Chapter 137: The Child Who Took the Fall for the Master

This little fellow, who knows where he learned it from, became instantly alert upon hearing that his father would be leaving temporarily.

“Dad, where are you going? Why can’t you take Hong’er with you? Hong’er will be good and won’t cause any trouble.”

Perhaps it was because of the incident when the Entruster wanted to swap him with the Young Master, leaving a deep shadow in the child’s heart. Now, he felt insecure, constantly worried that his father would abandon him.

“Dad is going to see off an important person tomorrow.”

“Then can you take me with you?”

“If you want to go, of course, you can.”

Xie Hui didn’t initially plan to take him because he thought the execution scene would be too bloody for a child of his age to witness. But if the child truly wanted to go, he wouldn’t stop him.

The next day, Xie Hui went to the tavern to get some meals and carried them to the execution ground.

Before the execution, these condemned prisoners had their families bring them food so they wouldn’t starve on their journey to the afterlife.

The onlookers, the crying prisoners, and their families created a noisy scene.

Xie Hui immediately spotted the man from the Entruster’s memory. He approached and saw him dressed in prison garb, visibly aged by at least a decade, kneeling there with vacant eyes, awaiting execution.

It wasn’t until Xie Hui stood before him that the man snapped back to reality.

In prison, he had already seen his son and never expected to see Xie Hui again.

“Xie Hui! How dare you show your face here! What did you promise me back then? If I had known you were this kind of person, I would never have entrusted you with this matter!”

“When I saved you with that bowl of rice, even a dog would wag its tail in gratitude.”

Xie Hui listened to his harsh insults without changing his expression, placing the food in front of the man one by one.

“Back then, I owed you a meal, and today I repay it with this last meal.”

“For any other task you asked of me, I would have done it flawlessly.”

“But you cared for your son. Do you think I don’t care for mine? He’s so young; how could I bear to send him to the executioner’s block?”

The little one standing nearby, unhappy with the man’s harsh words about his father, felt his face flush upon hearing his father’s words.

He never knew he was so important in his father’s heart, even more so than the esteemed man his father valued so highly.

Lord Wang, now a man about to lose his head, spoke without restraint, glaring fiercely at Xie Hui:

“How can your son compare to mine! Your son is destined to be nothing more than a servant!”

Xie Hui knew the man was angry and didn’t take it to heart, pushing the food forward.

“No matter what, my son is the most important to me.”

“I’m sorry to have disappointed you. Please eat this meal and be on your way.”

Lord Wang, infuriated by Xie Hui’s words, refused to compromise and didn’t touch a single grain of rice.

After delivering the meal, Xie Hui took his son and turned to leave, mingling with the crowd. During the execution, he covered his son’s eyes with his hand.

Without Xie Hong as a scapegoat, Wang Song met the same fate as his father, dying on the execution ground.

In these times, they believed in eradicating the roots, and even though Wang Song was just a child, he couldn’t escape.

Lord Wang should have considered the consequences when he made his decision.

On the way back, Xie Hui began to think about their future. He was quite fond of their small house and didn’t want to leave.

Xie Hong, seeing his father silent and lost in thought, hugged his father’s arm tightly.

He had often heard his father speak of how important that man was to him. If it weren’t for that man’s bowl of rice when his father was starving, neither he nor his father would be here today.

As they passed a small shop, Xie Hui overheard the tavern staff chatting while working, mentioning that their accountant had returned home recently, leaving the tavern’s accounts in disarray.

Hearing this, Xie Hui led his son inside and politely inquired:

“I heard you need an accountant here? Are you looking to hire one?”

The Entruster had spent half his life as a steward, managing the accounts of a large household. He could organize even the most chaotic ledgers.

The tavern boss, who had been napping inside, yawned and came out upon hearing this.

Since the previous accountant left, they hadn’t found a suitable replacement, and the boss was exhausted from dealing with the accounts, constantly scolded by his wife.

“Yes, we do need one, but… we’ll have to see your skills first. How about trying it out for a day?”

“Alright.”

After settling his child, the boss brought out an old table for Xie Hui. As business picked up, the boss sneaked a peek and was satisfied with Xie Hui’s neat handwriting.

Xie Hong stayed quietly by the side, curiously watching the comings and goings of the customers.

When they left that evening, the boss told Xie Hui to come back the next day.

On the way home that night, Xie Hong’s steps were light and cheerful.

“Dad, I like that boss.”

“Hmm?”

Children often have sharper instincts than adults, but Xie Hui was curious why, after such a short time, his son would say he liked someone. Being too trusting wasn’t a good thing.

“That boss treats you well, not like that man…”

Xie Hong, without any defenses, smiled as he explained his reason.

After thinking it over, Xie Hui realized the kid was right.

No matter how well the man spoke of him, his attitude towards the Entruster was always dismissive and condescending, seeing him merely as a servant.

But today’s tavern boss was a true employer.

Before leaving the tavern, to reassure the boss, Xie Hui mentioned that his son wouldn’t be with him for long. By next spring, he planned to send him to school.

“But the tavern boss doesn’t pay as much as that man did.”

Listening to his father’s words, Xie Hong thought seriously before responding:

“Then you can earn less for now. When I grow up, I’ll earn lots of money and give it all to you.”

The child’s tender voice, earnest tone, and hopeful eyes for the future lifted the spirits of anyone who heard him.

“Then I’ll be waiting.”

While preparing dinner, Xie Hui thought that once he settled into his job as an accountant at the tavern, he should hire an old woman to help with household chores.

It wasn’t that he was unwilling to do them himself; he just found it hard to manage everything alone.

With the Entruster’s skills, there were countless ways to live well after leaving that household. From Xie Hui’s perspective, the Entruster was a business genius.

Many of the shops that were on the verge of closing under that man’s household thrived under his management.

But in the Entruster’s world, he feared people discovering the truth about swapping his son with the other child and feared others realizing Wang Song’s true identity, so he continued doing what he wasn’t good at.

He even claimed he was illiterate to avoid attention.

“Dad, look, did my handwriting improve today?”

Before Xie Hui could dwell too long in his thoughts, the child’s voice rang in his ears. He stood up to take a look.

Before Xie Hong could reach his father, he tripped over the doorstep and fell, sprawling on the ground, dazed, with wide eyes. It wasn’t until his father helped him up that tears began to fall.

“Dad, it hurts…”

Xie Hui took a handkerchief and wiped the dust from his face.

The little fellow, probably worn down by the hardships at the manor, looked rough for a child of four or five.

Despite having been cared for, he hadn’t changed much. When he cried, he looked even worse, but Xie Hui didn’t mind.

“Boo hoo, Dad, it really hurts, really hurts.”

Xie Hui heard his words and cleared his throat gently, soothingly rubbing the little one’s head.

“Woo…”

As soon as he touched him, the little guy’s tears started to well up again. But because it was his father, he didn’t dare to pull away. With tears in his eyes, he just stared at his father.

After rubbing his head, Xie Hui wiped away his tears. Seeing that he was about to cry again, he quickly asked, “What was Hong’er trying to show Daddy just now?”

Before the tears could spill over, Xie Hong was successfully distracted by his father’s words. He pointed to the piece of paper that had fallen to the ground and, after a sniffle of grievance, replied, “Daddy, look, has Hong’er’s writing improved?”

The strokes were still crooked, but at least it was recognizable as writing.

Xie Hui looked down into his expectant eyes and noticed the tear stains that hadn’t yet dried at the corners. Clearing his throat, he answered, against his better judgment, “Yes, Hong’er’s writing looks pretty good now.”

After being praised by his father, Xie Hong was practically floating. When his father asked him to help light the candle, he ran over without a second thought.

Once Xie Hong left, Xie Hui carefully put away the paper with his practice writing. Then he turned to prepare dinner.