At this time, there was a lot of gossip in the village, saying that the head of a family had suddenly gone on a long journey.
One such long journey occurred in the village.
Ye Lingyu summoned Meng An and asked him to inquire about the person who had suddenly gone far away, who he usually associated with, and so on.
Two days later, when transporting the goods to the county town, Cheng Qingyan listened to Ye Lingyu's advice and did not allow the village patrol team to accompany them.
The people who came to transport the goods were the same as before; there was no increase.
However, just as the people transporting the goods were about to leave the village, Meng An grabbed one of them.
The person who was caught was Li Gang from Mengjia Village. He was a businessman who usually went from street to street, doing some buying and selling.
I don't live in the village often, but I've been spending more time there lately.
After the man was arrested, the people who were transporting him were also temporarily detained.
Li Gang was tied up, the ropes were very tight, and his struggles would only cause more injuries to his bound hands.
"Why are you arresting me? Are you trying to set up your own court?"
Although Cheng Qingyan didn't know why, she gave a mocking smile: "Oh, you know quite a lot, huh? You even know about setting up a private court~"
Li Gang twisted his neck to look at her, his expression changing: "Hey, who do we have here? It's Cheng Langjun. Why are you tying me up? I haven't done anything to you."
Meng An kicked him: "Don't move, or you'll regret it."
After being kicked, Li Gang groaned and fell silent.
Ye Lingyu looked down at his disheveled appearance and coldly asked, "Do you want to say it yourself, or have Meng An say it for you?"
Li Gang struggled to crawl up from the ground. It was hot, and his sweat soaked into the dirt, making him look filthy.
He looked at the person who had asked him the question; he recognized this person.
She's Cheng Qingyan's wife. How come I never realized she was such a beauty before?
His gaze toward Ye Lingyu gradually became flippant; in his eyes, women were unfit for important matters.
She's just a woman, yet she still has a voice in this family—that's quite a skill.
Cheng Qingyan's fist was hardening. What kind of person was this? The way he looked at her wife really annoyed her.
"Meng An, blindfold him!"
"They're here!"
Meng An tore a piece of cloth off Li Gang's robe and blindfolded him without a second thought.
Suddenly, darkness enveloped Li Gang's vision. He twisted his body, trying to break free of his restraints.
As a result, Cheng Qingyan kicked out with considerable force this time, causing Li Gang to curl up into a shrimp-like shape.
He was furious, thinking it was Meng An who had kicked him again.
Not knowing which direction Meng An was standing in, he could only grit his teeth and roar, "Meng An! What kind of hero are you, taking advantage of someone's vulnerability to kill them!"
Meng An spat at him: "Pah, what kind of hero do you think you are? You dog, tell me, is what you did something a human being would do?"
These words made Li Gang's heart tighten. He tried to hide his exposed guilty conscience: "You, you're talking nonsense. I haven't done anything wrong!"
Cheng Qingyan walked to Ye Lingyu's side, his questioning gaze shifting between Ye Lingyu and Li Gang.
Her wife was suddenly grabbed by Meng An, and she had no idea what the man had done.
It wasn't appropriate for her to ask Ye Lingyu in front of these people, so she was still a little anxious.
The oxcarts and people being transported are still waiting at the same spot. Whether they can leave today depends on whether Ye Lingyu can be found out.
Ye Lingyu grasped Cheng Qingyan's hand and squeezed it: "Li Gang, the eldest son of the Li family, usually does some buying and selling business."
"So, you've met a lot of people, right?"
"Among these people, there are good people and of course bad people."
"Although money can move people's hearts, you are colluding with bandits. The current emperor has a deep hatred for bandits and robbers. You must know that."
“Harming fellow villagers is already a capital offense. You’ve colluded with bandits, so your wife, children, and relatives will likely go to jail as well.”
The shock on Li Gang's face was mostly hidden by the blindfold.
How could that be! He did this very discreetly, how could anyone know?
No way, he must be lying to him!
He forced himself to remain calm; he couldn't admit to any of these things, or he would be finished.
Despite the complete darkness, he stubbornly retorted, "I don't understand what you're saying at all! Stop slandering me!"
"You arrested me so easily, and then framed me. Do you really think I, Li Gang, am someone to be intimidated?"
Because he couldn't see, he didn't know who had sneered.
Ye Lingyu wasn't afraid that he wouldn't admit it. She had already inquired about the situation with the village and the other family.
"You think we can't do anything if you just keep going?"
"Soon, those bandits will find you and ask you why you betrayed them."
“Your wife, children, and elderly parents are probably beyond protection in the village. Compared to home, the county jail might be safer for them.”
Not long after, Meng Jia arrived with a group of soldiers.
Seeing that Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu were both there, the officer leading the soldiers greeted Cheng Qingyan: "Young master, this is Constable Nie from the county government."
It's an old face. I've not only seen him before, I know him, and we've even fought together.
Nie Yilin brought his men this time, but not to capture Cheng Qingyan and the others. Instead, he was ordered to suppress bandits.
"Young Master Cheng, Madam Cheng, we meet again."
"Officer Nie, how have you been?"
The original magistrate of Yuanning County has been dismissed from his post, and the new magistrate has been in office for some time.
Unexpectedly, Officer Nie was still Officer Nie.
County magistrates come and go, but head constables remain constant?
Nie Yilin did not offer any opinion on their decision to tie up Li Gang and interrogate him privately.
However, he still spoke to Cheng Qingyan about the deployment of the officers and soldiers: "Young Master Cheng, as you instructed, the brothers are ready."
"Now we just need to wait for them to show up, and then we can capture them in one fell swoop."
Huh? Instructions? What did she instruct? How come she doesn't know?
Completely bewildered, Cheng Qingyan turned to look at Ye Lingyu. The only person who could be doing things in her name was Ye Lingyu.
Ye Lingyu smiled and nodded to her. Cheng Qingyan could only nod to Nie Yilin: "Thank you for your hard work, Officer Nie. Now that this matter is over, I'll treat the brothers to drinks."
Nie Yilin clasped his hands in a fist salute to Cheng Qingyan: "Then I thank Young Master Cheng on behalf of my brothers."
Li Gang never dreamed that the government troops would arrive so quickly. Before he could even send out a message, they had already arrested him, and the county had also sent government troops.
He still doesn't know how he was discovered, even though he did it very discreetly!
Ye Lingyu invited Nie Yilin to the living room and secretly gave the Hou Mansion's token to Cheng Qingyan.
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