Transmigrated Female Official

"...Lord Chu, please speak." Han Qiu reluctantly let Chu Qingluo speak first.

Chu Qingluo didn't stand on ceremony with her and said, "First of all, the reason my younger brother Chu Yinuo brought the pickled food to the private school was because Mo's son, Xiao Wu, asked him to bring it. Secondly, sometimes people may experience abdominal cramps after eating raw or cold food. We can't expect everyone with an upset stomach to come to Shuntian Prefecture to complain, can we? Can Lord Han handle all that?"

Han Qiu nodded insincerely and said, "Lord Chu is quite right. But even so, Xiao Wu's physical discomfort was ultimately caused by the Chu family's pickled products."

“That’s right!” Madam Mo quickly chimed in.

Chu Qingluo continued, "Lord Han, although the radishes in the pickled food weren't fresh, they weren't poisonous, nor were they intentional. Isn't it too hasty of you to bring them to Shuntian Prefecture like this?"

“Someone came to my Shuntian Prefecture to file a complaint, and I simply brought them in for questioning according to the law… Lord Chu, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with what I did, right?”

"So, having asked the question, and considering it's just a child getting an upset stomach, how does Lord Han intend to handle this?"

"Lord Chu, please don't be anxious. After I send people to inspect the items sold by the Chu family's pastry workshop, I will definitely make a fair conclusion." Han Qiu paused, then said, "After all, these are all foods that are ingested. Before they are inspected and approved, the Chu family's pastry workshop is strictly prohibited from selling any food to the outside world."

Judging from Han Qiu's words, it seems he's going to stir things up.

Chu Qinglu stared at her thoughtfully and asked, "Lord Han, how long will this inspection take?"

"Hmm... The Chu family has three pastry workshops in Yancheng, and they all need to be inspected one by one. However, the manor is currently short-handed, so it will probably take at least seven or eight days."

"Lord Han! This is going to take too long! It's delaying my business!" Mother Chu was extremely anxious when she heard that the business would be closed for seven or eight days.

"Madam Chu, there's nothing we can do about it. Just wait patiently." Han Qiu's words carried an air of undeniable authority.

Mo: "Lord Han is truly wise!"

Chu Qinglu glanced at Madam Mo, then at Han Qiu… and suddenly it dawned on her. Madam Mo's sudden change in attitude and Han Qiu's deliberately difficult demeanor were perfectly coordinated, the two of them acting in unison like a clown. Even the slowest person could immediately connect Long Xiaohan with the two of them.

Mo must have been misled by Long Xiaohan to go back on her word. And this Han Qiu must also be one of Long Kui's people, which is why she's helping Long Xiaohan. No wonder Long Xiaohan was so confident before leaving the shop, saying they would definitely beg her.

How could Chu Qingluo possibly beg for peace with such an unreasonable and domineering person?! Besides, Long Kui probably doesn't know that Long Xiaohan did such an absurd thing.

How could a mother who is meticulous in her work give birth to a daughter who causes trouble everywhere? She really is a typical second-generation official who is poorly disciplined.

While Long Xiaohan, Luo Lifei, and Gongsun Yu are all children of officials, they are worlds apart. Although Luo Lifei is also willful and easily offends people with her words, she is not lawless. Gongsun Yu, on the other hand, is exceptionally kind.

……

Mother Chu waited for three days in the Chu family's pastry workshop, but no one from the Shuntian Prefecture came to inspect. The workshop was not allowed to operate, but it still had to continue making pastries every day according to Han Qiu's orders, so that Han Qiu's people could come and inspect at any time.

Although the quantity of pastries made was not large, one portion of each type had to be made. Since they couldn't be sold or given away to outsiders, they were given as a reward to the Chu family members. However, after three days, the Chu family members were almost too full to eat anymore.

This drove Chu's mother to the brink of despair. After so many years of running her business, suddenly having it shut down felt like her life had lost its center; she was completely disoriented…

Chu Qingluo wasn't idle either. She had Xiaodouzi lead people to search everywhere for the vendor who sold him the radishes. If Long Xiaohan was determined to cause trouble, it was highly likely that she had arranged for someone to deliberately sell the radishes to the Chu family.

Fortunately, perseverance pays off. Xiaodouzi visited several vegetable markets in Yancheng and finally found the radish vendor in the vegetable market in the north of the city.

The vendor never expected that Xiaodouzi would bring people to find him specifically for a few radishes, and only then did he realize he had gotten himself into trouble. According to the vendor, the radishes he sold that day were indeed not fresh enough, but someone actually said they wanted them all, on the condition that he do everything he could to sell them to the Chu family, and that all the money from the sale would be his.

Upon hearing this, the vendor, overjoyed to hear such a good deal—he could get double the money for his vegetables—naturally agreed. He then followed the man to set up his stall in front of the Chu residence…

In this way, Chu Qingluo could be 100% certain that the pickled radish incident was not an accident, but a deliberate scheme by Long Xiaohan. And the brilliance of this situation was that even if there was evidence pointing to Long Xiaohan deliberately selling stale radishes to the Chu family, there was nothing that could be done to her.

First, she didn't poison it; second, the Chu family purchased it themselves.

Offending such a person is bound to bring trouble.

Fortunately, the Chu family's pickled products weren't sold in large quantities this time. Instead, Chu Yinuo secretly brought them to her classmate Xiao Wu... which is why it was discovered in time, preventing the matter from escalating. It was precisely because of this that Long Xiaohan was forced to bribe the Mo family.

On the other hand, Chu Qingluo personally visited Madam Mo several times, trying to persuade her to drop the charges against Chu's mother. Since Xiao Wu was already safe, Madam Mo shouldn't be so persistent in helping Long Xiaohan oppose the Chu family. If it was about money, the Chu family could easily be appeased.

However, Madam Mo was extremely resolute, refusing to see Chu Qingluo even once. Xiao Wu also missed several days of school, clearly avoiding her on purpose. It seems Long Xiaohan has indeed given Madam Mo quite a few benefits.

While Chu Qingluo was still pondering whether to go to Shuntian Prefecture again to urge Han Qiu, who was deliberately delaying... Long Xiaohan came knocking on her door once more.

Her appearance interrupted the peaceful flute music.

Chu Qinglu gave Wuyang a wink, signaling him to go to the inner room first to avoid Long Xiaohan causing trouble and a conflict.

Long Xiaohan strode into the clothing store, walked straight up to Chu Qingluo, and said, "Oh dear, the Chu family's pastry shop hasn't been open for several days. Could it be that business has failed?"

Not wanting to upset Chu Qingluo, Gongsun Yu preemptively replied, "There's no need for Miss Long to trouble herself with that."

Long Xiaohan's narrow eyes slyly sized him up: "Gongsun Yu, are you just being overly protective of your master?"

Catching a glimpse of the ill intent in her eyes, Chu Qingluo sneered, "Miss Long, you really have a lot of free time, coming here every few days."

Chu Qingluo knew that Long Xiaohan was definitely restless at home and couldn't wait to come and bring up the unreasonable terms. So she said, "Since you've come all this way, let's talk about it. What exactly do you want?"