The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 313 Wanted Criminal of the Imperial Court
Tong Huaqiong barely slept a wink all night.

She got up after the rooster crowed twice and went to Gu Jingzhe's house to see the patient.

Gu Jingzhe hadn't slept a wink all night and happily told Tong Huaqiong that although Su Chengmin hadn't woken up, his fever had subsided.

Once the fever subsides, the person will recover.

Tong Huaqiong had no time to pay attention to Su Chengmin's condition.

She thought about it all night. If Man'er's storyline was the same as in her previous life, then this little dragon was the son of the deposed crown prince, an out-and-out remnant of a traitor.

He and Su Chengmin were like a bolt from the blue, buried deep within the Gu family.

Tong Huaqiong then asked Gu Jingzhe, "Did you learn anything about the emperor in school?"

Gu Jingzhe looked up and glanced at Tong Huaqiong in surprise.

He didn't understand why his mother, who never cared about current events, was asking this question.

My mother used to say that no matter who becomes emperor, it won't disrupt everyone's lives.

Why are you starting to care now?

Gu Jingzhe said, "Master Su mentioned that the current emperor was the least noticeable prince back then because the late crown prince rebelled and the late emperor killed or deposed the crown prince and several other princes. Before the late emperor passed away, the current emperor was the only one of all the princes who had come of age, so he was allowed to inherit the throne."

No wonder this emperor was so suspicious; it turns out he picked up the throne by chance.

"Mother, do you remember Aunt Hong mentioning that she fled from Shengjing with her family to this place back then? It was when the Crown Prince rebelled, the rebel army entered the city, and the situation was unstable. Many wealthy families in Shengjing were afraid of being implicated, so they desperately fled."

Tong Huaqiong nodded, then asked, "What is the relationship between the current emperor and the crown prince?"

Gu Jingzhe said, "Master Su also mentioned that the Emperor is very suspicious."

Tong Huaqiong understood.

Gu Jingzhe couldn't figure out what Tong Huaqiong was thinking, so he asked, "Mother, why are you asking these questions?"

Tong Huaqiong looked into Gu Jingzhe's house and was about to speak when the village chief, bathed in the morning sunlight, stepped through the gate.

The village chief saw Tong Huaqiong and said with a smile, "Dashu's mother, I just passed by your house on my way back to the village and heard people talking, so I knew you were back."

Tong Huaqiong asked in surprise, "Where did the village chief come from so early in the morning?"

The village chief sighed and said, "Don't even mention it. Last night, the village head of several villages called us to a meeting that lasted until midnight. Then we were dragged to the surrounding mountains to search for people. We were up half the night."

Tong Huaqiong's heart skipped a beat, and she asked, "What's the matter?"

The village chief said, "Oh, don't even mention it. They say the crown prince rebelled a month ago, and he was executed. His men escaped with his son. I don't know where the news came from, but they said the two of them fled to our Yanguan Town. Last night, a whole bunch of soldiers came and searched the mountains. The village head summoned our village chief last night and we searched the area together."

Tong Huaqiong's heart pounded with fear as she asked, "Did you find anything?"

The village chief said, "We didn't find a thing. I think they're just wasting their time. What does the Crown Prince's rebellion have to do with us? His business with his emperor father has nothing to do with us ordinary people. I searched around with the soldiers from Shengjing, and then I hid in a haystack to sleep. I only sneaked back to the village in the morning after they left. I couldn't stay awake any longer. I heard they're going to search every village for the Crown Prince's remnants."

"I'm here to tell everyone in the village not to let strangers into the village, so as not to be misunderstood by the soldiers. By the way, Aunt Dashu, when you came back last night, did you encounter any suspicious people in Yanguan Town?"

Tong Huaqiong shook her head and said, "No, that's not true."

The village chief shook his head and said, "In my opinion, it's all a waste of time. As for the remnants of the crown prince, I think they're just searching to give their superiors an explanation. Why would the remnants of the crown prince come here? This isn't the border, so they can hide here."

The village chief shook his head, put his hands behind his back, and left Tong Huaqiong's courtyard. He was going to inform the villagers not to let strangers into the village for the next few days.

Tong Huaqiong had a somber face and didn't move for a long time.

Gu Jingzhe locked the door tightly, his face pale, and called out, "Mother."

Tong Huaqiong glanced at Gu Jingzhe.

Gu Jingzhe is so smart, he should have guessed Su Chengmin and Xiaolong's identities.

If they are truly caught and exterminated, the entire Gu family, including Tong Huaqiong, will be finished. It's possible the entire Qinghe Bay will be awash in blood.

Tong Huaqiong was trembling slightly.

She knew all too well how terrifying imperial power was in this era.

Tong Huaqiong became increasingly frightened the more she thought about it.

He was torn between two options: should he send Su Chengmin and Xiaolong away?

Seeing his usually confident mother showing a frightened look in her eyes, Gu Jingzhe panicked as well.

Gu Jingzhe asked, "Mother, should we send these two away?"

If we send them away, one is covered in wounds and hasn't woken up, and the other is an unarmed child. They'll probably either be killed by the soldiers or starve to death.

Tong Huaqiong steadied herself and said, "Sending them away is impossible, at least not now. The soldiers could arrive at any time, and we might not only fail to send them away but also get caught by the soldiers."

"Mother, what the village chief said... these two in our family wouldn't be..." Gu Taohua asked in a trembling voice.

Gu Dahan, Chen Sufen, Liu Yue'e, and Gu Taohua stood together, each with a solemn expression. Tong Huaqiong knew that they had all heard the village chief's words and guessed the identities of the two family members.

Harboring a high-ranking criminal of the imperial court is punishable by death; who wouldn't be afraid of that?

With a sob in her voice, Liu Yue'e said, "Mother, let's send them away. Hiding a serious criminal is no joke. Our family has finally achieved a good life, and we can't let it be ruined."

Not only Liu Yue'e, but even the usually gentle and kind Chen Sufen agreed to send the person away.

Chen Sufeng said, "Sister-in-law is right. Mother, why don't we have Dahan secretly send the people to hide in the mountains, and we'll give them some money and food?"

Tong Huaqiong glanced at Chen Sufeng and Liu Yue'e, and said with an icy expression, "Who told you that our family is hiding a serious criminal of the imperial court? One of the two in our family is a coachman I hired, who was trampled by a horse, and the other is the coachman's nephew. I felt sorry for him because he had no parents, so I let him drive the carriage with his uncle."

"Don't talk nonsense to me, you guys."

Gu Dahan was the first to come to his senses and said, "That driver was too careless. Why was he in such a hurry to travel at night? He got trampled and we have to spend money to treat him. It's only because Mother is kind-hearted that he was killed. If it were an ordinary employer, they would have fired him long ago."

"Make a note of the money he owes us, and we'll have him work for us to pay it back slowly," Gu Taohua said.

“Yes, yes, we can’t let him leave. We can’t let him go without paying back the money,” Chen Sufeng said.

Tong Huaqiong nodded.

Very well, they're all starting to show off their acting skills.

At this moment, Tong Huaqiong saw a person coming out of the side room. Oh no, it was the Lu family's coachman.

You could tell from his droopy head that he had taken the village chief's words to heart.

The Lu family was a family of exceptional intelligence; they were all incredibly shrewd individuals. How could he not guess who the two people inside the house were?

Tong Huaqiong said to Gu Jingzhe, "Jingzhe, go and get a knife."

Gu Jingzhe glanced at the coachman, nodded, and said, "Alright, only a mute person can't speak."

The coachman of the Lu family almost knelt down.

This widow Tong is so ruthless, she's going to kill someone to silence them!

No, after hearing the village chief's words, he decided to keep the fact that he had saved the two people last night a secret and would never tell anyone, not even until he died.

Otherwise, if the matter comes to light, they could face confiscation of their property and extermination of their entire family.

No, does Widow Tong think he's stupid?
They thought he was clueless about this matter; what had he done to make Widow Tong think he was a fool?

The Lu family's coachman was forced to write a self-criticism.