Wanjin Lady

Chapter 167 Eavesdropping
At night, Ping County was silent and the long streets were deserted.

White paper oil lamps were hung high in the Wen family's house, and gold paper was scattered all over the yard. Guanyin paper, God of Wealth gold, and lotus gold were spread all over the ground. The fragrance was lingering, and the yard was deserted.

When Cheng Yunzhang drove over, he saw the elegiac couplet in front of the door.

——Green mountains forever remember the beauty of virtue, green waters forever chant the elegance of style
——The sun's green soul clings to the creeping grass, the snow's red tears shed on the peach blossoms
Cheng Yunzhang had a black veil wrapped around his arm. In order to avoid taboos, he chose a time when there were few people around to pay his respects. At this moment, the Wen residence had lost its daytime bustle and looked a bit deserted.

That evil son-in-law... just died like that?

And he slipped and fell off a cliff while relieving himself, and his body was never found?

Yuan Jing just died, and Zhao Heng followed closely behind. This coincidence... makes it hard to think too much.

Immediately, Cheng Yunzhang secretly mocked himself for being too thoughtful.

It's not good to make random guesses about something that has no basis in fact.

He suppressed the doubts in his mind, then picked up the wooden box containing Wen Wan's jade hairpin from the carriage and walked straight into Wen's house.

The servants were dressed in linen mourning clothes and were busy cleaning. Zhao Heng's body had been kept for three days. On the second day, guests began to visit one after another. The servants did not guard against him and let him come in directly.

Wen Wan was not in the front yard.

Cheng Yunzhang had been to Wen's house once and was familiar with the place. He finally found Wen Wan in a secluded corner in the backyard.

Miss Wen is easy to recognize.

She was the only one in the Wen residence dressed in white.

What's more, Wen Wan and her daughter were sitting on the steps talking in low voices. Cheng Yunzhang didn't want to disturb them, so he raised his foot and wanted to leave, but he didn't leave. While he was hesitating, he heard several sentences.

Wen Wan was comforting Wen Weiming at this moment.

She had just left the front yard and saw Old Man Wen standing by the flower bed under the porch as she entered the door. His shoulders were twitching and he was crying sadly.

This time, Wen Wan was completely confused.

Wen Wan, feeling guilty, originally wanted to play the ostrich and pretend that she didn't see her cheap father, but she caught a glimpse of Old Man Wen almost crying to the point of fainting. She had no choice but to go forward and support Old Man Wen, to prevent her cheap father from crying to death!

They say that men don't shed tears easily, but they are not sad yet.

Old Man Wen’s sadness... brought tears to Wen Wan’s eyes.

How could Wen Weiming not be sad?
My daughter became a widow at a young age, just like myself when I was young. After all, I was already in my thirties at that time, but Wen Wan was only... only sixteen!
In addition, the elders of the clan had been asking questions openly and secretly today, and they were all guessing whether the baby in Wen Wan's belly was a boy or a girl. But they turned their backs on Wen Wan and secretly cursed her that she would give birth to a daughter in the future. He, Wen Weiming, would still be considered childless, and Wen Weiming felt heartbroken.

Wen Wan comforted him, "Dad, you have to live your life on your own. As long as I don't lose heart, I won't be afraid of anyone's gossip."

Wen Weiming's tears streamed down, and he wiped them away fiercely with the back of his hand. "I feel sorry for you... Life as a widow is not easy... You're only sixteen... You have a long life ahead of you. Even if it weren't for you, I still feel sorry for Zhao Heng..."

"Although we coaxed and deceived him into marrying into our family, who is heartless? That child was filial, sensible, and considerate. He always visited me morning and night and asked about my well-being. Now he's dead in such an unclear way! If his parents come looking for us in the future, how will we explain it to his family?"

"What if...what if Zhao Heng is the only child in his family? Wouldn't that mean his family will have no descendants?"

Over the past decade or so, Wen Weiming had been secretly mocked by many for having no son to carry on his legacy despite his wealth and success. He had suffered the pain of not having a son, and now the Zhao family was about to make him suffer the same pain he had endured. How could he bear it?
"He was a perfectly healthy child... who came to our house... and never enjoyed a single day of happiness... and then passed away just like that... Your father is truly afraid that in a hundred years, he will be buried in the underworld... and won't be able to face him!"

"I used to be so wary of him. Now that I think about it... I really regret it!"

"If I had known this earlier... I should have been nicer to him."

"I dreamed about him last night. I dreamed that he was alone in the training ground, fiddling with weapons. He even asked me why I didn't keep my promise to buy him a set of weapons."

As he spoke, tears kept flowing from between Wen Weiming's fingers, making Wen Wan feel at a loss and a sense of guilt rising in her heart.

But... when did Father Wen and Zhao Heng become so loving and filial to each other?
Who said that Zhao Heng has dark eyes and a ruthless heart and that we must be on guard against him?
Who arranged for Zhao Heng to change his wife's surname two or three times?

Cheng Yunzhang could hear Old Man Wen crying sadly from a distance, but the young lady opposite him remained indifferent. Her eyebrows were light, her pupils were dim, and there was even a hint of coldness in her eyes.

"Dad...don't cry..."

The young woman parted her thin lips slightly, and the words that came out were like a thunderclap from a clear sky: "Zhao Heng is not dead."

"He was sent away by Master Tu."

Wen Wan finished speaking, blinked, and watched as Father Wen's face gradually turned red, from his neck to his face -

Wen Wan quickly confirmed that there were no feather dusters within ten meters of her surroundings, and then she boldly said, "Dad, do you remember what I said some time ago about getting rid of the father and keeping the son?"

The astonishment on Wen Weiming's face had not subsided, but his excitement continued in waves.

"I suspect...this Zhao Heng...is a fake."

Wen Weiming's head felt as if he had been hit hard by a punch. His ears were buzzing and he was stunned and didn't react for a long time.

The young lady's eyes were calm, as if she was talking about the weather today. "Father, have you seen the policy paper he revised for me?"

Wen Weiming nodded in panic.

He was not without doubts at that time.

But he felt that the matter was done and didn't want to think about it too much.

"Father, do you think... a farmer's son could write such an article?"

Wen Weiming opened his mouth, but his throat seemed to be blocked and he couldn't make a sound.

"Zhao Heng... I don't know his true background... He has a plan in mind. I'm afraid my daughter is no match for him. It would be better to abandon him while he's still thinking about it, so that he won't be exposed in the future and bring trouble to the Wen family."

Wen Weiming took a long while to digest the news. From her expression, he seemed to be slowly accepting the situation. However, he still asked her, "Did you know you were pregnant before you sent him away?"

Wen Wan nodded, "Yes. Now that I have obtained what I want, I will never keep such an unknown person around."

"But what good will it do you to send him away?! He has legs and feet, he can run back on his own! Unless you kill him!"

Wen Weiming was very anxious. "You handled this poorly! If I were Zhao Heng, I would definitely come back to you and get to the bottom of this! It's only a matter of time!"

“Father! There’s no way to have the best of both worlds! If I don’t leave now, he’ll find out I’m pregnant, and then it will be even harder to get rid of him!”

"I sent him away while he still didn't know I was pregnant. Firstly, I knew Zhao Heng was arrogant and proud, and I was certain he wouldn't have the nerve to come back after I dumped him. Secondly—"

Wen Wan almost blurted out that Zhao Heng had committed murder!

Zhao Heng committed murder, and the whole affair was not without flaws. If the Yuan family were to investigate, they might very well find their way back to him.

But Zhao Heng is dead, and Yuan Jing's murder case is destined to be a headless case!
This is also to protect Zhao Heng!
Seeing Old Man Wen's expectant gaze, Wen Wan licked her lips and changed the subject, "Secondly, the Cangshan Snow Forest is a hundred and eight thousand miles away from Ping County. It will take him at least two or three months to come back. By then, Zhao Heng's death will be a foregone conclusion. If he comes back, who can prove that he is the Wen family's son-in-law?! We will accuse him of impersonating the Wen family's son-in-law!"

Wen Weiming's expression was complicated. He felt that looking at his graceful daughter in front of him, he always felt that Wen Wan had become extremely left-wing and her methods had become extreme since he became seriously ill this year. The old man's lips trembled, "You have a big idea!"

Such a big thing as killing the father and keeping the son was done without a single word!
Moreover, he had repeatedly warned her not to think of getting rid of the father and keeping the son, but she had done it behind his back in the blink of an eye.

It was obvious that her previous obedience and compliance were all fake! She was just trying to please this old man!

"Why don't you discuss this with me?"

Wenwan pursed her lips, looking stubborn, but did not answer.

"Such a big thing, and you kept me completely in the dark! Is this just your business, Wen Wan? Then Zhao Heng is not my son-in-law? Not the father of my grandson?"

Wen Wan lowered her head slightly.

Why don’t you tell Old Man Wen?

Of course... because she knew that Father Wen would object!

(End of this chapter)