Early in the morning on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, just as the sky was getting light, the aroma of butter wafted from the kitchen of Guifangzhai.
Li Guifang, Zhao Xiaomian and Zhang Fengzhi were busy in the bakery, and the last batch of golden and shiny croissants finally came out of the oven with a "ding" sound.
"Hurry! Pack it while it's hot!" Li Guifang wiped the sweat off her face and looked up to see Li Mingyuan, with dark circles under his eyes, laboriously carrying the gift boxes downstairs. "Mom, can you take a look?"
Li Mingyuan had grown stubble, but he couldn't hide the pride on his face, "Not one less, two thousand, just count them!" Li Guifang gave Li Mingyuan a thumbs up!
Everyone in Guifangzhai was busy, but the shop was organized. Zhao Xiaomian deftly lined the gift boxes with oil-paper, Zhang Fengzhi packed the croissants and red date cakes, and Li Guifang tied each one with a red ribbon. Soon, every nook and cranny in the shop was packed to the brim.
On the counter, under the shelves, and even on the shelf where flour was usually stored, there were piles of gift boxes half a person's height.
"Oh my God," Zhang Fengzhi laughed, wiping the sweat off her face. "With this situation, someone who didn't know would think we were switching to selling gift boxes!"
Li Guifang was about to say something when she heard a car horn outside the door.
When I looked up, the diesel factory's truck had stopped in front of the store.
She quickly poked her son: "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and ask someone to move the goods!"
Just as Li Guifang and everyone were busy loading gift boxes onto the diesel factory's truck,
"Fengzhi! Hurry, hurry to the police station!" Uncle Qin panted as he held onto the car. "Minghua has been reported!"
The gift box in Li Guifang's hand almost fell, but Zhao Xiaomian caught it with her quick eyes and hands.
"What?!" Li Guifang's voice changed. "Sued? How did you get sued?"
Uncle Qin leaned on the tricycle, panting heavily. "Xiaomei couldn't explain it clearly over the phone. She just said two uniformed men came and took the man away in handcuffs!"
Li Mingyuan pulled off his work sleeves and said, "Uncle Qin, please tell me slowly, what's going on?"
"How would I know? I rushed over as soon as I got the call..."
Uncle Qin slapped his thigh anxiously. "Xiaomei was crying breathlessly on the phone, saying she was at the Outer City Police Station..."
Li Guifang's legs went weak and she almost fell down, but fortunately she held onto the sidewall of the truck.
She suddenly remembered Minghua's comments a few days ago about how great business was. How could a repair shop suddenly be so prosperous? Why hadn't she thought of that?
"Mom!" Li Mingyuan held her tightly, "Don't worry, I'll go to the police station right away!"
Xie Dazui quickly handed over the cotton-padded jacket: "Go quickly! We're watching here!"
Li Guifang forced herself to stay awake, pulled Zhang Fengzhi and instructed: "The gift boxes must be loaded into the truck in order, and the receipts must be signed by them..." After hurriedly giving a few instructions, she followed Li Mingyuan to the Waicheng Police Station!
The road was slippery due to the snow, and Li Guifang stumbled as soon as she jumped off the bicycle and almost fell flat on her face.
Fortunately, Li Mingyuan was quick to grab her arm and said, "Mom! Slow down!"
The two of them walked through the slippery snow water, one step deep and one step shallow, and rushed to the door of the police station. From a distance, they saw their son-in-law Liu Wei pacing back and forth at the door, rubbing his hands, his nose red from the cold.
"Liu Wei!" Li Guifang didn't even bother to brush off the snow and rushed forward. "What's going on? What did Minghua do wrong?"
Liu Wei quickly supported his mother-in-law and said in a low voice, "Mom, don't worry. I just asked a colleague and they said someone reported Minghua for planting nails on Highway 221, deliberately puncturing the tires of passing vehicles..."
"What?!" Li Guifang's eyes went dark, and she almost lost her balance again. "Is this bastard crazy?"
Li Mingyuan's eyes widened in shock. "Impossible! Even though Minghua wants to do good business, he wouldn't do such a wicked thing!"
Liu Wei sighed. "The key now is that several people have accused him, and..."
He hesitated for a moment, "He just opened a new auto repair shop there, and the tire repair business has been booming in the past two weeks..."
Li Guifang felt dizzy and her ears were buzzing.
Liu Wei led Li Guifang and her mother into the police station lobby, where the stove made their faces hot.
Wu Xiaomei was huddled on a bench, wiping her tears. When she saw her mother-in-law coming, she burst into tears: "Mom! You're finally here! Minghua...he..."
"Stop crying!" Li Guifang was so anxious that she wanted to hit someone. Why did she just cry? "What's going on? Tell me!"
Wu Xiaomei blew her nose and sniffled, "Just now, two police officers came and said someone reported Minghua for planting nails on Highway 221... and without a word, they handcuffed him and took him away. But how could this be possible? How could Minghua do such a wicked thing? He's going to be struck by lightning!"
As he was talking, he started crying again! !
"Stop arguing!" Liu Wei lowered his voice, "I just asked Lao Zhang to find out, and the situation is not good.
There are witnesses who saw Minghua hanging around the area where the crime occurred every day. The most important thing is... Minghua has just opened a car repair shop there, which gives him a motive for committing the crime! This is the most troublesome thing now!
As they were talking, the police officer on duty banged open the iron door to the inner room and said, "Family members of Li Minghua? Come over and take your statement!"
In the interrogation room, Li Minghua sat dejectedly on a small stool. As soon as he saw his family come in, he yelled, "Mom! I'm being wronged!"
"What a lie!" Li Guifang went up and twisted his ear. "Tell me the truth, were you the one who put the nails on the road?"
"Ouch, it hurts!" Li Minghua grimaced. "Mom, what are you talking about? I finally opened a small shop. I just want to support my family, not get rich from it. No matter how foolish I am, I won't break the law! I'm afraid of retribution for doing so! ... Who knows why business is so good..."
The police officer taking the statement slammed his notebook shut. "Alright, stop quibbling! Villagers are now accusing you of wandering down the road at dawn every day since you opened your shop. The road doesn't need to be crossed from your home to the repair shop. Even more suspicious is that you had no business on your first day, yet now your tire repair sales have increased fivefold! Are you still trying to quibble?"
"Comrade! Comrade!" Li Guifang quickly pulled out a crumpled cigarette from her pocket and handed it over. "My son really doesn't have the guts. Please check again..."
The young policeman waved his hand and said, "Auntie, the evidence is irrefutable. You should find a lawyer right away!"
When we came out of the police station, the snow was falling even harder.
Li Guifang stood on the steps in a daze for a while, then suddenly grabbed Liu Wei and said, "Son-in-law, you're familiar with the public security system. Help me find out which bastard reported this to the police."
Liu Wei rubbed his hands and exhaled, "Mom, this is strange. I just read the report. He even remembered exactly what time he went to lay the nails every day. I guess someone's been following him..."
Li Mingyuan and Li Guifang exchanged glances, each with an answer in mind! Li Minghua had slipped into the trap!
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