Yun Xiao, who had just entered the room, was slapped by his own brother Yun Yong, which darkened his eyes, but he did not say anything to explain.
He wanted to report it to the authorities, but he couldn't bear to watch so many members of the Yun family be ruined by his own hands. Therefore, these days, whenever he thought of the village chief's expression as he tightly held those few kilograms of grain in Ping'an Town, Yun Xiao's heart was tormented.
As for what Yunfu said about donating all the money he had earned to the imperial court, he knew perfectly well that it was all for the title of imperial merchant. If he didn't have that title, he certainly wouldn't have donated an extra tael of silver.
In fact, Yun Yong understood his eldest son very well. He knew that although his son had a business mind, he was not a businessman who was solely driven by profit, and he would not resort to any means to make a profit. This was why, for so long, he had only let his son manage the restaurant in the Yun family business, and had not entrusted him with other businesses.
Seeing that Yun Xiao did not explain, Yun Yong became even more convinced of his suspicion that Yun Xiao had reported him for maliciously raising grain prices. Therefore, he was furious and raised his hand to hit him again.
Before the raised hand could fall, the group was surrounded. The head constable glanced at Yun Xiao indifferently before turning his gaze to Yun Yong and speaking.
"Master Yun, young masters Yun, please come with me to the Jingzhao Prefecture..." With that, he waved his hand, and the constables behind him understood and stepped forward to lift the men up.
"This has nothing to do with me. It was all my father's doing. You, you all let me go..."
When Yun Huaiyuan saw himself being supported by the yamen runners, he was so frightened that he almost wet his pants. He shouted at the yamen runners who were supporting him.
Seeing that the constables ignored him, he turned to Yun Yong and shouted.
"Father, tell them quickly that you and my elder brother did it together, it has nothing to do with me, please tell them to let me go..."
Yun Yong looked at Yun Huaiyuan, who was shouting and pushing all the blame onto himself, and then glanced at Yun Xiao, who was standing silently with his head down. His eyes were full of complicated emotions. Only then did he look up at the government office opposite him and ask.
"Sir, I don't know what crime my Yun family has committed that you are so openly raiding our home. Our Yun family just donated a large sum of money to the imperial court to help with disaster relief, and we were even awarded the title of Imperial Merchants for it. Aren't you afraid that people will say that your imperial court is ungrateful and greedy for money...?"
In fact, Yun Yong was also frightened, which is why he said such "outrageous" words.
However, the leading officer sneered upon hearing Yun Yong's words before speaking.
"Crossing the river and then destroying the bridge, turning against the enemy for money, ha, ha! Your Yun family has only just obtained the title of Imperial Merchant, and you've already become so audacious as to dare to beat and insult the princess in the street. Master Yun, do you know what the crime of beating and insulting a princess is? It's a capital offense that will result in the extermination of nine generations of your family."
"Alright, stop with the nonsense. Go to the Jingzhao Prefecture and wait for His Majesty's decision. As for the wealth confiscated from the Yun family, His Majesty has already decreed that it all be returned to the national treasury..." he said, waving his hand behind him.
Upon seeing this, the constables rushed into the various rooms to move things.
Upon seeing this, Yun Yong hurriedly tried to struggle forward to stop him.
“Insulting the princess? Impossible, sir! You must be mistaken, you must be mistaken. Our Yun family would never do such a thing…”
Hearing that it wasn't about maliciously raising grain prices, Yun Yong felt relieved, but then he heard that the Yun family had beaten the princess in the street, so he quickly tried to explain.
At this moment, Yun Xiao's eyes darkened upon hearing Guan Cha's words.
He knew that Han Yiyi had been bestowed the title of Princess Changning by the Emperor for saving refugees outside the city. Now, when he heard the officials say that the Yun family had beaten the princess in the street, he realized that his grandmother must have seen Han Yiyi on the street.
Sure enough, the officer's next words confirmed their suspicions.
"Are you kidding me? Patriarch Yun, just go to the Jingzhao Prefecture prison and ask the old lady of the Yun family, and you'll find out..."
"Alright, take him away..."
The entire Yun family was taken to the Jingzhao Prefecture prison, including the servants and maids.
When Madam Yun saw that her son and grandson had also been locked up, her eyes filled with even more despair. She was about to step forward and grab Yun Xiao's sleeve to speak when Yun Huaiyuan, who had just entered, pulled her back.
"Grandmother, you, you must tell them quickly. I knew nothing about the insults directed at the princess. It was all your doing. Please tell them to release me immediately..."
The old lady's hand had been bandaged by the maid, which barely stopped the bleeding. But when Yun Huaiyuan pulled it like that, the blood started seeping out again.
Upon seeing this, Yun Yong slapped the man aside.
"You unfilial son, shut up..."
Yun Huaiyuan was slapped so hard that he fell to the ground. Seeing this, Madam Yun rushed forward to help him up.
"Master, what are you doing? What Yuan'er said is true. What does beating the princess have to do with us...?"
Yun Yong didn't want to hear the nonsense from the mother and son, so he roared angrily.
"If you don't shut up, I'll kill you right now..." Seeing that the two had finally quieted down, he calmed down and looked at Madam Yun.
"Mother, what exactly happened? How could you insult and beat a princess? That's a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family..."
At this moment, Madam Yun ignored her son's question and stared intently at Yun Xiao.
"That little slut became a princess, why didn't you tell this old woman...?"
Upon hearing Madam Yun's words, Yun Yong asked in confusion.
"Mother, who are you talking about...?"
When Yun Xiao heard his grandmother still shifting the blame onto others, his eyes filled with coldness. However, he did not speak, but simply found a clean corner in the cell, sat down, and closed his eyes slightly.
When Madam Yun saw Yun Xiao like this, she was both angry and furious. However, considering Han Yiyi's current status, she had to take a deep breath, calm her expression, and then speak again.
“I know that this time, Grandma acted impulsively. Grandma apologizes to you. Grandma promises that Grandma will never hold a grudge against her again. Grandma will never interfere in your affairs with her again. Go and beg her to release all of our Yun family members. After you get out, if she still wants to marry you, Grandma will personally arrange the wedding for you…”
Upon hearing Madam Yun's words, Yun Xiao slowly opened his eyes, but his eyes were filled with coldness and disappointment.
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