A Good Country Wife-Chapter 686 - 679_1

"You’re saying that you felt the figure of that person seemed familiar?!" Lin Yue was surprised upon hearing this. The lad’s name was Yu Mo, purchased from the tooth trade, and he had limited interaction with people. Besides those he knew before being sold, he only associated with those related to Lin Yue’s side. Since Yu Mo had been sold at a young age, the person he remembered must have been from after he arrived at the Zhao Family.

With this in mind, Lin Yue couldn’t help but contemplate further. She ruled out the possibility that bandits from Longhu Mountain had kidnapped Dalang and his brothers, which meant that the most probable suspects were their business rivals. Lin Yue even thought of the Yin Family, but recalled that the men in black from before had a completely different modus operandi. Besides, after the previous incident, the Yin Family would need some time before they sought trouble with her again. So, who could these people be, always resorting to such despicable methods?

After the incident with the Yin Family, Lin Yue had already reinforced the security of her family members. Even when Dalang and the others went to the academy, they were escorted by guards. Yet, despite these precautions, determined individuals could not be completely guarded against. The Zhao Family only had so much, if only they had hidden guards like the aristocratic families.

"Well, this servant just felt that the leader’s figure and voice were somewhat familiar, but I just can’t recall where I’ve seen him. Plus, he was masked, so I really can’t remember at the moment," Yu Mo said, his nose almost dripping with sweat as he cursed himself for how his mind blanked at the critical moment.

Seeing Yu Mo like this, Lin Yue knew that he was trying his best to remember and couldn’t recall; perhaps he didn’t often see the person and had only a vague impression, which wasn’t enough to pinpoint the memory. The more anxious he became, the blanker his mind seemed to get.

"Forget it, if you can’t remember, then let it be. The person was masked, probably to prevent being recognized," Lin Yue said. Although anxious, she knew that pressuring Yu Mo was futile. She asked him a few more detailed questions, then sank into deep thought, her mind forming some guesses, though not with complete certainty.

"You may leave for now. I’ll send someone to call for you if needed." Lin Yue waved her hand to dismiss Yu Mo, not blaming him for Dalang and his brothers’ predicament. After all, this plot was orchestrated by someone with intent, not something a young lad like Yu Mo could prevent. Besides, Yu Mo wasn’t much older than Dalang, just a year or so, still half a child. For him to perform as he did was already commendable.

"Yes, mistress," Yu Mo didn’t think much at the moment, his greater concern was for the safety of the young masters. Upon hearing Lin Yue’s order, though he was worried, he could only leave.

"Madam, what should we do? The young masters have fallen into the hands of those people. How will you explain to the master when he returns?" Momo Xu, seeing Yu Mo leave, couldn’t help but express her worries. Although she was quite fond of the children, she truly only saw Lin Yue as her mistress, so her main concern at this time was that Lin Yue might be blamed by Zhao Erhu.

Momo Xu’s words added to Lin Yue’s irritation. She was genuinely worried about the children’s safety; accountability was secondary. Knowing that Momo Xu meant well, Lin Yue didn’t want to show her dissatisfaction, so she just waved her hand, "Momo Xu, I wish to be alone to sort out my thoughts. Please leave as well. Also, have the managers wait for me in the hall; I have instructions for them."

After spending some time alone in contemplation, Lin Yue emerged from her room and headed toward the hall, where everyone had already assembled. Knowing that an incident had befallen the young masters, they had set aside their tasks and arrived promptly to await orders.

"Manager Liu, I had you secretly watch the Government Office for any unusual activity this past while. Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary, or any peculiar disturbances?" Ever since Magistrate Ceng Lu paid too much attention to her, and given his reputation for unscrupulous behavior, Lin Yue’s first suspicion fell on Ceng Lu’s side. Fortunately, concerned about Ceng Lu causing trouble, Lin Yue was not entirely unprepared and had arranged for people to monitor his actions at the Government Office.

"Mistress, there hasn’t been anything unusual at the Government Office. In these past days, Ceng Lu’s routines have been as usual, and no strange meetings were observed. Perhaps it wasn’t his doing," Liu Aniu, who had worked for Lin Yue for many years, understood the hidden meaning in her casual inquiry right away.

"Are you sure you’ve looked closely, not a single anomaly?" Whether analyzing objectively or trusting her instinct, Lin Yue felt that Ceng Lu couldn’t be uninvolved in this.

Liu Aniu’s response was firm. Concerned about Ceng Lu’s attention to Lin Yue and the repercussions of any incident, he was especially attentive to monitoring Ceng Lu, not just from the outside but also by bribing servants within the Government Office to report on Ceng Lu’s every move. Ceng Lu’s behavior in the past days had been routinely normal.

Lin Yue had thought she guessed right, with a seven-to-eight certainty, only to find that the situation was different from her expectations and had nothing to do with Ceng Lu. It hadn’t occurred to her that Quan An would be so bold as to act on Dalang and his brothers without Ceng Lu’s consent.

Quan An planned to take Lin Yue hostage and then claim credit with Ceng Lu afterward to avoid disappointing his superior in case the plan failed. Lin Yue had overlooked such a trivial person, enabling Quan An to exploit the opportunity. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

"What about you? You’re often out and about; have you heard any rumors or noticed anything unusual?" Lin Yue asked. The managers all shook their heads; they had not anticipated the young masters getting abducted, so they had not been concerned with such matters. Ever since Ceng Lu became Magistrate, so many odd and chaotic events had occurred that the term ’unusual’ hardly applied anymore.

Lin Yue’s inquiry was more of a desperate measure, not expecting any real answers, yet the reply from the managers left her somewhat disappointed. Her brows furrowed tighter, and she felt this year was particularly fraught with issues.

"Madam, didn’t the bandits leave a message on the letter, revealing their identity and claiming to be the ones from Longhu Mountain who took the young masters?" It was one of the newly promoted managers who spoke, unfamiliar with the dealings between the Zhao Family and Longhu Mountain; he hesitated, not understanding why the madam would question others when the bandits had already identified themselves. Could it be that the bandits claiming to be from Longhu Mountain were imposters?

Upon hearing this, Lin Yue glanced at the newly promoted manager, understanding his lack of knowledge could prompt such a question. Other managers shared the same doubt, but Lin Yue did not wish too many individuals to know about her family’s ties with Longhu Mountain.