Zhao Hui's life had been lonely and bitter. Many years ago, her husband's family had invaded her family's wealth. Many years later, she had been seriously injured by her sister-in-law on the streets and almost lost her life. Recently, she had been involved in a lawsuit. Originally, she had suffered but could not voice her grievances. At her wit's end, even though Yu Shu had the heart to help, her strength was not enough. She could not compete with the Dou family Ji family. Who knew that fate had its own destiny? In the past, Pei Jing had been indebted to Zhao Hui's father. Today, he had repaid the debt of gratitude.
Who knew that there would be a turning point in the future? Yu Shu helped Zhao Hui freshen up and put on a new set of clothes. She helped her move from the inner room to the living room. Pei Jing and Madam Qin were both there.
"Dear heavens, little sister, these mistakes have caused you to suffer."
Madam Qin's eyes were filled with tears. She stepped forward and pulled Zhao Hui to sit by her side. This time, she was not as courteous as before. This time, she was really close and tender. She had been Pei Jing's wife for more than twenty years. She could empathize with Pei Jing's feelings at this moment.
Zhao Hui shook her head at her and turned to look at Pei Jing. In a hoarse voice, she said, "Now that Sir Pei has mentioned it, I have some memories. When my late father was on his deathbed, I was still young. I had heard him mention an old friend a few times. He said that he had not received any letters for half a year and was afraid that something had happened. He even gave me the letters he had sent in the past and asked me to inquire about it when I had time. Later on, when my late father passed away, I was filled with grief and forgot about this matter. Those letters were probably buried along with his belongings. I think that at that time, my father must have been thinking about Sir Pei."
"Without a doubt, it was me. That year, when I returned to my hometown, I sent a letter to Uncle Zhao, saying that I was safe and sound. Then, for half a year, I was so busy with my family business that I stopped sending letters. After that, when everything was settled, I personally went to Uncle Zhao. Who would have thought that …" Pei Jing smiled bitterly and touched his eyebrows. "At that time, Uncle Zhao was still concerned about my safety.
After a moment of silence, Pei Jing composed himself and said to Zhao Hui, "Don't call me Sir Pei. In terms of age, I am older than you by a few years. If you do not mind, I am willing to accept you as my sworn sister and take care of you in the future. What do you think?"
Zhao Hui was stunned and looked at Yu Shu. She was currently at a loss. Compared to Pei Jing, who she had accidentally reunited with, she was more dependent on Yu Shu, who had gone through thick and thin with her.
"Sir Pei, there is no rush." Yu Shu spoke on behalf of Zhao Hui, "At the moment, Doctor He is still in prison and the Dou family is still at large. They are still bent on killing Aunt Huei. We have to think of a way to deal with them as soon as possible."
Pei Jing nodded and said, "Doctor He must be saved. I will go to the Dou family now and ask them to withdraw their complaint."
Seeing that Pei Jing was so straightforward, Yu Shu was puzzled and asked, "Do you have a way to stop them from suing the doctor?" Pei Jing sneered, "That Dou family is just a third-rate merchant, relying on their ancestral business to survive until now. That Dou Hong is not business material either. If they do not know what's good for them, I will crush their business!" Seeing this, Yu Shu was shocked. Pei Jing had always treated people humbly. She did not expect him to be so overbearing. It seemed that he had to stand up for Zhao Hui.
"Sir Pei, please wait." Yu Shu said, "Forgive me for being blunt, but if you do this, even if you can save Doctor He, there will be no end of trouble. Let's not talk about who is right and who is wrong. If this matter were to spread, you will inevitably be known as a domineering person. Moreover, the Dou family has the support of the Ji family. If you ask the Ji family to stand up for them, not only will it cause trouble, they may even bite back. In my opinion, this matter needs to be considered at length."
Her words were clear and logical. Pei Jing did not understand, but he was too angry and did not think too much. He only wanted to stand up for Zhao Hui. After Yu Shu poured a bucket of cold water on him, he immediately calmed down.
He sighed and said to Yu Shu, "Young man, you are more composed than me."
Yu Shu smiled, "It is not that I am composed, but that I do not want to let those shameless people get away with it. If you ask me, I will do it to the end. I will seek justice for Aunt Huei and punish those evil people."
Pei Jing raised his eyebrows, "Do you have a plan?" "I do not dare to call it a plan for now, I still need to discuss it with Sir before I can decide on a plan." Yu Shu's eyes flashed. She did not say anything definite because she did not understand the laws of ancient society and it was not good for her to speculate on her own.
Pei Jing nodded, "Tell me about it first."
Yu Shu looked at Zhao Hui and Madam Qin. Under the table, she swiped her fingers on her knees. After a moment of silence, she slowly said, "Every injustice has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. They're suing us, so why can't we sue them? This is what I am thinking … "
Two hours later, Pei Jing and Qin shi returned to their room. Along the way, Pei Jing was thinking about his conversation with Yu Shu. When he sat down, he noticed that Qin shi's expression was not right. He asked with concern, "What is wrong with Ji Ren?" Qin shi hesitated, her expression changing. She hesitantly said, "Jing ge, I think that child Ashu's heart is too big."
Pei Jing's eyelids twitched, and he chuckled, "Why do you say that, Madam? I think she's a good person. She's loyal, courageous, and astute. Her plan is good, isn't it? It's much smarter than me going straight to the Dou Family. She's taking drastic measures, attacking Wei to save Zhao. Tsk, when I was her age, I wasn't as scheming as her." Hearing that Pei Jing was still in the mood to praise her, Qin shi anxiously said, "But her method is not only targeting the Dou family, but also the Ji family. If she succeeds, will the Ji family let her go?" "That's why she needs my help in secret." Pei Jing took Qin shi's hand and warmly said, "Ashu is a little girl. She owes Zhao Hui a few meals and knows to repay her kindness. I was greatly indebted to Zhao Gong in the past. Now that I have met his descendant, even the heavens have eyes. If I cannot help her, wouldn't I be worse than a child? " "When did I say I don't want you to help them?" Qin shi angrily said, "I am worried about you. Fine, if you don't want to hear it, I won't say it. If you want to do it, I can't stop you." "It's good that Madam understands me." Pei Jing patted her hand and stood up, saying, "Madam, rest first. I will change my clothes and go out with Ashu."
At dusk, Yu Shu and Pei Jing sat in a horse carriage and arrived at the entrance of Changmenpu Street. The two got off the carriage and looked left and right. On this trip, Yu Shu and Pei Jing wanted to find the housekeeper who had sent Zhao Hui to Yiyang City.
Pei Jing asked, "Is it here?" Yu Shu said, "Aunt Huei said that he opened a bookstore on this street. His surname is Huang and his name is Zhou. Let's go look for him one by one."
"Let's go."
There were many bookstores on this street. The two went from the east side of the street to the west side. They went to each bookstore and asked, but they could not find anything. There was someone with the surname Huang, but it was not the one they were looking for. The sky was getting dark. Just as Yu Shu was wondering if she had heard wrong, Pei Jing pointed to the opposite side of the road and said, "There is another bookstore there. Let's go and take a look." ,,,
Yu Shu turned her head and saw the bookstore on the opposite side of the road. She was stunned for a moment. Pei Jing had already crossed the street and entered the bookstore. She hurriedly followed him. As soon as she entered the bookstore, she saw an old man sitting behind the counter, reading a book.
She thought to herself that it couldn't be such a coincidence. Then, she heard Pei Jing ask, "Old man, may I know your name?" The old man raised his head and squinted at Pei Jing. He turned his head and saw Yu Shu standing at the door. His confusion turned into surprise, "Little girl, why did you come so late? I left you several literacy books. I was waiting for you to pick them up." Pei Jing looked at Yu Shu with a puzzled expression. Yu Shu smiled at the old man and said to Pei Jing, "When I was penniless, this old shopkeeper once gave me some books."
The old shopkeeper heard their conversation and realized that they knew each other. He asked in confusion, "What are you doing?" "We want to inquire about someone," Yu Shu paused. Then, she asked directly, "Old Uncle, is your surname Huang?"
"Haven't I told you before? The old shopkeeper said, "My surname is Huang."
Yu Shu and Pei Jing looked at each other. Then, the latter asked again, "Shopkeeper Huang, did you work as a steward for a family with the surname Zhao in Yan Prefecture a few years ago?"
The old shopkeeper put down the book in his hand and looked back and forth between the two of them. Then, he nodded hesitantly and said, "That's right." Yu Shu wanted to laugh out loud. How could there be such a coincidence in this world? Why did everyone come together?
After they found Huang Zhou, Pei Jing explained the purpose of their visit to Yu Shu. Shopkeeper Huang was very willing to testify on behalf of Zhao Hui. So, they didn't need to waste too much time talking before he readily agreed. Another unexpected joy was that he had saved a list of the dowry that Zhao Hui had sent to the Dou Family back then. "Miss has a bitter life.
When the Lord withdrew his hand, he repeatedly urged me to send her to the Dou Family. But, I didn't expect that it would turn out to be a wolf's den. Alas, I'm incompetent. I couldn't protect Miss, and she ended up in prison. I was too afraid to stand up for her at that time. Miss was released from prison, and disappeared without a trace. I thought that she didn't want to see me. Who would have thought that she would make a living right under my nose and end up in such a plight? All these years have passed, but I still can't let it go. Now, I'm on the verge of death.
Since you're willing to stand up for me, this bag of old bones, why wouldn't I dare? "
When Huang Zhou brought up the events of the past, he felt very ashamed. Yu Shu comforted him with a few words and asked him a few more questions about the past. She followed him home to get the dowry list and then left with Pei Jing.
On the way, Pei Jing suggested that Yu Shu should go to the prison to visit He Fangzhi. She shook her head and refused, "To avoid alerting the enemy, it's better not to go yet. Sir Pei, please don't use your name to stand up for him. In the future, we'll make sure that Doctor He suffers in prison doesn't fall." "That's fine, I'll have to trouble Doctor He for now." Pei Jing looked at Yu Shu's assertive manner and unconsciously ignored her age. He asked, "What do you plan to do next?"
Yu Shu said, "Teacher, please tell me about the rules of the court, so that I don't make any mistakes." Pei Jing frowned, "You … you really want to replace Hui Niang to beat the drum and cry injustice? You must know that if you go to court like this, you'll have to be flogged first before you can present the petition. " Yu Shu nodded, her expression did not change, "County Magistrate Ma and the Ji family are related, if we follow the rules and present the petition first, it's hard to guarantee that they won't be prepared in advance and collude in private. Teacher has said it before, beating the drum and crying injustice, the officials will go to court. Since the trial is about to begin, if we want to sue, we'll sue them unprepared. "
Pei Jing did not miss the last flash of ruthlessness in Yu Shu's eyes. His heart jumped, he felt that there was something he could not grasp, but he could not grasp the beginning and the end. Seeing that she had made up her mind, he knew that persuading her would be useless. He said, "Then we'll have to hide it from Hui Niang first. If she finds out, how can she let you take her place? Ay, flogging is not easy."
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