Magistrate Lu temporarily set aside the case of Tian and Zhu Ershi's infanticide.

He first dealt with the incident of Li Changdui and his son causing a disturbance at Yanxia Shop.

After multiple testimonies, Zhu Qiumei was sentenced to one year in prison, Li Changdui was given twenty strokes of the cane and sentenced to five years of hard labor, and Tian Shi and Zhu Ershi were each sentenced to one hundred strokes of the cane.

Don't underestimate these 100 lashes.

First of all, even a strong man would die before he could endure fifty strokes of the cane, let alone two elderly people. A hundred strokes would probably turn their lower bodies into a pulp.

The people shouted with relief.

This is much more satisfying than beheading. Beheading kills you instantly, and the pain is only momentary, but a beating with a board means you have to endure each and every blow.

As for Li Changquan, since he didn't interfere or say anything, he was released and prepared to return to Baihua Village with Zhu Guijiu.

Tian and Zhu Ershi were to be executed three days later.

He is now being held in the dungeon for the time being.

It was already noon when Yan Xia left the county government office.

She went to her family's restaurant and had a quick meal to fill her stomach.

He went to help out at the shop for a while, then returned to the house to take care of his granddaughter.

"I want to eat meat buns. I can't walk anymore. Carry me."

Zhu Guijiu hadn't walked for half an hour when he plopped down on the ground and refused to move.

"Your grandparents are dying, and you're still thinking about meat buns? Aren't you sad?" Although Li Changquan had only been to Baihua Village three times since he was a child, they were still his maternal grandparents, and he was still very sad at the moment.

"Grandma said that you all have to support me and take care of me from now on. So what if I die? You're still here. I want to eat meat buns. Why won't you buy me meat buns?" Zhu Guijiu's words sent chills down Li Changquan's spine.

For the first time, he, who had always been filial and obedient, felt rebellious.

He completely forgot what his grandmother told him before he left.

"If you don't want to leave, then sleep here. At night, the big insects and wolves in the mountains will come down to hunt for food, and they'll eat fat and tender young boys like you. You'd better watch yourself. I'm going back to the village."

Li Changquan left without looking back.

Zhu Guijiu was so frightened that he got up from the ground and dared not cheat anymore.

He jogged after Li Changquan, afraid of being left behind.

This time, unlike yesterday when they arrived in town, they walked and jogged at a brisk pace, and arrived at Baihua Village around dinnertime.

"Hey, Changquan, where are your maternal grandparents? Yesterday, a lot of officials came to the village and even took your maternal grandfather away. What happened?"

Many women were sitting under a big tree at the village entrance, enjoying the cool shade after finishing their meal.

Although they didn't associate with the Zhu family, they couldn't help but gossip. Yesterday morning, they saw Tian leave the village with her daughter, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Then, in the afternoon, the officials came and first searched the Zhu family's fields, where they seemed to have dug up some bones. They then searched the mountains and came down with a cloth bag in their hands. Finally, they took Old Man Zhu away.

During this time, the village head was always by his side, but the villagers asked him questions.

The village headman just kept a dark expression on his face and refused to utter a single word.

Now that they saw the person in question, they naturally asked Li Changquan out of curiosity.

"It's nothing, it's just..." Li Changquan wanted to make up an excuse to get away with it.

But before he could finish speaking, Zhu Guijiu blurted it out first.

"My grandparents were imprisoned by the officials, who said they were going to kill them. The officials even beat my eldest cousin with thick boards. My aunt was also imprisoned for a year. Only my younger cousin and I were released."

Zhu Guijiu was completely naive; he would answer any question asked to him.

Li Changquan was so angry that he stopped paying attention to him.

He turned around and went straight home.

When the gossipy women in the village saw such amazing gossip, they quickly pulled Zhu Guijiu into the crowd, gave him some fruit, and coaxed him into telling them everything that had happened in the past two days.

"See? I was right back then. How could a woman give birth to eight children and they all die? She really did kill them. I never would have guessed that Tian Shi was so heartless. They were just girls. You could raise them with just a little food. Why did she have to kill them? Doesn't she fear going to hell after she dies?"

"Is it just that the Tian family is ruthless? The entire Zhu family is ruthless. No wonder Gui Jiu's parents died so early. Isn't that retribution? They killed their own children with their own hands. Those baby girls are haunting them. Otherwise, why would they have to cause trouble at Yan's shop? And to make matters worse, Yan Xia reported it to the authorities. But how did Yan find out?"

"Actually, I'll tell you a secret: the night the seventh son of the Zhu family was born, my chamber pot was full, so I was carrying it to empty it into the manure pit in the field. I just happened to feel the urge, so I squatted down by the field to relieve myself. Who knew that I saw the Zhu family digging in the field? But I didn't tell anyone. When I left, I happened to run into Yan Shi. She must have seen it too. Plus, Tian Shi caused trouble, so she got angry and filed a lawsuit."

“Ah, no wonder. Do you remember how my son used to always get fishing rods and say he was going fishing? One day he came home late and I beat him. As a result, he developed a fever that night and kept shouting that he had seen a ghost. Could it be that Tian threw that baby girl into the river under the cover of night and my son just happened to see it? But after my son’s fever subsided, he didn’t remember anything about it.”

"Oh dear, that's why I say, don't do anything wrong. Heaven is watching, and you'll get your comeuppance sooner or later. I'll have to treat my granddaughter better from now on. What's wrong with a girl? When she grows up and gets married, I can still get a dowry. Besides, my granddaughter is very obedient and helps with a lot of chores around the house. I'm not like those heartless people in the Zhu family."

“............”

After the gossipy women finished asking about everything, they ignored Zhu Guijiu.

I always felt that he carried bad luck.

Seeing that there was no fruit to be had, Zhu Guijiu wisely left.

When Li Changquan got home, he had just finished cooking. It was a brown rice and vegetable porridge made with brown rice and several kinds of vegetables grown in the backyard.

I only added a tiny bit of salt.

As for the eggs, he couldn't bear to eat a single one; he planned to fill a basket and sell them in town.

The county magistrate said that after my maternal grandparents die, their bodies will be returned. At that time, two coffins will definitely be provided for them in town. People cannot enter the village after they die.

Li Changquan plans to bury his maternal grandparents outside the village, which will incur another expense.

He just found eight taels of silver hidden under the bed in his grandmother's room.

His grandmother told him this secretly before he left, and made him swear that he would definitely find a wife for Gui Jiu and not covet his house.

So, eight taels is simply not enough to spend.

Of course we have to save some money.

"I want to eat eggs! Eggs! I don't want to eat this lousy porridge! You won't buy me meat buns, fine, but you won't even give me eggs! I'm going to tell Grandpa and Grandma that you're bullying me!"