At the same time, she was also filled with emotion!
Huo Yuan had no idea that Wei’er was still alive, yet even in the knowledge that there was no reward for him, he was still willing to help them. This showed just how loyal and righteous he was. If Wei’er were to marry such a man, she would surely lead a happy life in the future.
Determined, Lady Du resolved that once the girl returned, she would find a way to bring them together!
"Aunt Mu, what on earth happened at the mansion? Just now, a young boy came to my home and only mentioned that Uncle Mu has been taken away by officials, without revealing what crime he had committed."
Huo Yuan poured a cup of elegant Snow-capped Jade tea, handing it over with both hands. His voice was as warm and gentle as the hot tea in his hands.
Lady Du, her eyes red-rimmed, accepted the cup of tea and took a sip, wetting her dry throat from crying. Only then did she slowly begin to recount the events of the day.
It turned out that everything was fine in the morning, with Mu Zhongqing heading to the restaurant, Cai Fei to the cloth shop, Wen’er and Wu’er to school, and she herself staying at home to rest. But not long after everyone left, Hua Mei, the head maid from Old Madame Wang’s side, charged in with several other maids, claiming that the Old Madame had lost something important and needed to search the entire mansion.
As a result, many valuable items belonging to the mansion were found in Changchun Garden, where their family resided!
At this point, Lady Du lifted her head and said angrily, "I have no idea how those things ended up in my home. Young Master Huo, think about it, if we really stole those items, we would have had plenty of opportunities to move them elsewhere. Why would we keep them at home for them to find during the search? Xiao Qing and Xiao Hong, who serve us, were both born into the Duke An’s household. They clean rooms and do chores all day long. If we left stolen items lying around at home, wouldn’t we be afraid that they would see, and expose us? Looking back, those items must have been smuggled in secretly by the two girls from Duke An’s household to frame our family."
Huo Yuan nodded, "What you say, Aunt, makes sense."
Lady Du continued, "Once they found the items, they immediately accused our entire family of being thieves and reported to the authorities, claiming that several ten thousand taels of silver had gone missing from the mansion recently, and it was all stolen by our family. Without further ado, they drove us all out. Even Wen’er and Wu’er were beaten up by relatives at school. Wen’er, in trying to protect her younger brother, got her head busted open. My mother was also detained in the mansion, and I have no idea what hardship she’ll have to endure. And, all the money and valuables we have painstakingly saved up over these few months were also seized by them..."
The more Lady Du spoke, the angrier she became, and by the time she finished recounting the incident, her whole body was shaking with rage.
After listening to Lady Du’s account, Huo Yuan felt heavy-hearted.
Initially, in order to give Cai Wei a decent status to marry into the Huo family, he had personally facilitated the Mu family’s move into Duke An’s residence. However, he had not expected that they would not end up together, and that her family would be hurt in the process.
Even though I didn’t kill Bo Ren, Bo Ren died because of me. If he couldn’t set things right this time and clear the Mu family’s name, how could he face Cai Wei’s spirit in heaven?
Thinking of this, he said solemnly, "Please rest assured, Aunt. I will take full responsibility for this matter, and I will do my best to seek justice for the Mu family!"
Upon hearing Huo Yuan’s promise, Lady Du felt even more at ease. On their way from Lin’an Prefecture to the capital, they travelled together with Huo Yuan, so she had a certain understanding of his character. If he were not confident, he would not have made such a promise. Therefore, since he had spoken, he must have been fully sure of his ability to resolve the situation. She really didn’t need to worry about her husband any longer.
However, Wen’er was yet to wake up, and she was still worried about him.