Zhou Yin
Madame Liu instructed for tea to be served to him and directed the kitchen to prepare some sweet delicacies to temporarily satisfy Mr. Bai's hunger. Then she continued, "You may find this unbelievable, but I believe they are targeting our Bai family."
Mr. Bai, unable to comprehend, asked, "Why?"
Madame Liu did not directly respond. Instead, she inquired, "Lizhi, it seems they are searching for someone in the village, a young man related to the Zhou family." Both sides have strong reactions. "Are you aware that he has a brother named Zhou Yin?"
Mr. Bai was taken aback. "Are they here for Zhou Yin?"
Madame Liu couldn't help but sit upright and asked, "Do you know him?"
Mr. Bai, feeling somewhat uneasy, cleared his throat and turned to ask, "Aunt, why the sudden interest in these matters?"
Madame Liu replied, "You tell me first, and then I'll tell you."
Perceiving Madame Liu's guardedness, Mr. Bai was not disheartened but rather more astonished. The significance of the situation was profound, as even his aunt held doubts.
Mr. Bai pondered for a moment before speaking, "In the eleventh year of the Great Virtue era, this region suffered a severe drought." The Zhou family's financial situation was not good at the time due to having few ancestors and many children in subsequent generations. "So, they faced significant difficulties, especially during the drought."
Land and population distribution only began after the founding of the dynasty, and it has only been three generations since.
Thus, Zhou's father left them only a piece of inherited land for the two brothers.
Zhou Yin, however, was resourceful. At the age of fourteen, he sold himself to a merchant caravan to obtain a bag of grain for the Zhou family during the drought.
Madame Liu listened in silence.
"Not only that, he was also righteous." Apart from his contributions to the village, he arranged short-term jobs for the young and strong men in the village through the caravan. He even recommended several people to work as laborers in the county town. With that grain, many people survived.
"But after that, he left with the caravan and never returned," the former village chief disclosed all this information to Mr. Bai, seeking his assistance, as if water pouring out of a bamboo tube. Mr. Bai was deeply impressed by Zhou Yin, and this incident stayed in his mind. Later, the Zhou family searched for him, including the caravan that passed by here. It was said that he fell ill shortly after leaving and succumbed to an epidemic. The caravan people left him some money and departed, and there has been no news since then.
Madame Liu remarked, "Surviving an epidemic was indeed fortunate."
"Yes, Zhou Yin was indeed alive at the time." My nephew saw him for the first time six years ago in early summer. He returned to his hometown with his wife and children. I had a brief conversation with him at the time and found him to be a clear-headed and generous man.
Therefore, he invited him home for drinks, thinking that if Zhou Yin had survived, they might have become good friends.
Upon hearing the words "early summer," Madame Liu couldn't help but grip the chair's armrest tightly and asked, "What happened next?"
Mr. Bai lowered his gaze and said softly, "The second time I saw them, they were already dead."
After a pause, Mr. Bai continued, "Zhou Jin said his brother wanted to return to the village and entrusted someone to transport their belongings to the county town." They went to the county town to collect their belongings, but they did not return that day. Villagers who went mushroom picking in the mountains found them lying on the mountain, covered in blood and with scratched faces. However, the villagers recognized them immediately and brought them back.
"They had nothing on them, not even the donkey cart they bought; everything was gone." The Zhou family concluded that they had encountered bandits. The villagers were planning to report to the county town, but unexpectedly, the officials came to the village first.
"I was the one who received them first." They handled the matter poorly. Upon seeing a portrait of Zhou Yin and his wife, I was intrigued and asked more questions. They said they were chasing bandits. But how could Zhou Yin be a bandit?
Madame Liu asked, "Did they have a donkey cart?"
Mr. Bai was puzzled and nodded, "Yes, it was brought back by Zhou Yin." He brought it back with his wife and children. How is that relevant?
Madame Liu shook her head slowly. "And then?"
Mr. Bai felt somewhat embarrassed. He had only recently moved to Qili Village, less than a year ago. Despite the warmth of the villagers, he always felt out of place due to his status.
For the sake of Zhou Yin and to maintain good relations between the two sides, he detained the officials and sent someone to inform the Zhou family first.
When the officials returned to investigate, almost everyone claimed not to recognize the couple in the portrait.
"Almost everyone in the village has the surname Zhou." "Even if they are not from the same ancestor, they are still related." Moreover, everyone in the village has benefited from Zhou Yin's kindness. "These officials are not from Luojiang County, so it's easy to deceive them."
"However, despite this, the Zhou family did not dare to erect a monument for Zhou Yin and his wife." They quietly buried them on the mountain.
Madame Liu seemed uncomfortable, leaning on the table with her elbow, and asked, "What about their children? Weren't they with their wives?"
Mr. Bai paused and whispered, "That woman, Auntie, has seen her."
Madame Liu was struck by a sudden realization. "Is it Zhou Man?"
"Yes, it's that child." "But she doesn't know."
Madame Liu nodded, tears flowing uncontrollably.
Mr. Bai was startled and quickly approached, handing her a handkerchief. "Auntie, what's wrong?"
Madame Liu wiped her tears and whispered, "Perhaps it's fate."
Mr. Bai: ...
"Ziqi didn't die at the hands of mountain bandits."
Mr. Bai was shocked and asked hastily, "How could that be?"
"Why not?" Madame Liu said with some excitement. "Ziqi was supposed to eliminate the bandits." He shouldn't have come to Luojiang County. Shu County is not close to Luojiang County.
"Wasn't Ziqi killed by bandits in Shu County?"
"No," Madame Liu asserted confidently, "They transported Ziqi's corpse to Shu County and disguised it there."