Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 1159: Chapter 1161: It Turns Out Not to Be_1

Jiao Bingqin quivered with anger. On what basis did someone like Qingqiu catch the master’s eye? What was she?

”Master, Qingqiu listens to you,” After a long while, Qingqiu cooed seductively in the room.

”Master likes you being so obedient and sensible, as well as clever and understanding. Don’t worry, once this matter is settled, I’ll make you a noble concubine,” the tall man’s voice rose.

Qingqiu giggled, ”Master, you are so good to me.”

Breathing sounds came again from the room, and outside, Jiao Bingqin’s breathing also grew heavier; she was truly angered.

On what basis could Qingqiu, of such a background, become the master’s concubine, let alone a noble one, while she hadn’t even caught the master’s eye? On what basis?

Two hours passed, and the tall man emerged from the room, casting a cold glance at Jiao Bingqin, ”From now on, listen to Qingqiu, cooperate well with her, or else wait for your head to fall.”

Jiao Bingqin trembled with rage but dared not defy the tall man; she could only lower her head and say, ”Yes, I understand.”

After the tall man had left, Qingqiu called out coldly from the room, ”Si Qin, oh, I should say Bingqin, come in and serve me as I change.”

Jiao Bingqin’s teeth gnashed audibly, but she suppressed her anger and entered the room. What met her eyes were the nearly transparent red gauze curtains, which Qingqiu lazily drew aside, stretching out a delicate arm.

”Wear that set of goose-yellow clothes; be quick about it,” Qingqiu said indifferently, ”Be smart, or you’ll not even be able to save your little life.”

Jiao Bingqin glared at Qingqiu, only to spot the red mark on her neck and feel even more enraged.

”Aren’t you hurrying up?” Qingqiu’s voice suddenly heightened, her entire demeanor becoming much colder.

Jiao Bingqin wanted to curse Qingqiu, but thinking of the master’s manner, likely having left his men nearby, and that he perhaps very much liked Qingqiu, she didn’t dare to provoke his wrath, even though she hated to admit it.

She could only turn to fetch the clothes, the very set Qingqiu had specified, and help her put them on.

”If you listen to me from now on, I will naturally convince master to spare your life,” Qingqiu said lightly; then she disdainfully glanced at Jiao Bingqin, ”Thinking a mere servant could become a phoenix, yet you don’t even have the skill for it.”

Jiao Bingqin’s chest heaved with anger, suddenly pulling at the wound on her chest. She felt a piercing pain and, eyes rolling back, fainted.

Qingqiu snorted in disdain, ”Useless creature, throw her out.”

At that moment, a shadow entered and lifted the unconscious Jiao Bingqin with one hand, then truly tossed her back into her room.

...

At Riverside, Lü’s expression was somewhat gloomy. These people were all foolish, he could not get anything out of them; he could only arrange for two subordinates to escort these seven men to Wuyuan City Government Office, then have them sent back to Capital City, hoping that maybe there were capable individuals there who could solve this problem.

Bai Ruozhu wasn’t particularly disappointed; if this matter were so easily investigated, the mastermind behind the scenes wouldn’t have been able to kill the Emperor’s Shadow Guards undetected.

The group continued their search and soon arrived at a nearby small village.

”We should ask around in the village, have everyone else hide,” Bai Ruozhu suggested.

Shortly after, Bai Ruozhu, accompanied by Jianqi, Morning Breeze, Muyu, and Lü, entered the village.

”Little brother, have there been any strangers in your village lately?” Bai Ruozhu took out a small piece of pastry and offered it to a child playing in the village.

Children from regular farming families rarely got to eat sweets, let alone such fine dimsum. In an instant, a group of children swarmed around them.

”Brother, I want some too!”

”Give me, give me!”

...

The children squawked and squabbled, giving everyone a headache, but Bai Ruozhu smiled warmly as she handed out dimsum to each child. After having their fill, they seemed unsatisfied, with several children exclaiming how delicious it was and that they had never tasted such delightful dimsum before.

Having children of her own, Bai Ruozhu was particularly patient with kids. Children can always tell who is truly kind to them, and soon enough, they all grew fond of Bai Ruozhu and gathered around her, continuously calling her ”Big Brother.”

”There isn’t much dimsum left, so big brother will ask you a question. Answer it and you’ll get a little more,” Bai Ruozhu waved the pastry box and asked, ”Have you seen any strangers entering your village recently?”

One child chimed in first, ”I have, a peddler came yesterday with the prettiest sugar figurines.”

”Yeah, and my mom bought a fan. Boy, did my dad scold her when he found out,” another child added, prompting laughter from the group.

Bai Ruozhu shared a knowing glance with Lu Tong, who discreetly issued a command for his men to investigate the peddler’s story.

After giving some pastries to the child who spoke first, Bai Ruozhu asked the others if they knew anything else. More children eagerly spoke up, though it seemed none of their stories had any connection to Jiang Yichun.

”Right, the night before last, when I went out to relieve myself, I saw Doctor Zhou helping a patient back to his house. It looked like someone not from our village,” said one brawny-looking child.

Bai Ruozhu felt her heart skip a beat, ”What did that person look like?”

The child shook his head, ”It was too dark at night; I couldn’t see clearly.”

”Where does Doctor Zhou live?” Bai Ruozhu inquired.

The sharp-witted child grinned at Bai Ruozhu and said, ”Give me another piece, and I’ll lead the way for you.”

”Fine, we’ll go now,” Bai Ruozhu glanced at Chen Feng, questioning whether it could be their master.

Excitement twinkled in Chen Feng’s eyes, hoping it was truly their master.

The group followed the child to Doctor Zhou’s house. Astonished to see so many people from out of town, Doctor Zhou asked, ”What’s all this about?”

Bai Ruozhu bowed politely and explained, ”My apologies for disturbing you, Doctor Zhou. A friend of mine has gone missing due to a bandit attack, and hearing that you saved a patient, I wished to see if it might be him.”

Delighted, Doctor Zhou replied, ”That’s wonderful! Please take him away quickly. I’m just a countryside doctor and can’t afford to keep an idiot.”

Everyone tensed, could it be that Jiang Yichun had injured his head?

Bai Ruozhu rushed into the house and, seeing the person on the bed, wasn’t sure whether to feel happy or disappointed.

The relief was that at least Jiang Yichun wasn’t the foolish one, but the disappointment stemmed from the broken lead. Where on earth could Jiang Yichun have gone?

Jianqi stepped closer to inspect the man before whispering to Bai Ruozhu, ”His condition is similar to the seven others we found before.”

Bai Ruozhu glanced at the patient, understanding that he was likely an enemy and that Jiang Yichun could have been the one to injure him. But what good was finding him if he was now senseless?

”He’s your friend, right?” Doctor Zhou asked.

Muyu was about to deny it, but Bai Ruozhu swiftly interjected, ”Yes, that’s him. Thank you so much, Doctor Zhou.” As she spoke, she slipped five silver into Doctor Zhou’s hand.