"Old Qian, you," Sun Beiwei angrily pointed at the door and said to Cashier Qian, "go now and tell Baicai, Mingman, Shuangxi, and Jixiang the four stores that if anyone dares to buy their fermented tofu again, they’re opposing me, brother-in-law, Official Registrar Zhao!"
In every county, aside from the County Magistrate, the official registrar holds the most power!
Sixty catties of fermented tofu had been sold until only a little was left, probably about one or two catties worth, when An Jing and Xiao Changyi returned to their stall planning to continue selling the remaining fermented tofu. At that moment, An Quangui hurriedly approached them.
An Quangui had arrived a bit late today, failing to secure a good spot to sell vegetables. His stand was quite far from where An Jing and Xiao Changyi were selling fermented tofu. He had come over out of curiosity after seeing everyone gathering around, saying there was excitement to witness.
Little did he know, he would see Xiao Changyi handling He Ba with ease.
An Village was close to Jiuping Village, and An Quangui had heard about Xiao Changyi seriously injuring over a dozen men from Jiuping Village before. He had never quite believed it, but after he saw Xiao Changyi take down He Ba effortlessly today, he believed it; Xiao Changyi truly had exceptional skills.
But offending He Ba was not a good thing, so it was only after the crowd that had been watching the commotion dispersed that he could approach An Jing and Xiao Changyi. He planned to have a serious talk with them.
Seeing An Quangui, An Jing smiled and said, "Ah, Uncle Quan Gui, so you were here. I was just mentioning you to my husband, saying I hadn’t seen you come to sell vegetables."
"I did come to sell, but I arrived late and couldn’t get a good spot. Look, my stall is over there," An Quangui pointed at a small stall that was now unattended and quite far away.
Before An Jing could respond, An Quangui continued, "How did you end up fighting with He Ba? None of us selling things in this town dare to confront them; we all just pay the protection fee and that’s that. You were too reckless."
The smile on An Jing’s face faded slightly, "Should we just let them bully us like that? They’re obviously targeting us by asking for one tael as a protection fee."
An Quangui said, "You could negotiate with them to pay less."
An Jing scoffed, "Why negotiate? They aren’t really protecting us. Why should we pay a protection fee?"
An Quangui sighed, "It’s better to avoid trouble. They are not to be trifled with, and they might bring even more people to hassle you in the future."
"I’m not afraid, my husband will protect me." As she spoke, An Jing smiled warmly at Xiao Changyi, "Right, husband?"
Xiao Changyi immediately nodded, "Yes."
An Quangui was at a loss for words in an instant.
Upon glancing at An Quangui, An Jing’s smile became much more polite and distant, "Uncle Quan Gui, I think from now on we might as well act as if we don’t know each other to avoid trouble for you in case someone comes to bother us again."
An Quangui said, "Why would you say such things to embarrass me? I am not a coward. I’m just afraid it would hurt my family if the vegetables don’t sell and it ends up dragging us down, so I figured it’s best to avoid trouble and endure it. Do you think I want to pay ten coins for protection each month? Aside from my reluctance, do you think anyone here selling vegetables is willing? Sigh... I won’t say anything more to you; I know you both have your own ideas, but don’t speak of acting like strangers anymore. You’ve helped my older brother’s family so much, and because of you, my other brother’s household and I have greatly benefited, our lives have improved much more than before. If I turned my back on you over such a small matter, would I even be considered human?"