Chapter 110 The Wen Family Captures People and Their Money
The traveler, already annoyed by the Yang family while gathering intelligence, perked up upon seeing them, clasped his hands in a salute, and said, "Yes!"
He turned around, went outside to gather his men, and made a grand entrance before heading out to arrest the man.
Qi Chengming looked at the letter in his hand, shook it, and sighed.
He had originally intended to debate with the Yang siblings to see if he could glean any information from them. Whether it was the Empress's relative, the imperial envoy Shen Shuzhi who oversaw flood control, or the Yang family's attitude towards cement, he was quite interested and felt he could extract some juicy details from them.
These atrocities infuriated Qi Chengming, so he decided to arrest the people and interrogate them in the same way.
The Wen family is in big trouble today.
It was morning when the incident occurred. Miss Wen was writing a letter to her sisters, her face full of worry. Madam Wen, standing outside the door, glanced inside with concern. The maidservant holding the curtain carefully shook her head, indicating that her mistress was still in the same state.
Madam Wen's face also showed more worry, and she slapped her son. The young man beside her stumbled and quickly carried the birdcage inside.
"Sis! Look what I found!"
Miss Wen forced a smile: "You know I don't like birds or sparrows, so why are you trying to entice me with a birdcage? The one in the east courtyard is the one who likes them."
The young man leaned closer: "Take a closer look?" He raised the birdcage in his hand. Miss Wen put down her pen and then looked closely. What was in the birdcage was not a living creature with feathers at all, but clearly a colorful, lifelike glass bird, shimmering and radiant, looking extremely valuable.
That birdcage wasn't an ordinary birdcage; upon closer inspection, it was actually just a birdcage-shaped base that could be lifted up.
Miss Wen was taken aback: "Where did you get such exquisite and beautiful things? Can our family afford them? They couldn't have come from the east courtyard—"
"East Courtyard, East Courtyard, Sister, don't be afraid of them. We're not easy to bully!" The young man muttered dejectedly, glancing back at his mother outside the door. He explained, "These are new products from the glass factory. They're all colorful and blurry, and they're not expensive. They said they want to make something that looks like colorless glass, transparent and clear."
"It's kind of you to think of that." Miss Wen finally smiled, wanting to say that such a beautiful thing might be snatched by people from the East Courtyard, but seeing her younger brother's expression, she swallowed her words and took the birdcage, placing it on the display shelf. The shimmering ornament made this ordinary boudoir room look luxurious.
She lowered her head, picked up her pen again, and prepared to tell her close friend about this amusing incident.
The letter was originally filled with dense writing, all of which were veiled complaints about the East Courtyard.
—Two new guests have recently moved into the East Courtyard.
Yesterday, Miss Wen went on a spring outing with her younger brother. He lives at the college and had promised to pick her up yesterday. However, a couple of days ago, they told us that a pair of cousins from Yulin Prefecture, surnamed Yang, had come to visit.
Grandmother was overjoyed. Seeing that they were feeling down since they had just arrived, she suggested that they go on a spring outing together to cheer themselves up.
Miss Wen disliked her arrogant cousins. They were also very haughty and, apart from acting coquettishly in front of their grandmother, they were indifferent when they came out and refused to be with the Wen siblings.
—Luckily, I didn't go with them; who would have thought that a trip to relax would lead to such a big problem.
Miss Wen almost lost her composure at the time, pretending not to know her before returning home. There, she learned about the chaotic events that had transpired between the brother and sister, leaving her completely overwhelmed. Unfortunately, her grandmother and father doted on this aunt they had never met, and consequently, they also indulged her cousins, patiently allowing them to change their daily habits in every way.
"They came all this way, I wonder how uncomfortable they must be!" These were the grandmother's exact words, as she patted the arms of the Wen siblings and lovingly told them to take their cousins to have a good time.
Having said that, how could Miss Wen possibly show any reluctance or resistance?
Only her mother and younger brother knew how depressed she had been these past two days, and they were still trying all sorts of ways to cheer her up...
Thinking of this, Miss Wen was no longer depressed. She smiled and deliberately raised her voice: "If I had a soup made by my mother at noon, I would never feel sad again."
The maid at the door smiled sweetly, having already figured out what her young mistress was thinking.
Wen's younger brother's eyes lit up, but before he could agree, Madam Wen outside the door exclaimed with delight, "Yes, yes! Forget about the soup, even if you want to eat the moon, Mother will find a way!"
The servants around immediately relaxed and burst into laughter.
“I’m going with Mother.” Miss Wen stepped out the door cheerfully and nestled beside her mother.
The Wen family wasn't a particularly large household, but they were still quite well-known and scholarly in the area. Even so, it wasn't unusual for Madam Wen to cook a simple soup herself. Perhaps it was because Liuzhou was so remote that she could do as she pleased, or perhaps it was because Liuzhou was changing so much these days, evolving rapidly, and everything was subtly adapting to the prince's preferences. In ordinary times, no one could tell which behaviors were considered proper and which were just making a fuss.
Anyway, Madam Wen quite likes Liuzhou now. The portrait of the prince in her small Buddhist shrine was donated for making bricks when the Xingjun Temple was built not long ago.
The mother and her two daughters were walking when a commotion erupted from the front yard. It sounded chaotic, as if many strangers were present, along with the cries and screams of servants. Wen instinctively gripped her mother's sleeve, her face showing alarm: "Mother?"
Wen's younger brother also spread his arms to protect his mother and sister, trying to appear calm, but he couldn't hide his confusion and panic, not knowing what to do next.
The servants who followed also panicked.
"Let's go to Mother's quickly. What's going on outside?" Madam Wen didn't dare send anyone to inquire haphazardly. She grabbed her children and wanted to lead them to the old lady's courtyard first. It was further back, and it was safer there. If everyone stayed together, they would know what was happening.
The servants they encountered along the way were in complete chaos, relaying messages in a jumbled mess. Some said, "The officials have come to arrest someone!" Others said, "Are they bandits or thieves attacking?"
As Madam Wen continued forward, she saw soldiers dressed in cloth armor, their hands on their swords, standing solemnly, guarding the path to the old lady's courtyard. The path leading to the gate in the distance was also quiet and well controlled by the soldiers.
Madam Wen's vision went black; it was too late to turn back. Fortunately, the soldiers-like men merely brandished their weapons to block them, without intending to arrest them: "This is official business at the Prince Rui's residence; unauthorized personnel are not permitted!"
“Rui…Rui Prince’s Mansion?” Now it was Madam Wen’s turn to stammer.
Even Miss Wen and her younger brother were stunned, exchanging bewildered glances and their expressions changed.
The emotions of the mother and her two daughters calmed down considerably in an instant. Madam Wen looked around the courtyard, still worried: "May I ask, brother... what has my family done wrong?"
The people of Liuzhou have always regarded Prince Rui as a deity descended from heaven and have been grateful to him.
This prince was neither greedy for money nor lustful; his only known pleasure was a slight indulgence in food. He did not oppress the common people and was known for his upright character, always ready to stand up for others in times of trouble. The Wen family sons may have previously had their share of the sordid affairs typical of wealthy households—things like showing off and acting like heroes, or petty misdeeds. But since the prefect took office and the wealthy families were purged as a warning to others, the Wen family has swiftly changed.
Wen Didi's biggest idol right now is Prince Rui.
If he sends people to the Wen family to arrest them... then the Wen family must have committed some heinous crime that crossed the prince's bottom line.
Miss Wen suddenly looked unwell as if she had just thought of something—the East Courtyard was very close to the old lady's courtyard.
Sure enough, the soldier didn't hide anything. Instead, he loudly revealed the whole story, making sure that all the servants around who were listening intently could hear it: "The Yang siblings dared to offend the Prince and bully the people under his rule, making fun of them. They are hereby arrested!"
Madam Wen turned pale with fright.
Miss Wen couldn't help but gasp, and then she realized that her younger brother had inhaled along with her.
She was already worried that her cousins were too arrogant and willful, and that they would cause trouble sooner or later. But they wouldn't listen to her advice, and her grandmother just wanted to indulge them... Unexpectedly, they had only been in Liuzhou for less than three days and had already angered the prince!
How dare they speak so disrespectfully to Prince Rui?!
A short while later, the imperial guards who had gone in to arrest them dragged out two young men and women who had been gagged. The two struggled and sobbed violently, looking utterly disheveled, their faces showing more resentment and anger than fear. Later, a frail old woman chased after them, tears streaming down her face, crying, "How could this have happened? How could this have happened!"
Even though the old lady of the Wen family doted on her grandson and granddaughter, she wasn't so confused as to think the Yang family was superior to the prince—especially since they had come to Liuzhou to avoid trouble and find an opportunity to curry favor with the prince! What should they do now?
After the arresting officers left, Old Madam Wen hurriedly sent someone to bribe the guards at the gate with the warrant, hoping to find out where the person was being held, what their plans were, and how to handle the situation...
The steward who chased after them returned a little later and reported: "He didn't go to the yamen; he went straight back to Prince Rui's residence..."
"This is terrible!" Old Mrs. Wen slapped her thigh.
They've entered Prince Rui's residence, so what other news could there be? Can they be released...? The prince has a good temper, he's not made of clay. He's so angry that he's come to arrest them, and they've done something as heinous as bullying the people, something the prince can't stand. What good can come of this?
Logically speaking, the Prince's mansion isn't a government office; it has no right to arrest people. Old Madam Wen is heartbroken, but she dares not consider any other way to rescue them or even try to persuade them… Liuzhou is Prince Rui's fiefdom; there's no hope!
Amidst the chaos, the servants whispered amongst themselves, their faces contorted with despair: "...What's so good about the Yang family? They're all corrupt to the core." "I heard they've been causing trouble non-stop the whole way!" "I heard they came to Liuzhou to escape disaster." "Oh, those servants in the East Wing have also been arrested. This trouble was brought to our Wen family!"
Miss Wen was also troubled when she heard this.
Originally, only her close friends knew that a pair of extremely annoying cousins had come to her house. But after today, the whole of Liuzhou should know that the Wen family was surrounded and arrested by Prince Rui!
Will she ever be able to hold her head high again when she goes out in the future?
It's even more uncertain whether the arrest of those two will implicate the Wen family. If they are indeed implicated by people they dislike, it would be too unfair.
Wen's younger brother had a long face. He had a lot of confidence in Prince Rui, believing that the prince would not implicate the innocent or hold a grudge against the Wen family. But when he thought about how most of the boys and girls who had played with him and his sister when they were flying kites yesterday had rushed up to beat or curse their cousins from the Yang family, he felt ashamed and his face burned with embarrassment.
He's going to the college tomorrow... How can he possibly face his friends?!
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Author's Note: First update. (Wen-guniang was flying kites with me yesterday, poor thing, haha. I was thinking of just pretending not to know her, but she'll be famous by now.)
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