Chapter 895: Paying a Visit
Just as the father and sons were busy passing the buck, Village Chief Shi rushed over with the government officials in tow.
“Dayong, what kind of trouble are you causing now?” Village Chief Shi asked, his face full of impatience. The Shi family’s recent antics had already caused him enough headaches, and now they had somehow gotten themselves entangled in a lawsuit.
“These Lord Officials need you to head to the county government immediately,” he continued. His legs were practically turning to jelly; if he hadn’t been trying to maintain his dignity, he wouldn’t have even been able to force himself to walk over.
On the way here, he had carefully tried to fish for information, but these government officials kept their lips tightly sealed. They merely stated that the Shi father and sons needed to make a trip to the government office. Ever since they had fled here as refugees, Stone Village had never once had government officials show up at a door to arrest someone. The Shi family was truly setting a first precedent for them.
In the past, because they were in-laws of the Gu family, everyone in the village treated their household with respect and deference. Who would have thought that this family would take their blessings for granted and completely ruin their relationship with such a great patron?
Lately, the village chief had also heard rumors that Mrs. Shi Gu was severely ill, but the Shi father and sons had kept it hidden and refused to allow anyone to visit. Now, the moment she passed away, the government office had come to arrest them. He faintly sensed that something was very wrong.
This was likely the Gu family making a move. Only these Shi men could be so incredibly foolish; even if Mrs. Shi Gu had truly severed ties with her maiden family, they still shouldn’t have tormented her like that.
“You must be Shi Dayong,” the leading government official said, pointing at him. “You and your two sons are coming with us right now.”
“Lord Official, may I ask what business you have with the three of us?” Shi Dayong asked. Thanks to the Gu family’s influence, he was quite well-connected in Fu County and even recognized some of the government officials at the county government. However, the men who had shown up today were all unfamiliar faces.
What he didn’t realize was that ever since word spread that the Gu family had severed ties with Gu Yuanfeng, everyone had been giving this son-in-law of the Gu family a wide berth. He had simply been too preoccupied with frantically trying to mend his relationship with the Gu family recently to notice.
“Cut the nonsense! The magistrate wouldn’t summon you for no reason,” the leading government official said impatiently. “Hurry up and come with us immediately. If you delay and end up getting extra strokes of the cane, don’t try to blame it on us.”
Hearing this, all the color drained from Shi Dayong’s face. “Brother, I’m acquainted with your Chief Li. Why didn’t he come today?”
“Mr. Li has plenty of other matters to attend to; how could he possibly run this errand?” The government official gripped the hilt of his saber. “Don’t try to name-drop here. Get moving, and don’t force us to get physical.”
Mr. Li was currently avoiding this matter like the plague; otherwise, this miserable chore wouldn’t have fallen onto their shoulders in the first place. Right now, they only wanted to bring the suspects back as quickly as possible. Yet, to their surprise, this man was still standing there frozen, practically begging for a beating.
The official had barely drawn his blade a few inches from its sheath when the Shi father and sons suddenly scrambled toward the door. “Please calm your anger, calm your anger! We will leave with you Lord Officials right away.”
Watching the group march toward the village entrance, Village Chief Shi gritted his teeth and hurried after them. Before leaving, he glanced back at Li Chuncao, who was still standing there numbly, let out a heavy sigh, and quickly gave chase.
That day, the Shi father and sons never returned from the county town, and the entirety of Stone Village was abuzz with discussion about the matter. Everyone couldn’t help but sigh at the situation. The Shi men had been so utterly arrogant in the past, constantly acting superior while riding on the coattails of the Gu family’s influence. Now, the moment Gu Yuanfeng passed away, they were instantly thrown behind bars.
The villagers all agreed that the family was incredibly foolish. If they hadn’t acted so outrageously and had just maintained a good relationship with the Gu family brothers, perhaps someone from their household could have even secured an official government position.
However, considering that Gu Yuanfeng had breathed her last two days ago and the Shi family hadn’t even begun funeral preparations, what were they supposed to do now that the Shi father and sons were locked up? They couldn’t just leave Gu Yuanfeng’s corpse sitting in the village indefinitely.
The villagers sought out the village chief to ask how to handle the situation.
Village Chief Shi was also nursing a massive headache. He had never expected that the person who sued Shi Dayong and his sons would actually be Shi Zhongshi from their own village.
On his way back, he had pointed at Shi Zhongshi and berated her endlessly. The two families had no grudges or enmity between them, yet she just had to go and broadcast this scandal to the entire county. It was utterly senseless. Every household had children; did she really think she would benefit if the village’s reputation was dragged through the mud? She was truly an ignorant woman.
Yet, to his surprise, Shi Zhongshi was entirely unafraid. She coldly retorted that everything she did was simply at the Gu family’s request. How could a mere woman like her possibly stand against the Gu family? Besides, it wasn’t as if she had filed a false accusation. Who in Shi Family Village didn’t know the truth? It was just that no one had dared to step forward and speak a word of justice.
“Then you still should have informed me first!” Village Chief Shi remembered exactly how furious he had been at the time, pointing at Shi Zhongshi and roaring, “Why did you have to meddle in another family’s private affairs?”
Of course, Shi Zhongshi was never going to confess that she had accepted silver. Instead, she argued self-righteously, “I had no way to refuse! You know my son is still studying at the Gu Family School. He’s about to take the exams to become a Scholar, and I absolutely cannot ruin his path to a bright future.”
That excuse completely choked the words right out of Village Chief Shi’s throat. Shi Zhongshi’s son was their village’s greatest hope in many years. If the boy was forced to drop out of school because of the Shi father and sons, the chief himself would be the first to object.
His headache from earlier still hadn’t subsided, the previous problem remained unresolved, and now the village was in an uproar once again. How could he not be furious?
Leading a group of people to Shi Dayong’s house, he found Li Chuncao sitting alone, holding a bowl and chopsticks as she ate her meal.
“The men of the household are all gone, yet you still have the appetite to eat,” Village Chief Shi remarked, his displeasure deepening when he noticed the red flowers embroidered on her dress. “How do you plan to handle your mother’s affairs?”
Li Chuncao set down her bowl and chopsticks, rising unhurriedly. “The men of the household aren’t home right now. I’m just a woman and don’t know how to handle these things. We’ll talk about it when they return!”
“There’s a good chance they aren’t coming back! Are you just going to leave your mother’s body rotting in the village?” Village Chief Shi wanted to slam his hand against the table. What kind of wretched luck had led him to deal with these disastrous people?
They refused to hold a funeral. If they had simply informed the village yesterday, the burial plot would likely have already been selected by now. And now, she was claiming there was no one left in charge to handle it. Who was to blame for this mess?
“By the way, where is your sister?” Besides Li Chuncao, he hadn’t seen a trace of her younger sister. The two sisters were usually inseparable in the village, but it seemed no one had seen the younger girl for several days.
Li Chuncao let out a mocking laugh. “This isn’t her home anyway. She’s already returned to the He family.”
She couldn’t return to the Gu family, and staying here would just mean one more person suffering. Fortunately, although Chunya’s marriage had been arranged, the formal rites were never completed, so the engagement didn’t count. The decision to send her back to the He family was something Chuncao had pondered over for a long time before making up her mind.
He Tuping had remained unmarried all these years and had no children of his own. Now that Chunya had returned to him, she could eventually establish her own female-led household and recruit a live-in husband. It would be infinitely better than being like Chuncao, trapped in this miserable pit with no way to climb out.
Hearing her explanation, Village Chief Shi found himself at a loss for words. Although Li Chunya had been raised here for so many years, Old Mrs. Gu had sent over supplies and gifts every few days, so it was much more accurate to say the girl had merely been fostered here. Now that she had turned around and left, the village couldn’t really criticize her.
Brushing the topic aside, Village Chief Shi said, “You can’t just leave your mother like this indefinitely. You need to ask the uncles and elders in the clan to help you manage her funeral arrangements.
“Even if the men of your family aren’t here, the village elders can still step in and make the decisions for you.”