“Stop!” Bai Fufeng barked.
A flash of killing intent flickered in his eyes, but he forced a gentle smile onto his face, feigning a warm demeanor.
“Shen Dalang, watch your mouth. You can't just throw accusations around.”
“Lately, children have been disappearing frequently in the county, which has already alarmed the county officials.”
“My Bai family has been clean and honorable for generations, and we are currently doing our utmost to assist the government in thoroughly investigating this matter.”
“Do you have any idea how much slander your words would bring upon my family if they fell into the wrong ears?”
Shen Xiuhan's expression remained unchanged, but he sneered inwardly.
The intelligence had stated it plain as day: the Bai family was the mastermind behind the child-snatchers!
Seeing that Bai Fufeng still refused to back down even after he produced the interest, Shen Xiuhan was certain that collecting the debt was merely a pretext. Their true purpose was to kidnap Shen Momo!
That was why he had deliberately brought up the term “child-snatchers.”
He wanted to beat the grass to startle the snake!
Madam Zheng was scared out of her wits by this confrontation. She hurriedly stepped forward and said in a trembling voice, “Please do not take offense, Young Master... Dalang is young and hot-headed, and he is fiercely protective of his little sister. He only offended you because he lost his head in the heat of the moment... Dalang, quick, apologize to the young master!”
Bai Fufeng remained silent, staring intently at Shen Xiuhan with cold eyes, yet he made no move to act.
Shen Xiuhan, seeing through him completely, instantly understood...
He was panicking!
Bai Fufeng had been hit where it hurt. He was nowhere near as calm as he pretended to be!
He was probably...
He was probably already looking for a way to back down gracefully so he could find out exactly what Shen Xiuhan meant by those words.
Shen Xiuhan was not surprised by Bai Fufeng's reaction.
Although the Bai family was an influential clan, they were far from being able to cover the sky with one hand in Changyun County.
What Bai Fufeng feared most was that Shen Xiuhan's words would spread, leading people to connect the child-snatchers to the Bai family.
With this realization, Shen Xiuhan felt completely at ease.
Since you want a way out...
Then I shall give you one.
Shen Xiuhan suddenly turned his head away and pursed his lips, putting on a stubborn display.
Seeing this, Madam Zheng tugged frantically at his sleeve, crying out, “You foolish boy, are you trying to worry your mother to death? Apologize to the young master, quickly!”
Shen Xiuhan gritted his teeth, struggled for a moment, and finally lowered his head like a child who had done something wrong, muttering softly, “It... it was my slip of the tongue. I... I also just heard some rumors in the Inner City and spoke without thinking because I was anxious...”
Seeing him back down, Bai Fufeng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. His expression softened slightly, but soon, a flash of shock crossed his eyes.
Rumors... in the Inner City?!
Bai Fufeng's eyes flickered as thoughts raced through his mind. After a brief silence, he spoke in a deep voice, “Forget it. It is good that we have cleared the air.”
“Naturally, I will not blame you. Your father was a veteran worker of our Bai family who even lost his life in service. The family still remembers his contributions...”
“Considering how desperate you were to save your sister, I will not hold this against you. However...”
While uttering these placating platitudes, Bai Fufeng suddenly shifted the conversation, asking as if casually, “I also came from the Inner City, yet I have never heard of such ridiculous rumors. Where did you hear them from?”
“Oh, I heard it at the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall,” Shen Xiuhan replied without hesitation.
“The Tongbei Martial Arts Hall...”
The suspicion in Bai Fufeng's eyes deepened. He sized Shen Xiuhan up and down.
“What were you doing at the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall?”
“To deliver fish, of course!”
Shen Xiuhan looked up, a hint of youthful pride appearing on his face.
“Senior Brother Feng and Senior Brother Ma from the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall treat me very well. They not only buy up all my catch at high prices, but they also said that if I catch any better fish, I can send them all to the hall, and they will never shortchange me...”
“Better fish...”
Bai Fufeng mulled over those words, lingering doubts still in his eyes.
Although the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall had risen rapidly over the past two years, its hall master Yan Xiao and his wife Song Yanrong were only at peak Anjin and mid stage Anjin, respectively. Had they lost their minds to risk offending the Bai family, which was backed by a Huajin expert, just to snatch their business?
No matter how he thought about it, it made no sense.
Could it be... this brat is deceiving me?
No, he wouldn't dare, even if he were given ten times the courage!
As he was pondering, one of the guards suddenly leaned in and whispered, “Young Master, look over there!”
Following the guard's gaze, Bai Fufeng saw a fine iron fishing rod gleaming with a faint luster, leaning against the wall under the eaves of the thatched cottage.
“Is that... a custom-made fishing rod from our Bai family's casting workshop in the south of the city?”
Bai Fufeng narrowed his eyes.
“What sharp eyes, Young Master!”
Shen Xiuhan immediately chimed in with a smile, “This is indeed the fishing rod Senior Brother Ma Xianyang from the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall personally bestowed upon me to make fishing easier!”
“The Tongbei Martial Arts Hall...”
Bai Fufeng's hands, clasped behind his back, slowly clenched. He suddenly turned his head and whispered, “Investigate this immediately when we get back. Find out if Ma Xianyang from the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall has purchased such an item from our shops recently!”
“Understood!”
Bai Fufeng closed his eyes slightly, his mind racing with calculations.
If the fishing rod was indeed bought by Ma Xianyang, then the Tongbei Martial Arts Hall was not only secretly hoarding Precious Fish and stealing the Bai family's business, but they might also...
...have targeted the Bai family's hidden chess pieces!
This is bad!
I cannot stay here any longer. I must report this to the family head immediately!
Taking a deep breath, Bai Fufeng turned to Shen Xiuhan, forcing a smile onto his face.
“So it was all a misunderstanding. Shen Dalang, I will accept the silver. The three days of interest are waived, and the money previously owed for the sampan and the rent is now completely written off.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the other guard reached into his shirt and pulled out two yellowed sheets of paper.
These were the Shen family's promissory notes.
Shen Xiuhan carefully tucked the notes away, yet he still offered the six strings of copper coins, “Thank you, Young Master, but please accept this interest anyway... Consider it a treat for you and your men to have some wine.”
Bai Fufeng paused, then reached out to take the strings of copper coins.
“...You are thoughtful.”
With that, he whipped around, waving his wide sleeve. “Let's go!”
The two guards cast a deep look at Shen Xiuhan before following closely behind.
The night grew deeper.
After they had walked a considerable distance, one of the black-clad guards finally could not contain himself. He stepped forward and made a throat-slitting gesture, “Third Young Master, are we really just letting this go? Why don't I slip back and simply wipe out that entire family...”
Bai Fufeng knit his brows and said irritably, “Do not act rashly.”
“The family head has ordered us to keep a low profile since things have been too tense lately... Tomorrow, send some men to Dongxi Ward to secure that little girl surnamed Liu first...”
The guard spat on the ground, a look of frustration on his face, “Damn it, doesn't that mean our effort to get rid of that old bastard Shen Sanhuai in Cloudwater Lake was all for nothing?”
“Shut up!!”
Bai Fufeng stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes bulged like an enraged Vajra, and he backhanded the guard across the face with tremendous force!
With a loud slap, the guard was sent stumbling to the ground, his mouth instantly filling with blood.
“Are you tired of living, you miserable dog?! Huh?!”
Bai Fufeng's face contorted like a ravenous demon. He squeezed out a chilling warning through his teeth, word by word, “Watch your filthy mouth. If you dare utter another word about this... I will skin you alive and feed you to the dogs!”
“Yes... yes! This servant deserves to die! Thank you, Young Master, for sparing my life!”
Clutching his swollen cheek, the guard knelt in the snow and kowtowed repeatedly like a chicken pecking at grain.
With a cold snort, Bai Fufeng turned and vanished into the boundless darkness.
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