169: Chapter 169 Local Specialties from Xianyang Palace

He stepped out of the carriage.

He was very young.

He stepped on the back of an attendant crouching on the ground and descended from the carriage.

The eunuch looked at the familiar village, a look of reminiscence appearing on his face.

Before the age of seventeen, he had lived in this village.

After he turned seventeen, he had to perform corvée labor.

He was taken by the Village Chief to the construction site of Epang Palace to help build it.

Since Epang Palace was a major project, it required high-intensity labor.

At seventeen, one could already eat a whole pot of food, and with the high-intensity labor, he ate even more.

Unable to get enough to eat at the construction site, he wanted to use money to buy grain.

As grain became increasingly expensive, he grew hungrier and hungrier.

He accidentally discovered that Xianyang Palace was recruiting eunuchs.

He also saw an old eunuch returning home in glory, not only riding in a magnificent carriage with a large following of attendants but even sitting in the carriage and tossing coins in all directions.

He too had followed the chaotic crowd and picked up coins that had fallen to the ground.

At that moment, Wei De felt that being a eunuch was much better than honestly farming in the village.

He chose to become a eunuch and was called Xiao Weizi by others.

In Xianyang Palace, by virtue of his wit, he rose to the position of Prefect of the Palace Messengers, in charge of delivering inner court documents.

After attaining wealth and status, Xiao Weizi wanted to return to his village to show off.

To attain wealth and status and not return home is like wearing silk robes and walking in the night!

With his hands behind his back, Xiao Weizi looked at the villagers in their coarse cloth clothes, his face full of disdain.

The eunuch uniform he wore was made of silk.

He deliberately wore this eunuch uniform back home to specifically broadcast his current status.

"G-Great Lord, are you Wei De?"

Looking at the now-noble Xiao Weizi, the Shi Zhang suddenly became somewhat restrained.

"Shi Zhang."

Xiao Weizi called out in a high-pitched, feminine voice.

"My Lord, it really is you, Wei De!"

The Shi Zhang looked at the now-noble-looking Wei De with some disbelief.

He found it hard to associate him with that immature youth.

It had only been a few months since Wei De left the village; the Shi Zhang never imagined that when he saw Wei De again, the latter would be so wealthy and powerful.

However, seeing Wei De dressed in a eunuch's uniform and hearing his high-pitched, feminine voice, he understood that the man had gone to become a eunuch.

"Wei De, you..."

The Shi Zhang opened his mouth.

Xiao Weizi said, "I am now the Prefect of the Palace Messengers, in charge of delivering inner court documents."

As he spoke, Xiao Weizi pulled out the medallion that represented his status.

"Greetings, My Lord!"

The Shi Zhang and Lu Jia immediately cupped their hands in greeting.

Seeing how respectful the two were, a smile appeared on Xiao Weizi's face.

Although the sacrifice of becoming a eunuch was great, for a small person from the bottom like him, it was nonetheless a path to wealth and status.

Now that he was wealthy and powerful, he wanted to make sure the whole village knew it.

"Shi Zhang, I've brought you some local specialties from Xianyang Palace."

Xiao Weizi looked at his attendant.

Immediately, an attendant walked up to the Shi Zhang carrying a heavy box.

"Hmm?"

"Local specialties?"

The Shi Zhang looked curiously at the box and took it.

He felt the heavy weight; it was very heavy.

"This is?"

The Shi Zhang asked curiously, "Can I open it and take a look?"

Opening a gift in front of the giver was normally impolite, but Xiao Weizi couldn't wait for the Shi Zhang to open it in public.

"Yes, of course."

Xiao Weizi nodded repeatedly with a smile.

After receiving Xiao Weizi's permission, the Shi Zhang opened the box.

"Hiss!"

Once the Shi Zhang opened the box, he finally realized why it was so heavy.

The box was packed with coins, at least several thousand of them.

"This..."

The Shi Zhang's eyes widened.

Standing beside him, Lu Jia also felt his eyes were being opened.

He never expected that the "local specialties" Xiao Weizi spoke of would be such down-to-earth specialties.

Who wouldn't like these local specialties!

"There's enough for everyone."

Xiao Weizi looked at the villagers gathering around and turned once more to the attendants standing beside him.

The understanding attendants immediately brought out more boxes; Xiao Weizi was truly handing out money since he had it.

He reached into a box, grabbed a large handful of coins, and threw them into the crowd.

These were low-value coins made of copper; being hit by them was somewhat painful.

But instead of avoiding them, the villagers actively moved forward, wanting Xiao Weizi to throw them even harder.

They were thick-skinned and could handle it.

Xiao Weizi didn't feel any sting from the money he threw away; to him, he didn't like saving money, he only liked spending it.

Especially when imitating the way that old eunuch threw money, he felt a profound sense of accomplishment.

He was already a eunuch.

He had no descendants; rather than hoarding money, he preferred watching the villagers scramble for it.

For Xiao Weizi, having been subservient in Xianyang Palace for so long, he wanted to see others fawning over him and being subservient to him.

Only in this way could he find the strength to serve the nobles in Xianyang Palace with subservience.

"Wei De."

The Shi Zhang pulled Xiao Weizi aside and said, "I'll keep this money for you for now, but tonight, you have to do your uncle a favor."

"Go home first, and I'll come find you tonight."

"Alright."

Though Xiao Weizi didn't know what the Shi Zhang wanted from him.

But he thought about how the usually formidable Shi Zhang now had to subserviently beg him.

Xiao Weizi felt that this return home in glory was truly worth it.

Xiao Weizi gave even more money to his own family.

His attendants also brought back a large amount of ingredients and prepared a sumptuous dinner.

Many villagers poked their heads out to watch the activity at Xiao Weizi's house.

They saw the banquet table laden with delicacies the villagers had never even seen. Xiao Weizi sat high in the seat of honor, talking and laughing freely, while everyone flattered him.

After three rounds of drinks, the leftovers from Xiao Weizi's meal were placed outside the door.

What were mere leftovers in Xiao Weizi's eyes were like treasures to the villagers.

Many people stared at the leftovers, which still contained plenty of meat. Ordinarily, the villagers could only barely afford a little meat during the New Year.

The villagers reached in directly with their hands, quickly stuffing the leftover meat into their mouths. The aroma of the meat instantly spread through their mouths; it was a delicacy they had never tasted before.

Watching the villagers scramble to eat his leftovers, a strange smile appeared on Xiao Weizi's face.

For someone with a physical deficiency like him, his inner world was also darker than that of ordinary people.

When night fell, the Shi Zhang went to Xiao Weizi's house to find him.

He returned the several thousand coins Xiao Weizi had given him during the day intact, and even added another thousand coins.

"Shi Zhang, what is this?"

Xiao Weizi looked at the Shi Zhang with a face full of confusion.