Chapter 172: Is Irene the Eighth Miss of the Norman Family?

The village chief's wife regretted trusting Mag so easily. However, seeing the state of the mayor's son, she felt that her own son was relatively lucky. So what if his leg was broken? At least he was still conscious, unlike the mayor's son, who had become mentally impaired. What the village chief's wife didn’t know was that Sol was already dead. Just a few minutes after Irene had kicked him out of the car and he made that phone call, Stefan received the news. While still on the helicopter, Stefan had casually told Harper, "Clean it up." After a brief acknowledgment, Harper used the radio to relay the order to the team waiting in the town. Sol was then dragged into the deep forest. The area around the town was full of forests where wild animals roamed, so a missing person or a death was a common occurrence. The old leader watching this was trembling with fear. In his early years, he hadn’t engaged in corruption, and later, when he worked in the municipal government, he didn’t accept bribes. But he remembered that the mayor had given him gifts worth millions. Back then, the old leader hadn’t thought much of it. Since it was a gesture of respect from a student, he accepted it without question. Who would have thought it was all bought with embezzled money? If he had known, he would never have accepted it! Stefan glanced at the old leader with cold, piercing eyes. "Is this the good leader you mentored? The person you endorsed?" The old leader wished he could travel back decades and slap himself for having recommended such a person! He should have just followed the proper procedures! Now look at what’s happened! The old leader forced a smile. "It’s all a misunderstanding. I didn’t know about any of this back then." Stefan interrupted him. "You didn’t know? Over ten years ago, there was an investigative journalist who came to this town. I clearly remember that you awarded this mayor a 'Servant of the People' title." As the old leader’s face grew paler, Stefan continued, "And what was the reason? Most of the couples in town were introduced by the mayor, right?" "You’ve really been busy, haven’t you? I’m sure you’ve received quite a few accolades from your superiors and made up a few projects to get more funding, haven’t you?" The old leader’s legs went weak. He nearly collapsed to his knees! How did this man know about these things? The mayor had told him the journalist had been dealt with! How did this information get out? It couldn’t be! Wait, he understood now! The old leader gritted his teeth in anger. It was all the mayor's doing! The mayor must have kept this information to blackmail him later, to use it as leverage! Looking at the expressionless soldiers and Stefan, the old leader realized that if he didn’t confess now, things would be much worse than just going to prison! He knew how the Cook family operated! If he got involved and didn’t implicate the Cook family, he might be safe. But if he did, he wouldn’t even know how he died! He had to save himself! Counting on the Cook family to save him was unrealistic! A few soldiers approached Stefan, asking, "Sir, should we take him in now?" Seeing Stefan casually nod, the old leader panicked and shouted, "No! I can redeem myself! I can help you find people!" Seeing Irene turn back to look at him and even the feverish man in the car glance his way, the old leader knew he had a chance. He immediately shouted, "Let me ask them! They’ll talk if I do!" Irene added, "If you really have so much influence, then why did those people listen to that bastard and not you?" The old leader’s face turned purple. Irene's words hit him where it hurt the most. The old leader struggled to keep down the bitter taste rising in his throat and said, "They listen to the mayor, and the mayor listens to me! If I go, I’m sure I can help you!" Irene and Stefan exchanged a look. Seeing their interest, the old leader quickly added, "But I have one condition: I want my prison sentence to be no more than five years!" Itha coldly said, "You’re the one asking us for help, aren’t you?" The old leader immediately fell silent. Assistant Barton, furious, said, "Oh, really? I asked you so many times before, and you didn’t say a word!" Itha's gaze grew even colder. The old leader forced a bitter smile, looking pitiful. "Assistant Barton, it’s not that I didn’t want to help, but I needed something to protect myself!" "You’ve seen the people in this town." "Decades ago, how did that selfless, kind pastor die? He was murdered by the residents of this town! Dealing with these people, someone like me is especially important to you!" "Otherwise, no matter how much you ask, you won’t get anything out of them!" Itha clenched his jaw, his hand gripping his gun so tightly that the veins on his hand bulged. "If you dare deceive the Norman family again, I swear, even if I’m no longer a soldier, I’ll personally make you experience the utmost pain!" The old leader trembled. If not for the soldiers holding him up, he would have collapsed to the ground. Even his words became more cautious. "Third Young Master, I swear on my entire family’s lives that if the girl you’re looking for was trafficked through this town, they’ll know where she is!" Hearing this, Irene opened her mouth slightly but swallowed her words. Assistant Barton, filled with both hope and unease, looked at Irene. He desperately hoped that the parents in Irene’s livestream weren’t her biological parents. If that were the case, Irene might indeed be the long-lost Eighth Miss! The timeline matched up, and Irene bore a striking resemblance to the Norman family members. The same chestnut hair, honey-brown eyes, high nose bridge, large eyes, and pale, cool-toned skin. Irene glanced at Barton. She didn’t need to hear him speak to know what he was thinking. Irene rarely frowned but did so now. "To be honest, according to that couple’s story, I was switched at birth, not trafficked." Barton was slightly disappointed. There was one thing Irene didn’t mention. Although the couple had said that, they were not known for their honesty. Irene had previously seen the young lady the Norman family had raised. She was eerie, silent, hiding her eyes behind heavy bangs, with only her face being beautiful. Irene had heard that the Norman family kept her partly out of respect for the eldest young master’s wife. Another reason was that the Norman family members believed that if the missing Eighth Miss had grown up, she would look just like that girl. This whole situation was starting to feel like something out of a "substitute" novel.