After everyone finished eating, it was really late. Pei Ji started yawning one after another. Min Yueqing stood up and said to Amei and the other woman, "That's enough. Go back and get some rest."
Amei and her companion's room was next door, and upon hearing Min Yueqing speak, the two went back to their room.
Min Yueqing then pointed to the bed next to her and asked Shi Tou, "Would you like to sleep here tonight? Will you feel uncomfortable?"
Upon hearing this, Shi Tou immediately beamed and replied, "No, not at all. I'll sleep here."
This was the first time he had ever slept so close to his master, and Pei Ji was there too. It was just like when he used to sleep in the same room with his parents and sister at home. How could he not be happy to have the whole family together?
Just as happy as him was little Pei Ji. When Pei Ji heard from Min Yueqing that Shi Tou was sleeping with them today, he was so happy that he woke up from his nap. He climbed onto Shi Tou's bed and looked him over for a while. He even waved to Shi Tou with an excited look and said, "Shi Tou, come and lie down."
Stone glanced at his master as if seeking permission. Min Yueqing naturally had no objections. She was also very considerate and didn't want to disturb the two children's playful antics, so she went into the inner room on her own.
Shi Tou then ran over to Pei Ji and lay down. The two chatted quietly, lamenting that they hadn't had time to practice their skills that day.
However, when Pei Ji was feeling drowsy again, he still perked up, got off the bed, and went into the inner room.
Min Yueqing was resting with her eyes closed. She didn't open her eyes when she heard the noise beside the bed. She couldn't believe that familiar footsteps could be from her own little one. She had thought that her little one wanted to experience sleeping with his friends today, but she didn't expect him to come back after chatting for so long.
Seeing that Min Yueqing was sleeping near the outer edge, little Pei Ji quietly crawled into the bed from Min Yueqing's feet, then carefully lifted a corner of the quilt and slowly slipped inside.
Min Yueqing felt the little one's movements and her heart melted. She wanted to open her eyes to scare him and tease him, but she felt a thin little arm gently rest on her waist and a warm little hand pressed against her side.
Min Yueqing thought, forget it, I won't scare him. He's such a cute and sweet little guy, I can't bring myself to be harsh with him.
Shi Tou lay on the couch in the outer room, his arms and legs spread wide, his whole body sprawled out in a starfish shape. His mind was sometimes thinking about what he had seen and heard on the way today, and sometimes letting his imagination run wild as he went through all the events that had happened in the past few months.
His thoughts raced like a galloping horse, and it wasn't until the early hours of the morning that Shi Tou finally managed to drift off to sleep. With his eyes half-closed, he half-lay on the pillow, half-asleep, half-awake.
Whether it was fate or not, Stone still couldn't fall asleep. His hard-won drowsiness was quickly interrupted by a series of urgent knocks on the door.
At this time, everything should have been quiet. But the untimely knocking made Stone feel as if someone had brought a big drum and was banging it "thump thump thump" next to his ear. He was so frightened that he sat up abruptly.
Min Yueqing opened her eyes when the first knock sounded. She had to admit that she had a feeling of "as expected." Since they knew to knock, it meant that it was one of their own people coming up.
Min Yueqing quickly got dressed and casually threw on a cloak. The late autumn night was still chilly. Just as she finished dressing, the little one was woken up.
"Mother, what's wrong? Is it dawn yet?" Pei Ji asked sleepily, his eyes half-open.
Min Yueqing gently stroked the little one's face, which was marked with sleep marks from the pillowcase, and softly replied, "It's not even dawn yet. Someone is knocking on the door. Something might have happened."
Although Min Yueqing spoke casually, Pei Ji still sensed something was amiss with the keen sensitivity of a small animal.
He looked out the window and, through the paper window, could vaguely see that it was still dark outside, with only a dim moonlight shining on the window. At that moment, someone suddenly knocked on the door, which was quite strange.
Pei Ji immediately sat up. Min Yueqing couldn't help but laugh when she saw the little one, who had just been drowsy, suddenly become alert. However, now was clearly not the time to laugh. She quickly dressed the little one, then found a thick robe to cover him before taking the little one's hand and leaving the inner room.
Shi Tou was startled by the knocking at the door. After he calmed down, he heard his master and Pei Ji talking inside. He immediately realized that something must have happened, so he quickly grabbed his clothes and put them on, and then hurriedly put on his shoes.
However, without his master's order, he dared not open the door on his own. So he could only pace back and forth restlessly. Before he had finished circling around, he felt that the room was a bit dark, so he simply went to the table and lit the oil lamp.
Min Yueqing lifted the curtain and saw Shi Tou sitting on the stool, staring at her expectantly. She keenly noticed the unease in the child's eyes, walked over, and patted the child's head. "Were you frightened?"
Stone subconsciously shook his head, but stopped halfway through and couldn't help but ask, "Master, has something happened?"
Min Yueqing calmly replied, "Maybe, but don't be afraid. People who secretly cause trouble in the middle of the night are usually not capable."
Seeing that his master remained calm, Shi Tou felt much more at ease. After listening to his master's words and thinking about them carefully, he realized that they made perfect sense.
After saying that, Min Yueqing said, "You're not wearing enough clothes. It'll be cold at night. Put on another thicker coat," and walked straight to the door and opened the latch.
The man standing outside carrying an oil lamp was one of the helpers that Manager Liu had brought for him. His name was quite distinctive, Lai Fu, which Min Yueqing remembered immediately.
When Lai Fu saw that it was his wife who had come to open the door for him, he immediately stepped forward to pay his respects. However, he was interrupted by Min Yueqing before he could finish speaking. "No need for that. Let's get down to business."
Lai Fu had no choice but to stop talking and bow his head to report: "Tonight, I was guarding the horses and luggage with San Cai and the others. Just now, I caught someone sneaking into the stable. I was afraid he had accomplices, so I shouted a few times. San Cai and the others immediately became alert when they heard the noise and searched between the carriages. They actually found two strangers who were picking the locks and caught them red-handed."
Min Yueqing nodded and said approvingly, "You did a great job. You discovered it in time and responded appropriately. Each of you will be rewarded with three months' salary."
Lai Fu first thanked him repeatedly, then paused and said with his head down in shame, "I was careless. When I caught this thief, I found that he was holding a small paper packet. I looked at it carefully and there was some powder left on the paper. I suspect that he poisoned our horses."
By the end, Lai Fu's voice was choked with emotion.
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