Chapter 146: Enticement

Song Ruize watched as Qin Huiyin departed on the ox cart, then turned his horse around to head back.

Truth be told, he had not intended to return to the city today. With Jiang Qingnan, Jiang Qibin, and Zhou Jinyuan overseeing the dam, his absence for a couple of days would be fine. He had only returned to deal with Zhang Erzhu.

Song Ruize rode his carriage back to town. A large man was squatting by the town gate; upon seeing him, the man immediately stood up and waved. Several others stood beside him, each with sharp, rat-like features, all distinct in their own way.

"Boss, we've taken care of what you arranged," Chen Yong said. "That Zhang Lei is truly useless. He couldn't resist the temptation at all and lost a hundred taels of silver in a single night."

Song Ruize replied calmly, "Where is he?"

"The brothers have him locked in a pitch-black room. He’s been freezing all night, and by now, he’s likely scared half to death. Oh, and Boss, these are the brothers who helped out."

"Greetings, Boss's Boss."

Before working on the dam, Chen Yong had been a formidable figure himself. However, he was a man who never bullied the poor or the honest; he only believed in fighting fire with fire. These underlings were the lackeys he had subdued back then.

Song Ruize took out two taels of silver. "A full performance requires the complete act. Go ahead and finish the second half of the show."

"Understood, Boss's Boss."

"What kind of messy titles are these?" Chen Yong scolded irritably. "From now on, he is the Boss, and I am your Big Brother."

"Boss, Big Brother..."

"If these fellows of yours handle this well, bring them to the county seat and find some work for them," Song Ruize instructed.

"Did you hear that? The Boss is going to groom you," Chen Yong said, kicking one of the scrawny men beside him.

The underlings thanked him excitedly.

When Li Taohua handed a customer the wrong item for the third time, Qin Huiyin realized something was off. She took over the task and looked at her with concern. "Mother, are you not feeling well?"

Could it be that her migraines were worsening, and she was just suffering in silence?

Li Taohua leaned close to Qin Huiyin and lowered her voice. "I saw Li Erniu jump off Third Uncle’s ox cart with Tang Baoyu. They must have come to the city to find Tang Jizu."

Hearing this, Qin Huiyin felt much more at ease.

"Mother, do you want to go watch the show?"

"Of course! Don't you want to know how the chaos is unfolding over there?"

"Mother, you were the one who sent people to spread those rumors in the village, weren't you?"

Li Taohua looked guilty. "Is it that obvious?"

"Tang Jizu works in the county seat. Aside from those working on the dam, our family is the only one that frequently travels to the city. Since those working on the dam have no chance to return to the village, it could only have been someone from our household."

"Let me tell you..." Li Taohua was about to share the information she had gathered, but seeing the long line of customers, she had to focus on the work at hand. "I'll tell you later; let's make money first."

After the morning rush subsided and the queue disappeared, Li Taohua had Tang Lvwu and her younger brother watch the stall, then pulled Qin Huiyin aside to whisper about Tang Jizu.

Tang Lvwu sent off the last customer and crowded in to listen. Tang Yixiao tilted his head, listening intently to Li Taohua.

"Last time you said you were going to the latrine, it turns out you were off doing something big," Qin Huiyin said in surprise. "You didn't have to hide it from me; I wouldn't have stopped you."

"I didn't know if I could find any useful information. I just wanted to follow and see. I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd worry," Li Taohua said, feeling sheepish. "Who would have thought I’d actually dig up something useful?"

"Even though we lack concrete evidence, the previous incident was likely orchestrated by this Tang Jizu. Mother, your strategy of 'borrowing a knife to kill' is brilliant. As expected of my mother—not only beautiful but sharp-witted too," Qin Huiyin praised.

"I knew my daughter would support me," Li Taohua said proudly.

"Of course I support you. As long as we ensure our own safety, letting our enemies dig their own graves without getting our hands dirty or wasting effort—this is a perspective I must learn from."

Li Taohua stroked Qin Huiyin’s hair, her eyes filled with maternal affection.

*—How can you be so cruel? Your mother is ill; I only asked you to feed her medicine, and you poisoned her?*

*—How could I have been born to a base person like you? I wish I could shed this filthy blood and have nothing to do with you!*

Li Taohua gripped the edge of the table, sitting down in the chair, feeling powerless. A bitter, self-deprecating look flashed in her eyes, but as soon as Qin Huiyin looked over, her expression shifted back to one of gentleness and love.

"Mother, your complexion isn't good. Is your migraine acting up?" Qin Huiyin asked with concern, touching her forehead.

"Yinyin, you will always stay by Mother's side, right?" Li Taohua gripped Qin Huiyin’s palm, looking at her with expectation.

"Of course, Mother," Qin Huiyin said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "No matter where I go in the future, you must be with me. You are my most important kin; without you, I have no home."

"Yinyin, come over and help! There's a long line again," Tang Lvwu called out.

"Coming!" Qin Huiyin responded, then leaned down to tell Li Taohua, "Mother, rest here for a while and don't overexert yourself. We can handle the work."

Li Taohua watched the busy Qin Huiyin. Sunlight fell upon her, and her smile was as vibrant as blooming flowers—bright and radiant. She looked so much like *that person*, the gentle and elegant gentleman of the past.

Once all the ingredients were sold out, it was time to deliver goods to Tang Yichen. Today, Qin Huiyin had Uncle Tang take Tang Lvwu and Tang Yixiao to deliver the items, while she and Li Taohua planned to go watch the excitement.

Tang Lvwu and Tang Yixiao had wanted to join, but they were more eager to see Tang Yichen, so they left with Uncle Tang first.

Outside the Xia Estate, Tang Jizu followed the butler, fawning over him like a lapdog.

Suddenly, a young maid ran over in a panic and said to the butler, "Steward, our Mistress and the young master have been beaten!"

"What?" The butler was shocked. "Who did this?" He suddenly remembered they were at the entrance of the Xia Estate and quickly lowered his voice. "Are the Mistress and the young master alright?"

The butler turned back to look at Tang Jizu with a fierce gaze. "How did you manage things?"

Tang Jizu hurriedly said, "When I left this morning, those two were perfectly fine!"

"The ones who beat the Mistress and the young master were your old woman from the countryside and your son, who is as fat as a pig!" the maid accused indignantly.

"Tang Jizu, do you still want to keep your job?" The butler, enraged, kicked him. "If anything happens to the Mistress and the young master, I will make sure you learn the rules of the Xia family."

"I don't know how they got into the city, but I'll make them apologize immediately!" Tang Jizu said, then sprinted toward the quiet, secluded courtyard where he kept his mistress hidden.