Chapter 173: A Stroke of Good Luck

 Chapter 173: A Stroke of Good Luck 

In the dim and damp prison cell, Qin Wu and several villagers from Pan Mountain Village sat in despair, waiting for fate to decide their future.

"Fifth Brother, do you think we can ever go home?" A young man in his twenties lay motionless on the cold floor, his eyes vacant as he stared blankly at the small window on the wall.

Qin Wu kept his face stern and his lips pressed together, remaining silent.

The young man suddenly chuckled absentmindedly. "Yuniang is still waiting for me at home. I wonder if she’s settling in well, now that she just married into my family."

Upon hearing this, a look of guilt and regret crossed Qin Wu’s face.

"Shisan, stop talking!" someone else interjected. The more he spoke, the more they felt the pain of wanting to return home.

After a while, a tall man of slightly older age moved closer to Qin Wu. "Fifth Brother, do you think Xiao Liu can come up with a plan to save us?"

Hearing this, the others in the cell all turned their eyes toward them, their gazes filled with hope.

Even Qin Shisan, who had been lying on the floor, sat up. "Xiao Liu is so clever; he must have a way to save us, right?"

Seeing the expectation in everyone's eyes, Qin Wu struggled and shook his head. His voice was hoarse as he said, "What can he do? We're in this city, unfamiliar with everything, and we don't have any connections to ask for help."

Instantly, the light in everyone’s eyes dimmed.

"Are we really going to be exiled and never see our families again?"

Someone collapsed, burying their face in their knees and began to sob quietly.

Listening to the suppressed crying in the cell, Qin Wu’s heart felt like it was being thrown into a boiling pot of oil. The pain was so intense it made it hard to breathe.

Just then, the guards arrived.

"Get up, get up, quickly!"

Seeing the guards open the prison door, Qin Wu and the others were confused.

"Sir, didn’t you say we still had a few days? Why are we being exiled now?"

Although they all knew that Xiao Liu probably couldn’t come up with a plan, they still clung to a sliver of hope.

Hoping that fate would show them mercy. Hoping for their ancestors’ blessing.

The guard looked at the panicking Qin Wu and the others with a speechless expression. "Exiled? Who said anything about exile? Get moving, come with me. Don’t waste time in the cell. It’s been tight these days."

Upon hearing this, Qin Wu and the others were stunned.

If they weren’t being exiled, then why were they being asked to leave?

Having spent so many years on the move, Qin Wu was the first to snap out of it. He quickly approached the guard, bowing and asking, "Sir, what’s going on here?"

Seeing Qin Wu’s polite attitude, the guard smiled. "You guys are in luck. Your brother, somehow managed to get the son and daughter of the Prefect Magistrate of Xingzhou involved. They’re already negotiating to redeem you."

At this, Qin Wu and the others were completely dumbfounded.

Since when had Xiao Liu become so capable?

Seeing their dazed expressions, the guard shook his head. "Alright, stop wasting time. Follow me."

Qin Wu quickly came to his senses and motioned for his companions to follow.

Soon, they found themselves in the main hall, where they saw Xiao Liu and Daohua, along with the others.

"Fifth Brother!"

Upon seeing Qin Wu and the others, Qin Xiao Liu immediately ran over, both laughing and crying as he looked them over. 

Qin Wu glanced at Daohua and the others. He didn’t recognize her either, and he wanted to ask Qin Xiao Liu what was going on. However, he felt it wasn’t the right time for questions, so he just stood there in silence.

Daohua, noticing the injuries on Qin Wu and the others, furrowed her brows and looked at the guards. "Did the officials torture them?"

The guard immediately shook his head. "We didn’t do it. They got injured while fighting bandits over goods."

Daohua didn’t press further. Instead, she reached into her pouch to take out some silver.

"What are you doing?" Li Xingnian immediately stopped her. "With your uncle here, you shouldn’t be paying!"

Daohua smiled. "I don’t need to. Of course, it’s for Uncle to pay. But if I have silver, why should I use yours?" She took out two banknotes, each worth five hundred taels of silver.

At once, Yan Wenkai leaned in. "Little sister, where did you get so many silver notes?"

Daohua smiled. "Uncle gave them to me."

Yan Wenkai immediately complained, "Uncle is biased! Why did he give them only to you?"

Daohua chuckled. "Because I’m the one people love to look at, and flowers bloom where I go." She patted Yan Wenkai’s shoulder. "Fourth Brother, accept your fate. In this life, you can’t compare to me."

Li Xingnian and Yan Wenxiu laughed and shook their heads as Daohua teased Li Wenkai.

"Big Brother!"

Daohua handed the silver notes to Yan Wenxiu, asking him to handle the transaction with the local official.

Yan Wenxiu glanced at Daohua. He knew the silver was from the profits Daohua made by selling the grape wine recipe. "I’ll tell Mother when I get back."

Daohua replied, "Of course, even if Big Brother didn’t mention it, I would ask Madam Li for reimbursement. The guards we hired were for the Yan family, after all."

Li Xingnian tapped Daohua lightly on the head and smiled. "At your age, what do you need so much silver for?"

Daohua grinned. "I want to buy a manor!"

Li Xingnian responded, "Uncle gave you three manors and a shop. Is that not enough?"

Daohua had shared her grape wine recipe with the Li family, and naturally, they had treated her well. Knowing she liked manors, Li Xingchang had given her three recently purchased manors and a shop. They originally planned to use these properties, considering Xingzhou was under her brother-in-law's administration, but now, since Daohua had them, they would have to buy more.

Daohua replied, "Second Uncle, would you complain if there was too much silver?"

"Uh..." Li Xingnian decided to remain silent.

At this point, Daohua walked over to Qin Wu and the others.

"Uncle Qin Wu!"

Qin Wu had not recognized Daohua at first, but as soon as she called him "Uncle Qin Wu," memories of the clever little boy she once was flooded back to him.

"You’re Daohua?"

Seeing that Qin Wu still remembered her, Daohua smiled and nodded. "Yes, yes, it’s me, Daohua. Your memory is much better than Xiao Liu’s. He didn’t recognize me at first."

Qin Xiao Liu awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "I remember! It’s just that back then you were dressed as a boy. Now, seeing you as a girl, I didn’t recognize you right away."

Qin Wu seemed a little dazed. He didn’t expect that a small act of kindness from years ago would result in such a big reward for them.

Daohua smiled and looked at Qin Wu. "Uncle Qin Wu, I told brother Xiao Liu before that I wanted you all to come to my house and work as guards. Are you willing?"

Qin Xiao Liu immediately nodded. "Yes, I’ve already agreed."

Qin Wu, still in a daze, looked at Daohua and then at Yan Wenxiu, who was chatting with the local official. He immediately bent his body and said, "It’s an honor for us."

Behind him, Qin Shisan and the others looked just as surprised and unable to believe what they were hearing.

Only a moment ago, they were despairing, waiting to be exiled. And now, they were going to work at the Prefect Magistrate’s family? Was this divine intervention from their ancestors?

At that moment, Yan Wenxiu finished his discussion with the local official and came over. "Alright, we can leave now."

It wasn’t until they had actually walked out of the government office that Qin Wu and the others were sure they weren’t dreaming.

Daohua noticed the injuries on everyone and thought for a moment. She turned to Li Xingnian. "Uncle, let’s go back tomorrow. We should let them treat their injuries and rest first."

Li Xingnian readily agreed. "Alright, let’s head back to the Li residence. I’ll have someone fetch a physician."

(End of chapter)