When Cheng Qingyan returned to the inn, Ye Lingyu and Jiang Jiang were looking out the window of their room.

The window is on the back of the inn, away from noisy streets, only rows of houses.

Cheng Qingyan sat down next to Ye Lingyu and looked outside in the direction of her gaze.

"My wife, are you feeling alright? If you don't like it here, let's go back now."

"The matter has been settled, and we won't need to come to the county town anymore."

She could sense Ye Lingyu's emotional changes over the past two days, which might be related to her family.

But Ye Lingyu didn't say anything, and she didn't dare to ask, afraid of hurting Ye Lingyu even more.

Ye Lingyu pointed in a direction: "Ayan, my mother is buried in that direction."

Cheng Qingyan looked in the direction she was pointing and could only see a cluster of houses and attics.

She leaned closer to Ye Lingyu: "Since we're already here, my wife, why don't we go see Mother, shall we?"

Ye Lingyu's expression shifted, and she sighed again: "It's not the right time yet, Ayan, let's wait a little longer."

"That's fine, that's fine too."

As for what to wait for, Cheng Qingyan didn't know, but Ye Lingyu said it wasn't the right time and told her to wait, so she could only wait.

Sometimes I feel that Ye Lingyu is hiding something, but she hides it so as not to be discovered, so how can I ask her about it?

Jiang Jiang frowned; she couldn't understand the hidden meaning between Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu.

But she could see people fighting downstairs, and pointing down, she asked, "Father, isn't that person hitting someone?"

It was called a fight, but in reality, it was one party simply beating the other.

Ye Lingyu followed Jiang Jiang's finger and looked over. When she saw it clearly, her expression changed immediately.

She gripped the window frame so tightly that it actually cracked!

Cheng Qingyan quickly patted her hand: "Wife, what's wrong?"

Ye Lingyu released her hand: "Ayan, the person who was beaten is someone I know."

Cheng Qingyan helped her up: "Then, my lady, let's go down and take a look."

By the time they were about to call out to Jiang Jiang, she had already disappeared.

The clever little girl was already outside the door: "Father, Mother, hurry up!"

The gossip suddenly turned to someone her mother knew, and judging from her mother's reaction, it seemed like they weren't just ordinary acquaintances, but very close!

That actually made her mother's expression change immediately is quite something!

When Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu finally arrived, the man was still beating the person on the ground.

The woman on the ground was curled up in a ball, covering her head. She endured the torment without moving, while the onlookers pointed and whispered, but no one stepped in to stop her.

Ye Lingyu wanted to rush forward, but Cheng Qingyan pulled her behind her.

He whispered, "My wife, leave it to me. Don't show yourself."

She had noticed her wife's unusual behavior. Since that was the case, she decided to let her step in.

Cheng Qingyan stepped out from the crowd and shouted at those who still hadn't stopped, "Stop!"

Everyone's attention was drawn to her, and the man finally stopped beating her.

The man who assaulted her was wearing patched and dirty clothes; I never expected him to be a domestic abuser!

He was very unhappy with Cheng Qingyan for interrupting him, and pointed at Cheng Qingyan irritably: "How dare you meddle in my business? Tell me, how do you want to die?"

Then he shouted to the surrounding crowd, "What are you looking at? Get out of here! If you don't leave, you'll break your legs!"

Cheng Qingyan stepped forward, unafraid of the threat: "To beat someone up in broad daylight in the street, do you want to die?"

The man, as if he'd heard a joke, scoffed at Cheng Qingyan, "Are you crazy? What's wrong with me hitting my own wife? I can hit her however I want! Even if the Heavenly King himself came, it wouldn't be my problem!"

That's really something, it makes my fists itch!

“Even if it’s your own wife, if she kills someone, you’ll still go to jail. It’s still considered murder, and you’ll be beheaded and your head displayed to the public.” Cheng Qingyan looked at the person on the ground from afar; that person’s breathing had become weak.

This man didn't hold back at all when he hit people.

The patched-up man touched his nose: "Is she dead now? No! If she's not dead, then shut the hell up!"

"That damned woman made me lose money, she should be beaten to death!"

Cheng Qingyan had a sudden inspiration: "I didn't expect you to be into this too, brother. To be honest, I've been itching to play myself. How about we go play a couple of rounds? It's on me if I lose!"

Instead of wasting time here, it would be better to get rid of the people and make it easier for Ye Lingyu to act.

Gamblers, ah, it's much easier to deal with gamblers.

When the man heard that Cheng Qingyan was also a member of the club, he wanted to take him along.

At first, I had some doubts, but he hit his wife because she wouldn't give him money to gamble.

He owed the casino one hundred taels of silver. If he didn't pay it back, he would lose his hand, and might even lose his life.

Regardless of whether the person in front of you is a true gambling buddy, taking her to the gambling den will always give you a chance to swindle money from her.

Having figured this out, he kicked the person on the ground and cursed, "Pah! You good-for-nothing, you unlucky thing, I'll deal with you when I get back!"

Then he immediately changed his tune, calling Cheng Qingyan "brother" as they headed towards the casino.

Ye Lingyu's tightly clenched fist slowly loosened at this moment.

The person lying on the ground was her former maid, named Hongyu.

He was beaten black and blue and was on the verge of death.

After Cheng Qingyan and the gambler left, Ye Lingyu and Jiang Jiang quickly went to help Hongyu.

When Hongyu was taken to the clinic, coincidentally, the doctor who treated her knew her.

The doctor's surname was Yan, and his given name was Yan Nanxing. He was thirty-three years old. He and his wife ran a pharmacy in the city. Business wasn't good, but they managed to make ends meet.

The couple were kind and honest people, and they both felt great sympathy for Hongyu's plight.

When Hongyu was seriously injured, they would come to check on her. Yan Nanxing and his wife had known Hongyu for a long time.

Upon seeing Hongyu being carried in, Yan Nanxing called out into the room, "Wife, come out quickly!"

Since Hongyu's injuries were mostly in her waist and abdomen, even though he was a doctor, it was best for him to avoid her whenever possible.

They also knew Hongyu's husband, that scoundrel, Wang Tiezhu.

He was idle and dissolute, spending his days loafing around. When he lost at gambling, he would beat his wife; when he won, he would squander his winnings. In this neighborhood, Wang Tiezhu was notorious for his wickedness.

Yan Nanxing's wife lifted the curtain and saw that Hongyu had already fainted. She quickly stepped forward and carried her into the inner room.

While helping Hongyu undress and checking her over, Madam Yan asked Yan Nanxing, who was about to go out to get medicine, "Husband, what happened? How did Madam Hongyu get so badly injured this time?"

Yan Nanxing didn't know either: "Madam, it was this lady and the young lady who brought her here. I don't know the specifics. I need to go and get her medicine. If we delay any longer, I'm afraid it will be too late to save her."

Hearing that the patient was unlikely to survive, Ye Lingyu's heart sank.