Chapter 131 The Truth About the Fire

Jiang Hongyu stopped a man on the side of the road and said, "Uncle, can I ask what happened?"

The man who was stopped was a middle-aged man. He glanced at them and said impatiently, "Someone in the city is deliberately causing trouble. The county magistrate ordered everyone to go home. Now, household registration needs to be checked before leaving the city."

Jiang Hongyu glanced back at Wu Jiang and asked, "Did you all bring your household registration with you when you left?"

Wu Jiang was stunned for a moment, then said reflexively, "I brought it."

The middle-aged man who was stopped by Jiang Hongyu immediately broke free from his arms and walked out quickly.

Ye Mingzhu took two steps forward and whispered to Jiang Hongyu, "Did you bring our household registration?"

"I brought it." Jiang Hongyu is a very cautious person. He was afraid of accidents, but he didn't expect that he would actually use it.

Since everyone had brought their own things, there was no need to panic. Ye Mingzhu calmed herself down and went to a small stall nearby that had not yet closed to ask for two bowls of water, and washed Wu Yue and Erya's faces.

The cold water soothed the two of them, and they were able to walk on their own without help.

However, both of their faces were pale. Whenever they thought of the scene just now, they were filled with fear. If they were kidnapped by those two people, even if they could be rescued, their reputations would be ruined and their lives would be over.

Wu Yue had lost her usual liveliness and followed Wu Jiang closely. Erya was even closer to Wu Yue, glancing at the people around her from time to time. She didn't respond when anyone spoke to her.

Everyone hurried to the city gate, feeling unhappy, and no one tried to comfort them.

The closer we got to the city gate, the more people there were, and everyone's face was filled with fear.

At the city gate, soldiers were organizing everyone to line up when someone shouted, "We didn't bring our household registration. We're just going out to see the lanterns. Who would remember to bring their household registration?"

Many people around responded, saying that today was a day of reunion and everyone was happily watching the lantern festival. No one expected something like this to happen.

"Quiet!" A black-faced yamen runner shouted, and some people were still muttering. Other yamen runners went forward and pulled people out. After pulling three people out in a row, the rest of the people quieted down.

The black-faced yamen runners asked the team to stand in several rows. Those who brought their household registration could line up directly at the city gate, and they could leave directly after the soldiers guarding the gate checked that there were no problems.

Those who did not bring their household registration had to line up nearby, find people from their own village, prove each other's identities, and wait nearby.

"Sir, how long do we have to wait?" an old man asked bravely.

The black-faced yamen runner glanced at him and said coldly, "You'll know in a moment."

The remaining people didn't dare to say anything and began to slowly look for their fellow villagers and people they knew.

As soon as Ye Mingzhu and her companions approached the city gate, they discovered something was wrong. A yamen runner was shouting at them to line up.

They lined up in the queue with household registration. The yamen runners looked at them and told them to line up properly and not leave at will.

After everyone left, a woman in a flowery headscarf standing in front of them breathed a sigh of relief: "Oh, my God, she's finally gone."

"Girl, are you guys here in the city to see the lights?"

Ye Mingzhu lowered her head and was thinking about something, and didn't realize that the lady in the flowery headscarf was talking to her.

When someone tugged at his clothes, Jiang Hongyu immediately pushed the woman with the headscarf aside and asked, "What are you doing?"

The woman with the flowery headscarf yelled in dissatisfaction, "Why did you push me?"

Someone nearby immediately hushed, "Keep your voice down! The bailiff will be back soon."

The lady with the flowery headscarf glared at Jiang Hongyu: "You young man, you have a lot of strength. Let's talk about it after we get out of the city."

The people queuing together looked at them from time to time, and Ye Mingzhu knew that they were overreacting.

She asked Jiang Hongyu to stand back and smiled at the lady in the flowered headscarf: "Auntie, don't be offended, my husband is just scared."

Ye Mingzhu briefly recounted what had happened to Wu Yue and Erya. The woman with the flowery headscarf immediately changed her expression, turning it into a mixture of indignation and pity. "These bastards! Who doesn't have daughters? How could they do such a thing?"

The woman with the flowery headscarf tried to pull Ye Mingzhu's hand, but Jiang Hongyu glared at her. She pulled it back, shook her head, and said, "It's such a good day, and so many bad guys are causing trouble. They should all be found and beheaded."

Ye Mingzhu heard something from her words. It seemed that with so many people queuing here, it was not just a simple matter of checking their identities.

"Auntie, do you know something? We are all young and panicked when we saw this scene." Ye Mingzhu approached the old lady with the flowery headscarf and gave her a piece of the extra sugar cake she had bought.

The lady with the flowery headscarf had a look of surprise on her face. She took a handful of sugar cakes in her hands, took out a handkerchief from her body, wrapped it up, and put it in her arms.

The movements were so smooth and flowing that Ye Mingzhu was filled with admiration.

The lady with the flowery headscarf's next words let Ye Mingzhu know that the sugar cake was not given in vain.

When the accident happened while making iron flowers, the lady with the flowery headscarf happened to be nearby and she watched the fire start with her own eyes.

Originally, the lady with the flowery headscarf was paying attention to the shed, but she smelled oil.

The lady with the flowery headscarf didn't often eat oil at home, so she was particularly sensitive to the smell. She looked around and saw a short and thin man next to her pouring a bottle of oil on himself, and then smearing it all over his head and face with his hands.

The lady with the flowery headscarf was heartbroken at the time. Whose prodigal son was this that actually used oil on his hair?

The short and thin man naturally noticed that he was being stared at like that. He just glanced at the lady in the flowery headscarf indifferently and took two steps towards the shed.

The woman with the flowery headscarf was first shocked by the sadness in the short, thin man's eyes. Then, seeing him walking inside, she enthusiastically called out to him, "Don't go in. There are sparks ahead. It's dangerous."

The short and thin man didn't even turn his head and took two steps forward. Seeing that he didn't listen to her advice, the lady with the flowery headscarf became a little angry and simply ignored him.

But she was a person who could not keep things in mind, and she kept glancing over there, so she saw sparks falling from the sky and landing directly on the short and thin man.

Almost instantly, the short and thin man turned into a fireball, scaring everyone around him to step back.

The lady in the flowery headscarf had her heart pounding. If her son hadn't supported her, she would have knelt down on the spot.

Now when she talks about it, her tone is full of fear: "Fortunately, I didn't try to pull him away, otherwise I would have turned into a fireball too."

Ye Mingzhu frowned. According to what the lady in the flowery headscarf said, this should be a premeditated suicide.

"Auntie, have you told the officials about this?"

The woman with the flowery headscarf shook her head vigorously and whispered, "How can I tell the authorities about this?"

"Mom, why are you talking to someone again?" A young man came over from a few steps ahead, pulling the old lady with a flowery headscarf and trying to leave.

"Auntie, listen to me, if you provide information to the government, maybe you can get a reward."

Ye Mingzhu grabbed the lady with the flowery headscarf and whispered.

The lady with the flowery headscarf's eyes lit up: "Really?"

Her son also stopped and looked at Ye Mingzhu hesitantly.