The Qin residence, Linfeng Courtyard.
Qin Yucheng lay on the couch, not yet asleep. The candles in the room had long been extinguished, but he still turned over from time to time to glance at the corner of the wall.
To be precise, it was about looking at the three crabapple seedlings in the corner of the wall.
The Li family's jade mine in Tangshan Prefecture produced a new batch of goods today. Remembering the jade gambling street competition he had arranged with Hua'er, he went to Tangshan Prefecture with his mother and found quite a few good jade stones.
Upon returning home, he was overjoyed to hear that Hua'er had brought him apple saplings during the day. He never expected that the apple, which was regarded as the national tree in Xirong, had actually been propagated by Hua'er, and that she had given him three apple saplings at once.
All that's left is for the apple trees to be handed over to the fruit farmers in the village to plant tomorrow. In two or three years, once the apple saplings have grown and bear apple fruit, the Li family's business can be propelled to new heights. If used properly, it could even break the Li family's current predicament.
And all of this was brought about by Hua'er.
Qin Yucheng closed his eyes slightly, but the corners of his mouth were upturned in a wide smile. From their first meeting in Cangwu Town to today, less than two months had passed, and she had given him so many surprises, like a treasure chest with no bottom...
Suddenly, there was a hissing sound outside the window.
The boy's smile froze—it was the sound of a sword being drawn!
He sat up abruptly, his wrist flicking as he deftly gripped the short sword under his pillow. Then he heard Ah Cai's cold shout seeping in through the window, "Who goes there? How dare you cause trouble at the Qin residence in the middle of the night!"
Immediately following was a cold, masculine voice.
"Bring Qin Yucheng out; I have something to ask him."
The simple sentence sounded very familiar to Qin Yucheng.
It was him! What was he doing in the Qin family's courtyard so late at night?!
He and Xiao Jinhan had only met once in Shanghe Village; they weren't the kind of people who could chat under the moon at midnight.
However, he didn't want to miss anyone related to Hua'er.
Qin Yucheng quickly put on his clothes and pushed open the door. He met the man's gaze. Compared to the coldness he had seen before, Xiao Jinhan was now as cold as ice, without a trace of warmth.
Qin Yucheng frowned, about to speak.
But then she heard the other person's cold voice, "Has Hua'er come to the Qin residence today?"
Qin Yucheng was a little confused by the question, "I've been here before, so why..."
Before he could finish speaking, he was lifted up by a great force, and the man's sinister face suddenly loomed large before him. "When did Hua'er arrive at the Qin residence today, and when did she leave?"
Since they visited the Qin residence, but did not stay there.
This means that Hua'er disappeared after arriving at the Qin residence, but Qingshui County is such a big place, where could Hua'er have gone?
"Young Master Xiao! What are you doing? Let go of my young master!" Ah Cai saw Xiao Jinhan grab Qin Yucheng by the shoulder and was so anxious that his hand holding the sword was trembling.
Fortunately, Xiao Jinhan released the person in an instant.
Qin Yucheng took a deep breath, his drowsiness vanishing instantly, his eyes wide with astonishment. "What do you mean by that? Didn't Hua'er return to Shanghe Village after leaving the Qin residence?"
"Hmm," Xiao Jinhan replied coldly.
Ah Cai finally realized the seriousness of the matter and blurted out the whole story of Su Hua giving Lin Qin that day.
If he had known it would turn out this way, he should have been more shameless when Miss Su refused his offer to see her off and had directly delivered her to the three Su brothers.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jinhan immediately grasped the key point: "You mean, after Hua'er left, she went in the direction of the west side of the Qin residence?"
"Yes." Ah Cai nodded.
He waited until Su Hua's figure had completely disappeared before returning to his residence in the afternoon. The Qin residence was located in Qingyi Lane in the east of Qingshui County, while the Su family's three brothers' restaurant was located at the junction of the east and west sides of the city. Therefore, he assumed that Miss Su was going to the Su family restaurant and did not think much of it.
"Thank you." Xiao Jinhan nodded and was about to leave.
Looking down, she saw her sleeve being tugged, and she was suddenly confronted by the handsome young man. "I am familiar with Qingshui County. I have been to every corner of this place. I will find the person."
Xiao Jinhan stared at him intently for a moment, "There's something fishy about Hua'er's matter..."
Before he could finish speaking, Qin Yucheng nodded, "I know my limits, and I will not let outsiders know about what happened today."
When Xiao Jinhan returned to the back gate of the Qin residence, Yu Feng was already waiting outside the carriage with a group of men in black. "Master, is there any news about Miss Su?"
The man nodded. "Hua'er left the Qin residence at noon today and headed west. From now on, from the Qin residence westward, do not miss any street, alley, or corner."
Also, send someone to inform Elder Xue to bring the Fragrance-Attracting Butterfly along.
"Yes," Yu Feng replied, clasping his hands in a fist salute.
They quickly led the men in black away in different directions.
Xiao Jinhan glanced at the little black dog in his arms, then stepped into the carriage. "Aunt Su, Hua'er isn't at the Qin residence right now, so the search might not be quick. Why don't I take you back to your village first?"
Sitting inside the carriage, Madam Su heard the entire conversation. When she saw Xiao Jinhan offering to see her off, she immediately waved her hand and refused, saying, "Jinhan, you don't need to worry about me. I won't go back until I find Hua'er."
After saying that, he helped Su Erhu jump off the carriage.
They went together to search the west side of the Qin residence.
Seeing this, Xiao Jinhan stopped trying to persuade him and carried the little black dog westward.
Soon after, a group of nimble figures filed out of the Qin residence, and with a few leaps, disappeared into every corner of Qingshui County.
Meanwhile, in Shanghe Village, hundreds of miles away...
Zhao stood at the courtyard gate with Su Sui, Su Dalang and his two siblings, Da Niu, Xiao Bai and Er Hu. The moonlight cast long shadows of the five people and two tigers.
Both the man and the tiger craned their necks to look outside. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally saw a dark figure walking towards the end of the village.
The child had sharp eyes, and the moment Su Erlang spotted the figure, he jumped up, "She's back, she's back, it's Auntie back..."
"Keep your voice down, don't talk nonsense." Su Dalang glared at him, his brows furrowed. "How could my aunt be so short and small? This person is not my aunt at all!"
Sure enough, as the shadowy figure drew closer, the Su family realized that the person was not Su Hua at all, but Liu Amao, the grandson of Old Liu from the village entrance.
Amao stumbled and trudged to the outside of the Su family's courtyard.
Without catching his breath, he said directly, "Aunt Zhao, someone just told me that if you want to know the news, you should immediately take five hundred taels of silver to the foot of Xiaoheishan Mountain, thirty miles away."
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