Carp Talk (14)
It is rare for the sun to come out in Wu County, but its light is as cold as iron. Its brightness shines on the treetops, on the muddy ground, and on every damp corner, but it cannot shine into thousands of homes.
The Wan family was so silent because the sins of the Wan father and son had overwhelmed the entire mansion.
Xiao Lin found Chu Mo crying, and Chu Mo also found the Chief Censor in time.
He brought him to Wan's house and went to arrest Wan Mian.
Everyone thought Wan Mian would make a final struggle, but he acted contrary to his usual behavior and stood there, as if he was waiting for them.
He did not resist at all and allowed the officers accompanying the Chief Censor to arrest him and put him back in prison.
Along the way, Wan Mian's hair was messy and he was still muttering. No one could hear what he was saying, but no matter what he said, it was of no use.
Wan Mian was arrested, and Wan Zhe and Xu Hui could not escape.
The Chief Censor led a team of people to search for the two men. It took some time, but they finally caught Wan Zhe who was trying to escape and Xu Hui who was holding him tightly from behind.
The two were escorted to the prison while begging for mercy and crying at the top of their lungs.
Looking through the files, the Chief Censor was furious. Xu Hui, this villain, had been an official for decades, but had done very few good things.
He took advantage of the remote location of Wu County to do whatever he wanted. If someone had not risked his life to go to the capital to file a complaint, he would have been able to continue to abuse his power here for dozens more years.
According to the law, Xu Hui and Wan Zhe should be beheaded. At the same time, Wan Mian, who was responsible for several lives, was also sentenced to the guillotine.
The Chief Censor decided to choose an auspicious day to execute the three men at the same time so that the people could see their heads fall to the ground with their own eyes.
At this point, Xiao Lin and Mu You finally completed the rewriting of the ending, helping the light of righteousness to illuminate the land of Wu County.
In this situation, the pitiful one is Xu Niao. As an outsider, she is always innocent.
The Chief Censor also took into consideration her good nature and did not implicate her husband and father's crimes on her, but the property of the Wan and Xu families was still confiscated according to the law.
After this farce, the people were talking about it. Some sighed at their fate, some applauded, and some agreed to go and watch the execution on the day. Everyone had something to hope for.
But the three people in the prison were shackled and had empty eyes.
Wan Mian still seemed unconscious, and kept mumbling unclear words.
Wanzhe leaned against the wall, regretting his life, his eyes filled with bloodshot.
Xu Hui dug his fingernails into the prison wall, completely despairing.
During this time, Xiao Lin and Mu You asked Chu Mo to use his connections to allow them to enter the prison to see Wan Mian for the last time.
After all, they still have a mission to complete.
When the two arrived at the cell where Wan Mian was imprisoned, he was curled up in the corner, picking at the moss on the ground and stuffing it into his mouth.
Xiao Lin couldn't help but frown and called his name hesitantly.
Fortunately, although Wan Mian is now unconscious, he still knows his name.
So when he heard his own name, he immediately turned around and looked at Xiao Lin.
And then, somehow, the moment he met Xiao Lin's gaze, his crazy eyes suddenly cleared up, and he quickly straightened up and strode over.
Xiao Lin was frightened by his action and stepped back repeatedly. Seeing this, Mu You hurriedly protected her.
"Hurry! Give me your tea!" Wan Mian grabbed the prison door with both hands, his face thin, and roared at the top of his lungs.
What? He still remembers tea soup?
"Didn't you say that your tea soup can rid anyone of all their worries and bring them a life of happiness? Give it to me now!"
Unexpectedly, when they were worrying about how to get the foolish Wan Mian to drink tea, he actually asked them for it on his own initiative.
It's ridiculous.
Committing such a crime, yet still hoping that a cup of tea could help him escape the condemnation of his conscience? He was truly mad.
But Xiao Lin only sneered, then took out a cup of tea specially brewed for him from the basket on his arm.
Wan Mian grabbed the tea without hesitation and stuffed his mouth with it.
"Is it delicious?" Xiao Lin asked sarcastically, "It's made with bitter tea, it suits you best."
Afterwards, while Wan Mian was eating, tears as big as beans fell down his cheeks. It was unclear whether it was because of the bitterness of the tea or because of his regret.
He swallowed mouthful after mouthful without even chewing: "So bitter... so... bitter..."
Why, why did he not feel any happiness at all even though he had eaten the world-famous Liuxiangju special tea soup?
Why? Why?
For a moment, his tears were like pearls falling from a broken string, dripping straight into the teacup and dissolving the oil stains.
Soon thereafter, it was the day of their execution.
The Chief Censor was in charge personally. He set up the stage and gave the three people enough "face".
The executioner walked up to the stage with firm steps, picked up his big knife, drank a bowl of white wine in big gulps, and spit it forcefully onto the blade.
At this time, the officials also forced the three men to the execution platform one after another. The platform was crowded with people waiting to witness the three men being beheaded one by one.
Xu Hui was the first one. As the Chief Censor threw down the execution board, he suddenly burst into tears and even wanted to struggle.
He cried out at the top of his lungs, but the people below cheered even louder.
The knife rose and fell, and Xu Hui's life officially ended with a sharp and dull sound.
When Xu Hui was beheaded, some of the people in the audience covered their eyes and dared not watch, while others shouted even louder.
Chu Mo and his group also arrived. Xiao Lin didn't dare to look and hid in Mu You's arms, but he could still understand the progress of the execution from the reactions of the people around him.
Next up, it’s Wanzhe.
As a businessman, he tried every possible way to make a profit; as a father, he risked everything for the Wan family; as a chess piece, he was played around by Wang Hu...
Unlike Xu Hui, he calmly closed his eyes and accepted the public's judgment at this moment.
Then, amidst another burst of exclamations from everyone, Xiao Lin learned that Wanzhe had also passed away.
The last one to perform was Wan Mian.
He is the youngest of the three, the most hopeful, but also the most extreme.
If you stay in vanity for too long, you will become greedy. Greed is a beast. You can never feed it. Instead, it will grow stronger with the food you give it and ask for more from you.
Wan Mian is just such a person who feeds greed.
Originally, he was just an honest scholar who wanted to obtain fame and fortune through hard work, but the facts repeatedly denied his ability. He had no choice but to find another way, but was trapped in an inescapable shackle by long-term flattery and the falsehood of gold and silver.
Wan Mian went crazy again, still mumbling something in his mouth.
Before the execution, the outlines of two people gradually emerged in front of his eyes. With tears in his eyes, he saw the shadows clearly - it was Fang Che and Fang Jingyu waving at him from a distance.
Did the tea soup from Liuxiangju work?
He then stopped whispering and slowly raised his head to get closer to them, but at this moment, the executioner's knife also began to dance.
"Ah Che...Ah Jing...wait for me..."
These were the last few words Wan Mian said.
The Wan brothers and sisters taught him to be optimistic, but he destroyed his own happiness with his own hands.
How can he atone for his sins? He might as well be a slave in his next life...
After the three men were beheaded, the Chief Censor sent people to raid the Wan family's house under the watchful eyes of the public.
Xu Niao left Wu County and no one knew where she went.
It doesn't matter, no matter where she is, she can make a stable living with her needlework.
Fortunately, she was no longer alone for the rest of her life - on the second day after Wan Mian was executed, she found out that she was pregnant.
The child was sensible and did not want to make any noise in advance and give his evil grandfathers a good time, but fortunately, he still had his mother who could guide him onto the right path in the future.
For Yu Xu Niao, this posthumous child is her only hope for the future.
After the matter was resolved, the Chief Censor sent people to bury the Fang brothers and sisters in a quiet and peaceful place where they would not be disturbed.
Out of kindness, Xiao Lin and Mu You erected a memorial tablet for the two and placed two cups of tea in front of their graves, sincerely hoping that they could find a good family in their next life and live a good life.
But Chu Mo was different. When everyone was immersed in the joy that the corrupt officials had been eliminated and justice had been achieved, he came to the dilapidated Wan family without saying a word.
Seeing the officials busy moving things in and out, Chu Mo walked in against the crowd.
He walked slowly and leisurely to the front of the pond.
Wan Mian was arrested, and after repeated questioning, he told the officials the whereabouts of Fang Jingyu's body.
But after they fished out Fang Jingyu's body and handed it over to the coroner, the coroner gave the cause of her death - drowning.
That’s right, Fang Jingyu did not die from suffocation, but from drowning.
That day, Wan Mian could have checked her breath, but he didn't. Instead, he threw her into the pool while she was unconscious, and eventually let the stagnant water rush into her mouth and nose, leaving her with no way to survive.
Chu Mo stood in front of the pond, picked up a handful of fish food and threw it casually. The fish floated to the surface and swallowed it, then dived into the water again with a gulp, and their raised tails splashed water.
Chu Mo looked at the ripples that gradually dissipated and sighed softly: "The fallen flowers are affectionate but people are heartless, the carp is sensible but people are not. Sigh, sigh..."
---
After everything calmed down, Xiao Lin and Mu You sat side by side in the empty Liuxiang Residence, unable to recover for a long time.
This time, there are no mysteries that Gao Qing and Gao Hui are involved in, but it gives them a greater impact.
During this time, Xiao Lin collapsed for a time, because in the lies intertwined with money and power, human life seemed so insignificant.
Of course, they also witnessed the beauty of the world.
Whether it was the steadfast kindness of the Fang brothers and sisters, or the selfless dedication of Lu Er and his wife, they both taught the two a very valuable lesson.
This journey made Xiao Lin full of anticipation for the next story, but also a little confused.
"Hurry up and pack your luggage." Suddenly, Chu Mo came out from the backyard, "The store is closing."
"Closing the store?" Mu You stood up suddenly and scratched his numb thigh. "It's not closing time yet, why are you closing the store so early?"
Chu Mo was once again speechless at the sight of the child in front of him. Due to etiquette, he could only roll his eyes in his heart: "You guys have been quite free these past few days, right?"
"Uh-huh."
"We told you this when we came here, didn't we? This store is already a loss-making business."
Until this moment, Mu You suddenly realized - it turned out that this time they were not closing down, but closing the store completely!
Doesn’t this mean that they can return to Tianling again?
But Xiao Lin, who had rested for some time, was unwilling to waste any more time. After all, it would take another seven days to return to Tianling from here, which was really unnecessary.
So, regardless of how Mu You entertained himself, she immediately asked Chu Mo, "Boss Chu, why don't you just take us to the next story? There's no need to waste time."
It was rare for him to be so active, and Chu Mo also became interested.
So, regardless of Mu You's calls, he quickly brought the remaining three booklets to Xiao Lin.
Every failure is a lesson learned. Before choosing a booklet this time, Xiao Lin asked, "I want one that can put the people around us at the top of the political ladder."
Her request was quite interesting.
Chu Mo asked back: "Why?"
"Because I've experienced how difficult it is to walk the road without power and money, so I want to clear some obstacles for myself."
After going through so much, Xiao Lin has grown a lot and started to negotiate conditions.
In that case, let her do as she pleases for once.
"This one." Chu Mo then flipped through the three books in his hand, picked one out, and handed it to Xiao Lin. "The protagonist of this story is the princess of this dynasty."
Princess? So noble!
Okay! This one... "The Music of the Lute for the Wanderer"!
Xiao Lin took on the task without saying a word, then skillfully put his arm around Mu You and closed his eyes.
Chu Mo smiled lightly and waved his sleeves.
There was that white light again, and after the world spun around, the two of them set out on an unknown journey again.
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