By a twist of fate, the illegitimate son of the Marquis's family marries the county princess.

Chapter 247 Old Wu 6

"Old Wu, I've found you a job, come out quickly."

The group followed the broker to a rather shabby little courtyard.

As the broker's voice faded, a sound came from the courtyard, and soon the gate opened, revealing a weathered face.

Old Wu glanced at the men behind the broker and asked, "What kind of work?"

The broker said, "These people want to find a bricklayer from the city to build a house for them in the village, but they can only pay one tael of silver."

Old Wu frowned: "Which village are we going to?"

He was from Meicun. Because he was a bricklayer, he had been to several surrounding villages, but he had never seen these people before.

"We are from Liucun."

"Liucun? That's way too far, it's almost out of Ning'an County."

Then I thought that they only had one or two taels of silver, yet they traveled all the way to the county town to find a bricklayer. It was really like they were asking for trouble because they had nothing better to do.

But since it involved brokerage fees, the broker didn't show any unusual expression; instead, he helped persuade Old Wu.

But Old Wu shook his head: "My legs are weak, it's too far."

"We can help you."

Old Wu shook his head again: "I don't want to leave the county town."

Leaving Ning'an County would make him uneasy; he would rather earn less money than leave the county.

The broker talked until his mouth was dry, but he still couldn't persuade Old Wu.

The group could only leave in disappointment.

The broker said, "If Old Wu won't take it, no one else will."

"Thank you for your help. Let's think of another way."

"Alright."

Unable to earn any brokerage fees, the broker left disappointed.

The group casually found a stall, sat down, and drank tea to cool off, whispering, "Is it him?"

"He looks very similar to the portrait; it must be him."

"We didn't expect to find him so soon after arriving in Ning'an County. We're lucky."

"But he doesn't want to come with us."

"Are you out of your mind? Do you really think we're villagers? Before we came here, the adults gave us instructions: once we find the person, we must bring them back to Tongzhou, no matter what method we use."

"This is the person that important person specifically requested; we'll take him away even if we have to tie him up."

"But we can't be too extreme. If we really kidnap him, it will be inconvenient for us to leave the city."

Entry and exit from the city requires inspection.

"What should we do then?"

"According to intelligence, he only has one son, who can be used to threaten him."

Upon hearing this, the others all looked at the speaker and said, "You're really insidious."

"Do you have a better way? If this matter is not completed, the master will be so angry that he will stop letting us do things, and then we will not get paid anymore."

Upon hearing this, the group immediately made up their minds: "That's what we'll do!"

……

After finishing their tea, the group went to Old Wu's house again.

Old Wu was getting impatient when he saw them return: "I told you I'm not going back, so stop bothering me."

"Old Wu, let's go inside and talk."

Seeing that there were no people around, the group escorted Old Wu into the courtyard and closed the door behind them.

Old Wu's face immediately changed, and he was about to shout when someone with sharp eyes covered his mouth: "Old Wu, if you dare to shout that, your son won't live."

Old Wu, or rather, Wu Laoliu, his eyes dimmed completely.

He hid for so long, but he was finally found.

"As long as you cooperate properly, not only will your son be fine, but your family will also have a great stroke of luck."

Wu Laoliu had thought he was going to be killed to silence him, and he was completely stunned when he heard this.

What does that mean?

……

Tongzhou Branch

Wen Zongji said, "Keep a close eye on Ning'an County. I won't be able to stay in Tongzhou Prefecture for long. Before Huang Yecai becomes suspicious, we must find out if Wu Laoliu is alive or dead."

Whether he is dead or alive, there needs to be a conclusion so that he can proceed with other plans.

Yu Jiacheng nodded: "This humble official understands."

Just as the two finished speaking, a minor official walked in and said, "Sir, the people who went to Ning'an County have returned, and they brought one person back with them."

Upon hearing this, Yu Jiacheng was overjoyed and turned to look at Wen Zongji: "My lord—"

Wen Zongji remained relatively calm: "Bring the person over here."

Wu Laoliu is really still alive!

Before long, Wu Laoliu was brought before Wen Zongji.

At this point, Wu Laoliu truly let go.

The person who arrested him was not Liu Chengyun.

Wen Zongji's extraordinary demeanor was evident even just sitting there; he was clearly no ordinary person.

Wu Laoliu thought to himself that this person was obviously formidable, no wonder he wasn't afraid of Liu Chengyun.

Wen Zongji didn't know what Wu Laoliu was thinking, so he asked, "Wu Laoliu, you're clearly still alive, but why don't you dare go back to the village?"

"Because the villain discovered the real reason why the dam broke."

Knowing that his life and his son's life were in Wen Zongji's hands, Wu Laoliu dared not hide anything and told him directly.

"What is it?"

"After the dam broke, the little man picked up the stone fragments used to build the dam while fleeing. He found that many of the stone fragments were broken by collisions after the dam broke, rather than being washed away by the flood. Some of the stones were even intact."

"After discovering these things, I understood that the dam breach was caused by insufficient mortar used in its construction, resulting in weak adhesion between the stones. I had previously reminded Lord Liu of the prefectural government that more mortar should have been used to ensure the dam's stability, but he did not heed my advice."

"I heard that people from the capital came to investigate the dam breach, but Lord Liu was unharmed. I felt that something was wrong and was afraid that it would implicate my son and daughter-in-law, so I didn't dare to go back to the village."

Wen Zongji looked at him and said, "You are indeed cautious."

Wu Laoliu smiled bitterly: "I'm just an ordinary citizen, and everything I do is to save my life."

"Do you still have those stones?"

Wu Laoliu nodded hurriedly: "Keep it, keep it, bury it in the courtyard where I live."

He already knew the real reason for the dam breach, so how could he not realize that this was important evidence and he definitely had to keep it?

He hadn't thought about complaining to anyone; he was simply thinking that if Liu Chengyun found him, he would have a plan to talk to Liu Chengyun.

Wen Zongji glanced at Yu Jiacheng.

Yu Jiacheng nodded: "This humble official will send someone to retrieve it immediately."

Wen Zongji then looked at Wu Laoliu: "If what you said is true, you will not only no longer have to hide outside, but you can also return home in glory."

Wu Laoliu replied with trepidation, "I dare not."

Ever since discovering these things, Wu Laoliu has been living in constant fear and hasn't had a good night's sleep.

All he wanted was to stay alive and live a good life.

He hadn't even seen his grandson born yet, so he didn't have the confidence to face his ancestors, and he simply didn't dare to die.

Wen Zongji waved his hand: "Arrange a room for him to stay in."

After Wu Laoliu left, Wen Zongji's expression instantly turned cold: "Tonight, secretly arrest Liu Chengyun, but do not alert Huang Yecai."

Yu Jiacheng immediately replied, "Please rest assured, sir."