CHAPTER 734: CHAPTER 734: ENVOYS FROM THE GOVERNMENT OFFICE ARRIVE

Xia Er looked at him and said, "You are truly pitiable. The evidence against Xia Gu is irrefutable, yet you still speak in his defense... You admire him so much, but has he ever bestowed any favor upon you, or even given you a proper glance?"

Fan Hu froze upon being asked, realizing that Master Xia had indeed never given him a proper glance—it was merely his own adoration for Master Xia.

Xia Er, seeing Fan Hu’s expression, already knew the truth and said with a bitter smile, "Seeing that you are older than me, let me give you a piece of advice, brother. Turn back while you can; do not throw your life away for an old beast."

"Ptui! You scoundrel, having harmed Master Xia, you still dare to spout nonsense here. I, I will go to the government office and accuse all of you, getting justice for Master Xia!"

However, there was no need for Fan Hu to report to the government, as the government officer from Jinling Prefecture had already arrived.

The individual was Squad Leader Cheng from Jinling Prefecture, who had managed the escaped serf case for Old Master Lu in Tianfu County with the Zheng family three years ago; he had some connections with the Zheng family.

Upon seeing the commotion in front of Xia Residence, he immediately shouted, "Make way, make way! We are from Jinling Prefecture government office, here to handle a case at Xia Residence."

Upon hearing that Fan Hu rushed over excitedly asking, "Are you here to capture Xia Er? Xia Er and Xia San, these two villains conspired against Master Xia, arrest them quickly!"

Squad Leader Cheng looked at this slightly frenzied man, shook his head and said, "No, we are here to assist in the division of property and divorce of Lady Xia and her husband. Lady Xia submitted petition papers and several medical case documents stating that Xia Gu deceived her about his inability to bear children for decades and committed many heinous acts against natural laws. Having learned the truth, she can no longer continue with such a man and wishes to divorce Xia Gu and sever all ties."

"What did you say? Lady Xia wants a divorce? Is what about Xia Gu true?!" Fan Hu asked tremblingly, and when Squad Leader Cheng nodded in affirmation and showed him Lady Xia’s petition papers and medical cases, he couldn’t stand it any longer and completely fainted.

Squad Leader Cheng frowned at Fan Hu and told a government official behind him, "Take him to the medical clinic, don’t cause a death."

"Yes," replied the government official and promptly carried Fan Hu on his way to the clinic.

The other scholars and sons of noble families present, after hearing what Squad Leader Cheng said and learning that the evil deeds committed by Xia Gu were true, were all shocked.

Third Young Master Liu and others were beyond thrilled, while supporters of Xia Gu, like Fourth Young Master Feng, were defeated misers, with the wise ones already beginning to slip away amidst the chaos.

Third Young Master Liu, seeing them leaving, immediately mocked, "Hey, why are you leaving? Weren’t you going to vindicate Xia Gu? Come back!"

Completely forgetting that at Gaosong Building, he himself initially supported Xia Gu.

Fourth Young Master Feng, coming from a distinguished family and being the leading organizer for the scholars and sons of noble families from Jinning Prefecture, naturally couldn’t just sneak away disgracefully; if he did, the Feng family’s reputation would be completely ruined.

He immediately bowed to Third Young Master Liu and others, "Gentlemen, we had no idea Xia Gu was such a monstrous being. Judging only by his behavior and former reputation, we thought he was wrongfully accused, hence we came to seek justice for him... Alas, our apologies."

The other scholars and sons of noble families from Jinning Prefecture also hurriedly apologized.

However, those with too much pride to admit their mistake instead directly rushed towards Xia Residence to settle accounts with Xia Gu: "This old beast is utterly despicable, ruining our future lives; we must drag him out and beat him to death!"

Scholars care most about their reputation; helping a vile creature seek justice would become a stain on them for a lifetime. They couldn’t swallow their pride without beating Xia Gu.

Squad Leader Cheng hurriedly said, "Calm down, let’s not blow things out of proportion. This is the Xia Family’s matter!"

Squad Leader Cheng, having received instructions from the Lord Magistrate, mentioned that it was okay to stir things up a bit, but not to cause a major disturbance, or else Jinling Prefecture would have trouble.

Yet, these were all noble young masters, and if not, they were scholars with some spare wealth in their families. Prideful, and having been embarrassed by misplacing their trust, they were not willing to let the matter rest. They rallied their own people and their attendants to storm into the Xia residence.

Xia Er and Xia San’s family members knelt down and kowtowed, "We acknowledge and appreciate the nobility of Young Masters. However, no matter what, we have called Xia Gu our father for over thirty years, we have emotional bonds, and we don’t wish to escalate the situation... Please, return to your homes, let our family handle this."

Xia Er was articulate, and his son even more so. He told these furious individuals, "Honored uncles and brothers, please return and leave this matter to my father and grandmother to manage. Thank you for your support."

After speaking, they kowtowed again to these people.

These noble young masters were not fools. Seeing Xia Er’s father thanking them gave them a way out with their dignity intact, they immediately took the opportunity to leave, "In that case, we’ll head back first. If you need any help, feel free to seek us out, whether it’s resources or influence, we can lend a hand."

Xia Er’s son with an admiring expression said, "Thank you for your assistance, uncles. We are eternally grateful."

He smiled at them, his innocence and lack of malicious intent clear.

Gu Jinli commented, "This Brother Chong is incredible. At such a young age, he’s already so cunning, with just a few words and an expression, he subdued these madmen."

Gu Jinli was not fond of madmen and termed anyone with such temperament as crazy. Gu Jin’an and Qin San Lang were already accustomed to it.

Fourth Young Master Feng breathed a sigh of relief, discreetly wiping the cold sweat from his neck... Thank God, finally there was a way out. If it had persisted, those scholars from Jinning would have truly been harmed by Xia Gu.

Being cautious, Fourth Young Master Feng, after bowing to Xia Er and others, quickly led the Jinning scholars and noble young masters away.

Seeing this, the scholars from Linhe Prefecture also hurriedly took their leave. Only after getting a mile away from the Xia residence did they feel relieved. Yet, thinking back on Xia Gu’s deeds, they felt so disgusted they nearly vomited.

Fourth Young Master Feng was clever. By summoning scholars and noble young masters from Jinning to the Jinling Prefecture, he managed this crisis well. Upon returning to Feng Family’s separate yard in Jinling, he immediately wrote a letter informing his relatives back in the Capital about Xia Gu’s deeds.

Members of the Feng Family were officials in the Capital, and since Xia Gu had once offended Emperor Jingwu, informing Emperor Jingyuan through an official document by Feng Family’s elder would please Emperor Jingyuan immensely, providing the Feng Family an opportunity to gain favor.

However, Fourth Young Master Feng was a step late; Zheng Ying had already informed his own father and also sent to Father Zheng a piece that Gu Jin’an had privately written on the "Differences between Madmen and Scholars."

Father Zheng, upon receiving Zheng Ying’s letter and reading the treatise, was thoroughly impressed. Truly, Brother Gu Jia’an was a genius—his insights sharp as a blade, dissecting the faults of madmen impeccably while also extolling the virtues of scholars in a manner that commanded respect.

Most ingeniously, he didn’t only degrade madmen, he also highlighted their merits—that among them truly were geniuses; he discussed some drawbacks of scholars too, mentioning how overly honest they were, and even brought up the deeds of Mr. Gushan from the former dynasty.