Dream of the Red Chamber: Rising from Refugees to Sweep Across the Land

Chapter 18 Liu Feng: Were we robbed?

"Are you willing to testify?" Liu Feng asked.

The doorman was stunned for a moment before realizing that he had been so frightened that he had lost his mind. But there was nothing he could do now; it was better to sacrifice his friend than himself.

He gritted his teeth: "I'm willing to testify! This man is the kidnapper!"

"Do you know this little girl's background?" Liu Feng asked, pointing to Xiang Ling.

"I know, I know..."

The doorman hurriedly replied, "She is Miss Zhen, the daughter of Master Zhen, who lives near the Gourd Temple in Suzhou. Her name is Yinglian. She was abducted when she was five years old, and it has been eight years since then."

Liu Feng then asked, "Where are her family members now?"

Upon hearing this, Xiangling slowly raised her head and looked at the doorman.

The doorman sighed, "The year Miss was abducted, the Gourd Temple was destroyed by fire during a ritual, which accidentally caused a fire that burned down the entire street. I was left homeless, so I grew my hair long and became a doorman. The Zhen family's house was also burned to the ground. I heard that Master Zhen's family moved to a farm outside the city. But those years were marked by drought and floods, and a banditry broke out. Since then, I haven't heard from Master Zhen's family. Later, I wandered around and finally came to Jinling."

Bandits?

Liu Feng frowned slightly. He hadn't read the original novel, only heard bits and pieces of the plot from short videos, and knew nothing about the Zhen family.

A low sob interrupted Liu Feng's thoughts. He looked up and saw Xiangling sitting on the ground, wiping away her tears.

Oh, Zhen Yinglian, what a pitiful person!

Liu Feng raised his hand: "Return to the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner's Office."

The full name of the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner's Office is the Provincial Judicial and Supervisory Commissioner's Office, which is the highest judicial and supervisory office in a province. It is in charge of criminal cases and impeachments in the province and has the power to directly arrest, interrogate, and sentence all kinds of criminals.

Abducting people is a serious crime in Daqian, and abducting children under the age of ten is an even more serious crime.

With Lin Ruhai absent, his deputy presided over the trial, resorting to severe torture. The kidnapper couldn't withstand it and confessed everything. He not only explained how he abducted Xiangling but also revealed a kidnapping den in Jinling City.

This delighted everyone; catching one person versus catching a whole bunch makes a huge difference!

The deputy immediately issued the warrant and arrested the person!

......................

With such a great achievement, Liu Feng naturally had to go along; there was a big difference between going and not going!

He was extremely busy on his end, while Lin Daiyu's side was also bustling with activity.

"Miss, miss, this is delicious, you should try it!" Xueyan quickly took a piece of candied fruit and handed it to Lin Daiyu's lips.

Lin Daiyu took a bite and smiled, her eyes crinkling: "So sweet!" She then stuffed the candied fruit in her hand into Xueyan's mouth, "This is delicious too."

The master and servant enjoyed their meal immensely.

After taking another bite of osmanthus sugar cake, Lin Daiyu leaned back lazily in her chair, swinging her legs. She was no longer the pampered young lady she once was, and was extremely comfortable.

Xueyan picked up another pastry and casually said, "Liu Siyu brought back a girl. He said she was a young lady from a wealthy family before she was abducted... By the way, she's from the same hometown as us, also from Suzhou."

Lin Daiyu immediately became interested: "Where is he?"

"They said they had nowhere else to go, so they sent her to Madam's place," Xueyan said between bites. "I also heard that she has a rouge mark between her eyebrows..."

Lin Daiyu blinked: "Go and take a look for me."

"I'm not going." Xueyan shook her head vigorously, "If I run into Granny, she'll scold me again."

He paused, then added, "Unless you come along too, young lady."

"Coward!" Lin Daiyu poked her cheek angrily.

Having never seen anyone with a rouge mark between their eyebrows before, he thought for a moment, then stood up and said, "Let's go talk to Mother."

Before they even reached Jia Min's courtyard, they saw Liu Ma, who was in charge of cleaning Liu Feng's house, come out with a little girl.

The little girl was delicate and lovely, with snow-white skin. Perhaps because of her difficult life, she was rather thin and not very tall, with a small nose and small eyes. Overall, she was a little beauty. What was most captivating was the tiny, rice-grain-sized rouge mark between her eyebrows.

Lin Daiyu understood that she was the poor girl Liu Feng had brought back.

"Aunt Liu".

"girl."

Aunt Liu curtsied slightly and gently nudged Xiangling beside her, saying, "This is our young lady."

"Greetings, Miss." Xiangling was about to kneel down and kowtow when Liu Ma quickly stopped her, saying, "No, Miss is too young to kowtow. It will shorten your lifespan. This is the custom in wealthy families."

Xiangling blushed and, mimicking Liu Ma, offered a deep bow.

Lin Daiyu smiled and glanced at her, then turned to Liu Ma: "What are the arrangements?"

Aunt Liu sighed softly, "A young girl as beautiful as a flower, with no relatives or friends, no one to protect her. Once she leaves the manor, she'll be devoured alive in less than two days. The Madam is kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see her end up like that, so she kept her. It just so happens that Prisoner Liu is short of a maid to serve him tea and water, so the Madam ordered that the small courtyard on the west side be allocated to Prisoner Liu, and that the maid be sent there to serve him as well."

Lin Daiyu nodded.

It's unwise to harbor someone of unknown origin in the inner quarters. Sending the person back to Liu Feng's side would save face for Liu Feng, make him indebted to Jia Min, and demonstrate Jia Min's compassionate heart—a win-win-win situation.

Lin Daiyu looked Xiangling over carefully again, and said with a smile, "Your figure is about the same as Xueyan's. She just had two new outfits made for you. You can take them and wear them first."

Xueyan was a generous girl, and immediately replied, "I'll go and pay my respects to Madam first, and then I'll send it over to you later."

Xiangling quickly curtsied and said, "Thank you, Miss. Thank you, Sister Xueyan."

Upon hearing someone call her "sister," Xueyan beamed with joy.

Lin Daiyu glared at her irritably, then said to Xiangling, "You can come to my courtyard to play when you have nothing to do."

"Yes!" Xiangling nodded vigorously, and the unease in her heart gradually dissipated.

......................

Liu Feng didn't return until dark. He pulled out radishes and mud, and following the trail, he raided two more kidnapping dens.

Not only did they apprehend more than a dozen kidnappers on the spot and rescue several children who had recently been abducted, but they also found a pile of ledgers that recorded the whereabouts of abducted children in Nanjing over the past few years.

The boys and girls who were of decent appearance were all sent to the capital. As for those who were of ordinary appearance, they were not mentioned at all in the account book.

However, old official records show that those children who weren't recorded all met tragic ends...

Liu Feng had not fully recovered. After a busy day, he was so tired that he was sweating profusely and walked back to his residence, supporting his back.

In my past life, when I was scrolling through short videos, besides feeling sorry for Lin Daiyu, Xiangling was the most heartbreaking character. Born into a wealthy family, she ended up as a servant girl and died such a tragic death...

Liu Feng suddenly remembered Dai Bawang. Could this be considered saving his life? Should he thank himself properly?

The requirements aren't high. As the ancients often said, a hero saves a beauty... Although he saved the beauty's brother, logically, the beauty should repay him with her body.

Liu Feng rubbed his aching back. Now that he'd transmigrated here, he figured he should at least have sex with one or two of the Twelve Beauties, otherwise it would be a waste of his time.

Thinking of the origins of the Twelve Beauties, Liu Feng shook his head. He still had to work harder!

It's already past midnight, why hasn't Aunt Liu lit the lamp yet?

Liu Feng pushed open the door and entered the room. He was too tired; he'd lie down for a while first. He reached for the pillow—oh crap, where's the pillow? Wait, why is everything under me hard as wood? Where's the blanket?

Liu Feng suddenly sat up, reached for the window, grabbed a flint and lit the candle with a "snap".

When the firelight shone on him, Liu Feng was dumbfounded. He'd been robbed? What kind of thief was so bold as to dare to come to the yamen (government office) to steal things!

"Aunt Liu!"

"Aunt Liu..."