allonlinenovel Chapter 265: Majia Village was Massacred and Burned
Chapter 265: Majia Village was Massacred and Burned
It has been more than two months since Lao Zhou returned from Majia Village. The weather has become increasingly hot and humid since the beginning of summer. Li Yunye saw that his mother's serious illness had just improved, but her body was still weak. He was worried that the evil heat of summer would harm her body again, so he asked An Ge to send Mrs. Li to a farm in the countryside to escape the summer heat.
Mrs. Li, who was already worried about the heat, was restless and unable to eat or sleep all day, so naturally she was willing to go to the farm in the mountains.
Ange asked someone to notify Manager Li of the farm three days in advance to clean up the Li residence in the countryside.
Three days later, in the early morning, Li Yunye and Mu Liang escorted Madam Li to the gate of the mansion. Lan Jie and two other maids accompanied Madam Li. Hong Nu stayed in the plum garden to take care of the cat. Li Yunye was still worried and arranged two other guards with good skills to go with him. After all, Mu Liang and Lao Zhou had not yet told him the true identity of Li Guanshi.
"I know it's not easy for you to manage the Li family's business, but don't work too hard in this summer and take care of your health." Mrs. Li looked at her two sons in front of her and said with concern.
Ever since her son took over the famous Li family in Jiangnan, Mrs. Li saw that her adopted son Mu Liang was loyal to the Li family. She no longer had the worries she had when she first heard the rumors outside. She was also very pleased to see that the two brothers could work together to manage the family business.
"Don't worry, stepmother. We will take good care of ourselves. But you have to be more careful when you go to the farm. The countryside is different from the city. There are many snakes and insects. Try not to go out at night. It is also very cold in the countryside in the mornings and evenings. You have to put on more coats. If there is anything, just let them go to Manager Li." Mu Liang spoke first and also gave careful instructions to Mrs. Li.
Li Yunye, who was silent nearby, glanced at Mu Liang with a smile and couldn't help complaining in his heart: He is more nagging than his mother.
"Okay, stepmother will remember it." Madam Li was not annoyed, but very happy. Both of her sons were good to her, but her biological sons were not as eloquent as her adopted sons. However, when it came to being thoughtful and delicate, Yun Ye was naturally the one to beat.
"Doctor Sun also said that mother is still in poor health. Although it is hot in summer, she should not be too greedy with fruits and vegetables. She should drink more ginger and jujube tea." Li Yunye then looked at Sister Lan behind Madam Li and instructed.
"Don't worry, sir. We will take good care of the madam." Sister Lan also bowed and smiled at Li Yunye.
"Don't just worry about your mother's health, you should also take care of your own health. Although the snow and cold have dissipated, your kneecaps have been frostbitten and should not be underestimated. No matter how hot the weather is, you should not touch them with cold water." Mrs. Li held her son's hand and spoke softly.
"Okay, son, I've got it in mind." Li Yunye also held his mother's hand and nodded in response.
"Don't worry, stepmother. Liang'er will take good care of brother Yunye." Mu Liang also comforted Mrs. Li.
"I'm not a child anymore." Li Yunye said to Mu Liang helplessly.
Mu Liang said nothing, but just looked at him with a frown.
"It's used to staying in the mansion. I feel relieved that you stay in the Plum Garden to take care of it." Madam Li turned around and came to Hongnu, gently stroking the lion cat in her arms who was dozing off with squinting eyes, and said softly.
"Hongnu will take good care of it, madam, you don't have to worry." Hongnu blinked her clever eyes and said with a smile.
Mrs. Li smiled happily, then got into the carriage with the help of Sister Lan.
Escorted by Ange personally, two carriages slowly left the Li family and headed towards the farm outside the city.
After watching Madam Li leave, Li Yunye rubbed his sleepy eyes and returned to Qingyun Garden to take another nap. Mu Liang, who followed closely behind him, shook his head helplessly, but his bright eyes were full of doting. While Li Yunye slept in the inner room, he sat by the window sill in the outer room, sipping tea and admiring the morning scenery.
There are three floors in the Qingyun Garden attic. The first floor used to be where the maids lived, but since Jiang Siyao came to the Li family, she arranged the maids of Qingyun Garden to live in the outer courtyard and not in the attic. Therefore, only An Yun lives on the first floor now; the second floor is the Bi Hai Chao Tian, and most of the rare treasures and rare paintings obtained by Li Yunye are piled up in the wing rooms on this floor. Another room was a study dedicated to his reading and writing, but it has been vacant now; the third floor, Cang Hai Que Qiao, is Li Yunye’s bedroom, and the empty room at the other end is temporarily occupied by Mu Liang.
Looking down from the third-floor attic, one can have a panoramic view of the entire Li Mansion. The dawn is gradually turning white in the distance, and the scenery below is regaining its color in the hazy air. Mu Liang's star-like eyes are also sparkling in the early morning.
Although Mu Liang's side courtyard had been renovated long ago, Li Yunye was reluctant to let Mu Liang move out of the attic. He had long been accustomed to sitting in front of the attic window with Mu Liang, drinking tea and chatting before going to bed at night, listening to Mu Liang talk about interesting things in the business world, until they felt sleepy and then went back to their respective rooms.
Therefore, Li Yunye found an excuse that the newly built yard needed ventilation and drying to let his brother continue to live in the attic. Seeing his brother said so, Mu Liang naturally agreed to it, and Mrs. Li would not interfere too much. After all, the two brothers had a deep relationship, and only by working together could they manage the Li family business well.
It was not until the sky was bright at noon that Li Yunye got up energetically, stretched, and came to Mu Liang. Seeing that his brother had woken up, Mu Liang ordered An Yun to bring the hot lotus seed porridge.
Watching Brother Mu Liang skillfully serving porridge and pouring tea for him and waiting for him to have breakfast together every day, Jiang Siyao couldn't help but feel greedy again: How nice it would be if he could live his whole life in the Li family with Brother Mu Liang like this.
"Why are you grinning at me?" After finishing the work in his hands, Mu Liang saw his sworn brother staring at him with a silly smile. The tenderness between his eyebrows warmed his heart, and he smiled gently.
Only then did he realize that he had lost his composure again. Li Yunye quickly lowered his eyes, picked up the tea in front of him, took a sip, and then frowned and said, "Is there no cold tea in this hot weather?"
"It's better to drink some warm tea early in the morning." Mu Liang advised in a coaxing tone.
Li Yunye pouted and glared at him, but still drank all the warm tea in the cup.
"Ahem." As soon as Lao Zhou entered the room, he saw the two of them flirting with each other while having breakfast. He couldn't help but smiled and coughed twice.
"Old Zhou? Where did you go last night?" Li Yunye asked hurriedly when he saw Old Zhou who had not returned home all night. But then he smelled the alcohol on him and guessed without asking that this drunkard had stayed out drunk again.
"Mr. Li, don't ask this for now. A piece of news reached Qile City early this morning." Old Zhou suddenly looked at the two people in front of him with a serious face.
"What news?" Li Yunye couldn't help but get nervous when he saw the usually smiling Old Zhou becoming so serious.
"Majia Village was slaughtered and burned last night." Old Zhou sat on a stool on the other side and sighed regretfully.
Li Yunye and Mu Liang were both shocked when they heard this. Ever since Lao Zhou came back, Majia Village had been peaceful and there had been no news for the past two months. Just when they were about to forget about Majia Village, such a thing happened.
"Is this news true? Do you know who did it?" Mu Liang was the first to regain his senses and asked Lao Zhou.
"I heard that no one in Majia Village escaped, and the fire in the village burned all night. It was not until the fifth watch that the villagers from another village several miles away discovered the fire. Naturally, no one knew who the murderer was. Even the governor of Qile City was alarmed by this incident. When I returned to the palace, I saw him leading the government officials to hurriedly leave the city."
"So cruel and inhumane..." Mu Liang couldn't help but sigh after hearing this.
"Yes, I just heard Aunt Hua who came back from shopping say that she saw the prefect leading two teams of people heading out of the city from afar. I thought there was another big case on the outskirts of the city, but I didn't expect it to be Majia Village in Lin County." As soon as Old Zhou finished speaking, An Yun, who had been standing by the door, reacted belatedly.
"I haven't heard any news from Majia Village recently. Could it be that the people who massacred the villagers are the same group that helped them open a dyeing workshop privately?" Old Zhou sighed with regret once again. Dozens of people in the village were massacred and burned overnight.
Old Zhou's words frightened Mu Liang. If Ma Jiacun was really killed by the hands behind him, then with the vicious means of the other party, Jiangnan Li Ke would be in danger, not to mention that the hands were still in the dark. But at the same time, Mu Liang was also glad that he stopped in time and did not continue to investigate, otherwise the Li family might be hated by them and retaliated.
"An Yun, go to Majia Village and take a look..." Li Yunye hurriedly instructed An Yun.
"No, no one from the Li family must appear near Majia Village at this time." But Li Yunye's words were immediately stopped by Mu Liang.
"Yes, the tragedy that happened in Majia Village has had a great impact. Even the prefect of Qile City rushed there in person. The famous Li from Jiangnan cannot wade into this muddy water at this critical juncture and cause unnecessary trouble." Old Zhou also nodded in agreement.
"Yes, yes, look, I'm so anxious that I'm losing my mind. The government must be investigating this matter and arresting the real culprit. How can we run in front of them at this time?" Mu Liang and Lao Zhou's words made Li Yunye react immediately, and then he slapped his forehead in annoyance.
"But what I can't understand is that the village chief of Majia Village did not expose the person behind this in front of the government. Why did they go to the trouble of massacring the entire village?"
Mu Liang's doubts also puzzled the people in front of him.