Chapter 91: Oh my God! Officials and thieves collude, and (1 / 2)
“You…” The county magistrate’s wife took a deep breath and scolded, “Still dreaming of having two wives? Why not dream of ascending to heaven while you’re at it? Look at yourself! Are you worthy? Even the locksmith at the village entrance is a better match than you!”
And if the truth came out about this fraud, who would the family estate go to? Who would be buried in the ancestral tomb? Let alone the fact that this man was a fraud!
The county magistrate was utterly bewildered by her words. “My lady, you…” Was this still his frail and gentle wife?
Noticing the astonished looks from several officials, the magistrate’s wife paused. Then, like a delicate willow swaying in the wind, she knelt down dramatically, bursting into tears. She sobbed so heart-wrenchingly that it seemed she could not even take care of herself.
But her words were articulate and precise: “Your Majesty, though my late husband passed away from illness, his body was discarded who knows where by this man. What identity was he buried under? For five years, he may have wandered as a lonely ghost, unrecognized and without offerings. No wonder I’ve had restless nights and shallow sleep all these years—surely it was my late husband appearing in my dreams to deliver a message I couldn’t understand…”
Translation: Your Majesty, he may not have killed anyone, but he stole another man’s identity, leaving that man without a proper burial or offerings. I have no part in his crimes. I’ve even lost sleep over this matter!
She couldn’t allow this criminal to drag her or her children down with him.
Though her complexion was radiant and her eyes lacked dark circles, suggesting her claim of sleepless nights might be false, the Emperor—a stubbornly traditional man—was moved by her performance.
What was this? A frail official’s wife, taken advantage of, still prioritizing her betrothed husband over five years of shared life with the fraudster?