Chapter 2312: The Two Matters Provided by Shu Quan

Feeling the rough texture before her, Shu Yu didn’t need to visit the Shu family’s second house to understand how hard their lives were.

The two of them were wary of eavesdroppers in Righteous Dao Village, so they didn’t speak and quietly read the letter together.

The letter contained a lot about Shu Feng, and Shu Quan wrote in great detail. As for whether the information was useful, it was up to Shu Yu and Meng Yunzheng to decide. Shu Quan mentioned he didn’t dare to probe too deeply, fearing Shu Feng might catch on, as he was still very perceptive.

However, he mentioned two matters that drew the attention of Shu Yu and Meng Yunzheng.

One was over a month ago when Shu Feng suddenly rolled down the mountain. The doctor said he injured his leg and couldn’t move, so Shu Feng rested at home for over half a month.

During those half months, the first Madam Shu took care of him. As for his wife Ms. Wu, right on the first day Shu Feng fell, due to her negligence exacerbating his injury, Shu Feng sent her back to her mother’s home.

But Ms. Wu did return once, only to find Shu Feng absent in the room. When the first Madam returned and saw her, she immediately explained that Shu Feng went to town to see a doctor for a follow-up. According to Ms. Wu, the tone at the time was somewhat nervous.

Shu Quan suspected that Shu Feng hadn’t been in Righteous Dao Village during those half months; his leg injury was fake, and he must have gone somewhere to commit misconduct.

The second matter was a list provided by Shu Quan.

A list of people in Righteous Dao Village who were relatively close to Shu Feng, not many, just about a dozen, most of whom were exiled here due to their involvement in the rebellion of the Second and Third Princes the previous year.

This list... was indeed an unexpected gain.

Shu Yu and Meng Yunzheng exchanged a glance and then carefully read the contents on the paper twice more, engraved all the information in their minds, and memorized the names from the list before finally burning the paper.

After finishing this, the two lay down to rest.

It wasn’t until lying in bed that Meng Yunzheng leaned toward Shu Yu’s ear and whispered softly, "Most of the people on this list are remnants of the Second Prince; tomorrow, we should ask Xu Dali about their usual behavior and any leave-taking."

Shu Yu responded, "Hmm, but Xu Dali isn’t stupid; if we ask too much, he’ll likely get suspicious."

"Let him be suspicious, if he can help, he’ll be rewarded later. Helping him get a pardon for his crimes shouldn’t be a problem. Their family was implicated unjustly, not truly evil; the Emperor would agree. Xu Zhensheng is fifteen this year, on the cusp of marriage and starting a family. Without this criminal record, the Xu family would be very pleased."

Shu Yu thought briefly, "True, if he could earn merit to remove the criminal record, Xu Dali would likely do anything."

"Let’s probe a bit first." After all, Righteous Dao Village comprises a mix of people, even though the Shu family and Xu family used to be on good terms, years have passed, and people’s hearts might have changed."

"Hmm."

"Sleep now."

The two lay down, while outside the Manor, two figures had been silently observing. Only when the candlelight extinguished did they exchange a glance.

Still, they didn’t leave, silently guarding throughout the night.

It wasn’t until early the next morning, when someone went out to work, that the two returned home.

Shu Yu was awakened by the noises outside; the convicts in Righteous Dao Village had to get up early to work, registering at the Manor before dawn.

Even though the guest room where Shu Yu stayed was some distance from the front yard, since arriving in the southwest, she had a lot on her mind, resulting in a light sleep and easily waking up.