Chapter 16 Storm Lin Xiangli and Ling An turned around and saw a...
Lin Xiangli and Ling An turned around and saw a fat man with a fat face and narrow eyes walking towards them. It was Wang Gui whom they had met at Ningxiangju that day.
The smell of alcohol on him and the heavy breathing in his steps all revealed an unpleasant atmosphere.
In an instant, Lin Xiangli and Ling An frowned at the same time.
Lin Xiangli suppressed the disgust in his heart and maintained a respectful attitude.
"How are you, Lord Wang? I've come to visit you today because I have many questions about my father's affairs. I've come to ask you for some information. I hope you will forgive me."
"Oh? It's about Magistrate Lin?"
Wang Gui pretended to be surprised, and gently turned the jade in his hand, but his eyes revealed a hint of amusement.
"How could I, a mere county clerk, know about the affairs of the prefect? Miss Lin may have found the wrong person."
"So, you have no friendship with my father?"
Lin Xiangli asked tentatively.
"Miss Lin, you are too kind. The prefect's reputation is far-reaching, and everyone knows him. However, I hold a lowly position, and have not yet had the honor of forming a close friendship with him."
There was a hint of self-mockery in Wang Gui's words, but the contemptuous smile at the corner of his mouth was hard to ignore.
"So, regarding the use of power to force decent women into prostitution, was it also all done by others?"
Lin Xiangli decided to be straightforward and raise the questions in her mind.
Wang Gui's face darkened slightly, but he quickly returned to normal and pretended to be puzzled.
"Miss Lin, you are wrong. How could I do such a heinous thing? There must be a misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding? Lord Wang, Chen Weiyu and other women suffered humiliation because of you. How can you say it was a misunderstanding?"
Lin Xiangli was emotional, with indignation in her voice.
"Xiang Li, calm down..."
Ling An wanted to step forward to dissuade him.
He knew that mentioning Chen Weiyu at this moment would only make the situation more complicated and might even push Chen Weiyu to the brink of danger, but Lin Xiangli's emotions were like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins and were difficult to control.
"Chen Weiyu..."
As expected, when Wang Gui heard this name, his eyes instantly turned cold.
"Hmph, a mere prostitute, how can you trust her words? She's just a wisp of smoke in this world, her words are worthless."
Looking at Wang Gui's arrogant attitude, Lin Xiangli suppressed the anger in her heart. She took a deep breath and tried to make her voice sound more stable.
"I don't care how many shady deals you've been involved in behind the scenes at Ningxiangju. I just hope you can give me a clear answer - is my father involved in all this?"
Lin Xiangli stared at Wang Gui, as if trying to penetrate his disguise and get to the core of the truth.
She urgently needed this confirmation to defend her trust and respect for her father, even if the answer came from someone she did not agree with.
Wang Gui did not answer directly. He sneered and asked,
"Miss Lin, don't you believe your own father? Instead, you believe the one-sided words of a prostitute?"
After saying that, he changed into a concerned look and gave a serious exhortation:
"Ms. Lin, people are treacherous. With your innocence and kindness, you really need to be wary of those with ill intentions and don't be easily deceived by lies."
Hearing this, Lin Xiangli slowly lowered his head.
She was silent for a moment, as if she was struggling and thinking deeply in her heart, and finally responded softly,
"Okay, I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Lord Wang."
*
Walking out of the long corridor of the palace, the sunlight shone through the sparse clouds and fell on Lin Xiangli's face. Her mood gradually became brighter like the first rays of sunlight.
She took Ling An's arm, with a happy light in her eyes.
"Ling An, the heavy stone in my heart has finally fallen to the ground! I knew that my father is definitely not that kind of villain."
Ling An lowered his eyebrows and his steps seemed particularly heavy.
"Xiang Li, Wang Gui's behavior is something we've both witnessed. I'm afraid his words can't be fully trusted."
Lin Xiangli frowned slightly when he heard this and retorted,
"But when I think about it, he has no direct reason to lie to me. Besides, what he said about my father does make sense. Who in this world can be more trustworthy than your own father?"
Although this was reasonable, Ling An still couldn't let it go. The helpless and desperate figure of Chen Weiyu that day appeared in his mind again.
"But, those innocent girls, they were so innocent, yet they were implicated..."
"Ling An,"
Lin Xiangli interrupted his thoughts and said helplessly,
"There is simply too much suffering and injustice in this world. While we want to help, our power is ultimately limited and we cannot change all misfortunes. As long as my father is cleared of all charges, the rest is beyond our control."
Ling An turned his head to look at Lin Xiangli, his eyes filled with mixed emotions.
He could understand that Lin Bowen's position in Lin Xiangli's heart was unshakable, and he also understood her eagerness as a daughter to defend her father.
However, he couldn't help feeling a little lost.
Lin Xiangli in front of him made him feel both familiar and unfamiliar.
He didn't know if it was because Lin Xiangli had experienced too much over the years, so that the image of the innocent and kind little girl in his memory, who chose to leave food for the perpetrator even after being hurt, had gradually become distant and vague.
Lin Xiangli, immersed in self-comfort, did not notice the subtle changes in Ling An's heart.
She pulled Ling An, and her steps became more and more brisk.
"Let's go, Ling An, we have to go back quickly, Fu Rui is still waiting for us at home."
Ling An sighed silently in his heart.
Well, at least, her innocence and kindness towards the weak and vulnerable have never changed...
*
When Tang Suzi went to look for Ling An, he learned that Ling An had gone out with Miss Lin.
Waiting was just a waste of time, and another idea came to her mind -
I went to Ningxiangju to visit Chen Weiyu, whom I hadn’t seen for a long time.
Since they parted that night, they never had the chance to meet again. I wonder how she is doing now.
It was noon, and although Ningxiangju was not as noisy as it was at night when the lights were bright, standing at the door, one could still clearly feel the sounds of stringed instruments and laughter coming from inside, creating a lively scene.
Tang Suzi looked at the carved door and couldn't help feeling a little hesitant.
Only then did she remember that it would cost a considerable amount of money to enter Ningxiangju, which was undoubtedly a considerable expense for her who was not wealthy.
However, in order to see Chen Wei Yu, she gritted her teeth, took out some silver from her bosom and handed it to the gatekeeper, only then was she able to step into this prosperous place.
As I walked into the flower hall, I saw a group of women in gorgeous clothes and with different looks taking turns performing on the central stage.
However, Tang Suzi moved among the crowd but still could not find Chen Weiyu.
After some inquiries, I found out that the courtesan was not scheduled to perform on stage today.
Tang Suzi couldn't help but feel a little worried.
She walked out of the flower hall and onto the corridor.
In a corner of the corridor, she noticed a maid busy serving dishes.
Tang Suzi hurried over and politely blocked her way.
"Excuse me, young lady, do you know where Chen Weiyu is?"
The maid was embarrassed when she heard this and explained,
"This... Oiran usually doesn't receive outsiders easily."
Tang Suzi said sincerely,
"I'm her friend and came to visit her."
Looking at Tang Suzi, whose face was gentle and her words were sincere, the maid remembered that Chen Weiyu did look a little haggard and depressed in recent days. Maybe this girl was really her friend?
She couldn't help but be moved.
"In that case, I'll take you to see her."
The maid finally gave in and led Tang Suzi to an elegant room.
After knocking gently on the door, she pushed it open and announced to a woman who was dressing in front of the mirror,
"Madam Chen, there is a girl who wants to see you."
She turned around and saw Tang Suzi coming. She was very surprised and quickly stood up to greet him.
"Miss Tang, why are you here?"
Tang Suzi looked at Chen Weiyu, who was not wearing any makeup. She was still very beautiful, but her face was pale and her complexion was not very good.
"I came to see you. Are you... okay?"
Chen Weiyu forced a smile, shook his head gently, and nodded, as if he had a thousand words to say but didn't know where to start.
"I'm... much better. Thank you for coming to see me."
Tang Suzi looked at Chen Weiyu's eyes that were still full of sadness, but his worry did not dissipate.
Chen Weiyu seemed to understand her thoughts, and gently placed his hand on Tang Suzi's hand, comforting her,
"Don't worry, I've figured it out and I won't do anything stupid again."
She lowered her eyes.
"My death may be a relief for me, but my father has sacrificed so much for me. I cannot be so selfish as to let him suffer the pain of seeing his son die young."
Tang Suzi listened to Chen Weiyu's words, feeling both relieved and sad.
"I'm glad you can think it through. What are your plans for the future?"
Chen Weiyu smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"What else can I do? Fate plays tricks on me, and I'm powerless to resist."
Tang Suzi stared at Chen Weiyu's tired eyes, as if he could empathize with the heaviness of being weighed down by fate.
She also knew that no matter how much she could empathize with Chen Weiyu, she had never experienced the hardships that Chen Weiyu had gone through, so she naturally could not easily judge or give a simple solution.
She was even more unwilling to rashly encourage Chen Weiyu as a bystander to resist a fate that even she herself could not predict.
Just as Tang Suzi and Chen Weiyu were immersed in their own thoughts and feeling sad, the tranquility around them was broken by a sudden and hurried sound of footsteps.
The sound of footsteps was like heavy drumbeats, beating on their hearts again and again, making it impossible to ignore.
Immediately afterwards, a strong pressure was accompanied by a loud noise of the door being hit hard - "bang", deafening, the door was kicked open by a huge force, and suddenly bounced against the wall, making a shaky sound, as if it would collapse at any time.
In this sudden shock, Wang Gui appeared at the door with an angry face.
He strode towards the two of them with great speed, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly. His official uniform was stretched extremely tight by his rapid pace, and cracks were faintly visible between the fabric, showing signs of breaking under the weight, as if even the clothing was protesting against his burning anger.
Wang Gui’s appearance was like a dark cloud covering the sun.
A storm is about to sweep in.
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