"Father, does Wei-jie want to eat lotus leaf chicken?"
Xie Yuzhi was listening intently to his damn niece's gossip, but his eyes were fixed on the woods not far away, drool dripping from his mouth, looking every bit the part of someone going out for a stroll.
"Wipe your drool first."
Xie Ming was used to his rambling speech and turned to chat with him, but then he noticed the glistening liquid at the corner of his mouth and couldn't help but hand him a handkerchief.
He was worried that he might have unleashed his son's foodie tendencies. After all, this "eccentric father-in-law" was also quite handsome; wouldn't eating so much oily food from a young age cause him to go bald prematurely?
The father started to worry about his son's weight and decided to control his son's weight after today's meal. He was unaware that there's a type of diet called: starting tomorrow.
"All wiped clean, Dad, let's go catch chickens!"
He stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket, then wiggled his little bottom and rushed into the woods, not caring whether his father had responded or not.
Alright! Judging that things were about to get chaotic up ahead, and not wanting to spoil his son's fun, Xie Ming had no choice but to split up and go catch chickens.
If you spoil your child, just indulge them.
The son and his father's alter egos hadn't finished roasting the chicken yet.
Meanwhile, Xie Qiwei was making a huge scene, insisting that the supplies under the soldiers' control had been stolen and demanding that they investigate. She even claimed to know who the thief was.
The yamen runner in charge of grain was going crazy. If he said the things were missing, wouldn't that mean he hadn't done his job well? How could he agree to that?
So he drew the scabbard of his sword and swung it at Xie Qiwei several times.
Those watching nearby, some of whom were at odds with the accounting officer, demanded that he hand over the account books.
The commotion quickly attracted Wu Chang, the leader who was resting.
Seeing the familiar face gave Xie Qiwei even more confidence. She was certain that this was the man who discovered the missing grain, and that he was the one who forced Xie Ming to go to the city to steal things.
"Sir, I saw the thief move things here with my own eyes. You can really investigate."
Xie Qiwei was very unaccustomed to begging a lowly henchman so humbly, but when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head.
She comforted herself, telling herself that she was the kindest person in the world, and that as long as the people in front of her helped her with the matter, she would not pursue their rudeness today.
"You saw it with your own eyes? Who did it?"
Wu Chang's eyes were full of warning. He knew there were many prisoners this time, and they were carrying a lot of things; there was no way things weren't fishy. The key was that he had also been involved; if this woman dared to say anything out of line, he wouldn't hesitate to draw blood.
"It's Xie Ming from the Xie family. If you don't believe me, sir, you can bring him here for questioning."
Xie Qiwei looked smug when she said the name.
Wu Chang's expression changed. He wouldn't believe it if it were anyone else. But if it was Xie Ming, he might have a better chance of believing it. To act so stealthily, only Xie Ming could do that here!
But why would he steal things? Didn't you see that he never wanted to eat the food they gave him while holding that child?
He's so fair and chubby, it's obvious to anyone with eyes that he has connections to get food.
"Sir, why don't you bring Xie Ming here for questioning?" a soldier suggested, approaching the soldier.
"Hmph!" Wu Chang glanced at the man, knowing what he was up to, and snorted coldly, saying, "You guys should also check the accounts while you're at it. Don't try anything funny, I have another set of accounts here."
Upon hearing this, several constables quickly led their men to arrest the suspect.
When Xie Ming was brought there, almost everything in front of him had been checked.
"This woman said you stole something? Did you steal it or not?"
Wu Chang's voice was loud, but everyone present noticed the subtle atmosphere between the two. They were all intelligent people and understood that the person just brought in was also someone with connections.
"She is my niece from the same clan. I don't know what's wrong with her today. She's making a fuss that I took your things. I hope you gentlemen will investigate this matter thoroughly."
After saying that, he casually took out a large stack of silver notes and started distributing them to everyone present. This was all contributed from his beloved sister's private treasury, and after going around the room, it amounted to several thousand taels.
The officers and soldiers were dumbfounded. What kind of operation was this? Was it really... so to their liking? They also understood why their leader had distributed silver notes to everyone earlier. Turns out there was a wealthy family involved!
"Xie Ming! You! You!" Xie Qiwei pointed at him with trembling fingers, so angry that she could barely speak.
Xie Ming kicked out and sent the man flying a long way.
"You are worse than pigs and dogs, you have no humanity whatsoever. You disregard the family's reputation, your elderly parents, and your elders. You deserve to be expelled from the clan."
Xie Qiwei collapsed to the ground and immediately coughed up blood, her chest wracked with pain. Remembering Xie Ming's earlier reaction, she wondered if he had returned as well; otherwise, why hadn't the soldiers noticed the things were missing?
If he steals from somewhere else this time, he'll definitely say something like that! How could she not have thought of that? How could she not have thought of that?
Why didn't she think more about it when Xie Ming completely ignored her before?
When she noticed the cotton-padded coat she was wearing, she finally remembered what time it was. It was a cotton-padded coat that her husband had worn after they met.
Many of those exiled people were able to easily obtain cotton-padded clothes thanks to her; how could she forget that? And where is her husband now?
Xie Qiwei's mind was in complete chaos; the pain in her body and the jumbled memories made her break out in a cold sweat.
Xie Ming said many kind words to the soldiers. The soldiers hadn't lost anything and had even received a large sum of money as a bribe, so they only delayed their journey and released the two men.
Xie Ming, being pragmatic, gave Wu Chang a stack of silver notes and asked him to distribute them to the other officers and soldiers who were not present.
After taking care of everything, he went over, grabbed Xie Qiwei's hair, and headed towards the Xie family home.
Once the people left, the officers and soldiers started to get restless and wanted to continue taking advantage of the situation.
Wu Chang, sweating profusely, pointed out the several pieces of shattered stone that Xie Qiwei had just lain on to the crowd. Everyone was as shocked as he was, and knowing that they couldn't afford to offend someone, they immediately gave up their thoughts.
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