The servants and maids of the Wei family from twelve years ago were gathered in the most secluded courtyard in Niujia Village, nestled in a mountain valley.
There were three large rooms in the courtyard. One served as the main room, and the other two were used to house the men and women respectively. They had been suddenly brought here and placed under guard, so they were filled with anxiety and naturally couldn't sleep well at night. Therefore, when footsteps were heard in the courtyard, several people in both the men's and women's rooms woke up and alerted the others inside: "Wake up, wake up! Someone's coming!"
When Li Qingchen and Wei Shuwan entered the main hall, everyone in the rooms on both sides had already woken up. Gu Zhuang and Yuan Que called people out and had them stand in three rows so that Wei Shuwan could identify them.
“Miss Wei, everyone is here. Please take a look and see if there’s been any oversight?” Yuan Que asked.
Wei Shuwan's gaze swept carefully over the three rows of people, but she found each face extremely unfamiliar. After all, they were people from twelve years ago. Back then, she was only a five-year-old girl, so it was normal that she couldn't remember the servants who had been replaced twelve years ago.
Now Wei Shuwan has grown into a beautiful young woman. The servants and maids look at her with unfamiliarity. When they look at each other, Wei Shuwan doesn't recognize them, and they don't recognize Wei Shuwan either.
However, when they heard Yuan Que address Wei Shuwan as "Miss Wei," some of them boldly guessed: "Could it be the Wei family of Wu County, our former employers?"
The others were all taken aback, but after thinking about it, they realized that it must have been done by the Wei family. Otherwise, who would have the time to gather these former members of the Wei family from more than ten years ago here?
"Could you be the third daughter of the Wei family, Miss Shuwan?" Someone boldly guessed Wei Shuwan's identity, and guessed correctly right away.
Now that her identity had been revealed, Wei Shuwan directly admitted, "That's right."
"I have gathered you all here today to investigate a case from twelve years ago."
Upon hearing the words "old case," the servants immediately understood. The biggest incident that happened to the Wei family twelve years ago was when the young master, Wei Chengxiu, attracted lightning with a kite, causing him to go blind. They were all dismissed back then because the case could not be solved.
No one wanted this to happen. Even the servants could understand Madam Sun's actions, since she had no idea which of her remaining servants was the one who wanted her son dead. It was better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free.
However, the fact that they couldn't figure out even twelve years ago has suddenly been brought up again after so many years, and everyone couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that the Wei family has discovered some new clues?
Wei Shuwan naturally knew what they were thinking and would not let go of this great opportunity. Her eyes swept across their faces inch by inch, trying to find a flaw in their expressions.
Curiosity and guilt are naturally two different reactions.
She is no longer the little girl who would only cry while holding her younger brother twelve years ago; she has the ability to seek justice for what happened many years ago!
Wei Shuwan looked very carefully, but it was clear that the other party was also very cunning. After looking around, she couldn't find a single person with a guilty conscience.
But it doesn't matter, this is only the first hurdle, and she didn't expect to find the person in the first one. If it were that simple, her father, mother, and the officials in the government wouldn't have gone through so many trials without any results. It's clear how well this person has hidden himself.
Wei Shuwan took out a piece of paper that she always carried with her. It was the same piece that Li Qingchen had sent to the Wei family. It detailed how these people made a living after leaving the Wei family, as well as the businesses they were currently engaged in.
However, she still asked them, "I would like to know where you went and what you did after you left the Wei family twelve years ago, as well as what you do now. Please cooperate."
Wei Shuwan's gaze fell on the first person in the first row from the left: "Your name is Zhang Da, right? Let's start with you."
Since the man had been called out by his former employer, he truthfully recounted his experiences over the past ten years. It sounded unremarkable, just the story of a lower-class person struggling to make a living in the city.
All of this was actually recorded on paper; the person did not deliberately conceal anything.
Then Wei Shuwan carefully checked the second person, the third person...
After all twenty-four people had finished speaking, she compared her account with the notes on the paper in her hand and found that three of them were rather suspicious.
The other twenty-one people continued to do low-level jobs, while only these three were freed from slavery and became merchants.
Although the Great Ye Dynasty still retains the noble, free, merchant, and slave registration systems of the previous dynasty, class transitions are not as rigid as in the previous dynasty. It is not impossible to move from slave to merchant status, just like the Wei family, who successfully moved from merchant to noble status because their father was granted an official position.
However, even so, taking this step is not so simple.
Wei Shuwan's father was granted this official title for his meritorious service in assisting the government with disaster relief. For someone of slavery to become a merchant, it was extremely difficult without a windfall. After all, what well-off family would sell their child into slavery?
Redeeming one's citizenship is not so easy, unless one obtains incriminating evidence against someone and makes a fortune.
Therefore, Wei Shuwan first eliminated the twenty-one people, letting them return to their rooms first, leaving only the three who were of particular suspicion.
She first asked the first person named Zheng Hai, "Shortly after you left the Wei family, you took over a shop and started a small business. I wonder where you got this money from?"
Wei Shuwan had asked her mother and learned that all the servants dismissed that year had only received two taels of silver as severance pay. This amount wouldn't be considered stingy for an ordinary family, but for a wealthy family like the Wei family, it was not generous.
Even with these two taels of silver, plus ten years' worth of monthly wages as a servant, it would be impossible to open a shop.
Zheng Hai was a rugged man of thirty-seven. He had worked as a guard in the Wei family of Wu County. After hearing Wei Shuwan's words, he immediately explained, "After leaving the Wei family, I first went to live with my cousin in my hometown. I originally planned to find a new employer and then leave. However, my cousin suddenly fell ill and died. On his deathbed, he entrusted his only daughter and those three old houses to me."
"I didn't want to just sit around and do nothing, so I sold those three old houses and used the money to buy a shop and start a wine business. Later, I got married and had children, and the business grew bigger and bigger. Now I have four wine shops."
After listening, Wei Shuwan looked at Li Qingchen beside her.
The letter only stated their career changes, but did not provide detailed reasons, nor did it specify whether Zheng Hai had an adopted daughter.
Li Qingchen nodded at her, almost silently responding with his mouth: "It's true."
These contents were all written in the original biography, but the copy he transcribed for her was simplified.
Now that the source of the money could be explained, the suspicion on the first person lessened, and Wei Shuwan turned her attention to the second person.
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