Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Their decision to leave was sudden. Zhong Yizhu left Zhong He behind to protect Sun Yunniang, and for the incense shop, he told Yao Le that once the current stock was sold, they should close up for now.

Chen Xiaorong had been learning from him for a while, but at present, the only thing he could make on his own was incense balls. A shop selling only incense balls wouldn't be sustainable, so they might as well leave it at that—Chen Xiaorong would just make incense balls to supply the village peddlers.

He made his arrangements in haste, with no time for further preparation. Cases like this couldn't afford delay if they wanted to overturn the verdict—the faster they moved, the better. After giving instructions at both home and the shop, Zhong Yizhu set out with Pei Mu, bringing Yang Luo and Fang You along, and boarded a boat bound for Rongyang Prefecture City.

Fortunately, Pei Mu had originally booked two cabins. Though the conditions were poor, there were no other cabins available on the boat on such short notice.

The cabin was tiny, with two wooden planks nailed to the wall to serve as beds. Naturally, there were no mattresses for a room like this, and the only two quilts both smelled musty.

Zhong Yizhu didn't mind. He set his bundle on the bed and listened to the boatmen's shouts outside, finding it kind of novel.

The last time he'd traveled from Rongyang Prefecture City to Liushan Village, he'd gone by land. Since it was for a funeral, passenger boats wouldn't take that kind of business, and the Zhong family wasn't willing to shell out for a private boat. So they'd carried his father's coffin over mountains and ridges all the way back to the village.

Zhong Yizhu never imagined he'd return to Rongyang Prefecture City like this, under these circumstances.

Pei Mu took his hand, and Zhong Yizhu looked over.

"It's stuffy in here. Let me take you up to the deck for some air."

The boat they were on was a big passenger ship with two decks. The upper deck was reserved for people who'd booked the nicer cabins, so they were stuck on the lower deck. Still, both of them were too preoccupied to have much interest in the view. Yang Luo and Fang You, on the other hand—two young guys who'd never seen a canal or been on a boat before—were pretty excited.

Pei Mu had brought them along mainly so he'd have people he could trust to run errands and pass messages. He'd explained the risks to both of them beforehand, and both had agreed without hesitation. Pei Mu then entrusted the incense business to Li Sun and brought both of them along.

The overland route would have taken five or six days; by boat, it took three and a half.

Stepping onto the streets of Rongyang Prefecture City again, Zhong Yizhu felt everything looked unfamiliar—even though only a year had passed.

The four of them checked into an inn. Pei Mu didn't waste any time, heading out right away to find connections and ask around about the case.

The address Dong Sifang had given him was right here in Rongyang Prefecture City. He went to check first, found out Dong Sifang still wasn't back, and didn't stick around to bother anyone. He then headed straight to the seediest tavern in the city.

It was also the first time Fang You had ever seen his usually cold, quiet boss drink and laugh with people. A man who showed no expression even during business deals could now flatter people without blinking an eye.

Meanwhile, Zhong Yizhu led Yang Luo down a small alley and knocked on someone's door.

"Who is it?" a voice called from the courtyard—a middle-aged woman with a slightly hoarse voice.

Zhong Yizhu blinked and replied, "Auntie Wu, it's me."

The gate swung open quickly. The woman inside stared at Zhong Yizhu in disbelief, tears welling up in her eyes. Her voice caught as she said, "Third Young Master..."

Zhong Yizhu looked at the familiar face before him, worn by hardship, and felt his own eyes sting: "Auntie Wu, how have you been?"

"Fine, just fine..." Auntie Wu said over and over, then snapped out of it and hurriedly invited him inside. She wiped her hands nervously on her apron and led him into the house. "It's a small place, Young Master, please excuse the mess."

Zhong Yizhu's eyes swept over a big basin of laundry in the courtyard—all bright-colored women's clothes. Auntie Wu had only one child, a young man, so these clearly weren't from her household.

Washing other people's clothes was the hardest kind of work. Nobody would do it unless times were really tough.

Auntie Wu had previously managed all affairs for their second branch's courtyard, earning nearly two taels of silver a month and living a fairly respectable life. Now, to see her like this...

Auntie Wu found a teacup and poured water for Zhong Yizhu, smiling as she said, "I can see you're looking well, Young Master. Is the Madam also doing well?"

Zhong Yizhu lowered his eyes and took a sip of water: "Mother is very well. Auntie Wu, have you and Uncle Liu both stopped working for the Zhong family?"

Auntie Wu let out a soft sigh: "After you and the Madam left last year, the Old Madam drove everyone out of our courtyard. Your Uncle Liu only drove the carriage in the front courtyard, so he didn't lose his position, but his wages were always delayed or docked on some pretext."

The savings they had accumulated over many years had gone toward buying this courtyard, but who could have known the main family would suffer such a catastrophe? Everything in the city cost money, and Auntie Wu couldn't find decent work, so she could only take odd jobs here and there, earning whatever little she could.

Auntie Wu thought of the rumors her husband had recently heard from within the household, and looked at Zhong Yizhu tentatively: "Young Master, have you come to me with some instructions?"

Zhong Yizhu pulled a silver ingot from his sleeve and set it on the table, meeting Auntie Wu's eyes: "To be honest, there is something I'd like to ask for your help with."

·

Wang Shun had been having rather bad luck these days.

First, the Old Madam sent him to Liushan Village to fetch people and he failed. Then, to make up for it, he offered advice to the Old Madam—but Wu Zitian was simply too stupid, and the people he hired were stupid too. They didn't even bother to find out how formidable the people around Zhong Yizhu were before making a rash move, which ruined the plan. He had no choice but to flee back to the city in a panic.

The Master and the Old Madam had both promised to protect him, but they weren't all-powerful either. Though they had bribed the legal advisor to keep him safe, they at least had to put on a show. So he still had to spend some time in prison, waiting for the right moment to be quietly released.

The cell was dark as night. Thanks to the jailer's care, at least the food he ate wasn't spoiled, but in a place like this, how could anyone stay calm? If Zhong Yizhu and his mother had just obediently followed him back to the mansion, none of this would have happened! Why should he have to suffer like this? The more he thought about it, the more he hated it. He kicked the wall hard, only to end up hopping around clutching his foot, hissing in pain for a long while.

One day, a jailer handed him an oil-paper package stamped with the pattern of Zhao's Pastries. Thinking it was food his household had sent, he eagerly tore it open—but the oil paper just kept unfolding, layer after layer, as if it would never end. He had grown irritable and short-tempered from his time in prison, and losing patience, he ripped it open violently.

Something fell to the ground.

He fumbled around and picked it up, but the texture felt wrong.

As the jailer walked past, a sliver of candlelight from outside illuminated what he held in his hand.

—It was unmistakably a human toe.

Wang Shun hurled it away and screamed, flailing his arm wildly while pounding on the cell door.

He screamed so miserably that the jailer, who had been paid to look after him, heard him crying for help and claiming someone was trying to harm him. The jailer went in with a torch and looked around, but found only oil paper scattered everywhere—no toe, not even a trace.

Wang Shun sobbed and begged to be moved to a different cell, but the bribes the Zhong family had paid clearly weren't enough to indulge such antics. The jailer's face turned cold, telling him to stop playing crazy. When Wang Shun tried to send a message to his family, the jailer simply walked away, pretending not to hear.

In the dark cell, Wang Shun pressed himself tightly against the bars, not daring to move toward the corner. He couldn't stop recalling the feel of that thing. He knew it was still in this small cell.

Whose toe was it? And who had sent it? The more Wang Shun thought, the more his own toes began to ache. He was so terrified he wanted to scream, but he feared angering the jailer and getting beaten. He was driven almost to the point of madness.

But he never imagined this was only the beginning.

The second day, while eating, he dug out a toe from his food mid-meal. The third day, he refused to touch the food the jailer brought, refused anything sent from outside, his nerves so frayed he nearly started hallucinating.

On the fourth day, someone from the household came to visit.

Wang Shun lunged at them like a drowning man grasping at a lifeline, but the visitor was startled by his deranged appearance and stepped back.

Wang Shun glared at him with bloodshot eyes: "You go tell the Master—if he doesn't get me out of here within three days, I'll spill everything about how he schemed against his own nephew and bribed Registrar Wan! Don't blame me then!"

He kept his voice low so no one else could hear, but every word seemed ground out through clenched teeth, enough to make one's teeth ache.

After hearing this, the visitor looked at him hesitantly: "But... but..."

"Don't give me any 'buts'!" Wang Shun hissed. "I can't stand this godforsaken place for even one more day. If they're too cheap to spend money on getting me out, then they can come in here and try it themselves!"

"But Third Young Master just beat the appeal drum at the government office today," the visitor said. "This matter has already been brought before the Prefect. The Master told me to tell you: take the blame for this, and he will guarantee your family's safety. He'll also make arrangements for you afterward..."

Wang Shun's mind went blank. The last thread holding him together finally snapped.

Back at the Zhong residence, the family remained blissfully unaware, entertaining guests. Outside the government office, Pei Mu stood beside Zhong Yizhu holding the complaint. Zhong Yizhu's slender arm raised the drumstick, striking the appeal drum as hard as he could.

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Author's note: Because a good friend came to visit and I've been entertaining her, I haven't had much time to write these past two days. Some readers may have blocked the author's notes and missed my earlier explanation—sorry about that. Also, we should be nearing the end of the story. Just a heads-up.