Yun Zheng and Yu walked side by side.
Yun Zheng chuckled and asked, "Then, can I take the whole set of glass bowls and plates that I left for the girl as part of her dowry to the trade market to sell?"
Yu grabbed his ear and said, "Are you blinded by greed? Wouldn't it be better to save it for Sanya's next marriage?"
"Madam, you may not know this, but these glass pieces will soon fetch a low price. This entire set of 168 pieces could now sell for 100,000 taels of silver."
Yun Zheng quickly waved his hand, and seeing that Madam Yu had no intention of letting go, he added, "If the Liang family finds out in a couple of days that this dowry alone is worth 100,000 taels of silver, won't they be kicking themselves?"
Madam Yu immediately released her grip. "Alright, go and do it. Sell it for as high a price as possible, so that everyone in the entire capital city knows!"
That evening, the Yun family carried the thirty-six loads of betrothal gifts back to the Liang family intact, but instead of bringing them inside, they lined them up in a row starting from the main gate, opening the lids of all the chests for everyone to see.
The cloth, utensils, and other items were all half-used, and each box was only half-full, which made people laugh at them.
The betrothal gift list was placed on top of the first chest, and passersby looked at it while laughing at it. A few busybodies even stepped on it a couple of times.
Originally, the old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an wanted to bring in a concubine to avoid wasting the entire banquet. However, after being slapped in the face by the Duke's mansion, she couldn't care less about entertaining the guests. She hurriedly saw the guests off and then snatched the betrothal gifts into the mansion.
As for the betrothal gifts, they were already exchanged when Madam Yu brought the official matchmaker to their door earlier.
Marquis Jing'an also felt utterly humiliated and hid in the backyard, refusing to show himself.
At night, several masked men suddenly and silently broke into Liang Yi's courtyard...
The old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an thought about it all night, but she couldn't swallow her anger. She planned to send someone out to spread the word the next morning that the third young lady was a jinx and a curse, which was why the Liang family had broken off the engagement.
Unexpectedly, a servant rushed in in a panic, "Madam, the young master, he, he..."
What's wrong with him?
"This morning, when I was helping him wash up, I found him tied up in a sack. I don't know who beat him. Right now, he's barely breathing..."
"Hurry and fetch a doctor!" The old lady was anxious to go see her grandson.
Another servant ran in, "Madam, Seventh Aunt and the others are kneeling in front of the door, crying."
"What?!" the old lady roared. "Who brought them back?!"
"The young master said it wasn't him!" the servant whispered. "For some reason, even those few who went mad are outside, along with the young master and the others..."
"What!" the old lady exclaimed angrily. "Why aren't you getting rid of them right now? No, bring them in first!"
The servant shook his head, "No, it won't work... Prefect Lu of the Capital is also outside... He said there's a grievance that the young master is accusing the prince of disregarding human life..."
The old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an felt a sudden darkness before her eyes and fainted.
Liang Yi was taken away by the Jingzhao Prefecture that same day.
Three days later, Lu Shi'an held a public hearing for the case.
The gate of the Jingzhao Yamen was surrounded by layers of people.
After the interrogation, the people were shocked.
They never imagined that this filial son, who observed six years of mourning, would have abused no fewer than twenty maids and fathered seven children within those six years. Fearing exposure, he drowned five girls alive, leaving behind only two sons whom he couldn't bear to part with. Of the twenty-odd maids, three were driven insane, six mysteriously disappeared, and several others were nominally taken in as concubines but were actually locked in the pigsty on the estate, forced to compete with the pigs for food.
It was absolutely horrific.
Lu Shi'an sentenced Liang Yiqiu to death on the spot.
The old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an immediately fainted.
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, the autumn executions usually took place in November, when prisoners who had reached the end of their sentences would be executed in one go.
With only a few days left, the old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an frantically sold off her property and had her son pull strings to try and save Liang Yi's life.
Unfortunately, even after selling all the land and shops in the entire prefecture, they only managed to raise 20,000 taels of silver, which was spent without any return.
The old lady didn't believe it and desperately borrowed money from all over the place to bribe officials. Within a few days, the Jing'an Marquis's mansion was destitute.
Later, I heard that a complete set of glass bowls, plates, and cups for family banquets was auctioned off in the West Market's commercial city. It was very beautiful and sold for a total of 160,000 taels of silver.
This set of glassware was originally purchased by the fourth master of the Yun family from overseas at a high price, intended as a dowry for his daughter.
Unfortunately, the marriage didn't happen, and fearing that the girl would be heartbroken if she saw the item, they put it up for auction.
Upon hearing this, the old lady of the Marquis of Jing'an nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
She only spent less than 10,000 taels of silver to prepare the thirty-six loads of betrothal gifts, and she originally thought that the third daughter of the Yun family would bring a generous dowry.
But she never expected that a set of glassware would be worth 160,000 taels of silver!
If... if this marriage had gone through...
The grandson's crimes would never be exposed, and the Jing'an Marquis's mansion could even be revitalized as a result...
Liang Yi, now in prison, was filled with remorse.
Why didn't you write another poem to urge me to get ready that day?
After the truth of the case came to light, all four branches of the Yun family were filled with relief.
Yun Tianzhi was secretly delighted. He had material for a new story. He was going to write it well this time and make sure that Liang Yi's name would be infamous for eternity!
Only You Ran looked sullen.
Su Yue followed behind her and couldn't help but ask, "Miss, why are you so downcast?"
You Ran said, puzzled, "I originally thought that Mother had someone investigate the matter of Prince Liang, but I just asked Mother, and she said it wasn't her. Then who could it be?"
Su Yue smiled and said, "Aren't there three other ladies? Or perhaps, the old lady?"
He shook his head leisurely, threw the green grass in his hand, and went to Zhuqing Courtyard.
"Was it you?" she asked bluntly.
Chu Heng chuckled and brushed her fingers away. "What?"
"Did you send people to investigate Liang Yi?"
Needless to say, the beating was definitely done by those two bastards, Yun Tianzhi.
Chu Heng was taken aback for a moment, then nodded and admitted, "Yes, it's nothing. No need to thank me."
"Who needs to thank you?" You Ran snorted. "But since you're so well-informed, have you found out who tried to harm me at Tianxiang Tower last time?"
Chu Heng shook his head, "You didn't say I should investigate, did you?"
You Ran glared at him, "Then I never asked Your Highness to investigate Liang Yi, so why did Your Highness send someone to investigate?"
"Oh, I'm happy to." Chu Heng smiled. "I had nothing better to do, so I had someone investigate him."
"Then, Your Highness, could you perhaps take another moment to investigate that matter from last time?"
"Whatever makes me happy," Chu Heng replied indifferently.
You Ran said, "Xiao Liu said that the people caught at Tianxiang Tower last time were ordered by the Nan Yue people. Could this matter be related to the Nan Yue people? What about that Nan Yue princess?"
"How would I know? The Prince of Nan Yue has already returned to Nan Yue."
You Ran's eyes widened suddenly. "Your Highness, was it because you used this incident as leverage to slaughter the Nan Yue people before letting him leave?"
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