Free Web NovelChapter 344: Chapter 344: Reporting to the Authorities
Hundred Wells Alley.
As the crowd grew larger by the second, all seeming to demand an explanation from Ye Chutang, the carriage driver looked back nervously. "Second Miss, what do we do now?" he asked, his voice filled with worry.
If this continued, he was afraid it wouldn’t end well!
But there was no panic in Ye Chutang’s eyes. She simply lowered her gaze to look at Xiao Wu in her arms.
Xiao Wu clung to her, and the steady rhythm of her big sister’s heartbeat gradually dispelled her own anxiety and fear.
She wasn’t really bothered by the people outside the carriage, but... her big sis was being framed.
Xiao Wu was not happy.
Her little, chubby face was taut. She glanced at Ye Shixian and started to stand up, intending to shield her big sis with her own body.
Ye Chutang noticed the movement, and the faintest hint of a smile touched her eyes.
She gently patted Xiao Wu. "Don’t worry. Big Sis has a way to handle this."
Only then did Xiao Wu stop, but her small hand still clutched tightly to the corner of Ye Chutang’s sleeve.
The crowd grew rowdier, with some shouting accusations and even curses at Ye Chutang.
Ye Chutang acted as if she couldn’t hear any of it. She only looked at Ye Shixian, her voice clear and calm.
"Fine. I agree."
Ye Shixian, who had been weeping uncontrollably, froze. Tears clung to her eyelashes, refusing to fall.
For a moment, she couldn’t process it. "What?"
Ye Chutang said, "Didn’t you want justice from me? Very well, I’ll give it to you." freewebnσvel.cøm
She settled Xiao Wu comfortably, then stepped out of the carriage alone to confront Ye Shixian.
An invisible aura of authority seemed to surround her. Just by standing there, she inspired an unconscious sense of awe.
The rowdy crowd gradually fell silent.
In the silence, Ye Chutang’s voice sounded exceptionally clear and composed.
"Since you claim I caused your mother’s death, that makes me a murder suspect. This is a matter of life and death, so a simple apology is far from enough. The law dictates this must be reported to the Shuntian Prefecture. If I am to be arrested, I will be. If I am to be executed, I will be!"
Ye Shixian’s eyes widened in disbelief. She thought she must have misheard.
’Does this Ye Chutang have any idea what she’s saying!?’
Ye Shixian had a bad feeling. She instinctively opened her mouth to argue, but before she could speak, Ye Chutang looked around at the crowd and asked loudly:
"Would some kind soul be willing to go report this to the authorities and ask for someone from the Shuntian Prefecture to come?"
The air seemed to freeze. The atmosphere turned strange and utterly bizarre.
Ye Chutang’s move had stunned everyone. ’What is she doing?’
What kind of criminal actively reports themselves to the authorities?
What was this? A confession?
’No, that doesn’t seem right either.’
But Ye Chutang seemed to find nothing strange about her own actions. Seeing no one respond, she looked at Shaoyao and tilted her chin slightly.
"Then you go."
Shaoyao was also dumbfounded. "Huh?"
Ye Chutang raised an eyebrow, her voice turning cold. "What, are you unwilling to handle your own master’s affairs?" ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
Shaoyao nearly choked on those words.
She wanted to retort, but after thinking it over, she realized she had no grounds for rebuttal.
After all, every word Ye Chutang said was perfectly logical.
In a panic, Shaoyao could only look to Ye Shixian for help.
Ye Shixian gritted her teeth so hard they could have shattered.
She never imagined Ye Chutang would pull a move like this!
Everything had been going so smoothly. She had even managed to convince many people that Ye Chutang had driven her mother to her death.
Of course Ye Chutang would deny it, but that was exactly what she had been waiting for!
As long as Ye Chutang adamantly denied it, she could use the momentum to convince everyone that Ye Chutang was lashing out in humiliated anger, thus pinning the crime firmly on her!
But—who could have predicted Ye Chutang would drag the government into this!
Ye Shixian said hatefully, "Stop trying to change the subject! You can’t escape responsibility for my mother’s death!"
"All the more reason not to let me off so easily, isn’t it?" Ye Chutang looked at her with sincere eyes, consoling her gently. "Only by asking the government to come and verify the evidence of my crime can I be thrown into the Heavenly Prison. That is the only way to truly grant you and your mother justice. What do you think?"
Ye Chutang sighed softly, a hint of pity in her eyes.
"Second Uncle was exiled to Tongguan, and Mingze is already dead. You only had Second Aunt to rely on, but now she’s gone too. If you don’t seek justice for her, who else will be there to explain why she took her own life and avenge her grievances?"
Ye Shixian went numb, all the blood rushing to her head.
"You—you—!"
She gasped for breath, her pale lips trembling violently, looking as if she might faint from rage at any moment.
How dare Ye Chutang bring that up! How dare she!
Every single one of those things was deeply connected to her! And yet she could speak of them so casually!
The onlookers gradually began to sense that something was off.
—Ye Shixian kept saying that Ye Chutang drove her mother to hang herself, but now that Ye Chutang was offering to report it to the authorities for investigation, she was hesitating to agree.
Ye Chutang waited a moment, then frowned slightly, as if confused.
"If not for that, then why have you come here now?"
As soon as she said this, the scene fell into an eerie, dead silence.
Now, even a fool could see that something was fishy.
Ye Shixian opened her mouth, but she couldn’t force the words out.
People gradually started murmuring amongst themselves.
"What’s going on here? The culprit wants to call the authorities, but the victim’s family refuses?"
"Yeah! What Ye Chutang said makes sense. A life is involved, so having the government handle it is naturally the most appropriate course of action."
"Hmph, I think she’s just bluffing! Ye Shixian brought her mother’s suicide note, written in blood! How could that be fake?!"
"Who knows if it’s real or fake? The scene Mrs. Gao made at Yunlai Tavern was half a month ago. If she was really driven to suicide out of resentment, shouldn’t it have happened back then? Why hang herself all of a sudden after so much time has passed?"
There was some sense in that.
The Capital City was vast, and countless dramatic events happened every day. In the end, they were like stones tossed into a lake—they’d create a few ripples, then the surface would quickly return to calm, leaving no trace and forgotten by all.
Ye Shixian heard these whispers as well, and her panic intensified.
She forced herself to calm down, wiped the tears from her eyes, and spoke again through sobs, "You knew my mother had just suffered the pain of her family’s ruin and the loss of her son! Yet you were still so cruel! Everyone knows you were the last straw that broke the camel’s back!"
Ye Chutang acted as if she hadn’t heard her, insisting, "So, you are still unwilling to report this to the authorities?"
Ye Shixian was struck dumb.
"Big Sis!"
The familiar voice of a young man sounded particularly clear at that moment.
Ye Chutang looked up and saw Ye Jingyan striding quickly toward them.
The crowd automatically parted to let him through.
The first thing Ye Jingyan did was look Ye Chutang over from head to toe, then he glanced at the carriage.
"I’m fine, and Xiao Wu is fine. She’s just a little frightened," Ye Chutang reassured him. "You came at the perfect time. Since they are unwilling to go, you go instead."
