TIPS – Chapter 46

The members of the Shen family, along with several household helpers, marched toward the Shen family’s main house in a grand procession. It was mid-morning, and the villagers working in the fields were scattered here and there. Occasionally, they would lift their heads and glance at the eye-catching group passing by.

Isn’t that the old master of the Shen family? What could be so serious that it required him to personally step out? Everyone had similar thoughts in their minds.

Having just beaten the young, now the old had come. When Song Jingwei saw the large crowd at the entrance, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest. However, the reactions of the other members of the Shen family’s main house varied. For instance, Shen Dongming was irritated, assuming that Shen Dongying had come again to discuss the issue of opening a private school.

Yang Shi, on the other hand, was terrified of Old Master Shen. She hid behind her husband and son, not daring to show her face. As for Shen Junxi, he knew exactly why the main Shen family members had come, so he remained indifferent.

Meanwhile, Pei Hongxuan, as a guest of the Shen family’s main house, chose to step aside out of politeness.

“Father, Third Brother, why are you here?” Shen Dongming tried to invite them inside to talk, but the group remained motionless.

Old Master Shen snorted coldly. “Did you hit He’er?”

Shen Dongming was utterly baffled. Whether it was his father or his third brother, they were both glaring at him with furious eyes, as if they wanted to tear him apart. He asked in confusion, “What are you talking about? When did I ever hit He’er?” He hadn’t even seen Shen Junhe in a long time.

Shen Dongying pointed at him and yelled, “Don’t try to deny it! He’er said it himself, and you still want to weasel your way out?” Thinking of his son, lying in bed covered in bruises, Shen Dongying was so enraged he wanted to beat Shen Dongming himself.

“What denial? I never hit him in the first place—why would I need to deny it?” Shen Dongming was also getting angry. These people had come straight to accuse him—was this all because of the private school issue again?

“Father, look at him! Eldest Brother clearly doesn’t want to admit it. What should we do about this?” Shen Dongying asked Old Master Shen, filled with resentment. This back-and-forth questioning was going nowhere—how could they get justice?

“Eldest, tell me the truth. Did you or did you not hit He’er?” Old Master Shen asked again, his face stern.

“I didn’t hit him. I haven’t even seen him,” Shen Dongming repeated without hesitation. Since he hadn’t done it, he wouldn’t confess to it.

“Hmph! If you refuse to admit it, don’t blame me for being ruthless.” Old Master Shen was determined to get justice for his grandson. Since his eldest son refused to confess, he had no choice but to use force. He turned to the helpers behind him and commanded, “Take him to the authorities!”

At the mention of involving the authorities, the faces of everyone in the Shen family’s main house changed dramatically—especially Shen Junxi. He hurriedly grabbed Shen Dongming and gestured desperately, “Father, tell them I was the one who did it! Don’t let them take you away.”

Shen Dongming had already guessed that Shen Junxi was the one who had attacked, though he didn’t know why his son had beaten Shen Junhe. But now, how could he possibly turn his son in? Just as he was about to say that he was the one responsible—

Song Jingwei suddenly spoke up. “I know who did it.”

The members of the main Shen family all turned to look at him. So this is the daughter-in-law of the Shen family’s main house? Just as the rumors said, he had an unusual appearance—like a calamity in human form, Old Master Shen thought to himself.

“You know who did it?” Shen Dongying asked uncertainly. “Who?”

“Sun Zheng.” Song Jingwei pointed in the direction of Sun Zheng’s house. “He came by this morning. If you don’t believe me, you can go ask around.”

Sun Zheng?

The mere mention of this infamous name shocked the main Shen family members. They all immediately considered the possibility—after all, throwing a sack over someone and beating them up was exactly the kind of thing Sun Zheng would do. No one would doubt it. However…

Shen Dongying frowned. “But He’er clearly said it wasn’t Sun Zheng.” He shot a sharp glare at Shen Dongming, his meaning clear.

“Oh, perhaps because he was beaten near our house, he assumed it was our family that did it. But it really wasn’t—I saw it clearly, and it was definitely Sun Zheng. You can go verify it if you like,” Song Jingwei said, lying effortlessly without blinking.

The main Shen family members fell into silence. They had come in a rage to demand justice, but now they were being told that someone else was responsible.

“Right! Think about it—He’er was beaten while trapped in a sack. It’s normal that he wouldn’t have seen who did it.” Shen Dongming immediately chimed in. Yes, just push the blame onto Sun Zheng! After all, Shen Junhe wouldn’t have been able to see his attacker anyway.

Shen Dongying’s expression flickered between doubt and anger. Finally, he said, “Even if it wasn’t you who did it, standing by and doing nothing is just as bad! You still wronged He’er!”

Song Jingwei replied calmly, “I was the only one who saw it. Do you really think I could have fought off Sun Zheng? Or are you saying you wanted me to go get myself killed?”

Shen Dongming quickly added, “Exactly! My daughter-in-law is delicate and weak—how could he possibly take on Sun Zheng?” Even if he could, he shouldn’t—what if he got hurt in the process? Getting punched would still hurt!

Shen Junxi nodded along in agreement, repeating his father’s philosophy in his mind. Exactly, exactly!

“You…!” Shen Dongying was so choked up that he couldn’t find the words to respond. This was the second time Song Jingwei had rendered him speechless, and the feeling was as disgusting as if he had eaten dung.

“You came to someone else’s doorstep to demand justice without first verifying the truth. Now that you know they are innocent, tell me, as someone who has read many books, what do you think should be done?” Song Jingwei looked at him, his tone neither warm nor cold.

Once again, Shen Dongying had no words. He always prided himself on being a gentleman and a scholar, disdaining to argue with others. If it weren’t for the fact that the injured party was his own precious son, he would never have come to Shen Dongming’s house to suffer such humiliation.

“Young and sharp-tongued,” Old Master Shen said coldly, eyeing the eldest branch’s daughter-in-law with obvious displeasure.

“A sharp tongue is better than a dull one—otherwise, if someone were wrongly accused and couldn’t defend themselves, wouldn’t that be a grave injustice? Tell me, old sir, if you were falsely accused, what would you do?” Song Jingwei glanced at Old Master Shen.

“Hmph! A man of integrity fears no shadow. Who would dare to falsely accuse me?” Old Master Shen said proudly, leaning on his cane. As long as he was still in Chashan Village, he was the highly respected Elder Shen—no one would dare wrong him.

“Oh? Listen carefully,” Song Jingwei said. “I say, old sir, that you are heartless, vain, selfish, and an unworthy father. Do you admit it?”

“…” Old Master Shen was so enraged that he slammed his cane on the ground and cursed, “You insolent brat, stop spouting nonsense!”

“See?” Song Jingwei turned to Shen Dongming and said, “Next time someone dares to falsely accuse you, just scold them the same way, and they won’t wrong you anymore.” Then, he turned back to Old Master Shen and added, “I sincerely apologize. I misspoke just now.” He did not, however, say that what he had spoken was nonsense—only that it was a slip of the tongue.

“You…!” Shen Dongying, listening from the side, was furious on behalf of his father. When he turned to look at Old Master Shen, he saw that the old man was so angry he was about to faint. Rushing to support him, he asked anxiously, “Father, are you alright?”

Old Master Shen waved him off. “I’m fine… Let’s go back. No need to stoop to their level…” These people were unreasonable barbarians. Talking to them was pointless.

“But… what about He’er?” Shen Dongying was unwilling to leave just like that.

“Hmph, we’ll go find Sun Zheng and ask him directly. If it really was him…” Old Master Shen thought grimly, then we’ll drag him to the authorities.

“Alright,” Shen Dongying replied reluctantly. He still felt that something was off. Could it really not have been Shen Dongming? Besides, his son, He’er, had no grudges with Sun Zheng—so why would he suddenly be targeted by that brute?

Once they left, the members of the Shen family’s main house let out a sigh of relief. But then Shen Dongming turned to his son with a stern face and asked, “Xi’er, why did you hit Shen Junhe?”

Yang Shi looked up in shock. “Xi’er, was it really you who hit He’er?” How was that possible? Shen Junxi had always been a quiet and gentle child, not the type to resort to violence.

“…” Shen Junxi glanced at Song Jingwei, and seeing that he showed no displeasure, he hesitated for a moment before signing, “He deserved it.”

“Why did he deserve it?” Shen Dongming and Yang Shi asked in unison.

“…” Shen Junxi couldn’t answer. He looked at Song Jingwei with a slightly troubled expression, as if asking for help.

But Song Jingwei acted as if he hadn’t seen anything. He simply walked over to the well, rinsed his hands in the water bucket, and said, “Keep an eye out for the mail these next few days. It should be arriving soon.” If Zhang Benqing had received his letter smoothly…

“Mm…” Shen Junxi responded and was about to follow Song Jingwei inside when his parents grabbed him.

“Don’t go! You still haven’t told us why you hit him!”

And so, Shen Junxi was stuck being interrogated by his parents, while Song Jingwei went inside alone, enjoying his peace and quiet.

Meanwhile, after returning home, Shen Dongying and Old Master Shen immediately went to find Shen Junhe.

“Tell me the truth,” Shen Dongying demanded. “Who exactly was the one who beat you?” He realized now that in his earlier rage, he had acted too rashly by accusing others without confirming the facts.

“Father, why are you asking this? Did he not admit it?” Shen Junhe asked in confusion. Though he had been treated with medicine, his wounds still burned painfully. If they could find the culprit and punish him, he would finally feel avenged.

“He absolutely denied it. His daughter-in-law also said it wasn’t him,” Shen Dongying replied, then asked, “Have you ever had any conflict with Sun Zheng?”

Shen Junhe shook his head. “Father, I have no enmity with Sun Zheng.” A village ruffian and a proud scholar—they had nothing to do with each other.

“Oh? Then why did his daughter-in-law say she saw Sun Zheng attacking you?” Shen Dongying was puzzled. He pressed further, “Did you actually see who hit you?”

Just as Shen Junhe was about to speak, Shen Dongying warned, “Don’t randomly accuse someone. Do you realize you’ve embarrassed both your father and your grandfather today?”

Shen Junhe panicked. “I… I really didn’t see clearly… but it must have been someone from their family!”