The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 633 - 622: Tracking

Chapter 633: Chapter 622: Tracking

Doctor Ji, of course, lacked refinement and his medical skills were inferior to those of his own father and Shopkeeper Zheng. Hence, he had to listen to them.

"If we are to be doctors, then we should know," stroking his beard, Doctor Ji said, "that when someone needs life-saving aid, it doesn’t matter whether the doctor is old or young, male or female. If they can save a life, they must be respected. I’ve also noticed over this period, that gentleman behind her probably hasn’t really treated anyone."

Shopkeeper Zheng nodded as well; the combined age of the two men exceeded a hundred years, so they were naturally very shrewd. Scholars may judge a person by their writing, but doctors identify people based on their prescriptions.

Having observed the prescriptions written by that "gentleman" over the past several days, the two had noticed this as well.

Therefore, that gentleman was important, but Manbao, brimming with unlimited potential, was also significant.

Even after today, Manbao’s place in their minds subtly rose even higher, after all, she was young and possessed endless possibilities.

Shopkeeper Zheng turned to glance at Doctor Ji, who gave him a slight nod in response.

So the next day, when Manbao again bade farewell and left the pharmacy, a person followed behind her.

With so many people on the street going in the same direction as Manbao, neither she nor Keke noticed anything amiss. What, people aren’t allowed to happen to head in the same direction towards the academy?

Not until they entered the bookstore and stayed inside for nearly half an hour, and after they left, did Keke notice someone particularly familiar sitting in a corner following them again. Then it was certain that their host was being tailed.

"Has he been following since we left the pharmacy?" Manbao was surprised. "I don’t carry much money on me."

After scanning the person, Keke said, "It’s not necessarily about money."

"Then why? Should I still go home?" While Manbao asked Keke mentally, she slowed down her pace, "Should we try to shake him off?"

Before Keke could respond, Manbao said in distress, "That won’t work, either. We just went to the bookstore and talked to the shop assistant for quite some time—he must have seen that. The bookstore people recognize us, they’ve even delivered books to us. If he asks them, they will surely be able to tell him all about it."

Seeing that her host had thought it through, Keke remained silent without making a sound.

After hesitating for a moment, Manbao decisively changed direction and headed out of Kangxue Street.

The person following behind her hesitated for a moment before rapidly keeping up.

Using her own two legs, Manbao walked out of Kangxue Street and onto the main road. Without stopping, she headed straight for the County Governmental Office.

Manbao walked straight into the County Governmental Office just as the bailiffs were about to finish their shift. They were taken aback to see a young girl with a basket on her back coming in.

Manbao immediately pointed outside and spoke to them, "Officer brothers, there’s a bad man outside who wants to sell me. You must go catch him quickly."

Upon hearing this, the bailiffs peeked outside and locked eyes with the young man who had halted in the distance.

Just as Manbao said, "He’s been following me all the way from Kangxue Street, trying to catch me, but never found the chance..."

The bailiffs could tell by the young man’s eyes that he had been watching the little girl, so without hesitation, they rolled up their sleeves and called to their brothers, "Let’s go!"

Five or six bailiffs charged down like tigers pouncing down a mountain.

The young man standing in the distance was stunned for a second. As he came to his senses, he turned and ran.

Manbao rushed out of the County Governmental Office and stood at the entrance, cheering them on. When County Magistrate Tang came out due to the commotion, he saw her hopping up and down excitedly. He looked outside just in time to see his men chasing someone around the corner and out of sight.

County Magistrate Tang: "..."

County Magistrate Tang quietly stood behind, waiting for her to calm down before asking, "What are you doing?"

Startled, Manbao turned to see County Magistrate Tang and let out a sigh of relief, "Keke, why didn’t you warn me?"

Keke replied, "I didn’t sense any malice, and the other party wasn’t sneaking around either."

If every open and honest appearance warranted a reminder, you’d probably be bombarded with alerts in your head all day long.

Manbao thought about it and apologized to Keke before dealing with County Magistrate Tang.

She followed County Magistrate Tang into the County Governmental Office, set down her small basket, and explained being followed. "I’m not sure if he’s a thief or a kidnapper, and I didn’t dare lead him home."

"So you brought him here to the County Governmental Office?" Count Magistrate Tang glared.

Seeing him glare, Manbao couldn’t help but widen her eyes in astonishment. "Isn’t the County Governmental Office where bad guys are caught? If you come across bad guys, shouldn’t you bring them here?" It would save you all a lot of trouble too.

After thinking for a moment, County Magistrate Tang felt there was sense in what she said. He called over another bailiff who hadn’t yet left for the day and ordered, "Go see if they’ve caught him. Six men against one in broad daylight; they shouldn’t fail to catch a person, right?"

The bailiff whose off-duty time was delayed could only bow his head in agreement and left to work overtime.

After Manbao and County Magistrate Tang had two cups of tea and just as she was about to impatiently reach into her basket for some snacks, seven bailiffs returned with the young man in tow.

The bailiffs looked strained and sweaty as they reported, "Lord, that fellow can really run. We chased him across two streets before catching him."

The captured young man looked even worse than them, pale and weak-kneed, almost collapsing to the ground.

In fact, he did fall to his knees when pushed by the bailiffs, then pleaded with County Magistrate Tang, "Lord, I truly haven’t done anything."

"Hmph, you’ve been following me all along, trying to catch me, and you dare to say you haven’t done anything?"

The young man shook his head, "No, no, I was just going the same way. I... I don’t know the young lady. Why would I want to harm you? You can’t falsely accuse someone."

"I don’t know you either. Why would I falsely accuse you?"

The young man was left speechless by Manbao, and could only bow his head and sob quietly.

County Magistrate Tang watched him with narrowed eyes for quite some time before gesturing, "Take him away and lock him up. Let him reflect on it for the night. We’ll interrogate him tomorrow."

"Yes."

As to the adjudication of cases, Manbao had no understanding, and since it fell within County Magistrate Tang’s responsibilities, she did not interfere, even though she was eager to know who this bad guy was and why he was following her. Nevertheless, she remained silent.

Seeing her dutifully pick up her basket, County Magistrate Tang smiled and said, "It’s not close from here to Kangxue Street, and walking there would take quite some time. I will have someone take you back."

Manbao was delighted, "Thank you, Lord Tang."

It was then that the bailiffs took a closer look at Manbao, and they exclaimed, "I thought why the young lady looked so familiar—it’s you."

Manbao turned and gave them a radiant smile, "Yes, that’s me. I’ve been to the County Governmental Office before, so you officer brothers might have seen me. Oh, and I’m studying medicine at the pharmacy. If you ever get sick or injured, come find me. I’ll treat you for free."

The bailiffs: ...