The Double
Chapter 293 - 114 Reinforcements

Chapter 293: Chapter 114 Reinforcements

Feng Yutang and Princess Yongning’s orders didn’t immediately concern Jiang Li, but she was no fool. Having dealt with Princess Yongning in a previous life, she knew that the princess would soon take ruthless measures against her. The title of the Grand Secretary’s Daughter might intimidate Tong Zhiyang and scare Feng Yutang, but it wouldn’t fool Yongning. Sooner or later, they would attempt to kill her, but for now, what mattered most was ensuring the safety of Peng Xiao and the others, as their time was running short, with two days already passed out of the seven.

The secret chamber Jiang Li mentioned was hidden within an abandoned haunted farmhouse in Tongxiang. There was a tunnel underground, and the entrance to the tunnel was on a lakeside stone wall, completely obscured by lush wild grass, invisible to others.

Ye Mingyu had placed Peng Xiao and the others in that secret chamber, first arranging for them to change clothes and have something to eat. Peng Xiao and He Jun were in reasonable health, simply weak, but Gu Da and Gu Er were in a bad state, and the worst off was Xiao Hei. When Ye Mingyu found Doctor Zhong as Jiang Li had instructed, Doctor Zhong kept shaking his head in disbelief.

Ye Mingyu had also brought Doctor Zhong’s only son with him, and given Doctor Zhong five hundred taels of silver, telling him that as long as he could heal Xiao Hei and the others, they would find a way to get Doctor Zhong out of Tongxiang and give him another one thousand five hundred taels of silver, enough to settle down elsewhere comfortably.

In the small county of Tongxiang, the people rarely saw such a large sum of silver, and besides, Ye Mingyu looked fierce, his face marked with a scar. Terrified, Doctor Zhong nevertheless gave his all when treating Xiao Hei’s injuries.

While Xiao Hei, Gu Da, and Gu Er rested, Jiang Li and Peng Xiao strolled outside to talk.

Ye Mingyu found a rock to sit on near the secret chamber and said, "Ah Li, you found a good place. I think even if Feng Yutang dug three feet into the ground, he wouldn’t find a second place like this. There are even stone tables and benches inside, I wonder who left them here."

Who left them? It was, of course, Xue Zhao. Xue Zhao used to read a lot of strange tales and often said, "One day, we’ll be like the heroes in these stories. We’ll find a destitute hero being pursued by the government, and we’ll hide him here. No one will be able to find him, and he’ll teach me martial arts. Hey, in three to five years, I’ll become a famed hero—nobody will dare bully me. If someone dares to harm a hair on my sister, I’ll cut them down with a single strike of my sword and make them kneel and beg for mercy!"

The carefree laughter of youth seemed to still echo in the deep secret chamber, and, as if destined, many years later, they did hide people being pursued by the government there, but there was no more Xue Zhao to learn martial arts from them.

Jiang Li pulled herself back from her thoughts and facing Peng Xiao and the others, said, "I heard about this place by chance. For the moment, it’s safe; Feng Yutang’s men won’t find it within seven days. Everything will be different once the seven days have passed."

"Miss Jiang the Second, thank you," said Peng Xiao. He now knew Jiang Li’s identity and had learned about some of the things she had been doing in Tongxiang. Although he still did not fully understand why Jiang Li was so dedicated to helping the Xue Family overturn the case, at least for now, the five people who were fortunate to have survived all believed in Jiang Li.

It was perhaps not so much belief as it was a willingness to believe. Just like a drowning person who suddenly finds a lifeline, they would desperately swim towards it. No matter whether the lifeline might sink, nobody wanted to believe it was a mirage. To them, Xue Huaiyuan was a superior and a teacher. If there was the slightest chance to save Xue Huaiyuan, they were willing to try.

"What can we do?" asked He Jun.

Looking at He Jun, Jiang Li used to think him too delicate to be a government officer, but after recent events, he had seemed to mature overnight. That young man, who always asked Xue Fangfei for books, was determined to hold on for the sake of the justice he believed in. Although they could do nothing, simply surviving was a defiance of fate.

Fortunately, fate had given them a chance to turn things around.

"Looking at the Xue Family’s case, it can only go through Feng Yutang in Tongxiang. As long as Feng Yutang is involved, even a favorable case for the Xue Family will turn unfavorable, and you know that Feng Yutang deliberately arranged for the county magistrate Xue to be imprisoned. Therefore, we can’t let this case go through Feng Yutang’s hands. After much thought, the only way is to involve Feng Yutang too and hand it over to Dali Temple for a chance to maneuver," Jiang Li explained.

Peng Xiao and He Jun exchanged glances, then said, "You want us to accuse Feng Yutang?"