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

Chapter 241 She has Magistrate Chu backing her up

Upon hearing the magistrate summon him, Lü Da quickly straightened his clothes, had his chains unlocked, and then walked forward alone.

Li Ruru was worried, so she called on Hai Shi, and the two of them chased after them.

After the three men bowed respectfully, Lü Da said, "This humble official was unaware that the magistrate was here. I have failed to greet you properly and deserve to die."

Magistrate Chu snorted coldly and said, "It's good that you know. I'm asking you, is there a girl named Bailu hiding here in your village?"

"Your Honor, there are over 400 people in our Chenjia Village, young and old, and not a single one of them is named Bai Lu. Chenjia Village is a village with many surnames, but there is no one with the surname Bai. Please investigate this matter thoroughly, Your Honor."

Seeing his confident expression, he didn't seem to be lying.

Magistrate Chu turned to Xue and whispered, "Are you sure Miss Bai is here? Could she be in another village?"

The advisor reminded him, "Sir, I've heard there's a village nearby called Chengjia Village, which is only one character different from the name."

"And there's a family surnamed Bai in that village, could Miss Bai be there?"

Xue was not sure at first, but the people she sent to capture Bailu last time were beaten up by the people of Chenjia Village.

Why would they be so nervous if they weren't guilty? It's like they're trying to cover something up.

Madam Xue said, "She must be here. A mother and child are connected at heart; I can feel it."

She dared not reveal the real reason, for if Magistrate Chu found out, who knows what he would think of her.

If they were just trying to find their daughter to take home, why send thugs who know martial arts?

Magistrate Chu didn't see through Xue's intentions, but Li Ruru did.

The last time she sent people over, she was planning to kill them to silence them. This time, she went to great lengths and even brought out Magistrate Chu, showing she had no intention of leaving Bai Lu any way out.

Once Bai Lu returns home, whether she lives or dies is entirely up to Xue Shi.

Li Ruru said, "I've heard that the magistrate is approachable and loves the people like his own children. He's a rare and good official. It's a blessing for us Chenjia Village to have you as our local official."

That Miss Bai must be a woman of high birth, so why would she linger in our poor, remote place?

The little girl is prone to tantrums; she might go out to play or visit relatives without warning.

Magistrate Chu disliked being interrupted, but Li Ruru's words suited his taste perfectly.

He looked Li Ruru up and down curiously and asked, "What's your name?"

Li Ruru bowed and replied, "I am Li Ruru from Chenjia Village."

“Li Shi? Li Ruru?” Magistrate Chu felt the name was somewhat familiar, but he couldn’t remember where he had heard it before.

Li Ruru looked up and said with a smile, "Sir, a few months ago, Chen Dagang and Wang from Chenjia Village framed me, and it was you who helped me get justice at that time."

The magistrate of Chu thought about it and realized that there seemed to be such a thing.

He then looked at Lü Da and said, "Since you say there are no girls with the surname Bai in Chenjia Village, can we have the constables search the village?"

The magistrate of Chu was not asking for Lü Da's consent; it was both a question and a command.

Lu Da nodded, "Please come in, sir."

The chains were lowered, and Lü Da led the way as the large group entered the village.

Li Ruru wanted to go home and tell Bai Lu to hide first, but Chu Yu grabbed her arm and said, "Li, I heard you cook very well. Could you show off your skills to the magistrate?"

It's a question, but it's not asking for opinions; it's an order.

Magistrate Chu rubbed his stomach and said, "That's fine, I was just getting a little hungry."

A smile appeared on Chu Yu's lips as she said to Peipei, Chaochao, and Yinyin, "The three of you should help your mother cook, otherwise it will be too hard for her to do it all by herself."

The magistrate of Chu County led his men to search the village, but they couldn't find Bailu.

Chu Yu and his men searched Li Ruru's new house from top to bottom, but they couldn't find a single person.

That's strange, this shouldn't be happening.

Could it be that Bai Lu, that little girl, has grown wings and flown away?

The magistrate of Chu County didn't find anyone, but he did get to eat the dishes cooked by Li Ruru.

Stir-fried shredded potatoes, along with some wild vegetables, served with rice and beer.

Magistrate Chu ate bite after bite until his stomach was round and full before putting down his chopsticks. "These potatoes taste good."

The last time I ate this thing called potato was when my son brought it home.

Li Ruru glanced at Magistrate Chu and said, "There are still some in the kitchen. If you like, you can take them back to eat."

"No need." Magistrate Chu waved his hand, turned to his clerk and said, "Let's go."

The magistrate of Chu's men left, but Xue Shi and Chu Yu did not want to leave.

The group of men, carrying large knives, rampaged through the village, knocking down several elderly men with gray beards and injuring several women who tried to reason with them.

Lu Da said with a dark face, "If you don't leave, don't blame us for being impolite."

Magistrate Chu has already left, what are you still so arrogant about?

"You old bastard, hand over my daughter now, or I'll burn this wretched village down!"

Madam Xue sat in the sedan chair and shouted.

The two groups couldn't agree on what to do, and before anyone knew who pushed whom first, they all started fighting.

The Xue family had broadswords, while the Chen family had various farming tools.

Wang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu led the men from the workshop and beat Xue Shi so badly she was left on the ground, teeth knocked out.

The esteemed Madam Bai was dragged off the sedan chair by Pan Dayan, who scratched her face.

Her gorgeous clothes were torn to shreds, and many of her beautiful nails were broken.

Even her hair was pulled apart and turned into a messy tangle.

Chu Yu was also beaten black and blue, looking utterly pathetic.

Unable to withstand the fierce attack, he hurriedly fled with Xue Shi.

The people of Chenjia Village had won. The men celebrated with great joy, hugging each other tightly, while the women gathered together, chattering incessantly.

Li Ruru said, "Thank you all for your hard work today. The village head has arranged for everyone to have dinner at the workshop tonight. The food is free, so please eat as much as you like."

Lu Da nodded and said, "Everyone, go back and rest for a while. I'll have someone bang a gong when the food is ready."

Li Ruru rushed home and pushed open the door to an unused room in the west wing.

I gently knocked on the foot of the bed, and two responses came from inside very quickly.

The bed board opened, and Chu Xiu, Bai Lu, Xiao Yishan, and Nie Tianlei climbed out.

Li Ruru breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's good that you're all alright."

Turning to Bai Lu, he said, "Your stepmother really won't let this go."

Bai Lu said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Aunt Li, I've caused you trouble again."

Li Ruru: "The family didn't care about the trouble or not. Xue Shi and Chu Yu were both driven away by the villagers."

Chao Chao said, "We'll help with cooking at the workshop tonight, and we'll invite those who help over to eat."

Bai Lu took out 50 taels of silver from her bosom and said, "Aunt Li, take this money and buy some meat to nourish everyone."

Li Ruru pushed away her money and said worriedly, "Alu, some things can't be kept secret."

Chu Xiu frowned and said, "Both Xue and Chu Yu are vindictive; they certainly won't let Chenjia Village off the hook."

Chaochao asked worriedly, "Then what do we do?"

Fang Xingzhi stroked his beard and said, "What's there to be afraid of? We'll deal with whatever comes our way. There's no hurdle in life that we can't overcome."

Besides, Madam Xue isn't the wife of an official; she's just the wife of a wealthy landowner. What's there to be afraid of?

Li Ruru said, "But with Magistrate Chu backing her up, the situation is different."

The common people cannot fight against the officials. She could handle a wealthy man, but the county magistrate was really not easy to deal with.

After all, government offices and the law are unreasonable.

They have no powerful backers, so if a direct conflict occurs, they will only suffer losses.

(End of this chapter)