Seeing Kong Miaozhi's reaction, Wu Qi hurriedly pulled him to the bed and asked softly: "What? Someone has started following us?"
Kong Miaozhi nodded: "I just got into trouble in the tavern, and I was about to be dragged to the backyard by the shopkeeper, but Mu Yanbin came out. It seems that he thought that if I was dragged to the backyard, I would be lost. , He couldn’t have come out. He must have been following him for a long time.”
Changsun Wufang frowned slightly: "Are you sure it's Mr. Mu? I don't think he looks like a criminal. Junior brother, did you make a mistake somewhere?"
Kong Miaozhi and Wu Qi looked at each other, and then joked: "That's right, Mr. Mu was so shocked when he saw Fifth Senior Sister. I'm afraid he won't be able to visit us sooner or later when he comes to live with us. That Mu Yanbin Although he is an adopted son, he is still handsome, so I think Fifth Sister should just accept it."
Changsun Wufang didn't hear this kind of ridicule, he blushed and spat: "Bah, you stinky old man talking nonsense, let's see if I don't tear your mouth to pieces!" Kong Miaozhi screamed and ran behind Wu Qi. , Changsun Wufang saw that he could not catch Kong Miaozhi, so he glanced at Wu Qi, and finally ran out with a blushing face.
After the elder Sun Wufang left, Kong Miaozhi looked at Wu Qi and teased: "Is Third Senior Brother feeling sour?"
Wu Qi grabbed Kong Miaozhi and gave him a hard slap: "How old are you, little bastard? Who taught you these words? Are you the boring slut from the second half? Say it quickly!"
"Ah. Second Senior Brother, help me!" Kong Miaozhi shouted, and Wu Qi quickly covered his mouth.
"Keep your voice down. It's okay if others hear you." After Wu Qi said that, he turned back and looked at the table and chair next to him. Sure enough, Gu Wu was already sitting there. Kong Miaozhi said with a smile: "Don't be afraid, when the second senior brother comes here, the whistles around the house will definitely be knocked unconscious."
"Humph, you are really relieved about your second son." Wu Qi looked at Gu Wu with some disapproval.
Gu Wu didn't talk nonsense to them at all, and started by saying: "Elder brother, he and the others have arrived outside the city gate. We will meet at the shelter in the evening when the lights are on."
"Oh? Senior brother and the others are already here?" Kong Miaozhi counted with his fingers: "They arrived one day earlier than I thought. It's strange how they came here so quickly. By the way, second senior brother, have you inquired recently? What’s the news?”
Gu Wu shook his head: "It is said in the entire Yongzhou Prefecture that Mu Yanbin is a loyal person and is devoted to the Li Mansion. Even some scoundrels in the market admire him when they hear his name. There is nothing I have inquired about these days. value."
"It seems that I have no choice but to tell the truth to Senior Brother. It's really frustrating to have my hands tied these days." Kong Miaozhi curled his lips, then looked at the door with a look of disgust.
When it was time to light the lanterns in the evening, the four brothers Gu and Wu hurried to the wind shelter five miles outside the city gate. As expected, Chu Mu and the others had been waiting there for a long time. It was inevitable for the senior brothers to meet and greet each other. After the greetings, Chu Mu asked Gu Wu and Wu Qi about the recent developments in Yongzhou City and the news about Li Mansion.
Wu Qixian replied: "Li Mansion has been peaceful and calm these days, but this feels very strange. Even the masters of Li Mansion have disappeared, but the whole Li Mansion is still running in an orderly manner. It seems that the master is here or not. It has no impact on them at all. I don’t know if it’s because his son and his wife kept the news secret, or because the servants of the Li family never inquired. Li Wenyuan’s sons also have different attitudes towards us. His second son seems to hate us very much. He was always against us at home, which made it difficult for us to move forward in the Li Mansion. This second son is the second son of the eldest lady. I heard that the eldest son died when he was very young. The Li family has always had the tradition of standing up but not standing up. However, since the death of his eldest son, Li Wenyuan has never appointed any son as his successor. After so many years, although his sons have made great achievements, none of them seem to satisfy Li Wenyuan. "
Chu Mu was moved in his heart and asked, "What is the name of this second son?"
Wu Qi replied: "Li Yanlin."
Chu Mu frowned and said, "We have some information about the sons of the Li family. Li Yanlin is considered outstanding. He managed several grain stores and pawn shops by himself at a young age, and his business was prosperous. . And it seems that this man is also very humble and peaceful. I really can’t figure out what he means. Oh, third child, keep talking."
Wu Qi nodded and continued: "Although Li Wenyuan's adopted son has a foreign surname, he seems to have a frightening amount of energy in this family. The first day we were picked up, the young master from the other house came to him and asked him why he put him in the house. The people from Tianjimen are invited here. He took out an iron sign in front of us, and then arranged us into the guest room in the tone of a master, telling everyone not to pester us. This iron sign seemed to be some kind of token. Let this housekeeper do the same His adopted son suddenly became the master of the entire Li family. When the wife and the young master saw the iron sign, their expressions changed, and they did not dare to ask anything. But despite this, the next day, the front and back of our room were full of secret whistles. Everyone in the Li family seems to be afraid that we will find something, but the strangest thing is that when Lao Liu went out today, he felt someone was following him. He originally planned to find a way to get rid of this group of people, but he didn't expect that Mu Yanbin was attracted in the end. He is Li Wenyuan’s adopted son.”
Chu Mu frowned again: "So, everyone in the Li family is now much more interested in you than the master who no longer knows where he is? Brother, what have you heard in the past few days?"
Gu Wu thought for a while and replied: "Everything in the Li Mansion's large granaries, silk and satin shops, pawnshops, and banks is still the same. Those shopkeepers are Li Wenyuan's close friends and will not listen to the second-generation ancestors of the Li Mansion at all. It seems that there are some problems with the accounts of the stores managed by Li Wenyuan's fourth and fifth sons. They have gone to those main stores many times for help, but to no avail. By the way, Li Wenyuan's five sons each manage three stores. A shop. However, the shops from his third son to his fifth son all suffered losses more or less. But this Li Yanlin not only had a good reputation, but was also a business wizard. Originally, the northwest did not do bank business, but this Li Yanlin actually came up with a set of compensation for injury and death. He exchanged the money for vouchers, and then used the vouchers to pay to Li Yanlin's bank in exchange for a guarantee after he became disabled. Of course, this guarantee is not unlimited."
"Compensation for injury or death? What is this?" Chu Mu asked with interest after hearing this.
"Yongzhou recruits more troops than other places. Most of the young and strong have to go to the battlefield to roll around, but it's not up to you to do what you want to do on the battlefield. Every year in Yongzhou, 20% of the strong men die in the battlefield alone. Li Yanlin's Injury and death compensation is a guarantee for these soldiers. No matter they are injured or sacrificed on the battlefield, they will provide a one-time pension according to the situation. Of course, if you are lucky and remain intact during this period, the injury will be The money for the death compensation will not be returned. The proof of the injury and death compensation needs to be cashed with a note from Li Yanlin's bank, so almost all families with men in Yongzhou Prefecture have bought a copy of the injury and death compensation."
"Oh? This is really weird. You can do this business without paying him to death." Chu Mu said
"No. Yongzhou's soldiers have all been relegated to the second line. Most of them have been engaged in logistics and transportation. The vanguard troops are basically soldiers brought over by my grandfather. I was still wondering why Yongzhou's soldiers were treated like this. It seems that they are It was discussed with Li Mansion." Du Jie said silently beside him
"This may sound unfair to other soldiers, but if there was no Li Mansion, I'm afraid more soldiers would starve to death at the border. I'm afraid no one can tell clearly what is right and what is wrong. Junior brother, it's better not to get entangled in this kind of thing. Yes." Chu Mu enlightened Du Jie.
"But this is a way to build the Li family's bank with the guarantee of compensation for injury or death. He is really a geek. After you have been observing for so many days, who do you think has something to do with Mr. Li's disappearance?"
"This...it's hard to say. I feel that the people in the Li family are all weird. Li Wenyuan's eldest wife is his married couple. The two of them have always had a good relationship. Even if Li Wenyuan later married a second wife, I didn't hear about it. The eldest lady had a crush on these two side chambers. The servants in his family felt that the eldest lady was a bit cowardly. She only knew how to recite Buddhist scriptures every day. However, the two side chambers had some tricks and tricks that made Li Wenyuan feel a little neglected over the years. His eldest wife. The concubine in this side room originally had no right to run the Li family's shop, but the two ladies didn't know how to get Li Wenyuan to agree. His second son was very well-behaved and neither agreed nor objected. It seems that this Everything has nothing to do with him. But that's right, the Li family has a big business, and these few shops are not important at all. As for the others, I really can't find out." Changsun Wufang didn't know what he thought of, sighed and finally added
Chu Mu rubbed his nose and didn't know what he was thinking. He turned around and said to Gu Wu, "Where is Burao Mountain? Is there any news over there?"
Gu Wu said truthfully: "There are rumors in the world that something happened in Bulao Mountain two months ago. Before I went up the mountain, I found out that the local parents came to clean up the mess and took away all the bodies and buried them. When I went there The Everlasting Mountain is empty and nothing has been found. The only clue is that before we arrived, there were some footprints on the ground, as if someone had just left."
Chu Mu rubbed her nose and wondered what she was thinking. Kong Miaozhi winked at Gu Wu, as if he wanted Gu Wu to say something. Chu Mu didn't say anything in his heart. After a while, Chu Mu said: "Okay, tomorrow the fourth and seventh sons and I will go to visit the Li family. Since his adopted son is so persistent, it should be that Mr. Li had something to tell him. He, no matter what it is, must ask clearly tomorrow, this muddy water has flowed, and it must be done beautifully no matter what."
