49 The truth comes out
◎ I lost, after all, I lost. ◎
Back to a month ago, Yao Si only received half of the money agreed upon from Shopkeeper Yao. He refused and was determined to make a big scene, but two or three handymen in Shopkeeper Yao's shop surrounded him and made him dare not say a word.
He could only leave in disgrace with his tail between his legs. Later, when he heard that the drugging incident had become a big deal, he didn't dare to stay in Yunzhou anymore. He just packed up a few things and ran away.
He was a native of Yunzhou and had never been anywhere else. He didn't know where to go for a while, so he just spent his days doing nothing in the counties around Yunzhou.
Until the night before yesterday, he was wandering on the street and ran into a group of people wearing foreign costumes and conical hats. Although his faces could not be seen, their shoulders were wider than a door and their arms were thicker than his waist.
He looked at them with an inexplicable panic in his heart, and then met the eyes of the man in the lead. His eyes were dark, like an ancient well with no bottom, and not a single light could penetrate.
He immediately turned sideways and ran towards the next street in panic. With his thin arms and legs, there was no way he could escape. He was caught in a few moves and was taken to a martial arts temple outside the county like a chicken.
The temple enshrines a majestic statue of the God of War, and the foreigners stand in two rows like wooden stakes.
He huddled on the ground, peering out from his armpits, looking up at the statue of the God of War from below, and found it extremely terrifying. He actually felt that at this moment, this place was not a Temple of the God of War but more like a Temple of the City God.
And he will be captured by these two rows of underworld officials and taken to the underworld.
After an unknown amount of time, he heard a series of "tapping" footsteps. He lowered his head and saw a pair of silver-white boots with silver cloud patterns stepping across the brick floor and stopping in front of him.
He slowly raised his head, and when he saw the man's face, he froze in place.
The man in front of him was dressed in crimson brocade clothes, a light fur coat and a loose belt, with a precious sword hanging from his waist. He had a handsome appearance, about fourteen or fifteen years old, with a pair of captivating phoenix eyes.
What a nice view!
Even the girls in Qinlou and Chuguan are not half as good as him. As Yao Si thought about this, his eyes gradually became blurred.
"Heh" the man sneered, with undisguised disgust in his eyes. His gaze was cold and he looked at him as if he were a corpse.
Yao Si was stunned for a moment before he realized how dangerous his behavior was. He waved his hands anxiously to explain, but the next second he saw his index finger fly out from his palm.
He lowered his head and stared at the severed finger, then looked back to see his hand gushing with blood. He finally realized what was happening and screamed, "Ah-ah-ah!"
The man's brows were cold, but there was a hint of cruelty in his smile. He pointed the scimitar at Yao Si's face and said, "If you scream again, I'll cut off your tongue!"
Yao Si covered his bleeding hand in fear, bit his lips tightly, and looked at the man with fear in his eyes.
The man slowly took out a handkerchief and carefully wiped the scimitar. "Tell me, why did you frame Song's Sweet Water Shop?"
Yao Si didn't even dare to think about the relationship between the man in front of him and the sweet water shop, and explained everything in detail.
The man squatted in front of him with an expressionless face, his eyes like poison-tipped arrows, nailing him to the spot, not daring to move, "I hope you didn't lie to me, I hate deception and betrayal the most.
If you dare to lie to me, I will cut you into pieces and feed them to the wolves."
The man's low voice slowly reached his ears, like the whisper of a devil, making him feel as if he was falling into an icy cave.
******
The next day.
In a teahouse, the waiter who was supposed to be serving food on the first floor rushed up to the second floor, asked the waitress who was serving tea where the shopkeeper was, then ran into the upright room inside, shouting for Shopkeeper Yao.
Shopkeeper Yao was wearing a persimmon-colored cloth robe, his beard was gray, and his eyes, though small, were bright and lively. He was moving the beads on the abacus, making a "clacking" sound.
Shuchengfang is close to Nanling Academy and has a stable customer base. It is no problem to earn forty or fifty taels a month. Moreover, the prices of food businesses on this street are similar and have been stable for seven or eight years.
Who would have thought that this year a Songji Sweet Water Shop opened across the street. It tastes good and is cheap, and half of the business was taken away.
Thinking of this, he hummed twice, feeling quite proud. Now he was also his defeated opponent. As a person, one should not be too arrogant.
This month's income barely caught up with the previous one. He was busy calculating when the waiter shouted and he moved two beads by mistake.
"Damn it!" Shopkeeper Yao was so angry that his beard blew out, and he slammed the table and cursed: "Call you daddy, I'm just counting the accounts. If you continue to be so ignorant, get out of here! This store is full of people."
"Boss, someone's coming downstairs, go check it out!"
Shopkeeper Yao went downstairs cursing. Seeing a familiar face at the corner of the stairs, he immediately hid in the shade and secretly observed the guests at a table in the middle of the hall.
There were three people at that table, namely Song Jinyi, the owner of Song's Sweet Water Shop, and her assistant Xu Ruolan. There was also a man in a black robe sitting there. His appearance was not obvious, and he should be the man who worked as a handyman in her shop.
What are they doing here?
He observed silently for a while, and saw that Song Jinyi and others did not make any other moves. They just ordered a pot of ordinary perilla drink. He felt that he was being too suspicious.
He also wondered if their business was not doing well and they were not even planning to open the store, so they came to his store to shop. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel secretly proud.
He took the tea tray from the waitress and personally carried it to Song Jinyi's table. When he got there, he pretended to be hospitable and deliberately greeted loudly, "Hey, isn't this Boss Song? You've come here, but why are you sitting here? Come with me upstairs."
Shopkeeper Yao spoke in a loud voice, and people at the nearby tables turned around and looked eagerly.
Song Jinyi could see what Manager Yao was thinking. She wished everyone would pay attention to them and watch her perform.
The shopkeeper was personally serving tea, so how could Song Jinyi just sit there? She stood up to receive the teacup, but "accidentally" knocked over the cup while taking the tea.
She exclaimed.
Now even the tea drinkers sitting by the railing on the second floor noticed her, and several of them recognized her as the owner of Song's Sweet Water Shop.
Song Jinyi apologized to Manager Yao repeatedly.
Although Manager Yao was extremely angry, he did not want to vent his anger in public. He had a cold face and brushed the tea leaves off his body.
Shopkeeper Yao asked directly, "Shopkeeper Song, what are you doing here? Are you here for tea?"
"Boss Yao runs a teahouse, not a pharmacy, so I'm here to drink tea, not buy medicine."
Shopkeeper Yao heard a clue and said, "...Pharmacy, what do you mean by this?"
Song Jinyi didn't answer but asked, "By the way, doesn't Shopkeeper Yao have a distant cousin, Yao Si? Do you know where he is recently?"
When he heard Yao Si's name, Manager Yao's heart was alarmed. He looked at Song Jinyi and the others in surprise. She just mentioned the pharmacy and asked about Yao Si. Could it be that she knew something?
Boss Yao said, "I haven't seen him for a long time. I don't know what he's been up to." He paused and then asked, "I wonder what Madam Song wants to do with him?"
"Boss Yao, you and I are colleagues on the same street and neighbors, so how come you haven't heard about what happened in my store a few days ago?" Song Jinyi joked meaningfully.
Boss Yao's expression froze and he said that of course he had heard some of it.
"Someone drugged my shop a while ago, and your cousin was somehow involved in this incident. I want to talk to him and ask if he has a personal grudge against me or if he was instructed by someone else."
Anyone with a discerning eye could tell from this that Yao Si was his cousin, and he and Song Jinyi were competitors. As long as Yao Si was involved in this matter, he would definitely be involved.
In order to clear himself of suspicion, Shopkeeper Yao cursed Yao Si passionately, saying, "Don't worry, Shopkeeper Song, if I meet Yao Si in the future, I will definitely beat him up and make him apologize to you.
If he refuses, I, Yao, will not tolerate this traitor and will report him to the police to have him die in jail." He said this without mercy, as if he was putting justice before his feelings.
Song Jinyi supported herself on the table with both hands and smiled, "Manager Yao, I just asked casually, but I didn't expect you to care so much. Actually, I brought someone to see you this time."
"See me?" Shopkeeper Yao heard the playful tone in Song Jinyi's voice and immediately realized something was wrong. Seeing her looking down from the side, he said, "It's your turn."
The man in black robe beside him took off his mysterious outer shell, revealing a face that was very familiar to Manager Yao.
It’s Yao Si!
"You, why are you here?!" Shopkeeper Yao pointed at Yao Si in disbelief.
"Of course I'm bringing him to see your relative."
Boss Yao's facial muscles trembled, and his gaze shifted from Yao Si's face to Song Jinyi's, looking them back and forth. He asked in doubt, "You two are in the same group. What are you going to do?"
Song Jinyi curled her lips, as if she had heard some huge joke, and gestured, "Stop it, what do you mean by we're in the same group? If we talk about closeness, he's your relative."
“Besides, you just said you didn’t know where he was, and it just so happened that I knew. I came here specifically to bring him to see you and let him see your true face.
After we caught him, he was unwilling to tell the truth. But now that he's here, with so many witnesses, he's going to tell the whole truth. Of course, Manager Yao can also choose to report the case to the authorities."
When Manager Yao heard that he was going to the government to judge the case, his face turned as black as the bottom of a cooking pot.
Now, not only were the people in the store looking forward to the show, but the people outside the store, who heard that there was something exciting going on inside, also lined up by the windows.
After all, Boss Yao has been in the business world for more than ten years and would not be frightened by a little girl like Song Jinyi. He stroked his pomelo and took another sip of tea.
Then he changed his expression and said to Yao Si, "Cousin, we are family. I just said something polite. How could I do anything to let you down? Please don't take it to heart."
Yao Si looked away, not meeting Boss Yao's gaze, and said without emotion, "Cousin, I listened to your slander and worked for you, but in the end, not only did I not even get the promised compensation, but I also had to move far away and couldn't live a peaceful life.
After hearing what you said just now, I have seen your true colors. Today, I will tear my face off with you and expose everything you have done. You will not be able to live well. "
He spoke mechanically and numbly. That person had taught him to say it, word for word, without missing a single word. No matter what Yao Shun and Song Jinyi said, it would not affect the result.
After hearing Yao Si's remarks, the spectators in the store began to murmur, "I said that Shopkeeper Song wasn't the type to pass off inferior goods as good ones. The ingredients he normally uses are obviously clean. It turns out someone is setting him up."
"Shopkeeper Yao is so vicious. He can't compete with Shopkeeper Song, so he resorts to these dirty tricks."
Boss Yao cursed under his breath when he heard him say this, but he pretended to be calm on the surface. "What are you talking about, cousin? I have no idea. How can you implicate me in what you did?"
Yao Si pointed at Shopkeeper Yao's nose and cursed, "If it weren't for your instructions, why would I do such a thankless task? Shopkeeper Song and I have no grudges.
Moreover, rhubarb and Glauber's salt, the common medicinal herbs for diarrhea, are bitter. You asked me to buy costus root, which has a sweet and less noticeable smell, but it is not cheap.
Besides causing diarrhea, it also has other medicinal benefits, including relieving your headache. You should leave the remaining costus root in the warehouse. Just check the warehouse and you'll know if what I said is true or not."
The people around were no longer whispering, but were now talking loudly, "Shopkeeper Yao, a grown man, actually made things difficult for a young girl. Tsk tsk, I won't be coming to this shop anymore."
Many people followed suit and left.
Shopkeeper Yao tried to persuade them to stay, but was mercilessly pushed away. In the end, there was no one left in the store. He sat on the ground in despair, muttering, "I lost, I lost, in the end I lost."
Not long after, he felt a shadow cast over his head. Thinking a new guest had arrived, he looked up with joy, only to find four or five men in official uniforms approaching. They said in a cold voice, "Yao Shun, huh? Come with us to the yamen."
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