"......" Yun Daman was speechless.
Could this Left Advisor please have some semblance of propriety?
It wasn't surprising, the Left Advisor was only in his early forties and kept himself quite well. His wife was virtuous and knowledgeable, and he doted on her endlessly...
"Why aren't you leaving yet? Go out, go out!" Yun Daman nudged Cai Kexin.
Cai Kexin’s face turned ashen, and she felt extremely dejected.
Since the matter had been botched, there was no need for her to linger here in embarrassment. After bowing to Yun Daman, Cai Kexin sullenly walked out of the county yamen...
"How did it go? Did you get him?"
As soon as Cai Kexin emerged, Madam Kang eagerly rushed forward. "Why did I just see the Left Advisor running out shouting and yelling? Was he being chased by a dog?"
Cai Kexin: "......"
"Mom, the Left Advisor drank the noodle soup!" Cai Kexin said dejectedly.
Madam Kang's eyes widened upon hearing this. "What... what nonsense? Wasn't the noodle soup made for the County Magistrate? How did he drink it?"
"How would I know!" Cai Kexin turned her face away, puffing with anger.
To put it plainly, the Left Advisor was shameless, daring to snatch even the County Magistrate's soup...
Madam Kang was equally furious. After pondering for a moment, she gritted her teeth and said, "Daughter, don't get upset. If it doesn't work this time, we'll have another chance. If that doesn't work, we'll have yet another next time!~"
She refused to believe that the Left Advisor would interfere every single time...
Who would have thought that as soon as she finished speaking, before Cai Kexin could reply, a sinister laugh suddenly echoed.
"Heh heh, are you two mother and daughter putting on a show here?"
"Who?"
Madam Kang was startled and turned to look at the dark corner.
A moment later, a young, handsome man walked over.
He carried two large sacks, his build tall and imposing, his eyes gleaming brightly, looking somewhat intimidating...
"Who... who are you?" Madam Kang's heart pounded. She pulled Cai Kexin behind her and warned the young man, "This, this is the county yamen! You are not allowed to cause trouble here!"
Late at night, there were few pedestrians on the street, and the two night watchmen at the county yamen had found a place to doze off...
If this young man dared to do anything to them, they wouldn't even have a chance to fight back.
The young man shrugged and sneered, "What, are you mother and daughter allowed to act recklessly and scheme against others, but I'm not allowed to resist? Hmph, what do you think County Magistrate Yun is? Do you think you can marry into the Yun family with such low-class tricks? Deceitful, cunning, despicable, and utterly base...
"Since you are ungrateful, then I have no need to be polite!~"
With that, the young man lunged forward, and with two swift punches, knocked Madam Kang and her daughter unconscious.
He then stuffed them into the sacks and beckoned towards the street corner. "Come over..."
A moment later, a dilapidated carriage arrived. The young man tossed the sacks into the carriage and instructed, "Take them out of Heyang County and dump them far away. It's best to have someone keep an eye on them. If this mother and daughter dare to return, you handle it as you see fit!~"
"Got it!" The driver replied, flicking the reins. "Let's go..."
Watching the carriage disappear into the darkness, the young man snorted, "You scoundrels, doing such wicked deeds, aren't you afraid of divine retribution!"
Just then, Yun Daman walked out, carrying a lantern.
He had just drunk a bowl of noodle soup, which hadn't tasted great, and he wasn't full.
So, he planned to go to Sanman's place for a meal and also persuade his third brother not to get too upset about Fang'er...
Unexpectedly, as soon as he stepped out of the gate, he saw Erlongzi pacing back and forth in front of the county yamen with his hands behind his back.
"Hey, Erlongzi?" Yun Daman's face lit up, and he waved at him. "What are you doing here?"
Having stayed in the county town for so long, seeing someone from the village unexpectedly made Yun Daman feel a sense of familiarity...
Erlongzi twitched the corner of his mouth. "I, I was just strolling around. Nothing much."
That's right, it was him who had knocked Madam Kang and her daughter unconscious and had them sent out of the county town.
His wife had instructed him to handle this matter properly, and there would be a reward upon his return...
Because when Huaihua was a maid in the old Yun family, Daman and his wife had treated her well.
Seeing that the rumors about County Magistrate Yun were becoming more and more outlandish, and Daman was too embarrassed to return to the village, Huaihua had asked Erlongzi to secretly investigate the matter and sent him to the county yamen to gather information...
After all, Huaihua didn't want Daman and his wife to argue every day because of the rumors.
Life had to go on, didn't it?
Good heavens, he didn't know until he investigated, and he was shocked by what he found.
When Erlongzi saw Madam Kang and her daughter plotting to frame Yun Daman and even trying to drug Cai Kexin's soup, his lungs almost exploded with anger...
Just as he was about to step in and beat up the wicked mother and daughter, the Left Advisor barged in.
This was also fine, as long as Daman didn't fall into their trap, anything else was acceptable.
"By the way, Daman, Uncle and Aunt asked me to tell you to come home and see them tomorrow. Sister-in-law Guihua hasn't been in a good mood these past few days, so it's best not to provoke her when you go back..." Erlongzi reminded him.
Old Man Yun had intended to come find Daman this afternoon to ask about the rumors, but several wild boars had appeared in the fields and had ravaged the wheat...
With things piling up, Old Man Yun couldn't make it.
Yun Daman sighed upon hearing this. "Guihua is in a bad mood every day, as if someone owes her something!~"
"Daman, you can't say that!"
Erlongzi walked over, patted Yun Daman's shoulder, and said, "Sister-in-law Guihua is your wife after all. She has endured all the hardships with you over the years and gave birth to such an excellent son like Jinhe. Even though Sister-in-law is paralyzed, she still thinks of taking care of you. Look..."
As Erlongzi spoke, he took out a pair of insoles woven from coarse hemp from his embrace, with a pair of mandarin ducks embroidered on them.
He handed them to Yun Daman and said, "These insoles were personally made by Sister-in-law Guihua. Even though she herself has difficulty moving, she still remembers to make insoles for you. A wife like this is hard to find even with a lantern..."
Actually, the insoles were bought by Huaihua at Erlongzi's behest, and these words were also taught to him by Huaihua.
Zhao Guihua had never made insoles for Yun Daman.
"Are they... are they really made by Guihua?" Yun Daman tremblingly took the insoles, tears welling up in his eyes.
He truly regretted how he used to shout and retort at Huaihua impatiently when she was sick.
With his wife thinking of him, he didn't feel tired from his work every day...
"Of course!" Erlongzi nodded with a smile. "Remember to come back to the village tomorrow, okay? I'm leaving!"
With that, Erlongzi hummed a little tune and left with a chuckle.