Rebirth: From being expelled from the imperial court to becoming a high-ranking official

"What's your name?" After dinner, Qin Yunhe sat next to the child and asked.

After a while, the child said, "Awei."

"Is it the asafoetida that can eliminate stagnation and relieve cough?"

The child nodded.

The person who could come up with this name should know something about medical theory and pharmacology.

"Who gave you this name?"

"The master gave it to me."

Could this child be a servant of some family? Could he be... a runaway slave?

But this dress… although not particularly exquisite, it doesn’t look like something a servant would wear either.

"Which master?"

"Mr. Zhao who runs a pharmacy in Fuyun County." He answered fluently and naturally, without deliberately avoiding the question, and he didn't sound like a runaway slave.

"Fuyun County? Why did you come to the capital from Fuyun County?"

Qin Yunhe was a little surprised. Fuyun County was also a county under the jurisdiction of Xu Ning Prefecture, but it was a little far from the prefecture. How could such a young child come here by himself?

Ah Wei hesitated for a moment before saying, "I was kidnapped and then I escaped."

Qin Yun looked at the child's clothes suspiciously, and it didn't look like he had been tied up.

"What do those people do? Why did they kidnap you here?"

Ah Wei stepped back slightly and shook his head vigorously. I don't know whether he didn't want to say it or didn't know the reason.

Qin Yunhe asked hesitantly: "Do you want to go back to Fuyuan County? If you want to go back, I can ask someone to take you back."

I don't know if this child was really abducted or a runaway slave. If he was a runaway slave, he probably didn't want to go back.

Unexpectedly, Awei nodded immediately.

"Then you can come back with us later. I will find someone to take you back to Fuyuan County."

"Go back...to where?"

"We live in Xu Ning Prefecture. I am the prosecutor of Xu Ning Prefecture. Please come back to the government office with me."

When the child heard this, he shook his head and said, "I won't go back. Sir, please let me go."

Hey, this kid, he was looking forward to sending him back just now, why did he change his mind suddenly?

"It's not that I won't let you go. It's just that this is a desolate place. If you don't go back to the city, the nearest house is dozens of miles away. Aren't you scared at night?"

There was some hesitation in the child's eyes.

At this time, Yu Ru also advised: "It is not only dangerous here, but it is too cold at night. Moreover, Fuyuan County is so far away, how long can you walk there by yourself? Come back with us, and when we get to the government office, we will find someone to take you back to Fuyuan County."

The child immediately shook his head, as if he was extremely reluctant to go back to the city.

Qin Yunhe was surprised: "You don't want to go back to the city?"

The child hesitated for a moment before nodding slightly.

Qin Yunhe frowned slightly. Could it be that the gang of bad guys not only blatantly abducted people to the vicinity of the city, but also entered the city?

When I get back, I'll have my men keep an eye out for this.

Yu Ru said, "Don't be afraid. Our place is a government office. When you get there, just stay inside our government office and no one will dare to come in and arrest you."

The child shook his head more hesitantly this time.

He Sheng said, "Little brother, don't be afraid. Lord Qin is a good official who stands up for the people. If you come back with us, we will definitely send you home safely."

This time the child hesitated for a long time, and finally stopped shaking his head.

Qin Yunhe saw that he must have agreed, so he asked tentatively, "Would you like to go back with us?"

The child nodded.

"Hesheng, Chier, pack up, we'll go back now."

The group quickly packed up and returned to the carriage, heading back without lingering any longer.

"Have the gang of criminals who kidnapped you entered the city?"

Ah Wei nodded: "Yeah."

"Do you remember what they look like? If you do, I can have someone draw their portraits and post them out to arrest them."

Awei shrank back again and shook his head: "I don't remember."

Ugh--

Qin Yunhe sighed and decided not to ask about the gang of bad guys anymore.

"Do you have parents at home?"

A Wei hesitated and said, "My mother is still alive."

Qin Yunhe nodded.

When the group returned to the government office, Zhao Ping came over to help He Sheng get his things.

Qin Yunhe and others got out of the car, and Awei followed Qin Yunhe and others inside.

Zhao Ping glanced at A Wei, then pulled He Sheng and pointed his chin in the direction where the others left. He asked, "Who is that?"

"We met him at the thatched cottage in Taolin. His name is Awei. He said he was abducted from Fuyuan County and brought here."

Qin Yunhe asked his wife and daughter to return to the inner house first, and he took Ah Wei to the study in the second hall and told the servant Xiao You, "Clean up a room in the wing and prepare a bed."

Xiao You hesitated for a moment and said, "Sir, can you clean up the east veranda where the umbrellas, fans and silence signs are stored and let him live there? The verandas are all full now, and that one is the only one that's a little empty."

How come the people that the magistrate has recruited live in separate rooms?

"Okay, he'll just stay for two nights."

Xiao You glanced at A Wei and asked carefully, "Sir, is this little brother your new servant?"

"No, this is Asafoetida. I found it outside the city and sent it away after staying there for two days."

Xiao You made two "oh" sounds and quickly retreated.

After Xiao You left, Qin Yunhe said to Ah Wei, "I will send yamen runners to Fuyuan County in two days. How about asking them to take you back then? Or if you are really in a hurry, I can ask someone to find a reliable caravan to take you back tomorrow."

Asawei hesitated again.

"If you are really worried that the caravan is unreliable, then wait for two days and wait for the yamen runners to come and take you back on the way."

Awei thought about it and nodded: "Okay."

The room where the silence signs were stored was relatively clean, just a little dusty.

Xiao You found two people to help, and they swept the place briefly. After covering the two boxes with bedding, they were considered clean.

After settling Awei, Qin Yunhe asked Xiao You to arrange meals and water for him and then returned to the inner house.

In the next two days, Qin Yunhe continued to be busy with official duties.

There is still no progress in the reward for the robbery case.

Two days later, Li Chang brought Zhang San and Li Si to see Qin Yunhe.

As soon as Qin Yunhe saw them, he knew that they must have something to report.

On weekdays when there is no work to do, Zhang San and Li Si do not come to report for duty every day. After all, they are not yamen runners.

Moreover, they also need to make friends with all kinds of people in the capital city so that they can obtain information more conveniently.

Sure enough, Li Kai opened his mouth and said, "Sir, Zhang San and Li Si heard something interesting when they were drinking with others outside, and I thought I should tell you about it."

Having said that, Li Chang motioned for the two of them to report.

Zhang San bowed and said, "Sir, I heard that you found a child outside the city. He is a clerk in a medicine shop. His name is A Wei?"

Qin Yunhe didn't understand what he meant, so he just said, "That's what happened. What's the matter?"

"When we were drinking with others, we heard that the young master that Han Lijing's family had found was missing again..."

Qin Yunhe frowned, vaguely guessing something, and waited for him to continue.

"We were just chatting, and we heard that the kid used to help out in his stepfather's medicine shop." Zhang San and Li Si looked at each other before saying, "We thought it was a coincidence, so we asked the kid's name. He said Han Jingli named him Han Shuo, and his nickname was Awei..."

Qin Yunhe frowned and thought about it for a moment, feeling that it was a bit outrageous, but also somewhat reasonable.

"Xiao You, go and bring Awei over here."

After a while, Asawei was brought over.

Awei was still on the alert, and when he saw that there were several unfamiliar people inside besides Qin Yunhe, he couldn't help but become even more nervous.

Qin Yunhe walked over, bent down slightly to look into Awei's eyes, and asked carefully: "Awei, do you know... Han Jingli?"

Awei's pupils contracted instantly and he dodged backwards.

Qin Yunhe held his forehead with his hand, it was actually true!

This is going to hurt.