Divorce with three kids? I'll build a house and eat meat, driving my in-laws crazy.

Is Chapter 220 simply a case of being mentally unstable, or just ruthless?

The advisor and Magistrate Chu both looked at Chu Xiu as if he were a fool.

The advisor explained, "It is Miss Bai, Bai Lu, the eldest daughter of the Bai family."

"Oh, it's her." Chu Xiu breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought his father had secretly arranged another marriage for him.

Realizing what was happening, he asked, "What are you going to the Bai family for? Has Master Bai returned?"

Magistrate Chu shook his head: "No, but the Bai family is holding a funeral today, so we have to show our faces."

“A funeral? Who died?” Chu Xiu asked.

Magistrate Chu left without saying a word, and his advisor pulled Chu Xiu into the carriage, saying, "You'll know when we get there."

Chu Xiu wondered if it was Xue Shi, perhaps his wicked stepmother had finally gotten her comeuppance.
He was well aware of what Xue had done to Bailu.

Chu Xiu, inside the carriage, wore a faint smile. It wasn't until he entered the Bai residence that he learned who had died.

Xue Shi stood perfectly fine in front of Chu Xiu, tears streaming down her face, looking frail and delicate, as if she would collapse at the slightest breeze.

She sobbed, "Thank you all for coming to mourn my daughter. My beautiful daughter is gone just like that. I'm heartbroken and can't breathe. Waaah..."

As Xue spoke, she wept, and everyone present was moved to tears.

If Chu Xiu hadn't just seen Bai Lu that morning, he might have actually believed her lies.

He stepped forward and asked mockingly, "Madam Bai, may I ask how Miss Bai died?"

Upon hearing this, everyone stared at him in stunned silence.

Who is this person? How can they be so outspoken, asking such questions at someone's daughter's funeral?

What's the difference between this and stabbing someone in the chest?

Chu Xiu not only stabbed her in the back, but he did it more than once: "Madam Bai, I heard that you married your beautiful daughter to an old widower? May I ask, what were you thinking?"

Is he simply insane, or just ruthless?

His voice was loud, and the crowd erupted in uproar again.

Is this person here to sabotage us? How could they speak of Madam Bai like that?

Madam Bai's face turned pale. She turned to look at Magistrate Chu, her eyes filled with three parts resentment and four parts mockery: "Second brother, is this the good son you raised?"

Magistrate Chu felt utterly humiliated, but he couldn't afford to lose his temper because so many people were watching.

She glared at Chu Xiu and said, "Shut up! She's your aunt. How can you talk like that?"

Chu Xiu corrected, "That was in the past; my uncle got divorced."

The advisor quickly laughed it off, saying, "Young master, didn't you say you had something else to do? Let me see you out."

With that, he pulled Chu Xiu out of the Bai residence without a second thought.

Once outside the Bai residence, Chu Xiu became much quieter. He asked, "How did Miss Bai die?"

The advisor asked warily, "Oh my young master, what kind of trouble are you up to now? The person is dead, what's the use of asking these questions?"

"So, what was the cause of her death?" Chu Xiu pressed on.

The clerk sighed, "I heard that she had a falling out with her husband's family after the wedding, and in a moment of despair, she took her own life. Alas, what a good girl she was, how could she be so foolish?"

The advisor mumbled, "After Madam Bai found out, she was so heartbroken that she didn't eat or get out of bed for a week. In the end, she had someone burn down Miss Bai's husband's house."

Then, speaking earnestly to Chu Xiu, she said, "No one could have predicted this, so we can't blame Madam Bai."

Chu Xiu sneered: "Xue Shi hasn't eaten or gotten out of bed for a week? How come she didn't starve to death?"

He even claimed credit for burning down Old Man Nie's house, trying to glorify himself.

He had even imagined what kind of drama Xue would put on after Master Bai returned.

Madam Xue knew how to manipulate men. With someone like Master Bai, all she had to do was take all the blame upon herself, then threaten to die with Bai Lu, and Master Bai would surely stop her. While Master Bai was grieving the loss of his beloved daughter, he also had to find time to comfort Madam Xue, who was constantly blaming him.

The advisor's face twisted in disbelief: "Young Master, you have a deep-seated prejudice against Madam Bai."

“No.” Chu Xiu shook his head. “The word ‘prejudice’ implies that a person has been wronged. But I did not wrong her. She is vicious and thoroughly evil.”

Knowing that it was difficult to change someone's mind, the advisor changed the subject, saying, "Young master, there's a new lead in Butcher Hu's case."

"Oh? Tell me quickly." Chu Xiu perked up.

"Butcher Hu once took in a refugee, but after he died, the person disappeared as well."

"So that person is the murderer? He's hiding because he feels guilty after killing someone?" Chu Xiu guessed.

"It's hard to say." The advisor wasn't sure either; he couldn't speak carelessly about things he wasn't sure of. "However, this person is indeed quite suspicious. Someone saw him running down the mountain on the day of the incident."

"Then why don't we go and catch him?" Chu Xiu asked anxiously.

The Hu family, including the butcher, were pushed off the mountain and died. The person who pushed them off the mountain disappeared after running down the mountain.

Who else could it be but him!

Seeing how concerned the young master was, the advisor couldn't bear to discourage him: "Don't worry, young master, Officer Xing and his team are investigating. I believe they'll have results soon."

Chu Xiu murmured, "I hope so."

After a moment of silence, Chu Xiu suddenly asked, "Master, do you have any money?"

The advisor looked at him in surprise, only to see that his young master had a three-point fawning smile on his face.

Young master, are you willing to sacrifice your dignity for money?

He clutched his money pouch tightly and asked, "Young master, what...what are you going to do?"

Chu Xiu smiled and said, "Nothing much, just wanted to borrow some money to spend."

"Oh, I see." The advisor was relieved.

He took out 20 taels of silver from his pocket and handed it to Chu Xiu: "That's all I have. I doubt it's enough to fill a gap in your teeth, young master."

Chu Xiu looked at him with disdain and shook his head, saying, "Forget it, you can keep the money yourself."

"Alright, young master, please go inside and rest." As they spoke, the two had already returned to the county government office.

Chu Xiu felt a pang of unease as he watched his advisor flee.

He just wanted to borrow some money, but this guy acted like he'd seen a ghost.

Sitting in the armchair, he thought for a while, and after searching the room for a long time, he finally found two hundred taels of silver notes.

Two hundred taels of silver is more money than the people of Chenjia Village could earn in a lifetime.

But this money wouldn't be enough to pave the roads in Chenjia Village.

We need to think of another way.

He found a large bundle, rolled up and packed all the valuable calligraphy and paintings in his study, and carried it out.

The constable outside the door asked in surprise, "Young master, what are you doing?"

Is this stealing from your own home? And so obviously?
Chu Xiu raised his eyelids and said, "Get out of the way, don't force me to take action."

This guy in front of me stopped me from going out last time, so I can't give him a nice look this time.

Perhaps having learned from his previous experience, the constable not only didn't stop him this time, but also said with a smile, "Alright, young master, please take care. Do you need me to help you drive the carriage?"

"No need." With Xiao Wu here, there's no need for anyone else's help.

"Would you like me to recommend a good pawnshop?" the constable asked obsequiously.

(End of this chapter)