tallest building

Chapter 108 Ransom Letter

"Oh my! Who are you people? How dare you barge into my widow's room in broad daylight?!" Widow Ma screamed in fright as several people suddenly appeared.

"Shut up, we're here to see Shao Si." Ma Ping'an's eyes were like knives, which frightened the widow into silence immediately.

The group searched inside and out, but couldn't find Shao Si anywhere.

"Who...who exactly are you people?" Widow Ma asked, mustering her courage.

“We’re here to arrest Shao Si. He’s committed a crime. You’re his lover. Do you know where he is now? If you know and don’t report it, you’re harboring a criminal. You’re a widow, yet you’re not behaving like a proper wife. Do you want to be paraded through the streets as a public spectacle?” Ma Ping’an pointed to the male and female entertainment items they had found. Clearly, this widow was used to being promiscuous.

"Oh, Your Honor! This has nothing to do with me! This Shao Si once harassed me, but I never..." Widow Ma pretended to be a respectable person, but she didn't act like one at all.

She mistook Ma Ping'an and the others for officials incognito and hurriedly tried to distance herself from them.

“We don’t have time to listen to your nonsense,” Ma Ping’an said sternly. “If you don’t want to get into trouble, you’d better tell us where Shao Si is, or we’ll arrest you!”

He knew these people were most afraid of government officials, so since Widow Ma had mistaken him for someone else, he might as well go with the flow.

"No, no, no!" Widow Ma waved her hands repeatedly. "I know a little, but I'm not sure. That Shao Si is an ungrateful wretch. He abandoned me once he got the money. He's having an affair with Sun Wanju's wife outside the city, and what's worse, it's Sun's daughter, that little vixen. She's only sixteen or seventeen, and she's already learning to seduce men..."

Widow Ma became increasingly angry as she spoke, and she even forgot her previous fear.

"Stop rambling! I'm just asking you, where does this Widow Sun live?" Ma Ping'an asked.

"Huh?" Widow Ma was taken aback by the question, but then she understood and explained, "Sun Wanju is still alive. His wife isn't a widow. It's just that Sun Wanju is a born bastard. From a young age, he's allowed his wife to seduce men so she could enjoy the food and drink she earned."

Now that he has a daughter, he's even more smug. Shao Si used to be involved with his wife, but he didn't visit often. His family only cares about money, unlike me… cough cough…”

Widow Ma realized she had misspoke and quickly corrected herself: "Their family lives in Sunjiazhuang in the northwest of the city. I once argued with that adulterous woman. I know that their family lives in a lonely house at the east end of the village, with a big camphor tree planted in front of the door."

Ma Ping'an immediately sensed an opportunity. Shao Si, now wealthy, looked down on Widow Ma but was quite interested in the Sun family's daughter.

Their house was located in a remote area, so even if they stayed there for a while, they wouldn't be easily discovered.

He then said to Widow Ma, "If Shao Si is really there, you've done a great service, and you'll be rewarded later. Remember not to talk nonsense. If Shao Si finds out and runs away, he'll come after you!"

After leaving Widow Ma's house, Ma Ping'an tossed Anxi a piece of silver: "You should know what you should and shouldn't say."

Anxi nodded and bowed: "Uncle, don't worry! I'm the most discreet person I can keep to myself."

Fearing he wouldn't have enough people with him, Ma Ping'an returned to his residence again.

He truthfully reported all the information he had gathered over the past half day to Wen Mingqian and Gong Xu.

The man sent out to investigate Qi Da Hu Zi has returned and said, "I found Qi Da Hu Zi's residence, but he's no longer there. I heard from the people around him that a few days ago he was overjoyed, saying that his brother had become rich and asked him to go out for drinks and entertainment. So he locked the door and left, without saying where he went. But it shouldn't be far away, because he hasn't returned the house he rented."

"In that case, these two people should be together," Wen Mingqian judged. "They are very likely in Sunjiazhuang."

"We'll head out of the city now. If all goes well, we can bring the person back before the city gates close." Ma Ping'an knew there was no time to lose.

But Zhang Ma hadn't replied yet, probably still looking. Before they knew it, it was dusk.

Gong Xu sat there with a worried expression. He was naturally worried about Gong Chang'an, but he didn't know what else he could do.

"Master, Madam, dinner is ready. Please have a bite!" Yunying also looked worried. "Fourth Young Master is a lucky man. He will definitely come back safely."

"You serve the master his meal! I need to go check on the old lady, otherwise she'll become suspicious." Wen Mingqian stood up.

Gong Xu quickly said, "I'll go with you."

“Master, you should not go there,” Wen Mingqian immediately stopped him. “It is said that no one knows a child better than his mother. If you show even the slightest hint of something on your mind, the old lady will notice.”

"Alright, then you can go alone!" Gong Xu thought Wen Mingqian's words made sense. "Sang Er, take good care of the lady."

Wen Mingqian went over to appease Old Madam Gong, leaving Gong Xu to eat dinner alone, listless and without any mood.

"Madam...Master!" Old Huang rushed in, and seeing that Wen Mingqian was not there, he went straight to Gong Xu, "Someone delivered this!"

He was holding a box in his hand, and his hands were shaking like leaves.

Gong Xu didn't have time to ask any more questions. He grabbed the box, opened it, and then threw it away in a fright.

Fortunately, Yunying caught it quickly, but she was still quite surprised.

The box contained a bloody finger.

"There's a letter in this box!" Yunying clutched her chest and took the letter out of the box.

Although the letter was soaked in blood, the words on it were still clear: If you want your young master to be safe, quickly prepare 30,000 taels of silver and leave the city at dusk tomorrow. Take a boat eastward from Baihu Bridge, and I will make arrangements. Only one person may go, and you must not cheat.

The pageboy has a severed finger; if he does not comply, we shall wait to collect his body.

"Who...who sent this letter?" Gong Xu was just beginning to recover from his shock.

"The messenger is a fool, just a beggar dog who always hangs around here," Old Huang sighed. "He said someone gave him a pastry and asked him to deliver this box. I asked him what the man looked like, his age, his height, and his build, but he couldn't say anything."

“It seems this finger belongs to Heming, the young master’s page,” Yunying said. “He went out with the young master today.”

Wen Mingqian had already suspected that these people would pretend to be kidnapping for ransom, and now they were indeed asking for money.

Wen Mingqian stayed with Old Madam Gong and served her dinner before coming out.

Upon returning here, I learned that someone had sent a ransom note demanding 30,000 taels of silver.

It was clear that the other party wanted not only money but also lives, aiming to cause the Gong family to lose both their wealth and their money.

"This situation is far too dangerous," Gong Xu said. "If all else fails, I'll go find Song Xiang and tell him to his face that if anything happens to my son, I'll make his whole family pay with their lives!"