Liu Ying stepped forward and addressed Meng Jianhua with neither arrogance nor servility.
He also signaled to Gu Lili and the other two to take the opportunity to leave the Liu family first.
As for Duan Hongfei, he can simply pay money to avoid trouble later.
It would be better if Gu Lili and the other two weren't involved.
A smile appeared on Gu Lili's lips. Sure enough, she had helped the right person!
When Meng Jianhua saw that Duan Hongfei's right hand was red and swollen, he immediately turned around and coldly ordered the constables he had brought, "Men, arrest this boy and this woman and take them to the yamen for interrogation!"
He couldn't understand it. Did the Liu family send people to the Liu residence on purpose to arrest them?
Liu Ying immediately stepped in front of Chang'an. This whole affair was caused by her Liu family, and she couldn't let others suffer undeservedly.
“Magistrate Meng, as I said, this was my idea. If you want to arrest someone, just arrest me. Perhaps I wouldn’t mind giving Young Master Duan something as compensation, and we can make peace. Fighting is a normal thing, isn’t it?”
Although Liu Ying had been confined to the inner quarters by Liu Yuanliang for over a decade, she had not forgotten a single one of the negotiation skills her father had taught her in the business world.
My father once said that as long as you use the most core interests, you can move anyone, it's just a matter of how much to give.
My father also said that as long as we survive, what does it matter if we give away all our wealth?
As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn.
Moreover, it was merely a matter of beating the son of a prefect, not a capital offense!
Meng Jianhua's first reaction was to look at Duan Hongfei, and when he saw that Duan Hongfei's eyes were full of greed, Meng Jianhua understood.
Seeing that Meng Jianhua remained silent, Liu Ying casually took out a land deed from the box and was about to hand it to Duan Hongfei.
Duan Hongfei hadn't expected Liu Ying to be so generous.
He vaguely noticed that the land deed said "Liu Family Cloth Shop," which he knew was the cloth shop with the most diverse patterns in the entire Jiangdu.
Almost all the wealthy people in Jiangdu go there to sell fabrics, and he likes it too.
Without hesitation, he reached out to take it, but just as his hand was about to touch the land deed, it was suddenly snatched from Liu Ying's hand.
Duan Hongfei looked over angrily, only to see Gu Lili, who looked completely harmless.
He hadn't heard Gu Lili say a word since he came in. He never expected that this brat would dare to steal his things!
Before Duan Hongfei could even get angry, Meng Jianhua, who was standing to the side, couldn't sit still any longer.
"Where did this girl come from? So ignorant! Guards, seize her and give her twenty strokes of the cane!"
If he could curry favor with Duan Hongfei, and if Duan Hongfei could put in a good word for him in front of Prefect Duan, then he could be promoted sooner.
Seeing Meng Jianhua's obsequious expression, Gu Lili put the land deed back into Liu Ying's hands.
"Tsk tsk, I never knew that Magistrate Meng of Jiangdu was actually a lackey of Prefect Duan's son! He arrested people without even asking any questions. I wonder if he is worthy of the salary given to him by the current emperor!" Gu Lili clapped her hands and sneered.
Upon hearing this, Meng Jianhua immediately straightened his back.
"You brat, how dare you openly insult an official of the imperial court! What are you all standing there for! Arrest her!" Meng Jianhua said angrily.
When the constables saw that Meng Jianhua was angry, they immediately tried to arrest Gu Lili.
Gu Lili slowly raised the county princess's token from her hand and sneered, "Let's see who dares!"
The moment Meng Jianhua looked at his hand, his face turned deathly pale.
He had heard a few days ago that the Princess of Yongning was in Jiangdu.
But he never imagined that the harmless little girl in front of him was actually the legendary Princess Yongning.
A peasant girl, with no background whatsoever, gained recognition solely through her intelligence and talent.
However, at the young age of fourteen, and in just a few months, he was bestowed with honors by the emperor twice.
It truly makes those who have studied diligently for over a decade feel ashamed.
Meng Jianhua wasn't the only one stunned; in fact, everyone except Chang'an and Li Ershu was frozen in place.
Liu Miaoyin never expected that Gu Lili would actually be the Princess of Yongning County.
Although she and her mother were confined to the courtyard, the maids and servants there would still talk about things outside.
When she heard about Gu Lili's deeds, she was filled with admiration.
The Gu Lili she heard about was someone who helped tens of thousands of people overcome the plague and also helped the emperor find new food.
From that moment on, Liu Miaoyin had someone she admired.
She thought that if she ever got out of the world, she wanted to be a kind and smart girl like Gu Lili.
Even without receiving an imperial reward, his medical skills alone could be used to help others.
"This humble woman greets the County Princess!" Liu Ying was the first to react and knelt on the ground.
Meng Jianhua then seemed to wake up from a dream and hurriedly bowed and clasped his hands in greeting. Seeing that Duan Hongfei was still in a daze, he quickly reached out and tugged at his sleeve, signaling him to kneel down.
Even a county magistrate like him had to bow to Gu Lili, so Duan Hongfei, who was just a commoner, should do the same.
Duan Hongfei was unwilling, but he had no choice but to obediently kneel down.
Liu Miaoyu also crawled shakily from beside Liu Yuanliang's bed and knelt down.
"Greetings, Your Highness!"
Gu Lili helped Liu Ying's daughter, Liu Miaoyin, up, then turned around and sat down, slowly taking a sip of tea.
Then, unhurriedly, she asked, "Magistrate Meng, you have not yet answered my question!"
Looking at the seemingly harmless Gu Lili, her words were extremely intimidating.
Meng Jianhua was already drenched in sweat without realizing it, and he quickly came up with countless reasons in his mind.
Gu Lili didn't urge him, but gently tapped the table, waiting for his answer.
After a long while, Meng Jianhua wiped the sweat from his forehead and said with a forced smile, "Your Highness is too kind. I was just being friendly with Young Master Duan and got carried away by my concern, which is why I offended you. Please forgive me."
Gu Lili smiled sneer. She hadn't expected Meng Jianhua to be so shrewd, not even mentioning his good relationship with Prefect Duan.
"I never imagined that the magistrate would enjoy making friends with people of different ages!"
Gu Lili's words were laced with sarcasm, and although Meng Jianhua could hear it, he dared not show any displeasure on his face. He could only keep forcing a dry laugh, but he dared not straighten his back.
Gu Lili turned to Liu Ying and asked, "Why did you send your servants to summon Magistrate Meng?"
Liu Ying gave a self-deprecating laugh, leaned close to Gu Lili's ear, and whispered the reason for asking Meng Jianhua to come.
Gu Lili understood; it turned out they wanted to clear their names.
Let's help them to the end, and see them through to the end.
We should help the Liu family settle these messy affairs as soon as possible so we can talk about their real business.
“Magistrate Meng, since today’s matter concerns the Prefect’s son, why not borrow your men to invite Prefect Duan over?”
If we want to clear our name, we should invite more influential people to speak on our behalf, so as to avoid giving others ammunition to criticize us later.
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