Chapter 188 Walking into a Trap

Lu Jianping and his family of three were detained in the center of the commune compound, surrounded by a crowd of onlookers. Even people from several neighboring brigades came to watch this spectacle.

Lu Xiaohui led the commune's men straight to the Lu family's lair and ransacked Lu Jianping's hidden loot.

What's even more astonishing is that this old man actually had a "good habit" of keeping accounts and writing a diary! The records of past gift-giving, his evil deeds of oppressing the people, and the details of embezzling public funds were all written down clearly, which was simply irrefutable evidence of his own self-inflicted trap!

Faced with overwhelming evidence, Lu Jianping's last psychological defenses completely collapsed.

He lunged at Lu Huaiyuan like a mad dog: "You unfilial son! You've ruined my life! If you hadn't provoked He Shijie, would I have ended up like this?!"

Lu Huaiyuan, not to be outdone, roared with red eyes, "Dad! Are you crazy? If Lu Xiaohui hadn't betrayed you, would you have been exposed? Besides, why are you writing this stupid diary? Aren't you just handing yourself a knife?!"

Lu Jianping didn't want to look at Lu Xiaohui at all, and pointed at Lu Huaiyuan to continue cursing: "If you had obediently married Liu Zhixia back then, nothing would have happened! You had to marry a jinx! Our family is ruined because of her!"

The fire instantly spread to Gu Mansheng.

Lu Huaiyuan turned his head sharply, his eyes filled with resentment: "That's right! It's all because of you, you bitch! If you hadn't brought that heartless uncle here, would our family have suffered like this? It's all your fault!"

Gu Mansheng, her hair disheveled, screamed and rushed forward to scratch Lu Huaiyuan's face: "You're the slut! How could I have been so blind to follow you? I thought the captain's son was so capable, but he's just a good-for-nothing! A piece of trash!"

A family of three was wrestling and biting each other in the commune courtyard, displaying an ugly spectacle that drew sighs and scorn from onlookers.

Secretary Qi watched the farce with disgust, then waved his hand and ordered, "Arrest them! I will verify and report all the evidence, and I will definitely give everyone a satisfactory explanation!"

He turned to Aunt Zhou and said, "Captain Zhou, go back and take stock of the Lu family's assets in the brigade, and confiscate them all!"

With that final blow, Lu Jianping collapsed to the ground, while Lu Huaiyuan and Gu Mansheng turned ashen-faced, utterly despairing.

On the outskirts of the crowd, Lu Xiaohui, carrying her luggage, watched this scene with tears in her eyes.

There was no reluctance in her eyes, only endless hatred and a sense of relief.

Liu Zhixia glanced at her from afar, and their eyes met in the air.

Lu Xiaohui forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and silently mouthed, "Thank you."

Then, she resolutely turned around, shouldered her luggage, and strode away.

This time, she really left, embarking on a new life free from the Lu family, domestic violence, and all that is clean and pure.

With the Lu family's downfall and their property abandoned, Aunt Zhou is leading a group to inventory their assets, preparing to confiscate them.

When Liu Zhixia returned home, she saw Zhang Xiuying preparing dinner, her face beaming with a long-lost sense of ease.

"Mom, let's add some dishes tonight to celebrate."

"Add it! We absolutely must add it! Stew that old hen!" Zhang Xiuying waved her hand enthusiastically. "This time, we've completely eradicated the scourge of the village. From now on, life will only get better and better!"

Liu Xuejun sat in the courtyard reading a book. Although his arm was still in a sling, he was full of energy.

Xu Zhihong sat to the side, carefully peeling an apple. The two occasionally glanced at each other, and the air was filled with a sweet scent.

Liu Zhixia felt a warm glow in her heart as she watched this heartwarming scene.

Just then, Aunt Zhou rushed in, shouting, "Xiuying! Xia! Quick! The commune called, saying it's about He Shijie's case, and they specifically asked Xia to go over there!"

Liu Zhixia's heart skipped a beat. Had that old fox, He Shijie, come up with some new trick again?

"Okay, I'll go right now!"

She put down her work and hurriedly followed Aunt Zhou to the commune.

This time, there might be unexpected gains.

...

When they arrived at the commune, Secretary Qi was waiting for them, his expression somewhat complicated.

"Comrade Xiao Liu, please sit down." Secretary Qi pointed to the chair opposite him. "There has been a major breakthrough in the interrogation of He Shijie."

Liu Zhixia's heart skipped a beat: "He confessed?"

Secretary Qi nodded and took a sip of tea: "This old fox isn't that stubborn. In order to get leniency, he revealed a secret warehouse in town. He said that in addition to contraband, there were... some things that were specially prepared for you."

"Prepared for me?" Liu Zhixia was taken aback.

"To be precise, it was a bargaining chip he prepared when he wanted to win you over, or rather... control you. When the police officers searched the premises, they found a batch of old items that looked quite old, in addition to the evidence we were looking for. We couldn't determine their value, and since He Shijie specifically mentioned you, we wanted to ask you to identify them."

"Okay, then I'll cooperate with the organization."

Following the officers from the police station, we arrived at an inconspicuous warehouse in town. As soon as the door opened, a musty, stale smell wafted out.

The warehouse was filled with miscellaneous items, including in-demand goods for resale and boxes of dubious origin.

As soon as Liu Zhixia stepped inside, her thoughts stirred slightly, and the space suddenly responded.

Behind a pile of old, worn-out furniture, she sensed something unusual.

She walked over calmly and pointed to several dusty camphor wood chests: "What are these?"

The officers from the police station pried it open and found it filled with ancient books and calligraphy!

"Hey, this old fellow's got some refined tastes, huh?" the police officer joked.

Liu Zhixia picked up a yellowed, thread-bound book and her pupils suddenly contracted.

The fragments of the Qingnang Jing, the handwritten notes of the Qianjin Fang...

These are actually rare, long-lost traditional Chinese medicine books!

How could a profit-driven businessman like He Shijie collect these things?

Suddenly, she remembered Gangzi mentioning that He Shijie had been frantically collecting rare medicinal herbs, even resorting to robbery. Could it be that he was trying to use these medical books and herbs to climb the social ladder?

“These books…” Liu Zhixia took a deep breath to calm herself down. “Although I don’t know much about antiques, these look like medical books. If the organization can’t find an expert to appraise them right away, I do have a friend who is knowledgeable about them. Could I recommend him?”

The officer from the police station nodded: "Okay. Could you please help us make the contact? We need to assess the value of these items as a basis for sentencing!"

"good!"

Liu Zhixia followed the officers from the police station and searched the warehouse thoroughly. Afterward, she contacted Gangzi and they went to the police station together to appraise the ancient books.

Gangzi's eyes widened as soon as he started working on it.

All of them are genuine! Some are even legendary rare copies!

"He Shijie actually said these were prepared for you?" Gangzi looked incredulous.

Liu Zhixia shook her head and sneered, "These things are most likely intended to be used to bribe high-ranking officials, how could they possibly be given to a country girl like me?"

"Then he..."

“That old fox knows my man is in the military and was the leader of this arrest operation. He deliberately said these things were for me, trying to drag me into this, or using them as leverage in negotiations, hoping to get a reduced sentence through connections.”

Gangzi clicked his tongue in amazement: "Tsk tsk, what a shrewd plan! If they really take all this stuff, they'll have more heads than they can count!"