Chapter 255 Where are the missing persons?
Lin Zhiqing's focus was not on the beggar. After entering the farm, she immediately asked the tenants, trying to find the head of the farm.
The tenant farmers thought she wanted to discuss the purchase of geese with the head of the village, so they readily agreed to their request to the head of the village.
The two were invited to wait in the reception room inside the manor.
The village head was a middle-aged man with a beard. He came very quickly.
However, when he saw the two "teenagers", the smile on his face faded a little.
When Lin Zhiqing saw him raise his chin, turn up the corners of his eyes, and go straight to the main seat, he knew that the person in front of him thought he was doing business with the young man and wanted to make a profit.
As expected, the first words the village head said were a subtle attempt to inquire about the two's backgrounds:
"You two young masters look like strangers. Why would you come to Yongqing County to buy geese? Could it be that your family runs a restaurant?"
It is obvious that people who do restaurant business account for the majority of goose buyers.
"We were both coming from Bianliang and happened to pass by. We tried the goose meat at the farm and it was delicious."
"Plus, my family really wants to start a restaurant business, so I came to take a look."
As she spoke, she faintly revealed the jade pendant hanging around her waist.
Zhuangtou glanced at the jade pendant, lowered his chin, leveled his eyes with Lin Zhiqing, and a smile brightened at the corner of his mouth.
Obviously, they thought Lin Zhiqing and the other two were second-generation rich people who were traveling around to enjoy the scenery.
He chatted with Lin Zhiqing about the restaurant.
Lin Zhiqing chatted with him back and forth, and his words seemed to be trying to find out Zheng Kuo's whereabouts.
But Zhuangtou seemed to have no reaction to this.
Lin Zhiqing observed for a long time before he was sure that the village head only had the big white goose in his mind and didn't know much about Zheng Kuo.
Could it be that I have found the wrong person, and the white goose is not referring to Mr. Wang’s farm?
That shouldn't be the case. According to the information revealed by Zheng Kuo's son, white geese and willow trees should be more representative things in Yongqing County.
The white geese from Mr. Wang's family seem to have a high status in Yongqing County. Could it be that Mr. Wang himself is the only one who knows about Zheng Kuo?
Thinking of this, Lin Zhiqing changed the subject and asked to meet Mr. Wang.
The village head was chatting happily, but when he heard Lin Zhiqing make this request, he was silent for a while.
Seeing the suspicion in the village head's eyes, Lin Zhiqing gave Lin Yangyang a wink.
Lin Yangyang blinked and stood up immediately:
"Although Bianliang is prosperous, the food there is really boring. My father told me that if I see something delicious outside, I must bring it back for him to try."
"Your farm may look ordinary, but it's quite interesting inside. I'd like to discuss it with your family's manager. If we can cooperate, I won't be short of goose meat in the future."
"Cousin!" Lin Zhiqing feigned displeasure and called out to Lin Yangyang:
"Yongqing County is a picturesque place with picturesque scenery, and the village itself is quite interesting. How can it be described as mediocre?"
Lin Yangyang's words were a linguistic hint to elevate the status of the two.
Lin Zhiqing seemed to be refuting it, but in fact, it consolidated their personality and impression of having a "rich family and a powerful business".
This method does not work on people in high positions, but it works wonders on those who appear smart but actually know very little.
When the village head heard this, his eyes rolled and he asked a few more questions, most of which were related to Bianliang.
This is clearly a test.
Because of his previous experience in Bianliang, Lin Yangyang was quite knowledgeable when talking about eating, drinking and having fun, and his tone was quite confident.
The head of the village weighed the pros and cons in his mind before agreeing to let the steward take them to visit the official's home.
In a flash, the manager met the two of them and led them out.
When they were leaving the house, the group of beggars came towards them again. However, the little beggar who had led the way at the beginning huddled in a corner, looking at Lin Yangyang timidly but with hope.
When Lin Yangyang saw that the little beggar had some bruises on his face, he became furious and wanted to curse immediately.
Lin Zhiqing calmly pulled Lin Yangyang over, grabbed a handful of copper coins, and distributed them to the older children.
Then he waved his hand and asked the little beggar to follow them.
This behavior made the manager show a hint of contempt, and he felt that the two people in front of him were indeed the kind of rich kids who were out of touch with the world and wanted to be heroes.
The group quickly arrived at Mr. Wang's residence. Lin Zhiqing observed carefully along the way, but did not see any clues such as the willow tree.
After talking with the pot-bellied Mr. Wang for a long time, Lin Zhiqing realized that Mr. Wang seemed to be unaware of Zheng Kuo.
She knew in her heart that she must have misunderstood what Zheng Kuo's son said, or something went wrong.
Lin Yangyang also noticed something was wrong and acted uninterested.
Although Mr. Wang was dissatisfied, he did not interfere too much because he was concerned about the mystery of their identities.
After leaving the Wang family, Lin Zhiqing frowned slightly and carefully recalled what Zheng Kuo's son had said.
Lin Yangyang's attention was on the little beggar.
It was not convenient for the two of them to discuss Zheng Kuo's affairs outside. Lin Yangyang was a talkative person, so she asked about the little beggar's life experience and the affairs of Yongqing County.
The little beggar looked small, thin and ragged, but he spoke clearly and explained his situation in just a few words.
My father was drafted into the army, and my mother starved to death. I have been wandering since I was a child, begging for a living.
With all these things piled up together, even Lin Yangyang, who was usually carefree, felt a little sad.
Lin Zhiqing listened to some of it and sighed in his heart.
In Dasheng, there are definitely more than one or two such children.
Even in Shengjing and Bianliang, it was common.
After returning to the inn, Lin Yangyang took out a few taels of silver to give to the little beggar.
The little beggar's eyes were sparkling, but he seemed to be a little scared as if he remembered something, so he didn't reach out his hand for a while.
After thinking for a long time, he mustered up the courage to look up and said, "I only need a copper coin."
"A copper coin?" Lin Yangyang was obviously stunned. "Little idiot, why are you so stupid? This is silver!"
The little beggar was called stupid and his face turned red. He was too embarrassed to speak again.
Lin Zhiqing pulled Lin Yangyang aside and whispered in her ear:
"You've got so much silver, it's likely to be snatched away by those older kids. Seeing the profit, they'll exploit the kid even more, and we won't be able to live in peace."
"He only wants one penny, and he's also helping us avoid risks."
"This...is this fair?" Lin Yangyang was speechless for a moment.
Justice?
The surname of Tian in Dasheng is Sheng.
Lin Zhiqing waved at the little beggar: "Can you sew?"
The little beggar nodded: "Yes, but I don't have needle and thread."
Lin Zhiqing nodded, took out a small banknote and handed it to Lin Yangyang:
"Take him to find a skilled embroiderer to embroider this banknote inside his clothes so he can use it in a critical moment."
Lin Yangyang's expression changed from gloomy to bright, and she accepted the banknote: "Be careful, I'll be back soon."
Lin Zhiqing nodded: "I'm lending you this banknote. You have to pay me back in the future."
"I know, I know." Lin Yangyang knew very well that Lin Zhiqing was leaving this good fate to her.
Lin Zhiqing watched the two people, one big and one small, walk away, then returned to the upper room and started thinking again.
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