After weighing the pros and cons, Yang Linmingcai ultimately decided not to touch Yang Cui, but he didn't let her go so easily either.
The three helpers he called cost him two taels of silver, which he planned to have Yang Cui pay for, since she must have money on her when she went out to buy things.
Yang Cui was glad that she only brought one or two taels of silver with her, otherwise it would have all gone to Lin Mingcai and his gang of bastards!
Yang Cui bought half a bolt of cloth for one tael of silver, and with a little more than half the money left, they robbed her of it all, leaving her with not even the cloth.
Not only that, Yang Cui also had to tell him how to make peach ginger first. He had only released Yang Cui today. She was at his mercy and had no choice but to agree.
"I'm having a banquet tomorrow and won't have time to come. I'll come to the city the day after tomorrow to complete the property transfer. I'll tell you how to make dried plums then."
Surprisingly, Lin Mingcai did not object, probably because he felt that Yang Cui was not a threat.
After Yang Cui left safely, Lin Mingcai and the others happily went off to drink.
No one noticed that after they left, there was another person in the hiding place who had overheard their conversation clearly. This person was Cen Xiao!
Cen Xiao had just returned to Wan'an County and was originally going to the Star Gazing Tower to see Su Murong when he happened to run into Yang Cui being dragged here in a sack. He wanted to help her, but unexpectedly, after he caught up with her, he heard her start negotiating with the other party!
To be able to negotiate so calmly under such circumstances is truly remarkable!
She could get away on her own, so there was no need for him to show up.
As soon as Cen Xiao entered the Star Gazing Tower, Su Murong's little spies came over with a grin: "Master Xiao, you're back! Our young master is waiting for you upstairs!"
Cen Xiao didn't speak, but nodded slightly.
Little Nail was already used to Cen Xiao's expressionless face, and led him upstairs to the second floor.
"Da Niu, you're finally back!" Su Murong opened her arms, ready to give Cen Xiao a warm hug.
Ever since he learned that Cen Xiao's original name was Cen Daniu, he had been calling him Daniu, not for any other reason than to "mock" him, because the name was too rustic!
Cen Xiao dodged aside with a look of disgust: "Are you getting too cocky?"
"I was just excited to see you after so long! Why are you dressed like that? Are you pretending to be poor?!"
Cen Xiao was dressed in coarse cloth clothes that looked cheap.
But would a valiant general and the emperor's adopted son be short of money?
"Has the person been found?"
Speaking of this, Su Murong felt somewhat guilty: "When I received your letter, I immediately sent people to Yuanjialing, but by the time my people arrived, my nephew had already escaped. I also sent people to look for him in Shengli Village, but my nephew did not go to seek refuge with the Cen family."
Cen Xiao's face was frosty. If he had come back earlier, this wouldn't have happened.
He had known about his sister's death for two years, but he didn't know he had a nephew until recently when he recruited a new recruit from Shengli Village.
Later, upon learning that Su Murong had begun taking over the family business and had come to Wan'an County, he immediately wrote to Su Murong, asking him to take care of his nephew. Little did he know... he was too late.
Cen Xiao took out a map: "Have people start asking in every village from the four directions of Yuanjialing: east, west, south, and north. He escaped on his own, so he must have gone to places with villages and people, not into the mountains."
“That’s what I thought too, so I’ve already sent people to look for him. My nephew is quite clever. He stole the couple’s money and ran away. He’s brave and resourceful, so he’ll definitely be fine. Brother Niu, don’t worry too much.”
——
After confirming that Lin Mingcai was not following her, Yang Cui immediately went to the Star Gazing Tower.
"Manager Yu."
"Miss Yang, what brings you here today?"
"Manager Yu, I have something to tell you. Is this a convenient time?"
The Star Gazing Tower hadn't opened for business yet and was still preparing. Manager Yu wasn't busy, and seeing Yang Cui's serious expression, he immediately invited her upstairs.
"Miss Yang, what is it? Please tell me."
"Manager Yu, someone has a knife to my throat today."
Yang Cui changed her story about being kidnapped by a tadpole so that people wouldn't think she had been sexually assaulted. There's nothing she can do; this era is just too harsh on women.
"Because of peaches, ginger, and dried plums?" Manager Yu guessed the reason immediately.
Yang Cui nodded: "That's right."
"So you told them?"
“Manager Yu, I can’t worry about anything else in this life-or-death situation. I’ll only tell him how to make peach ginger for now,” Yang Cui said. “I know we agreed on this beforehand, but I have no choice but to tell him in the face of life and death.”
Manager Yu's expression changed drastically.
Yang Cui continued, "Manager Yu, to be honest, today in order to save my life, I not only told him how to make peach ginger, but the day after tomorrow I also have to transfer my house to him and tell him how to make dried plums, otherwise he won't let me go."
At this point, Yang Cui managed to squeeze out a few tears.
“This man is called Lin Mingcai. He has a personal grudge against me. He is a country bumpkin, but his cousin is the third-ranked scholar in this year’s imperial examination and is also my ex-husband.”
"What?!" Manager Yu exclaimed in shock!
It's common knowledge that a poor family from Wan'an County produced a scholar who became a top scholar, but no one expected that Yang Cui was actually the ex-wife of this scholar!
Manager Yu wasn't stupid; he immediately guessed that the third-ranked scholar must have climbed the social ladder and abandoned his wife.
He'd seen this kind of thing many times before.
Immediately afterwards, Yang Cui tearfully recounted her ordeal to Manager Yu, who expressed deep sympathy for her.
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