Chapter 79 Chapter 79 Thief?
Just as he spread out the tofu, he saw the market bustling with activity. A fat-faced woman, leading officials from the county court, passed through the market, passed by the door of Ji Xu's tofu shop, and went straight to the end of the tunnel, where she caught a middle-aged man.
The man had a pointed jaw and a narrow beak, exposed buck teeth, and his brown straw sandals were not clean. To outsiders, he looked vulgar.
He happened to be holding the hand of a delicate and pretty little girl, who was about three or four years old, with two cute buns. She was wearing plump and clean clothes, and it was obvious that she was well-raised at home. She was holding the chewy dough, licking it from time to time, and was obediently led by the man.
The man was bargaining with the vegetable seller when he was unexpectedly pushed to the ground by an official who rushed over. The little girl's dough fell to the ground and was stepped on, and she couldn't help but tremble.
"Why are you arresting me? Let me go!"
The man struggled constantly, attracting passers-by in the city to stop and watch, pointing and talking.
The plump-faced woman who led the way pulled the sobbing girl into her arms and comforted her, pointing to the underground passage.
"He must be the thief! The girl was crying and refusing to leave, so the thief bought a piece of gum glutinous rice cake to coax her and took her away. Luckily, I was careful enough to see him, so I had my husband follow him quietly and I went to report him to the authorities, which is how we caught him!"
"You damned thief! You deserve to be torn into pieces!"
"You have no conscience! How dare you sell my child!"
Passersby were filled with righteous indignation and spat on his head.
"I'm not a thief! That's my daughter! It's unfair!" The man kept shouting his innocence, but no one believed him. Which suspect who is arrested would not shout that he is innocent? Everyone shouted at him, and the cursing was louder than the man's.
"You are the thief! Look at you, you are so disgusting, how could you have such a pretty daughter? You kidnapped a girl from a good family and said she is yours, bah!" The woman's husband also pointed at her and threw a handful of stones at him.
Others followed suit and picked up the river gravel used to fill the road and used it to hit people to vent their anger. This was because the thief who kidnapped and sold children had never been brought to justice. Recently, the children at home were kept under close watch and no one dared to let them play outside for fear that they would get lost.
"Stop, we will take the man back for interrogation and wait for his sentencing." If the clerk who led the arrest had not stopped them, they would not have been able to tear the man apart. After saying this, the clerk waved his hand and ordered the officials to return to the county court.
The man grabbed the clerk, rubbed his hands, and said, "Sir, my husband and I have provided clues to the thief. Please tell me, when will you give us the fifty taels of silver reward listed on the notice?"
"When the interrogation results come out, you will be indispensable. Let's go!" Lingshi waved his hand.
The official picked up the man and took him outside, only to see the girl crying and shouting the whole time:
"Don't arrest me, Aong! You bad guy!"
"Good girl, don't be afraid. The thief has been caught. Stop crying and tell your aunt where you are from." The woman thought the girl was just scared, so she squatted down to wipe her tears and asked.
But no matter how the woman tried to coax him, she would not listen. When she saw them taking the people away, she followed them with even more shouting, and ordered Shi Ming to bring them back to the county court for questioning.
"I'm afraid he's been brought out for so long that he's forgotten his biological father and has no choice but to recognize the thief as his father."
"Flesh and blood are separated. These people really deserve to die."
Pedestrians pointed at the figure's back and cursed, and it took a long time before they dispersed.
Ji Xu's tofu shop was not far away. After seeing this, she was still frightened. Because she closed the shop a little late, she whipped the whip to rush to the library. With thieves outside, she would never dare to let her sisters go home alone.
In the past, Ji Xu was kidnapped and sold away from home at the age of twelve. He was a slave for three years. Only when the emperor issued an edict of pardon was he able to escape from slavery and return home. Such a thing must not happen again.
Recently, she has to pick them up and drop them off at the library every morning and evening. Fortunately, her sisters are well-behaved and never run out. They pack up their book boxes and wait for her to pick them up in the hall.
"Sister, drive slowly. Be careful not to get stuck on the wheels by rocks on the road. My sister and I won't get lost here."
Although my elder sister is an adult now, what happened four years ago is still vivid in their minds. Feng and Zhu met her too late, so how could they not be worried? When they saw their elder sister, they happily hugged her, and Ji Feng especially gave her some instructions.
"Si Li paid the transaction tax today and was delayed. I was worried that you couldn't wait and ran back home, so hurry back." Ji Xu hugged one of them in each hand, felt relieved, and said to the outside.
"Xiaozhu and I have kept your words in mind and will not leave the library without permission. We were just playing guessing balls and time has passed in a flash. But sister, you must be careful around strangers outside." Ji Feng said thoughtfully.
Ji Zhu also nodded in agreement and looked up at her and said, "Be careful, sister."
"Ajie also took Fengmei and Xiaozhu's words to heart and will be careful outside."
Ji Xudao said goodbye to Master Yang and returned home with them.
The next day, the small vendors around the tofu shop started chatting.
"What happened yesterday was a mistaken arrest. A good man was wrongly accused."
Ji Xu lived outside the city and was not as well-informed as they were, so he just listened carefully.
"Yes, I heard it was really a father and daughter. They reported their place of origin and names, and the official checked the household register. It clearly stated that they were from a certain village within the jurisdiction of Lingshui County, and came to the city to do business. As soon as they arrived in the city, my daughter woke up early and got sleepy, so she started crying and refused to leave."
"He's like that, but his daughter is so pure and innocent."
"That's right. No matter how you look at it, they don't look like a family."
"I heard someone went to the county court this morning to make another accusation, pointing at their neighbors and saying this one was suspicious and that one looked like a thief, but none of them turned out to be the thief who kidnapped and sold young boys and girls."
The old woman selling cakes next door said, "It's just the reward notice from Duting. They're just after the fifty taels of silver reward. How could the thief be caught so easily? Unless someone catches him in the act, that's possible."
"Money is indeed a powerful force in the heart! That's why the county government has issued another notice: anyone who deliberately accuses someone will be sentenced to half a month of hard labor."
The man from the soup and pancake shop across the street laughed and said, "I've been lucky lately. I think I'll get a bounty!"
Everyone laughed at him for not waking up yet, and he laughed himself, saying to the guests:
"What kind of soup and noodles would you like, madam?"
The lady had a round face, an eggplant purple skirt, and an unremarkable figure. She smiled a lot when she spoke, which made her look kind.
"Give me a bowl of pork meat. I'll come get it later."
After saying this, she left her bamboo basket behind and turned to go somewhere else.
Ji Xu was smiling as he finished picking tofu for someone else. When he raised his head, his smile froze. The blood from his limbs almost uncontrollably rushed to his head, and his whole body froze in place.
Four years ago in the spring and summer,
Twelve-year-old Ji Xu, wearing a patched spring shirt that covered his frail figure, sat on the edge of a field, turning grass leaves in his hands.
She heard that the county town was collecting grain taxes from the prefectures and states, and that the male and female servants coming in and out had to carry grain to the collection office a hundred miles away. Therefore, the security was not strict and people could enter without permission. So she became interested in going to the county to find work.
Not long after the family split up a few years ago, her grandfather passed away, leaving the family without a laborer. She felt sorry for her mother and thought that if she could also go to carry grain, or if a shop asked her to do odd jobs, she could contribute to the family income.
"Which family would be willing to hire a maid like you? I advise you to give up this idea and stop running around." Feng Yun said when he heard what she was thinking.
He was always cleaner than other children, afraid of getting his clothes dirty, and didn't want to sit on the edge of the field. Now he stood and talked to her, lowering his head.
Ji Xu said: "How can we know if we don't try it?"
He had to go. Feng Yun was so angry that he walked back and forth.
"You're always stubborn. How come you forgot everything after hitting your head that year, but you didn't forget to change your temper?"
He sat down and said:
"I'll go with you."
"Are you short of money too?"
When she heard that the great scholar in the Sutra Hall was willing to accept her as a disciple and teach her the scriptures, the eldest mother of the Xu family was overjoyed and prepared her clothes for her. In three days, she would go to Xiaoshunli to attend school.
I believe that no matter who the Feng family suffers a loss, they will not suffer a loss for him, the only scholar in the family. The Feng family's hope of being appointed as an official rests entirely on him.
"Aren't you going to the Sutra House in Xiaoshunli?"
"None of your business is my business. Anyway, wherever you go, I will go too."
Feng Yundao had a certain implication of being more stubborn than anyone else.
Ji Xu knew his temperament well from childhood, so he smiled and said, "I'll wait for you at Fengzipo in two days."
Feng Fuzhen was squatting on the side and poking an ant nest with great enthusiasm. She didn't even bother to wipe her runny nose.
Feng Yun said to her with a gloomy face, "If you dare to imitate what I said to Miss Xu today,
She opened her eyes wide and immediately shook her head, "I will never imitate others."
This uncle is always cold and taciturn at home, and never smiles. She is always afraid of him.
Ji Jiaxu's sister was quite amiable and could control him. Little girls loved to play with her. She took her handkerchief, wiped her nose, and said:
"Don't scare her. It's getting late. It's time to go home."
Before leaving, Feng Fuzhen said, "Sister Xu, I'll come and play with you tomorrow!"
The next day, no one was found.
Tian went to the fields to weed, leaving Feng and Zhu alone at home.
Ji Zhu had just learned to walk. She was stumbling in front of the door, fell down and was crying.
Ji Feng was sitting on the doorstep, hugging her and patting her to comfort her. At the same time, he spat and rubbed the bump on her forehead, saying:
"My sister is out."
"Where did you go?"
Feng Fuzhen said that she didn't like playing with runny-nosed and dirty little girls like Feng and Zhu. She liked playing with older girls who could comb their hair.
"She didn't say anything, only that she was out for half a day."
Feng and Zhu had just started to make a fuss about going, but Ji Xu coaxed them into staying home and saying, "Be good and stay home, I'll bring you some gummi candies."
Feng Yun saw Feng Fuzhen returning home and asked her why. Feng Fuzhen answered honestly:
"Sister Xu is not at home. She went out and said she was bringing some gummi dough for Feng and Zhu."
As soon as he finished speaking, Feng Yun's expression changed. Jiaoya Tang is a sweet food that is only available in the county.
Ji Xu was now alone in the county town, walking with a woman.
The food-carrying servants who came and went at the city gate were mostly adult men. Not to mention girls, even women were rare.
Half an hour ago, the steward waved her away and said:
"Look at your small body. We have to carry three or four hu of grain each time. Can you carry it? Don't get in the way."
"Auntie, how far is it?"
Half an hour ago, after Ji Xu was driven away by the manager, she went to the county market again and asked each shop if they needed anyone to do work. However, they all thought she was too young and refused to hire her.
As he was walking back dejectedly, he met this woman. She said that her master needed a fire-making maid and asked her if she knew how to make fire. She could get a monthly salary of 200 yuan, and the reward was extra. After saying that, she looked at her again, as if she thought she was too young because she was still a maid.
Ji Xu was delighted to hear this and quickly said yes. She also said some good things about herself, saying that although she was a maid, she was willing to work hard. The woman reluctantly took her away.
The woman leading the way had a bun on her head and a cloth skirt. She was of medium build. When she turned around, she had a mole on her cheek. She smiled in a very friendly and amiable way and said:
"It's almost there, just ahead. If you do well, I'll tell the master to hire you for many years."
A moment later, they arrived at the entrance of the alley. The woman pointed ahead and said:
“That’s the one.”
Ji Xu was about to say thank you when she felt a pungent smell in her nose and her vision went dark. When she closed her eyes, the woman still had a smile on her face, looking at her kindly.
The smiling face in front of me gradually overlapped, as if the face of a demon reappeared in front of me bit by bit, making my hands and feet cold and my whole body feel heavy as if filled with lead.
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