Qi Zhenzhen invited the messenger inside. On such a cold day, it wouldn't do to not offer a bowl of hot tea to someone who had braved the weather to deliver a message.
"I won't come in, I have to keep moving. Oh, and you should hurry. That young sister-in-law was crying so much her eyes are red," the young man said.
The "young sister-in-law" must be Lin Ruixue. Her eyes were red from crying. If Zhang Erniu were here, he certainly wouldn't allow such a thing to happen. This indicated that Zhang Erniu was likely not with Lin Ruixue at the moment. Had he gone to attend to other matters, or had something happened to him?
Qi Zhenzhen thanked the young man, then went inside to announce she was going to the county town. She grabbed Zhang Xiaoniu, and they set off with the horse.
Yun Shi, worried, followed them out.
"Mother, it's cold outside. You came out without your cloak. Don't worry, my aunt is fine. It's probably just some issue at the noodle shop that they couldn't handle, which is why they sent for someone. You don't need to worry about the journey either, you have Xiaoniu with you, right? His martial arts are quite good now." Qi Zhenzhen pushed Yun Shi back inside, speaking as they walked. "Auntie, I'll be away for a couple of days. Could you and Mingyue come stay with my mother? She's timid."
"Don't worry, your mother will be with us. You be careful on the road. Mingyue's elder cousin-in-law is in the county town. If there's anything you can't resolve, go to him for advice," Yu Shi instructed.
"Alright, I'm leaving then."
The two galloped away on their horses, arriving in less time than it took Qi Zhenzhen to return by herself. They reached the county town in the afternoon.
The shop was closed. They went around to the back door, which was also shut tight. Qi Zhenzhen knocked. After a moment, Granny Lu's voice, filled with caution, sounded, "Who is it?"
"Granny Lu, it's me, Zhenzhen."
The door creaked open. "Zhenzhen! You're finally here. And who is this young man?"
"He's Zhang Erge's younger brother, Zhang Xiaoniu. He was there when the message was sent, so he came along. Where's my aunt? And where's Zhang Erge?" Qi Zhenzhen handed the reins to Zhang Xiaoniu, asking with some urgency.
"Ruixue just went to sleep. Erniu was taken by the yamen," Granny Lu said, ushering them inside. "Ruixue went to the yamen a few times but couldn't even see him. Those two keep coming here to cause trouble every day, so we can't do business. We had to close the shop for now."
"What kind of people are causing trouble? Are they competitors?"
Granny Lu waved her hand. "No, no. That man claims he's Ruixue's husband. He says Ruixue ran off with Erniu and he's here to take her back."
Qi Zhenzhen's brow furrowed. Her aunt's husband? Who else could be so shameless but Li Shan? But why had he come here?
"Did Zhang Erge get arrested because he clashed with Li Shan?"
Granny Lu nodded. "They came to the shop and ordered two bowls of noodles. After they ate, that young woman started crying out about stomach pain. The man then started shouting, saying our noodles weren't clean and that his wife was pregnant. Erniu and Ruixue came out immediately. The man then shouted again, saying Ruixue had eloped with Zhang Erniu..."
If no one had been hit, it would have been easier to handle. But now that someone had been assaulted and taken to the yamen, even a just cause would seem unjust.
"Granny Lu, I'll go check on my aunt. Don't worry, I'll handle this," Qi Zhenzhen said before heading to Lin Ruixue's room.
As soon as she sat down on the edge of the kang, Lin Ruixue's eyes snapped open.
Seeing that it was Qi Zhenzhen, Lin Ruixue burst into tears. "Zhenzhen, what are we going to do? Erniu is implicated because of me. He's in the yamen now, and I can't even see him..."
"Aunt, stop crying. Crying won't solve anything," Qi Zhenzhen comforted her. "Don't worry, Xiaoniu came with me. We'll find a way to get him out first."
Lin Ruixue seemed to have found a pillar of support and stopped crying. "What can I do?"
"Find Dajiang and Xiaohe. Tell them to find Li Shan and Bai Xuelian and keep a close watch on them. See who they're interacting with. Granny Lu just said they ordered noodles first when they came to the shop, not that they looked for you first. And Bai Xuelian complained of stomach pain after eating the noodles..." Qi Zhenzhen said slowly. "It's possible that competitors are behind this."
Lin Ruixue was a bit confused. Li Shan and Bai Xuelian were already troublesome enough, and now competitors were involved?
"However, this is just my guess, which is why Dajiang and Xiaohe need to keep an eye on them. Alright, while there are still people at the yamen, Xiaoniu and I will go there." Qi Zhenzhen said.
The yamen was quite a distance from their street, located on the main street in the center of the county town. Although there were people on the street, they were all hurrying, their steps quick, as if avoiding something. Indeed, people in ancient times held the yamen in such awe that they felt apprehensive even walking past it.
There were yamen runners guarding the entrance. Coincidentally, they encountered a familiar face – the one who had accepted Qi Zhenzhen's silver when she first entered the city.
"Little girl, why are you here? This isn't a place for just anyone. If you have no business, you should leave quickly," the yamen runner said with a relatively good attitude.
"Big brother, we have business here," Qi Zhenzhen said, her voice hurried, as if afraid the yamen runner would chase her away. "The person arrested from Mianmian Ju Dao is our brother. We don't know how he is."
The yamen runner looked a bit confused. "What Mianmian Ju Dao?"
A yamen runner beside him chimed in, "Brother Li, you were guarding the city gate that day. It's not a big deal. The person was brought in and is being held."
"What offense did he commit?"
"They said there was a problem with the noodles. A pregnant young woman ate the noodles and had stomach pain. The doctor also said she ate something unclean, and she hasn't recovered yet. If she had recovered, they would have started the trial long ago," another yamen runner said.
"Can we see our brother then?"
"Little girl, I can't help you with this matter," the yamen runner named Li sighed. "Just wait. They will notify you when the trial begins."
Qi Zhenzhen pleaded softly, but the two yamen runners refused to budge.
"Brother Li, one more thing. Is Constable Wen Cen here?" Qi Zhenzhen asked very quietly, just loud enough for the yamen runner named Li to hear.
The yamen runner named Li pulled Qi Zhenzhen a couple of steps aside. "You know our boss?"
"I'm from Xinghua Village," Qi Zhenzhen replied.
The yamen runner named Li immediately remembered that their boss's wife was from Xinghua Village. Their boss doted on his wife and had just had a healthy baby boy. People from their boss's wife's village couldn't be treated with disrespect.
"We definitely can't let you see him. I'll say something to ensure your brother isn't mistreated. Our boss isn't here right now; he's on duty in the neighboring county and won't be back until the day after tomorrow. Little girl, don't be too anxious. This isn't a major crime like murder or arson, so they won't use torture. How about this? When our boss returns, I'll mention it to him. You're from Mianmian Ju Dao, right? I'll ask him to come find you." The yamen runner named Li said.