Now, Mrs. Huang, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Huang family, no longer worked for the Tang family. This wasn’t because she had been dismissed for poor performance, but because after the child turned three, Mrs. Tang gradually let the two wet nurses go.

This was a common practice among wealthy families. When children were young and needed to be nursed and cared for, wet nurses were essential. However, once the child began to recognize people, the mistress of the house often did not keep the wet nurses around. Instead, they were sent home to prevent the child from becoming too attached to the wet nurse and seeing her as a mother.

The Tang family’s young master was now five years old, at this very stage.

So, a year ago, the wet nurse had returned home.

After returning home, Mrs. Huang often spoke of her own son, the fake Tang family young master. However, her family didn’t find this unusual, as it was common for a mother to miss her child.

On the other hand, Mrs. Huang treated the real Tang young master, who was being raised in her own home, poorly. She frequently beat him, scolded him, and denied him food. When the child called her “mother,” she would glare at him fiercely. Yet, this didn’t seem wrong to the Huang family.

After all, he wasn’t her own child.

The Huang family took this for granted.

Then, Huang Dalang accidentally heard Fu Wenyu’s story and overheard people in the teahouse discussing whether there really were people like “Nanny Zhang” in the world. He became uneasy, fearing that the Tang family might discover the truth. He hurried back to discuss with Mrs. Huang whether they should lay low for a while.

He didn’t dare confess, as he believed that admitting the truth would surely lead to their deaths. As indentured servants who had committed such a grave offense, the master’s family would never tolerate them.

So, Huang Dalang thought it would be better to use all the family’s savings to buy their freedom and flee. After a few years, when Mr. and Mrs. Tang had passed away and their own son was in charge of the Tang family, they could return and claim their rightful place, enjoying the Tang family’s wealth and prosperity. To this end, he even called his sister back to discuss the plan.

But while he was away to fetch her, he returned to find that the real Tang young master was gone!

When he asked, Mrs. Huang said she had thrown him away!

…Thrown him away?

Magistrate Hu took a deep breath and turned his gaze to Mrs. Huang, who was kneeling in the courtroom. He asked, puzzled, “Why did you suddenly throw the child away?”

Returning the child, kneeling and begging for mercy, or even fleeing with the family were all understandable actions. But throwing the child away while acting as if nothing had happened was truly baffling.

However, Mrs. Huang believed her reasoning was justified and, when questioned, did not hold back. “If he’s thrown away, he won’t be found. If he’s not found, then my son will remain the Tang family’s young master.”

Magistrate Hu couldn’t help but ask, “Then why didn’t you sell him or kill him?”

“A child of only five years old—whether you sold him to a trafficker, killed him with a knife, or drowned him in a well or river—wouldn’t that be safer than throwing him away?”

After all, a thrown-away child could be found, but only a dead person is truly safe. Although Magistrate Hu had only been an official for a little over three years, he had already witnessed several cases of murder to silence witnesses. To outsiders, the real Tang young master was just a child of the Huang family. If he died accidentally, as long as it was done carefully, no one would suspect foul play.

Mrs. Huang hesitated for a moment before replying, “I wanted to accumulate good karma for my son. I couldn’t kill him. Besides, the traffickers I know are all acquainted with the Tang family. It wouldn’t have worked.”

Magistrate Hu: “…”

The onlookers: “…”

Mr. Tang: “…Hmph.”

For a moment, no one knew whether to call her clever or foolish. She seemed a bit of both.

“Your Honor, she truly is an incomprehensibly strange woman.”

Mr. Tang said indignantly, “She actually took my son to the woods outside the city, tied him to a tree, and left him to starve or be eaten by wild animals. If I hadn’t discovered it early and used some means to make her talk, I would never have seen my son again in this lifetime!”

Thinking of this, he was very grateful that he had used a combination of threats and incentives. Otherwise, he might have truly lost his child. After all, who would have thought she would tie a five-year-old child to a tree in the woods?

Magistrate Hu rubbed his forehead again.

This was truly the most bizarre case he had ever presided over.

However, since the matter was now clear, with both witnesses and evidence present, he carefully reviewed the complaint submitted by Mr. Tang, the confessions signed by the Huang family, and the ropes that had bound the real Tang young master.

Because Mr. Tang had handled the matter meticulously, and the Huang family, especially Mrs. Huang, had cooperated, there were no loose ends. Both children were safe.

The real Tang young master had fallen ill after being rescued and thus was not brought to the courtroom. The fake Tang young master now knelt in a corner of the courtroom, seemingly in shock and somewhat dazed.

Magistrate Hu confirmed that all the evidence and witnesses were present, and the criminals had confessed. Therefore, he quickly passed judgment.

But the impact of this case was only just beginning.

…

Fu Wenyu learned about this incident while drinking milk tea at home.

It wasn’t that the news had spread to the countryside, but after Magistrate Hu had concluded the case, Mr. Tang bought some gifts of gratitude and, accompanied by his steward and servants, led by Shopkeeper Zhang and Zhang Er, came beating gongs and drums to Fu Village.

He wanted to thank Fu Wenyu!

“Wenyu, Wenyu, come out quickly!”

At the time, Fu Wenyu had just sent away a villager who had come to exchange goat’s milk. He was holding a cup of milk tea, planning to rest inside and review the architectural drawings the master had made that morning, pondering if any revisions were needed. Suddenly, a clansman rushed in excitedly, grabbed his hand, and pulled him outside.

“You have guests! Mr. Tang is here!”

Mr. Tang?

Fu Wenyu raised an eyebrow in surprise. He didn’t recall knowing any Mr. Tang. The only person in his memory with the surname Tang who he had interacted with was the owner behind Kaiyuan Bookstore.

Could it be him? But why would he come looking for me?

Before he could figure it out, his clansman pulled him out the gate. Indeed, walking toward them, accompanied by the village chief, Fu Dashí, and others, was a stranger dressed in a blue brocade robe.

At that moment, the sharp-eyed Zhang Er spotted Fu Wenyu and called out, “Boss, Uncle, Wenyu’s here! The one in the gray clothes is Wenyu!”

Before Fu Wenyu could react, the man in the blue brocade robe quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply to him. “Benefactor, please accept my bow!”

Fu Wenyu: “…???”

While he was still confused, the excited Mr. Tang, the familiar Shopkeeper Zhang, Zhang Er, and the curious townsfolk who had followed from Liuzhou all began speaking at once.

“Thank you, benefactor, for saving my family!”

“Nephew, the story you wrote helped Mr. Tang recover his real son!”

“Wenyu, the story you wrote came true!”

“So this is the Mr. Fu who wrote ‘The Real and Fake Young Master.’ He’s so young. I heard that if it weren’t for his story, which was exactly the same as the truth, scaring the Huang family into revealing their flaws, Mr. Tang would never have found his son in his lifetime.”

“Incredible!”

“How did he know?”

Meanwhile, the villagers who had gathered also buzzed with discussion. “Wenyu, Mr. Tang is here to thank you. He’s brought so many things!”

“Two whole carts full!”

“Wenyu is going to make a fortune. I wonder what Mr. Tang has brought.”

“I heard Wenyu helped Mr. Tang find his real son. Does that mean Wenyu is now connected to Mr. Tang? The Tang family is very wealthy. Even a little bit of their wealth would be enough to live comfortably.”

“Yes, yes.”

…

By this time, the empty cup in Fu Wenyu’s hand had fallen to the ground. He rubbed his face in disbelief and asked Mr. Tang, “Are you saying that what I wrote in my story—about a servant swapping the family’s child—actually happened in your family?”

Mr. Tang nodded heavily. “Exactly!”

Fu Wenyu: Unbelievable!

At this point, the village chief, Fu Wencheng, said, “Wenyu, Mr. Tang has come specifically to thank you. Hurry and invite them inside to sit.”

Right, right. Fu Wenyu quickly invited them in.

But as soon as they entered, he regretted it. His house had only two rooms: one was his study and bedroom, and the other was Mrs. Zhou and Fu Rong’s bedroom and workspace. Neither place was suitable for receiving guests, especially someone like Mr. Tang, who couldn’t be treated casually like Zhang Er.

As for the kitchen where they ate, that was even less appropriate.

Just then, Fu Dashí stepped forward.

His face flushed, and he said excitedly, “Wenyu, quickly invite the honored guest to the main hall. With such distinguished guests, our family must not be rude!”

Right, right. The Fu family had a dedicated guest hall. When the family had divided the property, the main hall had been assigned to Fu Dashí, and after his passing, it was inherited by the second branch. Fu Wenyu usually didn’t go there.

But now, there was no need to worry about such things. He quickly invited everyone to the main hall and asked his sister and Chunhua, who were peeking out, to serve tea. As for his mother, Mrs. Zhou, she had gone to discuss with Aunt Liu about helping with cooking during the construction period and hadn’t returned yet. As for Uncle Fu and Aunt Fu, Fu Wenyu adhered to the principle of not making eye contact. Even if he saw them, he pretended not to, not giving them a chance to approach.

Thus, in the end, the small main hall of the Fu family was occupied by the out-of-place Mr. Tang, the accompanying Shopkeeper Zhang, the key figure Fu Wenyu, the Fu family clan chief Fu Wencheng, grandfather Fu Dashí, and a village scholar surnamed Zou who had arrived later. As for others, like Fu Wenyu’s acquaintance Zhang Er, there was no room for them, so they had to stand wherever they could find space.

Mr. Tang was the first to speak. Having passed the peak of his excitement, he now appeared calm, though his tone still carried a hint of emotion.

“Brother Wenyu, may I call you that?”

“I heard from Shopkeeper Zhang that you’re only fifteen this year. I’m a few years older, twenty-five this year. You can call me Brother Tang.”

Shopkeeper Zhang winked furiously at Fu Wenyu.

Fu Wenyu thought for a moment and agreed. “Brother Tang, you’re too kind. Just call me Wenyu.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Mr. Tang’s expression brightened even more. “I suppose you heard earlier, I came today specifically to thank you. Because you’ve done me a great favor, it’s no exaggeration to say you’re the savior of our entire family.”

He then went on to explain in detail, from how he wanted to chat more with a big client and thus took home a Liuzhou tabloid featuring his story, to discussing it with his wife, and how the maid revealed a flaw upon hearing the ‘child exchange’ story, leading to the confession under pressure that the child they were raising was not their biological son…

To how he apprehended other members of the Huang family, interrogated them about the whereabouts of his real son, searched, found, reported to the authorities, and concluded the case…

By the time he finished speaking, a quarter of an hour had passed. Fu Wenyu also keenly noticed that the person who came in to pour tea was not Chunhua or his sister as he had expected, but Fu Qingshi, who had been peeking in from outside. Moreover, after pouring the tea, he did not leave but stood to the side holding the teapot, looking very excited.

…Forget it, let him be.

Fu Wenyu decided to ignore him.

After Mr. Tang finished speaking, Zou Tongsheng, hearing about this for the first time, exclaimed in astonishment, “It’s truly unbelievable.”

Zou Tongsheng was also an acquaintance of Fu Wenyu.

He was from Fu Village, one of the rare people with a different surname, and also the son-in-law of Auntie Fu Liu, who had previously borrowed books from Fu Wenyu.

Because for the people of Fu Village, Mr. Tang was a guest of the highest honor, so when the clan leader Fu Wencheng learned of his intentions, he specifically invited him to accompany them. As for why the other two scholars were not present, it was because they were not in the village at the time and could not come even if they wanted to.

Hearing Zou Tongsheng’s words, Mr. Tang sighed, “Yes, who would have thought that someone who is usually quiet and handles affairs properly could have such malicious intentions?”

“Because she used to take good care of the children, my wife was thinking of letting her come back to serve in a couple of years. Who knew that her diligence was not due to hard work, but because she was taking care of her own son? How could she not be attentive?” Mr. Tang shook his head, “It’s truly hard to judge a person’s heart by their appearance.”

Fu Wencheng sighed in agreement, “Indeed.”

Zou Tongsheng also nodded, comforting, “Fortunately, your son is blessed. After going through this ordeal, he will surely be safe and sound in the future.”

Fu Dash nervously chimed in, “Yes, yes, yes.”

Mr. Tang thanked them a couple of times, then turned to Fu Wenyu and said, “Wenyu, it’s only right that I should bring my wife and child to thank you. But the child was frightened and has been feverish since being rescued yesterday. My wife has been taking care of her without rest, not daring to take her eyes off her, so please forgive my rudeness.”

Fu Wenyu hurriedly said it was unnecessary.

He had merely written a story and never imagined it could help someone else. The outcome was a pleasant surprise. Moreover, from Mr. Tang’s account, he confirmed that it was largely due to Mr. Tang’s own efforts. If not for his boldness and meticulousness, the matter might not have been resolved so quickly.

Thinking of this, Fu Wenyu recalled a doubt that arose while listening to Mr. Tang’s account and asked, “Brother Tang, I just heard you say that the eldest daughter-in-law of the Huang family was very cooperative, answering whatever was asked.”

“Logically, she should have concealed everything and tried to argue her way out.”

“How come…”

Because in the story he wrote, the culprit, the Zhang family, did not admit their guilt until faced with undeniable evidence, fiercely obstructing the investigation, and even openly arguing in court.

Because that’s what aligns with human nature.

Why was the eldest daughter-in-law of the Huang family different?

Hearing this, Mr. Tang smiled slightly smugly, “Wenyu, you’ve asked the right question. Earlier today, Magistrate Hu privately asked me something similar.”

“The answer is actually quite simple.”

Mr. Tang said, “This matter is also thanks to your story.”

Fu Wenyu was even more puzzled.

Then Mr. Tang explained, “After learning that the child had been swapped and was now missing, I ordered all members of the Huang family to be arrested.”

“While waiting for them to be brought in, I had someone ride a fast horse to the printing house to fetch your story and read it.”

“I must say, Wenyu, you write really well!”

Mr. Tang exclaimed, “The despicable behavior of the Zhang family after the incident in the story is truly memorable, including the ‘blood recognition’ and the later ‘blood mole’ incident. I was thinking at the time, what if the Huang family was like the Zhang family, refusing to admit anything? What should I do then?”

“Unlike Mr. Wang, Zhang Gousheng was raised in the Zhang family, so no matter how long it took, Mr. Wang could afford to wait. But I couldn’t, my son’s life was hanging by a thread, I couldn’t afford to wait.”

“So at that time, I was thinking, how to make her speak quickly and tell everything she knew!”

Fu Wenyu slowly nodded.

Indeed, Mr. Tang and the Mr. Wang in his story had similarities, but also differences. The biggest difference was that the Zhang family had raised Zhang Gousheng by their side all along, while Mr. Tang’s biological son was not, having been taken somewhere by the eldest daughter-in-law of the Huang family.

A five-year-old child, completely defenseless, finding him a second earlier would mean a second less of suffering. The consequences of dragging it out too long were unbearable for the Tang family.

Under such circumstances, Mr. Tang naturally wanted to find him back as soon as possible.

At this point, others in the room also thought of this and began to speculate.

“How to make her talk?”

“Use family discipline?”

“Beat her up, call her family!”

“Report to the authorities.”

Mr. Tang shook his head to each suggestion, finally saying, “Before I saw her, I was undecided. Whether to intimidate, threaten, torture, or bribe.”

“But when I saw her, and saw the way she looked at her own son, I understood. So I straightforwardly told her, I know everything, and I will definitely not let them go. But considering that the child has called us parents for five years, I decided to spare his life!”

“As long as she could tell me where my son was, and confess everything to the prefect, pleading guilty. Then I would send her sister-in-law and her son away, allowing them to take their belongings and giving them a hundred taels of silver. As for what happens after, it would be up to their own fate.”

“And if she didn’t tell…”

Mr. Tang chuckled twice, “Then I would slice her son into pieces in front of both of them. To this end, I had someone hold the child down and slap him a few times.”

“After hearing the child’s cries, she agreed.”

Fu Wenyu: “…”

This Mr. Tang is quite fierce.

But it was indeed a good method.

The facts proved it to be so. When the eldest daughter-in-law of the Huang family heard that Mr. Tang was willing to let her sister-in-law and the child go, allowing them to pack their belongings and not pursue the matter further, she made Mr. Tang swear an oath, then readily revealed the child’s whereabouts.

After hearing this, clan leader Fu Wencheng was the first to sigh, “It’s only because it’s you, Mr. Tang. If it were someone else, even if they swore an oath, she probably wouldn’t believe it.”

“Yes, yes,” the others echoed in agreement.

Not everyone’s word is believed by others, especially after the Huang family had done such things, wouldn’t they fear the Tang family’s retaliation? But the woman still believed, partly out of desperation, not believing wasn’t an option, and partly, most importantly, because the Tang family had a good reputation locally, with ancestors known as ‘Great Benefactor Tang’, highly respected by the people. So combining these factors led to today’s outcome.

Mr. Tang clearly understood this well.

So he turned to Fu Wenyu and said, “Wenyu, if it weren’t for your story, I might never have discovered the truth. Or perhaps I would have found out by chance later, but my child would have suffered for many years, and whether he would still be alive is uncertain.”

“You have done our family a great favor, akin to giving us a new life!”

“So today I have prepared some modest gifts, specifically to thank you.” Before he finished speaking, the steward beside him went out, and then gift boxes flowed in like a stream, filling the table and even piling up on the floor.

Modest, modest gifts?

Fu Wenyu thought, does Mr. Tang have some misunderstanding of the term ‘modest gifts’? The two packages he brought when asking the clan leader for help last time, casually packed from the teahouse, were ‘modest gifts’.

Isn’t this giving too much?

But the next moment, Mr. Tang’s actions made Fu Wenyu realize he could give even more, as he directly took out a land deed from his sleeve pocket.

One hundred acres of good farmland!

When Mr. Tang said, “This mere hundred acres of land is a token of gratitude from me, as a father, to the savior of my child Yishan,” the room erupted in excitement.

In a daze, Fu Wenyu even heard Fu Qingshi’s incredulous exclamation.

“O-one hundred acres of land!”

Mr. Tang ignored the exclamations of the crowd, looking directly at Fu Wenyu and saying, “Yishan, by the way, before coming here, my wife and I discussed and decided to name the child ‘Yishan’, just like the character in your story, hoping he can grow up safely like Wang Yishan and become a successful person.”

“When I rescued Yishan, he had been in that forest for a day, not only covered in wounds, emaciated, but also delirious, babbling incoherently, burning with fever.”

“The doctor said if it were any later, he couldn’t have been saved.”

“Such a favor, how can it be settled with just a ‘thank you’? So please, Wenyu, accept these gifts, so our family can be at peace!”

Fu Wenyu: “…”

He was in a dilemma. Perhaps these gifts were indeed ‘modest’ to the Tang family, not worth mentioning. But to him, it was not the case, it was too much!

To accept or not to accept?