From Hoarding to Time-Travel: My Supplies Saved Him

Chapter 422: Chapter 423: Human Traffickers

The more Xu Wenhua spoke, the more exhilarated he became, as if he had instantly accepted his place in the Zhou Family and was already living a life of ordering servants about.

But he didn’t get to indulge in his beautiful dreams for long. The world suddenly spun, and he found himself pinned to the ground.

"Young Master Le Huan, are you alright?" When Lin Dapeng saw the red mark on Gu Lehuan’s face, his glare at the floored Xu Wenhua grew even more menacing.

The Xu family instantly reacted. Mrs. Xu Zhong shrieked and lunged to shove the guards, only to be forced back by the pommels of their blades.

"Who are you people? Let him go this instant, or I’m reporting you to the government!"

Lin Dapeng retorted, "Go on, then! It would be a perfect opportunity to discuss how this man assaulted someone in the middle of the street. We were merely acting out of a desire to protect our master. Let’s see who the officials believe has committed the greater crime."

Mrs. Xu Zhong’s eyes shot to Gu Lehuan, where the red mark on his face was plain for all to see.

’She couldn’t understand. Her husband had been perfectly fine, so why did he have to go and strike a young master?’

But when her eyes fell on Xu Nuo hiding in the back, she pointed a finger and shrieked, "They’re an adulterous pair! My husband is her own father! What’s wrong with a father disciplining his child?"

Jin Qianqian, who had evidently grasped the full situation, silently glanced at the sky. ’It’s supposed to be an auspicious day,’ she thought. ’Why are there so many scoundrels about?’

"Xu Dawang, disperse the crowd," Jin Qianqian ordered. She had no intention of becoming a public spectacle.

Xu Dawang and the remaining servants began to clear the area. Once the crowd had been pushed back, several carriages pulled up together in front of the brokerage.

Some of the more sharp-eyed onlookers finally realized it—with an entourage like that, these had to be carriages from an official family.

"See that one on the side? I remember the carriages from the Taifu Mansion look just like that. The other two must be from powerful families as well. We shouldn’t be gawking here."

"Are you serious?"

"I’ve delivered goods to the Taifu Mansion before and saw this carriage in their stables. See the nameplate up front? Doesn’t it have the ’Niu’ character on it?"

"Looks like this Xu Nuo has really connected with a powerful family. We’d better stop gawking, or we’ll bring trouble on ourselves."

"But aren’t you curious about what they’re here for?" Even though they were driven far away, some people refused to give up, determined to see how things would end.

But they were given no chance to get closer. As soon as the crowd was dispersed, armed guards took up positions to stand watch.

Jin Qianqian was the first to lift the curtain and descend from the carriage. Braving the stares of the Xu family, she walked straight up to Gu Lehuan. "You silly boy, you don’t even know how to dodge? If you couldn’t dodge, you should have just knocked him flat. Why waste time tangling with him here?"

Yang Wenlan, who followed right behind her, was speechless. ’...You’re an official’s wife. Is it really appropriate to say such things?’

Yu Lu also disembarked, curiously sizing up the Xu family, who had been causing such a ruckus. The whole story had already been reported to her, and she just wanted to see for herself. ’Are these people really as shameless as they say? Is their skin thicker than a city wall?’

Seeing so many nobles descend, the Xu family went numb. They huddled together in a tight clump, all their earlier blustering aggression gone.

"Madam, what should we do with this man?" Lin Dapeng asked, pointing at Xu Wenhua, who was still pinned to the ground.

Jin Qianqian said, "Miss Xu, you tell us. How should this be handled?"

She tossed the decision back to her. ’Now we’ll see what choice Xu Nuo makes. If she still wants to be entangled with this family, then we’ll just have to settle things for good today.’

Xu Nuo performed a respectful curtsy toward Jin Qianqian. "I do not know these people. But since they struck Young Master Gu, I believe we should hand them over to the government."

"You shameless hussy! That’s your own father! Are you really going to disown your own family?" Mrs. Xu Zhong shrieked, but her tirade withered as she met Jin Qianqian’s sharp gaze, and she guiltily lowered her head.

Xu Wenhua, of course, had no desire to meet the officials. "This is all a misunderstanding! I was only acting out of love for my daughter. I saw him making improper eyes at her, and I couldn’t resist teaching him a lesson."

"You can’t blame me, really. If anyone’s to blame, it’s the two of them for standing so close together. It caused me to misunderstand."

Jin Qianqian scoffed. "You keep calling her your daughter, but the young lady doesn’t even know you. What kind of father are you?"

"To bring a child into the world but not raise them is an inhuman act. Now you suddenly show up to claim kinship? You wouldn’t happen to have some ulterior motives, would you?"

"Normally, this would be none of my business. But since I’ve stumbled upon it, I might as well have you sent to the government. You can explain yourselves properly to the officials there."

"And you, Miss Xu, you are far too naive. This world is full of swindlers. Who’s to say this man isn’t just impersonating your father? And yet you actually took the risk of coming out to confront them."

"If they managed to make their lies seem true, you’d be trapped with no one to turn to. You need to be more careful!"

Xu Nuo glanced at Xu Wenhua, who was still on the ground. "I had my own suspicions before, but now that Madam has pointed it out, I truly believe it’s possible."

"The moment they appeared, they aggressively tried to force their way into my home. Their actions are indeed suspicious. I will have someone report this to the officials at once."

"No! I really am your father! Didn’t your mother ever tell you who your real father was?"

"I am Xu Wenhua! I’m your biological father, I swear it!" Xu Wenhua panicked. The government yamen was no place to be trifled with. If he were taken in, they’d skin him alive.

Besides, these nobles were clearly powerful. If they pulled a few strings behind the scenes, his entire family could be convicted without a second thought.

Apparently, the other members of the Xu family behind him had also realized this. The few elders who had tagged along tried to slip away quietly, but when they saw they were completely surrounded, they could only curse their luck internally.

’We never should have listened to Xu Wenhua and his wife! We thought we’d get some benefit out of this, and now we’re trapped.’

Seeing a look from Gu Lehuan, Dazhuang immediately chimed in. "Miss, I also think these people are highly suspicious. We should report them to the officials. If we don’t, they’ll just keep coming back and making a scene every few days. Eventually, they might even manage to make their lies seem true."

"Everything I’ve said is true! If you don’t believe me, you can investigate!" Xu Wenhua said frantically.

Jin Qianqian asked with feigned curiosity, "If she is your daughter, as you claim, do you have any proof?"

Xu Wenhua was speechless. ’...What kind of proof is there for your own child?’

Jin Qianqian continued, "Is that such a difficult question? Even for a daughter, I imagine there would be a record in the family’s ancestral registry, wouldn’t there?"

’She highly doubted these people would have bothered to register a newborn baby girl in their ancestral records.’

"Since you have no evidence, I suspect you are human traffickers. You must have heard about Miss Xu’s current situation from somewhere and came here specifically to blackmail and abduct her."

After speaking, Jin Qianqian turned to Xu Dawang and said, "Take our household’s calling card and deliver these people to the Shuntian Prefecture."

The Xu family panicked. "This is a real misunderstanding! We’re not human traffickers! If you don’t believe us, you can go to our neighborhood and ask around! We really are Xu Nuo’s relatives!"

"Xu Nuo, say something! Your mother must have told you about us!"