They were supposed to receive apologies from the magistrate that day, but as soon as they reached the place, they were pinned down.
Liu Cheng felt terrified just thinking about it. The things that the psychic said were so detailed, as if she had seen it with her own eyes.
Just thinking about it made his hair stand on ends.
Liu Shun fell into deep thought.
He did not dare to deny it. Nothing was certain in this world.
Liu Cheng saw that Liu Shun was deep in thought and recalled that Liu Dalang and Liu Erlang were still waiting at his house. He felt troubled and said, "Brother, Liu Dalang and Liu Erlang are still waiting at my house. What should I do now?"
Liu Shun smiled at Liu Cheng. "It's alright. I'll give you three taels."
Liu Shun had always known that his cousin was useless.
His father was really incompetent, and so was he.
He gave Liu Cheng three taels of silver before sending him out.
After Liu Cheng took the money, he was no longer anxious. He did not think that his life would change much. Even if his mother was going to be beheaded in two days, he did not care too much about it. Instead, he was glad that he was still alive.
With the silver, Liu Cheng was no longer afraid. He walked to the main door and stuffed the silver into Liu Dalang's hands. "Here's the silver. Can you leave now?"
Looking at Liu Cheng's smug expression, Liu Dalang and Liu Erlang couldn't be bothered to talk to such a person.
Liu Dalang pointed at Liu Cheng. "I'll pretend that nothing happened today. But if there is another time, I'll make you live in hell."
Liu Cheng shrank his neck in fear. Liu Dalang turned around and left with Liu Erlang after warning him.
Liu Cheng looked at their backs and spat. "Screw you."
Then, he slammed the door shut.
On the way home, Liu Erlang couldn't help but say. "First Brother, why do I feel that Liu Cheng is the murderer while his mother is just the scapegoat."
Liu Cheng's mother was going to get executed the day after tomorrow, but Liu Cheng didn't seem to be sad at all.
Liu Dalang also felt that Liu Cheng was the murderer, but since it didn't concern his family, he didn't care.
Liu Dalang said calmly, "The wicked will be punished. God is just."
Liu Dalang believed that was the case. Otherwise, why would they still be able to find evidence?
Liu Erlang thought so too.
The two of them returned home and gave the taels to their mother.
At night, almost everyone in the entire Willow Street gathered in the courtyard of the Liu family's house. The weather was good tonight, and the men drank while chatting.
The women also ate at a seperate table.
Madam Bai also came. Liu Yinniang smiled at Liu Sanniang, and Madam Wei greeted her politely.
Madam Bai was very cold, her face expressionless.
However, as long as a quarrel didn't break out between them, it was already a good thing.
Mr. Liu drank some wine and said with a red face, "It's all thanks to my daughter, Sanniang. If not for her, we wouldn't have been able to get there so quickly. If we were even a minute later, the corpse would have been burnt to ashes!"
The elders all agreed. "Sanniang is indeed a good girl. It's a blessing to have such a good daughter."
Mr. Liu smiled. "Yes, she is our family's lucky star."
On the woman's side, someone asked Madam Wei. "I remember that your daughter is fourteen years old. Have you started matchmaking for her? You have to choose carefully."
Madam Wei smiled. "Yes, yes. There are a few good boys. I haven't made up my mind yet."
Everyone was very concerned about the marriage of the girls. Many people asked curiously. "Which family are these boys from?"
Madam Wei lowered her voice. "Originally, I thought Liu Shun, the scholar in Willow Alley, was good. But now that something like this happened, I have decided to reject him."
Madam Sun interrupted immediately. "Liu Shun is a good seedling. He might have a lot of potential in the future. Isn't rejecting him too rash?"
Liu Shun was not bad-looking either. He was a gentle and handsome scholar. Every girl liked him.
Madam Sun also had a daughter who was about the same age as Liu Sanniang. She dreamed of her daughter marrying a scholar.
Madam Bai smiled. "She has high standards. What can you do?"
She also couldn't stand Madam Wei's arrogant attitude. How could she turn down such a good scholar?
Madam Wei glanced at Madam Bai and took a deep breath. If not for the fact that she was the hostess, she would have retorted at this moment.
She was at odds with Madam Bai and Madam Sun. The way these two spoke always made Madam Wei feel uncomfortable.
Everyone knew that they were not on good terms.
Someone immediately smiled and tried to smooth things over. "Sanniang is still young, so there is no hurry. You can take your time and choose."
Madam Wei didn't want to argue with Madam Bai and Madam Sun, so she smiled and said, "Yes, Sanniang is still young."
After this incident, people from Willow Alley were all excluded from the potential husband for her daughter.
When she thought of Willow Alley, she would remember how Liu Cheng and his father mercilessly pinned the blame on Liu Cheng's mother. After all, they had lived together for decades. It was too heartless of them to abandon her just like that.
After the meal, everyone left in a happy mood.
Liu Yinniang dragged Liu Sanniang to the corner and said with a smile, "Sanniang, your mother's cooking is so good. The dishes today are really delicious."
Liu Sanniang smiled. "If you want to learn, I can teach you."
Liu Yinniang's eyes lit up. "Sanniang, thank you."
Liu Yinniang desperately wanted to learn how to cook so that she could gain a foothold in her in-laws' family in the future.
As a girl, Liu Sanniang could relate to Liu Yinniang very well. In her previous life, Liu Yinniang married a butcher in Ling County. If Liu Yinniang had possessed good culinary skills, she would probably have lived a good life.
Liu Yinniang felt at ease. Although her mother was still not on good terms with Madam Wei, she had a good relationship with Liu Sanniang.
After the dinner ended, Madam Bai went back home with her daughter.
Madam Bai touched Liu Yinniang's hair. "Comparisons are odious."
The boys whom Madam Wei rejected were the ones her daughter liked the most.
However, Madam Bai knew very well that a scholar wouldn't take a fancy to her daughter.