Wine-scented Beauty

Chapter 227: Framed

Chapter 227: Framed

"Alright, alright, Brother Lu, let me help you up. Go back to your room and rest for a while. I'll go make you breakfast." Ji Meiqing helped Lu Yu back to his room and then went to the kitchen. Today she made a dish of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, which were all very common ingredients.

"Brother Lu, dinner's ready."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yu walked to the small stone table in the courtyard and sat down. Ji Meiqing also came out carrying the dishes. Before they could even start eating, they heard Widow Li rushing in.

"Aunt Li, is there something urgent that you need to do? Why are you in such a hurry?" Ji Meiqing asked, holding her chopsticks.

"Young Master Lu, Madam Ji, stop eating! Come with me, something's happened at the restaurant!" Widow Li pulled them both away.

"Aunt Li, don't worry."

When the two arrived at the restaurant, they learned why Widow Li had been in such a hurry. It turned out that the restaurant's wine was selling well, but suddenly someone came to cause trouble, claiming that his brother had died because of the wine and demanding an explanation. Upon hearing this, Ji Meiqing laughed and said, "Isn't this just someone trying to extort money? Just send them away."

"No, Madam Ji, if it were just one person, we could simply send them away. But in the last two days, there have been five or six similar cases. It's like everyone believing what they're seeing. We're also losing customers, probably because they've started to believe them."

Ji Meiqing became interested upon hearing this. "Oh? Is that really the case? Then is there really something wrong with our wine?"

"Not yet."

From her nightmares about drinking, she realized that many things are not only caused by human intervention but also by accidents. So she carefully checked the wine in the restaurant and secretly investigated the deceased, discovering that it was not an accident. Because her wine was fine, and those people hadn't touched anything that conflicted with the wine.

Ji Meiqing racked her brains but still couldn't figure out what was going on, or who wanted to harm her. It was unlikely to be Ji Tianzhuo and his group; they wouldn't be foolish enough to resort to such tricks. They would seize any opportunity to kill her. But she couldn't think of anyone else who might be at odds with her.

Lu Yu, standing beside her, reminded her, "Don't overturn any of your ideas. Do you think this matter is serious enough to kill you? This could be a big or small issue. If handled improperly, our situation could still be very dangerous. After all, we are no longer the unknown minority we once were. We need connections now. So, there's still a good chance that it's Ji Tianzhuo and his group."

Ji Meiqing thought about it and agreed, sighing, "It seems I'm still too young. But how should we handle this?"

Lu Yu liked her tendency to ask him for help when she couldn't solve a problem; in today's terms, he was a bit of a chauvinist. "Let's wait and see. There will definitely be more people coming after us. Right now, we can only pay to avoid further trouble. Let's find out who the deceased's families have been in contact with recently, bribe them, and then ask the princess to help us. We might as well use this backer."

Ji Meiqing listened to his logical analysis and couldn't help but say, "You say you are not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also understand human nature quite well. How come I never realized that before?"

Lu Yu became curious after hearing this, "So what did you think of me before?"

Ji Meiqing pretended to think for a moment, then said, "Before... I always thought you were a blockhead," and ran off. Lu Yu chased after her, while Ji Meiqing begged for mercy. Little did they know, their flirtatious antics had already been observed by someone else.

The woman clenched her fist. "Ji Meiqing, I'll let you be smug for a few more days. Then you'll be begging me on your knees." Thinking this, she felt a little better. "Then Lu Yu will be mine, and I won't have to grovel before that bastard Ji Tianzhuo anymore." Yes, this woman was Tian Cuiwei.

Ji Meiqing and Lu Yu split up, one going to gather intelligence and the other lying in wait. Ji Meiqing was the one waiting for the rabbit to come to her. Looking at the empty seats in the building, she realized that the impact was quite significant. It seemed that Brother Lu was right; if this wasn't handled properly, it could really be fatal.

Just as Ji Meiqing was idly flipping through the account book, a commotion arose outside. Upon going out, she saw that they had indeed arrived. Before the crowd grew too large, Ji Meiqing had her men subdue the troublemakers and take them to the restaurant's kitchen.

One of the men in charge said, "Hmph, is there no justice in this? We came here to seek justice but we were arrested and brought here. You owe me my brother's life, and this is all your restaurant's fault."

Ji Meiqing yelled at him, "Shut up! If you really think it's our fault, why don't you report it to the authorities? You've just come to my restaurant and caused such a ruckus to my business. Shouldn't I report it to the authorities?"

The man fell silent. In fact, Ji Meiqing had long suspected that although so many lives had been lost, and everyone was saying it was her restaurant's fault, none of them had reported it to the authorities. There was only one possibility: they were deliberately framing her. Who was so vicious as to make fun of the deceased?

While Ji Meiqing was making progress, Lu Yu was also doing well. Sure enough, some money-loving people took the bait and were willing to testify. They also revealed the mastermind behind the scenes. Although they didn't want to believe it, they had heard it with their own ears and it couldn't be false. It turned out to be Xiao Cui.

Actually, Lu Yu felt a little guilty when he mentioned Xiao Cui. She was such a good child back then, but he spoiled her and she became willful. Now she's even involved in a life-threatening situation. He had suspected her for a long time, but he still wanted to believe her.

Lu Yu returned to the restaurant with the men he had bribed and met up with Ji Meiqing. He walked up to Ji Meiqing and whispered, "We've found out. Our guess was right. It was them. But I'm not sure if Ji Tianzhuo was involved!"

"Whether she does it or not doesn't matter anymore. I think she's really had a tough time. Although I'm really angry, as long as she doesn't do this again, I'm willing to let her off the hook. I'm tired too, I'm going back to rest." To be honest, Ji Meiqing was still kind-hearted. She felt that Tian Cuiwei was venting her dissatisfaction with her husband on her, as if she was the most wronged one. Ji Meiqing thought to herself as she lay on her bed after returning home.

It's always good to be wary of others. Once someone harbors certain thoughts, they can spread like wildfire, especially when someone is driven to the brink. I guess I need to be even more careful from now on.

She's not worried about the restaurant now, because Lu Yu will handle it.