(II)
Zhao Yi nodded and led Old Man Huang and his companion across the threshold. There were only two small houses in the courtyard, and no one was seen moving around.
Just as they suspected, this man was impersonating a government official to swindle the court's salary. The best course of action now is to find out Xiao Zhong's connection to this place. But what's there to investigate in a fake government office? We still need to investigate this person.
But as they pushed the old man into the inner room, they saw a slightly plump woman dressed in gray clothes come out of another small room. She seemed not to see Zhao Yichen and the other man at all, and walked gently towards the old man, "What's wrong with you?"
Without saying a word, she was about to untie him when Zhao Yi interrupted her, "Wait."
The woman paused for a moment, then continued to untie him as if nothing had happened, saying, "You're looking for me, don't make things difficult for him."
"You know Xiao Zhong? Who are you?" They leaned closer to sized her up.
“I’m nobody. If you have any questions, just ask me. If you want me to die, I’ll go too.” The woman’s face was ashen, clearly trying to appear calm.
They exchanged a glance, both thinking that the woman had misunderstood something, but getting the information she had might be helpful to them.
The two stopped talking about it. As the woman was untying Old Man Huang's clothes, she suddenly let go of his hand and spoke first: "You're from the capital, aren't you?"
Chen Zhuangmu nodded, and the woman smiled and said, "I met someone from the capital more than ten years ago, just like you."
What she was referring to was probably the aura she exuded.
Chen Zhuangmu wasn't interested in listening to her story. She pulled out a piece of paper with a portrait of Xiao Zhong from her sleeve and asked, "Are you talking about him?"
The woman slowly shifted her gaze to the portrait, barely managing to make out its features before her expression hardening. "It's him! You..." she said, a look of desolation on her face. "You actually came. I'm willing to die. Take me with you."
If they didn't explain soon, they might never hear the truth, so the two hurriedly said, "We came here to find out who this person is, we didn't want to take your lives."
Old Huang grabbed the woman's sleeve, glaring at them: "Hmph! This kind of thing is punishable by death."
Zhao Yi crossed his arms and sized up the two of them. They hadn't even been interrogated yet, and they had already laid their cards on the table. If they had been coerced, they would have had no chance of getting anything out of them.
She simply tugged at Chen Zhuangmu's hand and said, "Uncle, grandma, you're overthinking it! Do we look like we've come here carrying out the words of that person you mentioned?"
Zhao Yi even deliberately took two steps forward and pointed out the large hole in the upper room to her.
"Grandma, we've been framed and brought here to find out the truth. The person in the painting has committed a crime, and we'll all die if we don't find out his background." She could tell that the old woman was not easily swayed, so she had no choice but to act in order to get the information out of her.
She might have hesitated before, wondering if what she was doing was right. Now, her bottom line is not to harm innocent people. Walk her path, be more resolute, even more resolute.
The old woman's expression faltered for a moment, and Chen Zhuangmu guessed that her mental state was no longer quite right. The old woman's eyes were looking into the distance, but she was clearly not looking at anything; she was already reminiscing.
Just then, Old Man Huang tried to break Old Woman's arm, but Zhao Yiyou gagged him, preventing him from making a sound.
The three of them stared intently at the old woman, who then touched her lips together and said, "He's a good person."
"I was a housekeeper in the Xiao family for over twenty years. The first time I saw him was when he was brought here by the young master. I can't forget his frightening eyes." Two lines of tears streamed down the old woman's face. Chen Zhuangmu wanted to hand her a handkerchief to wipe them, but worried about disturbing her, so she withdrew it in the end.
In the sparsely decorated courtyard, the old woman pointed to the empty land and said, "Oh, you should have known how nice it would have been if there was a tree here. Why did the master have to cut it down? He was brought here by the young master, who disliked his good looks and kidnapped him from somewhere. He couldn't get out and had to work as a servant here to make a living. He was constantly beaten and scolded..." The old woman's words were incoherent, probably because she was stuck in painful memories.
She gently pulled the handkerchief that Chen Zhuangmu handed her, pinched a corner and carefully dabbed at the tears in her eyes, and said, "Back then, I would bring him wound ointment. As a result, I found out that he was hiding a little girl in the house. She was about two or three years old. After asking her, I found out that she was his daughter."
"The young master was his enemy. They forced him to sign a contract of servitude, and he was given the same surname as the young master, Xiao. His fingerprints were forcibly pressed on his hand. A long time later, several years later, I was on night duty when I discovered that he had taken his young lady over the wall. If I hadn't called him down, I would have been beaten... But I still let him go."
She stopped crying, then suddenly froze, staring wide-eyed, and said, "Who would have thought that two years later someone would come here and forcibly take back the indenture. They even registered me in the household. I thought to myself, 'Oh, this is great, he's finally found his good fortune...' But two years later, the mansion was burned to the ground."
"What a fitting retribution!" The old woman shut her mouth in sorrow. She calmed down and sorted out what she had said, but she knew less about Xiao Zhong than Zhao Yi did, so she decided to discuss it further.
Old Huang slapped Zhao Yi's hand hard before he remembered to untie him. After untying him, Old Huang, who was expected to fly into a rage, slowly walked to the old woman's side and tentatively asked, "Shall we go back?"
He carefully led the old woman into the inner room, and soon came out, giving the two of them several unlucky glances.
As he spoke, he found a small stool and sat down, saying, "She was traumatized by what happened before, and she would feel upset for days whenever she thought about it. I don't believe any of your nonsense, but I do believe that you were framed."
Neither of them argued, and what they said wasn't entirely wrong, making it easier for him to speak. Suddenly, Zhao Yi thought of something and asked, "Is this really the government office? Are you from here?"
Seeing him looking around the house, Old Huang was furious again. He stood up abruptly and said, "It's all because that old emperor is incompetent, and the officials are incompetent! Four years ago, this place was well-organized. Although it was small, it was at least a place where things were done! And what happened? They shut it down! We haven't gotten any benefits for so long, and no officials have come here since. We've been abandoned!"
"Give up?" Chen Zhuangmu's eyes widened suddenly. "The 'give up' you mean...?"
"Nobody cares!" he said angrily. "They just ignore us because we're in a remote area? They only leave people outside to watch over the village. We have to talk to them first if anything happens! But what's the use of talking to them? They're just there to listen. The year before last, there was a plague here and so many people died, and nobody cared! Last year, everyone here was starving, and nobody cared! I don't believe that this country can starve us."
Things suddenly got even more serious. Chen Zhuangmu and Zhao Yi each grabbed one of his wrists and pressed him down onto a small stool.
“Tell me in detail,” Zhao Yi said.
He probably thought that such a thing wouldn't cause any trouble, and he was so indignant that he poured it all out in one go.
"Four years ago, although we were poor, we had enough to eat. But one day, the sign of the government office was suddenly taken down. When we asked him anything, he wouldn't answer, but he was dressed very well and looked like a high-ranking official! What else could he be but an official?"
He became more and more excited as he spoke, clapping his hands as he said, "The year before last, there was a plague and nobody cared. Last year, there was a famine and no one had enough to eat. Let me tell you, you met the gatekeeper when you came here, didn't you? He was guarding the locals. I don't know whose dog he was, but he must have already tipped them off."
It sounds plausible at first glance, but upon closer examination, there are too many doubts.
"Sir, is this the center of the county?"
"Hmm?" Old Huang shook his head. "This is a town; you've come to the wrong county."
Chen Zhuangmu said, "Uncle, everyone here seems happy and everything is in good order. You've been in charge since the people in the government office were dismissed, haven't you?"
Old Huang raised his head and said, "That's right! This is my home, and I can't let others look down on me!"
It seems that the answer they've been clinging to for so long can only come out of his mouth.
Seeing the increasingly dangerous look in their eyes, Old Huang realized that he had fallen into a trap. He had become naive after not eating government food for so long!
He scratched his hair in frustration and said, "You two don't look like menacing monsters. I'll just say it since you've forced me to this point."
He bent down to pick up a branch from the ground, only to realize when he looked at the empty ground that there were no trees in the yard anymore.
The two of them only saw the old man bending over, writing the time on the ground with his fingernail, drawing a courtyard, and pointing to it, saying: "At first I didn't know that an outsider had come to the village. I heard about it when I was on duty one day. I heard that the Xiao family had kidnapped someone again. I was planning to go and see after next week, but after a while, the young master of that family brought someone over. He was handsome and thin, and looked to be about twenty years old. He insisted that I register him as a household member."
He suddenly stopped talking, staring blankly at the dirt under his fingernails, and said, "I could tell he was unwilling, so I asked him if it was okay, and he said, 'Okay.'"
“I took advantage of him. A few years later, I heard that he had escaped, but I didn’t take it seriously. After a few years, he came back here with a very strong man behind him. He was carrying a big knife and insisted that I stamp his seal at this pass. I vaguely guessed what had happened, but saving my life was the priority.”
Zhao Yi listened intently as he recounted the previous story, and they keenly sensed that the story had reached its climax.
"How could such a miserable child like him possibly have made it to the pass? But four years ago, he suddenly returned, looking radiant and triumphant. It seemed like he just came back to take a look, and after wandering around the streets for a short while, he went back. But the next day, the Xiao family's house had been reduced to ruins, and nothing was left."
The steward and servants there knelt before my door; it was Granny Park, whom you just saw. It's quite a coincidence, isn't it? I have a connection with her. Perhaps because of the dire situation, she sought refuge here, but I don't know what terrifying thing she saw, and she's now delirious.”
After he finished speaking, a long silence fell over him. In fact, this was not a big deal for Zhao Yi, who came from Huijing, but Old Man Huang's gloomy calmness still shocked the two of them.
He picked out some important points and revealed them, but Chen Zhuangmu always felt that he was hiding something. Judging from his expression, she could tell that he would never say anything.
"Uncle, is there someone else behind him?" she asked as quickly as she could while the old man was still in his memory.
“No, except for his daughter.” Chen Zhuangmu nodded and pulled Zhao Yi out of the small courtyard.
It was afternoon, and most people were resting. Only restless children were running around them on the street, their playful noise gradually making the dry atmosphere more cheerful.
They stood on the dry ground. Chen Zhuangmu put his hands on his waist and said, "It's already very clear from what the old man said. Xiao Zhong and Han Feng were brought to the village by kidnappers. Unexpectedly, Xiao Zhong accepted living here, but it was forced. Many years later, he escaped, became an official, and came back to stamp his seal. Not long after, he burned down the Xiao family."
A hand suddenly landed on the back of her hand. Zhao Yi's fingertips traced her nails as he said, "Let's keep an eye on him for two days. If there's no doubt, then let's go back."
This is the best plan: get the main things done first, then come back and check for any omissions.
They turned into an alley and walked onto the main road.
"According to the old man's timeline, Xiao Zhong could have taken the provincial examination in the same year, which required a household registration that was not that of a slave. But this was definitely not something he could achieve alone. Who was behind him?"
These words, though spoken softly, brought to light the question that had been troubling them the most. The two men exchanged a glance and said, "There are still people from the previous dynasty in the court."
"Let's go back to the inn!"
The two quickened their pace and in the blink of an eye, they were sitting on small stools in the room, using rough brushes to circle names on grayish-yellow paper.
Later they realized there were just too many people.
“There are too many people, but back then, he was able to help him out…” Chen Zhuangmu circled two names on the paper.
The ink from the brush smeared into a circle on the paper. Zhao Yi put away the brush and said, "Zhuangmu, have you noticed this Jian?"
"The envoy of sparse and dense?" If it were before, Chen Zhuangmu would have angrily added the words "inhumane," but over such a long time, she had seen too much infighting and was tired of it.
She couldn't figure him out. She had heard that he was a straightforward old general who was single-mindedly focused on the battlefield, but she also remembered a conversation from more than a month ago that made her realize that this old general was definitely not clean.
As darkness gradually fell, even with the windows open, no light could penetrate. Zhao Yi lit a small lamp, and the dim candlelight illuminated his nose, dividing his handsome face into two parts of light and shadow.
"You suspect..." Shen Zhuangmu frowned before she could finish speaking. If that were the case, it would be terrible.
"No, it can't be what I think." Before she could finish speaking, her eyes suddenly cleared, and she said, "The closeness of the family makes their background clean, so even if the two are working together, it must be for some other purpose."
Zhao Yi nodded. "I've always suspected that Prince Ding's death was related to him. Sigh, let's go back and investigate further."
The two of them brought up some old stories, and finally figured out where to start. They were quite tired after dealing with these matters. Zhao Yi first covered Chen Zhuangmu with a blanket and went downstairs to tell the boss not to put chili peppers in the dishes.
He stepped onto the stairs without making much noise, but Zhao Yi was surprised to find four or five people sitting in the lobby, dressed in coarse clothes, glancing at him.
In that one glance, he suddenly realized something was wrong, but the instant he stopped and turned around, those people attacked him at an extremely fast speed!
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