Liu Huan listened quietly; the words seemed to be talking about herself, and also about others.

Su Yi paused for a while before continuing, "The mix of these two memories caused me great pain. I tried my best to shake off the bad ones and only keep the good times we had together."

"I have never married again. I will only get married once in my life."

“I know I hurt you deeply, and it’s understandable that you don’t forgive me. I was thinking that if I didn’t have any children in this life, I would go back to Maocao Village when I got old. My nephew would take care of me when he grew up, and that would be my life.”

"My only wish is that you can find a good family and a man who will always be faithful to you. As long as you are safe and happy, that's all that matters."

He smiled and said, "But things are different now. I know about Anzhi and Anran's existence, and I'm very grateful that you gave birth to them. Don't worry, I won't take the children back, nor do I have the right to. I just want to ask if I can also fulfill my responsibilities as a father."

Upon hearing these words, Liu Huan was already sobbing uncontrollably. She had always known Su Yi's character and believed that he was not the kind of person who would abandon someone after starting a relationship. There were feelings between them, but those memories were like a chasm, separating them into two different worlds.

There is more than just romantic love between the two; it is also a deep familial bond. The friendship they shared growing up together makes it impossible for Liu Huan to hate him, even after all they've been through.

She wiped away her tears and smiled nonchalantly, "Right now, I don't want to think about anything else, I just want Anzhi to come back as soon as possible. We'll talk about the future later."

"Tell me your plans. I don't want to be completely unaware of your plans. Anzhi is my son, and I worry about him more than anyone else."

Su Yi then solemnly revealed the purpose of his visit to Nanchang County.

Liu Huan was shocked. "Do you know who it is?"

"The Emperor suspects that it is the Prince of Yan of the Li Dynasty, whose fief is located in Wushan."

King Joseon was the emperor's uncle. He was a prince born out of wedlock who successfully escaped assassination by feigning madness during the struggle for the throne. His fief was located in Wushan.

Liu Huan didn't recognize him, but she was certain that An Zhi might be in the hands of this group of people.

"Is there anything I can do for you?"

Su Yi gave her a deep look, "No, you don't need to do anything. Just take care of yourself and An Ran."

Su Yi thought of the people locked up in jail, "Do you know someone named Zhang Gouwa?"

Zhang Gouwa might be Gouwazi from Heshui Village.

"What's wrong?"

"It was because he revealed your whereabouts that the bandits started targeting you."

Liu Huan stood up and asked, "Where is he?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Huan deeply regretted that she had been too confident and too soft-hearted to let Zhang Gouwa die with the two thieves.

“He’s locked up in jail. Tomorrow I plan to take him to Heshui Village. He said that a woman named Widow Feng instructed him to say all this.”

Liu Huan slumped onto the stool. There was nothing she didn't understand: it was all Feng's doing.

"I'll go tomorrow too. Even if the authorities can't prove Feng's guilt, I'll make her pay the price!"

After saying this, the two looked at each other in silence. Su Yi spoke first, "Let me take you back."

Liu Huan did not refuse. After returning home, An Ran woke up again. She lay down and stayed with An Ran to continue sleeping, and it took her a long time to coax her to sleep.

The next morning, at the entrance of Heshui Village.

"Why are so many soldiers heading this way?"

"I don't know, go quickly and call the village chief and the clan elders."

As they approached, they saw that there was another prisoner locked up in the prison cart in the middle, and it turned out to be Gouwazi.

"What did Gouwazi do to deserve this? Why was he brought back?"

"It's over, the village is probably not going to be peaceful."

Widow Feng, who was hiding in the corner, ran away as soon as she saw this, but was quickly caught by Ermo.

"Sir, this is Widow Feng."

Widow Feng feigned composure, saying, "This humble servant, Feng, has met you, sir, but I do not know why you have arrested me."

The soldiers holding her down kicked her in the knee, saying, "Stop talking nonsense, you'll find out soon enough."

Su Yi remained silent until the village chief and his entourage arrived.

"This humble subject pays respects to Your Majesty!"

Su Yi pointed to the person in the prison van next to him and asked, "Does the village chief know this person?"

The village chief glanced at him and answered tremblingly, "I know him, he's Zhang Gouwa from our village."

Su Yi nodded, "It's good that we know each other."

Changyun, who was standing to the side, took out Zhang Gouwa's complaint and read it aloud. When everyone heard that Zhang Gouwa had colluded with bandits, there was an uproar.

"Quiet!"

The village chief explained, "Sir, although Gouwazi may do some petty theft on a regular basis, we believe he is innocent of such a serious matter as colluding with bandits."

"Zhang Gouwa, we're giving you one last chance. Tell the truth in front of everyone, and you might get a lighter sentence."

Zhang Gouwa immediately opened his eyes and said, "It's not my fault, it's all Widow Feng's fault. She told me to do it. She said the Liu family is rich and their two children are good and can be sold for a lot of money. She told me to go and say that to the bandit leader."

"Otherwise, I wouldn't dare even if I had a hundred lives."

Upon hearing this, Madam Feng immediately retorted, "You're talking nonsense. How could I possibly say such things to a scoundrel like you?"

Zhang Gouwa further revealed, "You still dare to deny it? Didn't you say that Liu Huan was promiscuous and seduced teachers and officials, which made your family unable to go to school? Isn't it too late to try to distance yourself now?"

Feng immediately looked at the village chief, "Uncle, you know me. I wouldn't even step on an ant normally, how could I possibly harm Liu?"

She then deliberately added, "Besides, who knows if it was Liu herself who was indiscreet and offended others outside? How can you blame me?"

Su Yi asked with a stern face, "What do you mean by that?"

Then Madam Feng straightened up and said, "This Liu woman is so confident in her beauty that she not only seduced Lord Chu and the teacher in the county, but perhaps this Gouwazi was also bewitched by her and harbored resentment, so he took revenge on her."

Hearing these words, Su Yi's face turned so dark it was almost dripping with water.

"What else? Why did you stop talking?"

Liu Huan emerged from behind, "How did I seduce them, and how did you see it? Were you there when we were having our tryst?"

When Madam Feng saw Liu Huan come out, her expression changed. She quickly hardened her neck and said, "What? Now you've hooked up with the magistrate again? Maybe you sold your child to get close to him and then blamed it on someone else."

Liu Huan stepped forward and slapped her hard across the face several times. "Keep talking, I'm listening."

Feng cried and said, "Sir, village chief, look at her. She treats me like this in front of others, but she might kill me in private."

Su Yi said in a deep voice, "Village chief, is this how you manage the village? Allowing villagers to collude with bandits at will and not repenting in the face of facts to spread rumors about others. Can I assume that you have tacitly approved or instructed all of this?"

The village chief was so frightened that he buried his head on the ground. "Your Honor, you've been wronged! This humble villager knew nothing about these things!"