“And you, the one who sells roasted chestnuts, aren’t you also selling boiled cassava and homemade pickled vegetables?” The magistrate looked at the burly man again.
"As for you, you not only sell glutinous rice and blood sausage, but those two bags of charcoal by your feet, are they for selling too? Otherwise, where would you get so much? And that basket, are those handkerchiefs your wife made?" This was said to the young man.
These people were exposed, and their expressions became very unnatural. The stall fees here are so expensive, almost a hundred taels a year. If they only sell one thing, they would lose a lot of money. They must sell whatever they can.
There's a lot of foot traffic here, so things will sell.
“You’re all selling more than just one or two things. You’ve brought out everything you can to sell. So why are you arguing about how many kinds of food others are selling?”
"Just because their business is better than yours? You want to make things difficult for them and drive them away? You have no regard for justice or the law. Do you think I'm giving up my job as mayor? Or do you think no one is in charge here?"
"Go back to your stalls, everyone. Anyone who dares to cause trouble again will be arrested, fined, have their stall items confiscated, and will never be allowed to set up a food stall again. No one in your family is allowed to set up a food stall."
The stall owners were furious, but what could they do? The magistrate was right, and he was a ruthless man who always kept his word. If they made a mistake and fell into his hands, they would have worked for nothing for three years.
They all dejectedly promised not to repeat the mistake.
"I'll let you off this time, but if you do it again, you'll be in big trouble." The magistrate then ordered, "You two stay here and watch over me. If anyone misbehaves, report it to me immediately."
He designated two people to stay.
The magistrate glanced at the Qiao family again. Each of them was tall and imposing, with long arms and legs. He felt a slight sense of dread. This family's physique and aura were truly exceptional.
Even if he doesn't come, I'm afraid those stall owners won't be a match for him.
The magistrate suddenly felt an inexplicable threat and snorted at the Qiao family: "You should also behave yourselves and not try to take matters into your own hands at the drop of a hat. No matter what they do, they are under my jurisdiction and the law is in charge. It is not your place to make decisions."
Qiao Dayong narrowed his eyes, then clenched his fist again, almost unable to resist punching the city magistrate in the face.
Because they did nothing wrong, and they weren't there to cause trouble.
Moreover, they have to come; the city government can't always oversee the market, and these stall owners will always find an opportunity to cause trouble.
If the city magistrate hadn't arrived in time, and if they hadn't come at all, the mother and her children who came yesterday might have already been surrounded, pushed and shoved, or even chased out of the street.
Qiao Lian'er gave Qiao Dayong a wink and smiled.
"Yes, sir, we just need more manpower because we have a lot of things to sell, so we called my family here. My family members are all good fighters, and they didn't make the first move. They all know that you, sir, are here to uphold justice for us."
The city magistrate had only intended to threaten and warn, but seeing how well Qiao Lian'er spoke, her bright black eyes filled with sincerity, his expression softened considerably.
"Good to know. If a fight breaks out, it will be chaotic and no one will be able to do business. Customers will run away. With me on this street, I won't let anyone do anything wrong."
The city magistrate left with his men.
“Brother Dayong.” Qiao Lian’er frowned slightly: “This street is under the jurisdiction of Mayor Yang. As long as he doesn’t harm our interests, we can just listen to what he says. There’s no need to make things difficult for him. What if he really doesn’t let us set up our stalls? How are we going to make money? Besides, he really did stand up for us.”
Boss Qiao also said with a stern face: "Boss, you shouldn't be like this. Don't you know who you're dealing with? If you cause trouble and your whole family gets arrested, then you can forget about everything."
Qiao Dayong realized that he had indeed acted impulsively just now, but fortunately, Mayor Yang had not noticed his actions.
He almost did something foolish.
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again. I was just feeling a little wronged—"
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