Chapter 126: Chapter 72: A Night with Secrets_3
Years had passed, and the once bright and elegant young man had become much more composed. Liu Kun was both surprised and delighted, yet Lu Qian’s smile seemed forced.
Lu Qian had come because of Lu Rou’s funeral.
Lu Rou was dead.
Liu Kun had known the news long ago and felt deep regret. When Lu Rou first arrived in Shengjing after getting married, she had visited the Liu Family. But her husband’s household was wealthy and had strict rules, especially her mother-in-law, who was particularly harsh; thus, Liu Kun felt it improper to shamelessly visit time and again, and their contact gradually ceased.
Liu Kun believed Lu Qian had come for the mourning, but Lu Qian told him that there was more to Lu Rou’s death.
Lu Rou had been murdered.
The secret Lu Qian revealed was shocking, leaving Liu Kun feeling as though his soul was scattered. The young man, as resolute as he had been in his youth, clenched his teeth and swore to seek justice for his unjustly deceased sister.
"Qian’er, this is no trifling matter. Do you realize how powerful the Grand Preceptor is... With a stomp of his foot, the entire Shengjing trembles! If you rashly accuse him, you won’t just be unable to overturn the case, you’ll even put your parents in danger; listen to your uncle, go back home, or else you won’t even save your own life!"
That was how he advised Lu Qian at the time.
But Lu Qian wouldn’t listen.
Although the young man’s temperament differed greatly from his father’s, the stubborn streak in his bones was exactly the same. He looked at Liu Kun, "Uncle, my sister is dead, and I know the truth. If I cower and endure, while those who did evil can remain in high positions, there’s no justice in this world."
"Under the broad sky, at the feet of the Emperor, to suffer injustice without appealing, to be wronged without redress, don’t you think it’s absurd?"
"Even if it costs me my life, I will fight for justice for my sister."
He was too young and did not understand the world’s powers could easily crush a family’s backbone.
Unable to persuade Lu Qian, Liu Kun could only watch helplessly as he took a desperate gamble and went to the Trial Court, like a moth flying towards the net already woven for it.
Sure enough, before long, a wanted notice for Lu Qian appeared in the streets of Shengjing. Slander, theft, and a mess of other absurd charges were flung upon the depicted person. Looking at the small characters offering a reward of one hundred silver taels, Liu Kun thought the people of the Trial Court were quite generous.
He dragged his tired and numb body back home, where Wang Chunchi was wailing that they couldn’t rent the shop on Que’er Street and the deposit wasn’t being returned. The fifty silver deposit would take them a very long time to save up. Zi De and Zi Xian had gone to confront the shop owner, only to be beaten up and thrown out.
The house was in disarray; the sons’ swearing and the woman’s wailing mingled together, causing him a headache, making him feel a sadder and sourer misery than those days in Changwu County. He fell asleep amidst the chaos and when he awoke, it was deep into the night, and someone was calling at his ear, "Uncle, Uncle!"
Liu Kun lifted his head.
There stood Lu Qian before him, having come under the cover of night, with a look of desperation and restlessness in his eyes.
"Qian’er?" Liu Kun sat up straight, unsure of what to say.
Lu Qian, however, said, "Uncle, the Judicial Commissioner Fan Zhenglian and the Grand Preceptor’s Mansion have already colluded in secret to frame me and imprison me." He strode over to a jar in the room that held dried fruit and reached inside, pulling out something wrapped in paper.
Liu Kun was surprised, "What is that?"
Lu Qian smiled, a smile that, even at a time like this, held a hint of cunning, "Evidence."
"Evidence?"
"The evidence my sister left to me. I’ve thought it over and over, and, uncle, your worries are not unfounded. So, when I sought out Fan Zhenglian, I hid this item in your home first. I’ve come to retrieve it today."
He approached Liu Kun again, paused, and then spoke earnestly, "Uncle, now that the order for my arrest has been issued, I am a criminal and cannot stay and bring trouble upon you."
Liu Kun asked, "What will you do in the future?"
"Naturally, I will continue to find ways to seek justice for my sister. Uncle," he lowered his eyes slightly, "if I should die, there’s no need to bother with my body. I’d trouble you to write a letter to fool my parents in Changwu County, deceive them for as long as possible. However," he smiled again, with the carefree air of youth, "I don’t think I’ll fall into their hands so easily."
He waved his hand, "I’m off."
The young man was about to vanish at the door, as if to disappear completely into the boundless night of Shengjing.
Liu Kun said, "Wait!"
Lu Qian turned around, "What is it?"
This was the moment of farewell. He should have been giving meticulous admonishments to the young man he had seen grow up, but at that moment, for some inexplicable reason, Liu Kun suddenly recalled the hundred silver taels reward from the wanted poster he had seen on the street during the day.