Hearing these words, which were half threat and half coaxing, Song Liyun felt a surge of anger.
Indeed, even though Broken Gold Town is strictly managed, it only controls entry and not exit. It's easy to find out from the townspeople if you have older or younger brothers.
Fortunately, I showed up on my own initiative.
Since someone on the other side has died, they certainly won't let this go easily.
When soldiers come, we'll block them; when water comes, we'll dam it. I'll just listen to what he has to say!
Song Liyun calmed herself down.
Even if the other party is polite in words, she cannot lose her composure; at the very least, she cannot appear inferior in attitude.
Song Liyun straightened her appearance and said solemnly, "Please forgive me, Master Hong. On that day, it was Master Min who saw us returning to town after buying New Year's goods. He blocked our way and robbed us first. It happened suddenly, and I panicked and lost my hand, which led to the consequences. You can't blame anyone else."
Old Master Hong's smile vanished, and he stared at her with eyes like a hawk, saying each word clearly, "Min Gande only committed robbery; his crime does not warrant death!"
Song Liyun glared back defiantly: "Swords have no eyes, you'll bear the consequences!"
"A life for a life!" The old man's eyes remained dark and menacing.
Song Liyun glared back: "Old Master Hong, do you have any evidence?"
“Min Si’s three henchmen can testify!”
“Those three are all criminals, their testimony is invalid!” Song Liyun denied outright.
“If you’re going to find someone, you should find someone who has nothing to do with this to testify! Otherwise, I can just testify for myself.”
The two were instantly on the verge of exchanging barbs, an old man and a young woman glaring at each other, creating an awkward atmosphere.
At this moment, Hong Jingtian, who had already felt something was off about Song Liyun's visit, was even more surprised and annoyed by her lack of fear.
They say a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger.
But isn't this woman being too reckless? Doesn't she know who she is?
He was none other than the famous Old Master Hong of Qili County, a man whose hands were stained with blood.
After Min Gande died, he had people investigate. The other party was only Han Ming and Song Liyun, but Min Gande attacked with five people, and two died and three escaped.
He had even examined the corpse and the site of the fight. There were no signs of struggle on Min Si's body, only a charred spot in his chest, the cause of which was unknown.
Another henchman had his head caved in and was killed by a log.
Seeing that the two men were quite skilled, he wanted to recruit them to his own ranks.
But now that he saw the two of them with his own eyes, he was filled with suspicion.
Just as he predicted, Han Ming was a big, burly man with a scarred face, clearly a local thug.
Song Liyun, however, was petite and had a delicate appearance. Although she was not the weak and frail type of girl he had imagined, she was not the shrew and fierce woman he had envisioned.
Only his demeanor and courage truly set him apart.
But in his eyes, this was just foolishness, a recklessness.
Seeing that he was not only unafraid, but also able to eat with relish right in front of him.
Should we accept this person or not?
Hong Jingtian started running Tianxianglou at the age of seventeen, and had long since developed a heart of stone.
The thugs on the street are like weeds in the field, they can't be cut off one after another. What does it matter if Min Gande dies? We can just recruit new people.
Because of the "Suijin Massacre," more than a dozen officials from Pingyang Prefecture to Qili County were demoted and punished, and many heads rolled.
Qili County has been without a magistrate for five years, and the affairs of the county government are handled by clerks from various departments.
If there were any serious criminal cases, they would be sent to the prefectural government office, and of course, these junior clerks would have to report them.
Everyone knows that once the imperial court sends an official to take office, the opportunity to make money will be gone.
Normally, these clerks and constables handle matters with only one purpose: money, and each has their own methods.
Those guarding the city gates collected tolls for crossing the bridge, while those patrolling the streets collected taxes from merchants.
This has thrown Qili County into complete chaos.
Large businesses like Tianxianglou were naturally highly sought after, with people coming to collect taxes from them one after another.
It's easy to fish in troubled waters, so Tianxianglou and other wealthy families took the opportunity to raise a bunch of gangsters and hooligans. They did business openly, but also did some shady things in secret.
Song Liyun only thought that Master Hong wanted to avenge Min Gande, and had no idea that she had been targeted as a henchman.
Not knowing Song Liyun's background for the time being, Hong Jingtian didn't want to rush things. To tame a fine horse, one must be patient.
Song Liyun's home is in Suijin Town, so I can find her anytime.
So when the waiter came forward to ask if there was a customer to meet him, Old Master Hong left with the ambiguous words, "Come to Tianxiang Restaurant to see me again when you've thought it through."
Knowing that the old man in front of him was no ordinary person and was investigating a murder, Han Ming, who had been on high alert the whole time, was already sweating profusely. Now, looking at the half-eaten lamb chop, he had lost his appetite.
Song Liyun also felt a slight chill on her back. Fortunately, she had already gotten through this ordeal. She would deal with the future later, but she couldn't let her guard down.
She didn't eat any more, but instead had the leftovers packed up along with the lamb chops meant for the Song brothers.
Packing made her feel bad again.
For a large business like Tianxianglou, they actually used a dried leaf from some unknown plant to package high-end food, binding it horizontally and vertically in several layers.
The lamb chops smelled delicious, but Song Liyun frowned as she looked at the dry, brown leaves. With that appearance, no one would pick them up even if they were left on the roadside.
I really want to use the insulated box from my own space to pack it.
These all-natural packaging tools, though pollution-free, are unsightly and inconvenient.
Besides cloth bags and leather pouches, there are only baskets and wooden boxes here. It seems that if I want to sell anything in the future, I will have to make cardboard packaging bags.
Because of the delay caused by Hong Jingtian, the time originally agreed upon for meeting with the manager of Wanchun Fur Shop has now been missed.
When she arrived at Wan Chun's leather goods shop, Manager Wan was already anxiously looking around at the shop entrance.
Upon seeing Song Liyun, Manager Wan jogged over.
Song Liyun apologized, "Something came up and took a while, I'm sorry to have kept Manager Wan waiting."
Manager Wan was overjoyed to see her arrive, and he didn't dare say no. He just smiled and led the way, saying, "It's alright, my manager is already waiting inside. Please come in, Miss Song!"
At this moment, a man in his forties with a shrewd look was sitting in the inner room where they had talked that morning.
Upon seeing Song Liyun enter the room, the man stood up.
Through Manager Wan's introduction, Song Liyun met Wan Liangjin, the head steward of the Wan family's leather goods, who oversaw the villages and towns surrounding Qili County.
Wanjia Leather Goods is a large merchant that not only sells leather goods but also has a very good leather goods workshop.
The head of the family was very capable, and all the people he used in the business were direct descendants and collateral branches of the Wan family.
We are all in the same family; if one suffers, we all suffer; if one prospers, we all prosper.
Only in this way would they dare to snatch food from the mouths of the imperial merchants.
Clearly, during the time Song Liyun was away, Manager Wan had already explained the situation, and Wan Chun's Leather Shop definitely wanted the goods.
At this point, the head steward, Wan Liangjin, directly brought up the matter of the cowhide.
"Miss Song, the market demand for cowhide is high, and the risk of selling it is relatively low. The price our shop can offer is per piece... and if we split the profits later..."
While Wan Liangjin was using the abacus to calculate prices, Song Liyun was also silently doing mental calculations.
As she did the calculations, her eyebrows furrowed: Something didn't seem right about the accounts!
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