"Zhao... Lord Zhao!" Jiang Ling quickly put down her work, lowered her head, knelt on the ground, and greeted Magistrate Zhao.
Unlike Magistrate Duan, Magistrate Zhao narrowed his eyes and glanced at Jiang Ling before coldly asking, "Where is my son?"
"Father!!" Before Jiang Ling could finish speaking, a figure darted into Magistrate Zhao's arms at lightning speed.
At first, Magistrate Zhao didn't seem to recognize the boy dressed in coarse linen clothes, but when he saw the boy's face clearly, his eyebrows immediately furrowed and his face showed a hint of anger.
"How dare you, Jiang, mistreat my son like this!" Magistrate Zhao coldly rebuked.
"Dad, please don't blame Aunt Jiang, she's been very good to me!" Zhao Qianyu immediately pleaded with his father.
Hearing this, Jiang Ling felt a little relieved, but the next second, a layer of cold sweat broke out on her back!
"Son! What happened to your arm?"
Jiang Ling could tell that Magistrate Zhao's tone was even more furious than before!
"This..." Zhao Qianyu was at a loss, he didn't know how to explain it.
Just then, Jiang Ling felt two cold beams of light strike her heart, and her heart pounded so hard it almost jumped out of her throat.
"Guards! Take that vile woman away! I want to interrogate her myself!" Magistrate Zhao said this almost through gritted teeth.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ling felt a wave of dizziness and broke out in a cold sweat.
Several constables slowly walked towards Jiang Ling, and she felt as if several figures were pressing down on her, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.
The cold chains fell on Jiang Ling's body. Despite the sweltering heat, Jiang Ling felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave!
"mother!"
"Big sister!"
The children and Jiang Zhishan appeared in front of Jiang Ling. Jiang Yaojie glared angrily at Magistrate Zhao in front of him. Jiang Suihe and Nianci held Jiang Ling, who was already bound in chains, on either side and refused to let go.
"Zhao Qianyu, I thought you were different from them, but I didn't expect you to be all the same kind of snakes and rats!" Jiang Zhishan scolded Zhao Qianyu with a flushed face.
"How dare you, Jiang Zhishan! Just because Duan Kang'an is backing you up doesn't mean you can disregard me. If I wanted to ruin your future, it would be easier than crushing an ant!" Magistrate Zhao coldly rebuked.
Jiang Zhishan showed no fear after hearing this. Instead, he raised his head and glanced at Magistrate Zhao with a humble yet arrogant expression, saying, "Magistrate Zhao, you are too kind. If one day I could become an official, but all my colleagues are like you, I would rather not take the position, and I would rather not take the exam!"
"you……"
"Hahaha! I didn't expect you, Jiang Zhishan, to have such backbone! It seems I really haven't seen enough of you!"
Magistrate Zhao was so angry upon hearing Jiang Zhishan's words that he almost twisted his nose out. He was about to make a threat when he heard several hearty laughs behind him.
Upon hearing this voice, Jiang Ling's tense mood eased slightly. The person who came was none other than Magistrate Duan Kang'an.
“Lord Zhao! It’s so hot in summer, getting angry like this might harm your health!” Magistrate Duan said, squinting as he walked up to Zhao Tianqi.
"Hmph! I'm perfectly healthy, no need for you to worry! But Magistrate Duan, why don't you stay in your own office? Why do you keep running to Lu Family Village? And why do you keep coming here! Tsk, this man and woman alone together, could it be..." Lord Zhao said sarcastically, glancing at Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling was a little angry. It was clearly the two of them who started fighting as soon as they met, and she was always the innocent victim. But because of their identities, Jiang Ling could only swallow her anger.
"Oh? Lord Zhao, you flatter me. I can't compare to you. I came to Lujia Village openly and aboveboard, and I entered Jiang's house openly and aboveboard, unlike you who always sneaks around to find Xiao Cui at Yihong Courtyard!" Magistrate Duan retorted.
"Duan Kang'an, you're talking nonsense! When did I go to see Xiao Cui? I only ever go to see Lu Zhu!"
Realizing he had let something slip, Zhao Tianqi quickly covered his mouth and glared at Duan Kang'an, who was looking smug.
Duan Kang'an smiled and then said, "Oh, by the way, I have a good reason to come here this time. The Jiang family of Lujia Village has done a good job in managing the refugees, and the Prefect has specially sent me to reward them!"
"What prefect? A refugee?" Zhao Tianqi panicked immediately upon hearing this.
As he expected, the prefect appeared angrily at the gate of Jiang Ling's house, having overheard the previous conversation clearly.
If it weren't for his status, he would definitely give that bastard Zhao Tianqi a good beating to vent his anger.
Upon seeing the prefect, Zhao Tianqi immediately panicked. He scrambled to his knees before the prefect, trembling uncontrollably.
"Zhao Tianqi! You..." Although the prefect was angry, he waved his hand impatiently, telling Zhao Tianqi to get up quickly and not get in his way, since there were other people around.
"What... is this for?" the prefect asked, his gaze falling on the chains binding Jiang Ling.
"This humble woman knows nothing!" Jiang Ling kowtowed to the prefect.
"Speak!" the prefect shouted, turning to Zhao Tianqi.
Although Zhao Tianqi was frightened, he was also full of confidence. He grabbed his son's arms and came to the prefect, complaining, "Your Honor! Please don't be deceived by this vicious woman's appearance! My son has been staying at her house for a month, and he's become thin and dark. He must have suffered a lot. Look at his clothes, these coarse linen clothes are not fit for a human! And look at his arms! Aren't they the result of this vicious woman's abuse?"
Although the prefect was still angry, he was somewhat puzzled when he saw Zhao Qianyu's arms. He stroked his beard, glanced at Jiang Ling, then at Zhao Qianyu, and asked, "Young man, did she inflict these wounds?" He pointed at Jiang Ling as he spoke.
Zhao Qianyu shook his head. He looked up at his father, hesitating whether to tell the truth or not, when the prefect continued, "Young man, just tell me, I will stand up for you, but you need to make sure that every word you say is the truth!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qianyu mustered his courage and said, "Your Excellency, this has nothing to do with Aunt Jiang!" Then, Zhao Qianyu recounted how the refugees had previously attempted to harm Jiang Suihe.
"Zhao Qianyu! What kind of bewitching potion did this woman give you to make you twist the truth and defend her!" Zhao Tianqi, who was standing to the side, immediately lost his temper and started cursing at his son.
"Take him away first!" The prefect glanced impatiently at Zhao Tianqi and ordered the people next to him.
Zhao Tianqi was dragged out of Jiang Ling's house in a disheveled state by the prefect's men. They even stuffed a rag into Zhao Tianqi's mouth to prevent him from shouting and disturbing the prefect.
"Young man, let me ask you, why didn't you mention this earlier?" the prefect asked Zhao Qianyu, looking at him with some curiosity.
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