Chapter 143 The reason why the local people hate Xiao Qidi is actually...
After the jailer took over, he sent Ning Jinli to the interrogation room as required.
The jailer's eyes lit up when he saw her and he said, "This girl is really pretty, should we give her a good beating?"
The jailer said that this was what the yamen runners meant.
The jailer circled Ning Jinli, looking her up and down. "Little girl, what did you do wrong?"
"Would you believe me if I said I didn't do anything wrong?" Ning Jinli said while looking around.
The prison cell was already dark, but this torture chamber, filled with various instruments of torture, made it even more sinister and terrifying.
Fortunately, Xiumei wasn't here.
It seems he's locked up in a cell.
“Interesting,” the jailer said with a smile, picking up a whip at random. “You’re not that old, but you’re quite bold. There aren’t many ordinary people who can stand still once they’re inside the torture chamber.”
Ning Jinli said calmly, "Although I am not very familiar with your laws here, isn't it an abuse of power to torture me just because you brought me here?"
"Hahahaha!" the jailer laughed loudly. "Let me tell you, this is public property. Disciplining you here is not considered vigilante justice."
Faced with the jailer's sophistry of changing the subject, Ning Jinli rolled her eyes speechlessly.
"Tsk, with such delicate skin, I really don't have the heart to touch her." The jailer's eyes kept scanning Ning Jinli's entire body.
Despite the fact that Ning Jinli's face had turned sallow and her skin was much rougher than usual after the days of traversing the Gobi Desert, with varying degrees of dryness and cracking on her cheeks, mouth, and hands.
However, compared to the most common ordinary women of this era, there are still significant differences.
"I'm asking you," Ning Jinli said gently, ignoring the jailer's malicious words, "I heard that a woman named Xiumei has been arrested and brought to the county government. Where is she being held?"
If it were anyone else, the jailer wouldn't bother arguing with them.
But faced with such a rare beauty, he was happy to say a few more words.
“I don’t know the name,” the jailer said, stroking his chin. “But before the bailiffs brought you here, they did bring in a woman, who was about thirty years old and looked… ordinary.”
Ning Jinli immediately described Xiumei's features and clothing.
The jailer nodded and said, "Yes, that's right, that's her. Tsk, I don't know what kind of trauma that woman suffered. When she was brought in, she was like a living dead, completely at the mercy of others. She didn't even react when she was thrown into the death row."
"Death row?!" Ning Jinli's pupils trembled. "Isn't death row for death row inmates?"
The jailer said, "That's right. Officer Zhao said she's a death row inmate, so of course she has to be thrown into the death row."
"No..." Ning Jinli tried to calm herself down and asked, "How did she become a death row inmate? What did she do to deserve this?"
The jailer said, "How would I know? I'm just someone who locks up prisoners; convictions aren't my business."
Ning Jinli immediately asked, "Then you should at least know when she's going to carry it out, right?"
"I don't know, I have to wait for orders from above," the jailer finally said, getting a little impatient with the questioning. He rolled up his sleeves and said, "Alright, the bailiffs told me to take care of you. We still have to go through the proper procedures. Don't worry, I'll try to be gentle."
Ning Jinli's eyes darkened slightly. "Should I thank you?"
The jailer licked his lips and brought his face closer. "Come on, give me a kiss, and I can be even gentler."
"Pah!" Ning Jinli spat directly at it.
"You son of a bitch! I'll whip you until your skin is torn and bleeding!" The jailer wiped his face and angrily ordered, "Strip her naked and tie her to the pillar!"
The two jailers in the torture chamber were about to take action.
Given this situation, Ning Jinli could no longer sit idly by and wait for her fate.
She secretly circulated her internal energy, and as the two jailers approached, she kicked them out.
Bang!
Two quick kicks in quick succession.
Although it lacks any special moves or techniques, it is supported by powerful internal energy.
The two prison guards were caught off guard and kicked away. They slammed their backs against the wall of the torture chamber before coming to a stop. They were knocked unconscious on the spot and collapsed to the ground before they could even make a sound.
This was only because Ning Jinli held back; otherwise, those two jailers would have been kicked to death.
"Skinny arms and legs, yet so strong? Is he a trained fighter?" The jailer looked surprised.
Ning Jinli said calmly, "Take me to the death row, and I can go easy on you."
"Hahahaha!" A disdainful sneer appeared in the jailer's eyes. "Knowing a little bit of rudimentary kung fu, just enough to catch someone off guard, is nothing compared to me. Let me tell you, I've been practicing martial arts since I was toddlers, since I was eight years old—"
Bang!
Before the jailer could finish speaking, Ning Jinli slapped him across the face.
His vision went black, and he fell straight down with his head tilted to the side.
"You're just bragging, you're so weak," Ning Jinli squatted down, grabbed his collar, and shook him, saying, "Wake up, lead the way."
The jailer was terrified by the slap and realized that this seemingly weak young woman was not someone he could handle. He steeled himself, closed his eyes, and pretended to be unconscious.
Ning Jinli sneered, picked up the whip that the jailer had dropped from the ground, raised it high, and lashed it across his face.
"Ah!" The jailer cried out in pain, and sat up as if he had risen from the dead.
Ning Jinli raised her arm again.
"Don't hit me! Don't hit me!" the jailer cried, covering his face. "I'll take you there!"
Ning Jinli threw down the whip and clapped her hands. "Why didn't you cooperate like this earlier? Hurry up and lead the way!"
"Please...this way please..." The jailer bowed and nodded.
Then, led by the jailer, Ning Jinli walked out of the torture chamber and passed through a row of cells.
She discovered that these prisons also housed many people.
However, judging from their appearance and clothing, they all seemed to be ordinary people, and none of them looked fierce or menacing.
"Are there so many prisoners here?" Ning Jinli asked tentatively.
The jailer said with a forced smile, "They're not really prisoners. They're all just people who haven't paid enough taxes. The police arrested them and locked them up. Once someone in their family pays the difference, they'll be released."
Ning Jinli frowned slightly, "The taxes here are just too much. I've never seen anyone have to pay to rest in a pavilion or to go through checkpoints to enter or leave your county."
The jailer casually remarked, "The two you mentioned are just the tip of the iceberg. There are countless other miscellaneous items; otherwise, why would so many people be unable to pay them?"
As they were talking, the jailer had already led Ning Jinli to the innermost death row cell.
Inside the death row cell, Xiumei lay supine on the ground like a dead person.
Although his eyes were open, there was no light left in them.
"Sister Xiumei!" Ning Jinli called out.
Xiumei did not react.
"Quick! Open the door!" Ning Jinli urged.
"Yes, yes, yes." The jailer took out the key from his waist, deftly opened the bronze lock, and even considerately opened the door for Ning Jinli.
No sooner had Ning Jinli entered the prison than the jailer quickly locked the cell door again.
"You little bitch! Now you're not getting away!" The jailer grinned smugly, but his mouth twisted in pain. "You dared to hit me? You're going to die!"
Ning Jinli frowned, turned around, and gave her a cold look.
The jailer shuddered, immediately checked the padlock again, and then left cursing.
"Sister Xiumei, Sister Xiumei?" Ning Jinli knelt down and carefully helped Xiumei sit up, then hugged her in her arms.
Only then did Xiumei's numb eyes slowly move.
Upon recognizing Ning Jinli, she burst into tears, "Fairy... my daughter has been taken away... my home is gone... and my mother-in-law..."
Ning Jinli couldn't bear to tell her the cruel truth that the old lady had died, so she could only gently comfort her, "Don't be afraid, I'm here. Tell me, what exactly happened? Why were you suddenly arrested by the police and became a death row inmate?"
Xiumei cried and said, "Those constables said I was colluding with spies from the enemy country and had committed a capital crime..."
"What?!" Ning Jinli was completely dumbfounded. "What kind of enemy spy have you been in contact with?"
Xiumei choked up and said, "They...they are...you and that young man..."
"Me and him, spies from an enemy country? That's utter nonsense!"
Ning Jinli almost choked on her breath.
This is clearly a baseless slander.
"Is there no law left in this place? How can those officials be so incompetent?" Ning Jinli cursed.
“The law… In this world, where is the law…” Xiumei’s eyes were filled with despair. “If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too. We ordinary people… are being driven to our deaths…”
Ning Jinli recalled Xiu Mei's previous outburst at Xiao Qidi, as if she harbored some deep-seated hatred towards him.
Now comes the saying, "If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too," with the criticism directed at the current Great Xuan King.
So he asked, "Sister Xiumei, how is the darkness of Hewan County related to Xiao Qidi?"
Upon hearing the name Xiao Qidi, Xiu Mei's eyes instantly filled with hatred. "Originally, our Hewan County needed to maintain a large number of soldiers because we had to guard against nomadic tribes to the north. Every year, the people had to pay extra taxes to the county government and perform more corvée labor. That was fine, but for the sake of peace in Da Xuan, it was nothing for us to suffer a little."
"But... ever since Xiao Qidi was crowned and assumed power, he suddenly wants to go to war with the Yu Kingdom!"
"The county officials said that our Hewan County is very close to the border of Yu Kingdom, and we must prepare to fight. Therefore, the king above requires the people to pay more taxes to expand the army... and also to perform heavier corvée labor in preparation for war."
"For this reason, they created many tax pretexts, and no matter what we do, we have to pay taxes... They won't even let out outsiders who are just passing through."
“Not a single one of the people here doesn’t hate Xiao Qidi! He doesn’t deserve to be the Great Xuan King!”
Hearing this, Ning Jinli finally understood why she had encountered those officials trying to extort money from her as soon as she arrived.
The problem is that Xiao Qidi never issued any order to increase taxes and corvée labor.
It seems that someone is using the war as an excuse to deceive their superiors and exploit the people in Xiao Qidi's name!
The people of Hewan County could only obey the county magistrate, who claimed it was the emperor's order. The outrageous taxes and heavy corvée labor were almost crushing Xiumei's family, which explains why Xiumei hated Xiao Qidi so much.
Clearly, Xiumei's family's situation is just a microcosm of the lives of ordinary people in Hewan County.
Moreover, since even the county magistrate is so arrogant, the officials and constables below will surely follow suit, committing all sorts of evil deeds, oppressing the people, arbitrarily accusing others, and abusing their power.
The county officials in Hewan County, from top to bottom, are probably all rotten to the core!
“Sister Xiumei,” Ning Jinli grasped Xiumei’s cold hands, “I assure you, even Xiao Qidi was unaware of this situation, and he is by no means the culprit. On the contrary, if he knew about this, he would definitely stand up for you and severely punish those bastards!”
Xiumei was slightly taken aback, then shook her head weakly, "No... If it wasn't authorized by the king, why would the county magistrate do that? Besides, it's an indisputable fact that Da Xuan is going to war with Yu Guo. Every time there's a war, we common people have to pay more money. Fairy, you don't need to speak well of Xiao Qidi."
Seeing that the misunderstanding was deep, Ning Jinli knew that she couldn't change Xiumei's mind with just words in a short time, so she asked instead, "Was An'an also arrested by the constables? Do you know where she was taken?"
When her daughter was mentioned, Xiumei's eyes, which had almost dried up from crying, started to fill with tears again.
"Yes...they took me away."
“They said…that I was a traitor who betrayed the country and colluded with the enemy. This is a huge crime, and I should not only be beheaded, but also fined a lot of money.”
"All that I own isn't enough to cover the fine, so I'll have to... sell my daughter, and use the money to offset it..."
"I...I don't know who my daughter will be sold to..."
"Fairy, please, save An'an! She's just a child!"
Xiumei was about to kowtow to Ning Jinli.
Ning Jinli held her shoulders, "I assure you, she will be fine. My companions have already gone to look for her, so don't worry. Now I'll get you out of here first."
Xiumei received reassurance and her emotions stabilized somewhat.
But then she thought again, since even this fairy had been captured, it must mean that the fairy didn't have all-powerful abilities, and she couldn't help but feel worried again.
"Fairy...you're trapped here, how can you possibly rescue me?"
"Don't call me a fairy anymore, I'm really not a fairy."
"Huh? You're not a deity?"
"There are no gods in this world."
Ning Jinli stood up as she spoke, intending to open a portal between time and space here.
The glimmer of hope that had just risen in Xiumei's eyes gradually faded. If it were a deity, even if their supernatural powers were limited, they could still help her break free from her predicament. But the person said they weren't a deity, so... what hope was there?
“Miss Ning…” Xiu Mei lowered her eyes, knelt down and kowtowed, “If you have a way to escape, then escape by yourself. Don’t worry about me. I haven’t told the constables anything about you. Whether they slander me or fabricate charges, I will bear it all myself. I hope you can do your best to save my daughter. And… my husband, if he can be cured, I beg you. As long as he, An’an and my mother-in-law can live, I… I don’t care if I die.”
"Phew... Okay, get up now." Ning Jinli wiped the sweat from her forehead and helped Xiumei up.
Xiumei looked up and suddenly noticed that Ning Jinli's face was much paler than before. She hurriedly asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
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