After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

Just then, a commotion broke out at the back of the crowd.

A middle-aged merchant dressed in a silk shirt squeezed in, followed by two assistants carrying two large bags.

The merchant, his face contorted with rage, walked to the counter, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "My surname is Qian, and I run a general store in the west of the city. Two days ago, I bought fifty catties of yarn from you, but when I got home, I discovered that the yarn was of extremely poor quality, and customers were returning it one after another! You have to give me an explanation today!"

The embroiderer stepped forward, opened the two large bags of yarn, and examined them carefully.

She straightened up and said softly, "Manager Qian, this yarn doesn't belong to our shop either."

Shopkeeper Qian's eyes widened: "You're the only shop in the entire capital that sells yarn, how could it be fake?"

The embroiderer asked, "Manager Qian, do you remember what the people who came to buy the goods looked like?"

Manager Qian thought for a moment: "A tall, thin man said he's one of your shop's employees."

The embroiderer turned to Xiao Liuzi: "How many employees do we have in our shop?"

Xiao Liu counted on his fingers: "Boss, I'm the only errand boy, there's Old Chen who watches the warehouse, and Old Wu who keeps watch at night, that's all."

The embroiderer then looked at Manager Qian: "Manager Qian, we only have this one employee in our shop. The tall, thin guy you mentioned isn't one of our employees."

Just then, another group of people rushed in through the door, each holding a sweater and yarn, clamoring to return the goods.

"Mine's up and running too!"

"My color is fading!"

"Your shop is a rip-off!"

More and more people arrived, and the shop became a mess.

Xiao Liu was so anxious that he paced back and forth, blocking the counter to protect the embroiderer.

The embroiderer stood behind the counter, looking at the goods in the hands of those people, examining each item one by one.

Finally, she took a deep breath and called out loudly, "Everyone, please be quiet!"

The crowd quieted down a little.

The embroiderer continued, "Today, for anyone returning goods, regardless of whether the goods are from our shop or not, I will refund their money!"

The crowd was taken aback for a moment, then started shouting again.

"That's more like it!"

"Refund immediately!"

The embroiderer turned to Xiao Liuzi: "Bring paper and pen, and register everyone one by one. Name, address, what they bought, and how much they paid. Remember everything clearly."

Xiao Liuzi exclaimed anxiously, "Shopkeeper, this...this is clearly not our goods!"

The embroiderer glanced at him and said, "Just remember it when I tell you to."

Xiao Liu opened his mouth, then had no choice but to take out paper and pen and start registering.

The first one was a man with a pointed mouth.

"What's your name?"

"Wang Er".

"Where are you staying?"

"Willow Tree Alley in Dongcheng District"

"What did you buy?"

"A sweater."

"How much?"

"One hundred and fifty coins."

Xiao Liuzi noted it down, counted out 150 coins from the money box, and handed it over.

Wang Er took the money, pushed through the crowd, and ran away in a flash.

Next came the woman, then the old man, one after another.

Manager Qian's sixty jin of yarn will be refunded at the original price.

The shop was busy from morning till dusk, and people gradually left.

Xiao Liu was so tired that he couldn't straighten his back and was lying on the counter counting the account books.

"Shopkeeper, we returned a total of 27 sweaters and 230 catties of yarn today, resulting in a loss of 623 taels of silver."

He looked up, his face full of confusion: "Those goods clearly weren't ours, why are you returning them?"

The embroiderer didn't answer, but only asked, "Have you memorized the entire list?"

Xiao Liu handed over a thick stack of papers: "I've memorized everything, names, addresses, what I bought, how much it cost, nothing is missing."

The embroiderer took the list and flipped through it page by page.

Xiao Liu leaned closer and whispered, "Boss, I can tell! These people are definitely doing this on purpose! Those goods are clearly not ours; they're trying to extort us!"

The embroiderer nodded.

Xiao Liuzi became even more agitated: "Then you're still going to refund it? Not only have we worked a whole day for nothing, but we've also lost over six hundred taels!"

The embroiderer put away the list and said softly, "This is the evidence. Now take this book to Shuntian Prefecture to report the case. Say that our shop has been extorted. This is the list of all the extortionists. Please ask Shuntian Prefecture to find out who is behind it by name and find out who is behind it."

Xiao Liu asked doubtfully, "Shopkeeper, will the Shuntian Prefecture care?"

The embroiderer remained calm and said, "Why ask so many questions? Go quickly!"

Xiao Liu quickly replied, "Okay, okay, I'll go right away!"

The next day, as soon as the shop opened, there was another long queue outside.

Xiao Liu peeked out and quickly pulled back in.

"Shopkeeper, here again!"

The embroiderer put down the account book in her hand and walked to the door.

In the crowd, seven or eight people were holding up sweaters and yarn, making a lot of noise.

"return the goods!"

"This is a shady shop; they sell counterfeit goods and cheat people!"

"We demand an explanation today!"

The embroiderer glanced around, her gaze lingering on a few faces.

Some of the faces looked familiar; they had clearly been here just yesterday.

Especially the lean man at the front, who was none other than Wang Er, who had been shouting the loudest yesterday.

The embroiderer said softly, "Wang Er, didn't we refund you yesterday?"

Wang Er chuckled and slammed a sweater he was holding onto the counter: "Can't I buy two? I returned one yesterday, so I still have one left!"

Several people nearby joined in the commotion.

"Yes! I only returned one item yesterday; I still have two at home!"

"My family is the same!"

The embroiderer nodded and turned to Xiao Liu: "Get paper and pen, register this."

Xiao Liu was so anxious he stamped his feet: "Boss, they're trying to scam us!"

The embroiderer glanced at him: "Register."

Xiao Liu opened his mouth, but had no choice but to get paper and pen.

"Wang Er, Liushu Hutong, Dongcheng District, one sweater, 150 cash."

Wang Er crossed his arms and waited smugly for the money.

Just then, a commotion arose from behind the crowd.

"Make way! Make way! This is a case handled by the Shuntian Prefecture!"

Upon hearing that the officials had arrived, the crowd dispersed in a flurry.

Liu Yong strode in, accompanied by seven or eight constables, each with a broadsword at his waist.

Wang Er's eyes lit up, and he rushed forward, shouting, "Officer, you've come at the perfect time! This unscrupulous shop sells shoddy goods and cheats the people; you must do us justice!"

Several people nearby echoed his sentiment.

"Yes! Arrest her!"

"Seize this run-down shop!"

Liu Yong ignored them, walked to the counter, and clasped his hands in a fist salute to the embroiderer.

"Manager, what's going on?"

The embroiderer curtsied and said softly, "Officer Liu, these customers have come to return goods, saying that the quality of our shop's goods is not good."

Liu Yong turned around, glanced at the group of people, and then his gaze fell on Wang Er's face.

Wang Er quickly held up the sweater in his hand: "Officer, look, this is the one they sell at their shop. It started to come undone after only two days!"

Liu Yong took the sweater and examined it from all angles.

Then she looked up and asked, "You mean you bought this sweater from this shop?"

Wang Er patted his chest confidently: "Of course it's true! This is the only store in the entire capital that sells sweaters!"

Liu Yong nodded, then looked at the people next to him.

"You too?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

"I bought them all here!"

Liu Yong shoved the sweater into Wang Er's arms and waved his hand: "Take him away!"

Wang Er immediately became excited and shouted, "Yes, take this heartless shopkeeper away!"

Unexpectedly, several constables pounced on him like wolves and grabbed Wang Er's arm.

Wang Er froze, struggling desperately: "Officer! Officer! You've arrested the wrong person! I'm the victim! Arrest her! Arrest that heartless shopkeeper!"

Liu Yong sneered: "Whether they are the victim or not, we'll only know after the interrogation!"

Wang Er's face turned deathly pale. He tried to struggle, but was held down firmly.

The people next to them were also stunned. They turned around and tried to run away, but the police blocked their way.

Liu Yong walked up to Wang Er, staring into his eyes: "Who sent you to cause trouble? Speak!"

Wang Er's lips trembled: "I...I don't know, I just came to return the goods..."

Liu Yong waved his hand impatiently: "Once we get to the Shuntian Prefecture Prison, let's see how long you can keep up your stubbornness. Take them all away!"

The guards escorted Wang Er and his group, pushing and shoving them as they walked out.

Wang Er, his arm twisted, struggled and shouted, "Why are you arresting me! I'm the victim! You've arrested the wrong person!"

The crowd watching the commotion at the entrance burst into laughter.

"What an idiot! The victim got arrested, but the shopkeeper is fine?"

"You still don't understand? This guy's tried to scam people and they've run into a brick wall!"

"Serves him right! People like that should be arrested!"

Liu Yong walked to the counter and lowered his voice, saying, "Manager Xiu Niang, please rest assured, we will find the mastermind behind this as soon as possible and give you an explanation."

The embroiderer bowed again and said, "Thank you, Officer Liu."

Liu Yong waved his hand: "Shopkeeper, you're too kind. The higher-ups have instructed us that anything concerning your shop is of paramount importance. If anyone causes trouble again, just report it to the Shuntian Prefecture. There's no need to waste words with them."

After saying this, he clasped his hands in a fist salute and left with his men.

Xiao Liu stared wide-eyed at the people who were being taken away.

"Manager, why does this Shuntian Prefecture restaurant feel like it's our family's business?"

The embroiderer glanced at him but didn't say anything.

He turned back to the counter and continued tallying the accounts.

Xiao Liu leaned closer and lowered his voice: "Boss, tell me the truth, what's the background of our boss?"

The embroiderer didn't even look up: "Don't ask what you shouldn't ask."

Xiao Liu shrank back, chuckled, and said, "I won't ask, I'll just work for the boss and feel secure!"

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P.S.: Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. Thank you all for taking the time out of your busy schedules to support this book. Special thanks to Hu Zigang, Haoming, Xing Zhaolao, Tongyuan Liangsi, Xue Tan sjy, Moufan's Passerby, Reader 2048, Book Friend 5291, Book Friend 3208, hu Rensheng Rumeng, and liudeqing for their monthly tickets!

Thank you again, and Happy New Year to everyone!!