False evidence

Chapter 207 Someone's Around
"Crash..."

I walked to the counter and emptied everything from my backpack onto it.

This time, not only was Cao Xinyun visibly angry, but Cao Jinxiu's face also changed color.

"I don't care if you're the Third or Tenth Master, jumping around in the toilet—you've gone too far!" Cao Xinyun roared.

Ignoring him, I neatly packed all the items except the jewelry into my backpack, then looked at Cao Jinxiu:

"I was rude, but there are some things that should and shouldn't be done."

I swept the jewelry and silver coins on the table forward with one hand and smiled at Cao Jinxiu, saying, "Let's store them in the cabinet for now!"

Cao Jinxiu stood up, looked me up and down, and smiled bitterly: "Several years ago, someone did the same thing as you."

"What does it have to do with me?"

Cao Jinxiu did not answer immediately, but instead, like a responsible accountant, she calmly and slowly sorted and categorized the jewelry piece by piece.

She suddenly picked up something, raised her eyelids and looked at me: "This is a woman's thing!"

I laughed, utterly arrogant: "On the surface, apart from silver dollars, everything else belongs to women!"

“It’s different.” Cao Jinxiu suddenly sighed. “There are at least three things among them that I have seen before.”

I took a step back and looked her up and down.

She smiled slightly: "I was not yet born at that time, of course. I recognized these three pieces of jewelry because of a painting."

I simply sat down, placed my hands on my knees, and looked eager to hear more.

Cao Jinxiu first gathered up the jewelry and silver dollars and had Cao Xinyun take them to account for, before saying to me:

"I heard it from an elder. It was early winter, and there were few pedestrians on the street. But on that day, two customers came to the shop one after the other."

Around noon, a man dressed in a pale white robe and wearing a top hat came in first. As soon as he entered, he unwrapped a bundle he was carrying and laid out all the items inside on the counter.

Then, as you just did, gather away the less valuable items, and then, with a flick of your wrist, present the expensive jewelry and the half-open envelope: 'Store them in the locker for now.'

My elders found it all quite novel, because Cao Furui, who had been in business for a century, had always operated a tailor shop, not a pawnshop.

My aunt couldn't help but ask the man in the long gown, "What is your intention in doing this?"
The man in the long robe smiled slightly, took two steps back, and gently shook the hem of his moon-white robe.

His actions would have baffled most people. But my uncle and aunt understood his meaning immediately.

Because that long gown he was wearing was made by our Cao Furui. And it was a masterpiece of craftsmanship!
My uncle naturally assumed this was a returning customer; but looking at the valuables the man in the long gown had placed on the table, he couldn't help but frown: 'Why are they all women's belongings?'

The man in the long robe laughed wildly: 'Except for the half-coin, which was something that passed through my hands, the rest were indeed all women's possessions.'

Seeing his arrogance and conceit, his uncle couldn't help but feel angry.

But before Uncle could speak, Aunt softly asked the man, "Would you like to have a few more sets of clothes made?"

The man in the long robe shook his head slightly, as if deep in thought, and then said, "I have some business to attend to on a long journey, and I may not return. I know that Cao Furui's century-old business is renowned for its integrity. Therefore, I have come here to entrust something to the Cao family."

The uncle was about to speak again, but was immediately stopped by the aunt.

The aunt asked, "Does the guest have something to ask of you?"

The man in the long gown remained silent for a moment, then looked at his aunt and said, "I have drifted like duckweed for half my life, and I have only one true love in this world. This journey, I fear, may not bring me back. My beloved, however..."

The man in the long gown seemed lost in memories as he spoke, and after a long while, he slowly uttered three words—"She is beautiful."

After a moment of reflection, the man in the long gown composed himself and said to his aunt, "Women all love beauty. If she were still alive, she would surely come to Cao Furui again. When she does, whatever style of clothes she wants, put it on my tab."

I know that the eyes of the Cao family are like rulers, measuring not only dimensions, but also human nature and the fickleness of human relationships.

If she comes still wealthy, then I will not mention this matter; if she is destitute and suffering, then, apart from the clothes she likes, I will give her half of the wealth I have left today, in the name of Cao Wuxin.” As she said this, Cao Jinxiu looked directly at me, as if waiting for me to ask a question.

I felt somewhat lost, and even more so, I had a feeling that was hard to describe.

He looked at her for a moment, then shook his head and raised his hand, saying, "Please continue."

Cao Jinxiu shook her head: "Cao Wuxin is not on the Cao family genealogy."

My eyes lit up: "How did your uncle and aunt respond to them back then?"

“My aunt agreed to it.” Cao Jinxiu was still staring at me.

I nodded: "I guess I should agree."

Cao Jinxiu looked up at the ceiling for a while, her eyes seemingly filled with emotion.

After a long pause, he lowered his eyes and said again:
"After the woman in the white robe left, as evening approached, another customer came into the shop. This time, it was an old woman. She wasn't actually old, just indescribably weathered. She was actually very beautiful, despite her wrinkles, but my uncle said she was truly beautiful..."

Cao Jinxiu suddenly raised a hand.

Following her gesture, I saw that Cao Xinyun had returned to the shop, his mouth slightly open, as if he was about to ask a question, but was stopped by the older sister.

Cao Jinxiu's face darkened for a moment, then she suddenly sighed: "Ever since Fu Ruiweng established his reputation, Cao Furui has never dissatisfied his customers, nor has he ever broken his promises. But that one time, when that 'old woman' arrived, all twenty-one members of the Cao family knelt down before her!"

"why?"

Cao Xinyun could no longer hold back and asked, "I've heard my father talk about this before, but he's always refused to tell me why the entire Cao family had to kneel before an old woman!"

"Because we broke our promise!"

Cao Jinxiu looked grief-stricken. "The valuables entrusted to the Cao family by that moon-white gown back then were worth half of our shop at the time. He didn't specify who those things were meant for. He only said that as long as we saw that person, we would know that it was her!"
As evening approached, the 'old woman' arrived. As soon as she entered the shop, my uncle knew that the man in the long gown was to hand over his valuables to this woman.

My uncle, being shrewd, immediately went to the accounting office... but...

In just one afternoon, the back wing of the Cao family residence was constantly bustling with people, but the Cao family's accounting office had been robbed. All other valuables were intact, except for the items left by the man in the long gown—they had vanished without a trace!

"Then we've been tricked!" Cao Xinyun immediately asserted. "First they left it there, then they stole it, and then someone came to collect it! We've been completely fooled!"

Seeing Cao Jinxiu looking at me, I thought for a moment, then raised an index finger and shook it: "It's not a 'Heavenly Scheme' (fraudulent scheme)."

Cao Jinxiu nodded: "My uncle swore before the ancestral tablets that it was definitely not a scheme orchestrated by a celestial being. Rather, it was an accident."

Cao Xinyun frowned to himself: "Nonsense! What a coincidence!"

I abruptly interrupted him: "What losses did the Cao family suffer that time?!"

Cao Xinyun was taken aback and looked at Cao Jinxiu.

Cao Jinxiu shook her head: "There was no loss. The old woman isn't old, just weathered. When Uncle Wen explained, her expression was indescribable. She neither cried nor laughed, nor was she numb."

She only uttered three words: Fate! Injustice! Worth it!
Then, she helped each member of the Cao family up and said, "This is not your fault."

Afterwards, just like that woman in the 'moon-white long robe,' she wanted to deposit something with the Cao family's shop.

"If the Cao family agrees to her again, then that would be..."

Before Cao Xinyun could finish his sentence, Cao Jinxiu glared at him fiercely.

I couldn't help but ask, "After going through such a major event, you're still willing to agree to her request?"

Cao Jinxiu said, "First, the 'old woman' was wearing Cao Furui's clothes; second, Cao Furui saw a 'ghost.' Neither of these has anything to do with the 'old woman.' Cao Furui has a reputation that has stood the test of time for centuries; how could it be ruined?"

(End of this chapter)