Chapter 192: The Emperor Isn't in a Hurry, but the Eunuch Is

A Qing was jumping and waving his hands behind, but there were too many people, he couldn't squeeze through.

Wu An told everyone to go about their business, not to gather for the spectacle, since there wasn't much to see, so everyone dispersed; A Qing came over, and Wu Ping and Mei Yueqin also arrived.

Li Juan also came.

Upon seeing Wu An, the few people finally relaxed.

A Qing came up and gave Wu An a hug, shouting, "Brother, let me tell you, when I found out I was almost scared to tears."

"I thought, if they were going to arrest someone, they should have taken me too, so we could keep each other company."

Wu An patted him on the back.

Then he pushed him away.

Mei Yueqin said, "It's fine as long as nothing happened, it's fine as long as nothing happened."

"Come on, come on, let's go home first."

"Have you eaten?"

"I guess you haven't eaten."

"There's food in the pot at home."

"A Ping, if you don't hurry back home..."

Wu An hurriedly interrupted his sister-in-law's words and also stopped Wu Ping who was about to run, saying, "Sister-in-law, I came out last night at midnight, and in the evening I ate and drank with Qiang Ge and the others, drank quite a bit, and slept directly at Qiang Ge's place."

"When I woke up in the morning I had eaten until my belly was round."

"Let's walk slowly."

"Let the villagers see me, so they won't spread idle rumors again."

Li Juan didn't follow along.

He had just heard that Wu An was arrested, felt anxious and uneasy, couldn't put his mind at ease, so he followed A Qing over to check; since Wu An was fine, she also relaxed.

After speaking with Wu An, she went home first.

This means she came to the dock purely out of concern, not because Wu An hadn't settled accounts with A Qing and she specially came to ask for money.

Although Wu An wouldn't think that way, she still needed to avoid suspicion.

Along the way he recounted yesterday's situation.

Back home.

Wu Yingwei also returned.

Wu An was dividing the money; Mai Hangyu's money had been given yesterday, he took out the list and the money, saying, "A Qing, Aunt Juan, take a look at the list."

"This is 5300."

"You count it."

A Qing directly shoved the money into his pocket, said the list was not needed.

Wu An told him to hold onto it.

Since A Qing didn't come along on this trip, if Li Juan went back and asked for the list, and he didn't give it to A Qing, Li Juan might suspect something.

Wu An thought, maybe he was overthinking it.

Anyway it's no trouble; the list is a photocopy, if Li Juan doesn't mention it, A Qing can just toss the list aside.

"Wait a moment." Mei Yueqin, being sensitive to money, exclaimed in surprise, "A Qing got over five thousand, so didn't you make forty or fifty thousand on this trip?"

Wu Ping and Wu Yingwei were drinking tea, and they all turned their gazes toward Wu An.

Wu An smiled and nodded: "Yeah, the luck was really great."

"It was A Qing who discovered the abalone on the island; you also know abalone tends to live in groups, so when we went into the sea to look, wow, they were all abalone."

"We caught a lot of them."

A Qing also embellished the story of how they pried open the abalone; upon learning the two had gone into the seawater, Mei Yueqin muttered under her breath, "Goddess Mazu bless us."

Wu Ping, with a look of delighted surprise, said, "You guys are really skilled and bold."

Wu Yingwei also showed a smile.

"His son earned so much money; as his father, he naturally felt happy."

"He thought, this money doesn't just fall from the sky; earning so much, taking some risks is just taking some risks."

"Earning so much money is really worthwhile."

"Don't talk about wanting money but not life; who could earn that much money and still be able to resist going into the sea?"

"No exaggeration."

"If others find out, they'll fight over it, breaking their heads."

Wu Yingwei said, "Good, one trip recouped the cost; from now on, going out to sea is all profit."

Wu An smiled and nodded.

He told A Qing to go home first and put the money away safely.

Not in a rush to go home, first go around the village, hoping to "run into" Shen Nan, then secretly take photos, or take a photo together with Shen Nan.

Anyway, as long as we can get the photos, we can play with them however we like.

As for whether Shen Nan will overthink it,

Who cares.

Let him think whatever he wants.

If Shen Nan really teamed up with Chen Gui to cause trouble, then Shen Nan should worry about whether he'll be detected or retaliated against.

Now the initiative is in his hands.

Whispering with A Qing, after A Qing left, Wu Ping said, "If someone reports this matter..."

Wu An interrupted him, saying, "Brother, the person who reported this would be hard to find."

"I asked the law‑enforcement officers; they have a rule to protect whistleblowers, even if it's just a misunderstanding."

Wu Ping asked, "So should we just let this be?"

Wu An spread his hands and said, "I don't want to just let it be either."

"But there's nothing we can do."

"The whistleblowing has no threshold; you just call the fisheries administration to report, anyone can do it, and there's no way to trace it back."

Wu Ping, indignant, said, "Just letting it be is too humiliating!"

Mei Yueqin added, "Yeah, it's so unethical."

"Don't let us find out; if we do, I'd block the gate and berate him for ten days to half a month!"

Wu Yingwei stayed silent.

He lowered his head, smoked, his eyes narrowed, and seemed to be calculating something.

Wu Ping and Mei Yueqin were still discussing the matter, and as they talked it drifted to Chen Gui; not only Wu An remembered, but the two elders also remembered.

It was said that previously Chen Gui had gone with debt collectors and made idle talk several times; this time he behaved oddly, constantly heading to the dock—maybe he was the one who reported.

Wu An also nodded, saying their analysis made sense.

Wu Yingwei suddenly said, "I think your suspicions are spot on."

"Chen Gui is highly suspect."

"A An, what do you plan to do?"

Wu An shook his head and said, "I haven't decided yet; we have no evidence. Even if we confront him, Chen Gui certainly won't admit it."

Upon hearing that, Wu Yingwei and the other two were also at a loss.

To put it bluntly, the combined scheming of those three probably doesn't match even a single Wu An's.

And moreover.

These three… are all good people.

As they chatted, it was almost mealtime; Mei Yueqin went to the kitchen to cook, the household's drinks were finished, and Wu An said to go to the shop to buy more.

Wu Ping rushed to be the one to buy.

Wu An didn't let him, saying he needed to show his face more in the Village now.

He went out.

He happened to run into Lao Meng, greeted him with a "Uncle Meng", and Lao Meng asked, "Is everything okay now?"

Wu An nodded.

Lao Meng said, "I guess it can't be separated from that guy Chen Gui."

"Now people in the Village are already gossiping about it."

Wu An nodded again.

Seeing everyone think that way, he felt at ease.

If the Village can gossip about him, they can also gossip about Chen Gui; his reputation in the Village isn't great, so many are eager to add spice to the story.

He said, "Uncle, you're not an outsider; could you do me a favor?"

Lao Meng looked around and asked, "What favor?"

"Help spread the news about my report on Chen Gui."

"Sure, that's easy." Lao Meng thought for a moment and said, "Your trick is good, but Chen Gui isn't an ordinary person; this trick might not work on him."

Wu An smiled.

Whether it works or not, he'll use it first.

When he arrived at the shop, he greeted many villagers along the way; now everyone knows he was maliciously reported, arrested, and suffered a great grievance.

Everyone also asked him who did it.

Wu An simply said he didn't know.

Some even offered analysis, saying Chen Gui did it, and also that Lin Hu did it.

Others said it was someone they didn't get along with, just randomly reporting; Wu An indicated that without evidence it's not good to speak recklessly.

The whole scene felt like the emperor wasn't anxious but the eunuch was.

Wu An, as the victim, said, "I want revenge, but I don't know who did it; others get anxious. I analyze for you: I think it's him, so you should take revenge on him."

Wu An also turned around and said it probably wasn't him; without evidence it's hard to act.

It seemed like idle chatter, no work at all, yet this victim's unknown perpetrator situation had already taken root in people's minds.

If later Chen Gui gets into trouble, it won't fall on his head.

You say it's my revenge?

Heaven and earth, conscience! Others frame you as the one who reported me; I even speak up for you. How can I say I revenge you?

Then he can argue his case logically!

Walking with stops along the way, it took over twenty minutes to reach the shop.

Wu An lifted a case of beer and was about to leave when Lao Jiang grabbed him, whispering mysteriously that he had something to say.

It was about Chen Gui.