Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside

Scholar Wan was found with a strong smell of alcohol all over him, drunk and staggering, needing support to walk. He spoke with a slurred speech, pointing at them and laughing, "Oh, we have quite a few more guests today... made quite a bit of money, huh..."

Then, with a loud bang, he slammed on the door panel and yelled angrily, "You wretched woman, I, the Scholar, have told you not to open the shop... The Wan Family is a family of scholarly tradition... you have smothered this scholarly aura with the stench of money!"

Having said that, he sat down on the ground and started crying, "Father, mother, ancestral spirits of the Wan Family, I, the unworthy descendant, have failed you. A good home has been turned by a woman into, ah, a dung pit, wuwuwu..."

Scholar Wan cried miserably while Uncle Fu frowned and instructed two Government Officials, "Go fetch some well water and splash it on him."

The two Government Officials immediately ran to the kitchen well in the Wan Mansion and fetched two buckets of water.

Now it being September, the well water at night was very cold. With a splash, two buckets of well water were poured on Scholar Wan, causing him to jump up from the ground and curse, "How dare you! This is a rebellion, daring to splash cold water on me, the Scholar. I will go to the government office to complain, to complain..."

Upon realizing that the men in constable uniforms were Government Officials, he immediately fell silent, cold sweat mixing with the cold water dripping down.

Uncle Fu approached, sneering and asked, "Scholar, are you sober now? Do you still want to file a complaint against us at the government office?"

Scholar Wan, who tended to bully the weak but feared the strong, especially dared not offend people from the county government. Wiping the water off his face with his sleeve, he smiled apologetically, "Oh, it's Mr. Fu, why have you come?"

Uncle Fu had no time for idle talk and directly exposed the evil deeds committed by Lifang. He concluded, "As the head of the family, a court-appointed Scholar, benefiting from the court, you must obey the court's laws. Now that your son has committed a serious crime, you must also be implicated. Come with us back to the county government."

Scholar Wan was shocked, "Mr. Fu, what are you saying? Brother Fang kidnapped two children from Da Feng Village and intended to kill them? That's impossible! My family's Brother Fang is a good citizen."

"Ptui! Your Wan Lifang, this animal, is still a good citizen? He does not deserve to be human," Village Chief He pointed at Scholar Wan and said, "Do you know that the daughter of Gu Dafu's family has died, murdered by the gangsters housed in your family? Wan Lifang not only kidnapped the siblings Shuiwa but also conspired with the bandits to threaten the life of Gu Family's daughter. I'm telling you, your Wan Family is finished!"

Listening to this, Wan Lifang's eyes filled with terror, and with a thud, he knelt down, trembling as he asked, "Gu, Gu Yumei... died?!"

Uncle Fu sneered, "Her body has already been brought back, would it be fake?"

Then, pointing at Wan Lifang, he said, "You'd better clearly confess everything about that gang of criminals. Otherwise, you won't survive!"

Wan Lifang, who wasn't sentenced to decapitation for not having killed Lu Shuiwa, now faced evidence of Gu Yumei's death, and Lu Shuiwa had stated it was Wan Lifang who led the criminals to the village, implicating him as an accomplice.

Wan Lifang was terrified, continuously muttering, "How could she have died? Yang Laoda clearly said we were going to bind them and sell them in Jiangnan, how could she have died?"

Hearing this, everyone understood that he was admitting to his involvement with the criminals in abducting Gu Yumei.

Uncle Fu pointed at Wan Lifang and told Scholar Wan, "Scholar Wan, did you hear that? Your son has confessed his crimes. Come on, arrest all the people of the Wan Family and seal off the Wan Mansion!"

Ms. Ni gave a start, crying out, "Lord, Lord, there must be a mistake! Those people are servants from the Jiangnan Yao Family. You know the Jiangnan Yao Family, right? They are a noble family, and they were just visiting their elderly relatives in the countryside on behalf of their master. They are not bandits at all. My Brother Fang didn't help in abducting Gu Yumei. It was Gu Yumei herself looking for… yes, yes, she brought it upon herself. It has nothing to do with my family…"

Slap! Slap!

Ni Ruiniang rushed over and slapped Ms. Ni twice, cursing, "You evil old devout woman! Even after her death, you still spread lies. What kind of beasts are your Wan Family? God wouldn't stand idly by if I don't hit you."

Crying, she then fell to her knees and pleaded with Old Fu, "Lord, I can testify that those were not servants from any great Jiangnan family, but real bandits. They, along with Wan Lifang, tied me up and kept me locked in a house for days. You must seek justice for me!"

When Ni Ruiniang heard that Gu Yumei had died, she was also terribly frightened. By hitting Ms. Ni and crying out these statements, she was showing Old Fu that she too was a victim, not associated with the Wan Family and pleading not to be arrested.

She also started to hate herself for being blinded back then by considering to marry Wan Lifang. Now with the engagement letter in existence, it was uncertain whether she could escape this predicament.

Feeling both hatred and grievance, Ni Ruiniang was sobbing breathlessly. Old Fu softened a bit after hearing her, but considering that Ni Ruiniang was already engaged to Wan Lifang with an engagement letter, he decided they must first take her back to the county government regardless.

"Uncle Fu, everyone has been tied up. Scholar Wan, his wife, their two sons, a fiancée, and the servants are all here," the Government Official had tied up the people of the Wan Family and held them aside.

Old Fu nodded, "Hmm, let's go."

The group left the Wan Mansion, locking the main gate.

Old Kong had already arrived with the officials from Si Li Square. Holding a seal, he sealed several doors of the Wan Mansion, forbidding entry.

"Old Kong, you need to assign someone to keep watch over the Wan Mansion during this time. Make sure no one sneaks in," said Old Fu.

Old Kong chuckled, "Don't worry, I've handled many such matters before, and I will ensure the Wan Mansion is tightly guarded. It's impossible for Wan Family's distant relatives to come searching for their belongings."

Old Fu nodded, then said to Village Chief He, "This case is a significant one with extensive implications. We need you to come with Lu Haozi and his wife, Lu Shuiwa and her siblings, and a few villagers to the county government to give statements and testimonials."

Village Chief He responded, "That is only right."

He immediately picked Lu Gen Sheng and several Lu Family People, accompanied Lu Haozi and his wife as well as Lu Shuiwa and her siblings, as they went with Old Fu onto the mule cart from Si Li Square and hurried to the county government overnight.

Meanwhile, Lu He Fu took the remaining villagers and followed Old Kong back to Da Feng Village, and they went to Gu Dafu's family to inform them of the Wan Family's situation.

After Gu Dafu regained consciousness, he simply oversaw some arrangements but, overwhelmed, fainted again from crying. Once he woke up and heard about the Wan Family's situation, he burst into sobs, "Beasts, it was indeed that vile creature who brought doom onto my daughter!"

Bitterly resentful towards Wan Lifang, Gu Dafu, dragging his frail body, declared, "I must go to the county government right away to confront that vile creature. I need to ask why he harmed my Sister Mei? And where have the other criminals fled to? I must rush to the county government; I must go!"

Seeing his agitation, Gu Dagui dared not oppose him and quickly said, "Let's go, let's go. We'll get ready and head to the county government. Brother, don't be anxious."