Chapter 83: A Virtuous Man Through Nine Lifetimes
Yue Huai nodded: "It's resolved, but we haven't found the person behind it yet, so I'll have to stay here for a couple more days."
Jingwu responded softly, "Can't we follow the aura?"
“We’ve tracked one down, but he’s just an ordinary person who doesn’t know any mystical arts. It seems he’s just a scapegoat.” Yue Huai paused slightly, then said, “However, don’t tell anyone about this yet. Let the magistrate investigate it himself.”
"Huh?" Jingwu turned to look at him, puzzled. "Why?"
Yue Huai lowered his eyes and smiled: "Give the county magistrate a chance to gain experience."
Jingwu still didn't quite understand what he was hearing until he walked into the hall and saw the young county magistrate.
He was dressed in an official robe, his hat nowhere to be found, and his handsome face still had a touch of baby fat.
What's even more dazzling is the golden light of merit emanating from his entire body. This merit is not only the accumulation of previous lives, but also a reward for the many good deeds he has done in this life.
Gu Feng frowned, looking at the list in his hand, and suddenly shouted, "This is it! I remember he said a few days ago that his family was poor and they were almost starving, and he even asked me for ten taels of silver. He must have been bribed to do such a terrible thing!"
The white-bearded old man leaned over to look at the name, his lips twitched violently, and he sighed deeply: "Sir! His family is not poor, it's just that his wife is very strict with money. He came to you for money just to go to a brothel."
"What!" Gu Feng looked at the person beside him in shock, his face full of disbelief: "Really?"
He nodded, looking utterly devastated.
Jingwu watched this scene, pursed his lips, and then turned and walked out of the county government office.
As soon as I stepped outside, the person next to me spoke.
"Do you think he's too unstable and unfit to be a county magistrate?"
Jingwu shook his head and chuckled: "Whether someone is steady or not is another matter. As long as they genuinely care about the people, they are a good county magistrate."
Upon hearing this, Yue Huai knew that she had also figured it out: Gu Feng was a virtuous man who had lived nine lifetimes. He was just one more lifetime away from achieving perfect enlightenment and being able to join the ranks of immortals.
He didn't say anything more, and seeing that it was getting late, he took the person back to his villa.
Jingwu stood in the elegant and unique courtyard, looking at him in disbelief: "You also have a courtyard in Anhe County?"
Yue Huai touched his nose: "My mother's dowry."
Jingwu twitched the corner of his mouth upon hearing this. They really were a wealthy family.
She didn't stand on ceremony and chose a courtyard that suited her taste before going inside.
Jingwu entered the courtyard and looked around at the furnishings, planning to earn more money in the future and build a place like this.
After washing up, she lay down to rest.
The next day, Jingwu was awakened by the noise in the courtyard.
She frowned, and after washing up somewhat unhappily, she changed her clothes, rubbed her eyes, and opened the door.
As soon as the door opened, they saw Gu Feng, who was covered in merit, grabbing Yue Huai's hand and dragging him into his courtyard.
“Last night the constables said you were with a woman, and I didn’t believe it. Today I came to talk to you about something, and as soon as I entered, I heard you talking to the steward about some girl. What girl is she? You have to let me see her.”
Yue Huai's face turned cold. Just as he was about to speak, he saw the girl with a grumpy expression walk in and cough lightly twice.
"You're awake?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Feng immediately followed the gaze and looked in that direction.
A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes the moment he saw the girl, but he greeted her with a smile, "Miss."
Jingwu nodded and asked, "Have you found out who did it?"
Yue Huai shoved the man out and said, "Yes, he came to tell me about this."
Gu Feng was a little unaccustomed to the sudden shift to serious matters, but he quickly adjusted.
He immediately took out the roster and pointed to a man named Ruan Ming.
“Last night, I checked everyone who could enter the granary, and this person was the most suspicious.”
Gu Feng sat down on the stone bench in the courtyard and instructed the steward beside him to serve tea. He then said, "A few years ago, his father passed away, his mother became seriously ill, and he had two children to support. He was the only one with his income, and they were struggling to make ends meet. Not long ago, it seemed like his family suddenly became rich, and they were eating out everywhere. His wife even went to a jewelry shop and bought three taels of silver worth of jewelry."
Yue Huai nodded, signaling him to continue.
Gu Feng took a sip of the tea that the steward brought over: "Moreover, someone saw him taking a thousand-tael silver note to the bank to exchange it."
Yue Huai nodded and looked at him: "Then what about the evidence?"
“Of course I had them all found, not only his wife’s hairpins, but also the silver notes he exchanged for them.” Gu Feng paused, “and his mother’s expensive medicinal herbs.”
Jingwu pursed her lips as she saw the fleeting pity on his face.
Then he said, "I've already caught the man, and we can interrogate him soon. Ah Huai, do you want to come with me?"
Yue Huai glanced at the girl beside him, and seeing her nod, he agreed, "Of course, let's go together."
Gu Feng immediately stood up, finished the last sip of tea, and led the two to the county government office.
The two followed him into the prison, through a dark and damp corridor, and to the outside of a cell.
Then they saw a man with a stubble beard, wearing a prison uniform, sitting calmly on the ground.
Gu Feng ordered his men to open the prison door and went inside.
"Ruan Ming".
Hearing the noise, Ruan Ming lifted his eyes to look at the person in front of him: "Sir, there's no need to ask, I did it."
"Because that person gave you money, right?" Gu Feng asked, frowning.
Ruan Ming nodded: "He gave me two thousand taels and told me that as long as I led him into the granary and buried that black wooden plaque in the ground, I would be fine. I did as he said, and he did give me the silver."
"That's the grain reserves of countless people, their life-saving grain!" Gu Feng couldn't help but shout. "If we encounter any disaster this year, we'll all rely on this grain to save our lives. You're destroying such a large granary of grain for money, you really..."
“I know I did wrong, but I had no choice. I’m out of money, but I need to save my mother’s life! She needs ginseng to stay alive, and ginseng is so expensive, what can I do?” Ruan Ming had been feeling terrible these past few days, and when asked this question, she couldn’t help but choke up, burying her face in her knees and sobbing loudly: “What else can I do but listen to him?”
Seeing his expression, Gu Feng felt a lump in his throat, unable to utter a sound.
He would rather the person in front of him had been more assertive and said he was right; in his current state, he couldn't vent his anger at all.
"When I came to the county government, I told you all that if you had any difficulties, you could come to me. Why haven't you come even once?"
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