"Went out? Who went out? Is there anyone in custody? Where did they go? " Li Bai asked several times and stared at Ma San who just came back worriedly. He was afraid to hear some answers he didn't want to hear from him.
Ma San was like a newcomer who had just joined a gang. He was worried, scared, excited, and had a sense of mission.
He understood what the official sent by the Zhang and Wang families wanted to know, so he hurriedly replied, "Sir, you don't have to worry. I didn't see anyone being detained. Those who came out were all people from the yamen. It seems like they were heading out of the county town. I didn't reveal your whereabouts, so they won't come to arrest you."
"Out of the county? What's out of the county? "Li Bai seemed to be talking to himself, but his voice could be heard by the two guys.
Ma San shook his head hard, "Your Honor, I don't know. Maybe someone's wealth was found and they went to take care of it."
Li Bai knew what Ma San meant. He said to take care of it, but in fact, he meant to rob it. He didn't know what Yan Zheng, the county magistrate of Hongnong, was thinking. He dared to harm people at the risk of his family being exterminated. Was he sick?
After hesitating for a while, Li Bai gritted his teeth and asked the two guys, "Do you dare to go with me to have a look?"
"Ah? Your Honor, you … you want to go? No, you can't. Your Honor, you haven't recovered from your illness. If you go out and get wet, maybe … Ah, right? "
The two guys saw that Li Bai wanted to go in person, so they stopped him immediately. Ma San, who was speaking, wiped the raindrops from his hair and face and volunteered, "Your Honor, you stay in the inn and I will go with you to have a look. I won't be too close and will stay far behind. I'm not afraid of being discovered. When I get the news, I'll come back and tell you immediately."
The other guy immediately said, "Your Honor, how about this? I'll find some companions and pass on the message along the way. It won't delay your business."
Li Bai also didn't want to go. He knew that with his illness, if he went out and got wet again, he might be able to enjoy the treatment of a slightly better Fengshui place.
Seeing how serious the waiter was, Li Bai thought for a bit and nodded. He reached into his pocket and said, "That's good. Thank you for your hard work. I still have some money here. Use it to buy some meat and make some hot soup."
By the time he finished speaking, Li Bai already had one luo in his hand. Some were his own, and some were given to him by Wang Wei. He didn't even count them. He just stuffed them all into the hands of the staff and solemnly said, "Thank you. Whether this matter succeeds or not depends on you. Please be careful."
The shop assistant who was stuffed with money immediately became solemn, as if he had received a mission that could save the Immortal World and the Infernal Realm at the same time, and he was ready to change the sun, moon, and stars.
"Go ahead," Li Bai urged.
"Alright." The two waiters answered at the same time and came to the door. Ma San leaned out half of his head to observe. Seeing that there was no one in the corridor, he made a gesture to communicate with the waiters in code and rushed out first. The waiters behind him also left the ground and walked out on the front part of their feet, trying not to make any noise.
Li Bai looked at the door and shook his head helplessly. "It's not like I'm asking you to rebel. Is there a need for this? It really can't compare to the inner courtyards of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family.
*****
"Four."
"I win."
The sound of mahjong still rang in the Yamen of Hongnong County. Wang Wei had something on his mind and lost several rounds in a row. He was not in the mood to continue playing. He threw away the tiles in his hand and said, "I don't want to play anymore. Come here."
Immediately, a servant who was specially waiting for orders came from outside the screen. He bent down and asked in a low voice, "Your Excellency, what can I do for you?"
"Where's your county magistrate?" Wang Wei asked directly without beating around the bush.
"I don't know. Maybe he's busy with the affairs in the county. He's been busy with the affairs in the nearest county and hasn't had a good rest for many days. Alas! "
The servant replied with a distressed look. That kind of sad expression was just right.
Wang Wei didn't believe the servant's words. Hearing the servant's words, he said, "I've stayed in the county for some time and know a little about the local affairs. Why don't you take me there? Maybe I can help. What do you think?"
"Well …" The servant looked embarrassed. He rolled his eyes and said, "Your Excellency, you've come a long way. If you get sick because of this, I can't bear the responsibility. Why don't you go to bed early and make plans tomorrow morning?"
"It doesn't matter. Take me there now. Otherwise, I'll go back to the capital immediately. If I can't help, there's no point in staying here." Wang Wei insisted.
The servant lowered his head and pondered for a while. When Wang Wei was about to leave, he said, "Okay. Then I'll have to trouble you. Please come with me."
Under the servant's guidance, Wang Wei followed him all the way to another courtyard. The servant walked a few steps and entered a room with a light on. Before Wang Wei followed, he immediately came out and said to Wang Wei, "Your Excellency, I just got the news that my master has just left. It seems that there's a serious flood in the county. Your Excellency, why don't you …"
"What? Another flood? Come with me quickly. I know a lot about flood-control. "Wang Wei didn't wait for the servant to finish his sentence and nervously interrupted.
If it was when he had just entered, he would not have dared to do this for fear of being killed. However, now that he had thought it through, it must be Zhang Xiaobei who had come. Otherwise, Yan Zheng would not have been so afraid. With Zhang Xiaobei around, his threat to Yan Zheng would be put aside.
The servant probably thought the same. He hesitated for a while and nodded. He found another two people to hold an umbrella and accompany Wang Wei out of the county.
At this time, Yan Zheng was also in the rain. Someone held an umbrella for him. There was still a lot of water on his face. It wasn't rain, but sweat.
After confirming that Zhang Xiaobei really came to the county and guessing where she might be, Yan Zheng regretted that he didn't bring the group of burdensome children to the county. Although there was no food there, what if they didn't all starve to death and some survived?
He didn't know that the school was a warehouse for merchants for free and that there was a lot of food in the warehouse.
"Master, why don't we get on the carriage? The people carrying you must be careful." The people next to him saw that the county magistrate was having a hard time and tried to persuade him.
It was not safe to ride a horse at night. The main reason was that Yan Zheng's horsemanship was too bad. When he was being carried, the people carrying him accidentally stepped on air and threw Yan Zheng off the carriage.
Yan Zheng, who was obviously weaker than the bailiffs, nodded helplessly. "Be careful. Don't fall again."
In the county town, the roads were still passable. However, once they left the city and walked for a long distance, Yan Zheng and his group felt the power of the flood.
Night was different from day. There were no stars in the sky, let alone the moon. Other than the dim light from the lanterns covered with oil paper, the only light was the occasional flash of lightning.
After every flash of lightning, there would be rolling thunder. Even though they were mentally prepared for the thunder, they would still be shocked. The cracking sounds seemed to come directly from their chests.
As Yan Zheng followed the group, he cursed in a low voice. He cursed the bad weather and Zhang Xiaobei for running so far away.
As they walked, many people had already forgotten about their fatigue, or rather, they were overdrawing their body's potential. The dark night, the cold rain, and the occasional thigh-high water made it so that they could only move mechanically. The sound of splashing water, thunder, and panting mixed together.
As they walked, Yan Zheng and the others finally arrived at a place where the sky was no longer so dark and there was a little bit of light.
The group stopped. There was a river in front of them that blocked their path.
"Master, we have to take a detour. There's a bridge in the distance. It might have been washed away by the water. If we walk for two li, there's another bridge over there." The person beside Yan Zheng saw that the original bridge was gone and immediately thought of another place.
"That bridge won't be washed away?" Yan Zheng endured the uncomfortable feeling of being wet and asked.
"I don't think so. That bridge was built by someone from Zhengzheng Construction. This river is called the Hongyuan River. Once you cross the river, you'll reach the academy in less than two hours," the servant explained as he pointed in the direction of the bridge.
"Mm!" Yan Zheng snorted to show his agreement. He really didn't want to talk about Zheng Zheng's builders. He felt very uncomfortable when others talked about it.
The team followed the order and went around it. After walking for a while, the sky became brighter. Sure enough, they saw a bridge. It was a bridge that made people speechless. There was a big crack on the bridge, and there was a big tree that had lived for an unknown number of years. Beside the big crack on the bridge, there were countless broken places. Even the pier of the bridge was separated from the soil beside it, and there was a big crack on it.
There was no need for others to explain why this happened. Anyone who saw this scene understood what was going on.
"Master …?" The person beside Yan Zheng asked tentatively.
"I'll go down and walk." Yan Zheng could see that the carriage couldn't pass. They had to get down and walk. The trees in front of them were too much of a hindrance.
Everyone walked step by step on the bridge. For some reason, when Yan Zheng walked on the bridge, he was not worried at all that this seemingly collapsing bridge would suddenly collapse. He knew that this was the confidence that Zhengzheng Construction Group gave him, or rather, the confidence that Zhang Xiaobei's family gave him when he was about to meet them but did not want to meet them the most. He had to admit it even if he did not want to.
This feeling made Yan Zheng very uncomfortable, but he had to face it.
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