Because of the cold weather and the approaching end of the year, all the men in the village who were doing odd jobs outside returned home, and Zhao Zheng was no exception.
As soon as he entered Qiu Yan's courtyard, he discovered that two strange men had come to Qiu Yan's house.
Seeing thick smoke billowing from inside the house, Zhao thought that the fire must still be burning inside, so he cautiously walked into the house.
"Xiaoyan, Xiaoyan..."
As soon as he arrived, he saw Ling Qi cover her mouth and nose and rush out of the room.
With a thud, Ling Qi and Zhao Zheng bumped foreheads, and Ling Ba, who followed closely behind, couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Zhao Zheng clutched his forehead, staring blankly at Ling Qi in front of him. "Who are you? Where's Xiao Yan?"
"And who are you?" Ling Qi's gaze swept over the candied fruit in Zhao Zheng's hand. Could it be that this man was here to curry favor?
They stayed mainly to share Gu Qian's burdens, and naturally, they also needed to sever all of Miss Qiu's ill-fated relationships for the general.
Ling Qi took a step back and replied coldly, "She's not home."
"If she's not home, then why are you here? Who are you to her?"
Ling Ba said, "What's it to you?"
Zhao Zheng was speechless. He looked at the two men again and saw that they had unfriendly eyes and were full of hostility. They looked exactly like... bandits.
Every year-end, thieves would appear in the village. Could it be that these two really came to rob us?
Thinking of this, Zhao Zheng felt something was wrong, said goodbye, and turned to leave.
Seeing that the person had left, Ling Qi didn't say anything more. "Ling Ba, do you think it might be because of Chai?"
Ling Ba looked at the thick, dry firewood and said, "No way."
Ling Qi insisted, "In my opinion, it's because of this firewood. Shall we go find some straw and try?"
Ling Ba: "You can handle this kind of thing by yourself."
Ling Qi shook his head and insisted on pulling Ling Ba out of the courtyard.
After Zhao Zheng left Qiu Yan's house, he bumped into Qiu Laosan and his wife.
Because Yang was seriously ill, Qiu Dayong had just borrowed money from all his relatives. He had no choice but to go to Qian's family to borrow money as well, but no one was willing to lend him any.
The main reason was that Qiu Dazhi told him to take good care of his mother and that he would never forget his third brother when he became successful in the future.
Otherwise, Qiu Dayong wouldn't care so much about his own mother.
Zhao Zheng thought that since the two families were relatives, he could help each other out, so he told Qiu Dayong about his suspicions.
When Qiu Dayong and Qian heard that bandits had entered Qiu Yan's house, they were somewhat surprised.
"Third Uncle, you guys hold the robbers off for now, I'll go notify the village chief." Zhao Zheng wanted to call more people to come and catch the thief, so he could make a good impression on Qiu Yan.
Madam Qian said, "Alright, Zhao Zheng, we'll do as you say. Let's go and stall them first."
Zhao Zhengchong nodded to Qian Shi, "Thank you for your trouble."
After that, they went their separate ways.
Qiu Dayong had no intention of helping Qiu Yan; on the contrary, he was somewhat gloating. "You agreed to it yourself, so go if you want to."
Qian clicked her tongue twice, "Are you stupid? If the bandits eat meat, we can at least have some soup, right?"
With the cold weather and the approaching end of the year, Qiu Dayong's family had no work and their lives were extremely difficult.
Upon hearing Qian's words, Qiu Dayong pondered for a moment. "You mean, we should also go and steal some things?"
"Yeah, anyway, someone will take the blame for us."
Now, Qiu Yan's family is thriving, and they deeply regret not treating Qiu Yan better back then.
They spend all day at home blaming each other.
Qiu Dayong was filled with jealousy, especially when he saw that Qiu Dayu's life was getting better and better.
The couple immediately agreed and headed towards Qiu Yan's courtyard.
As they approached, they discovered that Qiu Yan's courtyard was filled with thick smoke.
Qian coughed twice, choked by the smoke, and said, "These robbers, they wouldn't be planning to burn the house down, would they?"
Qiu Dayong said nonchalantly, "Who cares? It's best to burn it. It's Qiu Yan's fault for making money without thinking about us."
They crouched down and peered into the room.
The two tiptoed and entered a smoke-free room without making a sound.
Inside the room, there were various kinds of food, all of which were steamed buns and pastries that Qiu Yan had brought back from Baiyang today.
Ms. Qian picked up a plum blossom-shaped pastry and put it in her mouth.
After tasting it, she felt like her tongue was no longer her own. "It's so delicious, Dayong. Pack all of this up and take it home for our little one to enjoy."
Qiu Dayong did as instructed, and then the two went to another room.
Inside the side room, the floor was covered with herbs. Qian's eyes lit up at the sight of these herbs; they were far more valuable than the pastries.
They casually rummaged through the room and found a bundle, then began to pack the herbs.
While getting dressed, he was thinking that Yang's illness wouldn't cost any money.
Just then, Ling Qi and Ling Ba arrived at the courtyard gate, each carrying some straw.
“Ling Qi, Uncle Li looks so familiar. Do you think he might be…”
Ling Qi knew what Ling Ba was going to say, and said directly, "No, I asked the general, and he is just an ordinary person."
“But…” Ling Ba was speaking when he suddenly saw two figures in the room.
Seeing that Ling Qi was about to open the door, Ling Ba made a shushing gesture and stopped him with his hand, "It seems like a thief has broken into the house."
At the same time, Ling Qi also saw the two figures. "How come there are all kinds of people in this village?"
Inside the side room, Qiu Dayong and his wife were still busy packing herbs.
Madam Qian urged, "Husband, hurry up, it won't be good if Zhao Zheng comes with his men later."
"Isn't that what I'm wearing right now?"
After finishing their work, Qiu Dayong and Qian Shi came out one after the other, ready to leave this place as soon as possible.
"Are you done with work?"
They had just reached the gate when Ling Qi suddenly asked them a question, which startled them quite a bit.
As the two looked up, they saw two men with faces covered in grime standing in front of them.
Mrs. Qian was stunned and immediately startled, retorting, "What's the rush? This is our own home."
"Mountain...mountain bandits, run..." Qiu Dayong said in a trembling voice, and then took off running.
Mountain bandits? Ling Qi and Ling Ba's faces immediately darkened.
"Husband, wait for me." Just as Qian was about to run away, Ling Qi grabbed her.
Her feet were frozen numb, and when she saw Ling Qi in front of her, she was so frightened that her body went limp and she fell to the ground, unable to run.
"Qiu Dayong, you heartless bastard, how can you be a man like you?"
"Don't worry, he can't escape." Ling Qi scrutinized Qian Shi in front of him. "Don't you even look at yourself? Do you think there are any bandits who look like us?"
Qian stood up shakily, thinking to herself, "A bandit wouldn't write 'bandit' on his face."
Take Qiu Dayu for example. He looks handsome and harmless, but in reality, he is all show and no substance.
Ling Ba moved with lightning speed, directly blocking Qiu Dayong's path. "Isn't this your house?"
Qiu Dayong, his face pale, said, "Young hero, we are Xiaoyan's third uncle and aunt. This is my eldest niece's home. So, this is my own home."
Ling Ba questioned, "If you are Third Uncle, why are you running away?"
Qiu Dayong pointed at Qian Shi with one hand: "He didn't run away." He tried to break free from Ling Ba's restraints, but he couldn't.
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