Everyone's exhausted after a long night; there's no point in staying any longer. Yan Qingqing said, "Alright, everyone go back and rest. We'll talk again when Doctor Zheng arrives."
Then he glanced at Wei Laosan and said, "Brother Wei, thank you for your hard work! Please take good care of things here."
Wei Laosan nodded and replied, "Don't worry, benefactor. I will report to you immediately if anything happens."
Yan Qingqing nodded and took the children home.
As soon as Yan Qingqing returned to her room, she saw Yuan Huiniang waiting anxiously.
Upon seeing Yan Qingqing and the others return, Yuan Huiniang said, "Mother, I heard from my second brother that our chickens and ducks have been poisoned."
Who on earth has such a deep-seated grudge against our family? Why would they poison our chickens and ducks?
Yan Qingqing shook her head and said, "I don't know either."
Yuan Huiniang then asked, "So what should we do now?"
Yan Qingqing rolled her eyes and said, "Spread the word that our chickens and ducks have been poisoned, and I'm planning to report it to the authorities."
Although Yuan Huiniang didn't understand why her mother-in-law didn't report it to the authorities directly, but instead spread the word, wouldn't that just let the person who poisoned her get away?
However, Yuan Huiniang knew that her mother-in-law must have her reasons for doing so. So she suppressed her anger and went to chat with someone.
After Yuan Huiniang left, Yan Qingqing began to think about this matter: who would poison their chickens and ducks?
Logically speaking, their family had never made enemies with anyone. At first, she thought that taking in Xiao Mochen had brought revenge from his enemies, but later she dismissed that idea. If Xiao Mochen's enemies were only so capable, Xiao Mochen wouldn't have ended up in this situation.
If it wasn't someone from outside, then there's probably no one else who could have poisoned these chickens and ducks so quietly.
Thinking of this, Yan Qingqing's eyes flashed with a cold light. Did they think she was easy to bully and had no temper?
Soon, news of Yan Qingqing's chickens and ducks being poisoned spread throughout Canghe Village, and most people were cursing the person who poisoned them for being utterly heartless.
However, some people were secretly pleased. Most of these people were either jealous or had never been selected by Yan Qingqing's family when they were recruiting.
Village chief Li Kaishan soon learned about the incident. He felt that it was really upsetting to encounter such a thing during the Spring Festival, and he was also very angry.
Life in Canghe Village had finally started to improve a little thanks to Yan Qingqing's family, but then someone came to cause trouble. That person was someone who wanted to oppose the entire Canghe Village.
When Yan Qingqing heard that Li Kaishan had come, she knew that he had also come about her family's chickens and ducks, so she quickly came out to greet him.
Upon seeing Yan Qingqing, Li Kaishan didn't mince words and said, "I've heard about your family's situation. I can't offer much help, but Qingqing, what do you suggest? I'll fully support you."
Yan Qingqing said frankly, "Thank you for your concern, Uncle Village Chief. I plan to report this to the authorities."
"Uncle Village Chief, to be honest, I always felt this couldn't have been done by an outsider. Who would be so idle as to come to our Canghe Village to poison the chickens and ducks during the Spring Festival?"
After listening in silence for a while, Li Kaishan said, "Alright! Then let's report it to the authorities! Our Canghe Village cannot tolerate such parasites."
Although there are occasional conflicts among neighbors in Canghe Village, most people are kind-hearted. The worst are just those who fight, brawl, and steal. People who are utterly devoid of conscience are truly a minority.
Seeing that Li Kaishan supported her, Yan Qingqing felt much better and said, "Uncle Village Chief, I don't want to report to the authorities unless absolutely necessary."
You can spread the word that if someone voluntarily admits to poisoning you, I can let bygones be bygones.
If I report this to the authorities, there will be no room for sentimentality.
Upon hearing this, Li Kaishan cupped his hands in thanks to Yan Qingqing and said, "Regardless of who the poisoner is, I thank you on their behalf."
After Li Kaishan left, Yuan Huiniang finally asked, "Mother, do you really want to forgive the person who poisoned us?"
Yan Qingqing scoffed and said, "How could that be? Do you think I'm such a kind person?"
I'm just not sure who that person is right now.
Do you think he'd be worried if he knew we were going to report us to the authorities?
Yuan Huiniang thought for a moment and asked in return, "Mother, are you trying to alert the enemy?"
Yan Qingqing gave her an approving look and said, "Not bad, Hui Niang, you can even use idioms now. You're right, I want to see who wants to harm our family."
Just as the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were talking, Xiao Mochen and Li Xiangkang walked in.
Both children looked worried. Yan Qingqing waved to them and said, "Why are you two here? Didn't I tell you to go to sleep?"
They are young, and they stayed up all night again last night. Yan Qingqing is worried that they won't be able to hold on.
Li Xiangkang was the first to reply: "Mother, how can we sleep with such a big thing happening at home?"
Xiao Mochen then asked, "Auntie, is there any progress on this matter?"
Yan Qingqing nodded and replied, "We have some clues, but it's just a suspicion now, and we still need to verify it."
Don't worry about it, I can handle this. You two are just kids, don't fret so much.
Yan Qingqing was mainly saying this to Xiao Mochen.
As expected, Xiao Mochen breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. He had been struggling all day with whether or not to step in and help Yan Qingqing get to the bottom of this matter.
He genuinely considered the Li family as his own, and he felt a special dependence on Yan Qingqing, especially since they treated him well.
However, he was also afraid that if he got involved, they would know that he lived here, which would disrupt the peace of the Li family.
He doesn't yet have the strength to protect the people he wants to protect, but he has already begun to work on it.
Yan Qingqing could tell from Xiao Mochen's expression that the boy wanted to get involved in this matter, but why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut?
Soon Li Xiang'an returned from the city, accompanied by Doctor Zheng.
As soon as Dr. Zheng saw Yan Qingqing, he complained, "Oh dear, I finally had a peaceful New Year, and now what's happened to your family? Your son won't tell me even when I ask, and he insisted that I come all the way here."
I told you, it's just that I felt bad not coming because I received your New Year's gifts, but your braised chicken and drunken duck are truly delicious.
Dr. Zheng almost drooled as he finished speaking.
Seeing this, Yan Qingqing pretended to be distressed and said, "Sigh, I was planning to have my second son send you some more when we open tomorrow, but now I'm afraid Dr. Zheng won't be able to eat any for a year or two."
Upon hearing this, Doctor Zheng asked with some surprise, "What, are you afraid that I will eat your family out of house and home?"
Don't worry, I can pay."
Yan Qingqing replied, "Dr. Zheng, what kind of person do you take me for? How could I possibly accept your money?"
Our chickens and ducks have been poisoned. We're out of supplies for a while, so we can't make braised chicken or roast duck.
Upon hearing this, Doctor Zheng exclaimed, "Who is so audacious as to poison your chickens and ducks?"
"Take me there, I want to see what kind of poison it is!"
These words were exactly what Yan Qingqing wanted to hear. She was really afraid that Doctor Zheng would look down on treating chickens and ducks and that it would tarnish his reputation, so she ignored her exhaustion and accompanied Doctor Zheng to the farm.
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