He extremely disliked this feeling of unease.ap.
After rushing home and resting for a night, Zhang Qiquan hurried to the dilapidated temple, urging several children to deliver the tiger skin and whip as soon as possible.
Xu Mo was cooking porridge, politely inviting him to eat a bowl of rice soup.
Zhang Qiquan waved his hand to indicate he couldn't eat it, and started packing the tiger skin and whip.
The still undried tiger skin was bloody, and because it hadn't dried out yet, it couldn't be folded or squeezed, so he could only try to roll it up loosely, then stuff the tiger whip inside, and finally carefully wrap it in two layers of cloth.
On the outside it was disguised, but the bloody smell was hard to conceal.
Also, they didn't have any vegetables for cover today.
"We didn't secretly sell it, so we can't even deliver goods to the boss of White Palm Court?" Jiang Sheng held the rice soup with a puzzled look on her face.
Zhang Qiquan shook his head, "Better safe than sorry."
So they still had to take precautions.
Jiang Sheng thought for a while, and moved the straw mattress she slept on onto the donkey cart, breaking it up and spreading it over the entire cart.
"Jiang Sheng, are you crazy? You're not going to sleep at night?" Zheng Ruqian yelled.
The little girl bared her teeth in a smile, "Once we sell the tiger skin and whip, we'll have money to buy several quilts. Who'll sleep on straw then?"
Zheng Ruqian thought her logic made sense, so he shut his mouth.
With the tiger skin roll hidden under the fluffy straw, two children in gray cotton jackets sat on top.
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like...beggars.
But that was good too. At least no one would suspect their donkey cart contained goods worth dozens of taels of silver.
Zhang Qiquan sat at the back of the cart, waved to Fang Heng, "Let's go."
The five left together.
As usual, Chang Yan and Wen Zhiyun stayed at home, busying themselves with their own tasks.
But today was destined to be not peaceful.
Soon after the donkey cart with the tiger skin roll departed, an officious underling arrived, followed obsequiously by Pang Dashan, who was deferentially introducing, "...It should be here, there's still blood on the ground, must have been prey, can't be wrong."
Chang Yan's mind immediately rang alarm bells, and he exchanged a look with Wen Zhiyun.
Wen Zhiyun clutched the newly found hemp powder in his palm, ready to let it drift away with the wind at any time.
But when he saw the visitor was an official in uniform, Wen Zhiyun's expression changed, and his hands gradually trembled.
So Chang Yan had to stand in front of him, replying coldly and calmly, "What is it?"
If Jiang Sheng was here, she would have snapped back arrogantly, and questioned which law or regulation of the Great Yu Dynasty stated hunters had to hand over their prey.
But this was Chang Yan, who would only be coldly calm.
So calm that Pang Dashan didn't even know how to respond, and could only look to the official for help, "Sir..."
The official let out a cold snort, "Is it there or not, we'll find out after searching."
Then he actually started rummaging through boxes and cabinets while clutching his sword.
The dilapidated temple was not big, and had few possessions.
Other than pots and bowls, there were only six straw mattresses, and Jiang Sheng had taken one away.
The remaining five were violently flipped over, scattering straw everywhere.
But no prey was found, not even a single hair.
The official's face darkened.
He had clearly received word that someone in Shili Post Village had hunted a tiger, and was skinning it yesterday, so it shouldn't have disappeared today.
Could they have taken it to sell?
Thinking this, the official's expression tightened, and he turned and walked outside.
Pang Dashan didn't understand, "Sir, why aren't you searching anymore?"
The official didn't look back. Pang Dashan could only hurry to follow him.
The two got on a carriage, snapped the reins, and raced away. Chang Yan brushed the straw off himself, watching the direction the carriage departed in, the same direction as the donkey cart, immediately frowning, "They've gone chasing to the county seat."
Wen Zhiyun barely calmed down, "We have to notify big brother."
But how to notify them?
Their legs couldn't outrun a donkey cart or carriage, and they had no fast horses to ride. Even if they wanted to hitch a ride on someone else's donkey cart, they had no money.
Chang Yan turned his head to look at Wen Zhiyun, for the first time at a loss.
The two blossoms each represented a branch.
But back to Fang Heng hurrying the donkey cart. He didn't stop once, making straight for the county seat.
After much difficulty passing through the city gate, they first had to drop Xu Mo off at the academy west of the city.
Then they slowly made their way to the entrance of White Palm Court.
Zhang Qiquan jumped down from the cart, breathing a sigh of relief.
They had made it this far, surely nothing else could go wrong now.
He pursed his lips, just about to take out the tiger skin roll to deliver into White Palm Court.
Suddenly the sound of hoofbeats came from behind.
Accompanying it was Pang Dashan arrogantly yelling, "Don't move! Selling hunted prey privately in the county seat, have you no regard for your life?"
It came, that unease had turned out to be prophetic after all.
Zhang Qiquan was frightened into paralysis, frozen in place, really not daring to move.
But Jiang Sheng jumped down from the cart, looked at Pang Dashan, then looked at Zhang Qiquan standing motionless, turned back and drew out the tiger skin roll, mustering her strength to charge into White Palm Court.
"Jiang Sheng, put down the prey!" Pang Dashan howled at the top of his lungs.
But it was still too slow, by the time they reined in their carriage, Jiang Sheng had already slipped behind the boss of White Palm Court.
The official at the side was so angry his face was as black as the bottom of a pot, wishing he could slap that useless idiot to death.
If not for that yell, they wouldn't have realized what was happening.
Pang Dashan was oblivious, yelling hoarsely, "Put it down, hand it over!"
Jiang Sheng poked her head out from behind the boss of White Palm Court, feigning confusion, "Pang Dashan, stealing and robbing in the town is one thing, but coming to rob in the county seat today, have you started treating the county office as your public toilet?"
Pang Dashan was rendered speechless by her retort.
The official's face grew even darker. He strode into White Palm Court in three steps, saying to Jiang Sheng, "The county does not allow private sale of hunted prey. Either hand over the goods or come to the county office with me."
He would handle this officially as a government official.
With no other choice left, Jiang Sheng could only place her hopes on White Palm Court.
"Ahem." The long neglected boss of White Palm Court gave two coughs, "Esteemed sir, perhaps there is some misunderstanding. This young one has a cooperative agreement with my White Palm Court, and is not privately selling goods. I hope the two gentlemen can be magnanimous."
Although White Palm Court was a newly opened restaurant, it was not small in scale, and all its patrons were either wealthy or noble.
The boss thought he did have some standing in Xieyang County.
But unexpectedly the official completely ignored him, flaring his nostrils and saying, "What are you, you're nothing."
The boss of White Palm Court was stunned, feeling nameless anger rise up.
Just as he was about to properly talk things over with this official.
A young man's voice suddenly cut in, "Our Jiang family's specially appointed boss, how can he be nothing to you? Then what are you?"
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