The carriage sped along the road, jolting Shen Qing so much that her body swayed back and forth.
She looked at the empty seat opposite her and remembered the first time she went to Shanghai with Cheng Zhiwen. It was in this same carriage, and the two of them sat facing each other.
At that time, they were not familiar with each other, he was too lazy to pay attention to her, and she made all sorts of sarcastic remarks to him because he had abandoned his former self.
He retaliated in full, and his words were quite sharp.
At that time, she thought he disliked her, but later, their relationship gradually improved and they became more and more in sync. He helped her many times.
However, he was also the one who would leave without a word and then disappear without a trace.
Shen Qing uses modern thinking to interpret the various relationships between herself and Cheng Zhiwen, and the conclusion is—hormones.
When he gets close, attracted by hormones, he loses control of his behavior and is willing to be kind and gentle to her.
After they separated, the hormonal attraction disappeared, and he stopped thinking about her and no longer obsessively wanted to know who she was or where her original self was.
Now that two forces are trying to kill her, she doesn't know how long she will live.
Perhaps the parting with Cheng Zhiwen three months ago was a final farewell.
Even after returning to the Gao family, Shen Qing was still listless, not wanting to eat or teach Su Lan her lessons, and went to bed early.
I feel a tightness in my chest, it's not very comfortable.
She told herself it was no big deal; she had survived the county magistrate's beating, so how could she not outmaneuver those foreign cloth merchants?
And now Qi Zhenheng is there to uphold justice for her.
It's fine.
Don't worry.
After drifting off to sleep, she had a dream.
Soldiers stormed into the Gao family home, arrested all the maids and servants, and even put wooden shackles around Su Lan's slender neck.
The entire Gao family lined up, their wrists tightly bound together with hemp rope.
The county magistrate sat on horseback, leading a string of Gao family members through the streets.
They cried out that they were innocent, but the county magistrate turned his head and cursed, "If you make another sound, your entire family will be executed!"
The cries of the dying filled the land.
Shen Qing watched all this in horror and shouted, "Su Lan isn't a member of the Gao family! Don't arrest her! It has nothing to do with her!"
The county magistrate seemed not to hear, and pulled the Gao family forward like a dog.
Shen Qing felt sorry for Su Lan and cried her heart out.
"Young Madam... Young Madam..." A gentle voice sounded in her ear, "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
Shen Qing struggled to open his eyes, and through a misty haze, he saw Chunju's round face.
It was just a dream.
She breathed a sigh of relief, propped herself up, leaned against the headboard, and took a sip of the flower tea that Chunju had brought her.
Looking at the gray sky outside, she asked with lingering fear, "I went to bed early last night. Did anything happen at the manor?"
Chunju laughed: "Nothing! What could have happened?"
Feeling uneasy, Shen Qing clutched his chest and asked, "Where's Su Lan?"
"He's already up and studying. That kid is so diligent! Don't worry!" Chunju put the cup on the round table and turned to help Shen Qing lie back down on the bed.
Shen Qing lay in bed for a while, but still felt uneasy, so she got up, changed her clothes, and went to the factory early.
She sat in the accounting room, her mind unsettled. Anxiety felt like a heavy stone, making her chest ache.
He habitually raised his hand and touched the hairpin knife in his hair bun.
If someone really wanted to kill her, this hairpin knife alone wouldn't be enough for self-defense.
Shen Qing suddenly thought of the short gun that Cheng Zhiwen had tucked into his waistband.
Having a gun for self-defense would at least guarantee that I wouldn't be killed...
Should we ask Cheng Zhiwen if there's any way to buy guns?
Just then, a commotion broke out outside.
Where is Gao Shenshi?
"Search!"
Shen Qing got up and walked out of the accounting room, looking down at the covered bridge.
Dozens of constables, each holding a fire-and-water stick, stood in two lines inside the gate.
The magistrate walked in, glared at the factory, and shouted, "Sinner Gao Shenshi, come and confess your crimes at once!"
Are those corrupt officials coming to arrest people again?
Shen Qing remembered his dream from last night and immediately went to look for Su Lan.
The constables rushed onto the covered bridge and surrounded her.
She took a step back, pulled a hairpin from her hair, and held it in front of her: "What are you going to do?"
As soon as the constables approached, she brandished her hairpin knife, nearly stabbing them several times, forcing the constables to retreat.
The county magistrate also came onto the covered bridge and shouted loudly, "Gao Shenshi! You have colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country, a crime deserving the execution of your entire clan! If you continue to resist, I will arrest the Gao family and everyone here and behead them!"
Treason and collusion with the enemy?
Shen Qing never expected that his "crime" this time would be treason.
Last time, she was sentenced to beheading just for smashing Master Zhao's head, but this time... it's a serious crime of treason, and she'll probably be torn apart by five horses.
She turned her head to look down.
Chunju and Sulan stood in the crowd, staring at her in horror.
We can't drag them down with us... They can't bear that kind of torment, Su-lan is still so young...
Shen Qing gritted her teeth and reinserted the hairpin knife into her hair bun.
But she did not surrender.
They can't just be taken away like this!
If he falls into the hands of this corrupt official again, he will probably die quietly.
She thought of Qi Zhenheng.
Qi Zhenheng is a fifth-rank prefect, while the county magistrate is only a seventh-rank official. As long as Qi Zhenheng intervenes, the county magistrate will definitely not dare to kill her directly.
Yes, we need to find Qi Zhenheng!
Shen Qing turned to look down from the covered bridge and shouted, "Chunju! Go find her—"
Before she could finish speaking, a group of constables had already surrounded Chunju and Sulan.
The magistrate looked at her smugly: "You want your maid to inform Lord Qi? I'll arrest her first!"
Shen Qing could only swallow the words that were stuck on the tip of his tongue and asked loudly, "Sir, what evidence do you have that I am accused of treason and colluding with the enemy?"
The magistrate chuckled a few times with a gloomy face, and with a wave of his hand, the bailiffs surged forward again.
With a loud clang, the wooden shackles were fastened to Shen Qing's neck, and his hands were also handcuffed into the shackles.
Tears of humiliation welled up in her eyes, but she forced them back, ceasing her struggle to conserve her strength.
At this point, struggling is futile; it will not only hurt yourself but also endanger others.
We cannot allow innocent people to be taken away as well.
...
"Go in!"
Shen Qing was pushed into the cell by the guards and made to lie on the ground.
She endured the pain and got up, looking around.
The cell was the same as last time—dark and smelly, like the stench of a dead body.
This reminded her of how she felt when she was locked up here last time—desperate, like she was on the verge of death.
Fear spread from her heart to her limbs; her legs went weak, and she forced herself to calm down.
Last time I transmigrated here, I didn't know anything and still managed to escape.
At least I lived in the Qing Dynasty for a few months this time, so I'm sure I'll be able to leave here safely!
She comforted herself and found a place to sit down in a corner.
For now, I'll put aside who's trying to frame me and figure out how to get out of here.
Qi Zhenheng was helpless; the corrupt officials were definitely on guard, and Chunju had no chance to get close to the prefect's office.
Shen Qing knew very well that now she could only rely on herself and save herself like last time!
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