Chapter 345 What Happened a Month Ago

Yuan Shanchuan spat out the tea he had just drunk upon hearing those words.

Shu Yu dodged quickly and wasn't sprayed, but Da Niu unfortunately got hit, his beard covered in water droplets.

He closed his eyes briefly, then quickly stretched out his sleeve and carefully wiped his beard to avoid wiping it off.

Yuan Shanchuan stared at Shu Yu in shock. "You, how did you know?"

Da Niu looked bewildered. "Evidence? What evidence?"

Shu Yu poured himself a glass of water, took a couple of sips, and said, "Fourth Uncle, you should tell us the truth first. You might not know this, but people outside are going crazy looking for you. It's not just us looking; the county officials are looking for you too. And..."

She paused, looked intently at Yuan Shanchuan, and said, word by word, "Lord Xiang of the government has investigated and found that the former magistrate secretly hid an important piece of evidence among the goods and had you transport them out of the city. Now that evidence is missing, and two people who transported the goods have been arrested. They confessed that you took the evidence. And you have been missing for several days, so now everyone in the Yuan family, including my fourth aunt, has been arrested by the government and is being held in the yamen."

"What?!" Yuan Shanchuan suddenly stood up, but the force was too great, and he felt dizzy and almost fell forward.

Da Niu himself was so shocked by the news that he forgot to react and didn't even notice him.

Fortunately, Shu Yu reacted quickly and helped the man up, allowing him to sit down again.

But Yuan Shanchuan couldn't sit still. He grabbed Shu Yu's arm and asked urgently, "You mean, the government suspected me of colluding with the former magistrate, so they arrested my whole family?"

Da Niu also asked, "A Yu, did Master Xiang tell you all these things?"

Shu Yu nodded. "Tell the officials that the outcome depends on when they find Fourth Uncle. So, Fourth Uncle, if you don't show up, or if something happens to you here, the authorities can't keep looking for you forever. In the end, the Yuan family will all be exiled."

“No, no.” Yuan Shanchuan hurriedly shook his head. “I have to go out. I have to explain the situation to the authorities. I am innocent in this matter.”

“We believe you are innocent, so you can take this opportunity to explain things to us. Let’s discuss what we should do.”

Yuan Shanchuan was lost in thought for a moment, then rubbed his temples and slowly calmed down.

He then extracted a key piece of information from Shu Yu's words and suddenly looked up, "You...know high-ranking officials?"

"Yes, I know him."

Yuan Shanchuan was stunned for a moment, then he understood.

Ayu's knowledge of such confidential matters suggests more than just a simple acquaintance. Perhaps the government's willingness to send more people to continue searching for him is also due to her connection.

Yuan Shanchuan took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you."

Shu Yu also dragged over a stool, and as the auction outside grew increasingly intense, Yuan Shanchuan began to recount what had happened a month ago.

“A month ago, I went with a friend to transport goods for a wealthy family in the county town. It was supposed to be a job that would only take a few days, and I was planning to go home after it was done. When I received my wages, I thought I would buy some food to take home and have a nice meal for my family. I didn’t expect to run into a bodyguard I knew before.”

"The bodyguard said he had a shipment to deliver to the prefectural city and was short-handed. He offered a generous wage and asked if I wanted to go."

(End of this chapter)