Chapter 179 3/3

“Alright!” Qian Fugui felt warm inside. His nephew was really good to him, caring so much about his well-being!

Thinking about this, Qian Fugui added, “Azhi, I’ve arranged for your aunt to bring your second aunt and your cousin here. We’re saying that we need to find a doctor for your cousin. On the way, I will stage an accident to make people think they are dead…”

Qian Fugui planned to fake the deaths of his wife, his brother’s wife, and his nephew, then have them change their names and live here with Li Qingzhi.

After Li Qingzhi had identified the person King Yan had planted by his side, he interrogated them and learned a lot. The most important thing was that King Yan was wary of him and had already arranged for someone to replace him.

The Li family’s extermination was likely related to King Yan; otherwise, he wouldn’t be so cautious of Li Qingzhi!

“Good!” Li Qingzhi was eager for this.

He trusted Qian Fugui, but he would feel even more secure with Qian Fugui’s wife and nephew here…

However, what about Qian Fugui’s concubines? How would they be handled? Li Qingzhi pondered this and then asked.

Qian Fugui replied, “Six years ago, I sent them back to their families with a dowry.”

Realizing that his infertility was his own issue, Qian Fugui began to focus on maintaining his health and abstained from indulging in women.

Desire is empty; emptiness is desire.

With no children, having more wives and concubines was just more shameful!

As they discussed the various arrangements, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Who would come on New Year’s Eve? Li Qingzhi took a lantern and went downstairs to ask, “Who is it?”

Someone outside answered, “Mr. Li, it’s Gou Ying!”

Li Qingzhi was a bit puzzled.

What was Gou Ying doing here on New Year’s Eve?

Since Magistrate Gou had become Vice Magistrate, Li Qingzhi hadn’t seen Gou Ying for several months…

He opened the courtyard gate and indeed saw Gou Ying.

“It’s New Year’s Eve, why aren’t you at home?” Li Qingzhi invited him in. “It’s cold outside, come in and warm up.”

“I ran away,” Gou Ying wiped his tears. “My dad was going to beat me to death.”

Vice Magistrate Gou wouldn’t actually kill Gou Ying, but they must have had a conflict, leading Gou Ying to run away on New Year’s Eve.

Li Qingzhi led Gou Ying to the kitchen and lit a candle there. “Have you eaten dinner? Do you want something to eat?”

It took about two hours to travel from the city to here… Gou Ying likely hadn’t eaten dinner.

“I haven’t eaten.”

“I’ll heat something up for you…”

“No need to heat it.” Gou Ying grabbed a pair of chopsticks and ate a fried meatball.

He had been so hungry from fleeing to Chongcheng County that he didn’t care if the food was hot or cold.

Only after Gou Ying had eaten a bit did Li Qingzhi ask, “I recommended a tutor for you before, but I heard you didn’t go and switched to another tutor?”

Before taking the county exam, Li Qingzhi had selected a suitable tutor for Gou Ying at Chongwen Academy. But recently, Zhu Xunmiao had told him that Gou Ying hadn’t studied under that tutor and had chosen another.

The other tutor Gou Ying chose was not a good fit for him. That tutor was too strict and had a bias against wealthy students, believing they couldn’t endure hardship. He was also very harsh, often using a ruler to discipline students.

However, his teaching was effective for some students who could thrive under his strict discipline and quickly pass the scholar exam.

As soon as Li Qingzhi mentioned this, Gou Ying’s eyes filled with tears, and he wiped his face with his sleeve. “My mother insisted on changing tutors, saying that Mr. Zhang is strict and can control me…”

It was too dark before for Li Qingzhi to notice, but now he saw that Gou Ying’s face was swollen from being beaten.

You shouldn’t hit someone’s face; Vice Magistrate Gou really went too far.

And Gou Ying was in his teenage years… Kids this age were temperamental, and being beaten could lead them to do something extreme…

After inquiring, Li Qingzhi learned that Vice Magistrate Gou was busy with court matters and had let Lady Gou take Gou Ying to the academy.

Lady Gou then switched Gou Ying’s tutor.

Vice Magistrate Gou was initially displeased but, upon learning that Mr. Zhang was known for his integrity and strictness, he agreed.

Both he and Lady Gou believed that Gou Ying, being a bit naughty, needed a strict teacher.

Thus, Gou Ying began his difficult journey.

If Gou Ying were a diligent, calm student who loved studying, he might have gotten along well with Mr. Zhang and even felt motivated by the discipline.

But Gou Ying wasn’t like that.

He disliked studying, was playful, and couldn’t bear grievances.

When Mr. Zhang told the students to study and left for a while, others would obediently read, but Gou Ying would stretch and slack off.

When Mr. Zhang asked Gou Ying to recite a passage and he couldn’t, he would jokingly say, “Give me a bit more time, sir, I’ll definitely get it.”

Moreover, Gou Ying’s knowledge was decent under Li Qingzhi’s guidance but lagged behind at Chongwen Academy…

Mr. Zhang felt Gou Ying was not serious about his studies and didn’t respect him, which made him particularly harsh towards Gou Ying.

As a result, Gou Ying not only got beaten but also faced daily criticism.

Talking about this made Gou Ying even sadder. “I hadn’t learned that book before and didn’t know how to read it. He made me memorize a long passage right away. How could I memorize it?”

Books back then didn’t have punctuation marks, making them hard to read without guidance from a teacher.

Mr. Zhang had asked Gou Ying to memorize something he had never learned before, perhaps not knowing his level or wanting to intimidate him… either way, Gou Ying couldn’t do it.

Afterward, Gou Ying’s cheerful and unashamed attitude further angered Mr. Zhang.

Li Qingzhi felt sympathy for Gou Ying. Without needing more explanation, he understood the situation.

With such a tutor, Gou Ying must have caused a lot of trouble at school, leading Vice Magistrate Gou and Lady Gou to become angry and start “educating” him.

Eventually… Gou Ying ran away on New Year’s Eve.