Jiang Sanlang and his companions watched Chen Ergou being taken away helplessly.
"Sanlang, why do you think Chen Guanglu came to arrest people? Isn't he the county lieutenant's subordinate?" Jiang Erlang asked.
Jiang Sanlang snorted, "It's not Chen Guanglu who came to arrest people, he followed the yamen runners to snatch people."
These yamen runners often mingled with Chen Guanglu. He knew there was something wrong, but he could not stop it.
"Forget it, let's eat quickly. Anyway, Chen Guanglu doesn't dare to let him go in front of so many people. We all watched him take him away."
Jiang Erlang invited several villagers to sit down and eat. "Thank you for your hard work this time. Help our brothers catch Chen Ergou."
Everyone laughed and said, "It's not that hard. Let's just think of it as coming to the county town to have fun."
Jiang Sanlang clasped his fists towards everyone and said, "When we return this time, I will give everyone 20 kilograms of cotton seeds."
"Okay, okay!" Everyone laughed and sat around the table.
They had all been coveting the cotton seeds for a long time, but they didn't have the courage to ask Jiang Sanlang to buy them because he had said that he would not sell them for the time being.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Sanlang would give each of them 20 kilograms of seeds today, and they were all very happy.
This trip to the county town is so worth it.
"Boss, give us two more plates of mutton and two more roast chickens!" Jiang Sanlang said to the restaurant owner, "Do you have rice wine? Give us two more jars."
"Okay! Please wait a moment, I'll have someone cut the meat right away! I've asked the boy to buy rice wine from the wine shop." The restaurant owner responded happily.
A table of big customers came today, and they not only ordered meat dishes, but also bought some wine.
You have to know that restaurant owners only make money from meat dishes and drinks. Vegetarian dishes are cheap, so even if you have eighteen dishes, you will not make much money including the principal and interest.
Soon the wine and meat were served, and Jiang Sanlang led everyone to have a good meal.
After eating and drinking, he asked his second brother to take the villagers back first, while he stayed behind to wait for the trial in the county government.
"Then let's go back. Sanlang, please be careful."
Jiang Erlang: "I want to go back to the construction site too."
He and his third brother asked for leave from the supervisor just to look for their child. For this, Sanlang even gave the supervisor five taels of silver as a bribe.
Now that the child has been found and the kidnappers have been taken to the county government office, it is time for him to go back to work.
"Okay, you go back first, and I'll go back after the trial is over."
Jiang Sanlang clasped his fists towards the villagers again and said, "Thank you all for your help today. I, Jiang Sanlang, will never forget it."
"Why are you being so polite to us?"
The villagers patted Jiang Sanlang on the shoulder and said with a smile, "We are all from the same village, so who doesn't have some problems?"
Afterwards, everyone said goodbye and left with Jiang Erlang.
As for Chen Ergou, he was taken back to the county government office by the yamen runners and thrown into a cell alone.
Chen Guanglu walked in and squatted in front of him.
Chen Ergou suddenly felt something was wrong and instinctively moved back.
But his hands were tied behind his back and he was sitting on the ground with a wooden railing behind him, so he couldn't move far.
"Chen Ergou, do you know me?" Chen Guanglu smiled sinisterly and pulled out a dagger from his waist.
Chen Ergou was frightened and said in a trembling voice: "Recognize me."
Chen Guanglu's eyes turned cold and he suddenly stabbed the dagger towards his head.
"Ah," Chen Ergou screamed, his crotch was wet.
Chen Guanglu sneered and pulled the dagger out of the wooden pillar next to his head, and asked again: "Do you know me?"
Chen Ergou was so frightened that he shook his head again and again: "I don't know you. I don't know you."
"That's right." Chen Guanglu tapped his face with a dagger. "You must remember that you don't know me, nor do you know Han. This kidnapping case was all yours and has nothing to do with anyone else. Otherwise, I can let you live or die."
Chen Ergou nodded repeatedly: "I did it all. It has nothing to do with others."
Chen Guanglu snorted and laughed, put the dagger back into the leather sheath on his waist, and said, "As long as you admit your guilt, I can guarantee your survival. And your son is in the military camp, I can also guarantee his survival."
"Really?" Chen Ergou asked tearfully, "Can you really keep us alive?"
"Of course. I keep my word." Chen Guanglu stood up, staring at him like a hawk, and said viciously: "But if you dare to say a Korean word in court, I can make your family extinct!"
"I, I won't tell you! I absolutely won't tell you!" Chen Ergou looked at Chen Guanglu expectantly, "Will I really be able to see my son?"
"Yes." Chen Guanglu walked out. "If you say something you shouldn't, you won't be able to see anything."
On the second day, the magistrate of Mei County ordered people to go to the court.
A majestic shout was given and two groups of yamen runners stood on both sides.
This time, not only were the plaintiff and the defendant present, the constable also went to Chuanhe Town to bring Han over.
Yingbao also went to the court with her parents. Seeing the Han sisters standing there, she pondered for a while how to answer so that they would be convicted.
The county magistrate slammed the gavel and shouted, "Who are Han Ju Niang and Han Yue Niang?"
The Han sisters stepped forward and saluted.
"Commoner Han Ju Niang (commoner Han Yue Niang), greets the great official of the Ming Mansion."
Mei County Magistrate: "Someone sued you for hiring a killer to snatch a child. Is that true?"
"It's unfair!" Han Ju'niang and Han Yue'niang knelt on the ground and cried out in injustice, "This matter is completely false. Why would we hire someone to snatch our child for no reason?"
"Yes, sir, it's unfair. My sister and I have no grudges against the Jiang family, but he framed us."
Mei County Magistrate glanced at everyone and his eyes fell on Xiao Han. He said coldly, "But Jiang Yingbao testified that she was abducted by Han Yueniang and taken to Zhouhe County. She was later rescued by a man named Wu and returned to Qinchuan County."
The Han sisters were startled at the same time and looked at the child in Jiang Sanlang's arms.
When they entered the court just now, they didn't notice that there was a child in Jiang Sanlang's arms.
"Sir, how can you take the words of a three-year-old seriously?"
Xiao Han reacted quickly and immediately defended herself, "I did pick up a child that day and wanted to send her home, but I had something urgent to do, so I took her to Zhouhe County. I didn't expect that she would disappear when I went to pick her up the second time. My lord, I took her with me because I felt sorry for her. I had no bad intentions. I didn't expect that my kindness would not be rewarded, and I was bitten back and my innocence was tarnished for no reason."
Yingbao was simply amazed by this woman.
This lie is even more amazing than hers.
Mei County Magistrate turned his gaze towards Ying Bao: "Is that really the case?"
Yingbao immediately got down from her father's arms, saluted to the Mei County Magistrate, and answered crisply: "She lied! This woman threatened to cut off my nose, chop off my hands and feet, and said that if I didn't obey and told others who my parents were, she would kill me and throw me to the dogs to eat."
Humph! Who can't make up a story? She's worth two of them!
Little Han gritted her teeth and glared at Ying Bao, "I didn't say those words, children can't lie!"
Yingbao blinked her eyes, threw herself into her father's arms and cried, "Dad, she is so mean. She kicked me and said she would sell me to a brothel for twenty taels of silver."