A farmer has a shrewish wife; he's busy making money every day.

Zhao Yantang was completely unconscious at this moment, his eyes were tightly closed, and his forehead was covered with a thin layer of sweat.

Ye Qingxue removed the wooden strips used for temporary fixation and cut open his trouser leg with scissors, quickly exposing the wound to the air.

The knee was noticeably swollen, the skin was red and taut, and there were large bruises around it.

The surface was covered with dark purple or dark red patches. Ye Qingxue got goosebumps all over her body after just one glance.

It is hard to imagine the suffering Zhao Yantang endured at that time.

Even so, he managed to remain completely silent and refuse to yield to the people of Fierce Tiger Stronghold. He's truly a ruthless man.

Ye Qingxue sighed, took a pot of wine from the stall, and used a cloth to wet it and wipe the wound.

Then he reached out and carefully pressed the injured area to feel the condition of the bone.

He took another strip of cloth from the side and stuffed it into Zhao Yantang's mouth.

Touching the protruding fracture site, Ye Qingxue applied slight pressure, and with a snap, the dislocated bone returned to its normal position.

"Mmm!"

Even in his unconscious state, Zhao Yantang could not withstand the excruciating pain and let out a muffled groan.

The pain woke him up instantly. He opened his eyes groggily, his forehead covered in sweat, and looked at Ye Qingxue.

With a rag stuffed in his mouth, his words were somewhat muffled: "Miss..."

"What's that sound! It's coming from right here!"

Suddenly, the leader's voice boomed from outside the shed like thunder, and Ye Qingxue's heart jumped into her throat, a wave of tension washing over her.

I almost forgot, the leader, Hu Fu, has an extremely sharp hearing!

Ye Qingxue quickly covered Zhao Yantang's mouth with her hand, widened her eyes and gave him a wink, signaling him to be quiet.

Zhao Yantang realized his current predicament and immediately dared not even breathe.

"There's nobody here!"

"I don't have one here either!"

"Never mind, I probably misheard. This area is where those officials live. Let's not stay here too long."

"Yes!"

Gradually, the footsteps outside faded away.

Just as Zhao Yantang was about to catch his breath, Ye Qingxue still didn't let go.

Her eyes were cautious as she gently shook her head at Zhao Yantang.

Less than fifteen minutes later, Hu Fu's voice rang out from outside again.

"Tsk, looks like nobody's here. Let's go!"

"Yes."

Now, the footsteps had truly faded into the distance.

Ye Qingxue then released her grip, allowing Zhao Yantang to catch his breath.

Although they are probably safe now, Zhao Yantang still doesn't dare to make too much noise after what just happened.

He removed the gag from his mouth and tried his best to lower his voice: "Miss, thank you for saving me."

Ye Qingxue shook her head: "It's alright, you lie down first, I haven't finished treating this leg yet."

Zhao Yantang wanted to ask something more, but upon hearing this, he didn't say anything more and lay down.

Ye Qingxue picked up the firewood that had been chopped just right in the kitchen and handed Zhao Yantang a little corydalis rhizome to put in his mouth: "Just a heads up, it might hurt a little."

Zhao Yantang gave Ye Qingxue a reassuring look: "It's okay, just do whatever you want."

He held the corydalis in his mouth, and then bit the cloth strip.

Ye Qingxue didn't hesitate and directly used strips of cloth to fix the splints to his knees.

You could hear Zhao Yantang take a slight breath, but that was all; he didn't react any further.

After securing him, Ye Qingxue laid some straw under him and then covered him with a clean cloth.

"We can't buy any more herbal medicine tonight. We'll apply it tomorrow. You'll have to sleep here for now. You can't go back to the county office for the time being. Once Hu Fu and the others find out you're missing, they'll definitely go to the county office and arrest Magistrate Xu immediately."

Upon hearing this, a hint of worry flashed in Zhao Yantang's eyes: "Magistrate Xu..."

"Don't worry, the distinguished guests from the capital are still here, and Magistrate Xu will be attending the birthday banquet. They wouldn't dare to make any rash moves."

Zhao Yantang breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good."

"Oh, right, I haven't asked for your name yet, Miss?" Zhao Yantang suddenly realized.

Ye Qingxue gave her name.

Zhao Yantang then asked, "Why is Miss Ye dressed as a man?"

"When I went to the county before, I encountered Lang Fu demanding a toll. I beat him up because I was afraid of being retaliated against," Ye Qingxue said truthfully.

Zhao Yantang was somewhat surprised: "So it turns out that Miss was the one who injured Lang Fu."

Then he felt a little guilty: "I'm really ashamed. We didn't manage this place well, which made it impossible for outsiders like you to come."

Ye Qingxue shook her head. She knew the helplessness of these people; some things couldn't be solved just by wanting to.

Wealth and status can crush many people.

At this point, Ye Qingxue looked at Zhao Yantang with some confusion.

"Zhao Dianshi, why are you going to Fierce Tiger Stronghold today?"

Zhao Yantang's expression suddenly became somewhat unnatural: "I just wanted to see if I could find any dirt on the Fierce Tiger Stronghold..."

Find something to use against you? All alone?

Putting aside whether Tiger Stronghold has any leverage over you, it's clear that you couldn't possibly escape unscathed from the heavily guarded Tiger Stronghold all by yourself.

Ye Qingxue was not fooled by his words. She lowered her head and thought for a while, and then she made a guess.

"You're not planning to get involved yourself and create a weakness for them, are you?"

Seeing that Zhao Yantang was becoming increasingly uncomfortable, Ye Qingxue knew that she had guessed correctly.

No matter what, Zhao Yantang was an official appointed by the imperial court. His death or serious injury should have drawn the attention of the higher-ups.

However, there are people in charge at Tiger Stronghold. No matter how much they investigate, they can just find a scapegoat and Tiger Stronghold will still be able to survive.

Instead, he lost his life for nothing.

Thinking of this, Ye Qingxue sighed: "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

Zhao Yantang was certainly aware of this, but he simply couldn't go on living like this anymore, single-mindedly searching for a solution.

“Magistrate Xu is too cautious and always gives in. I want to give him a jolt, and maybe this will work out!” He looked a little excited, and his cheeks flushed.

Ye Qingxue looked at him in silence.

Both Magistrate Xu and Clerk Zhao had the right intentions.

However, one is too conservative, and the other is too radical.

If we could calm down, make bold assumptions, and investigate carefully, it would be impossible not to uncover such a serious crime as illegal gold mining.

"By the way, Miss Ye, what brings you here?"

At this point, Zhao Yantang finally remembered to ask.

Ye Qingxue didn't intend to hide it from him: "I also want to go up the mountain to investigate the strength of the Fierce Tiger Stronghold and find some opportunities. After all, no one wants to live a life of hiding."

Zhao Yantang nodded: "Miss Ye's martial arts skills are so high that she was able to rescue me from the Tiger Stronghold. She is a heroine among women, unlike me, who is too reckless. I wonder if Miss Ye has found out anything?"

His expression remained unchanged as he said this, seemingly indicating that he didn't have high hopes that Ye Qingxue would be able to find anything.

After all, it took a lot of effort just to save him.

“Zhao Dianshi, I have actually discovered some things.”

Ye Qingxue's words surprised Zhao Yantang.

His expression turned serious: "Tell me."

Ye Qingxue skipped over the details of her fight and only talked about what she saw in that house.

"What! Gold? Cough—cough cough!"

Zhao Yantang's eyes widened suddenly, and his lowered voice changed slightly.

"Miss Ye, are you serious? This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family!"

Ye Qingxue nodded with certainty: "Zhao Dianshi, I dare not speak presumptuously."