The fact that Zhu Yunwen got involved in this matter speaks volumes about its importance. The prefect also knew that he would be punished no matter what, so he was somewhat angry.

Since he himself was going to be punished, he felt he should crack down on such things even more severely, as a way of venting his dissatisfaction.

After all, if it weren't for the Liu family head's various ways of exploiting the people, His Highness the Crown Prince wouldn't be so angry with him.

Therefore, the prefect blamed all of this on the head of the Liu family, and then followed Zhu Yunwen to the Liu family's manor in a huff.

The Liu family manor is very large and well-decorated.

As a landlord after all, he knew how to enjoy life. However, upon arriving outside the Liu family manor, Zhu Yunwen suddenly reached out and said to the group of people behind him:

"Wait a minute, everyone be quiet."

Immediately, everyone fell silent, not daring to utter a sound.

At the same time, everyone listened carefully and discovered that screams were coming from inside the manor.

In the silence, everyone could hear it even more clearly. After the screams stopped, a somewhat lazy voice rang out:

"Liu Erniu, are you going to rent this field to me today or not?"

The weak, feeble scream from just now said:

“My family finally got some land, so we can grow some food to feed ourselves. If we rent it to you at such a low price, won't my whole family be like before, always going hungry? I will never rent this land to you at such a low price; I must use it to grow our own food…”

These words angered the man with the languid voice, who said somewhat angrily:

"You're still stubborn. I'm warning you, if you rent this land to me, I'll give you some money. But if you refuse to rent it to me, I'll beat you so badly you can't get out of bed."

If you become paralyzed and bedridden, you still won't be able to farm this land. In the end, I'll rent it from you at a lower price, and you'll have no choice but to rent it anyway.

So think it over carefully. Are you going to rent to me now at a low price, and I'll allow you to work in my fields for food? Or are you unwilling to rent to me, and I'll cripple you before renting you to me?

Inside the manor, Liu Erniu, lying on the ground, gritted his teeth and said:

"The land was allocated to us by the imperial court, yet you're forcing me to rent it to you at a low price in this way. Aren't you afraid the imperial court will punish you?"

The patriarch of the Liu family laughed heartily, and then said:

"Liu Erniu, you're so naive! The imperial court's policies are left to local officials to handle. But I have connections in the local government, so they'll just turn a blind eye to these things."

You don't naively think the local government would bother me for someone as insignificant as you, do you? Wouldn't all the money I spend on entertaining them and giving them bribes every year be wasted?

Liu Erniu said in despair:

"You'd rather use that money to feast and entertain those officials, to curry favor with them, than use a little more to rent our land?"

The head of the Liu family laughed: "Why should I give you money when I'm going to give it to you anyway? In my eyes, you're just lowly commoners. What's the point of giving you money?"

But spending money on those government officials is a different story. Their status is different; how can you compare? Do you even deserve to be compared to those government officials?

Liu Erniu collapsed to the ground in despair, only able to utter one sentence:

"The imperial court is trying to help us common people obtain land, but you've done something like this. Aren't you afraid the court will punish you if they find out?"

"Hahahaha, that's ridiculous. You're so naive, you don't believe me. You don't actually think the imperial court will find out about what's going on here, do you?"

"Liu Erniu, Liu Erniu, put down your unrealistic fantasies and honestly sign this lease. The rent isn't much, but it's better than nothing, and you'll get beaten less often. Right?"

Liu Erniu gritted his teeth, a tear welling up in the corner of his eye.

Looking at the rental agreement in front of him, he finally picked up the calligraphy brush with a sense of helplessness.

He had no choice but to sign the lease, because if he didn't, and he was beaten so badly that he became paralyzed, his family would lose his breadwinner and their lives would become even more difficult.

After signing the contract, at least I can continue working. Although I will still be exploited, there is always a glimmer of hope.

With that thought in mind, he picked up his pen, ready to sign his name.

However, at that moment, a handsome young man dressed in extraordinary attire walked into the manor.

It was Zhu Yunwen.

Then Zhu Yunwen spoke with a stern face:

"Wait a moment."

Immediately, the somewhat obese landlord of the Liu family in the manor, Liu Erniu who was lying on the ground with a bruised and swollen face, and some of the Liu family's servants and thugs all turned their attention to Zhu Yunwen.

The head of the Liu family said weakly:

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Zhu Yunwen glanced at the Liu family landlord, then spoke calmly:

"Prefect of Jingzhou, you should be aware of the situation by now, right?"

Upon hearing this, the Prefect of Jingzhou, dressed in official robes, led his entourage slowly into the manor.

The Liu family landlord, who had been lying in the chair, immediately sprang to his feet upon seeing the prefect of Jingzhou Prefecture. He jogged over and respectfully greeted him:

"Oh dear, Prefect Zhang, what brings you here? Why didn't you send someone to let me know in advance? I could have arranged some fine food to entertain you."

Prefect Zhang gritted his teeth, looking at the obsequious face of the Liu family landlord before him, and felt a surge of anger.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!