"What?"
Upon hearing this, Li Lanzhen panicked and quickly stood up, overturning the chair she was sitting on. The chair crashed to the ground with a clatter.
Han Yibo was startled, his little face tensed up, and he quickly jumped off the stool, pressing his small body against Li Lanzhen's leg and grabbing her clothes tightly.
"Brother, do you know why? Who's causing trouble?"
The waiter rubbed his hands together and shook his head. "I don't know about that. It just happened this morning."
All three shops were closed. Just before you entered the courtyard, Uncle Han led everyone back to Peach Blossom Spring by boat.
Auntie, you would have met her if you had come sooner.
Li Lanzhen thought to herself: This is not right. If someone came to cause trouble, they wouldn't be causing trouble at all three shops at the same time.
Moreover, Han Shunde didn't even go to the yamen to report the case; he simply took his men back to Peach Blossom Spring.
There's probably some reason behind this that I'm unaware of.
Li Lanzhen looked at the two veterans who had been running around all morning without eating. She had just put the food on the table and was about to leave when she felt guilty and said something.
"You all eat here now. I'll go take a look and then come back to find you. We'll go back to Peach Blossom Spring together."
The two veterans immediately stood up.
"Auntie, the two of us will protect you. Let's go see what's going on. We can eat after we've taken care of things."
Seeing that the two were determined, Li Lanzhen nodded in agreement. She held Han Yibo close, knowing that if anything unexpected happened, the two of them could protect him.
The waiter said this when he saw them about to leave.
"Auntie, I've saved this food for you. You can eat it when you come back."
Li Lanzhen thought for a moment and said, "Little brother, we won't be coming back for dinner. Please pack it in a food box for us."
I went over to check on the three shops, then took the food box and went straight back to Peach Blossom Spring.
Li Lanzhen stood in front of the general store, watching the signboard of "Peach Blossom Spring General Store" fall to the ground, smashed into pieces, and covered with dirty footprints.
Although the door was sealed and locked, it was covered in black footprints, and the door was clearly broken.
The door was locked, but it was as if it wasn't locked at all; you could clearly see everything inside through the gaps in the broken door panel.
The entire grocery store was a mess, with all the shelves overturned on the floor.
The ground was covered with rotten vegetable leaves and crushed dried mountain produce.
The baskets on the shelf that were originally filled with dried goods were now empty.
The entire grocery store was ransacked, as if robbers had broken in.
Li Lanzhen didn't go in; instead, she turned around and went to two other shops.
These two shops are even more dilapidated.
Especially in furniture stores, all the large pieces of furniture inside were broken and lying haphazardly on the ground.
All the small pieces of furniture are gone; the places where they used to be are now empty.
Li Lanzhen also saw bloodstains on the door of the furniture shop.
She thought to herself, "Looks like she's bleeding. I wonder whose blood it is."
No matter who comes looking for trouble, if they hurt anyone who has wronged me, they will pay with their blood!
After some investigation, Li Lanzhen realized that someone was specifically targeting their three shops to cause trouble.
Li Lanzhen went to the prefectural government office again. The guards at the gate did not recognize her. When they saw Li Lanzhen carrying Han Yibo, they were kind and came over to ask her questions.
"Ma'am, is there anything I can help you with?"
Li Lanzhen smiled and said, "I'd like to go see your prefect. Is he at his residence?"
One of the shorter constables said.
"Our prefect has gone back to the capital to report on his duties. He won't be back for another month."
Li Lanzhen nodded in understanding. Officials sent out by the court not only had to undergo assessment by a special department of the court, but also had to return to the capital to report to the emperor.
Originally intending to go in and find the clerk, Li Lanzhen turned back.
Let's go back to Peach Blossom Spring and ask Han Shunde what's going on before we come back.
From what I just saw, I can imagine that what happened in those three shops was quite a big commotion, with all the goods in the three shops trampled like this.
Moreover, half of the goods in the shop had disappeared.
Such a big matter, I don't believe the prefectural government was unaware of it.
Thinking about things, they walked quickly. They hurried back to the Sifang Restaurant.
The waiter stood at the entrance of the building, tiptoeing as he looked at her.
Seeing Li Lanzhen return, he hurriedly called out, "Auntie, are you leaving these two carriages here, or are you taking them back to Peach Blossom Spring?"
Li Lanzhen thought for a moment and said, "Let's take it to Peach Blossom Spring."
"Alright, Auntie, our restaurant's boat is at Moon Bay Wharf."
You recognize the signs on the ship. When you get to the dock, just find him, and he'll take you directly back to Peach Blossom Spring.
The waiter then carried the three food boxes to the backyard and placed them in the carriage.
"Okay, thank you, we'll be going now."
They arrived at Moon Bay Wharf in two horse-drawn carriages.
Li Lanzhen found the large ship belonging to the Sifang Restaurant.
Upon seeing Li Lanzhen, the four people on the boat knew they were heading back to Peach Blossom Spring and quickly lowered the boat's footboard.
A quarter of an hour later, two carriages and four people boarded the ship's deck.
When the large ship reached the lock at the mouth of the Peach Blossom Valley.
Li Lanzhen clearly sensed that the gate was heavily guarded, and the number of people guarding it had doubled.
She immediately realized that the situation was more serious than she had imagined.
Li Lanzhen was puzzled as to who had the audacity to cause trouble for her!
Now everyone in Youzhou City knows that sweet potatoes and potatoes come from Peach Blossom Spring, and these three shops also come from Peach Blossom Spring.
Even the powerful families and court officials in the capital knew that Li Lanzhen had been bestowed the title of "Yiren" by the emperor for discovering high-yield grain seeds such as sweet potatoes and potatoes.
Moreover, they all knew that a third-place scholar had emerged from Peach Blossom Spring, and that this scholar was currently working in the Hanlin Academy.
If they know these things and still come to bully people, then it means that this group must have some connection with the royal family.
Only those with great courage and confidence can be so arrogant and domineering!
Thinking of this, Li Lan was filled with rage!
She doesn't care if you're royalty or a member of the imperial family. Anyone who dares to harm her relatives or those she's protecting will be dealt with, as long as they threaten her interests.
Hmph, she'll definitely make you regret it!
As the large ship approached the lock gate, Li Lanzhen saw that everyone in the guard post had drawn their bows and arrows, ready for battle. He waved to those above.
Immediately, they heard Da Leizi shouting excitedly.
"Aunt Lanzhen is back! Open the floodgates! Quickly!"
At the same time, the bells rang out.
This is to tell the people in Peach Blossom Spring that their loved ones have returned.
When their boat approached the small pier of Eleven Trees.
Han Shunde and his group were already standing on the dock.
Standing on the deck, Li Lanzhen saw that Han Shunde's head was wrapped in a white cloth, and blood was seeping from his forehead.
The water buffalo had one arm in a sling, and its eyes were dark and bluish-black, like a giant panda.
Li Lanzhen nervously searched for Li Erhan, Li Xishui, and his two grandfathers in the crowd.
But we didn't see them.
Her heart sank a little more, and she quickly got off the boat with Han Yibo in her arms.
Once she had settled on the shore, she saw her little granddaughter running towards her, crying loudly.
"Waaaaah, Grandma, you're finally back!"
Li Lanzhen squatted down, put Han Yibo down, and hugged Miaomiao in her arms.
The little girl had a clear handprint on one side of her face, and half of her face was swollen.
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, like a little rabbit's.
Li Lanzhen was furious. Her precious little granddaughter had been hit, and her face had been slapped and swollen!
He held Miaomiao in his arms and patted her back repeatedly.
"Don't cry, my dear grandson, Grandma will avenge you!"
"If anyone hits you, Grandma will slap their face until it's swollen!"
Unexpectedly, Li Lanzhen's words made Miao Miao cry even louder, so Li Lanzhen had no choice but to pick her up.
She glanced at Han Shunde, but saw in his eyes an apology and embarrassment.
What's going on here?
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