Xinbao was completely baffled.

Pastries are nothing compared to his master.

“Selling pastries is secondary. If the shop really closes down, and the Wang family comes and makes a scene, saying the pastries are poisoned, and you happen to be not opening the shop, wouldn't that confirm the matter? People will then say you have a guilty conscience. Alright, listen to me, I will handle your master's matter, you don't need to worry. At the latest, I will rescue him in three days. Watch your expression, don't arouse the customers' suspicion, just act as usual. If anyone asks, just say Brother Deng has gone on a long trip. You must not tell anyone else that he was arrested, understand?”

Xinbao nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

He got off the carriage.

Open the shop door.

I tidied up the pastries that were delivered the night before, preparing for the business opening later.

Yan Xia drove the carriage to her own house, handed it over to Qian Lin, and asked them to deliver the pastries to Deng Qiuzhi's shop before heading straight to the county government office.

"Sir, I would like to see Manager Deng Qiuzhi. May I ask if you may allow me to pass?"

Yan Xia took out a purse from her sleeve, inside which were five taels of silver.

The head constable took the purse and squeezed it.

The smile in his eyes deepened.

He glanced at Yan Xia's clothes and figured she must be rich and noble, and so sensible. So he said to Yan Xia, "You can't just walk into the jail whenever you want. But since you're sensible, I'll only give you a quarter of an hour. Go and come back quickly. Xiao Qi, take this lady to see Manager Deng."

"Yes, elder brother."

The official named Xiao Qi immediately stood up from his chair.

He brushed past Xie Yan'an, the head of the constables.

A whisper reached his ears.

"Remember, stand aside and listen, and don't leave!"

Xiao Qi nodded. "Madam, please come with me."

Yan Xia's eyes flickered slightly.

She followed in Xiaoqi's footsteps.

The prison was located underground beneath the government building.

It's similar to a basement; you need to climb dozens of steps to get down.

At this moment, only Yan Xia and Xiao Qi were on the steps.

She spoke softly as she walked. “Sir, I have urgent business with Manager Deng. Otherwise, I, a woman, wouldn’t have risked coming to the prison to see him. But this is a private matter and cannot be overheard by others. Could you please do me this favor?”

Xiao Qi stopped and turned around angrily, intending to curse, but someone handed him a hard object.

He looked down.

It is a silver ingot.

I weighed it in my hand; it was at least five ounces.

The words he was about to say were immediately swallowed back.

This caused his saliva to block his throat, leading to a violent cough.

"Cough cough cough, cough cough, since you've said so, I'll wait for you at the door. I'll be there in a quarter of an hour at the latest. If I stay any longer, my brother will blame me. Here, go in. The person you're looking for is in the third cell on the right."

Xiao Qi is Xie Yan'an's cousin; he just arrived at the county government last month.

His family was poor, so he could only be an obedient follower behind Xie Yan'an. Even now, he wasn't a formal official; in modern terms, he was at best an intern.

Five taels of silver was equivalent to four or five months' worth of expenses for their family.

Xiao Qi naturally couldn't resist the temptation. As for his cousin's instructions, he had long forgotten them. He walked to the door and pointed inside.

Let Yan Xia go in by herself.

The cells had no windows, and prisoners ate, drank, and relieved themselves inside, so you can imagine how dangerous the smells inside were.

This was Yan Xia's first time in such a place. She had no idea what was going on. As soon as she stepped into the cell, a pungent, irritating smell assaulted her senses. It was sour and foul, even worse than a manure pit in a field.

Especially now that it's summer, the smell is like it's been fermented.

The sting was so intense that she couldn't open her eyes.

Yan Xia covered her mouth and nose, and stopped counting to the third room.

"Brother Deng?"

To save money, no oil lamps were lit in the cell, so it was very dark. The only light was the faint sunlight shining in through the doorway.

Yan Xia tentatively asked inside.

"Is this Manager Yan?" Deng Qiuzhi's voice was filled with doubt and uncertainty.

He walked over slowly, and only became agitated when he saw Yan Xia's face. "Manager Yan, what brings you here! Get out of here, the prison is filthy..."

"Stop, time is running out. Let's not talk about anything else. I came here specifically to save you. Tell me everything you know."

Yan Xia interrupted him.

"It was the Wang family, the Wang family ruined me!! The night before last, I was about to go home after dinner when four or five constables arrested me, saying that the flower cakes I sold were poisoned. Not long after, four members of the Wang family arrived and gave me three choices: one, to stay with Shufang and pretend the divorce never happened; two, to compensate their family with a thousand taels of silver; three, to stay in jail forever and never get out. I was wondering where they got the audacity to say that, since they were all standing properly in front of me, not looking like they were poisoned at all. It turns out that Guangyao knew the head constable, and he bribed the constable with silver, which is why they did things for him!"

“I was beaten so badly yesterday! Look at my arms, there's not a single good muscle left. That head constable whipped me with a barbed whip, my clothes are all torn to shreds. He even said that the Wang family specifically sent him to deal with me. I must have been blind to marry the Wang family's daughter. Father, you've ruined my life!”

Deng Qiuzhi's pent-up emotions, which he had been holding back for almost two days, finally broke down.

He knelt on the ground and cried bitterly.

"Alright, stop howling. If you keep howling like this, you'll bring the officials here. Think back, what other details are there? Are you sure they weren't poisoned?" If she listened to him cry any longer, a quarter of an hour would be gone, so Yan Xia quickly interrupted him.

"Waaah, no, they're all perfectly fine standing in front of me, looking even more energetic than me! If they were poisoned, I'd be in my grave by now! These bitches, they'll all suffer a terrible death! Divorcing her was the best thing I ever did! No, I should have divorced her! You slut, you slut—"

Deng Qiuzhi became agitated again. How could he feel good about being betrayed by the mother of his child with whom he had shared a bed for so many years?

"I understand. I'll get you out of here. Stop yelling. It's time for me to go. Here's ten taels of silver, just in case. And here are two meat buns. Eat them quickly. You probably won't be able to eat the prison food. Just endure it for another two or three days, and you'll be out. I didn't expect you to be injured this time, so I didn't prepare any ointment beforehand. I'll take you to the clinic when you get out. I'm leaving now. Don't try to be clever with your words. When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Remember, be gentle and say nice things to the officers. They won't beat you too badly."

The meat buns and silver were both taken from the space.

It was only through the cuff that Deng Qiuzhi was given the illusion that she was deliberately hiding something.

Deng Qiuzhi was deeply moved.

"Waaah, Manager Yan, you're even better to me than my own mother. From now on, you're like my second parents. I'll treat you like my own mother..."