This time, Master Wang did not help him up; he simply nodded and went into the main room.
Uncle Zhong was a little stunned, as if he felt something was different, but before he could figure it out, Wang Fu had already stepped forward to help him up and whispered, "Uncle Zhong, don't cry. Let's talk things out slowly. Let's go inside. There are neighbors around, so it's not good to make such a fuss."
"Yes, yes."
Uncle Zhong quickly got up, lowered his head, and hunched his neck before following him into the house.
Sister Fu served warm tea, and Master Wang picked it up, took a sip, and remained silent for a long time.
Uncle Zhong rubbed his knees with both hands, feeling extremely uneasy.
Thinking of his wife, children, and elderly parents at home, he could no longer hold back and knelt down on the ground again.
"Young master, this old servant can't take it anymore. Waaah... those thugs from the casino came again yesterday. They took everything in the house that could be sold for money, and they even smashed the iron pot. Waaah... we really can't go on living. Please, young master, save us!"
Only then did Master Wang put down his teacup and ask, "Tell me, what exactly happened back then?"
Uncle Zhong froze for a moment, then lowered his head and continued to sob.
"Son-in-law, those thugs said they'll come back tomorrow demanding more money. If we don't give them the money, they'll kidnap my grandson and sell him into slavery. Waaah, that child is my lifeblood, I'd rather be dead..."
Wang Fu and his wife realized that Uncle Zhong was forcing his master to solve his problems first, so they both turned cold, retreated to the door, and stood guard on either side.
Master Wang was not in a hurry. He picked up his teacup again, sipped his tea slowly, and asked no more questions.
Uncle Zhong cried for a long time, but when his master didn't respond, he said somewhat awkwardly, "Son-in-law, this old servant is really in a bit of a hurry at home, you see..."
"The Wang family is a merchant family, and Uncle Zhong has been with the old master for so many years. Could it be that he has forgotten the rule of cash on delivery?"
Master Wang sneered, "Uncle Zhong asked me to solve your troubles, but he himself has no sincerity at all."
Uncle Zhong's face flushed red, and he stammered in response, "The son-in-law has always been kind-hearted..."
Master Wang slammed down the teacup in his hand, splashing tea all over Uncle Zhong's face.
"Kind-hearted? You're just taking advantage of my kindness, which is why I've been separated from my parents and relatives for so many years, forced to work like a beast of burden to carry on the family line and expand the business!"
"So you're kind-hearted? Does being kind mean you deserve to be humiliated like this?!"
Uncle Zhong was so badly hit that he didn't dare wipe the tea off his face; he was terribly panicked.
Did the son-in-law find out the truth about what happened back then?
Master Wang gave Uncle Zhong no time to catch his breath, and continued, "My original name was Li Zhensheng. I was a scholar from beyond the Great Wall who traveled south to study. You have ruined me and I am now in this state. How much more kind-hearted do you expect me to be?!"
Uncle Zhong's face finally changed, and his body trembled uncontrollably as he protested, "Young master... young master, how did you know? It was all the old master's idea, not me, not me!"
The Wang couple at the door suddenly looked up and exchanged a surprised glance.
This is an admission, an admission that the old man harmed his son-in-law?
Master Wang slammed his eyes shut, his head throbbing as if it were about to explode. He desperately tried to suppress the dizziness and cursed, "You lowly slave, explain yourself! If you dare to mispronounce a single word, I'll send you to the authorities. Forget about saving your family; you'll be charged with murder and robbery, and you'll die in jail!"
"Young master, young master, spare me!" Uncle Zhong was terrified. He crawled on his knees to Wang Yuanwai's feet and grabbed his ankles.
“Young master, this was all the old master’s idea! Back then, the old master went to the north to do business. On the way back, you found a caravan to travel with. The old master saw that you were handsome and got along well with him, so he wanted you to become a son-in-law in the Wang family. But knowing that you had a degree, he never dared to ask.”
Uncle Zhong wiped away his tears, and as he recalled the past, he trembled even more violently.
"Later, when you reached the outskirts of the city, at the Broken Gold Beach, you had to part ways with the old man to continue your studies. The old man was reluctant to part with you, so he invited you to drink. Taking advantage of his drunkenness, he proposed that you become his son-in-law. You disagreed, saying that the old man had wicked intentions and that you had wasted your friendship."
"The old master was furious. When he saw you leave, he told me to find someone to pretend to be a robber and break your leg. That way, we could take you back to the Wang family to recover and let you spend more time with the young lady, and maybe she would stay. But the person pretending to be a robber wasn't very capable. During the fight, he pushed you off the mountain. When we found you, the back of your head had hit a rock, and you were covered in blood..."
Uncle Zhong cried, his face covered in snot and tears. "Son-in-law, I really didn't mean to hurt you. I just hired two local thugs, not real robbers. I never expected it to turn out like this. Waaah, I've had nightmares about this for years!"
Master Wang grabbed his collar, lifted him up from the ground, and asked sternly with red eyes, "And then what? Where did the robbers go? How did I end up in the Wang family's house?"
Uncle Zhong was being strangled and couldn't breathe, struggling desperately.
Wang Fu, sensing the danger, stepped forward and pried his master's hands off. "Master, let Uncle Zhong speak slowly. We've waited so many years, what's a little longer?"
Having said that, he rescued Uncle Zhong, but was also filled with hatred, and cursed, "Are you out of your mind? Speak up! The master has already found the family, you can't hide it from them anymore!"
Uncle Zhong coughed desperately, not daring to delay any longer, and immediately shouted, "It was the old master who gave those two hooligans a lot of silver, told them to hide it, and then carried the young master to find a doctor, saying that the young master had accidentally fallen down the mountain. The young master was unconscious for four or five days before he woke up, but he didn't remember anything that had happened before. The old master was overjoyed and asked the young lady to take care of the young master... After that, the young master knew everything!"
"Where are those two scoundrels who are pretending to be bandits?" Master Wang asked pointedly, getting to the heart of the matter.
Uncle Zhong burst into tears, “Those two thought they had caught us red-handed, so they turned around and threatened the old master, always coming to our house to ask for money. So the old master… so he dealt with them. At that time, there was an inn in the east of the city that was a gathering place for江湖人 (jianghu people, people of the martial arts world). The old master used five hundred taels of silver to buy those two men’s lives.”
"Can you find the home of those two hooligans now?"
"Yes, yes, it's in Dahuaishu Village! The two most dilapidated houses in the east of the village, I heard there are still people living there."
"Back then, my grandfather and I traveled all the way from the north to this area. Many people in our convoy should have recognized us. Is it possible to find them now?"
"No, son-in-law, that convoy is from beyond the Great Wall. They unloaded their goods here and went back. Besides, it's been more than ten years. They've probably forgotten about it long ago."
Uncle Zhong was terrified and didn't hide a word, answering every question.
Master Wang, his hands trembling, drank half a cup of cold tea and asked again, "What else do you know about my identity? Miss, Miss... do you know these things?"
Uncle Zhong lowered his head, trying hard to recall, and said, "Your son-in-law's surname is Li, and his name is Zhensheng. It is said that when your mother gave birth to you, there was a small earthquake, so she was given this name. Your son-in-law also has many brothers, all of whom have names like Yusheng or Dongsheng. When your son-in-law and the old master were chatting about these things, the old master even laughed and said that he envied your son-in-law's family for having so many brothers, which is why he had the idea of taking in a son-in-law."
He paused for a moment, then continued, "Later, not long after the son-in-law entered the mansion, the old master fell seriously ill. The son-in-law should know this. The old master said that he had suffered retribution, but for the sake of the Wang family's lineage, to preserve the family business, and to find a person for the young lady to entrust her life to, he would not regret it. He even made sure to explain things to the young lady before passing away."
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