905 Punishment Old Master Tong was really anxious, he did not know what to do anymore. A part of him wanted to give up on this child but at the same time he knew that it was going to be impossible, after all, he was already so old if he was to abort a child at his age, he might not only lose a lot of blood but he might even lose his life.
If that happens he was sure that his daughter who cared more about her pride and reputation will surely ignore him, no human wanted to die and Old Master Tong who was getting of age was no different he did not wish to die nor did he wish to lose his reputation but with his foolish actions one of the two things will surely be lost.
" What am I supposed to do?" Old Master Tong nibbled on his nail as he paced in his room. Once or twice he will stop in between and then look at the mirror and each time he looked in the mirror, his heart couldn't help but beat fast not because he cared for the child but because he could see that the child was growing more and more each day.
Even though he was wearing loose clothes, he could still see his belly which was getting bigger by each day. If this goes on then he will surely get caught by someone!
If that happens then what was he supposed to do?
" No, this matter cannot be left alone," Old Master Tong finally came to a stop as he banged his hands on the surface of the dressing table causing the wooden boxes on it to shake and tremble. " If my reputation is going down the drain then surely that woman has to pay as well, unless she gives me a way out, I will not let her go!"
In the past, Old Master Tong was not willing to make things difficult for that lover of his because he thought that she would not leave him stranded and since he was in the perilous situation than her, he willingly dropped the matter but now that the situation was like this already what was the point of letting her go?!
Once he was done thinking through he decided to go and talk with that ex-lover of his, even if she could not marry him, she had to give him a solution. Either she will have to accept him as her husband or she will have to take care of this child for him.
Old Master Tong calmed down and then turned on his heels to head out of the house, since he had already decided what he wanted to do there was no point in waiting which was why he immediately hurried out of the house and headed towards the small courtyard which was at the south boundary of their village.
But just as he was heading towards the house of the Li family, he saw a chubby child running towards the village as he shouted, " The officials are here! The officials are here!"
When Old Master Tong heard the voice of the small mer child, his heart jumped and he immediately turned around to head back in the house.
Officials? There was no way he was going to see the officials. The last memory of seeing an official was still fresh in his memories, the last time he met with an official, he ended up losing more than ten mus of land and even had to pay compensation to that unfilial granddaughter of his.
Even though months had passed by after that incident, Old Master Tong still felt like an inch of his skin had been peeled off, the pain of losing those ten mus of land was simply unbearable!
However, as he arrived at his house, he saw his daughter coming out of the door and could not help but say, "Where are you going? Stay at home."
How can Second Aunt Yu stay at home? She had been waiting to see Yu Dong turn into the butt end of a joke which was why she immediately rolled her eyes and then turned to look at Old Master Tong and said, " What are you talking about father? The officials are here, how can we stay inside the house?"
What Second Aunt Yu did not say was that she very much wanted to see Yu Dong getting scolded after all, she was the one who promised that she will turn the conditions of this village around but now not only did the situation of this village not improve, the entire village ended up getting buried into snow. Surely, the officials will have to say something regarding this right?
Old Master Tong's curiosity was piqued as well, ever since Yu Dong made use of her connections and bullied him and his daughter, he had been looking towards Yu Dong getting a scolding from the very same official.
Thus, when he heard his daughter's words, he immediately followed her. Though he was scared of officials as long as the one getting scolded was Yu Dong, he was willing to face the officials in the eyes.
Byt Old Master Tong's hopes were bound to be crushed since Magistrate Li was not here to scold Yu Dong.
While the villagers were coming out of their houses, Yu Dong was already standing in front of Magistrate Li as she bowed her head and greeted the woman who was sitting on a beautiful white horse, whose fur was so shiny that it was glowing.
"It's an honour to see you, Magistrate Li," said Yu Dong as she looked down at the white snow and waited for Magistrate Li to give her permission to stand up.
" There is no need for you to be so formal with me," Magistrate Li waved her hand as she slipped down the horse and then headed towards Yu Dong who was standing a few feet away from her horse.
She glanced at the villagers who were covered in sweat most likely trying to repair their houses which were broken by the avalanche and then said, " I hope that no one was hurt."
As soon as the villagers heard the concern-filled voice of Magistrate Li, they immediately parted their lips and started to complain.
"It's all because of the Big Stone Village because of them we are in this situation!"
" The new year is here and my roof is broken, how am I supposed to take care of my family?"
" They are too much, they planned to kill us all. If we were not lucky we would have died without knowing the truth!"
Magistrate Li did not stop the villagers from speaking, she listened to their worries and complaints and only raised her hand when the villagers were done speaking before she stated in a loud voice,
" I have already investigated this matter. It has nothing to do with your village and thus, the Big Stone Village indeed owes you an explanation."
When the villagers heard Magistrate Li's words, they were surprised but at the same time, they were gratified. Fortunately, Magistrate Li was willing to listen to them or else they would have to suffer under the might of the Big Stone Village's chief.
After much lurking around that village they all found out that the chief of the Big Stone Village was the sister-in-law of the head of the Yamen.
This was the reason why she was this bold while eating the flesh of the children. She knew that as long as the head of the Yamen was standing by her side no one will be able to catch her in the act and even if they did they would not be able to punish her.
Come to think of it, it was all thanks to Yu Dong. If not for Yu Dong whose connections were so mighty, they might have suffered greatly.
When the villagers thought about the incident like this, their gazes became even more fervent as they looked at Yu Dong who ignored them all and asked Magistrate Li,
" Is the matter solved? Will the villagers of the Big Stone Village be punished for eating human flesh?"
" Those who ate human flesh and stole the kids of other families will be executed as for those who did not relay this matter to the magistrate department will be caught and locked up but since they did not steal or eat the human flesh, I am afraid that they cannot be punished too gravelly," Magistrate Li replied Yu Dong.
Though she knew that this was not the right thing to do there was no other option in front of her after all, she knew very well that the eldest princess Xian was keeping an eye on her.
If she was to make a mistake and punish those who were both victims and accomplices, then the elder Princess Xian will surely take advantage of this matter and call her to the capital for reprimanding her and at the same time she will send her women to look for Yu Dong.
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