Madam Luo looked at Xiao Yunying with worry in her eyes, but said firmly, "Yunying is my daughter-in-law now. She would never do such a thing. Is there some misunderstanding?"
The official said ingratiatingly, "This is also an order from above, Madam Luo, please don't make things difficult for us errand boys."
Before Madam Luo could say anything more, Xiao Yunying interrupted her, saying, "Madam Luo, there's no need to say anything to them."
Luo Xin hugged Xiao Yunying's leg and said, "Mom, why are they arresting you? Can I go with you?"
Xiao Yunying gently coaxed the little girl, "Xin'er, be good. Stay with your grandmother for a few more days. I promise you, I'll be back in a few days."
"Really?"
"Of course, when has your mother ever broken a promise to you?"
Luo Xin sniffed: "Then Mother must come back soon."
"Okay, Mother will do it as soon as possible."
After Xiao Yunying comforted Luo Xin, she walked to Madam Luo's side and whispered, "I didn't poison the Empress Dowager. She probably wants to use this charge to threaten me and force me to help her improve the weapons or do something else."
Madam Luo said worriedly, "You can't go. That prison is not a place a young lady like you can go."
Xiao Yunying thought long-term: "She accused me of poisoning the Empress Dowager, which sounds like a serious crime that would implicate nine generations of my family. Yet she only had me arrested. This is both a mercy and a threat. For the sake of my children and my parents, I have no choice but to obediently go with them."
"and you……"
"Madam Luo, there is no need to worry too much. I have a way to protect myself."
At this point, she leaned close to Madam Luo's ear and whispered, "When I came back, Luo Sheng told me that someone had secretly submitted a memorial accusing the Ninth Prince of embezzling disaster relief funds and grain, and of secretly recruiting soldiers with the intention of rebelling. If nothing unexpected happens, these pieces of evidence have probably already reached His Majesty's hands."
The capital city isn't close to Donglin City, so news won't get back quickly. Perhaps things will be resolved in a while. In any case, she currently thinks I'm useful and isn't willing to harm me; stalling for time will do the trick.
Seeing Xiao Yunying's calm and composed demeanor, Madam Luo felt somewhat relieved: "Then I'll quickly send a letter to Sheng'er. No matter what the situation is over there, he needs to know about your situation."
Xiao Yunying did not refuse the offer: "Okay."
It's good to let Luo Sheng know about her situation; it will provide an extra layer of protection.
Xiao Yunying said everything she needed to say, took out a wooden hairpin from her bosom to tie up her hair, and said to the officials, "Let's go quickly."
Otherwise, when her two older brothers arrive, there will be another struggle.
The head constable, no longer displaying the arrogance he had shown upon entering, said, "A carriage is prepared outside. Please, Miss Xiao."
Madam Luo gave Granny Chang a wink, and Granny Chang nodded in understanding.
He took a bag of silver and stuffed it into the hand of the leading official: "My young mistress has just returned from meeting His Majesty in the capital. There must be some misunderstanding. I've seen you all help look after her these past few days. Once my young mistress is cleared of her name, the Luo family will reward her handsomely."
The officer readily accepted the purse and put it into his pocket: "Don't worry, everyone. The order is that the detainee is only temporary and will not be tortured."
As Xiao Yunying left the courtyard, a large crowd gathered at the entrance to watch the spectacle, drawn by her return and the arrival of the officials.
They asked questions, some out of curiosity, others out of concern.
"What's wrong with Yunying?"
"Are you going to leave with the officials?"
"Didn't you just get back? Did you go to the county office to collect some reward again?"
Ignoring the onlookers, Xiao Yunying said to a few relatives related to the Xiao family, "I'm going into the city to take care of some things. I'll be back in a few days."
"What's wrong? Did you get caught for committing a crime or are you going to collect a reward?"
A woman next to her nudged her with her elbow: "How can you talk like that? Yunying is a county princess now, how could she be arrested?"
When the official came out carrying the bright yellow brocade box, he was about to say that the government had a case and needed to arrest Xiao Yunying to take her back for trial, but he felt a burning gaze on his back and immediately swallowed his words.
"Make way, everyone, don't block the road."
Xiao Yunying boarded the carriage and lowered the curtain to block out the noise outside.
It seems the magistrate didn't dare to go that far; he sent a carriage instead of a prison cart, otherwise he would have lost face big time.
The charge of plotting against the Empress Dowager is so serious that even the Emperor cannot protect himself unless the Empress Dowager herself confesses or the truth is uncovered.
That Ninth Prince even embezzled the disaster relief funds and grain. Who knows how many people he might have harmed behind the scenes? He doesn't even care about his own people. What kind of good person could he be?
Although I don't know what kind of person the current emperor is, judging from the current situation, the country is relatively peaceful and prosperous, and the taxes are affordable for ordinary people, so it should be considered acceptable.
And then there's Luo Sheng. Although he's only upholding orthodoxy and remains neutral, if the emperor weren't a good one, he probably wouldn't be so concerned.
Furthermore, the current emperor was trained by Chen Yuancheng's father.
For various reasons combined, Xiao Yunying became more convinced that the current emperor was a good person.
She never wanted to get involved with the royal family in the first place, and with this in mind, it became even less likely that she would work for the Empress Dowager.
Xiao Yunying's thoughts were in turmoil, and she didn't come to her senses until she reached the prison gate.
After getting off the carriage, just looking at the entrance made me feel depressed.
The officer in charge handed her over to the jailer who was in charge of guarding the prison and then left. Xiao Yunying followed the jailer into the prison and curiously looked around at her surroundings.
One of the jailers said with some surprise, "I've seen so many people in prison, but this is the first time I've seen someone so calm and composed."
Xiao Yunying smiled slightly: "I know I haven't done anything wrong, so I'm not afraid. I believe the magistrate will give me justice."
She appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was screaming.
This place is so dirty! And it smells awful!
Good heavens, she should have asked Madam Luo to send some bedding. Wouldn't there be fleas living in this kind of environment? She should also have brought some insecticide.
I hope she doesn't torture herself. She can't stand any hardship or pain, and she might just run into the supermarket without a care in the world.
The jailers remained silent. They already knew the girl's crime, and the county magistrate couldn't handle this matter; they had to follow orders from above.
However, upon hearing that this girl was General Luo's wife and had a close relationship with the Chen family's young master, they thought she might actually be able to turn things around, so they didn't dare to make things difficult for her.
Two jailers led her to a solitary cell: "You'll stay here for the next few days. If you need anything, your family can bring it over."
Thank you.
Xiao Yunying covered her nose and went inside. Only after the jailer locked the cell door and left did she slowly walk to the wooden bed.
She tried to comfort herself, saying that the surrounding cells were all holding several people, and that she was lucky to have a single cell.
He bent down and swept all the straw from the wooden bed onto the ground, kicked it aside, and secretly sprinkled several kinds of insect repellent he had bought beforehand around the area, before he dared to sit down with a little more peace of mind.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
