When the children stopped crying, he led them into the house one by one.
No one came out to beat or drive anyone away, and they didn't seem like people who were difficult to talk to. The farmers became confused again. After a long time, finally someone took a hesitant step forward.
The first one followed by the second one.
Wei An knew that they had arrived early in the morning, so he asked the kitchen to prepare steamed buns and spicy soup.
Everyone was given a big bowl of soup, and after drinking it they finally felt stronger and less panicked. But when they found out that everyone had not yet been given a set of dry clothes, they were even more stunned. They went downstairs to change their clothes and stood in the hall waiting for a reply.
Wei An asked from inside the hall, separated by a wall: "Who said that I would go after the rents that were swallowed up by the village head in recent years, and make you all make up for the village head's losses over the years?"
Wei An has been a household tycoon and has managed household affairs before, so he knows all the twists and turns involved.
If someone hadn't leaked the news, how could these farmers have come here to seek justice, and why would they have thought that if the account books were falsified, they would be asked to make up for the damages that the head of the village had concealed
The farmers are honest people. They have paid their rent in the first place, so they would only think about finding the head of the village and asking for justice. They would never think that they should be held responsible for the falsification of the accounts.
When the farmers heard the voice, they couldn't help but be surprised. Hearing it was the voice of a little girl, they looked at each other, but no one said a word.
Lin Hai's son Lin Yue asked the question again.
After a long while, someone finally spoke up: "Yes... Liao Sheng said so."
Wei An nodded to He Sheng, and He Sheng went down.
After He Sheng left, Wei An asked a few more questions in a gentle voice, such as how the harvest was this year and how the rent was paid in previous years.
These words are all old clichés, but once the farmers have started talking, they can't stop.
They have been exploited so much over the years that they were on the verge of becoming unable to make ends meet, which is why they are making such a fuss.
Wei An listened for a while, and waited until Lin Yue came back into the house before he stopped asking. He heard from Lin Yue that the woman's eldest daughter said that an old lady from the village went to report the news last night, saying that the higher-ups had already made a decision and were urging the family to pay the rent for this year. That's why his mother couldn't stand it and hit her head against the stone lion in the villa and died.
She had already looked unhappy when she heard that the woman had been hit to death. Now, she felt even colder when she heard this. After a while, she sneered, "I haven't even said anything yet, but so many people are thinking of protecting me."
Lin Yue lowered his head and said nothing.
Wei An ordered: "Take the child and ask who it is, identify him, and bring him back to me."
Lin Yue immediately took the order and went out, just in time to meet He Sheng leading two maids and escorting Liao Sheng in.
As soon as Liao Sheng entered the room, he knelt down and lay on the ground, not daring to even raise his head.
Wei An didn't even look at him, and asked first: "Who told you to pass on those words?"
Liao Sheng was trembling, and couldn't even speak clearly: "Little... ...Little...I didn't mean it..."
There was no sound in the room for a long time. After a long time, there was a sound of a teacup breaking, which startled everyone so much that they almost jumped up.
Wei An's eyes were cold, and he smiled softly at the debris on the ground: "What did I say when I was checking the accounts yesterday? I said that the extra rent collected last year would be compensated to the farmers, including this year's rent, right? I didn't hide this from anyone, because it will be announced today, and you must know it, right?"
Liao Sheng couldn't utter a word.
"But why did you turn your words upside down when you didn't mean to?" Wei An laughed: "Do you think I'm stupid, or do you feel confident?"
Liao Sheng's mind was already confused. He never thought that such a young girl, when faced with a murder and so many people making trouble outside, could remain calm and not panic at all. On the one hand, she suppressed the young master, and on the other hand, she asked Manager Lin to take the visiting card to the yamen in person. She could also react so quickly and immediately realized that the farmers had been given the wrong information.
Those farmers were actually willing to speak!
They clearly hated and feared their superiors. Even though a murder case had occurred, they were still making a fuss in the early morning in the rain, as if they were going to kill someone.
But Wei An didn't know what he did, but they actually told him the truth.
He shook his head quickly, then knelt on the ground, his mind going blank.
It was not until Lin Yue tied another woman in that he came back to his senses. He listened in a daze as the woman trembled like a sieve and said that someone gave her five taels of silver, so she went to Madam Xu's house and said those threatening words. Suddenly, he felt a chill rising from the soles of his feet.
Wei An glanced at the woman and then at Liao Sheng: "What did you say?"
Liao Sheng became limp like a puddle of mud, and he prostrated himself on the ground, kowtowing to Wei An desperately: "I... I was guarding the gate last night, but someone gave me a pot of liquor, a roast duck... and twenty taels of silver, and told me to pretend that no matter what happened, I should fall asleep and pretend that I didn't see anything. If I saw a dead body the next morning, I should go to the village to report it..."
Liao Sheng worked in another village. It wasn't an important job, just running around or guarding a gate. He wasn't greedy for anything, so he kept it for use.
Because of this, the farmers all knew his face, and when he spread the news that he could no longer get the money back from the head of the village and wanted to collect the rent, some people would believe him.
If she had not seen the opportunity quickly and immediately asked Lin Yue to appease the farmers, once the matter had gotten out of hand, it would have been extremely difficult to recover.
But both the woman and Liao Sheng said that they didn't recognize the person who gave the silver and that he was a stranger.
Who is so deliberate in causing a murder in the Wei family
Wei An was frowning when he heard someone from outside say that someone from the Chang'an Princess Mansion next door had come to ask if something had happened in the mansion and if they needed help. If anyone could help, just let him know.
Chang'an Princess's Mansion... ..
Wei An frowned, then remembered that Wei Jie went out yesterday. He was invited by Yuan Hongwen to visit the next door and did not return until the evening. His eyes became sharp.
After a while, she let Lin Yue go out and replied, "Just say thank you for thinking about it. Something happened, but it has been handed over to the government, so you don't have to bother."
Lin Yue followed the instructions and went. Wei An then spoke to the farmers outside: "I'm sure you all have heard that I have never said anything about demanding rent payment. Not only do you not have to make up for the shortfall, but if you have paid too much, I will return it all to you after we find the head of the village and interrogate you..."