164 Discovery
Haozi looked at Qi Hu with admiration and gave him a thumbs up. “Brother Tiger, not many people can compare to you when it comes to aability. I’ve never been hungry after following you.”
Qi Hu chuckled proudly. “This is nothing. When you’ve suffered enough, you’ll naturally have the ability. It’s about time. Go and swap with them.”
Seeing that Qi Hu’s analysis was reasonable, Haozi cupped his fists confidently and said, “I knew it. I’ll listen to Brother Hu’s every mistake. I’ll go now.”
Haozi staggered to the Ten Families Alley in the north of the city and found Chang Gui across the street. He walked over and patted Chang Gui’s shoulder. Smiling, he said to Chang Gui, “You chose a good spot. You can see the other side without being discovered.”
Chang Gui quickly pointed at Ah Wei at the alley opposite and instructed, “Do you see that child? He’s from his family. He’s been playing there for more than an hour. I don’t dare to go over. Two of the servants know me!”
Mouse’s lips twitched into a smile. “Okay, then go back. I’ll stay here.”
Zhou Jia and Zhao Cai only returned at midnight. Zhao Cai drove the cart and saw Ah Wei playing at the alley. It shouted, “Ah Wei, are your Brother Ruyi and the others back?”
Haozi was at the entrance of the alley opposite. When he saw Ah Wei following a carriage home, he hurriedly ran to the opposite side and stuck his head out to look into the alley. When he saw Zhou Jia dismount and enter the courtyard, Haozi thought to himself, Damn, if he was younger, he could sell him to a small brothel for a sum of money. Yes! This man is so good-looking. His wife should be good too.
Zhou Jia entered the house and saw that Li Yu and Xiaoyu were busy cooking dinner together. Seeing that Li Yu was busy, he thought to himself, I have to go to the brokerage tomorrow to buy a cook. This will let Yu’er live a few days of leisure.
After the meal, He Xiaoyu quickly cleaned up the dishes and went to wash them. Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia and said indifferently, “Xiao Xi, we’ve already been targeted by the old residence. When I came back to send you out today, I realized that someone opposite was spying on us.”
Zhou Jia looked at Li Yu and sighed. He held Li Yu’s hand and said in a low voice, “I was still wondering last night if the old residence knew that we were back. I even wondered what methods they would use to deal with us.” Zhou Jia hugged Li Yu guiltily. “Yu’er, I’ve dragged you down.”
Li Yu patted Zhou Jia’s back and smiled reproachfully. “I’ve told you that we’re husband and wife. There’s no such thing as a burden. Could it be that you also feel that I would be a burden if anything happens to me?!”
Zhou Jia looked up at Li Yu. “You’re not allowed to say such things. My Yu’er will always have a smooth-sailing life.”
Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia and pointed at him with a coquettish smile. “You! Let’s not talk about it anymore. I’ll talk to Ruyi and Zhao Cai. From tonight onwards, we’ll set up a trap and wait for them.”
Zhou Jia looked at the calm Li Yu and the depression in his heart suddenly dissipated. He felt proud. “Alright, we’ve even killed bandits. Are we still afraid of a few thieves?”
The couple returned to the front yard and realized that Ruyi and Zhao Cai had not rested. They were talking about the stakeout.
Zhou Jia said to the two of them, “The two of you already know that the old residence has people watching us!”
Zhao Cai looked at Zhou Jia with heartache and anger. “I understand, Young Master. As the saying goes, we can’t spend a thousand years guarding against a thief. In my opinion, we might as well go all out and kill that vicious woman and old woman. Let’s see if she’ll still cause trouble after we have taken revenge for Madam.”
Li Yu looked at Zhao Cai and Ruyi, who both looked angry. He said to the two of them, “The old woman and woman in the old residence are not like the bandits who violated Phoenix Village. If you kill them, the government will definitely investigate us. Your young master and I don’t want you to suffer in prison because of two vicious women like them.”
Ruyi looked at Li Yu and said, “Young Madam, no one will know even if we do it quietly. The officials won’t find out about us no matter what.”
Li Yu looked at Ruyi and said, “Ruyi, this is the capital. Once a murder happens, the government will immediately intervene. Logically speaking, the first lead the government will investigate is revenge and killing for love. Then, there will be other reasons. When we returned, someone already knew. If the two women in the old residence died, the government will definitely suspect us first. How can there be a perfect plan? Since they attacked and harmed others first, we just have to wait for evidence. As long as we catch evidence of them harming others, that evidence will be their death warrant.”
After hearing Li Yu’s analysis, Zhou Jia wondered why Yu’er knew so much about the government’s investigation. Could her master be an official?
Zhou Jia looked at Ruyi and Moneymaker and said sincerely, “The four of us grew up together. We call ourselves master and servant, but in fact, we’re like brothers. I won’t let you be imprisoned. We have to do it openly and make those two evil women unable to fight back. We have to make them admit that they framed my mother and let them watch helplessly as they throw away what they had fought for their entire lives. Wouldn’t it be too easy for them if you let them die for no reason? These days, I’ve been thinking that the person who sent food to my mother on the day of the accident might be my father’s wet nurse, Granny Yun. Because only the food she gave me would be unguarded. Let’s find Granny Yun and ask her.”
Zhao Cai wiped his tears. “Alright, we’ll go to the old residence tomorrow and interrogate that old woman.”
Zhou Jia patted their shoulders and said, “The two of you, listen to Young Madam’s instructions and don’t act rashly.”
Seeing that the two of them were no longer rash, Li Yu said to them, “I think those thieves love to use knockout incense and knockout pills the most. We have to be careful of the food at home these few days. We have to leave someone on night duty when we sleep at night. If nothing goes wrong, they’ll take action in the next two days. From tonight onwards, we’ll take turns on night duty. The two of you, talk to Xiaoyu and the others. Tell them not to come out even if there’s any noise at night.”
The two of them bowed and said, “Yes, Young Madam. We’ll talk to them. Only the two of us are on duty tonight. Go and rest first.”
Li Yu looked at the two of them and smiled. “The three of us will guard for four hours each. This way, we won’t feel sleepy easily…”
Before Li Yu could finish speaking, she was pushed towards the inner courtyard by Zhou Jia. “Madam, go and rest. Ruyi, Zhao Cai, and I will guard it. Tie Zhu will take over when it’s almost dawn.”
“It’s still early. It’s not too late to sleep later.” Li Yu suddenly thought of the Zhou family’s engraving workshop and asked, “Xiao Xi, what method did the Zhou family use to print those books?”
“Why do you want to ask about this? If you want to know, I’ll tell you!” Zhou Jia held Li Yu’s hand and sat on a chair. He smiled and said, “Before printing the book, you have to first paste the copied manuscript onto a smooth wooden board. The carver will then use a carving knife to cut off the parts without handwriting. When you print, smear ink on the raised font, cover the paper with paper, and gently brush the back of the paper. Then, you’ll be done. It sounds very simple to me, but it’s actually quite troublesome to do. If you’re not careful, you have to do it all over again. The carving master is also very important. It will cost a lot for the workshop to retain a skilled carving master.”
164 Discovery
Haozi looked at Qi Hu with admiration and gave him a thumbs up. “Brother Tiger, not many people can compare to you when it comes to aability. I’ve never been hungry after following you.”
Qi Hu chuckled proudly. “This is nothing. When you’ve suffered enough, you’ll naturally have the ability. It’s about time. Go and swap with them.”
Seeing that Qi Hu’s analysis was reasonable, Haozi cupped his fists confidently and said, “I knew it. I’ll listen to Brother Hu’s every mistake. I’ll go now.”
Haozi staggered to the Ten Families Alley in the north of the city and found Chang Gui across the street. He walked over and patted Chang Gui’s shoulder. Smiling, he said to Chang Gui, “You chose a good spot. You can see the other side without being discovered.”
Chang Gui quickly pointed at Ah Wei at the alley opposite and instructed, “Do you see that child? He’s from his family. He’s been playing there for more than an hour. I don’t dare to go over. Two of the servants know me!”
Mouse’s lips twitched into a smile. “Okay, then go back. I’ll stay here.”
Zhou Jia and Zhao Cai only returned at midnight. Zhao Cai drove the cart and saw Ah Wei playing at the alley. It shouted, “Ah Wei, are your Brother Ruyi and the others back?”
Haozi was at the entrance of the alley opposite. When he saw Ah Wei following a carriage home, he hurriedly ran to the opposite side and stuck his head out to look into the alley. When he saw Zhou Jia dismount and enter the courtyard, Haozi thought to himself, Damn, if he was younger, he could sell him to a small brothel for a sum of money. Yes! This man is so good-looking. His wife should be good too.
Zhou Jia entered the house and saw that Li Yu and Xiaoyu were busy cooking dinner together. Seeing that Li Yu was busy, he thought to himself, I have to go to the brokerage tomorrow to buy a cook. This will let Yu’er live a few days of leisure.
After the meal, He Xiaoyu quickly cleaned up the dishes and went to wash them. Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia and said indifferently, “Xiao Xi, we’ve already been targeted by the old residence. When I came back to send you out today, I realized that someone opposite was spying on us.”
Zhou Jia looked at Li Yu and sighed. He held Li Yu’s hand and said in a low voice, “I was still wondering last night if the old residence knew that we were back. I even wondered what methods they would use to deal with us.” Zhou Jia hugged Li Yu guiltily. “Yu’er, I’ve dragged you down.”
Li Yu patted Zhou Jia’s back and smiled reproachfully. “I’ve told you that we’re husband and wife. There’s no such thing as a burden. Could it be that you also feel that I would be a burden if anything happens to me?!”
Zhou Jia looked up at Li Yu. “You’re not allowed to say such things. My Yu’er will always have a smooth-sailing life.”
Li Yu looked at Zhou Jia and pointed at him with a coquettish smile. “You! Let’s not talk about it anymore. I’ll talk to Ruyi and Zhao Cai. From tonight onwards, we’ll set up a trap and wait for them.”
Zhou Jia looked at the calm Li Yu and the depression in his heart suddenly dissipated. He felt proud. “Alright, we’ve even killed bandits. Are we still afraid of a few thieves?”
The couple returned to the front yard and realized that Ruyi and Zhao Cai had not rested. They were talking about the stakeout.
Zhou Jia said to the two of them, “The two of you already know that the old residence has people watching us!”
Zhao Cai looked at Zhou Jia with heartache and anger. “I understand, Young Master. As the saying goes, we can’t spend a thousand years guarding against a thief. In my opinion, we might as well go all out and kill that vicious woman and old woman. Let’s see if she’ll still cause trouble after we have taken revenge for Madam.”
Li Yu looked at Zhao Cai and Ruyi, who both looked angry. He said to the two of them, “The old woman and woman in the old residence are not like the bandits who violated Phoenix Village. If you kill them, the government will definitely investigate us. Your young master and I don’t want you to suffer in prison because of two vicious women like them.”
Ruyi looked at Li Yu and said, “Young Madam, no one will know even if we do it quietly. The officials won’t find out about us no matter what.”
Li Yu looked at Ruyi and said, “Ruyi, this is the capital. Once a murder happens, the government will immediately intervene. Logically speaking, the first lead the government will investigate is revenge and killing for love. Then, there will be other reasons. When we returned, someone already knew. If the two women in the old residence died, the government will definitely suspect us first. How can there be a perfect plan? Since they attacked and harmed others first, we just have to wait for evidence. As long as we catch evidence of them harming others, that evidence will be their death warrant.”
After hearing Li Yu’s analysis, Zhou Jia wondered why Yu’er knew so much about the government’s investigation. Could her master be an official?
Zhou Jia looked at Ruyi and Moneymaker and said sincerely, “The four of us grew up together. We call ourselves master and servant, but in fact, we’re like brothers. I won’t let you be imprisoned. We have to do it openly and make those two evil women unable to fight back. We have to make them admit that they framed my mother and let them watch helplessly as they throw away what they had fought for their entire lives. Wouldn’t it be too easy for them if you let them die for no reason? These days, I’ve been thinking that the person who sent food to my mother on the day of the accident might be my father’s wet nurse, Granny Yun. Because only the food she gave me would be unguarded. Let’s find Granny Yun and ask her.”
Zhao Cai wiped his tears. “Alright, we’ll go to the old residence tomorrow and interrogate that old woman.”
Zhou Jia patted their shoulders and said, “The two of you, listen to Young Madam’s instructions and don’t act rashly.”
Seeing that the two of them were no longer rash, Li Yu said to them, “I think those thieves love to use knockout incense and knockout pills the most. We have to be careful of the food at home these few days. We have to leave someone on night duty when we sleep at night. If nothing goes wrong, they’ll take action in the next two days. From tonight onwards, we’ll take turns on night duty. The two of you, talk to Xiaoyu and the others. Tell them not to come out even if there’s any noise at night.”
The two of them bowed and said, “Yes, Young Madam. We’ll talk to them. Only the two of us are on duty tonight. Go and rest first.”
Li Yu looked at the two of them and smiled. “The three of us will guard for four hours each. This way, we won’t feel sleepy easily…”
Before Li Yu could finish speaking, she was pushed towards the inner courtyard by Zhou Jia. “Madam, go and rest. Ruyi, Zhao Cai, and I will guard it. Tie Zhu will take over when it’s almost dawn.”
“It’s still early. It’s not too late to sleep later.” Li Yu suddenly thought of the Zhou family’s engraving workshop and asked, “Xiao Xi, what method did the Zhou family use to print those books?”
“Why do you want to ask about this? If you want to know, I’ll tell you!” Zhou Jia held Li Yu’s hand and sat on a chair. He smiled and said, “Before printing the book, you have to first paste the copied manuscript onto a smooth wooden board. The carver will then use a carving knife to cut off the parts without handwriting. When you print, smear ink on the raised font, cover the paper with paper, and gently brush the back of the paper. Then, you’ll be done. It sounds very simple to me, but it’s actually quite troublesome to do. If you’re not careful, you have to do it all over again. The carving master is also very important. It will cost a lot for the workshop to retain a skilled carving master.”
