Wielding a butcher's knife, a seven-year-old wicked girl supports her family and abuses her wic

Qi family, front yard.

Looking at the middle-aged yamen runner across the tea table, Qi Sheng picked up his teacup with a dark face and angrily drank it all in one gulp.

Then he let out a long sigh and said helplessly:

"Brother Wang, those bandits from Black Wind Mountain are now daring to storm into town and kidnap people! Why hasn't the magistrate sent troops to suppress them?!"

"As you know, that butcher Yang and I were very close friends when he was alive, and his second daughter was my Qi family's nominal child bride. If I, Qi, were to ignore this matter, how could I live with myself?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan slowly put down his teacup, his face stern, and said:

"Master Han, I naturally understand what you are saying."

"But the bandits of Black Wind Mountain have been wreaking havoc in Shahe County and its surrounding areas for years, and have already become a formidable force. How can they be wiped out so easily?"

"In my opinion, if all else fails, we should just give them whatever money they ask for, considering it a way to avoid further trouble!"

Upon hearing this, Qi Sheng shook his head with a wry smile, "If it were just a matter of money, then it would be easy to handle."

"The ransom note left by the bandits clearly stated that to ransom the person, they had to pay fifty taels of silver to Black Wind Mountain!"

"Most importantly, they specifically demanded that Yang the Butcher's eldest daughter personally bring the money up the mountain to ransom him; otherwise, if anyone else were to do it, he would be killed immediately!"

After he finished speaking, Wang Yan paused slightly, then frowned and said:

"Name names? How strange!"

"If they're only after money, then it doesn't matter who goes to ransom the person; why bother specifying names?"

Upon hearing this, Qi Sheng rubbed his aching temples and said with a troubled expression:

"That's why I asked someone to invite Brother Wang over. If the government can lend a helping hand, that would be even better."

"Although we don't know what the bandits of Black Wind Mountain are planning, if we really let Butcher Yang go up the mountain, he might end up losing both his money and his life."

Wang Yan straightened his expression and said, "Brother Qi, perhaps you're just overthinking it."

"Since the bandits kidnapped Yang the Butcher's second daughter, given her young age, she might have been so panicked after the incident that she blurted out her true identity without thinking."

"That's why the bandits sent Yang the Butcher up the mountain to ransom him with silver, rather than having you send some servants over."

Qi Sheng frowned. He vaguely sensed that something was wrong and subconsciously wanted to refute it.

But the words were on the tip of his tongue, and he swallowed them back.

"Master, master!"

"Butcher Yang has arrived!"

Just then, panicked shouts came from the direction of the courtyard gate.

Qi Sheng suddenly stood up and looked over in disbelief.

He had just sent someone to Yangjia Village to report the news, and only a short time later, the person in charge actually arrived.

Suddenly, Qi Sheng remembered the news about the Han family from the past two days, and his face turned slightly pale.

Could it be that Yang Xiaoman happened to be there with money, intending to redeem Yang Xiaoning, and just happened to run into them?

His lips twitched suddenly, and then he saw Yang Xiaoman and her daughter hurriedly walk to the front yard with their servants.

At this moment, Yang Xiaoman's face was icy cold, and her piercing eyes seemed to pierce through his body, causing Qi Sheng to sigh and cup his hands in greeting:

"Young Butcher Yang, please forgive my momentary negligence. I failed to keep an eye on Xiao Ning, which led to her unexpectedly falling into the hands of the bandits."

Looking at the shame on the face of the Qi family head, Yang Xiaoman was slightly taken aback, but still asked with an icy expression:

"My sister was staying at the Qi family's house perfectly fine, so why would she suddenly run away in the middle of the night?"

"And why did we happen to run into the bandits from Black Wind Mountain?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan frowned slightly, then calmly replied:

"You must be Butcher Yang's eldest daughter? This matter is your sister's fault for being playful; how can you blame it on Master Qi?"

"If she hadn't secretly escaped from the Qi family in the middle of the night, how could those bandits have caught her?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiaoman's face instantly darkened.

From the man's clothes, she naturally knew who he was.

In the past, she might have given up, thinking it was better to avoid trouble.

But with her sister's safety at stake, how could she possibly endure it?

Just as she was about to explode, Qi Sheng coughed lightly and quickly interrupted her:

"Brother Wang, this matter is indeed my fault."

As he spoke, he looked at Yang Xiaoman, sighed slightly, and said softly:

"To be honest, I only found out last night that Xiao Ning was missing. Your uncle came to our house looking for her yesterday afternoon."

"According to the servants, he only exchanged a few pleasantries with Xiao Ning, then handed her a candied hawthorn before leaving in a hurry, and there seemed to be nothing amiss."

"So I'm wondering if Xiao Ning sneaking out in the middle of the night is related to your uncle's appearance?"

Uncle?

Upon hearing those two words, Yang Xiaoman clenched her fists tightly.

Beside her, Li Xiuyun opened her mouth in surprise, her face showing alarm.

Wang Yan shook his head with a stern face. "Absolutely impossible!"

"It's probably just a coincidence. He couldn't possibly dare to collude with bandits and kidnap his own niece, could he?"

"Leaving aside whether this is reasonable or not, simply colluding with mountain bandits is already a serious crime!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiaoman sneered twice and said sarcastically:

"Sir, you probably don't know this, but my uncle is no good."

"On the seventh day after my father's death, the couple secretly broke into my house while he was being buried on the mountain, eager to take advantage of the family's inability to survive."

"It's no wonder that scum like him would do something so outrageous!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan was stunned.

Taking advantage of the seventh day after someone's death to secretly visit their family and eat their last remaining possessions?

Having served as a yamen runner for so many years, this was the first time he had ever heard of such a shameless fellow!

Qi Sheng coughed lightly and quickly said:

"The most urgent task is to ensure Xiao Ning's safety."

"As for whether your uncle really colluded with the bandits, we'll have to wait and see. Anyway, he can't escape."

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiaoman's expression softened slightly, and he quickly cupped his hands in greeting, saying:

"Patriarch Qi is right. The most important thing right now is to redeem my sister as soon as possible."

"May I ask what conditions were stated in the letter left behind by the bandits at the scene?"

Upon hearing this, Qi Sheng was slightly taken aback, then sighed and said:

"The letter says that if you want to redeem Xiao Ning, you must prepare fifty taels of silver and go to Black Wind Mountain before sunset tomorrow."

"Cash on delivery; if the silver isn't delivered to the mountain by sunset, they'll kill the hostage..."

Fifty taels of silver?!

Upon hearing this number, Yang Xiaoman's expression changed.

Li Xiuyun's vision went black, and she almost fainted from fright.

Seeing the mother and daughter's reaction, Qi Sheng's face became even more serious.

"Fifty taels of silver is nothing; I can afford it."

"However, the letter also said that you, Yang the Butcher, must go up the mountain alone with the silver."

"In my opinion, there must be something fishy going on here!"