Fan Xiaoliu hesitated for a moment before nodding.
Bai Ziqian's smile widened, and he asked joyfully, "Is that my father?"
Fan Xiaoliu hurriedly interrupted, "It's not Master Bai, it's... it's your aunt."
Bai Ziqian's smile vanished, and the joy in his eyes disappeared.
The yamen runners came yesterday but left empty-handed, and today his aunt rushed over eagerly, so he couldn't help but think about it.
It took the men and women who had followed for a while to remember Bai Ziqian's aunt.
Isn't that the jeweled lady who came with Madam Bai to thank Shui Qing earlier?
Then I thought of this Bai family aunt—she was the wife of Magistrate Wu!
Everyone's expression changed repeatedly, and the atmosphere suddenly became quiet.
Shui Qing looked up at Fan Xiaoliu below the embankment and asked, "Xiaoliu, how many people did Madam Wu bring?"
Fan Xiaoliu replied smoothly, "Two single-horse carriages, with only one coachman and one nanny on the frame, and who knows how many people are in the carriages."
Shui Qing gestured to the man beside her: "Open the door."
Upon receiving the order, the man immediately ran forward and opened the village gate.
Bai Ziqian called out anxiously, "Auntie."
Shui Qing shook her head slightly, indicating that it was alright.
A horse-drawn carriage, after deducting the driver and nanny on the frame, can carry at most three to five people. Even if there are people hidden inside, they can still manage with just two carriages.
Moreover, she believed that Bai Ziqian's aunt was more there to gather information.
Firstly, to see whether the bandits were dead or alive;
Secondly, and most importantly, we need to see how much the villagers know about it.
The gate slowly opened, and the coachman drove the carriage in. The old woman on the carriage frame looked impatient and only nodded to Bai Ziqian, as if she didn't see the other villagers surrounding her.
The villagers were previously ignorant, but in the past year or so, they have seen how the stewards of various households and the managers of pharmacies acted when they went out to sell rabbits, and they also spent nearly a month with Master Bai when he went out to deliver potatoes. They have come to understand some of the ways people behave.
Especially since Master Bai spoke to them in a friendly manner, the old woman on the carriage, who was just a servant, looked at them with disdain and showed little respect for Bai Ziqian, the young master. The smiles on the villagers' faces immediately disappeared.
When Bai Ling saw the carriage stop, her maid hurriedly lifted the curtain. She glanced at the dense crowd outside, her impatience barely concealed.
We made him and his party wait at the gate for so long just now, and now they're just standing there at the village entrance instead of being welcomed in!
Where is there even a trace of hospitality?
Remembering her husband's instructions, she took a deep breath, looked at Bai Ziqian in the crowd, and questioned, "Qian'er, what are you standing here for? Take your aunt to your residence!"
This was her second time visiting Shanshui Village. She remembered that when she first came, Hu Shuiqing's new house had already been built and was exceptionally large. If Zhu Laoda and his group had indeed been arrested, they would definitely be detained at Hu Shuiqing's house.
Even though she was already gone, her husband wanted her to find out how much the villagers knew.
In her opinion, her husband was overthinking things and overestimating these country folk.
How could a group of villagers have imagined and interrogated them to discover that they were the masterminds behind it all?
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