People kept stepping forward only to shake their heads and back away, clearly showing that Master Wang was not the person they were looking for.

Even those who wanted to take advantage of the situation and covet the Wang family's wealth dared not impersonate him now.

Besides, Master Wang has already suffered enough; they really couldn't bear to deceive him again!

The wealthy man, Wang, and the others were extremely disappointed, and everyone sighed repeatedly.

The prefect frowned, took the warrant, and was about to interrogate Wang E.

Just then, a woman whispered, "You're the eldest son of the Li family, right? I think your name is... Zhensheng?"

Master Wang suddenly turned around, and the crowd dispersed in an uproar, making way for the woman who had been speaking.

The woman looked very old and was dressed like a servant. She was a little nervous at being the focus of attention.

Master Wang bowed respectfully, suppressing his excitement as he asked, "Auntie, do you recognize me?"

The woman nodded. “You look familiar. My hometown is in the border region. There’s a family named Li in the next village. Their son passed the imperial examination and went away to study, and never came back. I’m not familiar with that family, but I saw them from afar a few times when they had a banquet. But that scholar seemed to be much younger than you!”

"Isn't that obvious? That was more than ten years ago, of course they were young then!"

"Li Zhensheng? Is Master Wang's real name Li Zhensheng?"

The onlookers chimed in with their opinions, which made the woman anxious, as if afraid that others would say she was lying. She blurted out, "It looks just like them to me! If you don't believe me, you can go and find the Li family to verify. The Li family fled to the south during the famine. I saw them a few days ago!"

"What? The Li family is nearby? We must ask them!" the onlookers couldn't help but shout.

Master Wang was also somewhat agitated. He turned around and knelt down on the ground. "Please, sir, use the torture. I want to know if I am really Li Zhensheng?"

Wang E was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground; she never expected to be recognized.

Just as the constables were about to step forward with dark faces, Wang E started wailing, "Don't hit me! I'll talk! I'll talk! It's Li Zhensheng! Waaah, that's all I know, my father won't tell me anything else!"

"Ah, I found it! I found it!"

"Oh my, it really is Li Zhensheng!"

"That's wonderful! Heaven has opened its eyes! Master Wang can finally be recognized as a member of the family!"

All the people cheered, so happy they wanted to hug each other.

Overjoyed, Master Wang wept tears of joy. He looked at the Prefect, wanting to say something, but no sound came out of his throat.

The prefect immediately summoned the woman and asked, "Explain clearly where you saw the Li family member. Can you bring them here now?"

"Yes, yes!" The woman nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

She was as excited as if she had done a great service, gesturing wildly as she pointed outside the city, "The Li family is in the Broken Gold Beach and Hot Spring Valley outside the city. I only met them when I was serving my master on his trip. I never thought I would actually help find their eldest son!"

The prefect did not blame the woman for her rudeness, but loudly ordered his constables to hurry and find the Li family.

All the people eagerly awaited the news and discussed it excitedly.

"This is more exciting than a play; they actually found Wang Yuanwai's family."

"Yes, yes, maybe even God couldn't bear to see it anymore and took pity on us."

But some people wondered, "Such a big thing happened to the Wang family, why hasn't anyone come to check on them?"

"Perhaps they're afraid of being implicated..."

"They're all one family, a den of snakes and rats, not a single one of them is any good!"

The restaurant across the street was also bustling with noise.

The VIP in the largest private room tapped his fan and said with a smile, "Suijintan, the Li family? Isn't this too much of a coincidence..."

After thinking for a moment, he instructed his attendant, "Go and ask if the Marquis has made any moves recently?"

The attendant respectfully kowtowed and withdrew.

Within half an hour, the attendant returned and whispered, "The Marquis's men have provided the Dali Temple with a clue. It seems that the assassin once hid in a villa of the Wang family. The Wang family members have been summoned by the Dali Temple for questioning."

"No wonder!" The nobleman smiled and sipped his tea, instructing, "This is to keep that old fox Wang Bowei from interfering. This play has probably been rehearsed long ago. Well, let my cousin protect him if he wants to. These Jiangnan aristocratic families are usually a bit arrogant. It's not a bad thing to make an example of them."

The attendant dared not respond, bowed silently, and retreated to a corner.

Just then, a constable rode up on a fast horse with a middle-aged man, and the people quickly made way for him.

This man was none other than the second son of the Li family.

He looked confused and panicked. When he entered the courtroom, he forced himself to remain calm and bowed. "Your Honor, I am Li Yusheng. I went to the city to buy some things today, but I was arrested halfway there. I really don't know what crime I have committed."

Only then did everyone realize why the constables had arrived so quickly; they had picked up the person halfway there.

The prefect waved his hand, gesturing for him to look at the expectant-looking Master Wang, "Take a look at this man, do you recognize him?"

Li Lao Er was confused and turned to look, only to be stunned.

After a long while, he suddenly rushed over with a howl, hugged Master Wang tightly, and burst into tears, "Big brother, it's you, isn't it? Waaah, big brother, where have you been? You've been gone for over ten years, and Mother is about to go blind from crying! Why did you only show up now? We've been looking for you everywhere, but we just can't find you, big brother, big brother!"

The prefect was also anxious. He slammed his gavel and pressed, "Li Yusheng, what proof do you have that this man is your elder brother?"

"He's my elder brother! How could I not recognize him?" Li Lao Er grabbed Wang Yuanwai's arm tightly, as if afraid someone would snatch his elder brother away. In his anxiety, he shouted, "My elder brother has a birthmark on his lower back, about the size of a coin, and a scar from when he was a child, from climbing a tree with me!"

As he spoke, he tore at Master Wang's clothes, and sure enough, the scars and birthmarks were still there.

The prefect couldn't help but stand up, and the people also pushed forward as much as possible, wanting to get a clear look.

"Ah, there really is a birthmark!"

"We're really one family!"

"Master Wang is Li Zhensheng!"

"Master Wang has found his family!"

"God has opened his eyes! He has opened his eyes!"

"Weren't those people from Broken Gold Beach refugees from the famine in the north? And Master Wang was also injured there? No one would believe it if it weren't for divine intervention! A family reunited here, separated by thousands of miles!"

"Master Wang no longer needs to live as a wandering ghost!"

The people shouted, laughed, and cried.

In the courtroom, Li Lao Er and Wang Yuanwai embraced each other and wept bitterly.

The constables turned away, secretly wiping away their tears. Seeing Wang E trembling and trying to hide, they kicked her hard.

Wang E tumbled down the steps and landed not far from the people.

I don't know which woman was buying groceries, but she was the first to grab a sweet potato from her basket and throw it at them.

"You wicked woman! I'll beat you to death! You tried to do something bad, but you miscalculated! Master Wang has finally found your way home!"

"Yes, kill her! A vicious woman like that is only harming people!"

"Hit her! Hit her!"

In an instant, vegetables, sweet potatoes, eggs, and even snacks and fruits became weapons, raining down on Wang E, causing her to run away in pain, covering her head.

Someone, enraged, started throwing stones again, hitting Wang E squarely on the forehead, causing her to bleed profusely.

At this moment, Li Lao Er also heard the whole story from Wang Yuanwai. His eyes were bloodshot as he knelt down and kowtowed to the prefect, "Your Excellency, I beg you to do justice for the Li family and avenge my elder brother. I want to take him and my nephew home so they can be recognized as family!"

The prefect nodded, ordered the bailiffs to drag Wang E back, and loudly proclaimed, "The case of the Wang family forcibly taking a scholar into their household as a son-in-law is now proven beyond doubt. The verdict will be announced in court! The father of the criminal Wang E abducted and murdered the man to cover up his crime. His crimes are heinous and he should be beheaded as a warning to others. However, since he died early, the punishment will be carried out by his only daughter, Wang E, who was also an accomplice. She is sentenced to thirty strokes of the cane and exiled to the southwestern border to serve twenty years of hard labor."

"The two sons born to Wang E and all the family's wealth shall be inherited by the victim, Li Zhensheng. The father and his two sons shall be permitted to change their household registration and return to their ancestral lineage. In addition, Wang Zhong, who aided and abetted the evildoer and injured and harmed others, shall be sentenced to thirty strokes of the cane and exiled to the southwestern border for twenty years of hard labor. The sons of two families in Dahuaishu Village injured others first and were subsequently silenced. Their crimes are offset, and they shall not be prosecuted."

Served at midnight~~