It's not a misunderstanding
"Are you sure this is the place?" Zhu Qinghe hid behind Shen Wumei. In front of them was a thick locust tree with intertwined roots and vines, which well concealed their figures.
Shen Wumei pushed her head back and continued to stare at the houses not far away. Two men dressed in black short jackets and carrying swords stood at the door. They definitely did not look like villagers from Shenyin Village.
This is most likely a stronghold of the organization behind the Hidden Village.
"I'm asking you a question." Zhu Qinghe poked his back when he didn't answer.
Shen Wumei turned around and pushed her against the tree trunk next to her, putting a finger to her lips to signal her to be quiet.
Zhu Qinghe blinked and nodded.
Shen Wumei had seen villagers sneaking around here the night before, so regardless of whether this was the base of the forces behind Shenyin Village, there was definitely something wrong here.
Originally, Shen Wumei hadn't planned to bring Zhu Qinghe along, but she hadn't expected the girl to be so clever and to have secretly followed them.
Judging from the tight security, it probably won't be easy for the two of them to sneak in.
Just as they were pondering a solution, the door suddenly opened and a person walked out.
When she saw the man's expression clearly, Shen Wumei was slightly taken aback. How could he be here?
The man who walked out of the door, with an old face, a dejected expression, and a sinister air, was none other than Chen Shikun's father, Lord Chen.
Zhu Qinghe recognized him too, after all, Chen Shikun's case was the source of her and Shen Wumei's intersection, and she remembered it quite clearly.
However, this Lord Chen is strange. Chen Shikun clearly brought this upon himself and got himself killed, yet Lord Chen insists on finding trouble with Shen Wumei.
It is said that several impeachment memorials have already been submitted.
"His son is dead. Why isn't he staying at home? What is he doing in Shenyin Village?" This was the question that arose in both of their minds simultaneously.
It seems there's no chance today. Before those people discover them, Shen Wumei takes Zhu Qinghe back to an inn.
Back at the inn, the four of them held a short meeting, and neither of them looked too happy.
The situation is now even more complicated, as Lord Chen has also become involved in the case of the ghost baby in Shenyin Village.
"Could it be that Lord Chen lost his son and became mentally disturbed, so he's targeting those innocent baby boys?" Ruyi reasoned.
Zhu Qinghe had considered this possibility, but Lord Chen was, after all, an official, so it shouldn't be that simple.
Shen Wumei directly denied this guess: "Although Lord Chen is not a good official, he would not attack indiscriminately like this. He still cares a lot about his official hat."
He must have had other intentions in doing this; what he was plotting was definitely not just revenge or venting his anger.
Zhu Qinghe thought so too. For some reason, she had a vague sense of unease, as if a storm was brewing.
This ominous feeling was confirmed the following day.
When Lord Chen led a group of soldiers into an inn, Zhu Qinghe and Shen Wumei were sitting at the table.
Lord Chen spoke with an authoritative tone and a cold, solemn expression, like a righteous messenger acting on behalf of Heaven.
"Upon receiving a report, it was discovered that someone here is suspected of spreading witchcraft and harming innocent children. This is a heinous crime, and they have been immediately detained."
Shen Wumei's face darkened as she stared directly at Lord Chen: "What do you mean by this, Lord Chen? Since when have you taken charge of the affairs of the government office?"
Lord Chen sneered: "Lord Shen may not know this yet, but I am now in full charge of the supervisory affairs of the government office."
"Lord Shen, you should be more discerning. If you insist on protecting this vixen, you might even lose your official position."
The veins on the back of Shen Wumei's hand bulged, and she was about to stand up when Zhu Qinghe held her back tightly.
After finally getting the person back to their seat, Zhu Qinghe remained calm.
Even though she was the one about to be arrested, it was Shen Wumei who was more impatient and angry.
Zhu Qinghe walked up to Lord Chen and said, "Lord Chen, you have some impressive skills. Now that I think about it, you were already planning to deal with me back in Hongxiuzhao, weren't you?"
Lord Chen remained silent with a stern face, then waved his hand: "What are you all standing there for? Take this witch away!"
When Ruyi heard the news, Zhu Qinghe had already been taken away.
She anxiously tried to chase after them, but Mo Wu stopped her: "Ruyi, calm down, those are imperial soldiers."
Ruyi's eyes were filled with tears: "But Miss has been taken away by them, how can you expect me to stay calm?"
Mo Wu remained silent, looking at Chen Wumei, whose face was so gloomy it seemed like water could be squeezed out of it.
He hadn't seen his boss so emotional in a long time; he must be very anxious about Miss Zhu being arrested.
"Lord Shen, please save my young lady! This matter has nothing to do with her."
Shen Wumei: "I know I will definitely rescue her."
The Ministry of Justice prison.
Zhu Qinghe stretched her white prison uniform; it seemed a bit too big.
However, given the current situation, there's really no way to choose.
A guard opened the cell door, and Lord Chen walked in.
Zhu Qinghe was dressed in coarse prison clothes, her hair was a little messy, she sat on the ground with her legs crossed, and a faint smile on her face.
"What brings you here, Lord Chen?" Zhu Qinghe casually picked up two damp straws and started weaving them in her hands.
The prison was dark and damp. In the past, those who were exiled here always had sorrowful faces, sighed and lamented, and some even wept uncontrollably.
I didn't expect her to be so calm, as if she was certain that someone would come to rescue her.
Lord Chen thought of Shen Wumei's face and snorted coldly: "I advise you not to be too optimistic. Shen Wumei is in dire straits herself right now."
Zhu Qinghe, however, remained unaffected and said slowly, "I was just idly telling your fortune, Lord Chen. Guess what interesting thing I found out."
"Playing tricks." Lord Chen scoffed. "Don't try to use your charlatan tricks on me. I don't believe in that."
"Oh, really?" Zhu Qinghe shook the straw, the end of which drew a sluggish, gloomy arc in the air. "I wonder if Lord Chen has ever heard of infant spirits?"
Upon hearing the words "infant spirit," Lord Chen's hand, which was resting at his side, trembled slightly.
Zhu Qinghe squinted at him, a smile playing on her lips, as if she were the one judging him: "Lord Chen's performance suggests he's heard about it."
"Nonsense! What are you talking about? I don't know anything!" Lord Chen shouted sternly.
Zhu Qinghe was not annoyed, and sighed softly, "It's good that Lord Chen doesn't know. This method is insidious and shortens one's lifespan. If one gets involved, it won't be easy to get rid of it."
"Besides, this charge is far more serious than the fabricated witchcraft charge against me."
Zhu Qinghe smiled radiantly, her face clearly beautiful and luminous, yet Lord Chen inexplicably shuddered and lost all interest in staying any longer.
After Lord Chen left, Zhu Qinghe glanced at the skylight above her head, a dark look flashing across her eyes.
-
"Hey, Lord Shen, you can't come in—" The little guard at the door was pushed a good distance away by Shen Wumei.
He kicked the door open.
The magistrate was embracing his concubine at the table when he saw the front door shattered in front of him, and then the evil spirit on the door frame entered the room.
The magistrate quickly pushed the beauty in his arms away, straightened his hat, and hurriedly scolded, "Shen Wumei, don't you have any sense of hierarchy? Why didn't you knock before coming in?"
Shen Wumei threw the long knife in her hand onto the table with a "bang," almost hitting the county magistrate's fat hand. The beauty screamed and ran out the door.
The magistrate was startled and glared at him, shouting, "What are you doing? Are you trying to rebel?!"
Shen Wumei coldly said, "When did Minister Chen start interfering in our government affairs? I had no idea."
The magistrate choked on his words, realizing he was indeed in the wrong. If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't refuse Minister Chen's gift, he wouldn't have been willing to risk offending Shen Wumei.
After all, Shen Wumei is someone who doesn't look like someone to be trifled with.
However, since he had been exiled from Kyoto, he must have made a serious mistake and wouldn't be able to recover anytime soon. Thinking of this, the magistrate regained some confidence.
"Do I need to inform you of my duties? Besides, Minister Chen's job transfer is the decision of the higher-ups. Knowing it won't do you any good. Just do your job well."
Shen Wumei stared at him with his dark eyes, then took something out of his pocket and presented it to him. After the magistrate focused his eyes and saw the object clearly, he was horrified.
He stared in surprise, his eyes widening: "You—"
Shen Wumei: "I need to go to the Ministry of Justice prison. Make the necessary arrangements for me."
Life in prison wasn't easy; the prison clothes were really thin, and after one night, Zhu Qinghe developed some chilblains on her hands.
The rat hole in the corner let in a whooshing sound. Zhu Qinghe was diligently blocking the hole with straw in front of her, working hard, when she heard the guard calling her from behind.
"Zhu Qinghe, someone has come to see you."
She paused in her movements and quickly rubbed her face. There were no facilities for washing her face here, and she must look terrible.
She turned around and, sure enough, saw Shen Wumei's familiar face.
He didn't look too good either. Judging from his appearance, anyone who didn't know better would think he was the one who had been arrested and spent a few days in jail.
"Lord Shen, how have you been? You look so pale. Didn't you sleep well?" Zhu Qinghe walked to the railing and carefully examined him.
Shen Wumei looked at her without saying anything. Although her face was a little pale, she seemed to be in good spirits and hadn't suffered too much.
His gaze fell on her hand gripping the railing, and his expression changed. "What happened to your hand?"
Zhu Qinghe hid the back of her hand in her sleeve: "It's okay, it'll be fine in a few days."
Shen Wumei didn't believe her nonsense. She forcefully pulled her hand out of her sleeve and saw the large frostbite on the back of her hand. Her whole aura became even colder and more chilling.
Zhu Qinghe tried to pull her hand away but couldn't. For some reason, she felt a little embarrassed and scratched her neck with her other hand, saying, "Um, Lord Shen, your appearance might cause misunderstandings."
"What misunderstanding?" Shen Wumei looked at her.
Looking into his cold, dark eyes, Zhu Qinghe felt a strange sense of shame, as if she were committing blasphemy. To suppress her increasingly violent heartbeat, she looked away and said casually, "You're misunderstanding me, thinking I'm concerned or worried about you. We're just business partners..."
"It's not a misunderstanding."
"You don't need to..." Zhu Qinghe said directly, then suddenly paused, turned to look at Chen Wumei, "What did you just say?"
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