Duan Gang's son and wife dared not be negligent, and they also took out silver from their pockets and put it on the ground.
"What about those jewelry? And those other things?" Lin Daowei's voice boomed like a bell, making it clear to the guards of the Duke's mansion standing outside.
He shouted, "Give back everything you took, or you're all dead!"
Duan Dayi was startled by the sudden roar. His body trembled involuntarily before he stammered, "The... everything is with my son-in-law. He forcibly took the jewelry. His name is Xiao San, and he is the Prime Minister's bodyguard."
Duan Gang's face was swollen like a pig's head. He rubbed his face and said to Lin Daowei in a fawning manner, "Sir, you can ask my brother-in-law Xiao San for it. He will definitely be able to get it all back."
Lin Daowei glanced at Duan Dayi and Duan Gang, a slight, almost imperceptible smile appearing on his lips.
He then gave his men a wink, and they immediately understood, placing the pre-written confessions in front of Duan Dayi and the other two.
"Sign." Lin Daowei's voice was icy cold, devoid of any emotion.
Duan Dayi didn't even have time to read what was written on the confession before he hurriedly affixed his seal to it. As if afraid that Lin Daowei would be dissatisfied, he also stamped his handprint on the confession.
Lin Daowei nodded in satisfaction, then ordered his subordinates, "Take them to the prison."
Upon receiving the order, his men immediately stepped forward and tied Duan Dayi and the other two up tightly, then dragged them toward the prison like dead dogs.
Duan Dayi never dreamed that in an instant, his entire family would become prisoners! This sudden turn of events enraged him, and the fire of anger in his heart seemed about to burst forth.
As he was being led away, he kept punching and kicking Madam Ma beside him, cursing incessantly: "You spendthrift woman! It's all your fault! It's all because of you!"
Madam Ma was beaten in excruciating pain and could only cry and beg for mercy: "Waaah, my husband, I really didn't know it would turn out like this..."
Seeing his father's anger, Duan Gang was also very scared, but he still tried to remain calm and comforted him, "Father, don't be angry. My sister and brother-in-law will definitely come to save us."
After listening to his son's words, Duan Dayi calmed down a little, but he still sighed with worry, feeling that things were far from simple and the situation was probably very bad. He racked his brains and suddenly thought of a solution: "If we can ask the Lin family for help, maybe we still have a glimmer of hope."
However, Duan Gang immediately shook his head and denied it, saying, "Father, don't be naive. They definitely won't come to help us."
Duan Dayi pressed on, somewhat unwilling to give up, "Why is that?" Duan Gang frowned and said in confusion, "I also find it strange. How could the officials of the prefectural government know so much about our affairs? They even know exactly how we embezzled the money."
Upon hearing this, a phrase suddenly flashed through Duan Dayi's mind: "If you don't want others to know, don't do it in the first place." He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "It seems that's really true..."
Lin Daowei stood at the shop entrance, his eyes fixed on the receding figures of Duan Dayi and the other two, his smile growing ever brighter.
He thought to himself, "My eldest niece is really something. I never expected that following her method would actually get me out of this predicament so easily. Maybe I can even reap some benefits from this!"
With this thought in mind, Lin Daowei happily picked up the confession from the table and then walked out of the shop.
He arrived outside the shop and immediately spotted the guards from the Duke's mansion standing there.
Lin Daowei's lips curled slightly. He raised the confession in his hand and shouted loudly at the guards, "Do you have the guts to come with me to the Prime Minister's residence to get your things and people back?"
Upon hearing this, the Duke's head guard, Ma, frowned and replied irritably, "Why should we accompany you to the Prime Minister's residence to demand someone? That's your duty, it has nothing to do with us."
Lin Daowei calmly took a small step forward, then lowered his voice slightly and said softly to Chief Guard Ma, "General Ma, the loss of your Duke's mansion's belongings is a serious matter! Won't you guards be punished for this?"
Upon hearing this, Chief Guard Ma's face instantly turned ashen. He retorted furiously, "Hmph! If it weren't for that, how could we have dared to smash up the shop owned by the Prince Consort? How many lives do we have to do that!"
The truth of the matter was this: Duke Enguo threatened the guards, saying, "You guards have neglected your duties, which led to the loss of the Duke's property. You either find the missing silver or smash up the Prince Consort's shop," forcing them to take action against the Prince Consort.
Chief Guard Ma was truly in a dilemma! Where could he possibly find the vast amount of lost property from the Duke's mansion?
How dare a mere guard like him vandalize the prince consort's shop? Wasn't that just courting death?
With the Duke of En threatening the lives of the guards' families, Chief Guard Ma had no choice but to lead his men in causing trouble and vandalizing the Prince Consort's shops. Unfortunately, one of his men was beaten to death by the Prince Consort's chief guard, Ren Chuanhu.
Even more frightened, Chief Guard Ma ordered his men to carry the body of the guard and, in the name of the Duke's Mansion, create a disturbance at the government office, demanding that the government take down Ren Chuanhu.
Now, Chief Guard Ma is in dire straits, and it seems that there is only one path left for him to take—the path of death.
Whether it was the Duke's mansion losing valuables or the Prince Consort's shop being vandalized, neither of these matters was trivial. If either of these incidents were investigated, Guard Ma would not be able to escape unscathed.
Without a doubt, once the matter is exposed, Guard Ma will certainly not escape death, but how he will die is unknown.
Lin Daowei knew very well what kind of predicament Ma was in, so he deliberately leaned close to Ma's ear and whispered, "Brother, I have a way to save your life."
Upon hearing this, Guard Ma's eyes widened in disbelief, his face showing an expression of utter disbelief. He simply did not believe Lin Daowei's words that could save his life.
Seeing this, Lin Daowei couldn't help but sigh and said in a low voice with deep emotion, "Alas, Brother Ma, we little people never get a chance when good things happen, but when bad things happen, we have to bear all the responsibility. So, the only thing we can do is to figure out how to get out of these troubles, how to save our lives, and how to protect our families."
Upon hearing Lin Daowei's words, Ma Shiwei suddenly became somewhat agitated, his eyes gleaming.
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