As she spoke, Cheng Shanshan pointed to her face and said with a smile, "Look at my face, everything's fine now, isn't it?"

Madam Bai examined her face and indeed, there was no trace of the previous mark. However, she still couldn't hide her worry: "It's good that you're alright. Mother is just worried about what will happen in three days..."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything."

As she spoke, Cheng Shanshan finished the bowl of porridge. To reassure Bai Shi, she leaned closer and whispered, "Brother Huo came last night and said he could help me."

Upon hearing that Huo Mingchen could help, Madam Bai was overjoyed: "Really?"

"Of course it's true, how could I lie to you, Mother?" Cheng Shanshan assured her with a smile. "So, Mother, you can rest assured, this matter is all over now."

Bai was still a little worried: "But..."

"Alright, alright."

Cheng Shanshan immediately interrupted Bai Shi.

After a long period of reassurance, he finally took two cornbread pieces and went out.

It's understandable that Madam Bai was worried about this matter, since she had only used a self-inflicted injury to temporarily escape the disaster yesterday, and she would still have to face it in three days.

She was so confident because she knew that even if she married into the Chu family, the old man wouldn't live for more than a few days. She also knew Lin Sheng's greedy nature, and if he took the bait, she might be able to kill two birds with one stone by taking this opportunity.

She didn't notice that the moment she stepped out the door, someone entered the dilapidated house and found Bai Shi...

...

Inside Lin'an City.

After giving Lin Sheng five hundred taels of silver, Cheng Shanshan had one hundred and fifty taels of silver left in her hand.

Fortunately, she had bought almost everything she needed. This time, she bought inexpensive items such as cabbage, rapeseed, radish, scallion, cilantro, Malabar spinach, and various fast-growing and easy-to-survive seeds. All of these were very cheap, and the amount she could plant on dozens of acres of land cost only ten taels of silver.

After buying the medicine, she went to the herbal medicine shop and bought some common medicines that could treat colds and stop diarrhea, spending sixty taels of silver.

Before leaving, she passed by a cosmetics shop and thought that she might be able to sell these for a high price in the future, so she bought some for twenty taels of silver. After this series of purchases, she only had sixty taels left. However, as the number of items gradually increased, she also had an unprecedented sense of security.

When she returned to the door of the dilapidated house in a cheerful mood, she was surprised to find Lin Sheng waiting for her.

When Lin Sheng saw her, he looked her over anxiously and said, "Shanshan, where have you been? I've been so worried about you all day!"

"Speak your mind."

Cheng Shanshan had no intention of wasting time with this guy.

Lin Sheng wasn't angry after being rebuked. Instead, he sighed and said, "I heard about what happened yesterday, but it just so happens that I wasn't there. I know you're blaming me." As he said this, he put on a sincere expression: "But don't worry, I've already spoken to the magistrate."

Cheng Shanshan raised an eyebrow slightly: "Really?"

Lin Sheng: "Yes, the court hearing the day after tomorrow is just a formality."

Having witnessed Bai Jingquan's unyielding nature, Cheng Shanshan had already shown her leniency by giving him some time this time, clearly indicating that she did not believe Lin Sheng's words.

However, she didn't show it on her face, and continued to ask: "No matter what, Old Man Chu has the contract in his hand, can the magistrate use his position for personal gain?"

“This should be called helping the weak and punishing the strong, after all, that old man Chu was really too much and disgusting.” Lin Sheng glanced around before continuing, “However, more people know about what happened yesterday, so we still need to make some arrangements.”

Upon hearing this, Cheng Shanshan...

So this is where we get to the point.

Then he gave Lin Sheng a meaningful look and asked, "How much more do you want?"

Lin Sheng: "This time it won't be much, fifty taels will do."

Upon hearing the amount, Cheng Shanshan looked troubled. Seeing this, Lin Sheng sighed heavily: "It's all my fault for being incompetent. I could have done the job for you directly without that much money. Why make you worry like this?"

"..."

Cheng Shanshan didn't say anything.

After all, she was afraid that if she spoke, she would feel disgusted by Lin Sheng and vomit.

She had previously worried that Lin Sheng would not take any further action, but now she realized that her concerns were completely unnecessary. How could such a greedy, blood-sucking leech ever know satisfaction?

That's exactly what she wanted.

After all, fish are caught and brought ashore because they are greedy.

So she did not refuse Lin Sheng, but instead asked him for some time to prepare, just like last time, and handed over the money to him on the second day.

When Lin Sheng saw the silver, his eyes lit up: "Shanshan, don't worry, as long as you mention our engagement tomorrow, I'll come out as a witness and guarantee you'll be safe."

Cheng Shanshan narrowed her eyes slightly: "You said it yourself. After all, I gave you five hundred taels of silver before, and now I'm giving you another fifty taels. All I want is to buy freedom with five hundred and fifty taels of silver."

"Don't worry, don't worry."

Lin Sheng confidently assured him, "In tomorrow's court hearing, the magistrate will not give Old Man Chu a chance to speak at all."

"good."

Cheng Shanshan responded.

Having received a satisfactory answer, they left immediately.

Three days have passed in the blink of an eye.

Cheng Shanshan and Bai Shi arrived at the yamen early to wait.

Meanwhile, a lot of people who came to watch the gossip gathered. Looking at Cheng Shanshan's beautiful appearance and then at Old Man Chu's lewdness, they couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh, expressing their sympathy for Cheng Shanshan.

The one who suffered the most was Bai Shi. She forced herself not to cry, and Cheng Shanshan, who was next to her, could only hold her hand and support her with an invisible force.

After the gavel struck, Bai Jingquan officially began the trial of the case.

He looked at Old Man Chu and Cheng Shanshan kneeling on the ground, his eyes filled with a strong sense of authority.

Old Man Chu was the first to speak: "Your Excellency, I acted impulsively a few days ago. I apologize to the Cheng family girl here. However, this matter should be handled separately. Your Excellency has the contract I submitted. That written agreement is evidence wherever it is written. I hope Your Excellency can uphold justice for this humble subject!"

His impeccable speech was clearly something he had been taught, and after he finished speaking, he kowtowed heavily on the ground.

Bai Jingquan glanced at Old Man Chu before asking Cheng Shanshan, "Daughter Cheng, do you have any rebuttals to the original owner's accusations?"

"Of course."

Cheng Shanshan remained composed and dignified: "The contract was signed to arrange a ghost marriage. Firstly, the law prohibits such evil practices, and secondly, I already had a marriage contract."

These words caused Bai Jingquan's expression to darken slightly: "Who are you engaged to?"