The Double
Chapter 310 - 117: The Heart of the People_3

Chapter 310: Chapter 117: The Heart of the People_3

After a long while, someone came to open the door. It turned out to be an elderly woman in the twilight of her years, dressed in a thin cotton robe. Just by looking at her, Ye Mingyu felt cold.

When the old lady saw Ye Mingyu, it was as if she saw nothing, and she asked with confusion, "Is someone there? Who might you be...?"

This woman was blind and couldn’t see anything.

Ye Mingyu said, "Old Madam, is your son home? I’ve come to see your son." According to the booklet Jiang Li wrote for Ye Mingyu, this family clearly had a scholar son.

"You’re looking for Wenxuan?" The elderly woman said, "He’s gone out to buy tofu; he’ll be back soon. What do you need him for?"

No sooner had she finished speaking than someone outside said, "Mom, I’m back!"

As soon as Mo Wenxuan returned home, he saw a tall man standing in front of his house. When he turned around and saw the scar on that man’s face and his bandit-like appearance, he was startled and almost dropped the tofu. He asked, "This big brother..."

"Are you Mo Wenxuan?" Ye Mingyu scrutinized Mo Wenxuan critically. Mo Wenxuan was nearly thirty now, still unmarried and alone, but it was no wonder; his family was too poor. And he had his heart set on scholarship, but despite his efforts, he was still only a scholar. His hair was a bit messy and he sported some beard growth, wearing a cotton robe that had been washed to a pale white. His vision was poor and he had to get closer to see people clearly.

Mo Wenxuan said, "Yes."

"I have some matters to discuss with you," Ye Mingyu said abruptly, "Step aside for a talk." He needed to persuade Mo Wenxuan to be a witness, so naturally, he couldn’t let an old woman of such an age overhear. He gestured for Mo Wenxuan to step outside.

Although the old lady hesitated somewhat, she did not follow. The family was too poor to even have a courtyard, so Ye Mingyu and Mo Wenxuan went to the open space behind the house to talk.

Ye Mingyu said, "Mo Wenxuan, do you know about County Magistrate Xue being imprisoned?"

Mo Wenxuan was startled and then began to wave his hands nervously, looking around anxiously, and said, "Big brother... we must not speak of it, we must not!"

Such a cowardly scholar, thought Ye Mingyu disdainfully, and said, "What is there to fear? Will speaking of it kill you? Rest assured, with me here, I guarantee you won’t die."

Mo Wenxuan certainly didn’t expect to encounter such a blunt man, and although he tried to resist in great fear, Ye Mingyu remained unmoved, constantly mentioning "County Magistrate Xue" as if afraid others wouldn’t hear.

"Listen, lad, County Magistrate Xue has been imprisoned and is to be executed in five days, accused of embezzling the fund for disaster aid. You must know what kind of man County Magistrate Xue is, don’t you? Lad, we are now seeking justice for County Magistrate Xue and need a witness. Are you willing to step forward as a witness, to expose Feng Yutang and to vindicate County Magistrate Xue?"

Upon hearing this, Mo Wenxuan was even more terrified, shaking like a sieve, saying, "I dare not, I dare not!"

"What dare not?" Ye Mingyu had little patience for such men and said irritably, "What’s there to fear? Come, tell me! I remember County Magistrate Xue helping you settle down in Tongxiang, letting you study in the local school, and allowing you to become a scholar. That was no trouble then, was it? If it weren’t for County Magistrate Xue, you wouldn’t even have a copper coin for tofu now, let alone something to support your old mother with!"

Mo Wenxuan was not a native of Tongxiang. Years ago, he brought his blind mother to Tongxiang to seek refuge with a relative, only to find that this distant relative had already died. Penniless and an outsider, he was about to sink into begging for a living. If it had not been for a chance encounter with Xue Huaiyuan, who had stepped in when he was being bullied by some thugs on the street, Mo Wenxuan’s scholarly pursuits and later success in becoming a scholar would never have happened. Life was still poor, but it was Xue Huaiyuan’s earlier support that prevented him from starving to death, let alone being able to care for his aged and blind mother.

"They say the more chivalrous one is, the more likely one ends up slaughtered like a dog, and that the ungrateful are often scholars — damn it, today I’ve seen it with my own eyes!" Ye Mingyu cursed, "If County Magistrate Xue knew he had helped such an ingrate at the beginning, he should never have reached out to help you at all. It would have served you right to have been tormented to death by those thugs!"

Mo Wenxuan listened in a daze, his face turning red, and suddenly he shouted angrily, "Enough, shut up! Do you think I do not wish to vindicate Lord Xue? Do you think I don’t know that Lord Xue has been wronged? I have learned about benevolence, righteousness, loyalty, and filial piety! But Feng Yutang is simply unbearable! Do you know how he treated those who wanted to help Lord Xue before? He targeted their parents, spouses, and children! Although I, Mo Wenxuan, may not be a hero, I fear nothing but death if it can help my benefactor! But I have my mother to think of. She has struggled to raise me, and now she’s blind and can do nothing. I have not been able to bring her a good life in this life, but I cannot let her fall into danger because of me!"