Liang Laifu looked anxious, and when he saw Tao Wanniang, he couldn't help but look behind her.
"Lord Liang, what are you looking at?" Tao Wanniang asked deliberately with a stern face. "Look again, but you won't see anything special."
"How is Qiao'er? Is she alright? Was she frightened?" Liang Laifu clearly knew what had happened.
"He was quite frightened, but what does Lord Liang want to do here?" Tao Wanniang said sarcastically. "Is he following the husband's lead, or is he here to clarify the rumors that Qiao'er and that woman's child are incompatible according to their birth dates?"
Liang Laifu was taken aback, then said with a guilty expression, "You should leave, leave Shanhai Prefecture, and take Qiao'er with you."
"Ha, so Lord Liang is here to kick us out!" Tao Wanniang sneered without any politeness. "We're really pitiful. We finally found a place to stay in Shanhai Prefecture, and we're about to be kicked out after only a few days. Have we broken the law?"
"Although we rented this house, we paid six months' rent upfront. We raised chickens and ducks and grew vegetables; all of that money has gone into it!"
Liang Laifu's gaze toward Tao Wanniang was somewhat indescribable. Five hundred taels, he had given five hundred taels of silver, wasn't that enough?
"For your own good, you should leave. Anyone who gets targeted by Li Jianghai will be found in trouble, regardless of whether they commit any crimes or not."
“Then we’ll be even less able to leave, Lord Liang. I’m afraid that the moment we step out the door, we’ll be taken to the authorities. If they give us a few more lashes, we’ll be half dead.”
Tao Wanniang exclaimed, "There are plenty of stories in folk tales about officials forcing confessions through torture."
"I will send you out of the city!" Liang Laifu said urgently. "I'm sorry to Qiao'er, forcing her to wander again. It's my fault, but it's for her own good!"
"What a fine way of saying it's for her own good! Alright, give us a carriage, a big one at that. Little Qiao'er has been frightened, and there are quite a few women and children in the family, plus a distinguished guest staying in the backyard who can't be seen. They need to leave too!"
Liang Laifu was stunned, staring at Tao Wanniang in shock, his forehead covered in sweat, as if he had thought of something.
“Lord Liang may have misunderstood. Our guest in the backyard is named Bai Yumei. I don’t know if you’ve heard of her, but Lord Li certainly does.” Tao Wanniang knew what Liang Laifu was thinking just by looking at his expression.
“She is a pitiful person. If we are leaving, we must take her with us.”
He seemed to have heard of Bai Yumei. Since Li Jianghai knew about her, it couldn't be what he thought.
"And what if your good wife doesn't agree? She sees Xiao Qiao'er as a thorn in her side!" Tao Wanniang changed the subject. "To put it bluntly, can Lord Liang arrange for us to leave? We don't want to be stopped by Lord Li's men halfway there!"
"Although we haven't done anything wrong, it's obvious that Lord Li is eager to make a name for himself and wants to use us as scapegoats!"
Tao Wanniang spoke with great emotion, and even sighed heavily, looking like she was in a dilemma.
Liang Laifu frowned, and finally said solemnly, "I will escort you out of the city, and I will give you whatever you want!"
Ah, a man's pride, Tao Wanniang thought to herself with a secret delight. Since Liang Laifu had chosen to rise through marriage, he must not like others questioning his abilities.
"Alright, then let's wait for Lord Liang's good news. There are nine of us in total, and twenty chicks and ducklings, plus bedding, pots and pans. If we could have a horse-drawn cart to haul goods, that would be fine. If not, we'll have to push a cart."
Tao Wanniang spoke slowly, but her way of raising the price on the spot made the Ling brothers beside her uneasy.
If this deal really goes through, won't they leave in a very prestigious manner?
Liang Laifu felt a jolt to his head, thinking that Tao Wanniang, a mere woman, was extremely greedy.
"You just wait!" Liang Laifu said, then turned and left.
As soon as Liang Laifu left, the Ling brothers couldn't help but look at Tao Wanniang with admiration in their eyes.
“Mother, you’re quite the talker!” Ling Dapeng exclaimed first. “If only we were given a carriage, I’ve never ridden in one in my life!”
Tao Wan's mother glanced at her son and said coolly, "Even if there's a carriage, it's not for you to ride in. Alright, go wash up and go to bed. Your wife and children are waiting inside!"
Bai Yumei in the backyard was unaware of what had happened. Since they were leaving, they naturally couldn't abandon her.
Bai Yumei had returned early today and was still awake. Upon hearing Tao Wanniang's voice outside the door, she immediately opened it.
"Sister Tao, what's wrong? Is there something you have to say tonight?"
"Sister Yumei, if we have to leave Shanhai Prefecture, would you be willing to come with us?" Tao Wanniang asked directly as soon as she entered the room.
Bai Yumei was taken aback and subconsciously asked, "Why? Why are you leaving all of a sudden?"
Tao Wanniang simply and clearly told Bai Yumei about how Li Jianghai suspected her of harboring the imperial inspector, sent people to keep an eye on her, and also tipped her off about Xiao Qiao'er's identity, which led to the prefect's daughter coming to provoke her and even sending people to smash up her shop.
"Sister Tao, isn't that Inspector General at home?" Bai Yumei suddenly said, seemingly unconcerned about Xiao Qiao'er's matter.
"Huh?" Tao Wanniang was taken aback. Was Bai Yumei so sure?
"Sister Tao, Li Jianghai is a cunning old fox. He will investigate people leaving the city very thoroughly. I will go with you, but can I see the Imperial Inspector?"
Bai Yumei looked at Tao Wanniang and said sincerely, "I want revenge, I want to report Madam Huang, but there is no one in Shanhai Prefecture who can stand up for me. I don't know where the Huang family has moved to. The person that Li Jianghai is so persistent in pursuing must be a formidable figure."
"Sister Tao, if you help me, I'll help you too!"
Hearing the sincerity in Bai Yumei's words, Tao Wanniang considered it for a moment and finally agreed on Xiao Yi's behalf.
"As long as we can get out of the city, this imperial inspector will definitely stand up for you, because he is still a royal prince!"
Bai Yumei's eyes lit up. Although she didn't know exactly how powerful he was, he was still someone of high status.
The two of them got together and came up with a plan.
“My son and daughter-in-law are honest people who can’t keep secrets, so I didn’t tell them about this.”
Finally, Tao Wanniang said, "How about this, after they've all rested, I'll take you to see the young master."
"Sister Tao, you are truly my benefactor!"
Bai Yumei said emotionally, "I almost knelt down before Tao Wanniang."
Tao Wanniang felt ashamed; in truth, she had benefited more.
In the middle of the night, Tao Wanniang took Bai Yumei to see Xiao Yi. The three of them got together and settled the matter of escaping. Now, they just had to wait for Liang Laifu to fulfill her request.
"Sister Tao, why are you so sure that Liang Laifu will agree?"
Xiao Yi was puzzled. Where did Tao Wanniang get her confidence?
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