Chapter 886
Qinghu bent over with laughter at the sight of the two people’s looks, not caring about anything else.
No matter how beautiful they were, their beauty could not be seen from such dresses.
“What are you laughing at? You’re just as ugly as me!”
Lin Mengya rolled her eyes at him, and the large, dark mole near her lips was very conspicuous.
“Yes, yes, yes. We are all so ugly now. Well, let’s go on our way.”
Time was limited, so they didn’t have any spare time to waste.
However, after Lin Mengya sat in the carriage pitifully, she sneezed every now and then.
Her eyes turned red and she could not be any more pitiful. Then, Qinghu seemed to think of something and took out a few small cotton balls from the inner side of his coat.
“Put this into your nose. Damn, I don’t understand why you just don’t like this good smell?”
“This guy must have done it on purpose!”
Lin Mengya snatched the cotton balls from Qinghu’s hand murderously. She had found that there was something wrong with Qinghu’s voice just now.
He dared to play this trick on her. He would wait and see how she would deal with this damned fox when they returned to Dajin!
After what had happened just now, the day had long since dawned.
After coming out of the main city of Yushan County, they would have to cross several cities before they could completely leave Yushan County.
Since the Xin Family had acted, they would be stricter with the investigation on the road.
Although the three of them had been forced to be like this, they couldn’t be careless.
Except for the three of them, the followers had been settled.
historical
Those familiar followers had been brought into the Pool of Various Venomous Insects by Xiaoyu and Ningqiu.
As for the remaining people, as long as they could be careful and didn’t reveal any obvious flaws, they would be able to get through this danger.
At that time, they would slowly return to the royal city and expose the Xin Family’s plot.
Since these people could be selected, there must be something extraordinary about them.
There were more and more pedestrians on the road. Although the three of them were not very eye-catching, they were a strange combination. And the strong scent of peppers still attracted the attention of the pedestrians.
Fortunately, small merchants like them were not so special. Yushan County was rich in peppers, and there would be vendors rushing to various counties to sell them all year round.
Soon, they arrived at another city gate.
As expected, the investigation had become very strict. Almost all the things on people had to be turned over and checked.
Apart from this, everyone’s identity and purpose of leaving the city had to be carefully investigated.
If they answered vaguely, they would be taken to the side immediately.
It seemed that the Xin Family was very careful. They not only sent people to kill them, but also arranged such a large group of people at the gate of the city. They really thought highly of them.
“Stop! Where do you come from?”
There were several bags of peppers in the carriage, which had been eyed by several soldiers guarding the city for a long time.
Qinghu jumped out of the carriage, trembling. His sharp eyes were easily blocked by his loose eyelids.
He looked like a timid little vendor without any of his original look at all.
“Distinguished officials, my daughters and I are small merchants selling peppers. We have not broken any laws!”
Qinghu was really good at pretending to be these little people at the bottom.
Lin Mengya showed her teeth to the officials. The results of her makeup had finally worked.
The apparently uneven front teeth soon made the officials feel disgusted.
After flipping through their belongings perfunctorily, they waved their hands and let them go.
See, she had a real talent for pretending to be a silly girl.
“Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir!”
Qinghu said hurriedly. After trembling and getting on the carriage, the three of them continued their journey.
In this way, they passed three checkpoints and finally arrived at the last city gate of Yushan County. Lin Mengya’s heart was almost in her throat.
It was because the investigation here would be the strictest.
It didn’t matter if they were exposed. At worst, they could kill their way out.
But once they were discovered, it would be even more unfavorable to Xiaoyu.
At this time, the sun was setting. Xiaoyu and Ningqiu had already entered the Pool of Various Venomous Insects.
They hoped that Xiaoyu and Ningqiu could be safe and sound.
“Stop, the few of you, come down and accept the investigation!”
The investigation here was much stricter than those of the previous three checkpoints.
After looking at each other vaguely, the three of them obediently followed their instructions and were taken to the side for investigation.
The men were naturally being searched by the male soldiers. Besides them, there were a few shrewd middle-aged women who were searching women.
They didn’t bring anything that could prove their identities with them.
As long as this disguise was not seen through by them, it could be considered a success.
However, Lin Mengya and Baisu could not help but feel a little worried when they saw how carefully those women searched others.
Finally, it was their turn to be checked. Lin Mengya kept her extraordinary calmness and gave the middle-aged woman a silly smile as usual.
But this time, it was obviously useless.
Obviously, those who were in charge of searching them were unwilling to do so.
After all, the three of them looked quite dirty, and there was a very strong pepper smell on their bodies. When they got closer, it was a little choking.
The fat, short, and rough big hands carefully touched every pocket on her clothes.
But the attention of those people on Qinghu’s side all fell on the big hump on his back.
“Take off your upper outer garment!”
All of a sudden, an official on Qinghu’s side issued this order.
Lin Mengya’s heart immediately tensed up. She did not know what Qinghu had used to replace that hump.
But the only thing that was certain was that once it was taken off, its original form would be exposed.
Qinghu clutched at the hem of his clothes with both hands and a look of embarrassment appeared on his face.
“Sir, I think it’s better not to do so. I’m suffering from a malformation of the back. I’m afraid that you’ll be scared.”
However, those searching guys urged him in a stern voice as if they were a little impatient.
“Cut the crap. Hurry up and take it off. If you continue to dawdle, I’ll throw you into jail!”
Given the current situation, Qinghu had no choice but to do as he was told.
Trembling, he undid his upper outer garment and took off it.
At this time, Lin Mengya and Baisu had just been checked.
They stood there and looked at Qinghu with their heart thumping wildly.
“Please don’t be discovered!”
He took off his upper outer garment, leaving only his undershirt inside.
Qinghu was indeed outstanding in the field of disguise. Even though his arms were exposed, he looked like a real old man whose skin was loose and weak.
Inside his tight-fitting undershirt, his back was still bulging as usual.
The smell of sweat mixed with the smell of peppers. The officials just frowned and looked at him. Then they waved their hands in disgust and asked them to leave.
Lin Mengya breathed a sigh of relief in her heart and pretended to help Qinghu with Baisu.
Just as the three of them were about to turn around and leave, they heard someone calling them from behind.
“You three are not allowed to leave.”
The voice was extremely gloomy, and Lin Mengya suddenly felt uneasy in her heart.
When she turned around, she saw a guy dressed in silk and satin, riding a horse to the front of them.
The man looked down at the three of them, as if he were looking at an item.
“I see the peppers in your carriage are pretty good, but I’ve seen all the farmers planting peppers in Yushan County. Why haven’t I seen you three special people?”
The man’s tone was very feminine. Lin Mengya’s heart sank. She also knew that all the pepper planting markets in Yushan County were in the hands of the Xin Family.
But she didn’t expect that she would be in the line of fire today.
Qinghu, who stood between them, immediately bowed and said respectfully, “Sir, you’re right. We didn’t do the business of pepper before. It’s just because my wife had a hard life and passed away quietly. She left the three of us behind, and we really couldn’t survive. So, my relatives introduced me to this business. At least, I can get a way out for the three of us. Sir, please be generous and let go of us.”
His sad tone was so humble that no one could find any fault with it.
Lin Mengya and Baisu also snuggled close to Qinghu, shivering. They really looked like silly girls who had never seen much of life.
She could feel the man’s gaze on her. After looking back and forth at her for a long time, he finally squeezed out a cold snort from his nose.
“I see. You can leave now. But according to the rules, you have to pay three-tenths of the value of your peppers as the tax first. Otherwise, you will not be able to take this cart of peppers away.”
“Three-tenths as the tax?” Lin Mengya was furious in her heart.
They might earn less than three-tenths of the value of the peppers for merchants like them.
“This guy asked for such a high tax. His heart was even blacker than a crow!”
“This... this... Sir, I’ve just pulled out this cart of peppers and they haven’t been sold yet. Where could I find the money for this tax!”
Qinghu was alert. He immediately put on a crying face and begged for mercy repeatedly.
However, the black-hearted official on the horse showed no mercy at all. Instead, he walked to the side impatiently, letting Qinghu keep begging on the road with a hoarse voice.
Lin Mengya was furious in her heart. If they hadn’t pretended to be vendors today, they wouldn’t have seen the shamelessness of these people.
After that, a few other small merchants who sold peppers came here and took out their money for the taxes automatically.
Seeing the three of them, finally, a kind-hearted vendor told them that this was only for the first time.
In the future, they could pay less. So, they just needed to put up with it for a while.
Qinghu had no choice but to give three-tenths of the value of the peppers to the officials at the city gate before they could start on their journey again.
By this time, it was already dark.
The other kind-hearted merchants invited them to go with them, but they were all turned down by Qinghu with gentle words.
Qinghu did not stop the carriage until the officers and soldiers at the city gate could not see them. He finally stopped the carriage into a bush.
“Finally, we’re out. We’ll be able to find our supplies soon. What’s wrong with you, little girl?”
After coming out of Yushan County, Lin Mengya did not say a word.