Chapter 39 Zhou Zhengde
Her crying completely ignited the anger in her sons' hearts.
"Cry! Cry! Cry! All you do is cry!" The hungry Chen Kangzhong couldn't hold it in any longer and yelled at his own mother, "If it weren't for you, would we have come to this damn place? If you hadn't insisted on sending Daya to Zhang Quezi's house, would someone have died? Now look what's happening, our home is gone, people are here, and we can't even eat rotten rice! Are you satisfied?!"
"That's right!" Chen Kangshu's eyes were red, and his face was full of resentment. "Mom, you usually favor Sixth Brother, and we don't say anything. But you can't sacrifice our entire family for that little bit of money! Now the head of the village has been implicated by us, how can this matter be resolved? I'm afraid we will spend the rest of our lives in this prison!"
"You...you two unfilial sons!" The old lady was trembling with anger as her sons pointed at her nose and scolded her. "Now you think you blame me? When I was negotiating the price with them, weren't you happy too? When I asked you to tie up those two bitches, didn't each of you run faster than anyone else? Now that something's wrong, you're putting all the blame on an old woman like me? Are you even human?"
"Aren't we human? You're the truly cruel one!" Chen Kangzhong's face was completely torn apart. "For fifteen taels of silver, you even wanted to kill my eldest brother and his family! Look at my eldest brother, he toiled to death for ten years, earning over three hundred taels for the family, and have you ever treated him well? Now look, he's turned his life around on his own, but what about us? We followed you, and this is what happened to us!"
In the Chen family prison, a spectacular dog-eat-dog drama unfolded. The sons, once firmly under the old lady's control, finally bared their selfish fangs in desperation, pouring all their resentment onto the culprit who had led them into the abyss.
Old man Chen squatted in the corner, listening to his wife and sons accusing and cursing each other, and felt a splitting headache. He held his head and kept muttering, "It's over... It's all over... This family is completely over..."
Feng Lan watched the farce with a cold gaze, her heart unmoved. She simply held Daya tighter in her arms. Her victory in court didn't make her feel relieved; instead, a deeper sense of fatigue and worry welled up in her.
She turned her head and looked through the dim light at her husband, who was as silent as a mountain beside her. Chen Kangbo was also looking at her, his deep eyes showing heartache, guilt, and more importantly, a sense of relief at having survived the disaster.
"Comber," Feng Lan said softly, "I'm a little worried about Arya and the others."
Chen Kangbo nodded, his voice hoarse: "Me too. There's no one at home right now, just the little ones..."
Bai Tian's victory was won with the blood, tears, and courage of their daughter. But now, they and Daya are imprisoned here, with only their younger children left at home. The "home" they had just been granted has now become a most unsafe place. What will the villagers think of them? Will the relatives caught up in this situation cause trouble for them?
Feng Lan's heart was gripped again.
In another cell, village chief Zhou Zhengde leaned against the wall, his eyes closed. He didn't participate in the Chen family's farce, not even bothering to look at it. He just mentally greeted all eighteen generations of the Chen family.
"A bunch of idiots who are more likely to cause trouble than to do anything else!" he cursed inwardly.
For a mere two taels of silver, he had sacrificed his entire future and reputation. This deal had cost him his entire family. He knew that being tied to the Chen family would lead to no good end. He had to save himself.
He opened his eyes, and his cloudy gaze wandered around the cell, finally landing on the jailer who was patrolling with a lantern.
He rummaged in his pocket for a long time and pulled out a small piece of silver, the last of his possessions, which he had hidden under the sole of his shoe.
He quietly approached the railing, and as the jailer approached, he lowered his voice and said, "Sir, can you please excuse me?"
The jailer glanced at him and saw the shiny object in his hand, and paused.
Zhou Zhengde quickly stuffed the silver through the gap in the railing and said with a smile, "Sir, please do me a favor. I... would like to see the county magistrate. I have a very important matter to report to you."
In the study room at the back hall of the county government office.
Wang Zhihuan sat by the light of an oil lamp, reviewing a mountain of files. Although the court case of the day had been decided, the subsequent finishing work was a multitude of tasks. The Chen family's land deeds needed to be remeasured and redistributed, the position of village head needed to be filled as soon as possible, and the case of Zhang Quezi's accidental death also needed to be compiled into a detailed file and submitted to the government office.
He was just beginning to feel a headache when a trusted attendant quietly reported at the door, "Sir, Zhou Zhengde, the dismissed head of the village, is in prison. He has paid a fee and insisted on an important matter, hoping to see you."
"Zhou Zhengde?" Wang Zhihuan put down his pen and rubbed his brow. Of course he remembered this man. A typical country official, a bit clever but not very wise, greedy for small gains, which ultimately got him into trouble.
"Let him in." Wang Zhihuan said lightly.
He wanted to see what tricks Zhou Zhengde could come up with now that he was in this situation.
A moment later, Zhou Zhengde was brought in. As soon as he entered, he knelt on the ground with a plop, took off his hat, and banged his head on the ground: "I, the guilty official Zhou Zhengde, kowtow to the county magistrate! May the magistrate be well!"
"Get up and talk." Wang Zhihuan's tone was unremarkable. "Why do you want to see me so late at night? What's the important matter?"
Zhou Zhengde didn't dare to get up, still kneeling on the ground. He raised his head, his face full of flattering and regretful smile: "Sir, the guilty official... the guilty official is here to atone for his sins!"
"Atonement?" Wang Zhihuan picked up the teacup and gently blew away the foam.
"Yes!" Zhou Zhengde took two steps forward on his knees and lowered his voice. "Sir, I know this is my fault. I was foolish this time and was deceived by those idiots from the Chen family. I helped them to commit atrocities and made a grave mistake! I accept the punishment and have no complaints! But... but I have an eighty-year-old mother at home and hungry children. If I just... just..."
He squeezed out a few tears and choked out, "I really can't bear it! I beg you, sir, to consider my past service to the court. Even if I haven't made any contributions, I have worked hard. Please show me a way forward!"
Wang Zhihuan took a sip of tea and remained silent. "I enforce the law impartially and follow the laws of the Great Zhou. How can there be such a thing as an open or hidden path?"
Zhou Zhengde's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, knowing the county magistrate was not easy to fool. He gritted his teeth, steeled his resolve, and pulled out a small cloth bag from his bosom. He raised his hands above his head and lowered his voice even further, "Sir, I understand this case has wide-ranging implications, and I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble. Investigating, collecting evidence, and dealing with paperwork—which one doesn't cost money? I'm not very talented, but I have some savings at home, and I'm willing to...donate them to help you with your worries, and as a way of...making amends for my mistakes."
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