Chapter 719 - 718: Not My Homeland
After some deliberation, Xia Wenjin said, "I can’t be completely sure it’s Huangfu Yuxuan, but I think it’s most likely he’s behind it, only I have no evidence!"
Xia Wanqing frowned and said, "What do you mean by no evidence? Are you saying all this is just your speculation?"
Xia Wenjin looked at his father’s brows, so tightly knit they could crush a mosquito, and laughed, "It doesn’t matter if it’s my speculation or not, Father, you can have someone investigate!"
"Wenjin, are you really just saying this to avoid me using the marriage arrangement to pressure you, like your third uncle suggested?"
"Didn’t Father already take care of that matter?" Xia Wenjin blinked and said, "Investigating one thing is investigating, investigating several things is also investigating. I don’t want to wrong anyone either, so finding the truth is most important. If someone did it, there will be traces. Father, don’t worry about not finding anything!"
Although that makes sense, this is the Capital City.
However, Xia Wanqing felt that as long as they investigate, even in the Capital City, the truth he seeks can still be uncovered. He also understood Wenjin’s point; Old Fifth was already investigating, so adding one more thing wouldn’t be difficult.
Given Old Fifth’s abilities, there were very few traces that could elude him, unless the opponent could truly erase everything.
Since this matter hadn’t yielded any results, Xia Wanqing thought to let Xia Wenjin rest early.
But Xia Wenjin looked at Zhuo Pengju and the others, smiling brightly, "Fourth Uncle, Uncle Li, Uncle Hu, are you used to living in the Capital City?"
Zhuo Pengju chuckled and said, "We Jianghu people make our home wherever we are, how can we talk about being used to it or not? If we must talk about being used to something, it’s only the life in the village we are used to!"
Xia Wenjin laughed, "Do you three uncles plan to stay in the Capital City for long?"
Li Lingxian laughed and said, "It’s nice enough here, why would we stay long in the Capital City? Doesn’t living in our village cheer us up?"
Zhuo Pengju looked at Xia Wanqing and said, "Big Brother, are you planning to stay in the Capital City for long?"
Xia Wanqing glanced at Xia Wenjin; even if he agreed, Wenjin wouldn’t. With just this one daughter, everything he did was for her; how could he go against her wishes?
As for Xia Sichen?
He’s just a brat; no need to bother about him.
Xia Wenjin giggled and said, "My father definitely won’t stay long in the Capital City. He said it before, though it’s bustling here, it’s not our home!"
Xia Wanqing: "..."
Did he say that?
Alright, if Wenjin said I said it, then I must have said it!
Zhuo Pengju asked curiously, "Since Big Brother doesn’t plan to stay, how could we possibly linger in the Capital City? We Jianghu folks, when we first swore brotherhood, vowed to make Haotian Village flourish and establish a foothold in Jianghu. Also, I think I’m more suitable for Jianghu!"
Li Linghu nodded in agreement.
Xia Wenjin slightly let out a breath of relief; it seems that like Second and Third Uncle, thinking about promotions and wealth, there aren’t many in Haotian Village.
Second and Third Uncle chose their own paths, she wouldn’t interfere, but like Fourth Uncle, who aren’t pursuing their careers but staying loyal to the oath of brotherhood, she would protect them!
Hu Zeqi said, "The Third Village Chief has already become a Military Officer, they surely won’t return to Haotian Village with us!"
Xia Wenjin said, "Second and Third Uncle have brought their families over, so they surely won’t return to Haotian Village." She sighed and looked at Xia Wanqing, saying, "Father, there’s something I might say that you won’t like to hear, but I must say it!"
Xia Wanqing turned his head, seeing his daughter’s heavy-hearted demeanor, he couldn’t be sure if she was scared or not. He knew Wenjin was brave, but after such a big incident, seeing Xia Sichen and that boy called Huangfu Jingchen covered in blood, they must’ve been through a fierce battle!
His Wenjin grew up sheltered in the village, and even though she had been training in Jianghu for a year, she surely hadn’t faced such life-and-death adversities.
He hurriedly said, "Wenjin, since you’re home now, everything is fine, don’t be afraid!"
Xia Wenjin spoke with lingering fear, "How can I not be afraid? Father, in my own house, someone suddenly appears to abduct someone. The flash of knives and swords doesn’t scare me, I grew up in the village, I count as a Jianghu person too. What I’m afraid of isn’t that. Father, have you ever thought of something?"
Xia Wanqing asked, "What is it?"
Xia Wenjin said with a solemn expression, "The incident where Second and Third Uncle drew their swords to help and saved that person, and in the end, even Father almost got beheaded!"
Xia Wanqing: "..."
He really didn’t like to bring that incident up.
That kind of trouble where you sit at home and disaster falls from the sky, how could he ever forget it?
Zhuo Pengju and the other two exchanged glances, having heard Wenjin mention it a few days ago, though without any details at that time.
Xia Sichen understood immediately and said, "Father, you should be grateful, you have a filial son like me and a filial daughter like Wenjin to ring the Injustice Bell for you. Otherwise, by now grass would be growing high on your graves!"
Xia Wanqing angrily said, "You brat!"
Xia Sichen pouted, very dissatisfied and said, "It’s said people love to hear good words, even if they’re honey-tongued and dagger-hearted words, they love to hear them. This saying is really true when applied to Father."
"How do I love to hear good words? Didn’t I listen to your words, you brat?"
Xia Sichen scoffed, "At that time, to save you, we had to ring the Injustice Bell and I took thirty lashes, my butt was all beaten up. Wenjin ran back and forth to the point of exhaustion, losing a lot of weight, just because we didn’t say anything? So now, you’re crediting all of this to Huangfu Yuxuan. Look at Second and Third Uncle treating Huangfu Yuxuan as their savior. If delivering a few meals in prison qualifies someone as a lifesaver, then it’s too easy to be a benefactor!"
When it came to this matter, Xia Wanqing couldn’t say anything. He knew how Wenjin and Sichen spared no effort and exerted themselves to the fullest.
He also knew that both Hua Yuanming and Gu Hongxin only believed that it was Huangfu Yuxuan who exerted more effort to save them, given Huangfu Yuxuan’s status, saying just one word to the Emperor.
At that time, there indeed was a Holy Decree issued for a retrial of the case.
They were his brothers, surely he couldn’t explain it in detail so they would feel grateful to his children, right? Since they wanted to be more grateful to Huangfu Yuxuan, it was understandable. After all, Huangfu Yuxuan was an outsider, and Sichen and Wenjin should have been devoted to the matter.
However, it seemed like after this incident, Old Second and Third became more devoted to their official duties and showed little concern for Haotian Village. This didn’t really matter, as he didn’t mind, given the plenty of people in the village who didn’t require their specific involvement.
But he couldn’t ignore that ever since then, the brotherhood seemed not as close as before.
After all, a life-saving grace is enough to weigh heavy in one’s heart.
And this time, Wenjin’s abduction coincidentally happened just after Old Second and Third invited Old Fourth’s group out for drinks.