Chapter 277 Even she was arrested?

Yao Qingling had a much more comfortable time in prison than the others.

Although the small room was crowded with several maids, there were advantages to having more people.

In the dead of night, the cold wind howled like ghosts, sending chills down anyone's spine and disturbing their peace.

The cold and fear transformed into dense needles, piercing the hearts and every inch of skin of everyone.

Whether man or woman, they would be unable to stop crying and screaming at this time, but what they would get in return was the prison guards' brutal insults and beatings.

After a series of wails, silence returned.

It goes back and forth, like the ebb and flow of ocean waves.

After a few days, everyone gradually got used to it and was no longer terrified by the cries.

During this time, Yao Laosan and his wife visited him in prison once, bringing cotton clothes and quilts, as well as some durable food. They also slipped some silver to the jailer, who did not confiscate their belongings.

Lou Yue, He Yin, and the nanny huddled together, covered by three folded quilts, already asleep.

Qingling sat against the wall, tilting her head back to look at the moon in the sky through the small window.

Contrary to Zhou Zhining's expectations, she did not succumb to the first day.

In five days, it will be the Chinese New Year.

I don't know if I'll be able to get home on New Year's Eve.

When my third uncle came to visit, he revealed that he wanted to return to Yingzhou.

The capital was in a state of panic. The Third Uncle's family had never seen such a large-scale operation before. They were afraid that the imperial court would change its mind and arrest them as well, making it impossible for them to leave.

Yao Qingling said that if she could get out, she would definitely repay them.

Her third uncle looked at her with pity and sympathy, as if he didn't believe she could get out.

Qingling didn't say anything more, only that if they decided to return to Yingzhou, they should go to Mulan Courtyard, dig up a jujube tree in the corner of the courtyard, and bury her hidden gold ingots underneath.

Third Uncle disagreed, saying that the Marquis's residence was being watched.

It wasn't that he didn't want the gold ingots, but that he was afraid that if he took them, he would be arrested.

Yao Qingling couldn't help but laugh when she recalled how her third uncle had wanted it but didn't dare to.

This uncle, whom I haven't seen in a long time, is quite interesting.

But they are much better off than my uncle's family.

Uncle... I wonder how many more days those people can hold on?

Xia Chan suddenly nudged Qing Ling: "Miss, listen—"

Qingling withdrew her gaze and listened quietly to the sounds outside.

It sounded like a man and woman flirting.

Unable to contain her curiosity, Xia Chan ran to the door, lay down on the ground, and lifted a crack in the bottom panel of the door to peek out.

—This doorway is usually used for delivering meals.

Xia Chan lay there, only able to see the jailer's trouser legs and a woman's embroidered shoes.

There was only one shoe; the other one must have been stolen.

When Xia Chan returned, she said to Qing Ling, "Those shoes look somewhat familiar..."

As she spoke, she tried to recall where she had seen those shoes before.

Qingling assumed she was just bored and said, "If you have nothing else to do, go to sleep early."

He laughed after saying that.

Once you get here, all you do is eat, sleep, and wait. You're practically living day and night without a clear distinction between day and night, so there's no point in worrying about going to bed early or late.

Without the sense of urgency of a noose around their necks, time seems to pass by in vain.

Tian Zhu didn't dare to go too far, but he also didn't want them to be too leisurely. Qing Ling asked if she could read some books, but he refused outright, saying that she didn't need them since she wasn't taking the imperial examinations.

Xia Chan was really bored, so she told the jailer at the gate that she could mend his tattered clothes, and they actually became friends. The jailer was easy to talk to, and in return for Xia Chan mending his clothes, he secretly slipped a book into his pocket.

However, the book wasn't a travelogue that Qingling liked to read; it was a storybook about a scholar and a young lady's secret rendezvous.

Qingling decided to just watch it anyway.

But the moonlight is too dim right now, so I can't read.

Xia Chan suddenly punched the mattress beneath her, her eyes widening: "Miss, I remember now! Those shoes look like Miss Biao's!"

Qing Ling frowned, somewhat surprised: "Ma Peizhen?"

They even arrested her?

The people from the Marquis's residence were imprisoned separately, while Qingling's people were all grouped together under Lin Shiyuan's secret arrangement. Therefore, she still doesn't know how many people the Marquis's residence has arrested.

Ma Peizhen was Ma's niece. Her third uncle's family had long forgotten about her. Besides, she had been locked in the woodshed because of the filthy things she had done during Ma's funeral.

When Lin Shiyuan and Tian Zhu came to arrest them, they said that the Third Uncle's family was unaware of the situation and let them go. However, in terms of relationships, Ma Peizhen was merely a guest in the Marquis's mansion, so she shouldn't have been implicated.

“Miss Biao has always been with Madam and is her strategist. Madam knew about the Marquis's corruption, and Miss Biao knew about it too. She must have confessed everything since she was arrested,” Xia Chan said.

Qingling said, "However, when the officials came in to arrest people, they did not know that Ma Peizhen was locked in the woodshed, and that she knew the secret of the Marquis's mansion."

From the perspective of the officials, she was just a young lady living under the eaves of the Marquis's mansion. How could she possibly know the secrets of the Marquis's mansion?

so……

Qing Ling's eyes flickered slightly; it was Lin Shiyuan.

He was the official who knew Ma Peizhen's character best.

He wanted to take the opportunity to get rid of the little poisonous snake as well.

However, Lin Shiyuan underestimated Ma Peizhen.

In the past, when she was facing setbacks everywhere in order to marry into a higher social class, she seduced Yao Qingxu. Now, in this desperate situation, what wouldn't she do?

Xia Chan spat and said, "She's shameless. With so little backbone, she still wants to marry into a high-ranking family?"

Qingling said, "To survive, even pride can be burned like firewood. Those noble ladies strip off the clothes of their servants and wear them, eating spoiled food. In a place like this, no one is more noble than anyone else."

"However... even so, Ma Peizhen probably won't be able to get out alive."

As soon as Qingling finished speaking, the lewd laughter of the jailers came from outside, vaguely mentioning things like "smooth skin." They said a few dirty words, and judging from the footsteps, another jailer had probably gone to replace them.

Xia Chan bit her lip and said, "She must regret taking this step now."

None of the girls in the brothel had a good ending.

"It would be better to just smash your head against a wall and die."

However, she remembered what Madam Min had said: only the living can feel the living, and the dead have no feeling at all.

The cicadas fell silent.

...

The atmosphere at court grew increasingly tense, with fewer and fewer officials attending the morning court sessions each day.

Although the New Year is just around the corner, no one feels the joy of the New Year. Instead, there is a sense of gloom, as if tomorrow is the end of the world.

Lin Shiyuan also stepped from outside the hall and stood inside.

He presented the evidence he had collected one by one, ultimately pointing the finger at Consort Shu in the harem.

Consort Shu colluded with the Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, the Commander of the Imperial Guards, and others to steal treasures from the Imperial Treasury. She also colluded with her maternal relatives, using their power as protection to amass wealth. Every official who was imprisoned had intricate connections with Consort Shu's maternal family.

The emperor was furious and immediately issued an edict to banish Consort Shu to the Cold Palace, and to execute her family members, including the chief eunuch and the commander of the guards, by beheading.

The officials present were all sweating profusely.

Some officials, realizing the situation, understood that the emperor's ruthless actions were merely a pretext to eliminate those people.

—The family of Consort Shu, the Grand Tutor Chen, were old ministers whom the late emperor left to assist him in governing the country.