Lu Wuxie accompanied Zhong Li to the village chief’s house that night.
The old village chief seemed to have expected a visitor, as his house was the only one in the village of a thousand people where the candlelight had not been extinguished.
“You two are a little earlier than I expected,” the old village chief said, walking to the door with his cane. He smiled upon seeing the man and woman standing at the entrance.
Zhong Li bowed to the village chief and asked, “Village Chief, is it convenient to talk inside?”
The village chief did not answer but turned and walked into the house.
Lu Wuxie glanced around the courtyard to ensure there was no danger. He then said to Zhong Li, “Go ahead, I’ll wait for you here.”
Zhong Li nodded and followed the village chief inside.
The village chief’s house was not large, at most a two-room dwelling, and the furnishings inside were exceptionally simple.
“Has the Village Chief never married?” Zhong Li asked, sitting at a round table. The table was very old, its painted lacquer long faded, revealing the original wood beneath.
The village chief paused, his hand halfway to pouring tea. He looked up at her and said, “Yes, I remained unmarried my entire life.”
Upon hearing this, a hint of relief appeared in Zhong Li’s eyes. “Is it because you’ve been waiting for someone?”
The village chief followed Zhong Li’s gaze and saw the hairpin on the low cabinet in the corner. He said, “I was just polishing it and forgot to put it away.”
With that, he rose and walked to the cabinet, picking up the hairpin and placing it into a box.
“That is a red coral lotus hairpin,” Zhong Li stated.
The village chief had not expected this young lady opposite him to know the hairpin’s name and could not help but be surprised. “My dear, you know this.”
Zhong Li nodded, then seemed to recall something and shook her head. “I previously solved a case that was related to this hairpin. As for anything else, it was all from what I heard from others. You mentioned your red coral lotus hairpin just now, and the red coral appears to be of the finest quality. May I ask, Village Chief, is this hairpin from your beloved?”
The village chief did not answer immediately but instead asked, “My dear, how did you first know that I have never married?”
Zhong Li smiled. “Firstly, at your age, you should be surrounded by grandchildren. However, your house seems quite small, and compared to your neighbors, it lacks grandeur. After all, you are the village chief of this small fishing village, and appearances matter. Therefore, there is only one possibility: this house must hold many memories for you.”
The village chief nodded.
Zhong Li continued, “Secondly, this house… one room, one living area, and one kitchen. It is suitable for one person, but rather small for two…”
As she spoke, her gaze swept across the inner room. “Finally, the only bedroom has no dressing table, no women’s belongings, and there is not even the scent of a woman in the house. Coupled with the hairpin you just put away, I made that deduction.”
“Indeed, it was right for me to have you investigate the case!” The village chief’s smile became noticeably more bitter. He sighed, “I met her in the eighteenth year of Ningping. She was a royal physician. After the Empress’s death, she was expelled from the palace and returned to Jinzhou. Afterward, she went into the business of maritime trade. Once, during a shipwreck, she drifted to this small fishing village and rescued me after I was bitten by a shark. We slowly got to know each other and decided to spend our lives together.”
As the village chief spoke, he rolled up his trouser leg. Zhong Li clearly saw a set of teeth marks deeply etched into his bone. Judging by the wound, she could tell that if the treatment had been delayed or something had gone wrong, this elderly man might not have even had the chance to use a cane. This indicated that the woman who treated his leg must have had exceptional medical skills.
“And then what happened? Why… did you not marry her?” she asked.
“She… died!” The village chief paused before uttering the answer.
“Died? Why?” Zhong Li pressed.
The village chief slammed his fist on the table in anger. “When she encountered the shipwreck, there was also a man with her.”
“Is her death related to this man?”
The village chief nodded emphatically. “She was beautiful, and that man had always coveted her. Just two days before we were to be married, that man actually…” He trailed off, seemingly recalling the situation. His reddened eyes were filled with anger and hatred. “Do you know? She was already carrying my child, about to give birth… and she was treated like this… *sob sob*…”
“I’m sorry, I’ve brought up your painful memories,” Zhong Li said, pursing her lips, unsure how to comfort the elderly man before her.
The village chief shook his head and took a deep breath. “It’s all in the past. Now, as an elder, I only wish to seek justice for my grandchild.”
Grandchild? Justice? Zhong Li was a little confused at first. Only after carefully considering his words did she realize. “You are Youyou’s maternal grandfather?”
The village chief lowered his head and remained silent.
Zhong Li continued, “You said earlier that your betrothed died just as she was about to give birth?”
The village chief remained silent.
“If that’s the case, was Youyou’s mother, your daughter, a ‘coffin child’?”
“No… she wasn’t a coffin child, she… *sob sob*.” The village chief’s emotions collapsed again as he spoke, covering his face and weeping.
Zhong Li remained silent, patiently waiting for him to reveal the truth. After a considerable time, when more than half of the candles on the table had burned down, he finally spoke. “Yes, our child was a coffin child. This Xiaoyudao is isolated, and such things that others deem inauspicious, I certainly cannot speak of. At that time, only I knew that she was pregnant. To allow our daughter to live a normal life on Xiaoyudao, I took her out of the coffin and lied that she was found by the sea, giving her to another family to raise. I watched her grow into adulthood with my own eyes. I had hoped she would marry a good-hearted man as I wished and live a simple and happy life. But… when Youyou was three years old, she fell gravely ill and passed away.”
Hearing this, all the timelines suddenly aligned. Zhong Li said, “So Niu Ling is Youyou’s stepmother, isn’t that right?”
The village chief nodded.
“Smack!” Zhong Li slapped the table in anger, her furious eyes fixed on the man opposite her. “Then I ask you, do you know about Youyou’s injuries?”
The village chief knew what she was going to ask and nodded.
Zhong Li’s gaze towards him was icy. “Then why didn’t you intervene? Why did you let Niu Ling bully Youyou like this?”
The village chief covered his face, looking remorseful. “Yes, it’s all my fault. If I hadn’t chosen to let things happen in order to conceal Youyou’s identity, Youyou wouldn’t have ended up like this! *sob sob*…”
“Youyou is a very sensible child. Every time I see her pass by me, I feel exceptionally happy. Especially her mother, my daughter. After my daughter left, Kang Ji married Niu Ling again. I wanted to take her back from Kang Ji many times. But… but…” The village chief angrily clutched his hair, as if punishing himself. “But I am the village chief. If such shameful things were to spread, I…”
“Your position as village chief would be in jeopardy, wouldn’t it?” Zhong Li looked at the man hesitating to speak and voiced the selfish thought he dared not utter.