Early the next morning, Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu received the news that sothing had happened to the Wu Family last night.
It turns out the whole city was searching for grassland spies, and those spies couldn’t hide anymore, as the city was surrounded like a steel barrel.
Every household was being searched, almost turning things upside down, even wishing to crawl into rat holes for inspection.
The city’s residents, upon hearing that it was about finding grassland spies, had nothing to say. Not only did they not obstruct, they were eager to roll up their sleeves and help.
Especially those idle won who visited neighbors, gossiping east and west, talking about one family here and another there, this was the laziest ti of the year, everyone had nothing to do, and loved to gather, their eyes as sharp as searchlights, eager to find sothing to gossip about.
Now with such a big event happening in the city, there was no way it could escape their mouths.
Especially Wang Yongzhu rembered the power of those all-knowing neighborhood aunts in past tis and imdiately instructed Song Xiaowei and his team to consult with these idle won in the city.
As long as they patiently listened to these won, they would surely obtain useful information.
Song Xiaowei and his team, being all n, were truly reluctant to deal with these won, knowing that their mouths, once they start babbling, could really blow your mind.
But since Madam had instructed them, they knew her capability, she wouldn’t easily give out random ideas.
If she sent soone to give this specific instruction, there was definitely a reason behind it.
Thus, they all remained patient, and chose a few won whose faces didn’t seem too fierce, those with sowhat agile tongues, and started talking to them.
After all, it was the first ti doing such a thing. Each of them, even trying hard to appear harmless, had smiles as stiff as they were scary.
Luckily, over the years Song Chongjin had been very strict, so the guards and officials had a favorable image among the residents of Chicheng County.
Therefore, even though the won were initially surprised and scared, they managed to calm down enough to respond.
Indeed, they managed to find two useful leads.
With this start, Song Xiaowei, being quick-witted, imdiately selected from the governnt officials those who usually patrolled the streets or helped neighbors solve trivial matters, who had good affinity with the community.
He had them lead the way, and whenever they saw those gossipy-looking won at every household, they engaged in conversation with them.
It truly opened up a new world for them. They realized that, in the eyes of these won, there were almost no secrets in the neighboring houses.
For instance, they spoke of grandmothers who seed kind but were the nastiest, always waiting for their sons to leave for work and then tornting their daughters-in-law, who were honest and almost dying from the tornt, yet still gritting their teeth.
So won were labeled deceitful and lazy, pleasing their husbands every day, not doing any housework, leaving their in-laws to serve them.
Families that appeared affluent, but were actually poor, bought a piece of pork skin to rub on their mouths every day after als, creating an illusion with the glossy shine.
And even rumors about children not belonging to the n of their households, being fathered by outsiders while the husbands worked.
The officials listened with great intrigue, sighing at the revelations.
Finally, steadying their minds, they extracted so key points from the won’s talk.
The manager of a grocery store, surnad Chen, ca to Chicheng County three years ago to find relatives, claiming to be the nephew of the Guo Family on Shuijing Street, stating that his mother had passed away, and his biological father remarried a new stepmother, who disliked him over ti and caused trouble.
With the arrival of a stepmother ca a stepfather, and after the stepmother had her own children, she couldn’t tolerate him anymore.
She sched against him, causing his wife to die during childbirth, and his father chased him out, leaving him nowhere to go. Rembering his uncle’s family, he ca to rely on his aunt who married into the county.
The Guo Family won, supposedly his aunt, had passed away years ago. The sudden arrival of such a big nephew left the Guo Family bewildered, but his recount of past events sowhat matched.
And since the manager declared he had no relatives left in the world, only his uncle and cousins as his dependency, he didn’t want to leave, had so money, and didn’t worry about livelihood.
He even promised Silver to the Guo Family, making things easier for registration at the Yan and setting up a shop to start living.
Because his prices were fair, over ti, neighbors loved visiting his store, and business picked up.
Seeing he was single, though remarried, with a shop, life could go on, people thought of matchmaking him.
But Manager Chen neither refused nor accepted, picking faults with every match introduced to him.
As ti went by, no one bothered proposing matches for him, saying he had high standards and couldn’t care less for the girls in Chicheng County.
So even noticed he seed to have ambiguous relations with Widow Hu, who lived two streets away.
After Widow Hu’s husband passed early, and her in-laws being honest people, she claid she wouldn’t remarry, wanting to fulfill filial duty to her husband, and her in-laws treated her like their own daughter.
Unexpectedly, the widow surnad Hu was indeed charming, and within half a year she started enticing n outside, convincing her in-laws she wanted a son-in-law to continue the family line with her husband’s posthumous son.
Her in-laws believed her, not only refraining from scolding Widow Hu, but also providing delicious treats for her and the outsider, hoping she would bear a grandson and keep their son’s na going.
Later, Widow Hu beca increasingly outrageous, inviting n ho frequently without discretion, dressing flamboyantly, with flirtatious sounds echoing every night.
Not just the old couple in the courtyard but even the neighboring residents couldn’t tolerate it.
The old couple attempted to speak up but were yelled at by Widow Hu, who feigned misery, leading to their death from anger.
After their death, Widow Hu, leaning on the man she lured, occupied the house and beca the city’s notorious shady figure.
n across the city were drawn to beco her patrons.
Every woman in Chicheng County resented Widow Hu, and discovering Manager Chen entangled with her, the gossip quickly spread among the won, leading many to avoid interacting with him.
Hearing this, Song Xiaowei and his team imdiately sensed that most likely this group was hiding at Widow Hu’s place.
Widow Hu’s shady affairs, unlike the brothel’s, left no trace; as long as she was careful, unnoticed by others, no one knew who visited her.
It was indeed an excellent hiding place.
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