Xia Xuanmiao’s eyes widened in disbelief!
Si Qin could hardly believe her ears either!
How could Li Mu have the nerve to say such a thing?
Was his face thicker than a city wall?
Just as several constables were about to force Xia Xuanmiao and the others into the prisoner cart, and before reinforcements had arrived—
Xue Zhiyun suddenly shouted, “Wait! The words were mine alone, and the plan was mine alone! It has nothing to do with them! Arrest only me!”
“That won’t do!”
Li Mu flatly refused.
“Why? What could these two weak women possibly do to you, sir?”
Xue Zhiyun retorted.
Hearing this, Li Mu smiled and pointed at Xue Zhiyun. “Arresting you alone would just be catching a petty thief. But arresting all three of you—that’s capturing a criminal gang! That’s a political achievement!”
At this, Xia Xuanmiao took a deep breath.
Her anger was already boiling over, veins bulging on her forehead.
But for now, with reinforcements yet to arrive, she could only stall for time with this corrupt official. “Wait!”
With that, Xia Xuanmiao took out the phoenix token she carried with her and shouted furiously, “This was bestowed by His Majesty himself!”
“We were ordered to investigate Shangyang County!”
“Who dares lay a hand on me?”
Seeing this, Cheng Dazhuang immediately stepped forward, snatched the phoenix token from Xia Xuanmiao’s hand, and respectfully handed it to Li Mu with both hands.
Li Mu took the token, squinting as he examined it.
“Sir, do you recognize this?”
Cheng Dazhuang whispered.
The county magistrate, who had been largely unnoticed until now, also leaned in.
“Do you recognize it?”
Li Mu shook his head, then glanced at the county magistrate beside him.
The three of them exchanged looks, each shaking their heads in turn.
After all, in this remote little county, who would recognize a royal token?
Even if Xia Xuanmiao had produced an iron certificate of pardon, Li Mu probably wouldn’t have recognized it!
Seeing both the county magistrate and the county official shake their heads, Cheng Dazhuang sneered, threw the phoenix token to the ground, and stomped on it twice. “Hmph! Since neither the county magistrate nor the county official recognizes it, it must be a forgery! Men! Seize them!”
“Hold on!”
Li Mu waved his hand again, calling Cheng Dazhuang over and whispering in his ear, “You fool!”
“We can’t prove this thing is real, but we can’t prove it’s fake either!”
Cheng Dazhuang, a simple brute, finally understood. “Then what should we do? If it’s real, wouldn’t I be…?”
“Step aside. I’ll handle this.”
With that, Li Mu cleared his throat. “Ahem!”
“Well, ladies and gentlemen, my apologies! Dazhuang, he…”
Li Mu pointed to his own head. “He’s not quite right up here. Had a high fever as a child.”
“Quickly! Untie them!”
“Someone! Prepare a banquet!”
…
“Hahaha! I truly failed to recognize greatness! I’ll punish myself with a drink first!”
“Ah! This wine is excellent. Please, try some!”
Xia Xuanmiao and Si Qin stared at Li Mu with disdain.
Only Xue Zhiyun picked up his cup and drained it in one go.
After drinking, Xue Zhiyun’s eyes widened in shock, and he turned to Xia Xuanmiao in amazement. “Your… Miss! You must try this wine!”
“Right, right, right!” Seeing this, Li Mu also pointed at the cup in front of Xia Xuanmiao and said, “Please try this wine—it’s our local specialty from Shangyang County, ice-cold beer! It’s not strong, but rich in malt aroma!”
“In this scorching summer, an occasional sip can really refresh the mind!”
The beer Li Mu brewed had a very low alcohol content, so low it was almost negligible, with the main appeal being its malt flavor.
But Xia Xuanmiao truly had no interest in drinking at the moment.
She glanced behind her and realized the reinforcements still hadn’t arrived.
Even if they had gone to the military garrison ten miles away for reinforcements, with the Empress being kidnapped, a forced march should have brought them here within half an hour!
“No need for wine, hmph!”
Seeing that this unidentifiable beauty before him also had no interest in drinking, Li Mu simply changed the subject: “By the way, what do you all do?”
“What positions do you hold in the court?”
Upon hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao’s mind raced.
She thought to herself that since the reinforcements hadn’t arrived yet, she might as well probe this corrupt official’s background first!
“My father is a merchant. When the current Emperor raised troops, there was a shortage of funds to pay the soldiers. It was my father who provided the Emperor with a sum of money, which helped the Emperor achieve a great victory!”
“Since then, the Emperor has granted our family’s descendants the privilege that as long as Daxia exists, our descendants can take the imperial examinations and earn official titles!”
“In all of Daxia, only our merchant family has the right to serve as officials!”
Daxia emphasized agriculture and suppressed commerce, so merchants’ descendants were not allowed to take the imperial examinations.
Li Mu furrowed his brows and nodded. “Then how should I address you, miss?”
“Call me Xia… Xia! Just the single character ‘Xia’!”
“But you must at least tell me your surname, right? I can’t just keep calling you Xia.”
“Surname,” Xia Xuanmiao glanced at Xue Zhiyun beside her, then raised her head and said, “Xue!”
Xue Xia…
“This is my younger brother, Xue Zhiyun, and this is my family’s maid. You can call her Si Qin.”
Upon hearing this, Si Qin immediately shot Xia Xuanmiao a look that seemed to say, “Why does he get to be the Emperor’s relative? And I’m still just a maid?”
“An honor to meet you! This gentleman is truly well-built! Where are you currently employed? If you can’t find a job, come to me! I certainly won’t treat you poorly!”
Completely unaware, Li Mu began poaching the Empress’s people.
“No need.” Before Xue Zhiyun could speak, Xia Xuanmiao immediately shook her head and said, “My younger brother currently serves in the Imperial Guard, holding the position of a seventh-rank military officer.”
Cheng Dazhuang, standing behind them, frowned.
As the county captain, Cheng Dazhuang was a ninth-rank military officer…
In all of Shangyang County, only Li Mu could stand on equal footing with Xue Zhiyun, this so-called “seventh-rank military officer.” (The county magistrate was a seventh-rank civil official, and the county deputy was an eighth-rank civil official.)
At that moment, a servant walked over carrying a small basket.
Seeing this, Li Mu quickly took the basket and handed it to Xia Xuanmiao, saying, “Miss Xue, here, these are some local specialties. Take them with you when you leave!”
Xia Xuanmiao was about to refuse, but Li Mu quietly lifted a corner of the red cloth covering the basket, revealing a glint of golden metal. He chuckled and said, “Just a small token of appreciation, consider it an apology to all of you!”
“Hmph!”
Xia Xuanmiao had intended to refuse, but then she thought that only by placing herself on the same level as this corrupt official could she uncover his true nature. So she nodded and said, “Leave it here for now!”
“You corrupt officials at least know some etiquette!”
Xia Xuanmiao added another pretentious remark.
Li Mu then chuckled and said, “That’s right! You have no idea! In my small county, dignitaries from Jingzhao Prefecture often visit. If I don’t offer them something, life simply can’t go on!”
Upon hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao’s eyes flickered as he asked, “Who exactly?”
Li Mu pointed at Xia Xuanmiao and grinned mischievously.
Then, he simply changed the subject, saying, “It’s all for the people, for the people of Shangyang County!”
“If it’s for the people, it’s no big deal for this official to spend a little.”
Hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao grew even more curious.
How could lower-ranking officials bribing their superiors be for the good of the people?