Guan Muning was used to preparing for the worst in everything. The thought of being sold to a brothel or forced into slavery again sent a shiver down her spine.
Ye Panjiu is right. She must become stronger, strong enough to decide the fate of her biological parents at will.
The next day, Ye Panjiu felt much better, so she rode in an oxcart and went out with Ye Daniu and his group.
Upon arriving at Dujia Village, we could see Du Shi standing in the middle of the road waiting from afar.
"Brother Du, you're too early. It would be much better to sit by the fire and wait," Ye Erniu said, rubbing his hands together.
November in Northwest China is no joke.
This year the snow came late and the weather was a bit warmer than usual, but it was still freezing cold for him.
Du Shi smiled slightly, "I'm not afraid of the cold."
He exclaimed excitedly, "Miss Ye, you are truly a prophet!"
Ye Panjiu quickly waved her hand, "It's not true. Brother Du, just be the same as yesterday. Be sure to keep watch and don't go to Xiangweifang or Zhou's residence."
Du Shi nodded firmly, "Okay."
Taking Zhou Xinran's life is important, but the innocent parents who died unjustly and the daughter's innocence are equally important.
Upon arriving at Jiujiu Lu, Ye Panjiu frowned as she looked at the closed Xiangweifang.
If there's another disturbance today, someone might set the shop on fire tonight.
The constables in Qingshui County are really quite lax.
The new magistrate should be arriving soon, since with the decree to execute the magistrate, the arrangements for the new magistrate should also be made.
In less than an hour, both large buckets of braised food were sold out.
The four members of the Sun family packed up their shop, preparing to close it and return to Qingshui Village.
Suddenly, a young man walked in front of the shop. He was dressed in the finest silk, with a jade pendant at his waist and a gold hairpin in his hair. He was incredibly wealthy.
He asked, "Do you still have any braised food?"
Madam Sun's face flushed slightly. "This young man... he's gone..."
The man smiled and said, "It's alright, no need to be nervous. I'll try my luck again tomorrow."
Ye Panjiu bowed and said, "My lord, the braised food is secondary, but the county cannot be without a leader for a day. I hope you will reconsider."
The man, quite surprised, craned his neck towards Ye Panjiu. "What does this have to do with me?"
Ye Panjiu took a step back, creating distance between herself and the man.
Yan Yu watched this scene from the rooftop, her gaze filled with sorrow as she looked at the man. "The Earl of Yongchang is truly pitiful to have such a son..."
"Taking action before things get worse is much easier than trying to fix things afterward," Ye Panjiu said calmly.
A middle-aged man in a long robe came running up, panting. "My goodness! Why are you running so fast?"
The man put his hands on his hips, puffing out his cheeks, "I just heard this place is really good, and if I didn't come earlier, I wouldn't be able to get any!"
He had been looking forward to it for a long time; during his day in Qingshui County, he heard more than twenty people talking about this shop.
It turned out we were too late.
The middle-aged man took off his money pouch, threw it on the counter, and asked imperiously, "This is ten taels of silver. Can you make another one now?"
Ye Panjiu shook her head coldly, "That's all for each day. Once it's sold out, we won't sell any more."
She was somewhat disappointed.
I thought that with the gold mines behind it, Qingshui County would finally have a better magistrate.
The result was that he was a snobbish person who looked down on others.
Such people don't care about how ordinary people are doing.
The young man snatched the money bag and coldly threw it at the middle-aged man. "Put away your stinking money, sister. He's brainless. Don't be angry. I'll listen to you and go take up my post."
Ye Panjiu raised an eyebrow; this was rather interesting.
She added a reminder, "The constables haven't been patrolling the streets these past two days."
The young man laughed heartily, "I'll fire them all, to avenge my future sister-in-law!"
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man broke out in a cold sweat. He quickly wiped it away with his sleeve. "Miss, please don't take my words and actions to heart."
Ye Panjiu smiled and said, "It's nothing."
Yan Yu shook his head from a distance. Through his experience helping Miss Ye this time, he knew how much exaggeration there was in saying that nothing had happened.
The county government office opened, and Du Shi happened to arrive at the door and beat the drum.
The young man, dressed in the magistrate's robes, sat upright in the seat of honor, his playful smile vanishing, replaced by a serious expression.
There wasn't a single constable in the hall, but dozens of guards with swords stood behind him.
He slammed his gavel, "Who is filing this complaint? Step forward!"
The middle-aged man sat in the clerk's seat with a pen in hand and began to take notes.
There were no constables present to issue orders, but a group of indignant citizens watched from the sidelines.
Du Shi knelt before the hall and kowtowed forcefully, "Du Shi from Du Family Village, a humble citizen, sues Zhou Xinran, the manager of Xiangweifang!"
Chu Guan shouted, "Bring Zhou Xinran along!"
Before the guards hidden in the shadows could move, Yan Yu had already walked in carrying a man who was tied up like a pretzel.
He then kicked the man to the ground.
He now greatly admires Ye Panjiu; the girl had foreseen that Zhou Xinran would abscond with the money, and urged him to immediately go to Shuzhou to capture Zhou Xinran.
He caught it easily; Zhou Xinran's greatest weakness was wealth, which he easily obtained in front of the money shop.
He casually administered a poison to Zhou Xinran, a poison called Gelsemium elegans.
Zhou Xinran was in excruciating pain, feeling as if his intestines were being torn apart.
Chu Guan looked at Yan Yu with admiration in his eyes, a silly grin on his face.
Yan Yu coughed lightly.
Chu Guan quickly straightened his expression, "Is the person Zhou Xinran?"
Du Shi stared stiffly at the man beside him.
Zhou Xinran lay prone, his forehead pressed to the ground, too painful to lift his head. "Yes, yes, yes, I am!"
Chu Guan looked at Du Shi, "Go on, what are you going to sue him for?"
Du Shi trembled all over. "Thirteen years ago, in November, Zhou Xinran wanted to buy my prescription, but I refused. So he bribed the constables at the time to imprison my parents, and they died of illness in prison! I spent all my savings, just wanting to send them some medicine, but I couldn't get it in no matter what I did. I didn't even get to see my parents one last time!"
"And also, my daughter, Zhou Xinran forced her to take him as a concubine, she refused, so Zhou Xinran threatened my parents' lives, and my daughter... she chose to hang herself!"
Du Shi's back trembled as he thought of that winter, and he burst into tears.
That year, he felt sorry for his mother and didn't let her go out when it got cold.
Whenever he came home, there was always a warm meal prepared by his mother.
And his daughter, how thoughtful she is! She'll mend his ripped clothes and smile as she tells him he's worked hard.
Everything is irreversible...
He was all alone now…
Chu Guan's face turned ashen. "Someone, bring me the case file from November thirteen years ago."
The head constable, who had finally arrived, quickly replied obsequiously, "Yes, sir!"
The files were brought out, and the guards behind Chu Guan stepped forward, each flipping through one of them.
In the end, they all shook their heads.
Chu Guan's heart sank, his gaze turned cold and sharp. He slammed his gavel down, "Zhou Xinran! How dare you! I'll give you a chance to explain!"
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