Wang Youbao glanced at the people still in the fields before saying, "Do you realise that these fish were meant to be sold to me?"
Without waiting for everyone to speak, Wang Youbao added, "I had already booked these fish, so they are mine. The fish you are stealing is not from their family, but mine."
Everyone’s faces instantly turned pale, completely caught off guard by the revelation that the fish had already been sold to Wang Youbao.
Wang Youbao continued, "I kindly allowed you to rent my family’s land, yet here you are stealing my fish. With such dishonest hearts, from now on, don’t even think about renting any land from my family again, and those lands already rented to you, I will take them all back."
"Small landowners, please be generous and forgive us," the people began to plead as they hastily put the fish back into the fields, "We had only just caught them, we haven’t taken them home yet. Now, please continue renting us the land, or else, we will starve... please, we beg you..."
Liu Sanya also quickly returned the fish to the fields, her face whiter than anyone else’s. She was the reason everyone might no longer be able to rent land from the Wang Family, and surely the villagers would detest her for it.
No, they surely already hated her now.
Regardless of how desperately everyone begged, Wang Youbao remained unmoved. These people were always behind on their rent, and although his father had been lenient and allowed them to continue renting, what kind of people were they? There wasn’t a single one with a good intention. If he continued to rent to them, he would be no Wang Youbao!
Seeing that everyone was nearly in tears, An Jing, however, showed no sympathy and even laughed, "It seems we and my husband have been too compassionate before, which is why you dare to do this today. We had all agreed to stay out of each other’s way, had we not? Did you think that my husband and I would not deal with each of you one by one, and so you brazenly went to catch fish in the fields?"
Embarrassed by An Jing’s accurate guess, everyone’s face flushed and their necks swelled with shame, and their glares towards Liu Sanya grew even more hateful, wishing she would just die on the spot.
Only then did Liu Sanya finally break down in tears.
An Jing ignored Liu Sanya’s crying, her gaze falling on Xiao Zheng as she cheerfully said, "Clan Leader Xiao, you are here too."
Xiao Zheng almost wished he could dive headfirst into the rice paddy, feeling utterly disgraced! To think he was a respected Clan Leader, and now he’d been reduced to a common thief! And it was all that cursed girl Liu Sanya’s fault!
Seeing that Xiao Zheng wouldn’t even dare to meet her gaze, An Jing continued, "Indeed, you are right about one thing. My husband and I truly would not deal with so many of you one by one."
Just when everyone breathed a sigh of relief at her words, An Jing took a turn, "But, I will let someone deal with you. The establishment of the County Government in Xiyun Kingdom isn’t just for show; it must serve the people, don’t you think, right?"
As soon as An Jing mentioned the County Government, everyone’s faces turned even paler.
An Jing, ignoring the pale-faced crowd, smiled and turned to Xiao Changyi, "Husband, let’s go report this to the authorities. There are so many thieves here, it would be better to leave it to the County Government to deal with."
Xiao Changyi nodded, "Hmm."
"An Jing, how could you?!" Everyone was both anxious and angry.
An Jing paid them no heed and walked back with Xiao Changyi.
Seeing this, Wang Youbao also took his two family servants and headed back. Compared to business, Wang Youbao felt that An Jing and Xiao Changyi, these two friends, were more important.
Watching An Jing and Xiao Changyi truly about to report to the authorities, everyone was so agitated that their eyes reddened.