Chapter 16

In the bustling street, after Ye Yu said this, it suddenly became much quieter. Liu Yuanshan turned around, carefully examined Ye Yu for a moment, and finally asked with a hint of doubt, "You are Ye Yu?"

"Oh? How did the county magistrate know the name of this humble citizen? I am truly flustered!"

Liu Yuanshan lightly stroked his beard, showing a look of disdain, and said with a light snort, "Although I have not met you before, I have heard that at Lu Daren's birthday banquet, someone flattered and tried to curry favor, making all the guests feel inferior! Although I did not attend the banquet that day, the name Ye Yu is well-known to me!"

Ye Yu laughed dryly twice, thinking that his lame legs had become a mark, and then said with a smile, "To be remembered by the county magistrate is not a good thing for this humble citizen!"

"Wangcai, since someone has come forward to testify for this woman, what do you have to say!?" Liu Yuanshan glanced at Ye Yu with disgust and then turned his gaze to Wangcai.

Wangcai's face darkened slightly, his eyes darting around, and then he clasped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, this does not prove anything. Perhaps this person is a relative of the peasant woman! Or perhaps... I have offended someone who wants to take this opportunity to seek revenge!"

"What a cunning fellow, still trying to argue in the face of evidence! Bring him in for questioning!"

"Your Excellency, you are wronging me! Your Excellency, you are wronging me!"

"Liu Daren, since this Wangcai claims to be wronged, why not let this humble citizen make him admit his guilt? It won't take much of your time!" Ye Yu saw that Wangcai was not convinced and felt a surge of anger.

Liu Yuanshan frowned slightly, stood with his hands behind his back, and said in a deep voice, "Oh? Very well!"

"Thank you, Your Excellency! Today, this humble citizen will examine this goose to see who it belongs to..."

Ye Yu's words immediately drew a burst of laughter and curses. People had seen human trials before, but how could a goose, which cannot speak, be examined?

Liu Yuanshan, upon hearing this, snorted coldly, "Ye Yu, this goose can be used as a gift with its smooth tongue, do you think you can make this goose speak with your smooth tongue?"

"Right and wrong will be clear, Your Excellency and everyone else will see!" Ye Yu said, turning his gaze to Wangcai, "You said this is the goose raised by your master, so the feed given to it must not be too poor, right?"

"Of course, my master feeds this goose with bran every day... Look at how fat this goose is, how could it be raised by this wicked woman?" Wangcai said with a righteous and loud voice.

After listening to Wangcai, Ye Yu did not refute him but whispered a few words to Guo Xiaotian. Then Guo Xiaotian left the crowd and returned in a moment.

At this time, Guo Xiaotian, holding a white cloth and a kitchen knife, first laid the white cloth on the ground according to Ye Yu's instructions, and then tied the legs of the two geese and placed them on the white cloth.

Finally, Guo Xiaotian stood at a distance with the knife, reciting the words Ye Yu had taught him: "Goose, goose, causing much trouble, today the young master will examine you, all because of your sins, leading the thief to have evil intentions, making the owner cry. According to the law, you should be sentenced to death, to be enjoyed in the stomach of a person."

After saying this, Guo Xiaotian suddenly quickened his steps, charging at the two tied geese like a fierce beast, and shouted, "If you want to avoid being cut, quickly defecate a pile of feces."

After saying this, he threw the kitchen knife next to the goose. Guo Xiaotian then bent down, put his hand near the goose's buttocks, and pressed with his fingers. Instantly, the two geese, frightened by Guo Xiaotian, defecated one after another.

The crowd did not understand the meaning, thinking it was a performance, but Liu Yuanshan's sunken eyes showed a glimmer of interest, and he muttered, "This boy has some skills..."

"Your Excellency, the matter is now clear!" Ye Yu smiled and bowed to Liu Yuanshan.

"What is clear?" Wangcai, seeing Liu Yuanshan nod in agreement, was suddenly panicked.

Seeing that Wangcai still did not understand, Ye Yu explained, "You said your master feeds these geese with bran every day, but look at the feces they have defecated, all of which are dark green.

I believe everyone here who has raised poultry knows that this is the feces after eating grass! If the feed was bran, the feces should contain bran residue..."

"This... Your Excellency, spare my life!" Wangcai, seeing that the matter was exposed, hurriedly knelt down and begged for mercy.

Liu Yuanshan glared at Wangcai with hatred and snorted, "It is too late to realize your mistake now! Bring him to the prison, charge him with false accusation and assault!"

As soon as he said this, the bailiffs locked Wangcai and took him to the prison. Liu Yuanshan instructed a bailiff to note down the peasant woman's address, and once the case against Wangcai was resolved, the compensation would be sent to her residence.

"Ye Yu, you truly have a connection with this 'goose'!" Liu Yuanshan came close to Ye Yu, a playful look on his face. However, at this moment, Liu Yuanshan did not seem to dislike Ye Yu as much as before, but rather had a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

"Hehe! This humble citizen also thinks so!" Ye Yu laughed dryly, thinking that Liu Yuanshan's misunderstanding of him was quite deep. This made Ye Yu instantly think of Pan Zhi, and it seemed that in Qingliu County, only Pan Zhi could understand him.

Liu Yuanshan looked deeply at Ye Yu and then turned to leave with several bailiffs.

Seeing Liu Yuanshan's arrogance, Guo Xiaotian snorted, "This county magistrate is indeed too arrogant. You helped him out of a difficult situation, but he treats you like this!"

"Eh, it's no big deal! Xiaotian, go buy the goose from that auntie, and when we get home, let Qiulan make bamboo shoot stewed goose meat for us to taste..."

...

In no time, it was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Su Quanzhong returned to Qingliu County on that day. When Ye Yu learned from Su Quanzhong that everything had gone smoothly, his heart, which had been hanging, finally settled.

Although the dyeing workshop's progress had continued during these days, and he had been visiting various shops in the city, what he had been worrying about was whether Su Quanzhong's mission would succeed.

During these days, Su Quanzhong had traveled to other counties in Chuzhou and even, through his decades of connections, made contact with Shouzhou and other places.

When Su Quanzhong visited the owners of silk and cloth businesses with the samples prepared by Ye Yu, he praised the quality of the cloth and was also very enthusiastic about the low price.

Therefore, when Su Quanzhong proposed placing an order, the owners of many shops were very enthusiastic.

Merchants are driven by profit, and the cloth supply in Chuzhou and nearby areas is mostly provided by the Pan family. Now, with cloth of the same quality as the Pan family's but at a lower price, this is what they most hope to see.

This was what Ye Yu and Su Quanzhong had discussed beforehand. Ye Yu knew that negotiations with Li Tong and others would be difficult, but he still persistently visited them to confuse the Pan family.

He wanted the Pan family to think that Ye Yu was just a young man with no business experience or foresight, and that his connections were limited to one county. This would make the Pan family believe that as long as they controlled Qingliu County, everything would be safe.

What the Pan family did not expect was that after the first batch of cloth was dyed, Ye Yu secretly discussed the sales channels with Su Quanzhong.

When Ye Yu proposed using the dyeing workshop's location near the main road to sell the dyed cloth to other places, Su Quanzhong gave strong support and volunteered to contact merchants in other counties.

What Ye Yu needed to do during these days was to try to keep the Pan family from knowing their intentions. Otherwise, if the Pan family took it seriously, with their influence in the cloth industry, everything would be in vain.

Now, as long as the Mid-Autumn Festival passed, the cloth from the dyeing workshop would be transported to various places through the main road. By then, as long as the merchants in various places recognized the quality, even if the Pan family realized it, it would be too late!

In the Su family courtyard, colorful lanterns hung, making the Mid-Autumn night particularly festive. The full moon hung in the sky like a plate, and the pavilion was filled with delicious food, including the mooncakes that Ye Yu loved the most.

"Uncle Su, if it were not for your help, I would not know what to do! I raise a glass to you, Uncle Su!" Ye Yu raised his wine glass, full of gratitude.

Su Quanzhong laughed heartily, "Nephew, you are too modest. If it were not for the high quality of the cloth you dyed, how could I have convinced those merchants? In the end, I am just a helper!"

"Once the first batch of goods is delivered, everything will fall into place! In this way, even if the Pan family wants to stop us, it will be difficult!"

"Exactly! This time, I carried the samples to various counties, and the shopkeepers not only placed orders but also promised that as long as your dyeing workshop continues to supply, they are willing to sign long-term contracts for long-term cooperation! Now, what you need to do is to ensure that your dyeing workshop does not stop production!" Su Quanzhong gently patted Ye Yu's shoulder, smiling with high spirits.

"Uncle Su, you are absolutely right!"

Su Quanzhong narrowed his eyes, looking at Ye Yu with a slightly drunk expression, and said meaningfully, "I have no son, only one daughter, Yueyun. My daughter lost her mother when she was young, so she is a pitiful child..."

Ye Yu was listening carefully to Su Quanzhong's advice, as he was not skilled in business and could benefit greatly from listening to Su Quanzhong's business insights. However, as he listened, he wondered why the conversation turned to family matters.

Seeing Su Quanzhong's unusual gaze, Ye Yu immediately understood that this was the look of a father-in-law looking at his son-in-law, so he coughed and said, "Uncle Su, you are drunk!"

Ye Yu's evasive words made Su Quanzhong's expression turn serious, and he said solemnly, "Nephew, you are a smart person. I have been helping you with all my efforts. If we talk about business, it is because I believe you are a promising talent; if we talk about personal feelings, it is because I consider you as a son-in-law..."

At this point, Ye Yu did not know what to do. He did not expect Su Quanzhong to intend to marry his daughter to him.

This made him think of a saying, "Merchants do not rise early without profit." He had anticipated that Su Quanzhong would have some ulterior motives, but he did not expect that Su Quanzhong's motive was him!

Ye Yu looked at Su Quanzhong speechlessly and finally sighed, "Uncle Su, you are the most successful businessman! However, I have just experienced a family change and only want to establish my career! I want to get back everything I should have! As for marriage, I am still young, and we can discuss it later!"

Saying this, Ye Yu glanced at the corridor and then stood up respectfully, "It is late, and I cannot hold my liquor! I will take my leave first!"

After Guo Xiaotian pushed Ye Yu out of the Su family, Su Quanzhong nodded and looked at the moon, muttering, "Daughter, did you hear that?"

As soon as he said this, Su Yueyun walked out from the corner of the corridor, her voice slightly sad and gentle, "I heard it!"

Seeing his daughter's sad face, Su Quanzhong comforted her, "Yes! But what he said is not without reason. A man cannot establish a family without a career. Although he did not agree, he did not refuse either! You don't have to be disappointed. We can discuss this later..."