Aunt Liu shook her head. "They didn't say, but when I saw them last night, two of them were carrying bundles on their backs, so they must have already packed up."

Madam Chu spoke up, "They not only kidnapped the Xu family's daughter, but also the Chu family's daughter. One family alone would have been enough for them, but now there are two families, which is even worse. I think these people might take the money and try to leave the city." "Master, let's send some men to guard the city gate, and then ask the soldiers guarding the city for information."

"The Xu family is definitely looking for these people too. We absolutely cannot let them fall into the hands of the Xu family."

Madam Chu wanted these people not only because they had attacked her family, but more importantly, because these people already knew the identity of their employer. If they fell into the hands of the Xu family, everything would be exposed.

This matter is absolutely detrimental to the Chu family, and if the authorities find out, the consequences will be unimaginable.

To prevent any disastrous consequences, Master Chu sent people to keep pacing around the city gate.

They even inquired with the guards at the city gate, but they still couldn't find any trace of those thugs.

The Chu couple waited anxiously, but instead of news from the thugs, they received news from the government officials.

"Sir, what has happened?"

Looking at the stern-faced official, Master Chu felt a bad premonition rising in his heart.

The official spoke in a bureaucratic tone, "Master Chu, I don't know the specifics of what happened; I'm just following the magistrate's orders."

Master Chu and Madam Chu exchanged a glance, both seeing unease in each other's eyes.

"Sir, look, you've made a long journey, you must be tired. Here's a little money for tea, you and your brothers can buy some tea." Master Chu gave the steward a wink, and the steward understood, taking out a money bag and stuffing it into the official's hand.

The officer flicked his sleeve to cover the money bag, and then took the money bag inside as well.

Then he lowered his voice and said to Master Chu, "I heard that someone is confronting Miss Chu."

Chu Yiyi? Reading in the dark

Madam Chu, who had been sitting upright in her chair, suddenly stood up.

Her face was filled with panic; the only people she could turn to were the Xu family.

But those thugs haven't been found yet, have they? What evidence do they have?

"Sir, may I ask one more question? Has the county government arrested anyone today?"

The official shook his head. "Madam Chu, I don't know either."

He was just a lowly clerk who was ordered to do something, so he didn't dare to ask any questions about what was going on above.

Madam Chu was still filled with fear and unease. Regardless of whether the Xu family had caught anyone or not, this matter was still quite troublesome.

"Master Chu, we've asked everything we needed to. Miss Chu, please come with us."

With the money in hand, the official's tone became a bit more polite.

Madam Chu composed herself. "I'll go and fetch Yiyi right away."

She had to go and give Chu Yiyi a few words of advice: she absolutely had to insist that she hadn't done anything wrong and she absolutely couldn't show any weakness.

When Chu Yiyi heard that she was going to the government office, she immediately became unhappy, but this was not a time for her to act willfully.

Even though she was unwilling, Master Chu and Madam Chu accompanied her to the yamen.

The officials led them to the courtroom, where they saw bailiffs standing on both sides holding sticks.

There was also the imposing county magistrate sitting in the middle, and Xu Yi and others waiting to the side.

Chu Yiyi was suddenly too frightened to go any further. "Father, Mother, I..."

She was afraid, especially when she saw Xu Yi and the others.

"Yiyi, let's go." Madam Chu turned her head and said in a low voice.

I'm afraid my daughter will suddenly throw a tantrum and make things awkward.

Madam Chu half-pulled her daughter along, and the family of three entered the hall.

"Your Excellency, may I ask why you have summoned me here?"

Master Chu and his men bowed to the county magistrate above.

The county magistrate glared at him. "What is it you're referring to?"

"Master Chu, are you really unaware, or are you pretending not to know?"

"Your Chu family really has some nerve, daring to hire someone to injure people within my jurisdiction."

"Does he really think I, the county magistrate, don't exist?"

After saying this, the magistrate slammed his gavel, startling Master Chu so much that he quickly pulled his wife and daughter to kneel down.

"My lord, I do not know what you are talking about. What do you mean by hiring someone to commit assault? I have no idea."

Even though his heart was churning with emotions, Chu Yuanwai still appeared confused and ignorant.

Chu Yiyi, standing behind him, was not so calm. Her hands, hanging at her sides, unconsciously gripped the hem of her skirt.

"You don't know? Ask the people behind you and see if they know."

Madam Chu and Chu Yiyi, who were called out, were startled, their faces still showing helplessness and confusion.

"My lord, I don't understand what you're saying."

“We women are not capable of doing such things.”

"My lord, there must be some hidden story behind this; I truly know nothing about it."

Madam Chu reacted quickly, her eyes were red, and she looked very weak and helpless.

Xu Yi stood aside, coldly watching this family stubbornly deny everything.

The county magistrate was clearly not one to fall for tears and wailing; he waved his hand, signaling Madam Chu to quiet down.

"Manager Xu, you heard what Master Chu's family said."

"Since you're suing them, then produce the evidence."

The county magistrate had already met those thugs; Xu Yi had personally brought them over, and they were still tied up in the backyard of the government office.

Since the Chu family still refuses to admit it, we can only let the evidence speak for itself.

Upon hearing the evidence, the eyes of the Chu family of three all fell on Xu Genshan.

They were still unsure whether the Xu family had actually caught the gang of thugs.

Clearly, they were planning to wait until the coffin was laid before they finally showed up.

Soon, the constables brought out several people from the back, including several men whose faces were bruised and swollen.

The dark bruises and swollen faces made their faces look much rounder.

The ferocity on his face had lessened somewhat, making him look both comical and pitiful.

Master Chu and his wife had never met these hooligans, but Chu Yiyi had.

She glanced up and then quickly lowered her head, afraid that those people would see her.

"Sir, this is the evidence," Xu Genshan said, presenting a confession.

This was made with Xie Ming's help today, and it contains a detailed record of what happened.

From beginning to end, everything is written clearly, including how the Chu family found them and how they were eventually captured.

The county magistrate quickly glanced through it and said, "Hmph, Madam Chu, Chu Yiyi, you two should take a good look."

"At this point, I'll see how you try to deny it."

The county magistrate frowned and threw the petition at the Chu family.

He thought to himself that the Chu family really did things without considering the consequences, while the Xu family was now favored by the governor.

Even he himself treated the Xu family with great courtesy, but the Chu family, on the contrary, secretly retaliated against them.

With trembling hands, Master Chu picked up the petition. It contained things they knew and things they didn't. By this time, the Chu family was in a state of utter panic.

"Sir, this is slander! This is slander! We don't know these people."

"Sir, we've never seen them before, why would we hire them to hurt people?"

The Chu family tried to continue their sophistry, but it was all in vain; the constables had already brought Liu Ma from the Chu residence.

Although those thugs had never seen the Chu couple before, they had seen Aunt Liu.

"This...this, we don't know either. It was all this wicked servant who made the decision on his own. It has nothing to do with us."

In her desperation, Madam Chu tried everything, and eventually even tried to pin the blame on Liu Ma.

"Madam?" Liu Ma raised her voice. "Madam, you're the one who sent this old servant."

"I didn't! It was you, you insolent servant! My lord, you must do me justice! I truly didn't make her do those things!"

Madam Chu seemed to have suddenly discovered something. In any case, the Xu family certainly couldn't produce any evidence to accuse her of having someone do it.

The Xu family hadn't expected things to get stuck here, so they had no choice but to have the thugs come over and identify the culprits.

However, those thugs only identified Liu Ma and Chu Yiyi; Madam Chu really didn't have any actual evidence.

Xu Genshan wanted to go up and argue, but Xu Yi quietly pulled him back and turned to the county magistrate.

“My lord, since Madam Chu says she did not instruct any of her servants to do anything, the Chu family cannot shirk its responsibility for what happened.”

"We implore Your Honor to see the truth and give the Xu family justice."

In any case, the Xu family is not planning to let the Chu family off easily today.

The county magistrate was a shrewd man. He knew that the Chu family was in the wrong, and he also wanted to do the Xu family a favor.

The decision was made immediately: Chu Yiyi, the thugs, Liu Ma, and others were imprisoned.

As for Madam Chu and Master Chu, due to their lax discipline, they were both dragged outside the government office and each received thirty strokes of the cane as punishment. "Father, Mother, I don't want to go, I don't want to go to jail!" The bailiffs had already come to take them away, but Chu Yiyi still clung tightly to her parents' hands.

She cried her eyes out, tears and snot streaming down her face.

"Yiyi, Yiyi." Madam Chu held her daughter's hand tightly.

The constable shouted a few times, but the three men wouldn't separate, so he had no choice but to physically tear them apart.

"Yiyi, yiyi."

Master Chu and his wife were reluctant to leave and wanted to chase after them, but two more constables came and stopped them.

They still have thirty strokes of the cane to take their place.

On this day, three people from the Chu family went, but only two of them returned.