C103

Lu Yulian and Lin Qiu'er looked at each other, their faces ashen, without a trace of blood.

Chen Mu's words weren't a lie. His Majesty highly valued the ruthless officials and hated them for their evil, hated them the most for embezzlement and theft. Stealing more than five hundred silver taels was indeed a matter of being beheaded.

Originally, they had wanted to go to the county magistrate to settle the dispute, but now they were hesitant to do so.

Not to mention that they had been caught red-handed in the act by Chen Mu Mu Mu's group, they had no way to refute those gazes. Whether they had stolen the five hundred silver taels or not, and what's more, the three hundred silver taels that Chen Mu Mu had lost earlier, were indeed taken by them.

Chen Mu and the others weren't sure that she and Lin Qiu'er had obtained it, because there was no evidence. However, what kind of person was the county magistrate? If this matter was brought to the attention of the county magistrate, they would definitely find out the truth. Even if they were lucky enough to find out that they didn't steal the five hundred silver taels, they would still demand a fierce punishment after the crime of stealing three hundred silver taels.

Fifty slabs was enough to take a person's life, not to mention a ten year prison … Just by thinking about it, he could feel the cold coming from the bottom of his feet.

No, I can't go to the county magistrate.

With his mind at ease, Lu Yulian clenched his teeth, and asked hatefully: "Chen Mu Mu, what do you want!"

"Nothing, I am always easy-going, and won't deliberately make things difficult for others. Since you stole my things and framed my mother, then just return the money and apologize to me and my mother." Chen Mu Mu Mu Mu said respectfully.

Lu Yulian and Lin Qiu'er almost stopped breathing from anger.

"Chen Mu Mu, why don't you just rob us? You dare to think about eight hundred silver?"

"What, am I going too far?" Chen Mu Mu snickered, and the expression in his eyes gradually turned cold. "You owe people money, so it's only right for you to return it. Do you have any reason to steal it?" "No, I should send it to the county magistrate. Let's see if the county magistrate will sentence you to pay me eight hundred silver taels!"

"..." "No!" Lin Qiu'er's eyes revealed fear as she screamed, "I don't want to go to the magistrate, I don't want to go!"

Lu Yulian was already married, but she was still a daughter of a Huang Hua family. If the crime of stealing were to be brought to the county magistrate, then everyone in the whole village would know that her hands and feet were not clean. How would she find a wife to marry in the future?

Furthermore, she had to go to the fifty plank and ten years of imprisonment. No, she had to chop off her head. Just thinking about it made her shudder. She didn't want to go to the county magistrate's office.

Even if she had to suffer a loss, she would vomit blood. She absolutely could not let this matter be solved!

"Mother, you promised them. I don't want to report to the government, I don't want to!"

"Shut up!" Lu Yulian looked at his daughter who had gone into a frenzy. The veins on his forehead were aching. The reason why she painstakingly dug holes for them was to blackmail them for a sum of silver. If her goal wasn't achieved, then how could she do such a thing?

But Lin Qiu'er did not understand her mother's intentions. Upon hearing the news and thinking of the circumstances that might occur in the future, her entire body trembled.

"Mom, isn't it just money? Just give it to them. I don't need to report it to the government. Mom, I'm begging you!"

"You disappointing thing!" Lu Yulian was about to die from anger, how could she have given birth to such a fool, to be dragging her everywhere!

They didn't steal five hundred taels of silver in the first place. Now that Lin Qiu'er had shouted that out, they had to admit that they were guilty of the crime.

Five hundred taels of silver was not five taels of silver, nor was it five bronze coins. How could she simply take it out with five taels of silver?

As they spoke, the courtyard's entrance was noisy. Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, a line of people appeared in everyone's line of sight.

"What happened? Why is it making such a big fuss?"

A voice filled with vigor drifted over, causing all the women, including Chen Mu Mu, to shudder.

The reason for that was because the person who had come was the village chief, the decision maker of the village.

Chen Mu Mu glanced at Lu Jinfeng who was dressed in a robe that did not belong to him, then looked at Da Niu, Xiao Niu, and the Madam Li following closely behind the Village Chief.

Her support had arrived, and the good days for Lu Yulian and her daughter had also come to an end.

When I returned to the Village Chief's words, I remembered that some of the materials were still missing, so I asked the few aunts to come back with me to retrieve them. However, once I returned, I saw my aunt and elder cousin appear in my room. Chen Mu Mu Mu Mu replied respectfully as he glanced at the messy room and sighed. He then turned to the village chief and said, "I hope that the village chief can help me."

"Such a thing actually happened." A trace of disgust appeared in the Village Head's eyes. He had been in charge of Xingyu Village for so many years, and although he did not contribute much, at the very least, when he was in charge of the village, this blatant act of stealing was definitely not possible. The villagers all knew that he had a lot of face, and very few people dared to take the risk of being made an example for him. But now, this Lu Yulian mother and daughter pair had slapped him so hard that if news of this were to spread, others would laugh at his lack of governance.

The village chief's face darkened, he did not hear what was going on. He turned his head to look at Lu Yulian and Lin Qiu'er, and coldly asked: "Chen Mu Mu said that you stole five hundred silver from her, and then were caught red-handed. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Qiu'er and I did not steal the silver!" Seeing the Village Chief's arrival, Lu Yulian thought that his savior had arrived and anxiously shouted. His body trembled as he added, "Village Chief, I admit that Qiu Er and I did want to steal some silver from Chen Mu Mu Mu's room, but we did not even see a shadow of those five hundred silver taels."

"If you didn't steal my silver, then where did the five hundred silver I put on the bed go to?" Chen Mu harrumphed, "I dare not accept the honor of doing so, but I've already been captured. Why bother struggling? What a waste of the effort of others."

"If you didn't steal it, then you didn't steal it. How can you slander us? Do we not even have the chance to refute you? Are we going to be wrongly accused just like that?" Lu Yulian replied.

"Do you all believe that I will slander you all or do you all feel guilty? I believe that everyone here has seen it." Chen Mu Mu Mu looked around at the villagers and smiled mockingly, "I won't say too much. Five hundred silver taels is not a small amount, plus the last three hundred silver taels, they are practically all my family assets. Since you guys took so much of my money, I can't pretend that nothing happened."

As Chen Mu Mu Mu's voice faded, the village women who had been with her in capturing the bandits earlier began to speak out in anger.

"Lu Yulian actually dared to say that she did not steal anything. Did she think that all of us were blind? You've been caught red-handed, and you still refuse to admit it! "

"This mother and daughter pair aren't good people. I say, Chen family's daughter, you don't have to be polite with them. You're nostalgic, but they won't. You can't pay them back, right? Sending the official away is fine!"

"Why are you wasting your breath on them? Their hands and feet are so unclean, and they stole so much money from us. Let's not even talk about sending them off, we can kill them all with just our sticks!"

To be merciful to your enemies is to be cruel to yourself. Chen Mu Mu Mu, don't be courteous to them, there are two reasons why you should do this. Moreover, this isn't the first time they've stolen something.

"Right, we'll just beat them to death. Anyway, they won't admit to stealing the silver. What's the point of such a person living? Just looking at them makes one feel disgusted."

The village women's angry discussions were not concealed at all, the village chief heard their conversation and snorted, he looked towards Lu Jinfeng and Madam Li: "This is your family's matter, since the thief has already been caught, how do you plan to deal with it?"

"But according to the Village Head's orders." Madam Li and Lu Jinfeng gave face and threw the ball back to the village chief, "We believe that the village chief's decision will convince us."

With no results yet, he put on his tall hat. This way, even if the village head wanted to show favoritism, he would not dare to be too unfair in front of everyone's eyes.

The village chief understood Lu Jinfeng and his mother's thoughts, and was a little uncomfortable. However, on the surface, these words sounded beautiful, praising his outstanding abilities and prestige, but after considering it, he decided not to bother with the mother and son, and looked at Chen Mu Mu Mu. "What do you think?"

Throwing a ball was something that only one side could do.

Chen Mu Mu slightly lowered her brows and didn't follow along with the Village Head's words. Instead, she said, "I only want to take back the silver that I lost."

The Village Chief was astonished. "You lost so much silver, causing so much trouble in your life. You only need to take the silver that you received in return, then you don't care about this matter anymore?"

This magnanimity was enough to cause even Buddha to feel ashamed.

"As long as I get the silver, I don't mind about anything else." Five hundred silver taels plus three hundred silver taels brought her a total of eight hundred silver taels. After earning so much, the mother and daughter pair had already suffered a great loss.

However, offending her had caused her to panic and run off in search of money to fill the gap. How could she let things go so easily? She had always been a vengeful person.

Chen Mu's lips curled up into a smile that couldn't be seen as he said, "As for this aunt and cousin, I have no objections whether the Village Head will be sending off the officials or following the rules and regulations of the village."

Lu Yulian's eyes swept over her, almost gouging her out alive.

This woman's words were magnanimous, but not only did she gain the advantage, she even sealed off their path of retreat.

They didn't even steal eight hundred taels of silver, so why did they have to return so much?

He even specifically reminded them to send him off or to punish him according to the village rules. Even if the village head wanted to shield them, with so many pairs of eyes staring at them, he couldn't do anything else.

He had evil intentions, and his intentions were truly vicious!

The village elder looked around and already had an idea. He asked Lu Yulian and Lin Qiu'er, "I sentence you to return the eight hundred silver that Chen Mu Mu had lost, are you convinced? "If you are not convinced, then let these villagers send you to the government and let the county magistrate decide your verdict. My Xingyu Village cannot tolerate such disgusting thieves."

The Village Chief's words were naturally of different weight. Lu Yulian and Lin Qiu'er both knew that if he could say it, he would definitely be able to do it.

Lin Qiu'er let out an "ah" before shaking her head with all her might. "No, I don't want to see an official. Even if I'm beaten to death, I won't be able to see an official.

Her daughter's determination made all the calculations in Lu Yulian's mind deflate.

The village chief looked straight at him, aggressively and perseveringly. "Have you thought it through? Do you intend to go to court or do you intend to settle the matter privately? "

At this point, he had no other choice. Lu Yulian drooped his head and dejectedly replied: "I will return the money."

Compared to prison time, bad reputation, and a wooden board, eight hundred silver taels were much easier. At the very least, he would have to make sure that he didn't have to worry about the survival of his family.

"Then hand over the silver." Chen Mu Mu stretched out his hands, giving her no time to hesitate at all.

"I don't have that much silver." Lu Yulian was constipated, "Eight hundred silver is not a small sum at all. I am just a woman from a small family, how can I have that much silver to return to you?"

"There is no IOU." Chen Mu Mu Mu shook her head, her eyes filled with determination as she said, "If you have the guts to steal my money and spend it, then you will have to pay the price for your actions!"

The problem was that they didn't steal the remaining five hundred silver.

Lu Yulian was furious and depressed in her heart, but the surrounding villagers were eyeing them covetously, so she could not escape and could not refute them.

After the impulsive women found out that she didn't have silver, they rushed to her and Lin Qiu'er's room, took out all the valuable things in their room, and said that they wanted to repay the debt.

"Two hundred and thirty-eight silver." Bai Xiulin shook his head, "You guys still say that you didn't steal anything, now you even have evidence, let's see what you guys can say."

Lu Yulian complained in his heart. After she and Lin Qiu'er had stolen the three hundred silver taels from him, they had not been in a hurry to spend it, but had been hiding them away, thinking to use them when they returned to their own homes. He had not expected that the village women would cause such a ruckus by taking out all the things that she had kept in her storage.

Lu Yulian sighed, her tone still firm. "There's evidence of all sorts. This silver was clearly earned by Qiu'er and I with great effort. How can you say it was stolen?"

Don't try to argue with me. Chen Mu Mu is a petty person and was afraid that there would be a mouse in her family. She used the leaves of the White Moon Tree to wrap the silver with it. Bai Xiulin choked, his eyes full of ridicule.

It was simply impossible for a dog to stop itself from eating feces! There was no cure!