On that day, after Zhao Juan returned to her own family from the Gan family, she was filled with fear and cold sweat as she thought about the truth she had impulsively revealed to the Gan family in their old house.
How could she have been so bewitched as to reveal such important information?
Although her parents and brother treated her very well in the past, that was because everyone was poor back then!
Now that she's Zhao Juan, what if those poor devils covet all that Zhao family's wealth and use her words as leverage to blackmail her and try to steal it?
Fortunately, the Gan family didn't seem to take her words to heart. They still thought she was just making up a lie in desperation to save Master Zhao.
Zhao Juan breathed a sigh of relief. She should have been happy about this, but her heart felt like it was blocked by a stone, and she felt indescribably uncomfortable.
"It seems that the Zhao family will be my true support from now on," Zhao Juan murmured to herself, her tone tinged with bitterness.
After this incident, she finally understood that no matter whether the Gan family truly didn't believe her or had reservations about acknowledging her, the Gan family would no longer be her way out!
"No! I have to get Master Zhao out of here right now!" Zhao Juan suddenly stood up, her eyes hardening.
After this, she can only be Zhao Juan. Only when the Zhao family prospers can she prosper!
But now that Master Zhao has been arrested and his former backer has fallen, what other way is there to rescue him?
She paced anxiously back and forth in the room, her mind racing with various ideas, but none of them seemed feasible.
At this moment, Butler Zhao walked in and, seeing her anxious appearance, couldn't help but ask:
"Miss, are you troubled by the master's affairs?"
Zhao Juan stopped and glared at him: "Nonsense! My dad's still in jail, your idea won't work!"
Butler Zhao's lips twitched slightly. He thought to himself, "It's not that his methods are ineffective; you guys clearly messed things up yourselves! Who would ask for help with that kind of attitude?"
If she weren't the mistress, and if the safety of the Zhao family weren't related to Steward Zhao's own future, he wouldn't want to get involved in this matter!
He took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to swear, and said in a deep voice, "Miss, this old servant has another idea..."
"What idea?" Zhao Juan looked at him suspiciously, curled her lip and said disdainfully, "Don't tell me you're going to ask someone for help again. Wasn't today's events embarrassing enough?"
"There's no getting things done without asking for favors..."
Butler Zhao couldn't help but retort, but seeing Zhao Juan's sudden change in expression, he quickly added:
"However, this time Miss doesn't need to go in person, but this old servant will go. It may just cost some money."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Juan's furrowed brows relaxed. Although she was not indifferent to the cost, she knew that only when Master Zhao came out would they have a chance to turn things around and have more money in the future!
So she asked Butler Zhao to tell her quickly who he was going to ask for help.
“Miss, think about it, what official in this world is not corrupt? Even if this newly arrived magistrate is not corrupt, is he the only official in this county government?”
Why don't we think of something else, try to find other connections? Maybe they can help!
Zhao Juan's eyes lit up; she felt that what Butler Zhao said made sense. She immediately gave the order:
"You're right! Steward, hurry and find out who in the county government still has influence. We'll spend more money; I refuse to believe we can't get my father out!"
Steward Zhao accepted the order and left with a bag of silver. He then found a constable surnamed Wang in the county government office.
Although this constable Wang did not hold a high official position, he was in charge of managing the county jail and had influence with the county magistrate.
Steward Zhao prepared a generous gift and personally paid a visit to Constable Wang.
After accepting the gift, Constable Wang readily agreed to put in a good word for him with the county magistrate, and then promptly delivered the generous gift to Magistrate Lu Yuan.
The county government office of today is no longer the chaotic place it once was. Since the county magistrate was dismissed, the county magistrate Lu Yuan, entrusted by the emperor, has been carrying out a sweeping reform of the bureaucracy and severely punishing corruption.
Those officials who had previously accepted bribes and abused their power were all dismissed and investigated by Lu Yuan. The remaining officials all kept a low profile, fearing that they might accidentally get into trouble.
At this critical juncture, how could Chief Constable Wang dare to accept the silver delivered by Steward Zhao?
He pretended to accept the gift because the county magistrate had given him instructions beforehand. So as soon as he received the gift from the Zhao family, he quickly sent the package of silver to the county government office and told Zhao's steward about the matter he had been asked to handle.
After hearing this, Lu Yuan sneered and said:
"The Zhao family really won't shed tears until they see the coffin! Master Zhao was arrested for bribery, and they're already pulling strings to try and get him out of trouble."
Do they really think this county government office is still the same as before, where they can do whatever they want?
However, after receiving word of the bribery, the magistrate hurriedly burned the ledgers, and although they arrived in time, some of them were also burned.
That part must have been the evidence of Master Zhao's bribery, so Master Zhao's evidence was insufficient, and he was supposed to be released in the next few days.
Lu Yuan was already annoyed by this matter, and now the Zhao family had come knocking on his door.
He took the silver, pondered for a moment, and said to Constable Wang:
"Go tell the Zhao family that it's not impossible to rescue Master Zhao, but this amount of money is far from enough!"
Officer Wang paused for a moment, then asked, "What does Your Excellency mean...?"
Lu Yuan sneered and said, "Since the Zhao family is so rich, let them bleed a little more. Consider it a good deed for the people of Cangxi County!"
Head Constable Wang accepted the order and left. He quickly relayed Lu Yuan's message to Steward Zhao, who then passed it on to Zhao Juan.
"How much silver would that cost?"
Steward Zhao held up two fingers: "It can't be less than five thousand taels, can it..."
"Five thousand taels!" Zhao Juan gasped in shock upon hearing this number.
Although it pained her to do so, she had no choice but to agree in order to save Master Zhao.
However, after Master Zhao was arrested, the business of the Zhao family's shop plummeted. All the previous money had been invested in the ice-making business, and because they had bought a large amount of saltpeter, they had already spent it all.
Currently, the Zhao family doesn't have even five hundred taels of silver, let alone five thousand.
Zhao Juan had no choice but to start selling off the antiques, paintings, and jewelry in her home in order to raise money.
She watched helplessly as her beloved jewelry, silks, and satins were carried out piece by piece, her heart aching so much that tears streamed down her face.
Seeing this scene, Chen Danian felt a mix of emotions.
He initially agreed to marry into the Zhao family because of their immense wealth. But now, the Zhao family has fallen so low that they have to sell off their assets—how can he accept this?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
