However, Sun Chongren and his mother had already moved to Xie Yushu Manor, so they couldn't find out. Everyone they asked said they hadn't seen them for a long time.
When asked if anyone in the village had gone out, no one knew.
As for the witnesses who were picked up by Lanting and his group, nobody paid any attention to them.
The village's teenagers spend all day running and playing all over the mountains and fields; if they don't see anyone for a day or two, they're unlikely to attract anyone's attention.
Since the villagers said that Sun Chongren and his mother had not lived in the village for a long time, why were there traces of people visiting Sun Chongren's house?
Could it be that Sun Chongren has already filed a lawsuit against the authorities? Have the officials come to collect evidence?
The moment this thought popped into Xiao Yuanhang's head, he broke out in a cold sweat!
Now, recalling Xie Yushu's expression when she asked him if he knew about the cheating, he clearly knew something!
Does that mean Han Zhongyu also knows? Could it be that Sun Chongren has already met with Lord Han?
Xiao Yuanhang had never been so afraid; his heart was colder than the coldest days of winter.
He didn't even know how he found Li Mingcheng; he just kept grabbing him and repeating to himself.
"It's over, it's over, we're really doomed!"
Li Mingcheng was still unaware of what was happening. Hearing him keep muttering "it's over," he angrily said...
"What do you mean 'it's all over'? Have you found the person yet?"
Xiao Yuanhang spoke incoherently
"He has already met with Lord Han!"
"who?
You're saying Sun Chongren has met Lord Han?
Who told you that? Or did you see it yourself?
Hearing Xiao Yuanhang say this, Li Mingcheng panicked and couldn't help but ask.
Xiao Yuanhang's lips trembled
"The villagers said that the mother and son had been gone for a long time. Xie Yushu said that she had seen him at the free clinic in the prefectural city. There were signs that someone had been to his house. Xie Yushu is always too lazy to bother with trivial matters, especially with people she dislikes. She would not even give them a second glance."
But she specifically asked me that question: she asked me if I knew which stupid and wicked person had copied Sun Chongren's policy essay!
She even looked like she knew everything. Yes, that was her expression at the time. But when I suddenly heard about it, I panicked and didn't think about it!
Now I'm certain that Xie Yushu, or rather Lord Han, must have met Sun Chongren, and Sun Chongren must have said something to her!
What should we do? What should we do?
See? Some men know exactly how they see themselves!
He wasn't unaware that he and Old Madam Xiao were selfish and shameless, nor was he unaware that Xie Yushu barely noticed them. He simply knew that Xie Yushu wouldn't stoop to fussing over trivial matters. He shamelessly thought, "Why not take advantage of a good deal? If I succeed, I'll have made a profit!"
When their own interests are truly threatened, they're smarter than anyone else!
Li Mingcheng panicked upon hearing this and was at a loss. Everyone knew that Han Zhongyu was a living devil in the officialdom; whoever he investigated would be severely punished, if not killed!
The two men couldn't wait for Cao Cheng'an any longer and hurriedly went back to discuss the matter with Magistrate Liu.
Magistrate Liu had been restless ever since he heard about the matter yesterday. He had originally thought that since his debt-collecting brother-in-law had gone to deal with Sun Chongren, he would just wait at home for news and see if the matter would be over once the man was dead.
After waiting for a day, Li Mingcheng and Xiao Yuanhang returned looking like they had been chased by dogs, their faces covered in dust and grime. They also brought the bad news that Sun Chongren might have already seen Han Zhongyu!
Upon hearing this, Magistrate Liu felt his head spinning! His official hat trembled precariously!
"Oh dear! What should we do? Han Zhongyu is not someone to be easily fooled. He wiped out Zhang Zhidao's entire gang as soon as he arrived. If this leads to me, what will become of me?"
What to do, what to do!
Magistrate Liu paced anxiously in circles, clapping his hands as he spoke.
Madam Liu disliked his panicked demeanor the most, and said in an annoyed tone.
"Hey, stop turning around. So what if you've met? You can't just believe whatever he says without evidence. If he wants to sue you, he needs to have proof!"
The authorities need evidence to arrest someone. Since Han Zhongyu hasn't come looking for you yet, it's because that guy surnamed Sun doesn't have any evidence!
Your most urgent task now is to think about what happened back then, whether you left any evidence, and clean up the mess!
Even if they've met, and the man surnamed Sun has told Han Zhongyu, there's no evidence. What can Han Zhongyu do to you?
Upon hearing Madam Liu's words, the group seemed to wake from a dream, and they all began to recall where they had left any flaws in their previous statements.
Only after reflecting on it did I realize that the biggest flaw was that the top articles were displayed at the Deer Banquet. Li Mingcheng was in the top five, and although Xiao Yuanhang was not ranked in the top ten, his article was exceptionally well-written and was specially displayed!
Many students saw it at the time, and what's worse, after the Deer Cry Banquet, the articles that were displayed were passed around, but when they were collected, Li Mingcheng's and Xiao Yuanhang's were missing!
Later, Sun Chongren came to them and immediately accused them of plagiarizing his past articles and essays, but he did not produce any evidence at the time, and even when the matter went to court, he never produced any.
Looking back now, in order to suppress the matter and protect Li Mingcheng, Lord Liu did not give him a chance to provide evidence. Could those two articles still be in Sun Chongren's possession?
Thinking this, Xiao Yuanhang said it directly. Upon hearing this, Magistrate Liu's heart sank completely, and he slumped into his chair!
Xiao Yuanhang was unwilling to give up. He had gone to great lengths to become a scholar, and he was respected wherever he went. How could he just wait to have his scholar title revoked?
After circling around a few times, he suddenly realized that since Sun Chongren had appeared in Tai'an Prefecture and even met Xie Yushu, he was most likely still in Tai'an Prefecture, but he didn't know where he was hiding.
But no matter where he is, if he wants to file a complaint, he has to appear at the government office. So go and block him near the government office. Even if there is only a slight chance, he has to seize it.
However, he couldn't possibly do this alone, so he immediately shared his analysis with Li Mingcheng.
There is no turning back now. Either wait to be stripped of your official rank and imprisoned, or fight for a sliver of hope!
Xiao Yuanhang and Li Mingcheng were both ambitious and would never willingly go to jail, so they decided to wait in Tai'an Prefecture.
Magistrate Liu, of course, did not want to lose his official position and go back to farming. He thought that if the two of them won the bet, he could live a peaceful life as the county magistrate, so he turned a blind eye.
However, Madam Liu was ruthless. She knew that with her brother and Xiao Yuanhang, that weakling, they would have a hard time controlling Sun Chongren, even if he was a cripple.
So they had Li Mingcheng and his men hire a few people to go with them. As soon as Sun Chongren showed up, they were to have his mouth covered and be dragged away to avoid any mishaps.
Xiao Yuanhang thought that everything would be fine as long as he intercepted Sun Chongren. Little did he know that his actions on the mountain, which had harmed Old Man Sun, had been witnessed by others. When the truth came out, it was no longer as simple as cheating in the imperial examination!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
