From the Liu family’s residence, Wu Caiwei hurried back to her own small courtyard. She moved aside the water缸 in the kitchen, dug a cellar overnight, wrapped the items in oil paper, buried them underground, and then covered the soil. She sprinkled a layer of ash on top to make it look old before moving the water缸 back to its original spot, covering the cellar.
Feeling everything was seamless, she went back to sleep. While her side was quiet, the Liu family became lively.
In the early morning, the maids and servants waited outside the master and madam’s room. At this time, they would usually be awake. The master would go to inspect his shops, and the madam would manage the household’s food, drink, and daily necessities. If they were even a little late, the madam would give them a dagger-like glare.
A few more offenses and they would be kicked out of the Liu family. To survive here, they trembled, daring not to make the slightest mistake. This morning, for some reason, there was usually movement at this hour, but they waited for a long time and heard nothing. They dared not go forward to inquire, so they could only stand by the door in a state of helplessness.
The courtyard where the storeroom was located was unusually quiet. At this time, everyone would usually get up, clean the courtyard, and then eat breakfast. But this morning, the kitchen waited and waited, but no one from the storeroom appeared. Thinking the madam and master had some urgent matters to attend to, they didn’t dare to send anyone to rush them.
As the sun climbed high, people from the storeroom finally ambled over. Seeing the bright daylight outside, they were startled and quickly got out of bed in a panic, hastily putting on their clothes.
When they opened the door, they were dumbfounded. Seeing the storeroom door ajar, their hearts sank. Cold sweat broke out all over their bodies. Their legs felt weak as they walked. They looked at each other, none daring to step forward to inspect the storeroom.
After a while, seeing that this situation was not sustainable, they agreed to go forward together. Entering the storeroom, they found the items inside relatively neat, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the person hadn’t emptied the storeroom. However, when they took out the account books and compared them one by one, the sweat on their brows increased. The person hadn’t emptied the place, but all the valuable items were gone.
Knowing that selling their entire families wouldn’t be enough to compensate, they rushed to the master and madam’s courtyard. As they approached, they noticed the courtyard’s unusual atmosphere. At this time, everyone would usually be orderly carrying out their daily tasks, but today, everyone was gathered by the door, whispering to each other.
They inquired about the situation and guessed that perhaps something important had happened last night that they were unaware of. They felt relieved; the more things that happened, the more innocent they appeared. If it were a minor issue, they would have waited by the door like everyone else, but this matter was too significant to delay.
They quickly went forward and knocked on the door. After a long time, the person inside slowly stirred. They wondered why they had slept so soundly last night and hadn't woken up until now.
Normally prone to a bad temper upon waking, they unconsciously restrained themselves. Hearing the knocking, they knew something urgent must have happened. So, they quickly tidied themselves up and opened the door. Upon seeing the master, the storeroom steward immediately knelt down and tearfully recounted what had happened last night.
Liu Baishi rushed to the storeroom to inspect it. He found it was as the steward had said. Before he could vent his anger, the madam’s personal maid came to his side and quietly told him something. Liu Baishi clearly froze for a moment, recalling the unusual events of the previous night. Then, he gave them a stern look and hurried away.
Having prepared for the worst, including being beaten and expelled, they couldn’t believe their eyes when the master let them off so easily. They looked at the servants behind them and asked in surprise, “The master didn’t punish me? Am I dreaming?”
Everyone shook their heads. They had thought the same as the steward; if the steward was to be punished, let alone them. But they didn’t expect the master to let it go so easily.
However, they thought that the maid next to the madam must have said something to the master, which caused him to leave temporarily. After he dealt with that matter, he would surely come back for them. After all, such important items had been lost from the storeroom. If they weren't mistaken, it was almost half of the Liu family's fortune. They didn't believe the master would just let them off. What they could think of, others could too, and they immediately became dejected, cursing the thief’s ancestors countless times.
“What on earth is going on?” Liu Baishi asked Ren Jiajia with a dark expression.
“How should I know? We slept in the same bed last night and woke up together this morning. At first, I thought we’d had a good night’s sleep. But when I opened the vanity, I found that several of the items I used to show off when going out were missing. My heart sank, and I quickly looked at where we usually kept our silver. As expected, the silver was gone.” Ren Jiajia felt wronged as the master’s anger fell upon her.
Liu Baishi looked at his wife, who was crying like pear blossoms in the rain, and felt a pang of guilt. He knew that after experiencing so many things early this morning, he hadn’t vented his anger and had instead taken it out on his wife. Looking at this series of events, it was clear that someone had been targeting their family for a long time. How could they know the layout of the main house and storeroom so clearly without alerting anyone else, and still succeed in the theft?
He leaned towards the idea of an inside job. After thinking about it, he quickly sent the steward to report to the authorities. The yamen runners arrived very quickly. After understanding the situation, they took all the storeroom personnel away, as they were all suspects, although outsiders were not ruled out.
The county magistrate was well aware of the affairs of these merchant families and somewhat disdained Liu Baishi’s actions. He was merely a poor boy without a wealthy family to support him, and he wouldn't have achieved his current good fortune otherwise. Yet, as soon as Miss Li passed away, he sent his own daughter back to the countryside, brazenly renamed the Li mansion as the Liu family, and married a beautiful wife. But he was an upright official and felt it was his duty, under his administration, to help him recover his lost possessions.
Therefore, he interrogated the storeroom keepers in front of him. To his surprise, their experiences were similar to those of Liu Baishi and his wife. It was clear they had been drugged. He immediately dispatched his capable assistant, the renowned Master Liu, who was not only skilled in martial arts but also proficient in poisons. He returned soon after, carefully taking out a small paper packet from his embrace. It contained some powder, and the county magistrate looked at him with some doubt.