The middle-aged man took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and asked in a deep voice, "Master Xue, I wonder how we could have offended you to such an extent?"

Xue Zhongfu sneered, "You, the Dacheng Rice Shop, have secretly colluded with the steward of our farm to steal and sell the rice from the Marquis's mansion. Such behavior is no different from that of thieves! Today, I will hand you all over to the authorities for punishment by the Jingzhao Yin!"

This middle-aged man is the owner of Dacheng Rice Shop, his name is Liu Qi, and his face is as gloomy as water at the moment.

Among the people following him, in addition to the loyal clerks of the rice shop, there were also several elite soldiers specially transferred from the barracks by his master Feng Shaoying. They were wearing short jackets and served as bodyguards, but now they had become a hidden danger in his heart.

If they were really taken to the government office, their identities would be exposed as long as their registered residence was inquired. How could Feng Shaoying, who was behind the scenes, stay out of it?

Liu Qi was originally Feng Shaoshaoying's right-hand man. He had always worked hard for him and managed many shops opened privately by his master.

Originally, the matter of selling the new rice had been arranged in every detail, but unexpectedly, today he was stabbed in the back by someone from the Xingyuan Marquis Mansion and got into trouble.

A feeling of unwillingness and anger surged in Liu Qi's heart. He struggled to break free from the suppression of the guards beside him, and his expression suddenly revealed a bit of arrogance.

"Arrest us and bring us before the authorities?" Liu Qi sneered and looked at Xue Zhongfu mockingly, "Master Xue, you're overthinking it."

"Do you really think that those few petty stewards on your farm can conjure up thousands of dan of grain and collude with us to sell it? Are they too powerful? Or are all the people on your farm blind and stupid?"

After saying that, without waiting for Xue Zhongfu to answer, he turned and walked towards his accomplices, scanning each person's face with sharp eyes, then suddenly grabbed a person who was kneeling with his head down and dragged him roughly in front of the crowd.

The man was caught by Liu Qi and staggered, almost falling to the ground.

Shopkeeper Liu grabbed the man's neck tightly with one hand and pulled it upwards, exposing his face to everyone's sight.

"Master Xue, take a good look at this man. He's from your Xingyuan Marquisate. Do you recognize him? Do you know who he's working for?"

Liu Qi's tone was full of provocation and disdain, as if he had already seen Xue Zhongfu's astonished and helpless expression.

Xue Zhongfu recognized the figure kneeling in front of the crowd at a glance.

In his spare time, he visited his elder brother Xue Yuanchu's antique shop "Zhenbaozhai" many times to pick out his favorite books and picture albums, and it was the shopkeeper Zhou who received him every time.

At the same time, Hong Yingrong slowly walked out of the room next to her.

Her gaze lingered on Shopkeeper Zhou for a moment, and then an inexplicable sense of certainty surged in her heart.

The appearance of Shopkeeper Zhou undoubtedly confirmed her guess - this matter was indeed inextricably linked to her eldest son Xue Yuanchu.

Shopkeeper Zhou was terrified at this moment, his whole body trembling: "Madam...Madam, please spare my life, I am also listening to the world..."

But before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Hong Yingrong's unquestionable authority: "What a bunch of bandits! They colluded with the shop owner and sneaked into my mansion to steal. Now they have been caught red-handed, and they still want to drag my Xingyuan Marquisate into the water."

As soon as Manager Zhou heard the hidden meaning, he realized that his wife and children were still in Beijing. If the matter was exposed on the spot, would he still want to live?

So he immediately shut up and said no more.

Xue Zhongfu was still in a daze, but he reacted immediately after hearing this. He decisively issued an order: "Come here, lock them all up in the woodshed. Divide into two teams and guard them closely from front and back. Don't let anyone escape."

Hong Yingrong turned to Xue Zhongfu and said seriously, "It's daybreak now and the city gates are open. I'm going back to the Marquis' Mansion first."

"I need to ask your eldest brother about this matter. If it was just someone in our mansion who stole the property, it would be a family disgrace, and I will punish them."

"But I'm afraid that outsiders are involved in this. If the matter is exposed, your eldest brother will also be implicated and will not be able to escape unscathed."

Xue Zhongfu responded, "Mother, I sent someone to wait at the city gate before daybreak. As soon as the gate opened, I went to inquire about the situation at the Dacheng Rice Shop. The accommodation here is simple, so it would be fine for you to return to the Marquis' Mansion first. I will also go to the Ministry of Works to ask for a day's leave."

Hong Yingrong nodded in agreement: "This is the only way for now."

She thought for a moment and added, "Manager Xue, I'll have to trouble you to stay at the farm. Lock up Manager Zhou in a room alone. As long as he tells us everything he knows, the Marquis' Mansion will treat him leniently.

Xue Zhong immediately responded, "Yes, Madam, I will do it right away."

Most of the guards they brought stayed behind, and the rest followed Hong Yingrong back to the Marquis' Mansion.

On the other side, earlier, Xue Yuanchu's carriage had already returned home.

After coming out of Feng Shaoying's courtyard last night, Xue Yuanchu asked Guanqi to drive the carriage to Zhenbaozhai, where there was a private room specially prepared for him to stay overnight.

When they got there, Guanyan opened the back door of the shop to let the carriage in. He had been working in Zhenbaozhai for some time and was very familiar with the place. He had also learned some Mandarin, so the border accent was no longer obvious to him.

"Manager Zhou went to Dacheng Rice Shop?" Xue Yuanchu asked as soon as he got off the carriage, with a hint of concern in his tone.

"Yes, my Lord, Shopkeeper Zhou left late at night. He told me to take good care of the shop and not to go out without permission."

Xue Yuanchu looked at Guan Yan and saw that his complexion had regained its rosy complexion after resting for a few days. He couldn't help but reach out to touch him.

However, Guan Yan seemed to be frightened and suddenly took a step back.

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!