Shi Zhengde shook his hand and said, "No need. I just came to Cangwu City. The place I live in is also a temporary courtyard arranged by Zhao Zhong. It has not been cleaned up yet. Your husband is busy, so you should stay at home and take care of your husband and children."

Shi Zhengde didn't dare let Shi Wanqing bring people over now. If she came, Su Muya's affairs would be exposed. He didn't mention Su Muya to her.

Shi Wanqing didn't know there was such a reason, and was still grateful for her father's thoughtfulness. To be honest, she was relieved to hear Shi Zhengde's refusal. Although she said so, she was not sure whether Magistrate Wu would be willing to accompany her to visit her father.

However, when Shi Zhengde mentioned Zhao Zhong, Shi Wanqing was still surprised for a moment: "Zhao Zhong? Father, do you know Mr. Zhao?"

Because County Magistrate Wu had mentioned Zhao Zhong many times while serving in the government, Shi Wanqing also knew that Zhao Zhong was the most powerful official in Cangwu City. Of course, when County Magistrate Wu mentioned this Lord Zhao, he always complained more.

The reason was still his classmate. Originally, his classmate followed the old man in Cangwu City to do things. The old man didn't care about anything, so his classmate was equivalent to the second in command of Cangwu City. But since Zhao Zhong came, his classmate's power was stripped away day by day, and now he is just in name only. If it were in the past, County Magistrate Wu would not be able to become more than just a chief clerk.

In fact, Zhao Zhong's suppression was not without reason. His classmate could hang out with someone like County Magistrate Wu, so how could he be a good person? Zhao Zhong was a man who cared about the people, so naturally he couldn't bear to see such a person being the second in command of the county.

However, County Magistrate Wu was definitely on the side of his classmates, so he was also a common enemy to Zhao Zhong. Shi Wanqing had heard him scold Zhao Zhong at home many times. So when she learned that her father knew Zhao Zhong, she became more active.

The master hated Zhao Zhong because his classmate was targeted and had his power taken away. If he could introduce Zhao Zhong to him through his father and get Zhao Zhong to value him, maybe the master's rank could be promoted, and it would not be impossible for him to be promoted above his classmate.

By that time, I would be the link in his path to promotion. He would not dare to look down on her any longer and would be able to call her over and dismiss her at will, and I would be able to live a better life.

When Shi Zhengde heard her ask, he wanted to show off: "Of course I know him. The Lord of Liangzhou is a close friend of Lord Zhao. If it weren't for this, how could I come to Cangwu City?"

When Shi Wanqing heard him admit it, she smiled and poured him a glass of wine: "Father is really amazing, then can you introduce my husband to Lord Zhao in the future?"

Shi Zhengde was drinking. He had never been praised like this since he came to Liangzhou. He was flattered by his daughter's admiring eyes, so he responded readily, "Okay, I'll go talk to your husband after I'm done with my work."

Although the father and daughter each had their own ulterior motives, since they did not know the full extent of each other's situation, the meal was still a loving one for the daughter.

Oh, the only awkward part was when paying the bill. Shi Wanqing originally thought that since her father had come, she could at least have a good meal with him. However, who would have thought that her father had gone out without bringing any money. She still had to ask her father for a favor, so naturally she couldn't say anything and could only reluctantly pay the bill.

If I had known this earlier, I wouldn’t have ordered such expensive drinks!

Shi Zhengde was also embarrassed. Originally, he, as a father, should have paid for the meal, but as a son-in-law, Su Muya had to take care of his own food and drink, not to mention his own pocket money. How could he afford to pay the bill? He had no choice but to apologize to Wanqing. After all, she had money~