Chapter 172: Dumb Luck

 Chapter 172: Dumb Luck  

"Little sister, are we just going straight to the government office?"
Seeing Daohua leading Qin Xiao Liu toward the government office, Yan Wenkai hurriedly asked.

Daohua stopped and asked, puzzled, "Why not?"

Yan Wenkai replied, "Shouldn’t we first inform Brother Dong? With his help, things will surely go much more smoothly."

Daohua shook her head. "If money can solve the problem, we should avoid using favors. Owing too many favors can be troublesome. Brother Xiao Liu and their situation isn’t serious; they’ll be released once the ransom is paid. Why trouble others?" 

Upon hearing this, Li Xingnian, who was following behind, glanced at Daohua again, a trace of regret in his eyes.

If Daohua were a boy, just her clarity of thought would ensure she had a bright future.

After some thought, Li Xingnian smiled and asked, "But what if the government office makes things difficult for us because we’re strangers?"

Daohua froze. "Is that really likely? We're just paying the ransom, right?"

Li Xingnian shook his head and said seriously, "You’ve experienced too little, let me explain. The people in the government office can be quite difficult. Even if we pay the ransom, if they want to make trouble, it’ll be easy for them."

He pointed at Qin Xiao Liu.

"Did you not see how smug the person who hit him looked? I bet that person is familiar with someone in the government office. What if they refuse to release them?"

Daohua furrowed her brows. "Well... let’s cross that bridge if we come to it. First, let’s see if we can solve this ourselves. If not, we can go to Xiao Yeyang."

Yan Wenkai paused for a moment. "Why Xiao Yeyang and not Brother Dong? Isn’t Brother Dong easier to deal with than the young prince?"

Without hesitation, Daohua answered, "Because Xiao Yeyang is closer to our family. Brother Dong only got involved because of his connection with Xiao Yeyang, so he’s more like an acquaintance, not someone we can rely on. Honestly, he probably wouldn’t even care about us if it weren’t for Xiao Yeyang."

Yan Wenkai scratched his head. "Is that so?"

Daohua nodded. "Exactly. Fourth brother, think about it. If Xiao Yeyang weren’t around, would Brother Dong have bothered with us?"

Yan Wenkai shook his head.

Daohua shrugged. "Then there you have it. Xiao Yeyang can be a bit proud and hard to approach, but when it comes to family closeness, he’s definitely more familiar with us."

The two of them continued talking as they followed Qin Xiao Liu to the government office.

What no one noticed was that the spot where they had just stopped was right next to a tea house.

At this moment, on the second floor by the window, three well-dressed young men were craning their necks, watching the Yan family walk farther away.

"A familiar stranger, huh..."

Dong Yuanxuan chewed on these words with a bitter smile. "So in Daohua’s mind, I’m just a stranger, huh?"    

Beside him, Su Hongxin curled his lip. "You should be content. At least they brought you up, but me? They didn’t even remember me."

"Heh~"

A cheerful, lighthearted laugh came from beside them. Dong Yuanxuan and Su Hongxin both turned to look at Xiao Yeyang, then exchanged an exasperated glance.

Xiao Yeyang showed no attempt to hide his good mood, raising an eyebrow and casting a sideways glance at them, clearly enjoying the opportunity to one-up them.

Daohua had openly expressed her closeness to him in front of her family, which made him extremely pleased. 

Seeing Xiao Yeyang so happy, Dong Yuanxuan, not wanting to leave him too pleased, said sourly, "Last time, I asked Wenxiu for the formula for the medicinal bath, but he kept dodging the question. Little did I know that Daohua personally gave the formula to the young prince. It’s clear how much of a difference the relationship makes." He sighed dramatically.

Su Hongxin also chimed in, "And it’s not just that. Every time the academy breaks for the holidays, Wenxiu and the others get their share of treats, but us? We can only snatch whatever Wen Tao and Wen Kai have left. Daohua really doesn’t hold back when it comes to treating people differently."

"Heh~"

Dong Yuanxuan let out a chuckle. "Didn't you hear them? We're just 'familiar strangers.' Why would they care whether we're upset or not?"

Seeing the two of them sulking, Xiao Yeyang's mood improved even more.

Daohua had indeed been generous to him—sharing delicious food and useful items, always making sure to prepare a portion for him alongside Wenxiu and the others. As for Dong Yuanxuan and the others, well, they didn’t get such treatment.

Sometimes, it’s better not to know, but once you do, that sense of superiority naturally arises.

Xiao Yeyang didn’t want to push things too far, so he said seriously, "The relationship between me and Daohua, can you two compare to that? We’ve had a bond of life and death."
They had fought human traffickers together, begged for food together, and even lived as beggars together. That friendship was something Daohua had called revolutionary, unbreakable.

After chatting for a while, Dong Yuanxuan noticed that the Yan family was getting farther away and turned to Xiao Yeyang. "Your Highness, should I send someone over to say something?"

Xiao Yeyang thought for a moment and replied, "Daohua wants to handle it herself, so let her. But still, send someone to keep an eye on things." He paused for a moment before adding, "If the government office gives them trouble, just quietly inform me. Don’t let Daohua know."

Upon hearing this, Dong Yuanxuan looked at Xiao Yeyang, a flash of surprise in his eyes.

It seemed that the young prince was taking better care of the Yan family—no, more accurately, he was taking better care of Daohua.

In the past, Xiao Yeyang had been kind to Daohua, but it was nothing more than being slightly nicer than to others. Now, however, he was even mindful of her feelings and concerns.

It wasn’t easy for someone used to being pampered to care about the feelings of others.

Dong Yuanxuan had sensed something had changed during the Lantern Festival, but he wasn’t sure what happened after they got separated. What had occurred between Xiao Yeyang and Daohua that made him so much closer to her?

Lost in thought, Dong Yuanxuan naturally waved over a servant to give a few instructions.

"Alright, let’s go. Uncle should be nearing the border of Zhongzhou province by now!"

Xiao Yeyang glanced back at the direction Daohua and the others had gone before quickly heading out of the teahouse and toward the city gate.

At the government office gate, the gatekeeper was hoping to take the opportunity to collect some bribe money, but when he saw that Daohua and her group were dressed quite well, he grew nervous and didn’t dare speak up, leading them directly into the office.

The Prefect Magistrate didn’t care about these small matters, so the deputy chief received them.

The deputy chief knew Li Xingnian, having bought some watermelon from his family last year.

Knowing that the Li family were wealthy merchants, the deputy chief had the idea of charging a higher ransom.

"The people you want to redeem, Qin Wu and the others, lost their employer's goods, and according to the law, they must repay ten times the amount in silver. Since you want to redeem them, I’ll call the employer to come and have a proper discussion about this."

The employer happened to be familiar with him, so collecting extra ransom was no trouble at all.

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiao Liu’s face changed, and he anxiously said, "Sir, wasn’t it agreed that we would only need to pay one thousand taels of ransom?"

The deputy chief’s expression remained unchanged. "Is that so? I don’t recall. You must have remembered it wrong."

Qin Xiao Liu panicked. Ten times the penalty—how much silver would that be?

Seeing the deputy chief’s attitude, Daohua furrowed her brows, then looked at Yan Wenxiu. "Big Brother, when Father encounters this kind of thing, does he handle it this way?"

Yan Wenxiu glanced at the deputy chief. "Of course not. If someone loses another’s goods, as long as it wasn’t intentional, they only need to pay for the goods' loss. If the employer is unhappy, they might pay additional damages, but I’ve never heard of a tenfold penalty."

Daohua smiled. "Could it be that the laws here in the provincial capital are different from those in Xingzhou?"

The deputy chief listened to their conversation, his eyes flickering before he smiled and asked, "What, do I understand from your words that you have an elder who is an official in the family?"

Yan Wenxiu thought for a moment. There was nothing to hide in their actions, so he politely smiled and replied, "Not at all. My father is the Prefect Magistrate of Xingzhou."   

Upon hearing this, the deputy chief immediately stood up, his attitude doing a complete 180, becoming very friendly. "Ah, I must be getting old and my eyesight’s failing. I couldn’t even recognize someone from my own circle!"

He waved to the guards. "Quick, quick, release them right away!"

Seeing this, Qin Xiao Liu stood frozen, his emotions taking a wild ride from rock bottom to the highest peak.

He had never expected Daohua and the others to be from the family of the Prefect Magistrate. He had thought they were just wealthy merchants at most.

"Did I really just get help from the Prefect Magistrate’s family?"

Before leaving, he had stepped on a piece of dog poop, and his mother had jokingly said he would have "dumb luck." Now, it seemed like she was right!

(End of Chapter)