Chapter 596 - 302 Helping Outsiders_1
Lady Wong, kneeling, tearfully recounted how her own brother had embezzled the silver intended to save Qian Sangui’s life, which nearly caused Wu Zuzhi to cough up blood in anger.
He had been deceived for so many years, especially his elderly father and mother, who worried about their daughter and son-in-law until their dying days, never at peace. His mother, confused by illness, would occasionally ask, "Did Niu Niu take that silver and cure her son-in-law’s illness?"
Over those years, he occasionally received letters from Wang Shoushi delivered by others, claiming that the silver had been sent to the Qian family, who were displeased with the meager amount. However, at the time, Wu Zuzhi had given his all, which already caused his wife, Lady Wong, to express her discontent. He only earned eight taels of silver a month, and there was a large family and a houseful of servants to care for—he simply couldn’t spare much. Additionally, feeling a touch of anger towards his younger sister, he stopped sending silver to her thereafter.
What angered him the most was that when his parents passed away one after the other, as they escorted the coffin back to their hometown, his sister downright refused to return and kowtow at their parents’ graves. From that moment on, he thoroughly detested his sister’s family. Later, when his sister sent someone to Zaozhou to find him, not only did he refuse to meet them, but he also chased the messenger away.
It turned out that the silver had never reached his sister’s hands. Wang Shoushi had embezzled it and, fearing the truth would be exposed, he stirred discord between the two families to cut off all contact. Even more infuriating was that his wife, after learning the truth, continued to aid and abet the deception, helping Wang Shoushi to fool him.
He was so angry that he considered divorcing Lady Wong, but seeing his son, daughter-in-law, two grandsons, and granddaughter all kneeling before him, and watching his old wife continually kowtow and apologize, he temporarily spared her. Afterwards, he hurried to Capital City with his son Wu Qingshu, joining Qian Manjiang to meet his sister.
When Lady Wu heard that her aged parents were still concerned about her, she cried uncontrollably.
Wu Qingshu, too, knelt down to apologize to Qian Sangui and Lady Wu on behalf of his mother.
Wu Qingshu, about twenty-five or twenty-six, was fair-skinned and scholarly, genteel and refined. He had passed the Graduate exams the previous spring. With no family connections and no extra money to bribe his way through, he was still waiting for an official post.
He cried unabashedly, furious at his maternal family’s callousness and worried about his elderly mother, fearing his father would divorce her. At fifty years old, she might not survive if divorced.