At this moment, Official Ye's idling daughter, Ye Yuan'an, was sitting in a circle with several children in the market, watching a one-eyed man drawing.
Zhao Lanzhi, who was patrolling the neighborhood, saw Yuan'an's sharp little head, and narrow shoulders, still pretending to be a young man, and wanted to tease her. He hesitated, walked towards the painting and calligraphy stall, and looked at Yuan'an. He couldn't help but without realizing it.
Suddenly, a pickpocket approached, snatched Yuan'an's purse, and ran away.
Yuan'an immediately noticed, jumped up, and chased after him.
Not far away, Yuan'an kicked the pickpocket from behind, pressed him to the ground, and started hitting him fiercely. She was very kind to her own people, but ruthless to the bad ones. Now that she caught the thief, she raised her fists and gave him several punches.
Still not satisfied, but the one-eyed artist appeared from nowhere and grabbed Yuan'an's hand, and pressed it down.
It was Xue Han.
He looked at Yuan'an from top to bottom. "This young master has bought my paintings. I always thought you were a good person. Why are you so brutal now hurting people?"
Yuan'an, who had no patience for nonsense, frowned. "Let go of my hand and move out of the way. You're saying I'm hurting someone? The thief just stole my purse!"
The pickpocket stood up, turned around, and surprisingly, he was a child, his nose bleeding from Yuan'an's beating.
Yuan'an was stunned.
Xue Han loosened Yuan'an's hand, and pushed her forward, and Yuan'an stumbled.
Xue Han turned to the thief and said, "Did you steal something?"
The thief nodded.
Xue Han said, "Give it to me."
The thief refused, "My mother is sick."
Xue Han lowered his voice and ordered, "Give it to me!"
Reluctant but not daring to resist, the thief finally took out the purse and gave it to Xue Han.
Xue Han turned around and handed it to Yuan'an. Yuan'an, triumphant, was about to take it.
Yuan'an's hand reached out, but Xue Han dodged a bit. "Young master, he stole your money and returned it to you. But he's still a child. How will you handle it after beating a child like this?"
The people around pointed and discussed, "That's right, how can you be so harsh on a child?!"
"Look at how the child is dressed compared to you. It's a young master of a wealthy family bullying people! This little thief is probably a refugee. Oh, poor thing."
Yuan'an, feeling guilty, and not knowing how to deal with it, regretted in her heart. With a stern face, she asked, "What do you want?"
Xue Han said, "People shouldn't be bullied for no reason. You've beaten the child like this, so let him return it to you. That should be enough!"
The crowd joined in, "Yes! Child, get up, fight back!"
Yuan'an had no way out. Xue Han and the onlookers were staring at her. In this tense moment, Zhao Lanzhi arrived, pushing aside the crowd. "What's the commotion?!"
Xue Han stepped back and nodded, "Constable Zhao."
Zhao Lanzhi surveyed the crowd, "I could see from afar. Mr. Xue, the artist, is a person who understands reason and is a leader among the refugees from the thirteen counties. I want to ask you, the thief stole something, you caught him, and he returned it. Can we consider this matter closed? Pretend it didn't happen? Pretend he never stole anything? How interesting! This child is still young, and stealing is a mistake. He should be punished! Otherwise, when he grows up, he might commit murder and arson! What do you think? Or should I take him back to the bureau to give him some other lessons?"
Xue Han, with discontent, coldly laughed, "You're the official, your words carry weight."
Zhao Lanzhi said, "I say let the child quickly go home and take care of his sick mother!" Zhao Lanzhi squatted down and gave the thief some silver, "Go buy medicine! What are you waiting for?"
The child eagerly took the silver and ran off.
Xue Han laughed, "Constable Zhao, you usually take good care of us, so I'll give you face this time." He glared at Yuan'an, "But this kind of kid who bullies others, be careful in the future, don't let me see him again!"
The crowd dispersed, Yuan'an looked at Zhao Lanzhi, finally relieved, "Thank goodness you came to deal with these troublemakers!"
Zhao Lanzhi said, "They're not troublemakers, they're just unfortunate people."
Yuan'an was puzzled, "What's going on?"
Zhao Lanzhi explained, "They are recent refugees who entered Luoyang. The construction of water conservancy projects in the southern thirteen counties forced them to leave their hometowns. Moreover, all the men in every family were conscripted, leaving only women and children. Unable to sustain their lives, they had to wander around. The child who stole your money, I've seen him before. He and his mother used to sell porridge near Luili street. The one drawing pictures is the one who came up with the idea among these refugees. They do some small business on the street to make ends meet. Even if there's no official approval, we turn a blind eye, letting them get by. After all, we must let people survive, right?"
Yuan'an nodded, feeling sympathetic, "Oh, I see. My impulsiveness caused trouble. Thank you for helping me out."
Zhao Lanzhi smiled, magnanimous. The two walked and talked in the street, looking like old acquaintances, very natural.
Yuan'an asked, "Have you had any new cases recently?"
Zhao Lanzhi looked at her and smiled gently, "My cases might not be as numerous as yours."
Yuan'an waved her hand, "Don't be so polite. You, Constable Zhao, maintain public order and appease refugees. If it weren't so peaceful, how could I stroll around the streets?"
Zhao Lanzhi smiled gently and generously, then asked, "By the way, the little servant boy you bought in the ghost market, how is he now?"
It’s still alright when it's not talked about, but when it's brought, Yuan’an gets angry all over again: "Don't mention it. That boy was unruly, so I kicked him out a long time ago. What? Did you see him?"
"I can't be sure. The other day, I saw him in the brothel, right in front of me, and he escaped."
Yuan'an was relieved but also annoyed, "You went to a brothel? What for?"
Zhao Lanzhi looked at her eyes and smiled, "Naturally, it was for a case."
Yuan'an, relieved on one hand, was still angry, "Hmph, I knew it! This kid is so unruly! Otherwise, how could he go to such a place?!"
Zhao Lanzhi said, "From what I saw, he was obviously scared by the girls there. He couldn't even escape properly."
Yuan'an hesitated, "Is that so? Maybe you saw wrong..."
What happened before was instantly replayed in Yuan An's mind. She suddenly realized that something was wrong with her thinking, and couldn't help but murmur to herself: "But if it wasn't Constable Zhao who saw you wrong, then I must have made a mistake..."
Yuan'an bit her lip, turned around, and threw out, "Constable Zhao, I have something to do. We'll see each other later!"
~Thank You for Reading, Please Comment Below~
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