Chapter 292: Root of Evil
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Li Yu brought Auntie Xue and the siblings to the backyard of the government office. When they reached the second door, the siblings looked at the exquisite carvings on the drooping flower door and the corridor flanked by flowers and plants in the courtyard and widened their eyes curiously.
Er Ya and Sanzi nervously grabbed Shui Sheng’s hand and called out uneasily, “Brother.” Shui Sheng tightened his grip on his brother and sister’s hands.
After entering the courtyard, Li Yu handed Yangyang and Seven Pounds to
Xiaoyu and brought Auntie Xue and the children back to the main courtyard.
She turned around and looked at the three uneasy children. She said to Gu Yu,
“Take them to the kitchen and get Granny Liu to cook some food for them.”
“Yes, Madam.” Gu Yu looked at the three of them and smiled. “Come on! I’ll take you to Granny Liu.”
“Granny.” The siblings looked at Aunt Xue.
Auntie Xue comforted her gently. “Go! Granny and Madam will talk for a while.” “Yes.” Shui Sheng led Er Ya and Sanzi to the kitchen with Gu Yu.
Li Yu pointed at the chair and said to Aunt Xue, “Aunt Xue, please sit down and talk.”
“Yes.” Auntie Xue bowed to Li Yu before sitting down. She said slowly, “Madam, those two wooden houses originally belonged to Zhu Dazhu. Zhu Dazhu was tall and strong. In West City, he relied on his brute strength to make ill-gotten gains on the streets. Last summer, at the beginning of autumn, Zhu Dazhu suddenly suffered from a terrible illness and died after a few days.”
“Zhu Dazhu’s wife, Madam Ye, was not a well-behaved person, to begin with.
Not long after, she got involved with Master Wang. Master Wang and that servant would come every few days to fool around with Madam Ye.”
“That day, I washed my clothes and thought that it was getting cold, so I didn’t go out to work. I sat in the house and helped the siblings clean the jackets. Suddenly, I heard Madam Ye’s scream and was so frightened that I trembled. I hurriedly put down the needle and thread and walked out of the house. I stood at the door and listened carefully. There was no sound again. Soon, I saw Master Wang and the servant come out of the house together. The servant locked the door and left. I hadn’t seen Madam Ye and the servant since.”
“Before the new year, Master Wang suddenly brought some craftsmen to renovate the house. From then on, he brought women to the house every now and then to fool around. The girl today is not like the ones who came to fool around in the past. I’ve never seen her before.”
When Li Yu heard this, she thought to herself that it didn’t make sense. Madam Ye disappeared just like that. Why didn’t anyone ask? Besides, why didn’t anyone notice that he was beating up those women in the house in broad daylight?
“Didn’t anyone hear him beating up those women? Don’t Zhu Dazhu and
Madam Ye have relatives and friends in Yunzhou City?”
Auntie Xue smiled bitterly. “Madam, the people living there have to go out every day to make a living before dawn. No one can come back until it’s dark unless they’re so sick that they can’t get up. Also, I don’t know where that Zhu Dazhu came from, but he relied on some brute force to dominate that area. Everyone was overjoyed when he died! His wife wasn’t officially married to him. The two of them were just lovers. Besides, everyone is afraid of the officials. Even if someone knows something, no one will cause trouble.”
Li Yu understood what Auntie Xue meant. A group of people who had no tomorrow worked hard every day to survive. How could they have the mood to interfere in other people’s business? Moreover, provoking the Wang family would bring about trouble with the government, so everyone looked the other way.
“Alright, I’ll get someone to bring you to eat something first. Wait for Team
Leader Liu to pick you up.”
Auntie Xue stood up and bowed to Li Yu. “Thank you, Madam.”
“Go!” Li Yu smiled and agreed. She asked Gu Yu to bring Auntie Xue to the kitchen and get someone to pass on Auntie Xue’s words to Zhou Jia, who was in the government office.
Zhou Jia brought the girl’s corpse back to the government office with Wang
Chun and Liu Moyan. When Wang Qinghai saw the shackled Wang Chun and Liu Moyan, he was shocked and hurriedly went forward to ask the constable who had returned with him, “Constable Wu, what did the Wang family’s Third Master do?”
Constable Wu pulled Wang Qinghai to the side and said with lingering fear, “Aiya! Lord Wang, Wang Chun did something really outrageous. A good woman was beaten up by him until there was not a piece of good flesh on her body…
The two of them were nabbed in the house on the spot.”
“Thank you, Constable Wu. I’ll treat you to a drink another day.” Wang Qinghai cupped his hands and thanked him.
Constable Wu cupped his hands and smiled. “Sure, sure.”
Seeing Constable Wu walk away, Wang Qinghai hurriedly left the government office and rushed towards the Wang family. He thought to himself that Wang Chun was caught by the magistrate’s wife when she went to that godforsaken place. It seems that the Wang family and the magistrate’s wife are at odds!
When he arrived at the Wang family, Wang Qinghai got out of the carriage and went straight to Old Master Wang’s study. He barely had time to knock and barged in, before saying to Old Master Wang, who was practicing calligraphy, “Uncle, something bad has happened. Third Uncle has been arrested by the government office. ”
“What?” Old Master Wang, who was practicing calligraphy, trembled when he heard that. His words were all smudged. Wang Qinghai told Old Master Wang what had happened.
“This unfilial son wants to anger me to death!” Old Master Wang was so angry that he almost collapsed to the ground. Wang Qinghai hurriedly supported him.
Wang Qinghai advised, “Hurry up and think of a way! I think we might not be able to bribe that Lord Zhou.”
“Let me think about it.” Old Master Wang thought for a long time and did not come up with anything ideas. He got up and took out a stack of banknotes from the cabinet. He handed them to him and said, “Qinghai, I can’t think of a way for a while. I can only arrange for him to suffer less inside. Send someone to report as soon as there’s news. I’ll think of a way to get him out.”
Wang Qinghai looked at the stack of banknotes in his hand and thought to himself that the main branch was indeed rich and imposing. The money that leaked through their fingers was enough to sustain the rest of the family. As he thought to himself, he bowed and said to Old Master Wang, “Uncle, you better think of a way quickly. I’m afraid Third Uncle won’t be able to last long before he confesses.”
Old Master Wang pondered for a moment. “It’s good to let him suffer a little so that he won’t cause trouble for me again. Go back and speak with the people doing the interrogation before thinking of a way to get information about this magistrate. I’ll discuss it with your aunt now.”
Wang Qinghai nodded in agreement. “Yes, I’ll go back to the government office first.”
After Old Master Wang sent Wang Qinghai off, he returned to the backyard and told Old Madam Wang the news. He complained, “It’s all because you spoiled him. It’s troublesome now that he’s in Magistrate Zhou’s hands.”
Old Madam Wang looked at him and said, “I told him to play at home, but you insisted on scolding him. He ran outside because he was afraid of you.” “You doted on him! He was caught red-handed. What should we do now?”
Old Madam Wang thought for a while and said, “Do you think that child from the Liu family was also playing with Third Brother?”
When Old Master Wang heard this, he understood what Old Madam Wang meant. He said to her, “Get someone to call the Liu family over?”
Old Madam Wang nodded and said, “That’s right.” Old Madam Wang got someone to call Liu Moyan’s mother and Wang Chun’s nanny..