When these words were spoken, the nearby constables were all stunned. Was this how arrests were made?
If they went back to look for him later, what was the difference from notifying him to escape in advance?
At this moment, Chen Xiaobei understood. Cui Hongyu had earned merit.
But he wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, he cupped his fists towards He Laoqi, "Constable He, how do you plan to deal with my few self-defense tools?"
He Laoqi turned to look at Geng Sheng. Geng Sheng thought to himself, since the person was released, why bother with such a small matter?
He nodded slightly.
He Laoqi then waved his hand with relief, "No problem, no problem. Since they are your things, you can take them back."
With that, he led everyone away in a hurry.
Chen Xiaobei counted the ten repeating crossbows. He wanted to go to the county town to find Cui Hongyu, but then he thought that taking these ten repeating crossbows to the county town would be too conspicuous.
If he hid them in the wilderness, he wouldn't be at ease. So, out of helplessness, he could only make one choice: to wait.
Thinking of this, he sat down by the roadside, gazing eagerly in the direction of the county town.
He believed that Cui Hongyu, who had received the news, would definitely rush home. This was the only way, and if he waited patiently, he would definitely see Cui Hongyu.
In the Liu Mansion.
When Cui Hongyu saw Liu Rumei return, she immediately hurried to meet her, "Miss Liu, my husband he..."
Liu Rumei smiled calmly, "Everything has been arranged. You can go home and reunite with Chen Xiaobei now."
Cui Hongyu was overjoyed, "Really?"
Liu Ce, who was standing beside her, chuckled, "My lady never lies."
Cui Hongyu hurriedly pulled Chen Qiaoer to kneel and kowtow, but Liu Rumei stopped her, "That's enough, no need for formalities. Hurry back."
Cui Hongyu thanked her again. Chen Qiaoer also looked up at Liu Rumei, her bright eyes blinking, "Thank you, sister. Sister, you are so beautiful."
Which woman doesn't wish to be praised?
Liu Rumei smiled, a very happy smile. She raised her hand and stroked Chen Qiaoer's little head, "Alright, hurry home. Your brother is waiting for you."
Cui Hongyu and Chen Qiaoer left the Liu Mansion and discovered that two large bags and a bundle had been placed on the donkey cart at the entrance.
Ma Xiaoyi came over to explain that the two large bags contained grain, the bundle contained some dried meat, and there was also a jar of wine, all given at Liu Rumei's instruction.
Cui Hongyu did not refuse much. After thanking them, she left with Chen Qiaoer. She knew that since they were already on the donkey cart, her refusal would likely be in vain.
She could only find a way to repay Liu Rumei's kindness later.
Before the donkey cart had even left the city gate, they encountered He Laoqi returning with his subordinates.
He Laoqi saw Cui Hongyu but did not speak. He merely nodded slightly, then quietly raised his right hand to his chest and pointed behind him.
Cui Hongyu understood. This was to tell her that Chen Xiaobei was behind.
At this point, Cui Hongyu finally felt relieved.
As expected, after driving the donkey cart a short distance out of the city, they saw Chen Xiaobei.
Seeing Chen Xiaobei, Cui Hongyu could not wait to jump off the donkey cart and run towards him, throwing herself into his arms.
At this moment, Cui Hongyu finally understood how important this man was to her. Tears flowed silently.
Chen Qiaoer stumbled and ran over from behind, grabbing Chen Xiaobei's hand, "Brother, brother, hug me."
This.
Chen Xiaobei was speechless. He and Cui Hongyu were in a tender embrace, holding hands and looking at each other with tears in their eyes, speechless and choked with emotion. The atmosphere had been perfectly set.
Chen Qiaoer's words instantly dispelled the thick atmosphere.
Cui Hongyu burst out laughing. She quickly pulled herself out of Chen Xiaobei's arms and wiped away her tears.
"Alright, let's go home."
Chen Xiaobei picked up Chen Qiaoer and held her high in the air, spinning her around a few times.
Chen Qiaoer laughed heartily.
"Alright, Qiaoer, go find your sister-in-law." Chen Xiaobei then handed Chen Qiaoer to Cui Hongyu.
Chen Qiaoer was a little reluctant, but when she saw Chen Xiaobei's next action, she stopped making a fuss.
Chen Xiaobei turned around and took out the ten repeating crossbows from the grass by the roadside.
Seeing this, Cui Hongyu shivered, "Husband, why do you still have these? You kept them?"
Chen Xiaobei chuckled, "It's fine to keep them now."
The news of Chen Xiaobei's return spread instantly throughout Hetou Village.
Li Dong and the others quickly rushed to the village entrance, surrounding Chen Xiaobei and asking him about everything.
"Oh, I just told the county magistrate that our repeating crossbows were for self-defense, and the magistrate let me go." Chen Xiaobei could only explain it this way, as it was inconvenient to say anything else, let alone that the Liu family had intervened.
Everyone escorted the donkey cart to Chen Xiaobei's doorstep before reluctantly dispersing.
Only Li Dong stayed until the end. He exchanged a look with Chen Xiaobei, and they understood each other.
Once inside the house, they immediately went to the west courtyard. Li Dong said impatiently, "Brother, I've inquired about everything. Xiao Bo and Da Yong went up the mountain with Chen Ping to dig for ginseng and ganoderma. Chen Ping told them that you discovered ginseng and ganoderma and were secretly taking them down to get rich, so they..."
This was within Chen Xiaobei's expectations. When he entered the mountain, he had already deduced that Chen Ping must have discovered something. Sudan Novel Network.
"Chen Ping is right. I did find ginseng and ganoderma in the mountains. I was originally planning to wait for these couple of days for us to go up the mountain together and dig them all up, but I didn't expect this incident to happen."
Li Dong clenched his fist fiercely, "We had planned to sneak out late at night and beat him up to vent our anger, but we didn't expect you to return so soon."
Chen Xiaobei clearly realized that Chen Ping had become a destabilizing factor in the village. Chen Anbang had served as the village head for many years, and he had served as the village guard captain for several years, so he still had some prestige among the villagers.
If he could be accused of secretly leading villagers to dig for ginseng, next time he might lead villagers with a banner and start his own faction.
Therefore, how to properly deal with Chen Ping's issue made Chen Xiaobei very troubled.
"Brother Li Dong, this is not just about beating him up. This time he can report me, and next time he can falsely accuse others for other reasons. All this turmoil will make the village a mess."
Li Dong nodded, "Then I think we should just expel him from the village."
Chen Xiaobei had considered this, but simply expelling him did not mean cutting off his ties with Hetou Village.
"There's no need to expel him. I have my own plans. By the way, I need to discuss an important matter with you. Find a place to build a few spacious houses later."
"You want to build a courtyard again!" Li Dong looked surprised.
"No, I want our village children to go to school. I'll hire a good teacher from the county later."
Hearing this, Li Dong was surprised, "Is this necessary? There aren't many children in the village who can afford to go to school."
Chen Xiaobei smiled slightly, "If we don't charge tuition fees, our village will bear all the expenses for the teacher!"