Chapter 138 Exposure
"You still know to come back? Do you know what happened today!" Liu Yue was furious when she saw Xu Mingchuan return reeking of alcohol.
"What? Ning is pregnant? What else could be making you so anxious these days?" Xu Mingchuan was just joking when he said this. He didn't think Xu Qingyan could have any children of his own. Saying there was still hope was just a forced attempt to save face.
“It’s even more serious than this. Xu Qingyan brought back a bastard from somewhere and is making a fuss about making him acknowledge his ancestors!” Liu Yue sneered when she saw that he didn’t care.
"What? Has he gone mad with greed for the family fortune? He just grabbed a kid from outside and claimed him as his own?" Xu Mingchuan sobered up considerably after hearing this.
"They say that when I went to train, I had an affair with a village woman, and she secretly gave birth to my child. She even brought the child into the mansion. The old lady treated that bastard like a treasure and wouldn't even let me see it."
When Xu Mingchuan heard how much the old lady cherished that bastard child, he was a little undecided. If the child was fake, why would the old lady cherish it so much? He was afraid it was real.
"If that bastard is really allowed to be recognized as a member of the family, wouldn't we have to give back the assets we finally got from Xu Qingyan?" Liu Yue has been living a life of extravagance lately, and she's not willing to be forced to go back to the way things were.
"Let me think about it. We absolutely cannot let that bastard be recognized as a member of the family like this," Xu Mingchuan said, starting to feel a headache coming on. He thought about trying to get some information from the old man.
However, as soon as he stepped out, he was caught red-handed by the officials sent by Prefect Liu.
"What are you doing? What right do you have to arrest my man! Let him go! This is the Xu family! We will not tolerate your insolence here!" Liu Yue hurriedly stopped the officials, not wanting them to take Xu Mingchuan away.
"You've come at the right time! We're here on the orders of the Prefect to arrest you and your spouse for questioning. Guards, seize them all!"
Ignoring the servants' attempts to stop them, the officials who came to arrest them took Liu Yue and Xu Mingchuan away together.
"What's all this commotion outside? It's disturbing my precious grandson's sleep! Go out and chase them away!" Old Madam Xu was currently doting on her grandson, and upon hearing the disturbance outside, her face immediately darkened.
"Madam! Something terrible has happened! The second young master and second young mistress have been taken away by the officials!"
"I'm not feeling well, I don't have the energy to deal with this. You should discuss it with the master, don't bother me!"
Madam Xu acted as if it were none of her business, showing no intention of helping. Xu Mingchuan was just an illegitimate son, and in her heart, he was far less important than spending time with her beloved grandson.
Song Yushu spent five days in prison. Even though the cell was much cleaner than other places, he couldn't go anywhere else. He ate, drank, and relieved himself all in one cell, and the smell was truly suffocating. Now he was finally able to be released.
As soon as they were led to the hall, they saw Liu Yue and her husband looking rather disheveled. However, they had indeed had a good time these past two days, as their faces had become much rounder.
"Li! I'm giving you one more chance. Tell me the truth about your relationship with the deceased!" Prefect Liu looked coldly at Li, who was trembling below the court.
After all, Li was old, and compared to Song Yushu, she was in worse spirits. Moreover, she had done many shameful things in private, and had been suffering greatly for the past five days. She was afraid that her identity would be exposed, and she regretted that she should not have been greedy for this little bit of money and ruined herself. Now she was so regretful that she was green with envy.
Now all she can do is insist that what she said earlier was true, and that the prefect has not found anything.
"What I'm saying is true! My child was only seven years old! He died just because he ate the pancakes from their eatery! Sir, you must do justice for me!"
The elderly woman with gray hair looked extremely haggard, truly resembling a heartbroken mother who had lost her child.
However, this scene immediately darkened the face of Prefect Liu in the courtroom: "Li Sanniang! Do you really think I can't find out your background? How dare you appear again to frame others! Guards! Give this woman twenty strokes of the cane!"
Upon hearing the title "Third Sister Li," Li trembled violently! Knowing she was doomed, her face turned ashen, and she did not struggle as she was led to her execution.
Liu Yue and Xu Mingchuan did not recognize Li Shi at this moment, but when they saw Song Yushu, Xu Mingchuan immediately thought of something and hoped that someone from the Xu family could come and smooth things over.
Song Yushu felt no sympathy for the old woman as she was being beaten. If Prefect Liu hadn't investigated the truth, she would have been the one to die. Twenty strokes of the cane wouldn't have been enough to vent her anger. And she would never let the person behind it all get away with it.
The couple, Liu Yue and his wife, who were being stared at by Song Yushu, felt a chill run down their spines. When they saw the old woman being dragged in after receiving twenty strokes of the cane, their hearts began to pound.
"Xu Sanniang! Two years ago, you were pursued by the authorities for child trafficking. After hiding your identity, you lived in Qili Lane with the deceased. The deceased was not your biological son, but someone you abducted, wasn't he?"
"I'm innocent!"
"You accepted the silver notes from the Xu family's servants, knowing that the child would develop rashes all over his body if he ate pumpkin, and in severe cases, it could even lead to his death. That's why you went to Haowei Restaurant to buy pumpkin cakes for him to eat. The deceased knew he couldn't eat pumpkin and refused, but you forced the pumpkin cakes into his mouth, causing him to fall ill and die. In the end, he falsely accused Wei Niangzi's restaurant of having poisonous food, isn't that right?"
"This woman is innocent..."
"Hmph! This case has been solved, and there are witnesses and physical evidence. No matter how stubborn you are, you can't escape the punishment you deserve!"
As Prefect Liu spoke, he looked at Liu Yue and her husband.
"Sir, it's not just the two of us who came here..."
Xu Mingchuan pretended to be ignorant, thinking that even if Prefect Liu had no dealings with the Xu family, he would still be lenient towards them out of consideration for the Xu family.
As a result, Prefect Liu handled the matter strictly by the book, showing him no leniency whatsoever. He brought up the testimony of the servant who had done the job for him, which clearly detailed how he had instructed the servant to take money to find someone to frame Song Yushu.
"Your Honor, I'm innocent! I only wanted to teach that Wei family a lesson. I never allowed him to treat human life so lightly. It must have been this wicked servant who outwardly obeyed but inwardly defied me and caused that child's death!"
Xu Mingchuan wasn't stupid. Seeing that the fact that he had instructed his servants to frame Wei was already impossible to clear up, he insisted that it was the servants who had acted on their own initiative.
"Young master! I did everything you instructed! And I even told that old woman..."
"Shut up! You wicked servant, you've really done a lot of harm! Your whole family eats and uses the food from my Xu family. I originally thought you were an honest and kind person, but I never expected you to slander me, your master!" Xu Mingchuan kicked the servant in the chest, knocking him to the ground.
"presumptuous!"
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