The man in the blue silk robe turned pale. "What do you mean by reneging on a debt? The little flag in front of your shop clearly says that if you're really struggling, you can eat for free! Now you're trying to extort money from me!"
Despite being much younger than Cheng Tie, he spoke as if he were an old man.
Cheng Tie was so angry that he clenched his teeth and fists, wanting nothing more than to punch this scoundrel in the head.
Ye Guihua came out, her fingers twisted white, and tried to remain calm as she said, "Sir, you've eaten two bowls of meat, which totals twenty-four coins. If you're really struggling, you can leave this silk robe with you to pay off your debt."
The man in blue silk gave a "heh" and was about to reach out to grab Ye Guihua's clothes when Cheng Tie grabbed his hand.
"I'm telling you, you little hussy, open your eyes and see who I am! You unfaithful woman, showing your face in public, who knows how many men you've been with..."
Before he could finish speaking, Ye Panjiu stepped forward and slapped him across the face.
"Shut up! Brother Cheng, take this to the authorities. I want to see who taught this foul mouth of yours."
The man in blue silk stared in disbelief, about to rush forward and hit Ye Panjiu.
Cheng Tie moved swiftly, his hands gripping his two hands like iron clamps, while one hand tightly covered his mouth.
The man in blue struggled like a chick, but could only be carried away.
Ye Guihua's eyes were red, and Ye Panjiu supported her shoulder as they walked towards the back door.
Uncle Lin waved his hand, "Everyone, keep eating."
After exiting through the back door, Ye Guihua pursed her lips, her face flushed red.
Ye Panjiu looked at her with heartache, "Guihua, you've suffered so much."
Ye Guihua blurted out, "Slap him! I want to slap him too!"
But at that moment, she felt like everyone's gazes were piercing her like arrows, pressing down on her so much that she couldn't lift her head, let alone raise her hand to hit him.
She was screaming in her heart that what he said was wrong, all of it was wrong, but she couldn't lift her head no matter what she did.
My heart ached terribly; I was angry at the person's foul language and also angry at my own lack of self-control.
Ye Panjiu hugged her and pulled her into his arms. "It's okay. We didn't succeed this time, but one day you'll have the courage to do it."
Ye Guihua nodded vigorously, but tears still streamed down her face, soaking Ye Panjiu's clothes.
Ye Panjiu gently patted her back.
This is the tragedy of women in the Great Liang Dynasty. When they go out to make a living, some random person will come up and spit on them.
Then the woman's reputation suffered.
They were put on the defensive when it came to marriage.
As Cheng Tie dragged the man in blue silk toward the government office, the man finally became frightened and struggled, saying, "I'll give it to you! It's just twenty-four copper coins, take it, take it!"
Cheng Tie counted out twenty-four copper coins from his purse, shoved him hard, and said, "I'm warning you, if you cause trouble here again, you'll regret it!"
The man couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground, glaring hatefully at his retreating figure.
After Cheng Tie had walked away, he spat on the ground, "A stinking cripple and two stinking women, they really think they're something! This isn't over!"
When Cheng Tie returned to the shop, Ye Guihua had already washed her face, and there was nothing visible on her face except that her eyes were a little red.
Ye Panjiu looked at him, "Why are you back so soon?"
She was also planning to visit the government office.
Cheng Tie stretched out his hand, revealing twenty-four copper coins. "He gave me the money, I warned him, and then I came back."
Ye Panjiu paused, then shook her head in disapproval. "Brother Cheng, if you don't beat this kind of scoundrel to a pulp, there will be endless trouble. Besides, this guy is probably not only freeloading off our shop, but he's also a menace on the street."
Cheng Tie frowned and sighed, "I was too soft-hearted."
The man was not very old, so he didn't investigate further.
After selling out of braised food for the day and closing the shop, Ye Panjiu rode his horse home with Ye Guihua.
Heng Tong was always like a shadow beside Ye Panjiu.
As they approached their home, Ye Guihua tugged at Ye Panjiu's sleeve, "Auntie, can we not tell the family about what happened today?"
Ye Panjiu was taken aback for a moment, "Okay, Guihua, if you don't want to stay in the shop anymore, I can go and watch over it."
Ye Guihua shook her head. "Aunt, I want to look after this shop."
This shop was the first thing she had achieved entirely on her own on her path to making money, so how could she not keep an eye on it?
Just because of a few harsh words from others, she should stay at home timidly. Why should she?
After returning home, Ye Panjiu asked Heng Tong to investigate the man in blue silk from earlier that day.
After lunch and a nap, Hengtong finished his investigation and returned.
“Young lady, this man is a notorious thug in the neighborhood. He and a few hooligans always eat and take for free and do all sorts of evil deeds. The people in the neighborhood are afraid of retaliation, so no one dares to report him to the authorities.”
Ye Panjiu pondered for a moment, "Tell Lord Duan to arrest all these people without exception. It should be good to use them as forced laborers. Also, tell Lord Duan that if he doesn't mind, Jiujiu Lu can tell him about all the similar incidents that have happened among the people, so that his demands can be addressed."
Heng Tong nodded, then turned and left.
Ye Panjiu sighed. If there were good officials in a place who were willing to listen to the people, the problem could be easily solved.
If a local official is corrupt and accepts bribes from such scoundrels, the people can only hide; if they can't hide, they can only grit their teeth and accept it.
She has encountered such a situation now and can lend a helping hand; who knows how many others haven't.
There's no point in just thinking about these things; let's do what we can.
Sun entered happily, carrying her money bag. Upon seeing Ye Panjiu's troubled face, she raised her eyebrows. "Little sister, who upset you? Second sister-in-law, go and scold them!"
Ye Panjiu was both amused and exasperated. "No, is this the money we collected today?"
Mrs. Sun nodded repeatedly, "Come on, let's count together, I haven't counted yet."
She loosened the drawstring of the money bag, and a large pile of copper coins rolled onto the table.
Ye Panjiu began counting the money with a smile.
"Forty, forty-one, forty-two!" Sun counted the last coin with satisfaction.
"I've struck it rich! This much, a full seven taels and forty-two coins! If I had known it would be this profitable, I wouldn't have hesitated to spend that little bit of silver and buy such a small shop!"
Ye Panjiu patted her hand, "I think your shop is a bit small, but setting up tables and chairs outside actually attracts more customers."
Sun proudly tossed her head and said, "That's right! Sometimes when I see the guests enjoying their food, I want to eat some myself!"
Ye Panjiu smiled and nodded.
That evening, while eating dinner, Mrs. Sun suddenly said, "Oh, I really miss my sister-in-law's cooking. I wonder if my daughter has grown any taller."
Ye Guihua pursed her lips. She felt wronged today, and the thought of her mother made her feel sad.
Ye Erniu turned to look at her blankly, "Wife, it's only been four days since we parted, how much taller could you have grown?"
Sun glared at him, "A five-year-old child can change every day."
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