The magistrate's wife curled her lips into a smile:
“That’s right, reporting to Master Huangxin Cassava will earn us one merit. But if we also discover that this person is from our family, wouldn’t we get two merits?”
"Who would complain about having too much credit? Madam Ye is a smart woman; she should understand this principle."
"Besides, if you marry into our Lu family, it will be a win-win situation for both of us."
"So what if you make a lot of money now? You're still just a commoner! Even if yellow cassava is promoted in the future, all you'll get is a few thousand taels of silver as a reward. The people will only remember the good deeds of my master."
"If you marry into the family and become an official's wife, my husband can petition for you to be granted a title, and you'll definitely be able to get a seventh or eighth-rank imperial consort."
"At that time, even if you are just a concubine, you will be able to sit on equal footing with me. With my master's protection, you can expand your business as much as you want, and your two daughters will be able to marry as legitimate daughters of the Lu family in the future."
"Furthermore, your family's status will also rise, and your nephew's path to the imperial examinations will be smoother."
Ye Caiping sneered: "So it was me who benefited? Madam is truly generous, even sharing half of her man with you."
The magistrate's wife raised an eyebrow: "As long as my husband can rise through the ranks, and as long as my children can reach new heights, I don't care about these things."
Magistrate Lu has a proven track record; his promotion is only a matter of time!
Her son will also be promoted, and her daughter will receive more attention in her husband's family.
What does it matter if her son can enjoy these benefits?
Moreover, Ye Caiping only has two daughters, so she can be given a bowl of infertility medicine as soon as she enters the house.
A woman without a son is like a rootless duckweed; even if the master is a novelty, it will only last a few years and pose no threat to her.
Of course, she wouldn't treat Ye Caiping's two daughters harshly; she would also give them a generous dowry when they got married.
Ye Caiping can still make money. Just her spicy soup workshop can earn more than a thousand taels a month. She is also working on a furniture workshop. If she does well, she could earn three or four thousand taels a month.
Last time she said her family had property, but that was all a lie!
Her family wasn't good at business; those businesses belonged to other people, and they only owned 5 shares. Even owning 5 shares was just a way for others to buy peace of mind because they knew the family was a local power.
My monthly income is only four or five hundred taels, which is too little.
As for the master, he came from a poor background, so his family was naturally not wealthy. Even though his subordinates offered him gifts, he also had to give gifts and bribes to those above him, so after all that, there wasn't much left.
Moreover, their son was an official in the capital, which meant even more expenses.
If we could bring Ye Caiping into the family, we could get promoted and make money at the same time, wouldn't that be great!
The magistrate's wife said, "Now that we've laid our cards on the table, Madam Ye, stop being coy and just agree! The date has been chosen, we'll get married in two days! Once you're married into the family, I will certainly not treat you badly."
Ye Caiping sneered: "Sorry, I won't agree."
Two days? Her letter hasn't even been delivered yet! And even if Su Hen is willing to help her, it will still take time.
"Hmph!" The magistrate's wife slammed her hand on the table and stood up, sneering, "Fine."
After saying that, he turned and left.
After the magistrate's wife and others left, a group of yamen runners suddenly rushed in.
When Grandma Ye and Grandpa Ye heard the noise, they came out and their faces turned pale. They quickly shielded Jin'er and Huan'er behind them.
Old Man Ye shouted urgently, "What...what are you doing?"
The leader was none other than Constable Feng: "We're here to arrest the notorious bandit Zhang Yidao!"
"What notorious thief? We don't have any notorious thieves in our family!"
Officer Feng sneered coldly, "No? Our brothers just searched your house and brought him here! Still trying to deny it! What a Ye family, daring to harbor a notorious bandit involved in a family massacre! Men, arrest them all, gag them, and take them back to the yamen!"
As he spoke, a group of constables rushed over and arrested Old Man Ye, Jin'er, Huan'er, and the others.
Officer Feng approached Ye Caiping and said, "Madam Ye, please!"
Ye Caiping turned to look at him and smiled, "The reason why the news about yellow cassava was leaked last time was also because you did it on purpose, wasn't it?"
Officer Feng smiled but didn't answer: "Take him away!"
"Heh." Ye Caiping sneered.
She said, "If it's a secret, how could it be leaked so easily!"
From the very beginning, Magistrate Lu was making plans.
That constable Chen was also arranged by Magistrate Lu. He deliberately invited Li Zhiyuan to drink and pretended to be drunk to leak secrets, all in order to lure Li Zhiyuan into stealing yellow cassava.
When Li Zhiyuan commits a crime, Magistrate Lu will send someone to arrest him.
All of this was done to win her favor and make her admire Magistrate Lu.
Whatever the reason, it's truly impressive that a county magistrate like her punished her ex-husband who divorced her!
Unfortunately, Li Zhiyuan was foolish and didn't take the bait, instead letting Gu Han fall into the trap.
She felt something was amiss at the time, but considering that she and Magistrate Lu were partners, he had no reason to harm her.
Besides, it's not uncommon for yamen runners to make mistakes when they're drunk, so naturally no one suspected Magistrate Lu.
...
Not only Ye Caiping's family, but also Ye Daquan's family, including Wei Shi, Ye Peng, and Yin Hua, were dragged out by the yamen runners, tied up, and forced onto the carriage one by one.
"Help—what did we do wrong? Waaah...why are you arresting us? Ugh..." Mrs. Wei struggled and cried out.
The constable slapped her several times across the face, then gagged her with a dirty rag.
“Ugh—” Mrs. Wei’s face was full of terror.
Du, Jinhua, and Hu Xiuxiu were unaware of what had happened. They were so frightened that their faces turned pale, and tears streamed down their faces, but they didn't dare to utter a sound.
Ye Xuan's expression was dark and gloomy. Was it Magistrate Lu?
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