Chef Hua
Chapter 439 - 241 Escort Agency Crisis_2

Chapter 439: Chapter 241 Escort Agency Crisis_2

The worst part was that in handling the whole situation, Lianshun Escort Agency had to be extremely careful; a single misstep would inevitably leave a bad impression of "inefficiency" with Magistrate Tao. The long-standing reputation and credibility could be damaged, not to mention displeasing the government, which would undoubtedly make future operations difficult.

After all, they were just an escort agency. To outsiders, their profession might seem respectable, but in reality, even if they just wanted to check inside a commoner’s house, they had to tread carefully. Who were they if not officials from the government office? Most people were commoners and wouldn’t want to let you in; could you force your way through?

After many years, his comrades were gone, Meng Yuhuai felt an indescribable pain in his heart, yet he had no moment of peace and had to immediately pick himself up to handle various matters...

At that thought, Hua Xiaomai felt a headache coming on and just wanted to clench her fists and curse—why did it have to be a warehouse guard from the Money Vault who was abducted!

Meng Yuhuai didn’t want her to worry too much, so after exchanging a few words, he patted her shoulder, "You don’t need to think too much about the matters of the escort agency. Just stay at home earnestly. I probably won’t be able to take care of you and mother, you both should take it easy at home and not overwork yourselves."

Hua Xiaomai nodded sullenly without saying a word, stood up, and quickly gathered some clothes for him to change into, then hesitated before asking, "Are you leaving now or... "

"I... will rest for an hour," Meng Yuhuai turned to look outside the window at the sky, and forced a smile at her, "Now is not the time to push myself; lack of energy could lead to mistakes."

"Mm," Hua Xiaomai replied, "then you rest for a while, I’ll go prepare some food."

After saying that, she tidied up the bedding, pushed him on the bed, and left the room only when he had closed his eyes.

Just as she stepped out of the door, she caught a fleeting figure outside, which disappeared in an instant.

"Saw you already..." she sighed with a slight sense of helplessness, "I know mother is listening outside, no need to hide anymore."

Upon hearing this, Meng Lao Niang sheepishly reappeared from the main hall, waving her hand, "I wasn’t eavesdropping on your conversation, it’s just...seeing how awful Yuhuai looked so..."

"I know, mother, you don’t need to explain," Hua Xiaomai pursed her lips slightly at her, "He is about to head back to the escort agency soon, and may not be able to return for several days. I asked him to rest a bit; now I’ll make a bowl of noodles for him."

This time, Meng Lao Niang did not object, instead, she followed Hua Xiaomai into the kitchen, helping by chopping onions and garlic, passing things to her while watching her knead the dough and boil water, then fetched out a piece of braised beef, approvingly saying, "Beef strengthens the body; Yuhuai has to travel a lot these days, eating more will be beneficial."

Pausing, she then added, "Not that I am complaining about you, but you silly girl, you really lack tact. The last few days when I asked you to sleep with me, you felt so uneasy, as if you couldn’t leave him for a moment. Today, when he is feeling so awful, how come you didn’t try to console him more? Da Zhong has known him for seven to eight years at the escort agency, they were the best of friends, how could he be any better?—I don’t expect you to be much help, as you’re not of much use, but at least you could say a few nice words to comfort him!"

Hua Xiaomai turned her head to look at her, then lowered her head to look at her own stomach, and sighed, "With the condition I’m in now, I can’t even visit big brother Da Zhong’s house, let alone say anything significant. It’s all just big talk and showing off. Taking good care of myself and not causing him trouble is the best help I can offer."

Old mother Meng pondered for a moment and then nodded, "That makes sense... Just hurry up and let him eat well before he gets busy. Tsk, how did we end up in such a troublesome situation!"

...

Fortunately, the small restaurant was temporarily closed, and the chilies that had been harvested were almost all sold. With nothing else at home to worry about, after sending Meng Yuhuai out, Hua Xiaomai honestly went back inside her house. She planned to stay home for the coming period, not going anywhere. If she really got bored, she might as well let Old Mother Meng teach her some needlework to pass the time. Who knows, she might even make a couple of little pouches for the baby in her belly.

On the other hand, Meng Yuhuai returned to Fuzhe County and directly headed to Ke Zhenwu’s house, only to learn that he had hurried off to the Lianshun Escort Agency. He then rushed over there, and as soon as he stepped through the gateway, he saw a few people gathered in the courtyard, murmuring something quietly.

One of them, named Hou Chang, was sitting cross-legged on the ground, grimacing and said rather sarcastically, "After all this commotion for most of the day, there’s no news at all. If this continues, hmm... just watch. After this incident, who knows how Magistrate Tao will blame us. To offend the Government as an escort agency, tsk tsk, do I even need to spell out the consequences? If I had known, I would have gone with Lv Bin and the others when they left! I heard their agency in the Provincial City has started up quite well, doing really good business. That area has many wealthy people, isn’t it better than being cooped up in this little county?"

The others each had their own thoughts and no one picked up his line of conversation.

But Hou Chang, still not satisfied, added, "Now Meng Yuhuai has finally gone home, leaving us to run around while he enjoys his ease... If you ask me, he should never have dumped this mess on Da Zhong! His martial arts are better than ours; if he had gone last night, maybe none of this would have happened!"

Han Hu, who was squatting on the stone steps, couldn’t stand it anymore and stood up, frowning, "What are you talking about? Are you suggesting that the one who was busy all night isn’t Yuhuai but you? Before this task was transferred to Da Zhong, it was always Yuhuai who personally handled it, not coming home for over a month, as if he is made of iron? When we took on this job, I didn’t see you objecting, and you haven’t missed a single penny of the money earned. Now that there’s trouble, you want to disassociate yourself?"

"I didn’t object, but I also didn’t ask him to take it!" Hou Chang shouted back, straightening his neck, "One time it’s going to Tong’an City to oversee a household, another time it’s protecting Warehouse Guards for the County Government, as if he wasn’t busy enough! I’m not greedy for wealth, normally our earnings from escorting are not small, it’s inherently a risky business—he was just helping uncle Ke look after the Escort Agency, and yet it had to end up like this!"

Han Hu immediately got annoyed, he lifted his fist to punch him, raising his voice, "Magistrate Tao personally ordered it, if Yuhuai wanted to refuse, he would have had to have the ability to do so. Now that a brother has died, if you had even a shred of humanity..."

"Shut up!" Meng Yuhuai, annoyed by what he heard, shouted angrily, and the two men turned around to see him and immediately shut their mouths.

Hou Chang seemed a bit guilty, scratched the back of his head, and gave him a sheepish smile, "Brother Yuhuai, I didn’t mean that."

Meng Yuhuai gave him a cold look, his gaze sharp as a knife. After a long pause, he turned his gaze towards the others and spoke solemnly, "I’ll say it again, whoever wants to leave, no one is stopping you."

With that said, he immediately strode into the front hall. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)