Chapter 39: Missing

Most of the guards assigned to watch over the group had entered the city to help search for the official and Master Liang in the ruins.

Ironically, they had chosen a more secluded inn to avoid drawing attention. If they had stayed in one of the larger inns in the city, they wouldn’t have encountered this accident.

Covered in dirt, the guards who had just come out of the city switched places with those who had stayed outside.

Second Master Liang rushed forward to inquire, “Officials, how are my brother and sister-in-law? Have you found them?”

“Madam Liang and the young master were found yesterday. They weren’t seriously injured and are now recovering at the city’s medical clinic. As for Master Liang…”

The guard sighed. “When the earth dragon turned, Master Liang and the others were drinking downstairs at the inn. The inn has three floors, and they haven’t reached the bottom floor yet.”

Upon hearing this, Second Master Liang didn’t know what to say. It had been almost twenty hours, and his brother was likely dead.

While lamenting, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief.

It was a good thing his brother hadn’t taken them all into the city. Otherwise, there would have been one more person buried under the rubble.

“Officials, you’ve worked hard.” Wei Maolin stepped forward at this moment, politely cupped his hands to the guards, and said with a worried expression, “My wife has always been frail, and my two grandsons are still young. They still haven’t been found. I’m terribly worried.”

He untied the only pouch at his waist and handed it to the guard, pleading, “Please help search nearby. Whether you find them or not, I will remember your kindness and be eternally grateful!”

To be honest, the officials were willing to help, considering that a fourth-rank official was so humble and even gave them a pouch full of loose silver.

But now that they couldn’t find the official and Master Liang, they couldn’t continue on their journey. If the court sent someone to investigate and discovered that they had deviated from their original route, the guards involved would not escape punishment. They would all lose their heads.

The priority now was to find the official and Master Liang. They didn’t have any manpower to spare searching for anyone else.

“Lord Wei, it’s not that we’re not helping you, but we simply don’t have enough manpower.”

The Wei family had always been easy to handle, and they were generous. Seeing Wei Maolin’s distraught appearance, the guards felt a little sympathy. “Why don’t you have your two servants look around nearby? Whether they find them or not, just come back before dark.”

Upon hearing this, Wei Maolin looked as if he were about to burst into tears. He bowed repeatedly and said, “Thank you, officials, for your kindness.”

The guards who had been guarding outside continued to search in the city. Those who had just switched places were exhausted and sat down on the ground, not moving.

Wei Maolin led Dong Da and Wang Gui away. “You two go around Qingfeng County and head north. If you haven’t found me by nightfall, continue north and join the others in Suijiang.”

“Lord, how can I leave you?” Wang Gui urged.

“Go first. It will be easier for me to escape later.” Wei Maolin glanced at the bushes nearby and whispered, “Don’t worry, Lan’er left some shadow guards here to help.”

Wang Gui wanted to say more, but Wei Maolin gave them a look.

Dong Da immediately grabbed Wang Gui’s arm. “Alright, there are many people here with the Lord. Nothing will happen to him. Let’s hurry and find Madam, Young Master, and Little Young Master. That’s the most important.”

“I’ll search east, and you search west?”

“Alright.”

The two discussed their separate searches, and Wei Maolin sat back down near the guards. He saw from the corner of his eye that Lord Feng had also sat back down beside Old Madam Feng.

He asked, “Lord Feng, aren’t you worried about your sister and niece and nephew?”

The ones from the Feng family who had gone missing were the second daughter of the Feng matriarch, who had not yet been married, and the son and daughter of the second master Feng.

“Of course I’m worried,” Lord Feng replied, his face full of sorrow. “But I’m not like you, Brother Wei. Your household still has servants to help. I’m wearing a wooden cangue and can’t leave, and both my younger brothers are injured. The rest are either too old or too young—there’s really no one to spare for a search.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Second Brother Feng, who had twisted his ankle earlier while running out of the forest, stood up. “I’ll go look. Fourth Brother, will you come with me?”

Fourth Brother Feng had fallen together with the second brother earlier. Hearing this, he grimaced and shook his head. “Second Brother, my leg still hurts. It’s hard for me to even walk.”

“Then Er Niu and San Zhuang will go with me,” Second Brother Feng said, naming his son and his nephew.

When they went to ask the constables for permission, the constables didn’t stop them—just waved a hand and said, “Just be back before nightfall.”

In this temporary camp near the city wall, the number of people had dwindled.

At first glance, those sitting around the fire were almost all elderly, women, and children. The few men there were sat slouched and weary, their faces exhausted.

Many people were coming and going near the city gates, and from time to time, someone would glance over in this direction from afar.

Most, upon seeing the constables and the prisoners wearing cangues, quickly averted their gaze. A few, however, stared curiously a bit longer—some with their eyes fixed on the steaming pots, unable to look away.

The sun climbed higher in the sky. As noon approached, the area outside the city gate grew more crowded.

The young servant by Second Master Liang’s side came back from the city gate and reported, “A couple of days ago, the county yamen was hiring people to clear the rubble—paying ten copper coins and two steamed buns a day, remember? A lot of people showed up, but the yamen’s granary couldn’t keep up, so they’ve stopped hiring. Now those who rushed here especially for the work are gathered at the city gate demanding an explanation!”

Wei Maolin pointed toward the crowd outside the city gate and asked, “All those people came to Qingfeng County looking for work?”

The Liang family servant nodded. “They’re all from nearby disaster-stricken areas. Word is this year’s harvest wasn’t good. I guess they were hoping to make a little extra while they could.”

Wei Maolin’s eyes lit up at this and he turned to ask the constables, “Sir, would it be permitted for me to spend some silver to hire people to help look for my family?”

Since it didn’t require the constables to do anything themselves, they had no objections. One just nodded and said, “If you’ve got silver, hire all you want.”

Wei Maolin handed a piece of broken silver to the Liang family servant and asked him to call some people over. Before long, some silver had been handed out, and he’d hired a full twenty people to search for his family in the area around Qingfeng County.

Two hours passed, and not a single member of the Wei family was found. But those gathering to claim silver just kept increasing.

Wei Maolin’s face showed unease as he tried to refuse them, but the crowd quickly surrounded him.

At first, the constables didn’t think much of it. But by the time they tried to get him out, the crowd had completely sealed off the area. In the chaos, someone even stole the Liang family’s steamed buns left nearby, and others snatched the meat and bone stew from the constables’ pot.

“Stop right there!”

“Clear out! Clear out!”

But the more the constables shouted, the more chaotic the crowd became. By the time they ran into the city to get reinforcements and returned, nearly half an hour had already passed, and only then did the crowd gradually begin to disperse.