Lady Li returned faster than Zhu Changle had expected.
Before the Fourth Young Miss could ask, she explained the reason, "As soon as I went out, I happened to meet Madam Xu, the housekeeper of Lady Luo. Madam Xu said she was just about to go shopping and offered to show me around. She's familiar with the shopkeepers, so we bought everything quickly and didn't waste any time, that's why I'm back so soon."
Zhu Changle, already suspicious of Luo Ding, immediately doubted this coincidence. "Where is the shop located, and were there any other customers?"
"It's the first shop as you enter the West Market. There was no one inside when we went."
"What about the other shops? Did you notice anything?"
Lady Li thought for a moment, "There were some, but not many. Madam Xu said the West Market only gets busy every ten days when they have a fair."
Zhu Changle didn't ask any more questions and asked her to show her the purchased items.
Lady Zhang followed, as she needed to understand some things to avoid causing trouble.
The bought items were neatly placed on the ground. Lady Li opened the bags, "These few bags are all rice."
Zhu Changle squatted down and grabbed a handful, feeling it in her palm. It was white, long, and thin - indeed rice.
"Is it the same as what we have at home?"
"It's a bit different. This is indica rice, while at home in the Capital City, our family estate produces japonica rice," Lady Zhang, who had managed the household for many years, noticed the difference at a glance.
No wonder the taste had been slightly different from home these past two days. Zhu Changle thought of something and looked up to ask, "Has the food we've been eating these two days also been sent by Lady Luo?"
"Yes, most of what's in the kitchen is from her. I thought since we just arrived, it wouldn't be appropriate to refuse her kindness, so I accepted everything. I also sent her some things we brought from the Capital City." Lady Zhang paused and then asked, "Is there something wrong with the rice?"
"Mother, do you know that last night we searched the entire county town and couldn't find any household with rice?"
Lady Zhang couldn't believe it, "The entire town had none?"
"Yes." Zhu Changle put the rice back and looked at the other bags, "Is there only one type?"
"Yes, the shopkeeper said they only sell the best rice."
"And only the best salt too?"
Lady Li opened another bag nearby, "There are two types of salt. One is the same as what we ate in the Capital City, and the other is locally produced. The shopkeeper said poor families who can't afford well salt eat this type, so he sells both."
"Sounds reasonable and well-explained." Zhu Changle looked at the other items like oil, sauce, and vinegar. "Are these different from what we used in the Capital City?"
"The quality is somewhat inferior."
Standing up, Zhu Changle dusted off her hands, "Interesting. Are they trying to keep the County Magistrate in a bubble?"
Lady Zhang was confused, "What do you mean?"
"I'll investigate further. Mother, you should continue your normal interactions with Lady Luo, as if you know nothing."
"Alright, I understand."
The doorway darkened, and Zhu Changle turned to look, immediately smiling, "Qiuli, you're back! I've eaten all the crabs, didn't leave a single one for you!"
Qiuli entered and bowed to Lady Zhang, who gestured for him to rise, covering her mouth as she smiled, "It seems those in the kitchen are all saved for your father."
"Of course they are." Zhu Changle lifted her chin and snorted, "I'm off to do important business. Mother, why don't you go steam some crabs for Father?"
Qiuli bowed once more and followed her out.
Lady Zhang walked out of the kitchen a step behind them, watching the two walk side by side and turning over several thoughts in her mind. Changle was of marriageable age, and even if they hadn't thought about looking for a match in any of the great families, when a suitable candidate appeared before their eyes, she couldn't help but consider it.
She just didn't know if this Qiuli was already betrothed. Although his family background was unknown, his manner of speech suggested he was not of low birth.
"Achoo!" Just as she stepped into the guest hall, Zhu Changle let out a big sneeze. Rubbing her nose, she muttered, "Is Master thinking of me, or is Dingding cursing me?"
The corners of Qiuli's lips turned up, wondering how she always managed to find someone to blame for everything.
Because male guests were staying in the guesthouse, a young manservant was assigned to attend to them. After serving tea and seeing that the Fourth Young Miss had no other instructions, he withdrew.
"There's a black market at the border of Yunbei and Gu'an once a month. The next one is in four days."
Zhu Changle didn't ask how he got this information. "The border area? Isn't that where we were ambushed before entering Yunbei?"
"Yes."
"In that case, I'm starting to suspect that area is controlled by people from Gu'an."
"It is."
Zhu Changle was surprised, "Really?"
Qiuli nodded and shared the second piece of information, "There's something wrong with the water bandits."
This was unexpected for Zhu Changle. Yunbei had been isolated and abandoned because of the rovers and water bandits. If there was a problem with the water bandits, didn't that mean Yunbei's isolation was deliberate?
"Do you know the reason?"
"We need to check the county records to confirm."
"We'll check tonight. We're going to be very busy tonight." Zhu Changle rubbed her hands together excitedly, looking as if she would welcome even more tasks to keep her busier.
"I have some guesses on my end too. Let's discuss everything after we confirm some things tonight."
Qiuli didn't ask for more details. What he cared about more was, "Crabs?"
"I saved some, I saved some! I kept all the biggest ones! They must be steaming right now, we'll have food soon."
Having received this news, Zhu Changle didn't mind at all that he hadn't taken her along on his outing. She understood he didn't want her to know about his background, and knowing it might not be good for her father, she could restrain her curiosity.
Qiuli fanned himself with his fan, also settling down.
It was still early, so Zhu Changle changed out of her red clothes and disguised herself. Her face was made to look sallow like the locals, making her indistinguishable from them at a glance. She then swaggered in and out of the West Market, keeping an eye on the first shop for half a day before returning at nightfall.
Coincidentally, Dingding returned almost at the same time as her.
The two met in the inner courtyard, and Dingding pointed at her, laughing uproariously. The commotion drew a crowd of servants, who all couldn't help but laugh when they saw her.
Zhu Changning frowned, about to reprimand them, but thought better of it and swallowed his words. He waved the servants away and approached, saying in a low voice, "Hurry and clean yourself up. What kind of appearance is this?"
Zhu Changle made a face and ran back to her room. Aunt Feng had already found clean clothes for her, and servants soon brought in water.
"Aunt Feng, is there anything unusual about Tang Ming?" Zhu Changle asked while splashing water.
"The people coming and going seem normal, but he has some issues. His gait doesn't match his apparent age."
"His beard is fake too. He's not over thirty." Zhu Changle paused, "We won't hide from him anymore. I suspect the Deputy Magistrate more than him now. We're gathering more and more clues, and if we finally confirm it's really this person causing problems, we need to find decisive evidence to bring him down. This evidence must be damning, otherwise not only will we fail to remove him, but it might backfire on my father."
"Yes." Aunt Feng stepped forward to arrange her young miss's hair. "I saw Qiuli during the day."
"You didn't follow him, did you?"
"No, he noticed me."
Zhu Changle turned around, "He noticed you even when you weren't moving?"
"Yes."
Zhu Changle raised her estimation of Qiuli's abilities another notch. If they were to be serious, even she wasn't a match for Aunt Feng, yet Qiuli had spotted Aunt Feng when she was motionless and concealed. It showed how profound his skills were.
"Young Miss, you should be somewhat cautious of him."
"If he really wanted to do something, being cautious wouldn't help." However, Zhu Changle was open-minded about it. "Let's just treat him as a friend. Don't scheme, don't have a guilty conscience, act with integrity. Even if we become enemies someday, we can still hold our heads high."
Aunt Feng smiled. This was just like her young miss.
