Chapter 44: You kowtow to your aunt on behalf of your mother?
Tu was stunned by this scene.
Seeing Lu Zhaoruo's timid and submissive demeanor, and Zhang Shi's fierce appearance, she wondered if what her daughter said was true? Was the entire Shen family bullying her?
Zhang sneered, "Lu Zhaoruo, if you don't give me an explanation for what happened today..."
"I confess, the missing silk was indeed stolen by Miss Shen."
Lu Zhaoruo raised her chin and stared at Shen Lingyi.
Upon hearing this, Shen Lingyi not only remained calm but also covered her mouth and chuckled.
After all, the thief wasn't caught, and even if he were, he would insist that it was Tu who ordered it.
She glanced at Lu Zhaoruo with disdain: "Sister-in-law, the way you say this makes it sound like you have some incredible evidence. It's clearly a conspiracy between you and your daughter, and now you're trying to slander me. How utterly despicable..."
"What you're saying, aunt, is quite interesting. If what you say is true, it was a conspiracy between my mother and me..."
Lu Zhaoruo brushed the blood from her forehead with her fingertips, her gaze suddenly turning cold: "Why did my mother have to break in with a weapon? She made a scene herself, giving you the opportunity to humiliate her?"
"Are we, mother and daughter, so stupid..."
"Did you make a big fuss about this yourself?"
"Giving you the chance to humiliate me in public?"
"To give you leverage to convict us?"
Shen Lingyi's plump face twitched suddenly, and a hint of panic flashed in her eyes.
From that day on, she discovered that her sister-in-law, who used to be meek and submissive, had suddenly become sharp-tongued, and whenever they confronted each other, she was always left speechless.
At this moment, Dong Rou led Manager Chen and his two sons to the scene in a hurry.
She noticed the wound on Lu Zhaoruo's forehead at a glance, and her eyes immediately reddened. She hurriedly took out a handkerchief to cover the wound: "Madam, how... how did you get hurt?"
Lu Zhaoruo's face was pale but calm: "It's nothing."
Dongrou leaned close to her ear, her voice low but unable to hide her excitement: "Uncle has already caught the thief and is on his way here."
Manager Chen stepped forward and explained the whole story.
As he finished speaking, he looked troubled and lowered his voice: "The thief... the thief identified that it was the mistress's mother who ordered it."
Upon hearing this, Shen Lingyi's fat face immediately relaxed, and she laughed so hard that her whole body shook. She said smugly, "Did you hear that? Even the thief has confessed! How dare you and your mother slander me here?"
She swayed her plump body as she walked up to Lu Zhaoruo, deliberately raising her voice: "Sister-in-law, why are you scheming to frame me like this? Don't tell me you want to keep all those silks for yourself?"
As she spoke, she shook her head, feigning heartache, "You can know a person's face but not their heart!"
Tu shouted hoarsely, "Shen Lingyi! You heartless little vile woman! You were the one who ordered the thieves, and now you're slandering me!"
Shen Qingshu's face was gloomy. He knew perfectly well that the theft of the silk was related to his daughter, but now that the thief had identified Tu Shi, he took the opportunity to shout, "Lu Shi! The evidence is there, what else do you have to say? Although the thief has not been brought to justice, he has already confessed that it was your mother who did it!"
"Shopkeeper Chen and his two sons can all testify!"
"The money your mother gave you is irrefutable proof!"
He turned to Madam Tu and coldly rebuked her: "Where are the remaining ten bolts of silk? Have they already been sold? And where is the stolen money?"
Tu cried and shouted, "Then you should be asking your daughter! She was the one who deceived me. I did nothing. I just took some money."
"According to the laws of the Great Jurchens, theft is punishable by exile for three thousand li. And now you dare to come to my Shen family's house armed?"
Shen Qingshu suddenly raised his voice, "Armed violence should be punished with three and a half years in prison!"
Tu's legs went weak and she collapsed to the ground.
How did things escalate to this point?
She was only after some money, and besides, she had already returned all the money to Lu Zhaoruo.
Seeing this, Shen Lingyi covered her mouth and chuckled smugly, her entire body of fat jiggling.
Zhang spoke up at the opportune moment: "Considering you are my daughter-in-law in the Shen family and have always been dutiful, as long as your mother makes up the difference in money..."
She paused meaningfully, then said, "Kneel three times to apologize to my son Lingyi, and this matter will be dropped."
She naturally dared not make a scene at the county government office, firstly because it would bring shame to the Shen family, and secondly because she knew her daughter's capabilities.
"What?"
Madam Tu trembled all over. "You want me, an elder, to kowtow to a junior? This...this is utterly disgraceful!"
The hierarchy has been reversed, and dignity has been completely lost...
She might as well just kill herself by banging her head against a wall!
Lu Zhaoruo slowly stood up. This Zhang family had reduced her to a level worse than a servant...
Madam Tu looked at her daughter with trembling eyes: "A-Ning... I'd rather die than..."
She suddenly choked up and said, "How about... you kowtow to your aunt on behalf of your mother?"
His voice was pleading.
Although she hadn't stolen the silk, she was undeniably involved. Besides, the Shen family had all the evidence, so what could a mere woman like her do? Was she really going to take it all the way to the county government? Exile three thousand miles away, three and a half years in prison—just thinking about it sent chills down her spine, making her break out in a cold sweat.
"Mother?"
Lu Zhaoruo stared at her mother in disbelief.
Shen Lingyi, however, had already curled the corners of her lips and said sarcastically, "It's not that it's impossible..."
A surge of resentment welled up in Lu Zhaoruo's heart.
This foolish mother! She should have just waited patiently until her brother captured the thief, and then Shen Lingyi would have been brought to justice and confessed.
However, he acted rashly, barging in with weapons, which gave the Shen family leverage over him.
If that iron scale hadn't been swung, it would be Shen Lingyi kneeling and begging for mercy right now!
"Aunt, Uncle, Sister, the thief hasn't been brought to justice yet, why rush to convict him?"
Lu Zhaoruo's voice was unusually calm.
My brother must be bringing that thief here right now, with General Ban, a sixth-rank official, personally overseeing the operation. How could that thief dare to give false testimony when he sees an official appointed by the court?
Shen Lingyi sneered, her fat face full of mockery: "So what if they catch her? They'll just testify against your mother to your face... My mother and father are worried that you'll lose face if this goes to the yamen, so they kindly want to settle this privately."
She rubbed her arm and said, "You'd better hurry up and kowtow to apologize to your mother. My arm was hit solidly by three steelyard rods!"
"The thief has been apprehended! Why don't we ask him face to face who instructed him to steal the silk?"
A sharp shout suddenly came from outside the courtyard.
The entire courtyard, filled with servants and servants, turned and looked outside...
Lu Bohong strode into the courtyard with a powerful stride, followed by two soldiers escorting the thief, and two other soldiers each carrying a piece of silk.
What's even more eye-catching is that there's an eight-foot-tall general standing next to him.
He was broad-shouldered and burly, dressed in military uniform, exuding an imposing aura. Behind him stood more than ten armored and armed naval soldiers.
The general's copper-bell-like eyes swept across the courtyard...
He commands respect without needing to be angry!
Inspector Lu and a general escorted the thieves, and this display of force immediately panicked the servants, who all shrank back.
Zhang sat upright on the bamboo chair that Granny Zhou had brought, her fingertips gently scraping the foam off the teacup lid as she glanced sideways at the newcomer.
After all, she was a woman who had lived in the inner courtyard for a long time, so how could she recognize any general?
Shen Qingshu, however, was a worldly man. Seeing Ban Ling in his military uniform, exuding an extraordinary air, and the naval soldiers behind him all clad in armor and armed with weapons, his expression immediately changed. He hurriedly stepped forward, cupped his hands, and bowed, saying, "This general is..."
Dong Rou whispered excitedly in Lu Zhaoruo's ear, "Madam, the general who serves Uncle has arrived!"
Lu Zhaoruo relaxed her shoulders slightly and looked up to meet Ban Ling's gaze.
He nodded very slightly, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes.
Then he returned the greeting by clasping his hands in a fist salute to Shen Qingshu, his voice booming: "I am Ban Ling, the deputy commander of the Linhai Navy. I just happened to encounter Inspector Lu arresting this thief, so we brought him to the Shen residence together."
"General Ban!"
Shen Qingshu's knees buckled, and he fell to his knees with a thud.
The entire courtyard of servants knelt down in a flurry.
Just moments ago, Zhang Shi, who had been maintaining a haughty demeanor, suddenly realized something was amiss and was helped to kneel down by Granny Zhou, trembling.
"Kneel down now!"
She turned her head and shouted sharply, her voice changing tone.
Shen Lingyi's entire body of fat trembled violently, as if a mountain of flesh had crashed to the ground.
Lu Zhaoruo was about to kneel down—
Ban Ling stepped forward and raised his hand in a gesture of support: "Madam Lu, there's no need for such formalities."
His gaze swept over the scar on her forehead, and his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly: "I was passing through the West Market when I happened to see your brother apprehending a thief. I heard the reason for this incident, and because you have been kind to me, I have come to uphold justice."
The moment the voice called out "Madam Lu" everyone was taken aback.
Shen Qingshu and Zhang Shi exchanged a glance.
After all, according to etiquette, they should be addressed as "Chenmen Lu Shi," but these generals omitted their husbands' surnames, the deeper meaning of which made the couple break out in a cold sweat.
Lu Zhaoruo understood and simply performed a proper curtsy: "Thank you for your consideration, General."
Ban Ling waved his hand: "Take the prisoners away!"
The thief was dragged to the front of the hall.
Banling's eyes, as big as copper bells, glared: "Who ordered you to steal the silk?"
"Yes, it's this lady!"
The thief pointed at Shen Lingyi.
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