Ye Chen cupped his hands toward Steward Gao.
Though he already knew what had happened, he couldn't exactly be the one to say it out loud. What would that even accomplish?
"Oh, it went like this. Our Gao Laozhuang used to be quite a prosperous village. The people lived in harmony, and everyone led a happy, peaceful life. It was nothing like the scene you see now.
"A few years ago, a young man came to the village. He even saved my youngest daughter's life in the mountains. When I learned he'd fled here to escape disaster, I took pity on him and kindly gave him a place to stay. The man was incredibly strong. Every day, he chopped wood and hauled water for our household, and never once complained of being tired.
"But he ate an astonishing amount at every meal. At first, I was surprised, but after seeing how much work he did, I came around. He worked so hard, after all, so what was the harm in letting him eat a little more? The young man stayed with us for over a year. My daughter wasn't seeing anyone, and the two of them gradually grew close. I could tell he had some interest in her, so I decided to have him marry into the Gao family. That would settle my daughter's future and give us another pair of hands around the house for next to nothing. The more I thought about it, the better the deal seemed—and my daughter had taken a liking to the strapping young man, too.
"So we came to an agreement. The young man, Zhu Ganglie, married my daughter and joined the Gao family. It should have been a happy arrangement for everyone, but good times never last. Two years later, I noticed