Although Li Ying remained calm on the surface, how could Lu Xunguang not tell that she was just forcing a smile? Immediately, he took her small hand and squeezed it tightly.
"Don't be afraid, A Ying. It happened a long time ago."
Although he comforted her gently, Li Ying obviously wasn't completely at ease. She stared at him intently with her clear eyes.
Only then did he carefully choose his words and explain it to her honestly.
"Now that we've entered the capital, we'll inevitably have to go head - to - head with Inspector Lin. The crimes he committed, both openly and secretly, are extremely well - hidden. If we manage to bring him down, it might even cause an upheaval in the court. Even with Uncle Su's efforts in the court, I'm not fully confident that we can achieve this without any casualties and come out unscathed."
He held Li Ying's face in his hands and said softly, "I originally thought that if Inspector Lin put up a desperate fight, the worst - case scenario would be for me to sacrifice my life and take him down with me..."
Before he could finish, Li Ying immediately understood his thoughts.
This man was worried that if something happened to him, she wouldn't be able to suppress her grief and would follow him. That's why he had carefully prepared such a mysterious coffin for just in case.
Although Li Ying was deeply touched by his readiness to die, she still stubbornly looked up at him steadily.
"For every evil scheme, there's a countermeasure. Lu Lang, human effort can achieve anything. You mustn't say such discouraging words."
Lu Xunguang seemed to have anticipated her words. He just smiled indifferently.
"Don't worry, A Ying. Didn't I already use that coffin for Master Ge Cha's emergency? My father and Granny Sun are old and need our support. Mianmian is not even one year old yet and depends entirely on us. A Man is young and impulsive, and Ruyi has no one to rely on. There are so many troubles in this large family business. How could I just leave it all to you? Of course, I'm not willing to die."
He lowered his voice and leaned close to Li Ying's ear. The warm breath from his lips blew on the few stray strands of hair by her temple, tickling her heart.
"A Ying, I still want to grow old with you and have a large and prosperous family. It's not worth sacrificing my life for just one corrupt official."
Li Ying's face instantly turned red. The little bit of gloom that had been weighing on her heart finally disappeared completely.
While the two of them were lost in their tender moment, Aunt Lan and Master Ge Cha finally cleared up the long - standing misunderstandings between them. With tears streaming down their faces, they finally managed to support each other out of the room.
As soon as Master Ge Cha saw Li Ying, he couldn't help but bow seriously and express his gratitude. "Miss Li, I really have to thank you! If it weren't for your and Master Lu's resourcefulness, I'm afraid the two of us would never have seen each other again in this lifetime!"
Aunt Lan also had tears in her eyes and bowed gracefully with him.
How could Li Ying accept such a grand bow from these two elders? She quickly helped them up and cheerfully changed the subject.
"The affection between you two elders is as firm as gold. It really makes us younger generations respect you deeply. But I wonder why you two had such an unpleasant and embarrassing separation back then?"
Hearing her question, Master Ge Cha no longer tried to hide anything. His expression showed a bit of indignation.
"Back then, my father was seriously ill. The pharmacy shopkeeper came to me and said that his master was the Salt - Tax Inspector of the Censorate. His young lady taking a fancy to me, a low - ranking tea merchant, was a great honor for the Ge family. He ordered me to marry into their family immediately. I was indecisive back then. It was really difficult for me to choose between my father's life and Caiwei. Coincidentally, Caiwei left me a letter and left me."
He took out a yellowed and wrinkled letter from his bosom. There were indeed two lines of elegant small characters on it.
"I heard you have a change of heart, so I come to bid farewell."
"This is indeed Caiwei's handwriting. That's why I've never suspected any foul play over the years. If I hadn't seen Caiwei with my own eyes today, I would never have thought that this letter was written by someone imitating her handwriting!"
Aunt Lan also nodded and took out a letter from her bosom. It was in the old tea master's handwriting, full of humiliation and belittling her and her tea to nothing. Even Li Ying, an outsider, felt a bit uncomfortable seeing it, let alone Aunt Lan, who was so proud.
It was imaginable that after receiving these heart - wrenching and hurtful letters, even if they still had deep feelings for each other, they would never reveal a single bit of it.
"I was completely heartbroken. I originally thought I might as well agree to marry the inspector's daughter so that I could at least save my father's life. But unexpectedly, my father passed away that night. There was no point in seeking medical treatment anymore."
At this point, Master Ge Cha's expression darkened.
Li Ying and Lu Xunguang exchanged a look, and they both raised their eyebrows involuntarily.
Strange.
It was really strange.
There were oddities everywhere in this matter.
Not to mention who had imitated the handwriting of both the old tea master and Aunt Lan to write the letters, the matter of the inspector's daughter's intention to recruit a son - in - law was also extremely strange.
The Salt - Tax Inspector of the Censorate held a third - rank official position, which was a very lucrative post.
Officials usually looked down on merchants. Even though the old tea master was well - known, he was no exception.
Moreover, even if the Salt - Tax Inspector couldn't bear his daughter's pleading and valued the profits of the tea business, and reluctantly agreed to let Master Ge Cha marry into their family, he should have sent a matchmaker to discuss it with the old tea master in person. What kind of business was it to just send the pharmacy shopkeeper to pass on the message?
How could they be so sure that Master Ge Cha would go seeking medical treatment? The old tea master was delirious from illness and died in an unclear way. After his death, Master Ge Cha dispersed his disciples, sold his tea business, and traveled alone, ignoring the outside world. He devoted all his life experience to the tea - making craft.
It was as if...
Someone had premeditated it and calculated everything in secret!
Li Ying and Lu Xunguang exchanged another look, and they immediately understood each other.
"Aunt Lan, Master Ge Cha, you two have just reunited after a long time. I'm sure you still have a lot of private things to talk about. We won't disturb you for now."
Li Ying politely bowed to the two of them and then said, "I'm not very capable, but I know that you two are both people with great craftsmanship and true emotions. You must dislike all these intrigues. Please rest assured. We'll find out the truth behind the doubts of that year. Consider it as a thank - you gift for you two elders joining the 'Bamboo - Tube Sealed Tea' project!"
She said it with great determination. Aunt Lan and Master Ge Cha were not scheming and calculating people, so they immediately agreed without thinking.
Li Ying then followed Lu Xunguang, bowed to bid farewell, and set off back to the capital.
She frowned tightly and couldn't help but sigh. "Someone who is good at imitating others' handwriting... If Master Yan were still here, he might be able to think of some clues."
But now, Yan Lianzhi was far away in the fishing village. Although he liked to be alone and was rather eccentric, he got along very well with a few stubborn old fishermen in the village. He was living a very happy life there.
It was thousands of miles away, and it was extremely cold. Even well - trained carrier pigeons couldn't handle the task of passing on the message. How could they go to inquire about the news?