Witty Wife, Better Life-Chapter 829 - 819 Old Lady

Li Hongjun shook his head expressionlessly.

In fact, when he listened to his younger brother making the phone call and saw his face darkening bit by bit, he had already anticipated this outcome. But when he actually saw his younger brother shake his head, he immediately sat down on a chair and began to wipe his tears away. "How could this happen, how could this happen? Our mother didn’t do anything, how could this happen?"

Officer Zhang, seeing the devastated look on the two brothers’ faces, couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. He sighed and said, "Let me be honest with you, the crackdown is very severe now, it’s been over a year, and regardless of the type of case, once a sentence is handed down, it’s never changed, so don’t waste your energy anymore. My advice for you now is to go see the old lady and find out if she has any last wishes."

Both brothers looked grim. To be honest, neither of them wanted to visit Qiu Shuping; in such circumstances, anyone would want to avoid it.

Nonetheless, Li Hongjun summoned his spirit and thanked Officer Zhang, "Thank you, Officer Zhang. Can we see our mother now?" Regardless of their reluctance, this visit was inevitable.

Thus, the brothers followed Officer Zhang to the detention center and, after multiple layers of checks, finally saw the disheveled Qiu Shuping.

"You two bastards, you still know to come? Are you here to see whether I’m dead or not? Let me tell you, no one is going to see me make a fool of myself. I’m still in good health, and I will surely outlive both of you," Qiu Shuping, who had endured a harrowing week in the detention center, had gone from being scared to desperate, then to regretful, and now she was frantic. She lashed out at anyone she saw, venting the panic and unrest inside her.

Seeing his mother in this state and considering his elderly mother facing execution, Li Hongxing couldn’t control his sobs and began crying.

Li Hongjun’s eyes also reddened. No matter how biased or difficult his mother had been, he had never thought she would one day be sentenced to death. If it were about arson or murder, it would have been another story, but to receive such a harsh punishment just for setting someone’s firewood stack alight was something he couldn’t accept at the moment.

"What are you crying for? I’m not dead yet," Qiu Shuping said, seeing both of her sons crying, which made her even more panicked. Yet, she still pretended to be tough, her eyes wide open as if ready to pick a fight.

"Mum, why has it come to this?" Li Hongxing couldn’t hold back anymore and cried out to his mother.

"Why are you crying?" Qiu Shuping’s voice trembled as she asked. She had a bad feeling, but she also thought she hadn’t committed a serious crime. It was just setting a firewood stack ablaze, something that could be settled by paying a fine. She was out of money, but her younger son had just come back, and he had money. He wouldn’t let her suffer, she would definitely be alright in the end. Qiu Shuping continuously reassured herself.

"Mum, you’ve been sentenced to death. You’re going to be executed," Li Hongxing cried out the truth.

Li Hongjun, who was next to him, tried to stop him but couldn’t.

"What?" Qiu Shuping was stunned. Her eyes shifted to her younger son, who had difficulty nodding his head, and it felt like a bomb had gone off in her head.

"I’ve been sentenced to death? How is that possible? You must be lying to me. I was just feeling wronged and wanted to scare that woman by setting fire to her firewood, she cheated my family’s money and seduced my husband. How could it be wrong for me to scare her a bit? When she, a vixen, got away with it all, how could I be sentenced to death? I refuse to accept this, I want to appeal. My son is a capable officer, and he can take on anyone who dares to bully me. You think you can scare me? There’s no way. I’ll go complain to the city authorities, no, I’ll go to the provincial capital... to the Capital. I’ve been to the Capital, I’m not some ignorant old woman, don’t think you can deceive me," Qiu Shuping rambled on, repeating these points over and over.

"Mom, Mom, what should we do?" Li Hongxing cried, snot and tears streaming down his face. Thinking about how Mom had raised him from infancy, attending to his every need, he felt utterly unfilial.

"Brother, stop crying, crying won’t help now." Li Hongjun saw that Qiu Shuping was already scared, and he feared that if his elder brother continued like this, it would lead to his mother’s mental collapse. He hurriedly pulled Li Hongxing away to stop him from crying.

Qiu Shuping seemed to realize that her younger son was there too, stopped her nagging abruptly, and lunged forward to grab the corner of Li Hongjun’s clothes across the table, "Hongjun, Hongjun, your brother is just joking with me, right? There’s nothing serious with mom, it’s just about paying some money, right? Although Mom doesn’t have any money now, you can cover for me first. When your brother gets out, he will make it big and definitely be able to pay you back. Or we can deduct it from the retirement money you provide for your dad and me. Sob, Hongjun, Mom regrets everything. I don’t want to stay here; I want to go home." In the end, Qiu Shuping broke down.

Li Hongjun, moved by his mother’s words, had tears streaming down his face, "Mom, it’s not that I won’t help you; your son has money, your daughter-in-law has money, but, but...." He couldn’t continue and just turned his head away, unable to bear seeing his mother looking so forlorn and helpless.

"What do you mean?" Qiu Shuping slowly released her grip on her son’s hand and asked cautiously.

Officer Zhang, who had been standing by the whole time, felt uncomfortable too. Seeing that both sons had fallen silent under their mother’s questioning, he stepped forward, "Old lady, according to national law, you have committed arson and premeditated murder, so, so the verdict is coming soon—it’s going to be the death sentence." It was indeed harsh to tell an old lady such news, but it was a cruel necessity.

Qiu Shuping collapsed with a thud.

What followed was a bustle of activity; someone came in and carried her out for emergency treatment, and Li Hongxing and his brother were also asked to leave.

"Hongjun, what should we do? Are we just going to watch our mother go like this?" Li Hongxing, having never been one to take initiative, could only ask his younger brother for advice in this situation.

Li Hongjun wiped his face, "Big Brother, this is a verdict handed down by the state, it’s not something we can change." He truly felt powerless about the situation, but he couldn’t just stand by and watch his mother be sentenced to death. He had already spoken to a comrade over the phone, promising to spare no expense just to save their mother’s life. That was all he could hope for now.

He turned back to look at the detention center, "Let’s go home first; we also need to inform Dad about this."

The two brothers returned to Taoshu Village, dispirited. The old Li Family home was still empty without any sign of Old Li. Li Hongjun clenched his jaw in frustration, unable to believe that his upright father could be so heartless.

With his lifelong companion in dire straits, he remained indifferent. Instead of visiting her or showing some concern, he spent his days visiting his enemies, clearly showcasing his change of heart.

Li Hongjun turned and headed to the Xue Family’s house; Li Hongxing knew his brother’s intentions and followed closely behind.

The Xue Family’s door was unlocked, and the brothers walked in as they pushed open the door.

Old Li was sitting in the courtyard with a small stool, busy repairing something. Hearing noise at the gate, he looked up and saw, to his surprise, it was his two sons.

Clang! The stool slipped from his hands, "Hongjun, you’re back," Old Li said, standing up somewhat uneasily.