Chapter 2: The Mother-in-law Gets into Trouble, and Hong's Pregnancy is Like a Green Bean Sprout

  As Li walked out of the courtyard, Shen Huan turned around and saw Zhao Xiuzhuo had also put down his bowl and chopsticks. He went forward to clear the table, seeing that he seemed to want to help too, so he smiled and said: "Little uncle go read a book, there are only a few bowls and plates, I'll finish washing them in a moment."

  She quickly tidied up the kitchen, then remembered that the small vegetable garden in the courtyard hadn't been weeded for several days. She took down a straw hat from the wall and put it on her head, but as soon as she stepped out of the door, she saw Zhao Xiqiao sitting at the entrance with a book in his hand. Every time he straightened up to stretch, he would catch sight of him, and couldn't help but think to herself, "Is it really comfortable to read under the scorching sun?"

  Although the two of them didn't say a word, Shen Han wasn't so particular about it either. However, with just a slight movement of his head, he could see him, and somehow felt a bit strange. The sun on his head began to scorch, making Shen Han feel parched, so he stood up, stretched his waist a couple of times, and went back inside to drink some water.

  As she put down the cup, she took out a clean one and poured water into it. Then, facing Zhao Xiāo's back, she called out: "Young uncle, come in and have a drink of water, the sun has already risen."

  Jian Zhao Xi Qiao nodded to herself and walked into the house, wiping the sweat from her forehead, taking off the straw hat on her head and fanning it with her hand, feeling much cooler, thinking that she should finish her work before noon, busy again quickly walking out of the house.

  Shen Han's hands moved quickly to clear away the weeds, and it was almost clean when suddenly there was a loud "bang" sound. The courtyard gate was kicked open for the third time, but unlike the previous two times when it was pushed open, this time it was truly kicked open, bursting in.

  Two burly men came in and glared at everyone, shouting menacingly: "Who is a member of the Zhao family?"

  Shen Han's first reaction was that someone had come to cause trouble, and he turned around to look inside the house. He saw Zhao Xiuzhu calmly put down his teacup, walk out slowly with his hands behind his back, and stand still. Although he was wearing a coarse blue linen robe, it couldn't hide the elegant air about him.

  "What's wrong?"

  Just been intruded twice, he was already unhappy, now being kicked at the door that was about to collapse with a "creak" sound, at this moment his eyebrows were slightly frowned, his slightly closed eyes stared straight at the fierce big man in front of him, standing on high ground, and somehow had a sense of superiority.

  Now that Zhao Xiuzhuo had stepped forward, Shen Han quietly moved a few steps to the side and stood under the stairs on Zhao Xiuzhuo's left, slightly lowering her head to size up the two unexpected guests, and in her heart, an inexplicable sense of unease arose.

  "He... He is Zhao Auntie's son..."

  Just as Da Han was about to speak, a panting and slightly terrified voice came from behind him. Following the sound, Shen Huan finally saw Zuo Xing, who had already been there once before, but she was almost drowned out by the two big men, and her words were cut off before she could finish speaking.

  "You're the son of that woman? Hurry up and come with us, your mother's delivery has caused the daughter-in-law of the Yuan family to lose her life, now she's being detained, waiting for you all to arrive!"

  Upon hearing this, Shen Huan's hands, which were stained with dirt and mud, couldn't help but tremble slightly. She immediately looked up at Zhao Xiuzhuo and saw a hint of surprise in his eyes that he couldn't hide. She had wanted to ask if it was true or false, but since Lao Liang had already arrived, panting and unable to speak clearly, how could it be fake?

  "What did you say?"

  "Don't you understand yet? Your mother has gotten herself into a murder case, and Liu Auntie asked us to come invite the great scholar over!"

  No more nonsense, the two big men looked at each other and stepped forward, although a little hesitant, they still stretched out their hands to make a please gesture, Zhao Xiuzhuo paused for a moment, then stepped down from the stairs.

  The old woman had an accident, and the uncle was "invited" away, which is more like being taken away. Shen Huan's mind began to calculate: even if she didn't have much feelings for them, her current life still needed this family's support. Could she really just watch as the "old woman" and her two children were taken away?

  Here, women who are under 50 years old and have no children or husband cannot live independently. Without a household registration, they can be caught at any time to become slaves or even be sold, isn't that worse than now?

  As for her natal family... it's even more impossible to return, Shen Huan had already learned from Li Shi's mouth that her nominal old father was a stubborn person who couldn't be any more stubborn. In the past, he personally escorted her and Zhao Xiuzhuo, holding a rooster, to get married in a ceremony, otherwise she would have jumped into this pit where getting married is equivalent to starting widowhood.

  The answer is no! The thought in her mind was just a flash, but at this moment she had already rushed into the house, and in her haste, she poured out the lukewarm water from the jug to wash her hands. Just as Zhao Xiuzhuo was about to be taken away, she immediately opened her mouth and shouted: "Little uncle, I'll go with you!"

  Zhao Xiuzhu stopped in his tracks and turned around, Shen Huan immediately saw the doubt in his eyes, his furrowed eyebrows were almost twisted together. She didn't care at all, grabbed a rag from under the table to wipe her hands, and quickly ran towards Zhao Xiuzhu.

  Shen Huan ran to his side with small steps, seeing his displeased frown, thinking he was unhappy about her following him, so she repeated: "I'll go with you, little uncle, to see what's going on. If mother has something, I can't just wait at home."

  Before Zhao Xiuzhuo could react, Shen Han had already nodded to Zuo Xiang with a smile: "Thanks for the trouble of leading the way, let's go and see what's going on. There's always a solution to everything, isn't there?"

  "What's the solution now? The person is already dead, and it's a case of one corpse and two lives lost!"

  Shen Huan didn't go to see the big man who was speaking, but stood silently on one side, waiting for them to lead the way. The big man was also a rough person and naturally didn't notice the sharp glint that flashed in Shen Huan's eyes. On the other hand, Zhao Xi Qiao saw this subtle detail clearly, and at this time, he didn't say anything, his own mother was still in someone else's hands after all.

  "Lead the way!"

  Five people walked quickly towards the Liu family home, Shen Huan kept up with their pace while thinking about the possible situations that might arise next. Since someone had been killed and the other party did not immediately report to the authorities and arrest people, but instead sent a despicable guy to come to their home to invite them, they must have some concerns or... ulterior motives!

  Her mind was preoccupied with thoughts, and her feet naturally slowed down without her realizing it. Her gaze fell on the long boots at her feet, which were immediately covered by the brocade clothes. She suddenly remembered that this wasn't Zhao Xiuzhuo's coarse blue shirt. By the time she wanted to pull back her foot, it was too late. Her forehead directly bumped into the sturdy human wall, and Shen Huan could almost hear the dull thud herself.

  The impact was not small, Shen Han immediately felt a dizziness, fortunately it wasn't that severe. She had just stabilized her body and hadn't yet clearly seen the owner of the chest as hard as iron when a thunderous roar sounded in her ear: "Can't you watch where you're walking?"

  She followed the sound and first saw a luxurious dress that reached her opponent's head. She focused on the person who was shouting at her, a young servant standing next to the man in brocade clothes, who was glaring at her with his hands on his hips. Shen Huan rubbed her forehead and could only apologize: "Sorry!"

  A good man doesn't take advantage of others when he has the upper hand. Since it's clear that the other party is wealthy and influential, there's no need to be petty here.

  After finishing speaking, she lowered her head and prepared to move her feet, wanting to brush past the man's side, but didn't expect that as soon as she lifted her foot, she heard a slightly magnetic yet not overly mature voice coming from above: "I apologize for not noticing you earlier, miss."

  At a glance, she saw the face of the brocade-clad man. Shen Huan couldn't help but admit that this was a very handsome man. Without opening his mouth, he would be fine, but once he opened it, the temperament on his body was naturally born, with a hint of arrogance in his gentle and elegant demeanor.

  However, she was never a frivolous person, and after slightly raising her eyes, she nodded and continued walking. When she found that Zhao Xiuzhu's figure was about to disappear from view, she lifted her skirt and started running lightly.

  "Master, are you alright?"

  "Don't scold people casually in the future, figure it out first!"

  The young servant understood that his master was referring to what had just happened and immediately lowered his head to admit his mistake: "Yes, Qianfan has taken note of it."

  The man in the brocade clothes looked at him for a moment, then slowly turned around, watching Shen Huan's back as she lifted her skirt and ran quickly. A hint of surprise flashed across his eyes, but only for an instant before he withdrew his gaze. At the same time, Qian Fan's voice sounded again, this time as a reminder: "Young Master, the person found by Qian Shui is not far ahead."

  The man nodded his head in agreement and turned around to continue walking in the original direction with big strides.