Ruan Jiu had witnessed it all yesterday when Li Daniu let his wife slip away secretly.
Moreover, while Li Daniu himself wore coarse cloth clothes, his wife was dressed in cotton.
Presumably, despite his brute nature, he was a doting husband.
So, this "favor" could start with Li Daniu's wife.
"Second cousin, I've got all the information!"
Chuntao rushed in from outside in a hurry.
Ruan Jiu picked up a teacup and handed it to her. She gulped it down in one go.
Then Ruan Jiu motioned for her to continue.
"Li Daniu's wife is called Yuniang. I heard that she was bought by Li Daniu back then. But Li Daniu dotes on her so much that he never lets her do heavy work.
Six years ago, Yuniang had a miscarriage unfortunately. Not only did she lose the baby, but she also developed chronic health problems and has been taking medicine all year round.
Yuniang is really a poor soul. She was orphaned since childhood and was raised by Hu San from a neighboring village. But Hu San is not a good man. Yuniang has never had a single unscathed part on her body since she was a child.
People in the nearby villages all despised Hu San for abusing Yuniang. But unfortunately, he had the adoption document approved by the government, and no one could do anything about him.
Fortunately, God had mercy. One night, Hu San got drunk and accidentally fell into the pond. By the time people found him, his body was already bloated and pale.
Yuniang is kind - hearted. Out of gratitude for Hu San's years of raising her, she sold herself to bury her foster - father and was then bought by Li Daniu."
Ruan Jiu lowered her head and said nothing.
"Second cousin, since Yuniang is so kind - hearted, why don't we go and talk to her and ask her to persuade Li Daniu?"
"Let's go."
"Are we going to find Yuniang?"
Ruan Jiu shook her head. "Let's go to the village where Yuniang grew up."
Although Chuntao didn't understand, she immediately followed.
As soon as they stepped out of the mansion, they ran into Xie Yanchuan.
Xie Yanchuan immediately stuck to them.
"Where are you guys going?"
Ruan Jiu ignored him. He had been trying to hang around her these days.
It seemed that she had to find a chance to talk to him properly. That day, she just slipped.
"Hey, wait for me."
Xie Yanchuan immediately caught up.
Huaizhou was too dangerous. He couldn't let Ruan Jiu go out alone, even with Chuntao accompanying her.
-
"Second cousin, you've been running around so many places. Aren't you going to go back yet?"
"Yes, A Jiu," Xie Yanchuan chimed in. "How about we go and grab something to eat first?"
Xie Yanchuan's stomach growled at the right moment.
He covered his stomach and forced out an embarrassed smile.
The three of them had left the mansion early in the morning. They had been to the village where Yuniang grew up, her former home, and even the place where Hu San drowned.
Chuntao had never known before that her second cousin was so interested in others' tragic life stories.
Now the sun was about to set, but there was no sign of them going back.
"What's the rush? There's still something important to do."
Xie Yanchuan and Chuntao stared at each other with their mouths wide open.
Something important? Then what on earth had they been busy with all day running so far?
They arrived at Xin'an Village and stood in front of Li Daniu's house.
Just as they were about to knock on the door, Ruan Jiu seemed to remember something. She immediately turned around and looked at the two behind her.
"From now on, you two are mute. Understand?"
Chuntao was about to ask why, but was glared back by Ruan Jiu, who made a shushing gesture.
Then Ruan Jiu looked at Xie Yanchuan and said coldly, "Especially you. No matter what you hear or see later, don't say a single word. Otherwise, I..."
She rolled up her sleeves and waved her fist.
She didn't want Xie Yanchuan to mess up her plan.
Xie Yanchuan covered his mouth and nodded repeatedly.
It wasn't that he was afraid of her. It was just that he felt so much guilt towards her since she saved him that day.
He would do whatever she said.
Hearing the knock on the door, Yuniang thought it was Li Daniu coming back. She opened the door with a smile.
But when she saw Ruan Jiu and the others, she immediately tried to close the door.
Fortunately, Xie Yanchuan was quick - witted and blocked the door.
Ruan Jiu nodded at him with satisfaction. For the first time, she thought this guy was a bit useful.
"Yuniang, we didn't bring our water flasks when we went out today. Could we come in and get a glass of water?"
Seeing Yuniang's reluctant expression, she continued, "I helped Brother Li out yesterday. He even said that he would invite me to his house for a meal to show his gratitude some other day."
Xie Yanchuan looked at her in surprise.
When did Li Daniu say such a thing yesterday? She really didn't even blink an eye when telling a lie.
Yuniang thought carefully. After Li Daniu came back yesterday, he did mention a little girl. Presumably, it was her.
Since that was the case, she couldn't refuse. She had to open the door.
"Come in."
As soon as they walked into the yard, they smelled a strong smell of medicine.
There was only one candle lit in the room. Through the dim candlelight, they could see that although the room was shabby, it was tidily cleaned.
"Does Brother Li always come back this late?" Ruan Jiu asked.
"Just leave after you've drunk the water," Yuniang didn't answer her question.
"Don't be in a hurry." Ruan Jiu twirled the empty cup in her hand. "I heard that Yuniang is from Taohua Village."
Yuniang was stunned for a moment and didn't say a word.
She turned around and picked the dried peas in the winnowing basket, making it hard to see her expression.
"Your foster - father's name seems to be Hu San. He drowned in the pond eight years ago."
Hearing this name, Yuniang's hand visibly paused, but she still didn't say a word.
Seeing this, Ruan Jiu was going to throw a bombshell.
"I'd say Hu San deserved it. Maybe someone deliberately pushed him into the pond and drowned him."
Hearing this, Yuniang's hands trembled slightly.
Even though she tried hard to control her emotions, she still accidentally knocked over the winnowing basket, and the peas spilled all over the ground.
Yuniang quickly squatted down to pick up the fallen peas one by one.
Seeing this, Ruan Jiu also went to help.
"Maybe he was killed first and then thrown into the pond. What do you think, Yuniang?"
Ruan Jiu put the peas into the winnowing basket and tilted her head to watch Yuniang's expression.
Yuniang's fingertips holding the winnowing basket turned white. Although the fear in her eyes flashed by, Ruan Jiu still caught it.
This further confirmed what Ruan Jiu had in mind.
"Presumably, it shouldn't be Yuniang. After all, you're so weak. How could you throw an adult man into the pond?"
Yuniang let out a sigh of relief.
"It's more believable to say that Brother Li did it. Am I right?"
Yuniang looked up into Ruan Jiu's eyes. Seeing Ruan Jiu smiling innocently, she felt a chill run down her spine.
Then she quickly turned her head to the side, her face as white as a sheet.
"Miss, you've drunk the water. It's getting dark now. Please leave."
Ruan Jiu ignored Yuniang's words. She stood up and said to herself, "Then I think the story should be like this. Brother Li and you were in love, but Hu San disliked his poverty. Helplessly, Brother Li killed Hu San and threw his body into the pond, pretending that he had accidentally fallen in after getting drunk. And you..."
Before she could finish her sentence, she was interrupted.
"Stop!" Yuniang shouted. "Don't say anymore!"
Seeing Yuniang's reaction, Xie Yanchuan and Chuntao couldn't help but open their mouths wide.
Was Hu San really killed by Li Daniu?
Just then, a voice came from the door.
"What are you doing!?"