FID – Chapter 621

Chapter 621: All Are Pretending to Be Weak to Trick the Tiger

Upon hearing Liu Yusheng’s words, Qian Wanjin’s eyes flickered with a trace of doubt, but he did not stop her, allowing her to continue speaking.

“There is just one thing: you must write down where you bought the wine from my Xinghua Village. Also, bring the wine jars from your homes to exchange for compensation in gold and silver. Without the wine jars, I will not recognize it. This is to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation.”

When the people heard that Liu Yusheng was willing to compensate, their anger began to subside. Now, upon hearing that they could immediately exchange their wine jars for compensation in gold and silver, the crowd quickly dispersed.

The people hurried back home to retrieve their wine jars, eager to make use of the opportunity while the owner of the winery was still present and the offer still stood.

Who knew whether the winery would still honor it after they left?

For the commoners, saving up silver was not easy, and they didn’t want to risk missing the opportunity and losing their money. 

They didn’t want to suffer further hardships and have to pay for medical expenses out of their own pockets—it would be a huge loss.

When the crowd had almost dispersed, a few people sat down inside the wine shop. With no one else around, Qian Wanjin finally asked, “Nannan, what are you planning? There’s no way there’s a problem with our Xinghua Village wine. Moreover, the shopkeeper also said that these people never bought wine from our shop; they bought it elsewhere. Those are counterfeit wines that someone else released onto the market. It has nothing to do with us.”

Shi Xianrou also asked, “I want to know too. Nannan, how do you plan to turn the situation around?”

From their understanding of Liu Yusheng, she was definitely not someone who acted without a clear purpose.

Having said those words, there must be a plan behind them. She would never take responsibility for something that wasn’t her fault and let those who framed them get away with it.

Liu Yusheng smiled at both of them. “Don’t be anxious, you’ll know in a bit.”

Both of them had dark expressions on their faces. At such a critical moment, Nannan still had the mood to joke around and keep them in suspense. She was clearly doing it on purpose to make them anxious.

“Qian Wanjin, go immediately to the yamen and bring the magistrate here. This matter should not be made public to avoid causing panic among the commoners and alerting the culprits.”

Qian Wanjin’s eyes brightened, and he nodded. “Alright, I’ll handle this personally. I’ll make sure to bring him here.”

“Be quick.”

“Don’t worry. When have I ever messed things up?” After saying that, Qian Wanjin left and got into a carriage, taking a few turns through the city before heading to the yamen.

Soon, more and more people gathered in front of the wine shop, one after another, all holding wine jars.

In addition to the people directly involved, there were countless others on the outskirts, watching the scene.

The news of Xinghua Village wine causing problems had already spread throughout the entire city of Xuzhou. Now that the two owners had appeared, everyone was eager to see how they would handle the situation.

The victims were the commoners. With so many people involved, if all of them were to be compensated, the Xinghua Village wine shop would definitely have to pay a significant sum.

The shopkeeper and the attendants in the wine shop were already busy writing down the details of the arriving people, registering each one as they came.

Liu Yusheng sat by a table in the inner room, watching the steady stream of people pouring in. She then stood up and walked over to an elderly woman, starting a casual conversation with her.

“Madam, did someone in your family also drink Xinghua Village wine and ended up sick?”

The granny recognized her as the young lady who had promised compensation earlier—the Little Divine Doctor, Miss Liu. Hearing her soft and gentle tone, the old woman’s expression eased a bit.

“Yes, that’s right. Little girl, I’m not criticizing you, but even though your medical skills are excellent, shouldn’t the wine you make be of good quality too? This is something people drink. If something goes wrong, it could cost lives. If the people who drink the wine end up sick, it’s bad for you as sellers too, and it’ll ruin your reputation. How could you let such a thing happen?”

“You’re right, Madam. This was our oversight. I can’t blame the people for being upset. You must have paid a pretty penny for that jar of wine, didn’t you?”

“That’s right! A jar of wine the size of a fist sold for eight taels of silver. If I hadn’t heard that it was supposed to be good for health, and if my old man hadn’t been in poor health for some time, I wouldn’t have bitten the bullet and scraped together the money to buy this jar. 

After drinking it, there’s been no effect at all. Instead, it made my old man vomit and have diarrhea. Now, he can’t even sleep properly. Just on medicine alone, we’ve already spent several taels of silver! Do you think it’s easy for us commoners to earn money? At the end of the year, we might save up ten or eight taels, but now it’s all gone, and it’s still not enough! Who wouldn’t be angry in this situation?”

“That’s true, it’s not easy for the common folk to earn money, and it’s also our fault for not being more careful. Putting aside the quality of the wine, we also didn’t properly vet the merchants responsible for selling it. It’s possible that some unscrupulous merchants, wanting to make a little extra profit, mixed something else into the wine. In the future, we will certainly pay more attention to this.”

The old woman was taken aback for a moment, then slapped her thigh. “Ah, no wonder their wine was two taels cheaper than yours! It must be that those dishonest merchants added something into it. Otherwise, how could the same type of wine be so much cheaper?”

“Which one are you referring to?”

“It’s the wine shop at the end of the east alley! A lot of people go there to buy!” The granny responded, then, with a wary tone, added, “But don’t try to fool me! No matter who sold the wine, it’s still your Xinghua Village wine, and you can’t escape the responsibility for it!”

Liu Yusheng smiled and reassured her, “Don’t worry, Madam. It’s our fault, and we will definitely take responsibility. We won’t let the common folk suffer in vain.”

After soothing the granny’s emotions a bit, Liu Yusheng returned to her seat, resting her chin in one hand, deep in thought.

Shi Xianrou couldn’t help but let out a soft hiss under her breath. “With just a few words, you got so much useful information out of her. Nannan, your traps are set so subtly, it’s like they’re invisible.”

Fortunately, she and Nannan were friends; otherwise, with Nannan’s crafty ways, even she might not be a match.

The younger generation of the Liu family, whether it was Liu Zhixia, Liu Zhiqiu, or Liu Yusheng, should never be underestimated.

All of them were just pretending to be weak to trap the tiger.

In less than half an hour, the wine shop was already packed with people coming from all directions. Even the street outside was crowded with people, all clamoring for compensation from the shop, each holding a wine jar in hand.

Meanwhile, a carriage quietly stopped behind the crowd, and Qian Wanjin. 

He was accompanied by a middle-aged man around forty or fifty years old. Both quietly entered the wine shop and sat at the far end.

Once everyone was seated, Liu Yusheng clapped her hands to signal for quiet.

“Everyone here has been affected by the wine. As I mentioned earlier, if it is the fault of Xinghua Village Winery, I will take full responsibility. I stand by my word and will never go back on it. You all live in Xuzhou, so you must have heard the rumors about Xinghua Village wine in the city. There’s a batch of counterfeit wine circulating in the market, using our name to make a profit. I know you’ve all been harmed by it and want compensation. However, my Xinghua Village wine shop will not bear false accusations.”