The Li family drove the oxcart, and some of the onlookers, including those who had lost things at home and others who were just bored, followed behind. The group headed in a grand procession towards the town government office in the north of the town.
Old Zhou had the cattle thief's hands and feet tightly bound and placed on the right side of the cart shaft, tied to it.
Upon arriving at the government office, Magistrate Fu was having dinner with his wife and children in the back hall. Hearing that someone was banging a drum to file a complaint, he had no choice but to put down his chopsticks and come out to see what was happening.
At this moment, the yamen runners had brought Li Mai and the others, along with the bound thief, to the main hall. They were about to invite Lord Fu when they turned around and saw the lord arriving.
Old Man Zhou was left outside by Li Mai to watch over the oxcart and Zhou Quan on it; she only took Zhou Lei with her.
Following procedure, Li Mai filed a complaint, saying that this person tried to steal their oxcart, and when discovered, he cut the reins with a dagger and drove the oxcart away. She said that this person must be a habitual thief, and asked the magistrate to do justice for her.
When Lord Fu saw that it was a young girl, he asked her what kind of cart this person wanted to steal from her. Li Mai said it was an oxcart, which was outside.
Lord Fu sent his yamen runners out to confirm the matter. After examining the reins that had been cut by a dagger, he confirmed that Li Mai's words were true. With the testimony of many other people who had come along, Li Mai's case was officially filed.
The people around said that if this person was a habitual thief, then the things that were stolen from their homes must have been stolen by him.
With so many people filing complaints together, Lord Fu was immediately busy, while the petty thief on the ground cried out in distress.
Finally, under torture and intimidation from the town magistrate, the man confessed. It turned out he was a member of the Heaven and Earth Alliance. He had come out drinking with some people that day, and after drinking, they encouraged him to steal the oxcart, saying that the oxcart was very new and must have just been bought. They said that if he stole it now, he could sell it for at least ten taels of silver.
He thought it was feasible, so he went up to steal it, but he was discovered and encountered Li Mai, a person who knew kung fu.
When Li Mai heard that it was the Heaven and Earth Alliance, her lips twitched. This Heaven and Earth Alliance really had a connection with her; they had already fallen into her hands twice.
When Lord Fu heard that she was from the Heaven and Earth Alliance, he frowned. After hearing that Li Mai knew martial arts, he understood why she had been captured. He looked Li Mai up and down and asked her where she was from. Li Mai then told him her identity.
Lord Fu nodded. So she was from a village down below. He hadn't expected such an outstanding girl to be in such a small village. He nodded and ordered the petty thief to be locked up in jail and the constables to arrest his accomplices. It was said that those people had stolen the things that were stolen from those houses.
The matter was resolved, and there was nothing more for Li Mai and the others to do, so they said goodbye and left.
As she left, Li Mai slipped a tael of silver to the yamen chief, saying, "Brother yamen chief, thank you for upholding justice. After you finish your shift, please take your yamen runners for some tea. This Heaven and Earth Alliance is too wicked, and the people are afraid of them. Now it will be hard for you, sirs, to keep an eye on them."
The yamen chief glanced at her, took the silver tael, and said, "It's my duty. Miss Li, if you encounter any bad people, just send them to our yamen. There are plenty of empty cells in the jail."
Li Mai smiled; she had made the right bet. This person was the right one.
In this era, having an acquaintance in the government makes things much easier, but Li Mai had no one he knew.
She had just observed him and found that this magistrate had regular features, an upright appearance, and was very efficient in his work. He was also very dignified towards his subordinates, and he did not act like a sycophant or a sycophant when facing the town magistrate. Li Mai felt that this was a person she could befriend.
People get to know each other gradually, starting from being strangers. So, she tested the waters with one or two taels of silver.
If she had handed over the silver without saying anything, this person definitely wouldn't have accepted it. But since she said she would invite all the yamen runners for tea, this person would definitely have accepted. If he's not mistaken, this person would even invite the town magistrate.
In this way, wouldn't I be officially registered with the town magistrate?
After finishing their business here, the family drove the oxcart back to the street, and Li Mai didn't plan to go to Jin Yu Ge.
She simply went into any shop on the street that looked appealing and bought what they needed.
She went to the largest ready-made clothing store in town, Jinluyifang, to buy clothes for her whole family.
The clothes here include brocade, silk, satin, damask, gauze, cotton, silk, and even fur-trimmed capes.
Are they selling fur capes this season? Will they even sell? But I quite like the look of the fur cape; it's all fluffy and will definitely keep you warm in winter.
Zhou Quan said he wanted to come in and keep Li Mai company, so Old Man Zhou and Zhou Lei carried him in. Afterwards, Old Man Zhou went out to watch the oxcart, while Zhou Lei stood next to Zhou Quan.
Zhou Quan was carried and placed to sit at a table, his eyes fixed on Li Mai looking at the ready-made clothes hanging in the shop.
This shop is very large, and the owner personally greets the guests, with five or six waiters.
At that moment, several other customers were also selecting clothes. Upon seeing this group, everyone looked over curiously.
Li Mai glanced at the clothes a few times. When she saw people looking at Zhou Quan, she also looked at him. Meeting his silent gaze, she smiled at him and pointed to a brocade robe, asking the shopkeeper, "Does he wear this one?"
"Yes, madam. Could this young master stand up so I can see how tall he is?" The shopkeeper glanced at Zhou Quan and asked.
Li Mai shook his head. "He's injured and can't stand up right now. I bought him a new robe so he can wear it when he recovers and we can celebrate his recovery."
"Then you can choose which length yourself?" the shopkeeper asked Li Mai with a questioning look in his eyes.
“I have a way. Get me a rope,” Li Mai asked the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper was puzzled, but he sent someone to find a strip of black cloth.
Li Mai glanced at it and saw that it was about two meters long. She walked over to Zhou Quan.
Zhou Quan looked at her with suspicion, not knowing what she was going to do. He simply reached out and took her hand, looked up at her and whispered, "Xiaomai, I have clothes. You can buy some for yourself."
“I want to buy mine, and you want to buy yours too. Don’t you want to stand next to me dressed up as nicely as I am?” Li Mai looked down at him and asked with a smile.
Zhou Quan shook his head, "Yes!"
"That's fine then, just follow my instructions!" After Li Mai finished speaking, he used a rope to measure the length of the robe on Li Mai's body, starting from the shoulders.
Because it was a rope, as he sat up straight, Li Mai's fingers followed the rope, measuring down Zhou Quan's body little by little, until they reached the hem of Zhou Quan's robe.
After measuring the length, Li Mai tied a knot at that point, then took the rope and went to measure the length of the robe with the shopkeeper.
She didn't notice Zhou Quan's ears gradually turning red and his body becoming increasingly stiff.
Just now, Li Mai pressed down from his chest to his waist, to his lower abdomen, to his legs, knees, and then to his calves. He could actually feel the pressure of her fingers gently pressing on his body.
He slowly placed his hand on his leg and squeezed it hard, seemingly feeling a slight pain.
Zhou Quan looked up at Li Mai in disbelief. He hadn't felt any pain yesterday, but today he could feel a little pain?
Did the medicinal bath that wheat took last night work?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
