Meanwhile, after Lu Baichuan left, Bao Tianlin still felt uneasy. He hurriedly went home to his study to check some of the account books he had hidden before, only to find that the secret compartment was empty.
Bao Tianlin was instantly stunned. He remembered clearly that he had put everything in this hidden compartment.
He painstakingly dug this hidden compartment over half a month to make it, and even his wife and children didn't know it existed. You could say that putting things inside would be foolproof.
But now, it's gone.
Bao Tianlin couldn't take it and took two steps back, but he quickly recovered and shouted a name through gritted teeth: "Lu Baichuan!"
It was definitely Lu Baichuan who did it!
Otherwise, why would they conduct a surprise inspection of his county government office? He hadn't received any prior notice and thought he was out of the loop. Little did he know that Lu Baichuan was targeting him.
He slammed the door to the hidden compartment shut, slammed his hand on the table, and shouted, "Someone come here!"
We absolutely cannot let Lu Baichuan leave alive. At the very least, we must retrieve and destroy those account books and letters. Otherwise, not only will our own lives be in danger, but those officials who are on good terms with us will also be caught. In that case, will his whole family still have a good life?
A servant rushed in, and he shouted in a fit of rage, "Take men to find Lu Baichuan's whereabouts! Take plenty of men, and kill him without mercy when you find him!"
The servant didn't know what had happened, but he did as his master instructed and immediately went to find out where Lu Baichuan was staying.
As the county magistrate, Bao Tianlin had information on everyone who entered the city, so it wasn't difficult for him to investigate. His servant immediately located the village where Lu Baichuan and his group had settled and led his men to chase after them at full speed.
However, they were still a step too late. When they arrived at the village, Lu Baichuan and his group had already left.
The young servant in charge was quite skilled; he grabbed a villager and asked menacingly, "Where did the people who used to stay here go?"
The villager had sold tea to the retired emperor and remembered his kindness. He also knew these people were not good people, so he shook his head and said, "I don't know them, I don't know them."
"If you dare lie, I'll kill you!"
The servant threw the villager to the ground. The villager was terrified, but still shook his head: "I really don't know. Those people came to the village to take shelter from the rain last night, and left when the rain stopped. Please spare my life, sir!"
The road was very muddy, with all sorts of footprints and tire tracks, making it quite messy and impossible to discern any clues. The villagers thought that this way they wouldn't be able to cause trouble for the important people.
Seeing how terrified he was, the servant realized he genuinely didn't recognize those people and stopped bothering him. However, he didn't leave and instead asked the villagers to take them to the village chief's house.
If outsiders enter the village, the village chief will definitely know; asking the village chief is the most appropriate thing to do.
The villagers dared not resist, thinking that the village chief was so clever that he would surely find a way to deal with it, so they took them there.
The gate to the village chief's house was open, and a little girl was squatting and playing in the mud. Hearing the noise, she stood up and looked at the person who came in with some fear. Just as she was about to run back home, someone grabbed her by the collar and lifted her up, and the jade pendant hanging from her waist was ripped off.
The jade pendant had a fine color, clearly not something a poor family could afford. However, there were no special inscriptions on it, so it was probably given to the child by Lu Baichuan on a whim.
This also proves that Lu Baichuan must have had contact with the village chief's family.
Where is the person who gave you the jade pendant?
Cui Niu was very uncomfortable being carried, and the person in front of her was so fierce that she bit her lower lip and couldn't help but cry out.
Her mother heard the crying and ran out to see what was happening. When she saw her daughter being carried away, she was so frightened that her legs went weak.
"My lord, spare my life! Cui Niu is just a child! Please have mercy on her!"
She spotted the jade pendant in the man's hand and regretted not having put such a valuable item away beforehand.
The original plan was to let Cui Niu wear it to make her happy and absorb some of the noble person's aura, and then take it off and put it away properly when she went to bed at night. Little did they expect that this would cause trouble.
"If you want her to live, tell me where those people are, or I'll smash her to death!"
As he spoke, he lifted Cui Niu high in the air. Cui Niu was frightened and cried even harder.
Cui Niu's mother was stunned for a moment, not knowing what to say. The villager who had been forced to lead the way was quick-witted and spoke up: "Cui Niu's mother, I told these adults that those people came to take shelter from the rain last night and then left, but the adults didn't believe me. You should go and call the village chief to come out and explain. Even if you gave me ten lives, I wouldn't dare to lie!"
The servant glared at him fiercely: "Did I ask you?!"
Cui Niu's mother realized what was happening and hurriedly went inside to find her father-in-law, secretly exchanging statements with him.
The village chief didn't know who these people were, but judging from their accents, they were locals. Judging from their clothes, although they were servants' uniforms, the fabric was of the finest quality, indicating that they were from wealthy and powerful families. Remembering what Lu Baichuan had said about the imperial court coming to investigate, he figured these people were probably the county magistrate's men. He immediately said politely, "Gentlemen, you've worked hard. Would you like to come in and have a bowl of hot tea? My child is ignorant and has offended you. Please excuse her this time, and I will certainly teach her a lesson."
The servant was one of the county magistrate's men, and he wouldn't easily fall out with the people unless absolutely necessary. Moreover, the village chief had a very good attitude, calling them "sir" this and "sir" that made them feel a little flattered. They were also thirsty from chasing Lu Baichuan, so they put Cui Niu down and followed the village chief into the house.
Once inside the house, the village chief told Cui Niu's mother to take Cui Niu back to her room and hide. He then had his son make tea for everyone while he sat down with them and recounted what had happened the previous day.
“They came to take shelter from the rain, and they thought my tea tasted good, so they bought it. The adult took a liking to my granddaughter and gave her a jade pendant. After receiving the jade pendant, I invited them to stay for a meal. They left after the rain stopped, and I don’t know where they went or what they were going to.”
As he spoke, the village chief took out the last small bag of tea from his own house, presented it with both hands to the leading servant, and said, "That gentleman liked it very much and bought all the rest of the tea in the house. There's only this small bag left. If you like it, why don't you take it back and try it?"
The servant accepted the money without ceremony, and the village chief tentatively asked, "I wonder what business the officials have with those people? They're not criminals, are they? If so, wouldn't I have done more harm than good? Our magistrate is a very good man, and I can't do anything to betray him. If the officials need anything, I can gather the strong men in the village to help search..."
The village chief's son, standing nearby, remarked that he had learned something; his father's brain was too good for being a village chief.
With a simple sentence, he cleared himself of suspicion and also flattered the county magistrate.
How did his father recognize these people as the county magistrate's men?
Those people were indeed quite pleased. After finishing their tea, they didn't make things difficult for them. They got up and walked out, saying, "Don't interfere in government affairs. Just be more careful in the future!"
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