"How dare a mere clerk seduce the wife of an imperial official? If the adultery is true, Li Qigong is truly audacious!"
Guo Honglei frowned. When he thought about the possibility that the despicable official might take advantage of his official duties to get close to his wife, he suddenly became uneasy and decided to investigate secretly and take precautions.
Her husband was striding so fast that Jiang Yushu didn't even bother putting on her shoes. She ran after him barefoot and grabbed him. "Where are you going so late?"
Guo Honglei replied briefly, "I'll arrange for someone to conduct a secret investigation, then send a message to County Magistrate Huang, inviting him to come tomorrow. I'm afraid you'll be embarrassed if I discuss the details of such a scandalous matter as adultery. I'll accompany you tomorrow to get to the bottom of it."
"This matter cannot be delayed. It must be resolved as soon as possible. Only then can I rest assured and avoid making you feel uneasy."
Jiang Yushu thought about it and said happily, "Okay, I'll listen to you and solve it as soon as possible! I originally planned to deal with it during the year-end break."
Guo Honglei looked down and frowned, urging: "Aren't you cold with your bare feet? Go back to bed."
"Yes!" Jiang Yushu turned around and trotted down to the edge of the couch. "Don't forget your cloak. It's cold outside."
Guo Honglei nodded, grabbed the cloak hanging on the rack, opened the door and left.
A quarter of an hour later
The door creaked, and Jiang Yushu quickly opened the curtains. "Are you back? Have you made all the arrangements?"
"Hmm." Guo Honglei put the cloak back on the rack. "If nothing unexpected happens, County Magistrate Huang will be our guest tomorrow."
The winter night was cold, and Jiang Yushu invited him back to the warm bed, whispering, "Actually, I'm very curious and couldn't help wanting to ask him a few times, but the front hall was bustling with people coming and going, so it wasn't suitable for a private conversation. And with a lot of things to do at the end of the year, I put it aside."
Guo Honglei tugged at the quilt, remained silent for a moment, then hugged her and said slowly, "The government has a lot of work to do, and the county magistrate usually has a few staff members to help with advice and solve problems for the county magistrate. But you're doing it all alone, no wonder you're so busy."
"No way! I'm not fighting alone! Aren't you helping out with strategies right now?"
Jiang Yushu curled up in his arms, feeling warm and cozy, and said with emotion: "As long as the male magistrate can afford it, he can hire staff at will, but if I also hire staff, the outside world will definitely talk about it."
"So, unless I meet someone exceptionally smart and steady, I won't hire a legal advisor," she said cheerfully. "It'll save me both gossip and money! I hear that legal advisors with real talent and knowledge are very expensive, and I can't afford them."
It's only natural that Guo Honglei wouldn't be happy about his wife and his staff spending every day together. He smiled and politely asked, "So, Madam, what do you think of me? I'm offering myself to be your staff. Would you like to join me?"
Jiang Yushu was stunned for a moment, then smiled brightly and exclaimed, "Oh! Other staff members are just 'expensive', but someone like Second Master is simply priceless. How can I afford to hire him?"
"Don't worry, Guo not only doesn't ask for any reward, he will even give you money. The court will pay you the salary twice a year on time, and I will give it to you immediately." Guo Honglei said seriously.
“Hahahaha~”
Jiang Yushu was overjoyed and said happily, "There's such a good thing in the world! Second Master is willing to condescend to be your advisor. Anyone who refuses is a fool!"
"Do you want it or not?"
Jiang Yushu said without hesitation, "Yes!"
"I'm honored to help Madam with her worries and difficulties." Guo Honglei turned over and pressed her down, whispering in her ear, adding seriously, "However, although I don't want any reward, I need your body."
Jiang Yushu bit her lip, wrenched her hand free, twisted him, and said angrily, "You're so frivolous!"
Guo Honglei laughed silently, his broad chest shaking. He bit her earlobe a few times, and the two of them played affectionately and lingered for a long time before falling asleep in each other's arms.
The next morning
Jiang Yushu opened her eyes, dazed, and reached out to feel around: sure enough, the place next to her was empty again. The general was used to getting up early, and he couldn't lie down after waking up.
She washed and dressed slowly, and when she opened the door, the biting snow air hit her face, making her shiver. "Hiss, it's so cold!"
The maid informed her, "It's snowing heavily outside, and the snow is getting deeper and deeper."
"Where's the Second Master?"
"I'm playing with the kids and waiting for you to have breakfast together."
"Okay, let's go." Jiang Yushu pulled her cloak tightly together and hurried to visit her daughter.
A short while later, the wing room
Guo Honglei sat beside the low couch, his eyes fixed on the scene, and encouraged: "Come on, try it, and turn it over again!"
The baby in the floral jacket lay flat on his back, his eyes clear and bright. He turned sideways silently, then turned over with force and lay down to gasp for breath.
"Good!" Guo Honglei bent down, helped his daughter turn over, and continued to encourage: "Come on, practice your physique."
However, Guo Xiaoyan was too tired to turn over, so she lay down, stretched her legs, and started eating her fingers.
Guo Honglei's encouragement proved fruitless. He frowned and said helplessly, "You're tired after just five or six flips? You really don't have enough stamina! When your big brother was your age, he could flip until he got tired of it, and he could even move around on the bed. But you—ah, eat more and stop being so picky."
The nurse and the maid looked on, and together they tried to appease the child, saying, "Yes."
"Although it's not as good as the two young masters, it's still pretty good."
"Girl, be obedient, eat well, grow strong quickly, and do dozens of flips in one go next time to impress everyone."
Jiang Yushu smiled and said, "Let's wait and see!"
Guo Honglei pinched his daughter's cheek, his affection overflowing with words, but he said with a fierce face: "Little girl, stop sucking your fingers, it's time to eat breakfast. Kicking your legs is useless, sit up by yourself if you can!"
"Ah?" The thin baby couldn't sit still for the moment. He was confused and babbled a few times, sucking his thumb with relish.
The daughter responded, and the father couldn't help but laugh, "What? You're talking so much, who knows what you're talking about?"
Guo Xiaoyan babbled, saying words that adults couldn't understand. She was delicate and pretty, and became more and more adorable as she grew older.
The maid quickly set the table. Jiang Yushu checked her daughter's food first as usual. When she turned her head, she said:
The husband picked up his daughter, and the father and daughter rubbed their foreheads together affectionately, creating a warm and harmonious atmosphere.
Her heart warmed, and she greeted him softly, "Stop playing and come eat."
Half an hour after the meal, Huang Yichun came to visit, and his followers brought a few boxes of cakes, saying that they wanted to see if the magistrate's daughter had recovered.
It was a snowy, gloomy day.
The confidant closed the door and the three of them discussed in the living room.
Guo Honglei raised his hand and said, "Master Huang, please take a seat."
"Please go ahead, both of you." Huang Yichun was not sociable by nature. After the superiors were seated, he sat down stiffly and asked with concern, "How is your daughter's health?"
Jiang Yushu smiled and replied, "Thank you for your concern. He's recovered now." As if to reciprocate, she also asked with concern, "Last time I was chatting with your wife, she said your son caught a cold. Is he better now?"
Huang Yichun replied hesitantly, "It's nothing. I'll be cured after two doses of medicine. Well, a few days ago, I asked my wife to take our two sons back to our hometown."
"Ah?" Jiang Yushu was stunned. "It's almost New Year's Day, and it's snowing heavily. How could they travel so fast? It was so quiet, I didn't even hear anything."
Huang Yichun clasped his hands on his knees, sat upright, and spoke frankly, "It was precisely because I was afraid the snow would get heavier that I set off in a hurry. To be honest, I was worried about my wife and children here, so I simply asked them to leave and asked my relatives and friends back home to look after them."
Guo Honglei got straight to the point. "Are you afraid of more than just the wind and snow? Is there someone threatening you?"
"Threat?" Huang Yichun shook his head. "Not yet. It's just a precaution."
"You should be aware of why I asked you to come here today," Jiang Yushu said gently. "If you're worried about being implicated or retaliated against, just hand over the evidence you have. We'll investigate. I swear to heaven that I will keep my mouth shut and never reveal that it was you who reported it."
Huang Yichun breathed a sigh of relief, nodded gratefully, and lowered his head to pull out four letters from his sleeve. He handed them to the magistrate while explaining, "I'm ashamed to say that I come from a humble background, with elderly parents and young children to support. I have the heart to do good, but I lack the power to deal with local tyrants. Fortunately, you are the new magistrate, otherwise, these evidences would probably never see the light of day."
Jiang Yushu was puzzled. "Strange! County Magistrate Han, his family, and his close associates were all killed by enemy soldiers before you took office. Who gave you the evidence?"
"It's a long story," Huang Yichun said with a wry smile, explaining, "Back then, Magistrate Sun and I took office at the same time. The county government office was a complete mess due to enemy troops, but the situation outside was even worse, so we could only choose a tidier room to temporarily stay in. As it turned out, my wife happened to choose the lower room where the maid of the former magistrate's wife had lived. My son was a mischievous child, always playing around. While playing around, he stumbled upon a secret compartment. Inside was some jewelry, a few strings of cash, and four letters."
Jiang Yushu suddenly realized, "So that's why you chose to move out of the back office?"
Huang Yichun replied helplessly, "My son is young and ignorant. I left my hometown and came to Tuning. I am alone and weak, so I dare not cause trouble. I am afraid that my son will not be able to keep the secret, so I simply moved away."
Guo Honglei said with a serious expression, "Can you tell me how you discovered the adultery case?"
"Of course! Huang will tell you everything he knows."
"Oh, it's really hard to hold it in," Huang Yichun said frankly. "At the time, I recognized Li Qigong's handwriting, but I mistook the woman for Madam Han's maid and didn't take it seriously. It wasn't until I accidentally saved a woman that I became curious and began to investigate, gradually uncovering the scandal of the adulterer and the woman."
Jiang Yushu leaned forward slightly and asked, "Where is the witness now?"
"She's from Jingzhen and lives right here," Huang Yichun said. "I heard that County Magistrate Han places great emphasis on education and is highly praised by the Jing Instructor. That woman is the instructor's distant cousin, a widow. Because of her excellent cooking skills, she was recommended to the magistrate by the instructor and is now in charge of cooking."
"Mrs. Jing, with the guidance of County Magistrate Han, survived the war. Out of gratitude, I hinted at her and she volunteered: During her time as a cook, she saw Li Qigong sneaking into the lower chambers more than once when she woke up at night, with the maids acting as a lookout, assisting Madam Han in her secret affairs with her lover."
"To conceal her identity, Lai Xiao'e instructed her confidant to keep the 'love letter' for her. As for the other three letters suggesting 'elopement during the chaos,' it's likely that due to the chaos, the maid didn't have time to deliver them before the enemy soldiers entered the county town."
Jiang Yushu sighed, "I see. Let me take a look at the letters first." She picked up one and pushed the rest to her husband, and Guo Honglei also opened one.
"E'er, my dearest, reading your letter is like seeing you in person. It has been a few days since we last met and I miss you so much—" She glanced at a few lines and immediately got goosebumps all over her body, then she read the whole thing silently.
Guo Honglei opened the wrinkled letter, glanced at the ten lines, frowned and asked, "Wulang?"
"Li Qigong is the fifth child in the family and is known as 'Fifth Master'." Huang Yichun answered quickly.
Guo Honglei nodded and continued to read.
After they finished reading the four letters, Jiang Yushu whispered, "How corny!"
"The wording is too explicit and seems vulgar." Guo Honglei put down the letter without even looking at it.
Jiang Yushu cleared her throat and pointed at one of the letters. "I recognize Li Qigong's handwriting. This letter must have been written by him." Then, she pointed to three of the letters and asked, "But are these three letters definitely written by Han Lai?"
Guo Honglei raised his eyebrows. Knowing the reason, he couldn't help but ask, "Do you recognize Li Wu's handwriting?"
"He is a registrar and often submits case files and other official documents. I read them so many times that I gradually memorized them." Jiang Yushu whispered.
"……oh."
Huang Yichun and the other young couple whispered in each other's ears before answering, "Fortunately, God has a vision and left behind a witness. Back then, when Mrs. Jing urged Lai Xiao'e to flee, the adulteress was determined to take advantage of the chaos and elope with her lover. She hurriedly wrote a 'suicide note' to her parents' home and asked the cook to mail it so we can compare the handwriting. The letter is in my house, but it's badly damaged and stuck in a book, so I didn't bring it with me."
Jiang Yushu felt a mixture of emotions after hearing this, thinking to herself: I can't understand! How could a mother consider her adulterer more important than her own flesh and blood?
Guo Honglei pondered for a moment, "Besides committing adultery with the county magistrate's wife, what other evil did Li Qigong do?"
Jiang Yushu came back to her senses and answered confidently, "I know two!"
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