Chapter 50: You're in a hurry to jump over the wall without saying anything
The morning light is just breaking, and the moist wind is blowing gently.
Niu Cuiqin made some porridge and side dishes to entertain Deng Youning, Li Tianzhuo and others.
This was the first time in two lifetimes that they had eaten at the same table.
Although the meal was only simple, Lord Li ate it with gusto.
"Grandma, this is the token of my Silver Dragon Guard. If I come in person, you will have this item with you, and no one will bother you with it."
Li Tianzhuo handed Niu Cuiqin a token made of pure silver.
The large silver ingot sparkled in the sun, making the Niu mother and son very happy.
They knelt down quickly to express their gratitude.
Li Tianzhuo: "You're welcome. I hope Grandma can abide by the agreement with Miss Deng Er."
Niu Cuiqin looked at Deng Youning with complicated eyes.
"Regarding the matter concerning the prince, I can only speak to the Second Miss."
Although she could see that the relationship between Deng Youning and Li Tianzhuo was unusual, this matter concerned the reputation of the Deng and Gu families, and she must not let others laugh at her.
Deng Youning nodded, "Of course."
In order to prevent others from eavesdropping, Niu Cuiqin even drove out Li Tianzhuo, Ying Shi, and her own son.
At this time, she and Deng Youning were the only ones left in the Niu family courtyard.
According to her, when Gu gave birth to Deng Yi, it was not at home, but in an alley somewhere on East Street.
The owner of the house was an ordinary man of the same age as Gu.
The child was left there directly after birth.
In order to make the children grow slower, they never had enough to eat.
Gu's belly was filled again with the round pillow prepared in advance.
Not long after, while Duke Deng was leading his troops to suppress bandits, Gu was finally ready to "give birth".
She asked Niu Cuiqin to bring the baby boy, and lied that she had given birth to a child prodigy who was white and clean when he was born.
"Back then, our family was very poor and his father was seriously ill. I needed that money."
Having said that, Niu Cuiqin felt guilty but she did not regret it.
Deng Youning also understood, and from this it can be confirmed that Deng Yi’s biological father is the groom!
"What about me?"
"I should have given birth at full term, right?"
Deng Youning asked quickly.
There should be no mistake about her bloodline, she is undoubtedly Deng Zheng's biological daughter, otherwise it would be impossible for her blood to merge with Han Qiongyue's.
Niu Cuiqin nodded in affirmation.
"There's nothing wrong with you. The old woman delivered the baby herself."
"When you were born, no one cared because you were a girl. I had to wash you and put you in the swaddle."
"It's ridiculous to say that such a big Duke's Mansion doesn't care about the eldest daughter."
Perhaps the memories of the past touched Niu Cuiqin so much that she couldn't help but say a few more words.
Deng Youning was not surprised at her words.
I just have a shallow connection with the Deng family in this life.
Outside the house, Li Tianzhuo, Yingshi and Niu Dalang were sitting on the steps in front of the Niu family's door.
Looks a bit down and out.
Jiang Yuan, who had gone to look for the county magistrate, just rode back and saw them sitting outside the door with a confused look on his face.
"Sir, it has been done. No one will embarrass the Niu family mother and son anymore."
Jiang Yuan bowed and replied.
He also glanced at Niu Dalang who was standing beside him.
Li Tianzhuo nodded slightly.
Niu Dalang returned the gift in gratitude.
While they were talking, a carriage came galloping down the path behind them and stopped right in front of the four people.
The county magistrate, wearing a dark green official uniform, got off the carriage.
"This handsome young man must be the commander."
The fat man with a face that looked like a corrupt official was busy paying his respects to Li Tianzhuo.
Li Tianzhuo glared at Jiang Yuan angrily.
"Why did he follow?"
Jiang Yuan also looked innocent, holding his ear and whispering:
"I deliberately took a detour and covered an extra mile, but I still couldn't avoid him."
The county magistrate ignored the conversation between the master and servant and introduced himself:
"Your subordinate Mei Youde greets Lord Li."
"I don't know where you heard that our county is mining privately. That is a crime of rebellion. I wouldn't dare to do it even if I had ten times the courage!"
"Yesterday, there must have been some misunderstanding between our officers and this young man from the Niu family."
"Even if you are the commander of the Silver Dragon Guard, you cannot be indiscriminate."
He insisted that there was no conscription for mining.
They even threw dirty water on Li Tianzhuo, giving him a reputation of deliberately looking for trouble.
Li Tianzhuo raised his eyebrows.
He dared to say that, he must have made sufficient preparations and had a backup plan.
"The magistrate of Mei County, right?"
"I haven't said anything yet, why are you so eager to jump over the wall?"
The person above this petty official must be someone of high rank, how dare they be so disrespectful to Li Tianzhuo? !
The fake smile on the county magistrate's face disappeared in an instant.
A higher-ranking official can crush a person to death, not to mention that Li Tianzhuo is six levels higher than him!
He had a dark face and said:
"If you don't believe me, you can go to the mine with me to check it out."
“The seal of the mine is still affixed to this day.”
Li Tianzhuo glanced at Jiang Yuan.
They are not familiar with this place, so it would be a good idea for them to go to the mine and take a look.
He wanted to know where the county magistrate and his men could hide the miners and digging tools.
"It just so happens that I have nothing to do today."
The magistrate gave that flattering smirk again.
"Please get in the car, sir."
The county magistrate shook his sleeves and signaled his attendant to go over and support Li Tianzhuo.
"No, we have horses of our own."
Jiang Yuan knew that his master was a germaphobe and not everyone was worthy of riding in the same car with him.
The rejected county magistrate's face instantly became gloomy again.
When Niu Dalang went in to get the horse, he startled Deng Youning and Niu Cuiqin who were talking.
Upon learning that Li Tianzhuo was going to the mine with the county magistrate, Deng Youning ran out in a hurry.
"Don't go with him."
Deng Youning frowned slightly, her face full of worry about Li Tianzhuo.
Since the county magistrate was able to welcome Li Tianzhuo with such fanfare, he must have been well prepared.
She felt that Li Tianzhuo would not only find nothing this time, but would also most likely fall into a trap prepared by others.
"Don't worry, they don't have the guts to kill me."
Li Tianzhuo patted Deng Youning's arm to comfort her.
A breeze blew by, blowing away the strands of hair on Deng Youning's forehead. Li Tianzhuo couldn't help but lift her hair and tuck it behind her ears.
The county magistrate in the carriage also saw the whole scene.
"It seems that Lord Li is not as unkind as the rumors say. He even brought such a beautiful lady with him when he went out on business!"
The county magistrate couldn't help laughing.
"Don't worry, sir. This kind of dandy fool will definitely not be able to see the problems in our mine."
The county magistrate standing by also sneered.
Li Tianzhuo and Jiang Yuan rode horses, while the county magistrate and others took a carriage, and the group headed towards the mountains in the north.
Deng Youning also knew exactly what he wanted to ask and was ready to leave the village.
Just as I reached the entrance of the village, an old woman in ragged clothes and messy hair suddenly rushed out.
The crazy old woman blocked their way and kept kowtowing to them, begging them to save her son.
The old woman saw clearly what happened yesterday at the village entrance when Deng Youning rescued Niu Jia Dalang.
Just now at the gate of the Niu family, the county magistrate was very respectful to the young man with Deng Youning, so she was sure that this little girl must be her savior.
"Madam, the place where the county magistrate took your man to was not a real mine, it was just a cover."
"I have a map of the real mine here. I have memorized the route after risking my life to sneak in many times."
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