Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 67

Bai Chuyu’s expression shifted slightly, so slightly it was barely noticeable. He gave a faint nod to a man dressed in black standing inside the room. The man walked over and opened the door.

The person who entered was a middle-aged man in a blue robe. If Ying Su were here, she would have immediately recognized him, this was the very same shopkeeper who had once bought fish from her, and later spent silver to purchase her dish of poached fish slices.

His surname was Wu, given name Gui, Wu Gui, the shopkeeper of this restaurant. This restaurant was, in fact, a business owned by the Bai family in Shili Town, and Wu Gui was one of their men.

As soon as he entered, his face beamed with joy as he reported to Bai Chuyu, “Just now, a message came from the yamen. They said a little girl named Bai Lefu was kidnapped by human traffickers. She’s only six years old, delicate and adorable, speaking with a Jiangnan accent, claiming to be a young miss of the Jiangnan Bai family. They’re asking if she belongs to our Bai family?”

“Where is she?” Bai Chuyu gave a faint nod. Light flashed in his starry eyes, and his expression eased slightly.

Wu Gui, quick on the uptake, replied, “I had him wait downstairs!”

Bai Chuyu rose, smoothed the faint creases on his robe with his fingers, and strode out of the room.

“To tell the truth, Bai Lefu is indeed my daughter. May I ask where she is now? Was she injured?” Bai Chuyu’s tone was gentle, unhurried, and carried the elegant bearing of a refined gentleman.

The messenger was none other than Officer Zhou. He laughed heartily, “Your daughter is safe and unhurt. She was rescued by a young woman. That young woman had originally taken her to the yamen, but perhaps because your daughter is timid, she cried and fussed terribly, insisting on finding that young woman. Since we don’t have any womenfolk in the yamen to tend to her, we thought it would be inconvenient. So, we sent her to the young woman’s home to be looked after for now. I came first to inform you.”

Officer Zhou’s words not only conveyed the credit but also deliberately highlighted Ying Su’s role. He was well aware of Second Young Master Bai’s abilities. By speaking well of Ying Su in front of Bai Chuyu, he was hoping to earn her some favor. After all, she was a widow raising a child on her own, and life was not easy. If she became the savior of Bai Chuyu’s daughter, surely she would benefit.

In fact, he could have claimed the credit himself, saying it was the yamen who rescued Bai Lefu. That way, Bai Chuyu would have been obliged to reward the yamen generously, and perhaps the county magistrate might even gain a promotion.

But Officer Zhou chose not to do that.

Hearing that Bai Lefu was safe, Bai Chuyu felt much at ease. His eyes gleamed as he asked, “And the traffickers?”

To dare abduct his daughter, clearly, they had lived too long.

Officer Zhou frowned, recalling the incident at Beishan. The three traffickers had already confessed everything they knew. There were more than thirty of their people hiding in a stronghold on Beishan. Fengyang County was just a small jurisdiction, rarely seeing major cases. The county office had limited manpower.

If only they could borrow some outside help…

Officer Zhou laid out the entire situation regarding the traffickers, including the hideout on Beishan, and tactfully suggested that Second Young Master Bai assist them in wiping out the gang.

Who was Second Young Master Bai? A man who never rose without profit and acted without scruples. But this time, his daughter had indeed gone missing because of these traffickers. If not for the sudden appearance of the young woman who rescued her, who knew when she would have been found?

Even with capable men, Bai Chuyu could not have guessed the traffickers had hidden her in the desolate mountains. By the time she was found, the little girl might have suffered greatly.

So, this was a favor he intended to return.

Bai Chuyu’s men were no ordinary lot, they were all well-trained, skilled in martial arts. Taking down a den of thirty-odd disorganized thugs was hardly a challenge. Officer Zhou, fearing delay would bring change, immediately discussed launching a night raid on Beishan.

Bai Chuyu didn’t even take thoseOfficer Zhou, to be directed as he pleased.

That night, Beishan was in an uproar. Lanterns lit up the mountain.

Officer Zhou led his men in a surprise night attack, catching the traffickers off guard and capturing them all in one sweep. Those who tried to escape in the chaos were seized by Bai Chuyu’s men hidden in ambush along the mountain paths.

Early the next morning, Madam Li and Liu Chuncao came over. It turned out that the patriarch of the ancestral home was about to celebrate his eightieth birthday. Madam Li had forgotten to mention it to Ying Su yesterday, so she made a special trip today.

Back when Madam Li had bought Ying Su, there hadn’t been time to register her in the household registry. As a result, both Huzi and Ying Su were undocumented. When Ying Su purchased the land to build her house, it was Madam Li who had signed the contract.

Without household registration, they were essentially “black households.” Even if they signed or pressed their fingerprints, it carried no legal weight. So Madam Li had been thinking of arranging household registration for Ying Su and Huzi. But it wasn’t easy. If Li Erlang had still been alive, when they got married, they could have gone to the county office to have the marriage contract stamped, and Ying Su’s name could have been added to his record.

But now that Li Erlang was gone, Ying Su had nothing to prove her identity, making registration difficult.

At least, that was Madam Li’s concern, because arranging things at the yamen required connections, which ordinary commoners like them simply didn’t have.

Another option was to add Ying Su’s name to the family genealogy at the old residence, with the clan’s acknowledgement. That way, she could then be officially registered.

“The old residence?” Ying Su looked puzzled. She didn’t recall Madam Li having any ancestral home.

“After Dalang’s father passed, I rarely had dealings with the people at the old residence. It’s no wonder you don’t know about it,” Madam Li said lightly. From her tone, it was clear she had little affection for them.

Liu Chuncao, who had married early and was shrewd by nature, already knew the ins and outs. She tugged at Ying Su’s sleeve and gave her a wink, signaling her not to press further.

“You mean, you want to arrange household registration for me and Huzi?” Warmth welled up in Ying Su’s heart. Madam Li truly had her and Huzi’s future in mind, working hard for their sake.

Madam Li nodded, glancing at Huzi in the courtyard, playing with Bai Lefu. She said. “You and Huzi not having household registration just won’t do. Now that you’ve got your wits about you and can make money, sooner or later you’ll want to buy a few acres of land, and you’ll need registration for that. You and Huzi can’t go on without legal identities. Besides, when Huzi grows up, without household registration, he won’t be able to sit for the imperial examinations.”

That last point was the most crucial. Huzi and Dazhuang were so young but already attending school. To say the family had no hopes of them taking the imperial examinations one day would be a lie. A family of peasants could only pin their hopes on the two children making something of themselves in the future.