"You mean the Mountain Lord?" Qiu Su beckoned the Mountain Lord, who was sticking out his tongue, to stand beside her. She looked at Wu Yi and said with a smile, "This hero must have misunderstood something. The Mountain Lord is a dog, and he's quite docile."
"Woof woof!" The mountain lord barked twice at Wu Yi in agreement.
"That's what I said, but he still didn't believe me." Qin Qin pouted and snorted.
Magistrate Qin gave Qin Qin a disapproving look, and Qin Qin snorted and turned her head away.
Wu Yi's bright eyes scanned the mountain lord back and forth, then looked at Qiu Su. Qiu Su looked down at her clothes, flicked the moss off her sleeves, and said, "Why don't you and this hero go to the front hall for a while and I'll change my clothes?"
"Didn't my wife say she was cold and hungry after a whole night? It's time for lunch, so let's eat and talk. Oh, is this Lord Qin? Last night, Qingfeng Village was attacked, and my wife and I couldn't escape in time, so we fell into the pit. Luckily, this dog is quite clever and has been guarding the edge of the pit. I hope Lord Qin can thoroughly investigate this matter."
The expressions on everyone's faces were varied.
County Magistrate Qin and Qin Qin were surprised, Qin Wenkuang frowned and looked slightly disappointed, He Zhuo narrowed his eyes and looked furious, while Zhou Tong, who had just arrived, was all smiles and looked happy.
"Ah, it's good that you found them, it's good that you found them. I'm sorry for the poor young lady and the young master. Don't wander around at night again next time. The people on night duty on the mountain can't always stay awake. What if something really happens?" Zhou Tong turned around and greeted them with a smile, "It's rare for Lord Qin to come up the mountain. Please, let's talk in the main hall. Huang Tao, quickly help the young lady and the new young master to wash up."
Qin Qin followed Qiu Su with a smile, glancing at Pei Yuan every now and then, and pursing her lips in a smile for a long time. Qiu Su couldn't bear it any longer and sighed, "Qin Qin, is something wrong?"
"It's nothing!" Qin Qin shook her head with a smile.
What are you doing following us around? Do you have to watch us take our clothes off? And that other guy, He Zhuo!
"Hmph, idiot!" With nowhere else to vent his anger, He Zhuo could only target Qin Qin.
Qin Qin glared at him, "You're just jealous because Sister Qiu got married! Go ahead and be envious and jealous, you're a million miles below Young Master Pei, only a fool would marry you."
"Hey, why are you calling yourself an idiot? Let's see how you explain this later!" Qiu Su glanced at Qin Qin, whose cheeks were bulging, with a look of sympathy.
He Zhuo crossed his arms and said, "A good man doesn't argue with a woman."
Qinqin's face flushed red, and she was panting heavily, unsure how to retort. Pei Yuan looked around, then took Qiu Su's hand and said, "My husband and I will change our clothes and head over. You two can go ahead first; there's no need to see us off."
Qin Qin remained silent, while He Zhuo let out a soft snort, his face turning as black as the bottom of a pot. Even after Pei Yuan and Qiu Su entered the small building and closed the door behind them, his gaze never left them.
Qin Qin suddenly crossed her arms and laughed, "I know you like Sister Qiu, but Sister Qiu doesn't like you at all. Sister Qiu and Young Master Pei are a perfect match. Humph, you have a sharp tongue! She still got married, didn't she? It's all because of your sharp tongue..."
He Zhuo turned to look at Qin Qin with a stiff face, all his emotions vanished from his eyes, leaving only coldness, which made Qin Qin shiver.
"Don't let me hear the same words again," He Zhuo said coldly.
Qin Qin's smile froze, and she stammered, "You, you, who are you trying to scare!"
Qinqin timidly uttered these words, her spoiled young lady temper flaring up. Her eyes reddened with a hint of grievance, and she tilted her chin up, huffing, "Sister Qiu just doesn't like you. What good will it do if you pester her? She still only sees you as a younger brother! She treats Uncle He as family. If you pester her, it's just... ah!"
Qin Qin let out a short cry and suddenly covered her head and squatted down. He Zhuo withdrew his fist, snorted and said, "I never said I wouldn't hit women!"
Qinqin burst into tears instantly. Hearing the footsteps fade into the distance, she finally cried out, covering her eyes and saying, "She just doesn't like you! Can't you see that? And you won't let others say it? You act pitiful, you act frivolous, but you still can't win her heart! Waaah... He Zhuo, you big idiot! She'd rather choose a stranger than you, and you still can't see that? You still can't see that... Waaah... You don't like me! Only a fool would like you! Waaah... You dare hit me!"
There were quite a few people in the front hall. When Qiu Su and Pei Yuan arrived, the food had already been served one after another. The seat of honor was naturally occupied by Magistrate Qin. The seat to his left was empty. Qiu Su glanced at Wu Yi on the other side, walked over leisurely, and spoke with a bit of the air of a chieftain, "It is rare for Magistrate Qin to come up the mountain in person. Let's eat and chat."
County Magistrate Qin glanced at Wu Yi, noticing his unreadable expression, and coughed, saying, "Chief Qiu..."
"You're too kind, Lord Qin. Just call me Qiu Su."
"Uh, Miss Qiu. Did you go to Black Crow Ridge last night?"
Qiu Su glanced at Wu Yi, frowned slightly, and said, "I've heard that Tong Sheng Escort Agency never fails, and people from all walks of life in the underworld give them a wide berth. How could they have their shipment robbed? I wonder what kind of shipment they were transporting this time? Do they have some kind of enemy?"
"The rules of the escort agency are that we only escort the goods and do not ask what the employer is protecting."
Qiu Su then turned to Magistrate Qin and said, "Lord Qin, you may not know this, but last night I was drinking with He Zhuo in the backyard, and then..." Qiu Su glanced hesitantly at Pei Yuan, who chuckled and continued, "Then I caught them red-handed. My wife is naughty, drinking with someone else behind my back. On the way back, we watched the moon for a while on the back mountain and then we encountered a group of men in black. My wife, what were those men in black trying to steal again?"
Qiu Su, her face darkening, coughed and turned to Huang Tao standing behind her, saying, "Why didn't anyone go to rescue us this morning? Didn't the mountain lord go to call for help?"
Huang Tao winked and said with a smile, "You'll have to ask Uncle Zhou. Uncle Zhou said he's going to train something, and told us to come over later."
Zhou Tong smiled, his eyes narrowing. "Did you have a good night, Miss?"
Look at this atmosphere, it's incredibly harmonious! Magistrate Qin glanced around and said with a smile, "It seems Miss Qiu really hasn't left the mountain stronghold. What do you think, Chief Escort Wu?"
Wu Yi stared at Qiu Su, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said, "I've heard that Chief Qiu is a straightforward person and very familiar with the surrounding mountains. I wonder if you could go to Black Crow Ridge to check on the situation?"
"No problem." Qiu Su managed to maintain a calm expression, but her gaze remained fixed on the food in front of her.
“Miss Qiu.” Qin Wenkuang looked at Pei Yuan and said, “When did Miss Qiu get married? I haven’t heard of it.”
"Young Master Qin, you wouldn't know that, hehe, I was the one who made the connection. Doesn't it seem pretty reliable? Right? Huh?"
Everyone fell silent, but Magistrate Qin looked outside the hall and asked, "Where did Qin Qin go?"
"Oh, with He Zhuo." As soon as Qiu Su finished speaking, Qin Qin ran in with a smile, squeezed next to Magistrate Qin, and said with a smile and lowered eyelids, "Father, I went to see the spring in the back mountain. Sister Qiu even put up a stone tablet by the spring and named it Qingyuan. The spring water is so clear, and it is the source of the water, so it is quite fitting."
Qiu Su glanced at her slightly swollen eyelids, smiled, and said, "Qinqin, if you like, you can stay a few more days."
Thus, a case investigation had completely turned into a banquet. The banquet was relatively harmonious. Qiu Su expressed her admiration for Wu Sanye, the head of the Tongsheng Escort Agency, who was also Wu Yi's father. She subtly indicated her firm support for Magistrate Qin's leadership, expressed her willingness to assist the government in the investigation, and also expressed her regret and dissatisfaction regarding the robbery of the Tongsheng Escort Agency's caravan.
The mountain lord was very easygoing. During the meal, he asked Qiu Su for meat bones several times. At her prompting, he obediently lay down next to Wu Yi and waited to pick up the scraps of meat. However, Wu Yi kept his mouth shut and didn't even drop a grain of rice while eating. The mountain lord grumbled for a long time before reluctantly running off to play.
Wu Yi was rather surprised; he wasn't in a hurry to leave and even expressed a desire to see Qingfeng Village after the meal. Qiu Su was naturally happy to oblige, personally leading the Qin family members and Wu Yi on a tour of the village. Qiu Su noticed that Qin Qin wasn't very talkative, and since she hadn't seen He Zhuo at all, and with Magistrate Qin present, she didn't say much.
The back of the mountain stronghold was spacious, and a path led from the woods to the cave where the treasure was hidden. Qiu Su wasn't worried that he would find it, so she followed his lead and wandered along. When they reached the path behind the mountain, Wu Yi stopped and asked, "Is this the way down the mountain?"
"No. There's only one path leading up and down the mountain, the Qingfeng Path. This is only half a path; it ends at the cliff behind the mountain. All the trash on the mountain is thrown down from here." Qiu Su smiled as she saw the mountain lord chasing a gray rabbit around with glee not far away. "The mountain lord has a good nose. If Chief Escort Wu doesn't mind, you can take it with you and give it a try."
Wu Yi turned to look and saw the mountain lord chasing a rabbit with great enthusiasm, weaving around. The mountain lord hadn't caught it after a while, and having not eaten enough at noon, his temper was flaring. He grinned and sped up. Wu Yi narrowed his eyes, Qiu Su tightened her grip, and the next second, the rabbit darted towards a tree. Reaching it, it nimbly turned and ran away. The mountain lord, unable to dodge in time, crashed into the tree with a "thud." He stood up, swayed, then sat down again, shaking his head and whimpering.
Even though they looked the same, Wu Yi still couldn't reconcile the image of this silly dog with that of a fierce wolf. Perhaps thinking that with such a silly dog, the owner couldn't be very clever either, he politely said, "I'm sorry to bother Chief Qiu. I might bother you again in the future."