Every deed leaves a trace.
No matter how skilled a thief, they cannot escape this law!
Shi Zhenxiang, who considered himself cunning, was in fact hoist by his own petard.
Had Shi Zhenxiang used oiled paper to wrap the poison powder earlier, he could have simply discarded it and claimed it wasn't his. No one would have been able to convict him.
But Shi Zhenxiang insisted on hiding the poison powder under his fingernails.
And now, both witness and evidence are present.
Even if the Shi family wanted to argue, they couldn't.
After all, Zhou Yu had done all this in full view of everyone!
If the Shi family forcibly protected Shi Zhenxiang, would they still care about their reputation?
Shi Zhenxiang, a cripple whose dantian had been crippled, was clearly less important than their reputation. The Shi family knew this well.
Therefore, everyone instinctively stepped back, looking towards Old Master Xie.
They wanted to hear what fate awaited Shi Zhenxiang!
"You villain, Shi Zhenxiang! I let you off last time, and you're still not giving up?"
"Speak, who ordered you to attempt to murder this old man, again and again!"
Old Master Xie bellowed, his face contorted with rage.
His words subtly implied Shi Zhenxiang was implicating the Shi family.
The two families harbored a long-standing animosity.
It was time to settle this!
If Shi Zhenxiang implicated the Shi family at this juncture, the Xie family would be on the side of justice.
And they would have grounds to condemn the Shi family!
Shi Zhenxiang, however, had also caught Old Master Xie's hint.
He knew that if he implicated the Shi family now, Old Master Xie would likely show leniency and not make things difficult for him.
But...
Shi Zhenxiang glanced at the darkened face of the Shi family head not far away.
He dared not speak!
Shi Zhenxiang was already advanced in years, with a wife and children.
Currently, his entire family was in the Shi family head's grasp.
Even his parents had long since been taken to the Shi family's ancestral home.
If he spoke now, he might be freed, but what about his family?
Thus, Shi Zhenxiang closed his eyes and said to Old Master Xie, "No one ordered me. It's all because your Xie family bullied me too much!"
Old Master Xie chuckled in exasperation.
He had long anticipated that Shi Zhenxiang would refuse to implicate the Shi family.
After all, Shi Zhenxiang was merely a collateral member of the Shi family, who had risen through significant investment of resources.
How could the Shi family head not hold his weaknesses?
What surprised Old Master Xie was.
That Shi Zhenxiang, even in such a predicament, still dared to shift the blame!
Was he tired of dying an ignominious death!
"Then tell me, how has the Xie family wronged you," Old Master Xie asked with feigned composure.
Shi Zhenxiang, of course, couldn't think of anything immediately.
After a long pause, his face flushed as he finally stammered.
"I came with good intentions to treat your illness, but you smeared me with filth, accusing me of trying to harm someone. Not only that!"
"You even crippled my dantian, turning me into a cripple!"
"Xie, you deserve what's coming to you!"
As he spoke, Shi Zhenxiang increasingly felt he was in the right.
He had indeed come to take Old Master Xie's life.
But so what?
He was merely a tool, invited by the second master of the Xie family!
Yet the Xie family had been so ruthless as to cripple his dantian.
Had his dantian not been crippled, he wouldn't have been forced to this point!
Seeing Shi Zhenxiang about to further twist the facts,
Xie Yu was the first to lose her patience.
She directly stepped forward and scoffed at Shi Zhenxiang.
"When we invited you to treat Grandpa, we paid you an advance fee and even laid out all sorts of precious herbs for you to choose from!"
"I also said that as long as you cured Grandpa, whatever you wanted, the Xie family would do our utmost to provide!"
"But you harbored malicious intent and were driven out, yet you have the audacity to hold a grudge?"
"Grandpa, there's no need to waste words on such a petty man. Beating him to death with a stick wouldn't be an injustice!"
Regardless of anything else.
Shi Zhenxiang's attempt to poison Old Master Xie was a public affair.
As for the grievances Shi Zhenxiang spoke of, they were known only to the heavens and earth, and between him and the Xie family.
There was no way to verify them.
Therefore, even if the Xie family directly beat Shi Zhenxiang to death, the Shi family wouldn't dare utter a single word of protest!
Old Master Xie looked deeply at Shi Zhenxiang.
Then, he turned his gaze to the Shi family head and asked, "Does the Shi family have anything to say?"
The Shi family head's face was grim.
He had never imagined that Shi Zhenxiang would fail even such a simple scheme!
He even resented Shi Zhenxiang for his incompetence!
If earlier,
Shi Zhenxiang had forced Old Master Xie to drink the poison, where would Zhou Yu be now?
But matters had reached this point.
The Shi family head knew he could only sacrifice a pawn to save the king.
Thus, the Shi family head cupped his hands towards Old Master Xie and said through gritted teeth, "Old Master, this matter is solely the doing of Shi Zhenxiang. None of the other members of our Shi family were aware of it!"
"The person is yours to deal with; we have no objections!"
"Tomorrow, the Shi family will personally send gifts and call upon you to offer our apologies!"
These words were spoken eloquently.
The Shi family head had completely absolved himself, and was even offering to apologize and present gifts to Old Master Xie.
Anyone hearing this would have praised his magnanimity!
Old Master Xie chuckled, knowing it was impossible to steer the conversation towards the Shi family.
He decided to let it go for now.
"Since the Shi family head has spoken so, Xie Yu, take Shi Zhenxiang away and we will deal with him later!"
Xie Yu's expression was displeased, and she stared at the Shi family head for a long moment.
Only then did she obey Old Master Xie's command and take Shi Zhenxiang away.
Just as everyone thought the matter was settled,
And the revelry was about to resume.
At the back entrance of the Xie family's old mansion, two figures were stealthily hiding behind a wall.
"It's fine to bring me here, right?"
"There are many people at the banquet. If someone goes missing, they might notice!"
Shi Lifeng said impatiently.
Beside Shi Lifeng was none other than the second uncle of the Xie family.
However, the second uncle of the Xie family now looked utterly disheveled.
His clothes barely covered him, a far cry from his previous high-end custom suits.
His face and arms bore whip marks.
He didn't respond to Shi Lifeng, but instead looked up at the grandeur of the Xie family's old mansion, his heart filled with emotion!
He had once been the second master of the Xie family.
He had unrestricted access to every corner of the Xie family's old mansion!
And now.
He needed Madam Zhang to lead him in...
As the second uncle of the Xie family reminisced, a flicker of hatred flashed in his eyes.
It was all Zhou Yu's fault.
Or rather, the entire Xie family was at fault!
He had merely wanted the position of family head.
Just like he had wanted shares and sports cars in the past, why couldn't they just give it to him directly?
Why did they have to force him to fight for it!
And when he couldn't win, he was driven out of the family, reduced to this pathetic state!
Today, he would surely make the Xie family members suffer!
While the second uncle of the Xie family was lost in reminiscence, Shi Lifeng was growing anxious.
Only a few people from the Shi family had come.
If she were absent for too long, it would attract undue attention.
So, she had to return quickly.