The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 253 Undercurrents Beneath the Calm Lake

The grove of trees to the south that he mentioned should be the small, unleveled mound at the southernmost part of the disaster relief settlement.

Because the area was rugged and uneven, and there were several large, immovable rocks, it became a desolate, uncultivated wasteland.

The owner of this land could not cultivate it, so he could only plant trees on it, thus creating this conspicuous grove of trees in an area surrounded by farmland.

However, this small grove of trees was not included in the resettlement program for disaster victims because of its uneven terrain.

However, because this was the only place within a few kilometers with a large area of ​​trees providing cover, it became the best choice for disaster victims to carry out their wicked deeds.

Therefore, it's easy to see that the vast majority of the disaster victims or other people who appear here are not kind-hearted individuals.

So, what are the chances that a young child, alone here, has managed to stay hidden there for so long?

It goes without saying that the chances of nothing going wrong are almost nil.

That's why Zhang Cong added an extra sentence when he spoke earlier, saying something like, "I don't know if he's still alive."

For a father, hearing that his son has been placed in such a place and that he may not survive could be devastating.

Wang Gen's reaction was exactly as everyone expected.

Upon hearing Zhang Cong's words, he was initially incredulous, muttering unconsciously to himself.
"What did you say? You're lying to me, aren't you?"

Then, when he saw Zhang Cong lower his head again, not daring to look him in the eye, he understood everything.

So Wang Gen immediately began to wail in pain.

"Zhang Cong, I'm going to kill you, you bastard, you childless bastard, I'm going to kill you."

He roared as he charged toward Zhang Cong.

Judging from his posture, he certainly had the aura of someone who wanted to kill.

Fortunately, Quan Wenwei brought a large number of people this time. The two guards who were closer to Wang Gen saw him rushing over and quickly stepped forward to stop him.

The grief of losing his son may have caused him to lose his mind.

Even when stopped by the soldiers, Wang Gen struggled desperately, trying to rush to Zhang Cong's side.

At this moment, those who were with Wang Gen also began to stir.

Most of them were from Wang Gen's hometown and could empathize with him.

They were also filled with righteous indignation at the misfortune that befell Wang Gen's son.

Moreover, ordinary people hold a simple value in their hearts: a life for a life and a debt for a debt.

Now that Zhang Cong has committed murder, he must pay for that life.

They believed that this was not wrong.

So even with so many officers and soldiers present, they stood up to support Wang Gen.

Tu Chengyu sat on horseback and watched the whole thing unfold.

He now truly loathes Zhang Cong.

This person kept saying that he had lost his son and wanted to steal Wang Gen's son and raise him as his own.

Judging from his words, most people would think that he was a man who had gone mad because he lost his son, and that stealing someone else's son was just to make up for the lack in his heart.

But in reality, he stole Wang Gen's son and abandoned him in the messy woods, leaving the little child to fend for himself.

Such a person is less interested in stealing a son for himself and more interested in seeing other people's sons alive and well, and he is jealous and wants to make others lose their sons.

Thinking of this, Tu Chengyu wished he could have someone teach Zhang Cong a lesson and let him know the consequences of his actions.

But the most important thing now is to find out the whole story. As for how to punish him, there will be plenty of time later.

As Tu Chengyu sat on horseback lost in thought, Quan Wenwei below was also busy.

Seeing the restless refugees, he shouted at them:

"What do you want to do? Under the Emperor's nose, do you want to rebel?"

The riot finally brought them to their senses, but they still did not retreat; they simply stood there silently protesting.

Moreover, an elderly man with gray hair and beard among them stepped forward shakily and said to Quan Wenwei:
"My lord, we commoners would never dare to riot in the heart of the capital, but the Wang family has suffered such a calamity, we cannot stand idly by."
We may be ordinary citizens, but we would never do such a heartless thing.

The old man spoke earnestly, and what he said made a lot of sense.

Quan Wenwei looked at him and said, "I can understand what you're doing, but isn't the most important thing right now to find a way to save Wang Gen's son?"

Zhang Cong just said that Wang Gen's son might be dead, but he didn't say he was definitely dead. So, shouldn't we try to find him first?

Quan Wenwei's words were like a wake-up call.

When the family heard about the grove to the south and learned about the terrible conditions there, they naturally assumed that the child was doomed.

But we need to see the person alive or dead; as long as it hasn't been confirmed, there's still a possibility that the person is alive.

Wang Gen, whose face had been ashen, regained his hope and spirits after hearing these words.

He looked at Quan Wenwei and said, "Sir, please release me and let me go to the grove to find my son."

Quan Wenwei knew he was desperate to find someone, but she still advised him:

"That grove of trees isn't small, so let's ask Zhang Cong where he hid the person. That way, we can find them faster."

After he finished speaking, he immediately looked at Zhang Cong and asked:

“Zhang Cong, things have come to this point. For the sake of the child, you should stop hiding things. If you can find the child alive, I will make the decision to treat you leniently.”

Wang Gen, who had just been so adamant about not eating his flesh, now had no choice but to yield and plead:
"Zhang Cong, hurry up and tell me! If you tell me and bring my son back, I'll kowtow to you and apologize."

However, Zhang Cong seemed determined and remained silent.

Even after being whipped several more times by the soldiers, he gritted his teeth and refused to reveal where the child was hidden.

Seeing him like this, everyone present, including the group that had just been fighting desperately for him, was filled with hatred for him.

Wang Gen wanted nothing more than to tear Zhang Cong to pieces, but he was still unwilling to give up.

He continued to plead, "Zhang Cong, you stole the child because you wanted a child, right? Here's what we'll do: if you tell me, once the child is found, I'll make him your son and he'll take care of you in your old age, okay? I just want the child to be alive."

Wang Gen knelt down and begged desperately, almost kowtowing.

Everyone present was moved by these words.

Even Zhang Cong, the one who committed the evil deed, had red eyes with tears welling up in them.

Strangely, even though he was clearly moved, he stubbornly refused to utter a single word. Seeing this, Quan Wenwei sighed deeply and said:

"It looks like he's going to hold out to the bitter end. We shouldn't have any hope for him anymore. Let's go and look for him."

Upon hearing this, Wang Gen stopped pleading. He first kowtowed to Quan Wenwei and said:

"This humble subject thanks Your Excellency for granting my request."

Then he knelt and turned around, addressing the disaster victims behind him:
"Men, young and old, Wang Gen is begging you to help me find my child. I will kowtow to you a few times to express my gratitude."

After saying that, he slammed his head down several more times.

After what just happened, even if Wang Gen didn't ask, everyone would still offer to help.

There was an immediate response from the crowd.

"Don't worry, Brother Wang, even if it's the most desperate situation, we will help you find your child."

"Yes, don't worry, there are so many of us, we will definitely be able to find the child."

It's a matter of saving lives, and there's no time to lose.

Once everyone had discussed it, they set off immediately.

The two groups that were fighting to the death just moments ago are now united without any animosity, marching in a large group towards the grove to the south.

Although the chances of saving the person at this point were slim, Tu Chengyu was gratified to see the situation.

He said to Quan Wenwei, "They look so messy, it'll probably be hard to find them. Send some people over to help them out."

"It's the prince."

After agreeing, Quan Wenwei said to Jia Lian:
"Since the incident occurred in your jurisdiction, I would appreciate it if you could take some people to help them."

Jia Lian didn't say anything, bowed and returned, then gathered a group of people and set off with the disaster victims.

After everyone had left, Quan Wenwei looked at Zhang Cong, who was being held captive, and shouted loudly:
"Guards, keep a close watch on this heartless bastard. If the child isn't found, you'll see what I do to him."

Seeing Quan Wenwei's exasperated appearance, Tu Chengyu was somewhat surprised.

He always thought that Quan Wenwei was a mature and prudent person who could calmly deal with any situation, no matter how big it was.

Unexpectedly, he was a little unsteady today. Could it be that he was really angered by Zhang Cong?
However, Tu Chengyu didn't say anything, because he was also angry.

Now that things have calmed down here, we need to keep an eye on the child's condition.

So Tu Chengyu didn't wait long and took Quan Wenwei and the tied-up Zhang Cong back to the tent by the moat.

Upon arriving at the tent, Quan Wenwei ordered Zhang Cong to be imprisoned, then pulled Tu Chengyu aside and whispered:

"Your Highness, that child is probably not in the grove."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu was taken aback at first, and then looked puzzled.

He then asked, "You said the child isn't in the grove? Did you find anything? Why didn't you say so earlier, and instead had them go to all this trouble to look for him?"

Tu Chengyu asked several questions in one breath, but Quan Wenwei remained calm and answered:
"I was afraid of alerting them, so I didn't stop them from going to the grove to look for people."

"Startle the snake by beating the grass?" Tu Chengyu was even more puzzled. The snake had already been caught, why would he be afraid of startling it?

Quan Wenwei said, "The students suspect that Zhang Cong stole the child not because he was eager to have a son, but because he had other motives."

“How come you see?”

"There are three reasons for the students."

Then Quan Wenwei held up one finger and said:

"Firstly, when Zhang Cong was recounting the tragic deaths of his family members, although he looked sad, I could tell from his eyes that he wasn't that grieving."

Therefore, either he is a cold-blooded person and not that saddened by the death of his family members, or his family members never died at all.

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu's eyes widened in surprise, and he asked:

"You mean his family is still alive, so why did he steal Wang Gen's child?"

Quan Wenwei smiled and said, "That's the problem. Why would he steal someone else's child and then walk among the disaster victims? Wang Gen wanted to kill him and asked other disaster victims to help him get revenge."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu had a sudden thought and quickly said:

"Is he trying to incite conflict among the disaster victims?"

Quan Wenwei nodded and said, "That's what the students think too."

A disaster victim tried to incite conflict among other disaster victims through various means, and was eventually arrested, yet he still stubbornly refused to tell the truth. The problems involved here are far more serious than they seem.

Although Tu Chengyu had vaguely grasped some clues, he couldn't quite understand the key points, so he said:

"Mr. Quan, please continue with the last two reasons."

Upon hearing this, Quan Wenwei raised his second finger:

"The second reason is that these two groups of people had a conflict a few days ago, and the students, in order to prevent any accidents,..."
They secretly sent people to investigate what was going on, and discovered that Zhang Cong was a bit strange, so they kept people watching him.
However, the men they sent weren't very good at keeping watch, and they didn't see where he hid the child. But they were certain he didn't hide him in the grove; instead, he handed him over to someone else.

After listening, Tu Chengyu interrupted again and asked:

"Judging from this, Zhang Cong sounds like a child trafficker."

Quan Wenwei shook his head and said, "If he were a human trafficker, he would definitely act secretly and wouldn't dare to make such a commotion."

This is true.

Then, the third finger of the whole text,

"Thirdly, when Wang Gen pleaded with him just now, Zhang Congming was clearly moved, but he didn't say a word, not even when he was being beaten. That's against common sense."

After explaining the three reasons, Tu Chengyu realized the strangeness of the situation.

He asked Quan Wenwei, "Mr. Quan, tell me, what's wrong with this?"

Quan Wenwei thought for a moment and said, "Judging from Zhang Cong's unusual behavior, I'll assume for now that he didn't do this because he lost a family member."
On the contrary, the student believed that his family was still alive, but had been kidnapped and threatened, which led him to do such a thing.

Tu Chengyu was stunned after hearing Wenwei's guess.

I have to admire Quan Wenwei's imagination; how did he come up with such wildly imaginative ideas?

However, upon closer examination, his guess does have some merit and can explain many unusual occurrences.

However, this raises a new question: who exactly orchestrated all of this?

What are they going to do?
(End of this chapter)