Gu Tingye came to the end of the alley with complicated emotions and quietly stuck his head out against the wall at the corner.
Sure enough, next to the haystack not far away, he saw the figure that he had had a vague premonition of but least wanted to see.
"Manny..., why?"
Gu Tingye's voice was full of pain, and he really didn't want to believe what he saw.
Zhu Manniang will appear here, proving that she is the thief that Wei Chen said. The jewelry and antiques, farm products, and Sister Rong's gold lock were all stolen and pawned by Zhu Manniang.
Wei Chen walked slowly to Gu Tingye and said softly: "You should also know the person next to Zhu Manniang, right?"
Gu Tingye nodded numbly. That was Zhu Manniang's brother Zhu Dachun. When Gu Tingye first met Zhu Manniang in Bianjing, Zhu Dachun was with Zhu Manniang, so Gu Tingye had known this person for a long time.
However, when Zhu Manniang went to seek refuge with Gu Tingye, she once said personally that she was defrauded of all her savings by Zhu Dachun. Later, Zhu Dachun died on the way, leaving her helpless and only Gu Tingye could seek refuge.
Gu Tingye saw that she was so lonely and pitiful, so he softened his heart and accepted her. He also bought a cemetery for Zhu Dachun and watched the coffin being buried with his own eyes.
But now, Zhu Dachun, who Zhu Mannia said was dead long ago, actually appeared in front of Gu Tingye again. How could Gu Tingye not see that he had been deceived by Zhu Mannia!
This feeling of being betrayed by someone close to him made Gu Tingye's heart feel like it was being cut with a knife, which was unbearable.
At this moment, Gu Tingye felt like a mess in his heart. He had too many questions and wanted to question Zhu Manniang face to face. He no longer hid his figure and strode towards the remote corner where Zhu Manniang and Zhu Dachun were.
Zhu Manniang was talking to Zhu Dachun.
These days, she took advantage of Gu Tingye's absence to steal valuable items from the yard and sell them out, earning thousands of taels of silver.
This money is enough for the two brothers and sisters to have enough food and clothing for a lifetime.
Now, the last valuable red coral banbu (a jade ornament worn around the waist to hold down the hem of the skirt when walking) has also been stolen by her, and there is nothing left for Gu Tingye to miss.
Zhu Manniang and Zhu Dachun have agreed that after Zhu Dachun sells the forbidden walking code today, the two brothers and sisters will pack their things tomorrow and take a boat to Jiangnan or Bashu. In short, they will fly far away so that Gu Tingye will never find it.
Just as Zhu Manniang was thinking about her beautiful life after leaving Gu Tingye, she saw Zhu Dachun looking behind her with a horrified expression.
Before Zhu Manniang had time to react, a big hand suddenly stretched out from behind, grabbed her wrist, and snatched the forbidden step from her hand.
Zhu Manniang was surprised by the sudden change. She didn't even bother to rub her aching wrist and quickly turned around.
Looking back, he saw Gu Tingye standing behind him, gently stroking the forbidden step with his hand, his face gloomy.
Oh my God, why is he here?
Zhu Manniang, who had a guilty conscience, saw Gu Tingye suddenly appear, her legs softened with fright, and her heart seemed to have stopped beating at this moment.
Fortunately, she had been traveling around the world for many years and her mental quality was relatively good. She quickly calmed down from the panic and put on an ugly smile on her face.
"Erlang, why are you here?"
Gu Tingye had a sullen face and did not answer her words at all. Instead, he raised the forbidden weapon and asked coldly: "That's all. This is my deceased mother's relic. You actually want to steal it in exchange for money. Do you still have it?" Don’t have any conscience?”
Zhu Manniang's face changed greatly when she heard this. Hearing what Gu Tingye meant, did he know everything about the pawning of the property at home during this period?
What went wrong? Zhu Manniang was puzzled.
But no matter what, the top priority now is to stabilize Gu Tingye first. Although Gu Tingye is now broke, his martial arts skills are still there. As long as he blocks it, he and his eldest brother will never be able to escape.
As soon as she thought of this, Zhu Manniang immediately began to brew her emotions, preparing to squeeze out a few tears to match her next words.
However, just when Zhu Manniang felt a little bit involved in the drama, Zhu Dachun next to him had already knelt down with a plop and exposed all the lies Zhu Manniang had told Gu Tingye over the years.
After Zhu Manniang met Gu Tingye, she pretended not to know the identity of Gu Tingye's legitimate son, making Gu Tingye think that she loved her for his talent and character.
This was the first lie Zhu Manniang told.
In fact, when she met Gu Tingye for the first time, Zhu Manniang knew Gu Tingye's identity from the conversation between Gu Tingye and his companions. Since then, she has been deliberately trying to get along with the legitimate son of the Hou family.
After that, Zhu Manniang went all the way to find Gu Tingye and told him that Zhu Dachun had defrauded her of all her savings and that Zhu Dachun had died, leaving her alone and helpless.
This is the second lie Zhu Manniang has told.
She was just afraid that Gu Tingye would forget about her after he went to Bailudong Academy, so she said this to show that she was alone and helpless, making Gu Tingye feel pity for her and finally keep her by his side.
As for the other lies that are continued to be fabricated in order to cover up the lies, such as being illiterate, there are countless others.
Piece by piece, piece by piece, all the truths told from Zhu Dachun's mouth were like a heavy hammer hitting Gu Tingye's heart. Gu Tingye didn't understand until today that the reason why Zhu Manniang was with him was just because he was Hou. It's just his status as the legitimate son of the mansion.
All friendship is fake!
At this time, Zhu Maniang was already dumbfounded. She never thought that her own brother would sell her out completely before anything happened.
"Zhu Dachun, are you crazy?"
Zhu Manniang pointed at Zhu Dachun and yelled hoarsely, her eyes full of disbelief.
However, her panicked look just proved that what Zhu Dachun said was true.
Gu Tingye looked at Zhu Manniang disheartenedly and found that the familiar woman in front of him suddenly became extremely strange.
Finally, Gu Tingye closed his eyes in pain and roared like a beast: "Get out of here! From now on, never let me see you again!"
After her old story was exposed, Zhu Manniang knew that there was no room for redemption. Moreover, in her eyes, Gu Tingye had lost value. Since Gu Tingye was willing to let him go, it was naturally the best.
So Zhu Manniang didn't hesitate for a moment, she immediately threw herself into Zhu Dachun's arms, took away the banknotes she had gotten from selling property these days, kicked him bitterly, and then ran towards the alley without looking back. .
However, not long after she ran out of the alley, Zhu Manniang was stopped by Shen Congxing and others who had been waiting outside.
Wei Chen stepped out and looked coldly at Zhu Manniang who was still trying to break away with her teeth and claws, and said in a serious tone: "Zhong Huai is soft-hearted and let you go. This is his own business and I have nothing to do with it.
But you have violated the Zhou Dynasty's criminal law by stealing people's property. As the magistrate of a state, I am in charge of criminal law proceedings. Since I came across this matter, I have to take care of it. Come on, take down this thief woman! "
