In the damp and dark prison cell.
The growling sounds of hunger rose and fell.
Ye Caiping took a few deep breaths. Sooner or later, she would have to be cut, so she might as well let her family be free sooner.
Ye Caiping stood up and walked to the cell door: "Warden, come here!"
Ye Daquan, sitting opposite, asked anxiously, "Little sister, what are you doing?"
Ye Caiping looked at him: "I don't want to die yet. Of course, no one else can die either."
Ye Daquan was stunned. Everyone was doomed. His death didn't matter, but his little sister couldn't die. There was only one way for them to survive...
Jin'er and Huan'er sat on the straw, holding her hand and sobbing.
Grandma Ye was also sobbing uncontrollably.
Ye Caiping said, "Alright, it's nothing serious."
A constable swaggered in from outside: "What's going on? What's all the noise about?"
Ye Caiping said coldly, "Tell him I agreed."
The constable snorted, "Why didn't you just think it through earlier? You had to spend a few days in jail to behave. Alright, I'll go report it now."
He then left.
The constables came to the back hall and told Ye Caiping about her agreement.
Magistrate Lu jumped up excitedly: "Really? Humph, I knew it. As long as her family is in my hands, she can't escape."
"Yes, yes, sir, you are truly virtuous."
The magistrate's wife, who was standing to the side, put down her teacup and said with a smile, "Congratulations, sir! Congratulations, sir!"
Magistrate Lu breathed a sigh of relief, then turned and bowed to his wife, saying, "Congratulations, Madam. I'll be leaving the wedding arrangements for three days from now to you."
"Alright." The magistrate's wife stood up. "I'm tired, I'll go back and rest."
Although marrying Ye Caiping would resolve the immediate crisis and bring many benefits later, he would still feel jealous.
After the magistrate's wife left, Magistrate Lu hurriedly ordered, "Someone, bring me a bucket of water; I need to take a bath!"
He was smitten with Ye Caiping from the first moment he saw her. He couldn't wait three days; he'd bring her over tonight and consummate the marriage first.
The constables busied themselves preparing hot water.
Before Magistrate Lu could even finish his bath, a constable rushed in: "Sir, Lord Qin is here."
"Prefect? Why is he here so late?" Magistrate Lu paused in taking off his clothes and hurriedly went out.
Then Prefect Qin of Nanzhou strode over. He was in his early fifties, dressed in an official robe, and exuded an air of authority.
"This humble official greets Your Excellency the Prefect." Magistrate Lu hurriedly bowed, and after finishing the greeting, he said familiarly, "My dear in-law, what brings you here so late at night—ah!"
Before he could finish speaking, Prefect Qin swung a large slingshot at him.
Magistrate Lu was stunned by the beating, both shocked and frightened: "My dear in-law..."
"Hmph, I don't have a relative like you!" Prefect Qin said coldly.
Magistrate Lu's face changed drastically, both shocked and frightened. Ever since his son took office as a fourth-rank official in the Ministry of Works, this superior, who had once looked down on him, had not given him a hard time.
Why is he acting crazy so late at night?
Although Magistrate Lu was afraid of his superior, the thought of his son's current position hardened his tone. He turned his face away, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect, and angrily said:
"What brings you here so suddenly, sir?"
"What is it?" Prefect Qin sneered, throwing the letter in his hand at Magistrate Lu's face. "Look at all the good things you've done!"
Magistrate Lu felt humiliated. He picked up the letter, and his face changed as soon as he read it.
Although unsigned, the letter was clearly written by Ye Caiping to her second brother. It accused him of trying to seize her wealth and marry her against her will, and of fabricating charges to imprison her entire family of over ten people when that failed.
The letter also instructed her second brother to find Su Hen.
Prefect Qin looked at him and sneered, "I only just found out that it was this Lady Ye who discovered the cassava. You've done something so utterly depraved!"
Magistrate Lu's face turned pale and then red. He hurriedly knelt down and said, "Your Honor, please spare me! I can take half of the credit for the cassava. And half of her property too."
Prefect Qin was furious: "You—"
If it were anyone else, he would naturally protect them out of consideration for their kinship! But he dared not provoke those whom Magistrate Lu had offended.
Prefect Qin shouted angrily, "How dare you! Do you think I'm the kind of person who would collude with you?"
Magistrate Lu stared at him in disbelief. "You're not? What are you pretending for!" The worst part was that he had no leverage over Prefect Qin!
Magistrate Lu gritted his teeth and said, "My lord, please consider that we are in-laws..."
"Shut up! Didn't you read this letter carefully? Don't you know who's protecting her? Release the Ye family right now!"
Magistrate Lu was dumbfounded: "That Su Hen? He's just a small merchant..."
"Are you blind?! Can't you see such a big 'sink' character?"
"Sink?" Magistrate Lu picked up the letter from the ground, his hands trembling as he reopened it. There was indeed a character "sink" on it, but what did that mean?
"Please, please enlighten me, sir."
Prefect Qin rolled his eyes in exasperation: "There's another red seal next to it!"
Magistrate Lu looked closely and finally saw the words on the red seal. His hand trembled, and the letter fell to the ground:
"It must be...the Shen family from the capital?"
As he spoke, Magistrate Lu collapsed to the ground.
Prefect Qin closed his eyes and exhaled sharply: "Men, tie up Lu Baiwen for me."
They immediately rushed into several government offices and subdued Magistrate Lu.
Hearing the commotion, the magistrate's wife rushed over: "My dear in-law, what happened? Why did you...?"
"Tie up Madam Lu too. She was involved in this as well!"
"No, no, no... my in-law, my son is a fourth-rank official in the Ministry of Works, one rank higher than you! How could you..."
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