Chen Ermao looked at Sanqiu, his voice choked with tears, "Brother Sanqiu, you're right, something is indeed fishy."
"Think about it, everything is connected to Chen Xiaobei," Chen Sanqiu incited again.
Chen Ermao sighed, "Alas, what can I do? I can't fight against power. I..."
Chen Sanqiu chuckled, "What about you? I have a way to help you turn the tables."
Upon hearing this, Chen Ermao became interested.
"Okay, what's your plan?"
"Your uncle Da Laohei is dead, but I know someone else is alive. His name is Hou Liu, and he's locked up in that old house at the east end of the village."
"I went to see him. There's only one guard watching Hou Liu. I'll lure the guard away, and you rescue Hou Liu. Then you two can escape and go far away. You go to the capital and find Duke Huguo Liu Xiangnan, Marquis Liu. Tell him what happened, and Marquis Liu will naturally apprehend and punish Chen Xiaobei. Then, the revenge for your parents will be achieved, and your uncle's revenge will also be avenged."
"But if I go there empty-handed, will they believe me?"
Chen Sanqiu chuckled, "This is simple. I have Marquis Liu's waist token. Take it with you, and you'll be able to meet him."
"Brother Sanqiu, how do you have this thing?"
Chen Sanqiu laughed heartily, "You don't need to ask. I have my ways."
"Will this plan work?"
It was clear Chen Ermao was tempted. Chen Sanqiu nodded, "If it doesn't work, you can always come back. It won't hurt you anyway."
Chen Ermao thought for a moment and finally agreed, "Fine. As long as Chen Xiaobei can be killed, going to the capital is not a problem!"
Chen Sanqiu was overjoyed, "Great. I'll go home and prepare things for you. Come find me tonight."
Chen Sanqiu returned home very excited and said to Liu Shi, "Quick, get me the waist token I found that day."
"Husband, it's already a big mistake to pick up Marquis Liu's waist token and keep it hidden. If someone finds out, what will we do?"
"I, ah, want to get rid of this trouble by giving this waist token away."
As Chen Sanqiu spoke, he picked up a brush and wrote a large piece of paper.
In essence, Chen Xiaobei was implicated in the murders of Liu Yuanwu.
After writing, he dried it and put it in an envelope, sealing it with a candle.
He thought for a moment, then took some碎银子 (suì yín zi - broken silver pieces) and put them with the waist token into a bundle.
Everything was ready, and he quietly waited for nightfall.
As darkness fell, Chen Xiaobei gathered all the village protection team members and arranged for their trip into the mountains the next day. Sudannovel.com
Chen Xiaobo could not go because the harvesting of vegetables would begin again tomorrow, and he had to be responsible for delivering vegetables to Xiaojia Town.
As for delivering vegetables to the county town, that would be entrusted to Cui Hongyu.
Hearing that they were going into the mountains again, the selected village protection team members were very excited. Another fifty yuan of income for the day!
"Everyone get some rest early. We have to leave before dawn tomorrow. Oh, and make sure you arrange your household affairs. If you're short-handed at work, tell Lidong, and he'll arrange it."
At this time, Chen Sanqiu, with Chen Ermao, quietly appeared outside an abandoned old house at the east end of the village.
This was where Hou Liu was imprisoned.
The guard in charge of Hou Liu was named Ma Xiaogang.
Ma Xiaogang still had to accompany the village protection team members on patrol that night, so he started dozing early, planning to get some sleep first.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps outside, followed by splashing sounds.
Ma Xiaogang stood up and asked in a deep voice, "Who is it? Who's out there?"
The sound stopped, but there was no answer. After a while, the noise outside started again.
Ma Xiaogang grabbed his saber and slowly walked out of the yard.
Outside the yard, Chen Sanqiu saw that he had taken the bait. He gestured to Chen Ermao, then suddenly bolted and ran into the distance.
As Ma Xiaogang stepped out of the yard, he saw a dark figure running away. Without thinking, he took off in pursuit.
Chen Ermao seized the opportunity, sprinted into the yard in a few steps, and rushed into the dilapidated half-house.
Upon entering the house, Chen Ermao called out in a low voice, "Uncle Hou Liu, are you there?"
A response came from the corner, "I'm here, I'm here."
Chen Ermao quickly ran over, slung Hou Liu onto his back, and took off running.
He ran out of the yard and hid in the darkness. Chen Ermao stopped and fumbled to untie Hou Liu's ropes.
"So it's Ermao. Thank you, thank you," Hou Liu said, overjoyed and repeatedly expressing his gratitude.
"Uncle Hou Liu, hurry, let's go. I'll take you out of the village."
As Chen Ermao spoke, he detoured into a small alley. From here, it led to a wall, and crossing the wall would take them out of the village.
Ma Xiaogang chased for two blocks and saw the dark figure disappear ahead. He suddenly stomped his foot, realizing he had been tricked.
He quickly ran back to the dilapidated yard and looked closely. Hou Liu was nowhere to be seen.
Frustrated, he stomped his foot again and hurried to report to Liu Rumei.
Upon hearing that Hou Liu had escaped, Liu Rumei was not overly concerned. In his opinion, Hou Liu was just a small fry from Centipede Ridge.
However, after listening to Ma Xiaogang's account of the incident, Liu Rumei became a little uneasy. This was an inside job.
Moreover, whoever could lure Ma Xiaogang away was definitely someone known to them.
"Alright, go and tell Chen Xiaobei about this. It's highly likely that someone from their village did this."
Ma Xiaogang agreed and then turned and hurried to find Chen Xiaobei.
Chen Xiaobei was still holding a meeting for the village protection team members. Seeing Ma Xiaogang arrive, he gestured to him, meaning to wait until the meeting was over. But Ma Xiaogang could not wait that long and said anxiously, "Village Chief Chen, it's an emergency. Hou Liu has escaped."
"What? Hou Liu escaped?"
Chen Xiaobei's heart sank. After listening to Ma Xiaogang's account, Chen Xiaobei also understood that someone in the village must have helped him secretly.
"Brother Lidong, go and investigate immediately. See if there are any clues."
Chen Lidong immediately called out to the village protection team members present. They dispersed and, after some investigation, found a clue: Chen Ermao was missing.
Upon hearing that Chen Ermao was missing, Chen Xiaobei stomped his feet in anger. He was filled with remorse, truly proving that a dog cannot change its ways.
He had thought that after his prison sentence, Chen Ermao would have a change of heart, but he never expected him to remain incorrigible.
"Brother Xiaobei, what should we do?"
Chen Xiaobei pondered for a moment, "Tomorrow, we'll first report this to the county yamen and say that Chen Ermao escaped from Hetou Village. See if we can issue a wanted poster in the name of a fugitive."
"Also, tell everyone to be vigilant. Who knows what malicious plans Chen Ermao and Hou Liu might have."
After speaking, he looked at the village protection team members present, "Tomorrow, let's reduce the number of people going into the mountains. A few of us will be enough. We'll leave more people in the village."
Lidong also nodded, "It can only be this way."
At this time, Chen Ermao, with Hou Liu, had already reached the main road.
Hou Liu cupped his fists towards Chen Ermao, "Nephew, thank you. We'll meet again."
Chen Ermao, however, grabbed him, "Uncle Hou Liu, can you accompany me to the capital?"