novelzi Chapter 82
Chapter 82
Lady Li returned faster than Zhu Changle had expected.0Before the Fourth Young Miss could ask, she explained the reason, "As soon as I went out, I happened to meet Madam Xu, the housekeeper of Lady Luo. Madam Xu said she was just about to go shopping and offered to show me around. She's familiar with the shopkeepers, so we bought everything quickly and didn't waste any time, that's why I'm back so soon."0
Zhu Changle, already suspicious of Luo Ding, immediately doubted this coincidence. "Where is the shop located, and were there any other customers?"0
"It's the first shop as you enter the West Market. There was no one inside when we went."0
"What about the other shops? Did you notice anything?"0
Lady Li thought for a moment, "There were some, but not many. Madam Xu said the West Market only gets busy every ten days when they have a fair."0
Zhu Changle didn't ask any more questions and asked her to show her the purchased items.0
Lady Zhang followed, as she needed to understand some things to avoid causing trouble.0
The bought items were neatly placed on the ground. Lady Li opened the bags, "These few bags are all rice."0
Zhu Changle squatted down and grabbed a handful, feeling it in her palm. It was white, long, and thin - indeed rice.0
"Is it the same as what we have at home?"0
"It's a bit different. This is indica rice, while at home in the Capital City, our family estate produces japonica rice," Lady Zhang, who had managed the household for many years, noticed the difference at a glance.0
No wonder the taste had been slightly different from home these past two days. Zhu Changle thought of something and looked up to ask, "Has the food we've been eating these two days also been sent by Lady Luo?"0
"Yes, most of what's in the kitchen is from her. I thought since we just arrived, it wouldn't be appropriate to refuse her kindness, so I accepted everything. I also sent her some things we brought from the Capital City." Lady Zhang paused and then asked, "Is there something wrong with the rice?"0
"Mother, do you know that last night we
Zhu Changle was surprised, "Really?"0
Qiuli nodded and shared the second piece of information, "There's something wrong with the water bandits."0
This was unexpected for Zhu Changle. Yunbei had been isolated and abandoned because of the rovers and water bandits. If there was a problem with the water bandits, didn't that mean Yunbei's isolation was deliberate?0
"Do you know the reason?"0
"We need to check the county records to confirm."0
"We'll check tonight. We're going to be very busy tonight." Zhu Changle rubbed her hands together excitedly, looking as if she would welcome even more tasks to keep her busier.0
"I have some guesses on my end too. Let's discuss everything after we confirm some things tonight."0
Qiuli didn't ask for more details. What he cared about more was, "Crabs?"0
"I saved some, I saved some! I kept all the biggest ones! They must be steaming right now, we'll have food soon."0
Having received this news, Zhu Changle didn't mind at all that he hadn't taken her along on his outing. She understood he didn't want her to know about his background, and knowing it might not be good for her father, she could restrain her curiosity.0
Qiuli fanned himself with his fan, also settling down.0
It was still early, so Zhu Changle changed out of her red clothes and disguised herself. Her face was made to look sallow like the locals, making her indistinguishable from them at a glance. She then swaggered in and out of the West Market, keeping an eye on the first shop for half a day before returning at nightfall.0
Coincidentally, Dingding returned almost at the same time as her.0
The two met in the inner courtyard, and Dingding pointed at her, laughing uproariously. The commotion drew a crowd of servants, who all couldn't help but laugh when they saw her.0
Zhu Changning frowned, about to reprimand them, but thought better of it and swallowed his words. He waved the servants away and approached, saying in a low voice, "Hurry and clean yourself up. What kind of appearance is this?"0
Zhu Changle made a face and ran back to her room. Aunt Feng had already found clean clothes for her, and servants soon brought in water.0
"Aunt Feng, is there anything unusual about Tang Ming?" Zhu Changle asked while splashing water.0
"The people coming and going seem normal, but he has some issues. His gait doesn't match his apparent age."0
"His beard is fake too. He's not over thirty." Zhu Changle paused, "We won't hide from him anymore. I suspect the Deputy Magistrate more than him now. We're gathering more and more clues, and if we finally confirm it's really this person causing problems, we need to find decisive evidence to bring him down. This evidence must be damning, otherwise not only will we fail to remove him, but it might backfire on my father."0
"Yes." Aunt Feng stepped forward to arrange her young miss's hair. "I saw Qiuli during the day."0
"You didn't follow him, did you?"0
"No, he noticed me."0
Zhu Changle turned around, "He noticed you even when you weren't moving?"0
"Yes."0
Zhu Changle raised her estimation of Qiuli's abilities another notch. If they were to be serious, even she wasn't a match for Aunt Feng, yet Qiuli had spotted Aunt Feng when she was motionless and concealed. It showed how profound his skills were.0
"Young Miss, you should be somewhat cautious of him."0
"If he really wanted to do something, being cautious wouldn't help." However, Zhu Changle was open-minded about it. "Let's just treat him as a friend. Don't scheme, don't have a guilty conscience, act with integrity. Even if we become enemies someday, we can still hold our heads high."0
Aunt Feng smiled. This was just like her young miss.0