Chapter 162 Rampant Bandits

Dog Egg quickly waved his hand: "No, no, no, I can't take it. If I go home, my mother will definitely scold me."

Jiang Mi insisted on putting it in his hand: "Alright, don't be polite with me. Save up some money, and you can get married and settle down after the New Year."

Gou Dan chuckled. He had always wanted to get married. He had met Jiang Mi before and thought that this chubby girl was not as bad as others said. If she could be his wife, he would definitely cherish her. However, now Jiang Mi had not only become beautiful, but also rich. She was beyond his reach. He felt embarrassed for his past thoughts.

"Alright then, next time you ask me to take you, I won't charge you."

Jiang Mi smiled and saw him off: "Take care on your way back, and keep your money safe. Don't let your wealth slip away and get robbed."

Upon hearing this, Gou Dan quickly hid the money in his pocket: "You're right, then I'll be going now."

Jiang Mi nodded and watched Gou Dan leave. She felt a gaze was always on her. Looking up, she found Huo Ran standing by the window watching her. For some reason, she felt as if the gaze was carrying a knife.

The restaurant is doing very well. The weather is getting colder and colder, and many people are reluctant to go out. However, some people can't stand the cold weather at home, so many people come back to the restaurant to enjoy the charcoal fire. Jiang Mi doesn't let the staff chase people away. As a result, the restaurant is always crowded and very lively, and business is not bad.

“Miss Jiang, Mr. Huo upstairs has left. He said he had urgent business and asked me to tell you. He didn’t have time to say goodbye in person. He will apologize to you next time.”

After hearing what the waiter said, Jiang Mi glanced upstairs and wondered why he was leaving in such a hurry. Could something serious have happened?

However, she wouldn't know that nowadays, only family matters matter to her; everything else is insignificant.

Just then, Jiang's mother and father returned. They looked exhausted, but their faces were beaming with smiles.

"Honey, I heard there are bandits near the village. Did you run into them?"

Jiang Mi wanted to say that she hadn't encountered it, but she was afraid that her mother would be shocked if she found out later, so she could only tell her slowly.

"I guess you could say I ran into them, but with Young Master Huo around, those bandits were just trying to escape and didn't do anything to me, so don't worry."

Even so, Jiang's mother was still startled: "Really? My goodness! I told you not to rush back. Look how scary it is! This winter is exceptionally cold. Many crops have frozen to death. Those bandit leaders don't have much food stored up. I heard they're fighting over territory everywhere. Taking over territory is like taking over food to get through the winter. A lot of people have died. I also heard that Yang Liu has been captured."

Liu He, who was doing accounts on the side, stopped when she heard this and came over to listen: "My God, this person has been kidnapped by bandits, isn't that the end of us?"

Jiang's mother sighed, "Who says otherwise? A woman's life is ruined. Even if she is saved, she will never be able to get married and will never be able to hold her head up high. I heard that Yang Liu's family looks down on Yang Liu and said that since their daughter is dead, they don't want her even if she comes back."

Although Yang Liu was hateful, Jiang Mi still felt a little uncomfortable hearing such words. What kind of parents would do that? Speaking of which, Yang Liu's personality was inseparable from her family.

Liu He sighed from the side, "They're so heartless. But the Yang family has never been kind to begin with. Luckily, my little sister is alright. Things haven't been peaceful lately, so let's stay home as much as possible. Mother, Father, go and have some hot tea to warm yourselves up."

Su Yindi and Liang Lan had already brought over the ginger tea and given it to Jiang's father and mother. The two of them immediately felt much warmer.

Jiang's mother glanced at Jiang Mi and said, "Young Master Huo gave me the money directly and had his people take the things away, but he hasn't shown up since. He must still be upstairs, right?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Cheng glanced at Jiang Mi. He felt a little uneasy, as if someone was trying to take advantage of the good cabbage he had raised.

"Young Master Huo has already left, I heard..."

"It's urgent, but I don't know what it is."

Upon hearing this, Jiang's mother didn't say anything more. She planned to give the money to Jiang Mi later, since it was money that Jiang Mi had earned.

As dusk approached, Jiang Mi decided to go to bed early. Just then, Zhao Decai led his men in. Everyone was chatting noisily when they suddenly saw the government officials and were immediately startled.

Zhao Decai reassured everyone, "Don't worry, everyone. Bandits have been rampant lately, and I was just asking out of the proper order. As long as you haven't encountered any bandits, nothing will happen to you."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Since Zhao Decai became the county magistrate, he had gained the respect and love of many people, and everyone trusted him very much.

Zhao Decai glanced at Jiang Mi and said, "Miss Jiang, I have some questions for you. Is it convenient for you?"

Jiang Mi knew Zhao Decai would definitely come looking for her, but she didn't expect him to come in person. So she invited him into the private room upstairs. The Jiang family members were also there. Zhao Decai didn't say anything.

"I heard you encountered bandits on your way back to town today?" Zhao Decai had heard this from Huo Ran's men, so he naturally wanted to tell him the whole story.

Jiang Mi nodded: "Yes, it seems that this group of people were on the run and happened to run into us. They wanted to rob us, but fortunately Young Master Huo arrived in time and saved me and Brother Gou Dan. However, Yang Liu was forcibly taken away by those bandits."

Zhao Decai nodded, apparently having heard about the incident. He rubbed his temples and said, "Recently, bandits have been rampant, causing trouble everywhere. This isn't the first case of their kind. Two young women were also abducted from Linshui County. It's truly pitiful."

Jiang Mi and her mother exchanged a glance. Jiang's mother felt even more frightened. Fortunately, her daughter Mi was alright, and it was also good that Huo Ran was there. In any case, Huo Ran had helped her daughter again. She should be more polite to him in the future.

"I'm glad you're alright. Is there any other information?" Zhao Decai continued to ask.

Jiang Mi thought for a moment: "It seems they were fighting with another group of people. It was probably caused by a turf dispute. There were about twenty people, not many. The leader was a man in his thirties. He was dark-skinned, had a square face, and a mole under his eye."

Zhao Decai nodded approvingly. At that moment, Jiang Mi was still able to calmly remember the appearance of the bandit leader, which showed how courageous this woman was, stronger than many men.