The county magistrate quickly withdrew from his grief, dedicating all his attention to entertaining the angel. He instructed his steward to fetch silver. The angel, weighing the money in hand, departed with satisfaction.
With no outsiders present, the magistrate seemed to age ten years in an instant, and he dejectedly entered his study.
Li Zixin, upon receiving the news, arrived soon after. He quietly approached the study and saw his uncle hunched over the desk, his shoulders shaking, clearly weeping. Li Zixin felt helpless, having never seen him so vulnerable. He stood silently beside him for a long time.
After he finished crying, he looked up and saw Li Zixin. He was not surprised and said with grave sincerity, "Your uncle can no longer protect you. Be cautious in all matters, and do not give others cause for criticism."
Li Zixin nodded solemnly, unsure how to comfort his uncle. He also worried about his own future, believing a new magistrate would soon arrive and that it was uncertain whether they would continue to employ him.
The downfall of the magistrate was, perhaps, the only benefit for Wu Lian'er, who was no longer as erratic. She understood that her patron was gone and that her maiden family would have to rely on Li Zixin in the future. Besides continuing her relentless pursuit of wealth, she remained like an invisible person in the Li household and paid no mind to Li Zixin taking concubines.
Li Changqing, ever since Wu Lian'er broke his leg, had been living obediently with Liu Wenwen in the courtyard. This was not to say he held no resentment, but he knew he needed to be more cautious in his actions. If such an incident happened again, he feared he might lose his life.
When his leg had somewhat healed, he had his attendant push him to see Wu Caiwei. However, Wu Caiwei remained indifferent upon seeing his condition and even made some sarcastic remarks, the scene of which he still remembered vividly.
Wu Caiwei sneered, "I told you before that you wouldn't have a good end, and my words have come true. What do you want from me now? Let me guess, you want me to stand up for you? You've come to the wrong person. You are now a child of the Li family and have nothing to do with our Wang family. What? Did Madam Li beat you, and Li Zixin didn't seek justice for you?"
At that moment, he was quite angry and couldn't help but question, "What kind of mother are you in this world? Your son's leg was broken by someone else, and not only do you not stand up for me, but you also mock me here. Fortunately, I left you, or I would have been angered to death by you."
Wu Caiwei shrugged indifferently, "Nor is there a disobedient son like you who wants to kill his own mother. Everything is a deserved retribution. Therefore, we must do good deeds in ordinary times and not harbor any侥幸心理 (jǐng xìng xīn lǐ - wishful thinking/hope for a stroke of luck). It's not that retribution doesn't come, it's just that the time has not yet arrived."
Seeing the Huang family members watching like spectators, secretly pointing at him, he couldn't bear it and left on his own. Since then, he never sought out his mother again, but he harbored hatred in his heart, hating Li Zixin's heartlessness and his mother's indifference.
Although their living conditions in the mansion deteriorated, for the moment, he was the only young master in the mansion, and everyone dared not act recklessly.
When the current county magistrate found him and promised him a large sum of money in the future, he agreed without hesitation. It was simply a matter of monitoring Li Zixin's every word and deed, which was easy for him. From time to time, he would also receive money.
Indeed, Li Zixin and the current county magistrate were like fire and water. Previously, the county magistrate was his uncle, who managed many things less strictly and entrusted them to him, turning a blind eye to his daily behavior. The current county magistrate, however, wanted to manage everything and keep everything in his own hands. Unsurprisingly, conflicts and contradictions arose between them.
The county yamen was divided into two factions: the county magistrate and his advisor formed one faction, while Li Zixin, leading the old contingent of yamen officials, formed another. Because the county magistrate was an outsider with no strong background or support, he was at a disadvantage in his dealings with Li Zixin.
Knowing oneself and the enemy allows for a hundred victories without defeat. When he first arrived, he had thoroughly investigated Li Zixin inside and out and felt he could start with Li Changqing. The county magistrate was no ignorant woman. Instinctively, he sensed that something was not simple about Wang Yumeng's voluntary request for divorce back then. At the same time, he didn't think Li Changqing was a good person. His mother had worked hard to raise him, yet he returned to the Li family after growing up. It was evident he was not filial. As expected, a slight probe was enough to hook him.
The county magistrate came from a merchant family and had some money. Every time he sent him twenty to thirty taels to keep him dangling, he believed Li Changqing would be of great use in the future. Sudan Novel Network.
Li Changqing did not disappoint him. When his father's concubine became pregnant again, he decided to go all out and strike at the root of the problem.
When he heard Li Changqing's request, the county magistrate could hardly believe his ears. He didn't expect him to be even more ruthless than he had imagined, but he liked it.
Soon after, Li Changqing received news from the county magistrate: a murderer had just been apprehended, known only to two of the magistrate's confidantes. He was told to hurry.
Li Changqing found the murderer without hesitation. The murderer looked up in disbelief, "Are you saying that if I run that person over, you'll give me two hundred taels of silver?"
Li Changqing nodded without hesitation, "Not only that, but after the deed is done, I will give you another two hundred taels as hush money."
The murderer, convinced that Li Changqing was not joking, quickly agreed. Since he was doomed to die anyway, obtaining two hundred taels would allow his wife and children to live a better life.
After receiving the silver from Li Changqing, he asked to go home. Li Changqing had people secretly follow him the entire way. The murderer had no intention of escaping. He knew that if he ran, his family would not be able to escape, and their lives would become even more difficult. Moreover, being penniless and without household registration, he would be treated as a vagrant, and survival would be uncertain.
As the murderer left with those people, his wife and children secretly slipped out the back door and fled to the mountains. They took a circuitous route to a small town, bought some dry rations, hired a carriage, and set off.
Although Li Changqing had said he would give him another two hundred taels as hush money after the deed was done, the murderer was not foolish. Two hundred taels was already an astronomical sum for them. As for the other money, he had to be alive to receive it. He didn't believe these ruthless people would let their family live. Murder to silence them would be the best form of hush money.
The murderer was no ordinary person. In his youth, he had worked as a caravan guard. It was only when he was older that he returned to his hometown to live out his retirement. Their family had been living a sweet life, but the village landlord's foolish son wanted to marry his daughter. He absolutely refused, and not long after, the landlord's foolish son died. The landlord then harbored a grudge against them and made things difficult for them at every turn.
The clan elder, fearing trouble, intervened on his behalf twice. Seeing that the other party did not give him face, he dared not say more. Not long ago, his married daughter inexplicably died at her in-laws' home.