"I don't believe it. Brother said that after you got drunk last time, you kept shouting a woman's name. After you came back, you tried to persuade me to give up. Today, I'll make this clear: if you tell me that woman's information and I can deal with her, I'll forgive you. Otherwise, our marriage is off. I'm not worried about finding a husband anyway, why should I wrong myself?"
Zhu Chenxing panicked when he heard this. He hadn't expected this. Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck him, and he could only apologize to her in his heart. He would make it up to the Liu family if he had the chance.
"It's not exactly a childhood sweetheart. She saved my life. I left in a hurry and never had a chance to thank her, so I've kept it in my heart. I feel very guilty and often think about it, afraid of forgetting her kindness." Zhu Chenxing was telling the truth this time.
"Who is that woman?" Liu Zhiyi insisted on knowing the woman's name after his explanation.
"That woman is named Liu Xiangjun, her courtesy name is Wenwen. She is the daughter of Doctor Liu from Qinghe Town. She saved my life and is my savior. Please be merciful."
Zhu Chenxing thought he was helping her by saying this, but he didn't realize that the more he protected her, the more jealous Liu Zhiyi became. She subconsciously felt that this woman had to be eliminated.
When she returned, she told Liu Pengyuan about it. Liu Pengyuan contacted the local magistrate, which led to the original host's subsequent plight.
Although she had guessed it, Wu Caiwei couldn't help but feel resentful when she actually heard him say it. It was because of her jealousy that the Liu family was ruined and died tragically.
"Back then, I saw you being chased in the mountains. If it wasn't for the piece of iron on your chest that blocked the attack, you would have met the King of Hell already. Tell me, why were people chasing you? Did you do something wrong? Or did you kill someone?" Wu Caiwei looked at him tentatively.
"How is that possible? I'm a candidate for the imperial examinations. How could I do such a thing? Wouldn't that be ruining my future?" Zhu Chenxing quickly denied it. His denial was so urgent and fast that Wu Caiwei couldn't help but become suspicious.
"Is that so? I'm just a kind person and can't bear to see others suffer even a little. Although we are enemies, I can't let you suffer such serious injuries for nothing. How about this: after I take you to the yamen tomorrow, I'll personally speak to the magistrate. I believe the magistrate will arrest them and bring them to justice for you."
Seeing that she was serious, Zhu Chenxing's tears almost fell. "You don't need to worry about my affairs."
"How is this just your affair? If they hadn't chased you back then, I wouldn't have saved you. If I hadn't saved you, I wouldn't have gone through that ordeal. They are my enemies, and I must find them, otherwise, I can't quell my anger."
Zhu Chenxing thought about it and realized it was true. After he reacted, he wished he could slap himself. How could he have followed her train of thought? He quickly begged, "Please, spare me. I know I was wrong. I will try my best to make amends in the future. I'll tell you the truth. Those who were chasing me are actually brothers. At that time, I received news that his elder brother intended to plot against Li Wenwen. I was so angry that I used the excuse of going back to see my adoptive mother and took people to kill him."
"And then their brothers found out and came for revenge?" Wu Caiwei directly guessed the cause of the incident. What Zhu Chenxing did truly surprised her. She didn't expect a young master from a prominent family to be so devoted and resort to such extreme measures. He thought that with the Zhu family as his backing, no one would dare to touch him, right? He was too naive.
"I was just angry at the time. I know I was wrong now. Can you let me go?" Zhu Chenxing looked at her with pleading eyes. If he had known this would happen, he should have hidden it from Li Wenwen back then. He should have let Liu Zhiyi kill her, and there wouldn't be so much trouble.
Having learned what she wanted to know, Wu Caiwei ignored him and ordered people to tie him up. By the time they returned to the capital, it was almost dawn. After waiting for a while, the city gate opened, and Wu Caiwei took him directly to the Grand Tutor's mansion.
Zhu Yuxuan, who had received the news, was already standing there. He stepped forward and kicked Zhu Chenxing. He knelt on the ground uncontrollably, turned his head, and snorted defiantly.
The couple didn't even bother looking at him. After all, he was a dead man, so there was no need to argue with him.
The reason Zhu Yuxuan agreed to Wu Caiwei's request to chase after him was twofold: firstly, he thought Zhu Chenxing was too weak to be his wife's opponent; secondly, he had personally visited the Grand Tutor yesterday afternoon and had a tough battle to fight.
As expected, he was rejected when he went to visit. He persisted by standing at the door. Today, he returned with this sinner.
It wasn't that they wanted to curry favor with the Grand Tutor. They lived in this era, and no matter what, they were members of the Zhu family. Fearing his retaliation, they wanted him to see their sincere remorse and the fact that they had captured the main culprit, and let them off the hook.
The Grand Tutor's influence was a behemoth to them, who currently had no foundation. They didn't want to offend him too severely.
As expected, when the Grand Tutor heard that the eldest son of the Zhu family had brought the second son of the Zhu family to confess their guilt, he hesitated for a moment before letting them in.
As soon as he met the Grand Tutor, Zhu Yuxuan immediately bowed. "My wife and I had no idea about what happened that night. If we had known, we would have definitely intervened. The next day, we went to my father-in-law's house and heard about it. We immediately went out of the city to search for his whereabouts and finally found him in a remote village sixty li outside the city. We brought him back overnight without any delay. A life for a life; our Zhu family has nothing to say. We will accept whatever punishment you deem fit."
"I'll keep the person. You two should leave quickly. It's already a great act of benevolence that I won't take action against you. Go back and tell your father not to step foot in my Grand Tutor's mansion again, or I will settle both old and new scores." Although the Grand Tutor didn't want to let go so easily, he had deep ties with the Zhu family, and all he could do was not to actively trouble them.
Zhu Yuxuan repeatedly thanked him and sensibly left with his wife.
Liu Pengyuan, upon receiving the news, entered and saw Zhu Chenxing kneeling before his father. He immediately gave him a severe beating, and screams immediately filled the room.
"Drag him away and teach him a good lesson. Remember, don't play with his life." The Grand Tutor, annoyed by his disturbance, believed that his third son would definitely get justice for his daughter.
"Thank you, Father." Liu Pengyuan heard this, grabbed Zhu Chenxing by the collar, and dragged him out as if he were dragging a dead dog.
Zhu Chenxing couldn't breathe as his collar tightened. The next moment, he felt like he was about to pass out, but no one cared.