Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 59 Yang Erlang's Skillful Hands
The Lu's Mule and Horse Shop seemed unusually quiet at night.

This place is located deep in an alley, and guests staying here often go out for night tours of Lin'an, so the hotel is naturally much quieter.

The door of the main room of the mule and horse shop was tightly closed, and the two little brothers Cheng'an and Chengqing were lying on the crack of the door with their buttocks sticking out.

There were several wooden stools for people to sit on in the yard. Two patrol soldiers from the wing office were sitting on them. They occasionally looked at each other with complicated expressions, as if they were a little nervous, but also a little excited that they could not suppress.

The lights in the main room were dim.

Old Man Lu sat in a chair with his head down, staring at the ground.

Aunt Xue stood beside Old Man Lu, her anxious eyes following the figure pacing back and forth in the main room.

The fat man pacing back and forth was her brother Xue Liang.

A dark-skinned young man, about seventeen or eighteen years old, squatted on the ground, holding Grandpa Dog in his arms and gently stroking the old dog's fur.

The old dog squinted his eyes comfortably and licked his little master's hand with his tongue from time to time.

Aunt Xue couldn't help but break the silence in the room: "Second brother, you are the magistrate of the wing office, can't you control two shop soldiers? Can't you just stop them from talking?"

Xue Liang scratched his crooked bun and said with a wry smile, "My dear sister, if it were as simple as you think, wouldn't it be nice?"

Xue Liang sighed heavily and said, "Although the soldiers are under the management of our wing office, they are under the jurisdiction of the imperial guards.

"We in the township government can only dispatch them, but we have no control over their transfers and salaries. Do you think they are afraid of us?"

Father Lu suddenly raised his head and said in a buzzing voice: "It's just a cat that was bitten to death. How big a deal can it be! No matter how powerful Qin is, can he ask us to pay with our lives?"

"Brother-in-law, is it useful for you to say these angry words to me? Yes, they can't ask us to pay with our lives, but it's not unfair to beat our old dog to death, right?"

"How can it not be unfair? It's unfair! It's so unfair! Who told it to run to our house and snatch food from Master Dog? It deserves to be bitten to death." The young man hugged the old dog's neck and said angrily.

Xue Liang sighed, "Brother Ya, that was Prime Minister Qin's cat. Look how the whole Lin'an Prefecture was in a state of panic after Prime Minister Qin lost his cat.

"Even the imperial guards went to the streets to help Prime Minister Qin find his cat. What a big deal! Now our dog has killed Prime Minister Qin's cat, and Prime Minister Qin didn't even have to say a word.

"Hey! Those officials who flatter us will try every possible means to bring trouble to our family.

"Brother Duck, this old dog is definitely not going to survive, and our family will not be able to live well in the future."

Father Lu frowned and said, "Xue Liang, if we give those two soldiers some money, can they shut up?"

Xue Liang glanced at him and said helplessly: "The prefectural government has offered a reward of one thousand strings of cash for this cat. Brother-in-law, can you afford one thousand strings of cash?"

Father Lu took a deep breath.

Xue Liang said: "Besides, we have already given the order. If we can't find the cat, we will be beaten with sticks. Even if you can pay as much as the reward, will they be willing to take it?"

Old Man Lu was silent.

You can marry a wife with more than a hundred strings of coins, but why would you want a thousand strings of coins for a cat?

One thousand strings of cash would mean the Lu family would go bankrupt!
Lu Ya muttered, "It's all my uncle's fault. You said you would come to our house, so why did you bring two soldiers with you? Otherwise, how could people see the dead cat?"

Xue Liang angrily said: "Yes, it's all your uncle's fault. But now you just blame your uncle to death, then everything will be fine?"

Aunt Xue punched her son on the shoulder and scolded him, "How dare you talk to your uncle like that, you rascal.

She turned to Xue Liang again and said, "Liangzi, don't bother with that little bastard. Help me figure this out. Is there really no other way?"

Xue Liang slumped down in his chair and said listlessly, "What else can I do? Let's hand over the old dog first, but are you willing to do that?"

"Of course not. Lord Dog saved my life!"

Lu Ya hugged the old dog tightly. He had a premonition that he might not be able to protect the old dog anymore, and tears welled up in his eyes.

The old dog had no idea that danger was coming and even stuck out its tongue to lick his face diligently.

Lu Ya pushed it away in disgust, then immediately hugged it tightly in his arms.

Xue Liang said angrily: "Then what do you say we should do? Because of a beast, we can't even live our lives?" Xue Liang was about to take off his shoes and hit him. Lu Ya stiffened his neck and didn't try to dodge.

Cheng'an and Chengqing were watching through the crack of the door when Chengqing was slapped on the butt.

The two brothers looked back and saw Yang Yuan bending over. He said with a smile, "What are you two looking at? So sneaky?"

Lu Chengan said, "Second Brother Yang, my uncle scolded my brother and made him cry."

"Really? Let me see."

Yang Yuan carried the two little guys away, took a look through the crack in the door, and then pushed the door open.

Lu Ya looked up and couldn't help but asked happily: "Second brother?"

Yang Yuan smiled and greeted him, "Uncle, I see the sky isn't cloudy yet, why are you calling now?"

Yang Yuan turned around, pushed out Lu Chengan's little head that was sticking in, and closed the door again.

Yang Yuan greeted Old Man Lu and his wife, and then smiled at Lu Ya and said, "Brother Ya, what trouble have you gotten yourself into?"

Old Man Lu sighed and told the whole story.

Xue Liang said angrily, "I was walking by with two soldiers. I came in to ask for a drink of water, but we ran into them. If it was just me, it would be fine, but those two soldiers... oh!"

Yang Yuan was surprised and asked, "Is the cat that Lord Gou bit to death the one that everyone in Lin'an City is looking for now?"

Xue Liang nodded gloomily: "Yes! That's the one. The cat in Prime Minister Qin's house has a matchmaker mole in its ear.

"This mark has never been told to anyone. I've seen it. The one that Lord Dog killed had it on its ear."

When Yang Yuan heard this, he couldn't help but feel that the situation was tricky.

If a beloved pet of an ordinary family was bitten to death, there would be people who would not give up and would go to the door crying, making a fuss and beating the cat. What’s more, this was Qin Hui’s cat.

If you ask me how serious the situation is, it doesn't seem to be that serious. As long as we hand over Lord Dog, will the Qin family really not give in?

But...will Brother Duck agree?
For a moment, Yang Yuan couldn't help but feel helpless.

How come I'm like the NPC who gives out quests in the game, and can trigger the plot no matter who I meet?
The problem is that I have to solve the problems I assign myself, which is... a bit annoying.

Wait..., mission?

When Yang Yuan thought of the mission, an idea suddenly came to his mind.

If we analyze this from the perspective of crisis public relations, can this issue be resolved? And how can it be resolved?
Yang Yuan suddenly understood, and as he thought about it, a smile gradually appeared on his face.

Crisis is crisis, but there are opportunities in crisis!

If I can resolve this matter satisfactorily, do I have to worry that my "Youqiusi" won't be a big success?

Yang Yuan immediately said, "Uncle, we definitely won't hand it over to Lord Gou.

"But this matter cannot be concealed. Since it cannot be concealed, why should we wait for others to report it?"

Xue Liang was stunned: "Erlang, what do you mean by this? Are you asking me to report it and get the reward?"

Yang Yuan shook his head and said, "What I mean is, since this trouble cannot be hidden, let's find a way to turn it into someone else's trouble. That way, won't we have nothing to do with it?"

Xue Liang asked in confusion: "How do you turn your own troubles into other people's troubles? Tell me quickly."

Yang Yuan said confidently, "Uncle, take those two soldiers back to the wing office immediately.

"When you meet Du Suoyou, tell him openly that the cat of Prime Minister Qin was bitten to death by the dog of a commoner."

Xue Jiezi's eyes widened as he asked, "And then? Don't keep us in suspense. Tell me now!"

(End of this chapter)