These constables and guards were well-trained and moved swiftly and efficiently. They skillfully bound everyone tightly with ropes, rendering them unable to move.
Seeing this, Steward Xiao was terrified. He struggled to remain calm and shouted, "I am the Prime Minister's steward! How dare you people be so audacious as to arrest us! Aren't you afraid of the Prime Minister's wrath?"
Lin Daowei remained unmoved. His face was ashen, and his sharp eyes pointed at the Xiao family members. He said in a stern voice, "Don't think that just because you're a lowly servant, you're guilty of a serious crime. Even if you were an official, harboring runaway slaves would be a grave offense!"
After saying that, Lin Daowei pointed sharply at the dozen or so boxes of exquisite jewelry on the table and continued, "What's more, you stole so many glittering silver jewelry, which is simply adding insult to injury!"
His voice echoed in the air, carrying an undeniable authority. Then, with a wave of his arm, he ordered, "Investigate those things thoroughly!"
A large group of people rushed into the house and began ransacking it.
Upon hearing this, Butler Xiao's face turned deathly pale. He asked in horror, "Who...who is the runaway slave?"
According to the law, anyone who abducts a slave, helps a slave escape, or harbors a slave will be sentenced to death. Runaway slaves themselves are also guilty of a capital offense, and those who harbor runaway slaves will be punished with the same crime.
"Her!" Lin Daowei pointed his finger without hesitation at Qiaoqing, who was already so frightened that her whole body went limp and she was almost collapsing to the ground.
Butler Xiao was utterly astonished, his voice rising eight octaves involuntarily, "What? She's actually a runaway slave? How is that possible? She's our third daughter-in-law, and her master released her from her indenture long ago!"
Lin Daowei interrupted him without hesitation, glaring at him and angrily retorting, "That's utter nonsense! She's clearly a slave of the Lin family recorded in the government office!" After saying that, he glared fiercely at Steward Xiao, seemingly full of disdain and skepticism towards his words.
Seeing this, Xiao's wife quickly interjected, "But she said that the master has already released her and even gave her these pieces of jewelry!" As she spoke, she pointed to the gold and silver jewelry on Qiaoqing's body, as if these were the best evidence.
Lin Daowei sneered and said sarcastically, "You actually believe the words of a traitorous lackey? It's utterly laughable!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao San was furious. He kicked Qiao Qing hard, cursing and shouting, "You shameless slut, how dare you lie to us and say that the master released you!"
The kick landed squarely on Qiaoqing's face. With a loud "bang," Qiaoqing's body flew backward and crashed heavily against the wall. Her left eye instantly became red and swollen, and tears streamed down her face like a burst dam.
Qiaoqing was terrified and completely lost her mind. Like a wounded wild animal, she cried and screamed at the top of her lungs, "That jinx will definitely give me a contract of indenture! If she doesn't give it to me today, she will definitely give it to me tomorrow! I'm not a runaway slave, waaaaah..."
Her cries did not elicit any sympathy; instead, they drew a brutal beating from Lin Daowei.
Lin Daowei suddenly raised his hand and slapped Qiaoqing hard across the face without any mercy. The slap was extremely heavy, and Qiaoqing's cheek instantly swelled up, with a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.
"You ignorant fool!" Lin Daowei roared furiously, "How dare you insult my niece!" Before he finished speaking, he slapped her hard across the face again, this time even harder, causing Qiaoqing's cheeks to swell up and even knock out several teeth, with blood gushing from her mouth.
Lin Daowei was so angry because although he could say some unpleasant things to Lin Yajun in private, she was, after all, his niece and a junior. Even if he cursed her, it wouldn't be a big deal.
But he absolutely could not tolerate an outsider daring to insult his niece. In his view, this was not only an insult to his brother's family, but also an offense to him personally.
Qiaoqing was stunned by the sudden violence. She stared at Lin Daowei with wide eyes and a look of horror on her face. She still had the few teeth that had been knocked out in her mouth, and blood kept flowing from the corner of her mouth.
Only then did she finally realize that the fierce man in front of her was actually Lin Yajun's third uncle!
When Lin Yajun saw this scene in the video, a bright smile appeared on her face. "Haha, this is what happens when you betray me. You actually dared to send people to kill Achen. Die!"
Using her spatial abilities, Lin Yajun moved three boxes containing jade artifacts into Xiao San's room and hid them. All three boxes bore the mark of the Duke of Enguo's mansion.
Meanwhile, Chief Guard Ma led a group of guards to search Xiao's residence.
They started searching from the woodshed, making their way to the main courtyard, and then to the east wing. When they entered Xiao San's room, Chief Guard Ma squatted down, his gaze suddenly drawn to several items under the bed.
"Found it! Found it!" Captain Ma shouted excitedly. He stepped forward and examined the items closely; they were indeed the large bronze chests from the Duke's mansion. These chests bore the Duke's mansion's mark, clearly indicating they had been stolen from the Duke's residence.
Chief Guard Ma was overjoyed and immediately ordered his men to bring out the bronze box.
Not content with this, he ordered his men to dig three feet into the ground inside the house and continue the search.
The guards worked for an hour, searching every corner of the room, but apart from the few bronze boxes, they found nothing else of value.
"We haven't found anything else, what should we do?" Chief Guard Ma stood in the courtyard, looking at the room that had been ransacked, somewhat at a loss.
"Why don't we take them back to the government office for questioning first?" Lin Daowei suggested from the side.
“Alright.” Chief Guard Ma nodded in agreement, then gave instructions to his men, “You few will go with the officers to take Xiao San’s family to the government office for questioning. Keep a close eye on them and make sure to interrogate them thoroughly.”
"Yes, Captain." A group of men tied up Xiao San's family, along with Qiao Qing, and took them away.
Steward Xiao shouted, "Prime Minister, save this old servant!"
"Master, save me!" Qiaoqing cried out shrilly.
"Shut up." Someone stepped forward and kicked Butler Xiao and Qiaoqing hard. "If you shout again, I'll kill you."
Upon receiving a report from his guards, Prime Minister Xiao learned that Xiao San's new wife, Qiao Qing, was actually a runaway slave. He couldn't help but swallow hard, thinking about enjoying the beauty of Xiao San's wife.
Prime Minister Xiao pondered to himself, "Hmm, Third Sister Xiao is quite beautiful. It would be a wonderful thing to have her in my household. But how can I get her?"
He frowned slightly, then suddenly had a brilliant idea. "I've got it! I can send someone to the Lin family to buy her at a high price, or offer Lin Daoyan an official position. That should be enough."
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