They were looking for a man named Qi Jiu, who they claimed was a prisoner exiled from the capital.
After listening to their words, He Shunde pointed to Danhua Mountain behind the village and said, "Last month, a prisoner was exiled to our village. There were no extra houses for him to live in, and every household's house was already taken. There was a thatched hut at the foot of Danhua Mountain. It was my poor old man who took pity on him and had his sons build it for him..."
Before He Shunde could finish speaking, Pei Junqi shoved a silver note into his hand. He was stunned for a moment, and just as he was about to speak, he saw these well-dressed young masters mount their horses and head towards Danhua Mountain.
He wasn't given a chance to speak again.
"Truly young people, so impatient!" He Shunde couldn't help but sigh.
They were destined to come up empty-handed.
Qi Jiu did indeed live in that thatched hut before, but just a few days ago, Jiang Fuyi and his family did something inhumane. They actually brought their daughter-in-law Ye Miaoyun to the thatched hut and made her lie down with Qi Jiu. They even led the villagers to catch them in the act early in the morning.
Ye Miaoyun was almost drowned by the Jiang family, but he stopped her, saying that there were many suspicious points in the matter and that it should be reported to the authorities for a thorough investigation. Only then did the Jiang family temporarily give up and not kill their daughter-in-law.
Later... he sent his son to Liuhe Town to inform them that Ye Miaoyun had been taken away by his family, and Qi Jiu had also gone with the Ye family.
There was nothing they could do; they had both ended up lying on the straw mat and cuddling together.
This was witnessed by the entire village.
As a grown man, shouldn't he have to take responsibility?
Of course, if the Ye family is unwilling to remarry Ye Miaoyun to Qi Jiu, then Qi Jiu will have to come back and live in his thatched hut.
However... the people who came to find Qi Jiu just now were all dressed smartly and gave off a very imposing aura.
Putting everything else aside, the horses they were riding looked tall and majestic, and were the finest horses he had ever seen before.
Could it be that Qi Jiu was quite a figure before he was exiled?
I've heard that some high-ranking officials are exiled when they commit crimes.
"Father, look at the silver notes in your hand!" He Youcai couldn't help but remind his father when he saw him staring blankly in the direction the group of people had left.
"Oh!" He Shunde came to his senses, nodded slightly, and slowly unfolded the silver note that Pei Juncai had stuffed into his hand. After seeing it clearly, his eyes widened suddenly: "One... one hundred taels."
"So many!" He Youcai exclaimed.
He Shunde's hand trembled as he held the silver note.
Although he was the village head of Qingya Village and his family was quite well-off, one hundred taels was a lot of money for them.
Their family's silver should add up to a hundred taels, but this was the first time he had ever seen a hundred-tael silver note.
"Father, do you remember? When Xianya left, she said that you would make a fortune today." He Youcai said excitedly.
"I remember, I remember!" He Shunde nodded hurriedly: "This girl was right. I really made a fortune. This is the first time in my life that I have ever seen a hundred-tael silver note."
He Shunde was overjoyed and instantly believed what Jiang Xianya had said before.
“Xianya also said that you brothers cannot go to Danhua Mountain tomorrow, otherwise there will be bloodshed.” He Shunde said, looking at his son with a serious expression: “Go and tell Shoucai and Baocai that they must stay at home tomorrow and not go out, let alone go to Danhua Mountain.”
"Yes." He Youcai nodded quickly.
“I’ve heard people say before that these bloody disasters can be big or small. If you’re lucky, you might only suffer minor injuries and bleed a little. If you’re unlucky… you might lose your life. Xianya definitely didn’t lie to us. We absolutely can’t go,” He Shunde said resolutely.
One hundred taels of silver!
That girl was right about everything, so the other things must be true too.
“Oh right, Youcai, they gave us a hundred taels of silver, probably to thank me for letting you build thatched huts for Qi Jiu. A hundred taels is too much, I feel uneasy holding it. Go quickly to the thatched hut at the foot of the mountain and tell those gentlemen that Qi Jiu has not lived there for a long time.”
"Then Father, you go back to your room and rest first, I'll go right away!" After saying that, He Youcai quickly ran towards the direction of Danhua Mountain.
After Qi Chengshuo and Pei Junqi and the other four found the thatched hut at the foot of the mountain, the impatient Pei Junqi was the first to rush inside.
Qi Chengshuo couldn't help but frown upon seeing this.
That brat, couldn't he let the guards go in first? Isn't he afraid of an ambush?
Of the five people on this trip, besides him and Pei Junqi, the other three were guards, and all of them were highly skilled in martial arts.
Qi Chengshuo was about to enter the house when he suddenly heard Pei Junqi's screams coming from inside.
"There's a snake... I've been bitten, Your Highness, please come and save me!"
Qi Chengshuo rushed in immediately and saw Pei Junqi sitting on the haystack, with a snake crawling out of the thatched hut.
He drew his long sword from his waist, leaped forward, and slashed the snake into several pieces.
"Will I...will I be poisoned to death?" Pei Junqi hugged Qi Chengshuo's leg, his voice trembling, terrified.
“This snake isn’t poisonous, it won’t kill you!” Qi Chengshuo pushed him away and said calmly.
"That's good." Pei Junqi breathed a sigh of relief. He pulled up his trouser leg and looked down, finding two small bloody holes in his calf.
“Ninth Master is really miserable. Not only does he live in a thatched hut, but there are also snakes in the hut. Luckily, the snake bit me but not him,” Pei Junqi said with a bitter face.
“Uncle Jiu isn’t here. Could it be that he went into the mountains?” Qi Chengshuo frowned slightly.
"Then let's go up the mountain to look for him," Pei Junqi said, as he had his guards help him up.
Although the snake wasn't venomous, he was still bitten on the calf and felt a stinging pain.
"Young Master, do you think this counts as a bloody disaster?" Pei Junqi suddenly remembered the eccentric little girl from before and couldn't help but ask.
The little girl told him that he couldn't go to Danhua Mountain and had to be careful of insects and snakes, otherwise he would suffer a bloody disaster.
This thatched hut is located at the foot of Danhua Mountain, which, strictly speaking, is also within the Danhua Mountain area.
Qi Chengshuo was taken aback upon hearing this, and after a moment he nodded: "It counts! I've had contact with people from the Taiyi Sect. The so-called bloodshed they refer to has many forms. Since you've seen blood, of course it counts!"
"But I'm afraid this minor injury doesn't count. If I enter Danhua Mountain, will my life be in danger?" Pei Junqi was truly afraid.
"Then you can wait here. Have your guard Chen Song accompany you. I'll take Guangpeng and Minghui to find Uncle Jiu. They'll be back before dark." After Qi Chengshuo finished speaking, he was about to lead his men out when he heard a man's voice from outside.
"Gentlemen, my father sent me to tell you that Qi Jiu no longer lives here; he has been taken away by the Ye family."
Upon hearing this, Qi Chengshuo immediately went out.
"The Ye family? Which Ye family? Where do they live?" Qi Chengshuo asked in a deep voice.
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