Imprisonment (Part 9)
The real mastermind behind the illegal railway case was arrested on the spot. The imperial envoy, seeing the crowd scattering like birds and beasts to avoid the soldiers, kept shouting anxiously, "Order! Don't hurt the people!"
The scene became chaotic for a moment.
By the time the execution ground returned to quiet, most of the people had already left.
Imperial Envoy Sun Mingyuan wiped the sweat from his brow and breathed a sigh of relief.
Having completed the task assigned by the Emperor, he felt no burden and walked briskly behind Mu Chuan, patting him on the shoulder: "You've worked hard."
Mu Chuan was still flushed from his excited outburst, the pinkness still clinging to his fair cheeks. He turned to look at Fang Mingyuan, but his appearance made Fang Mingyuan burst into laughter: "My God, what are you wearing!"
As if he wasn't satisfied, he circled Mu Chuan three more times, marveling, "It should really be painted so that all those girls who fawn over you can have a good look."
Mu Chuan glared fiercely.
Sun Mingyuan became even more excited and added fuel to the fire, saying, "They are not as beautiful as you. I wonder what they would think if they saw such a portrait."
Mu Chuan was speechless and took Wang Pan'er's arm to leave.
Sun Mingyuan then noticed that Mu Chuan was protecting someone in his arms. He leaned closer to the two of them and looked them over: "Oh my, is this our nephew's wife?"
Mu Chuan finally lost his temper and shouted sharply, "Cousin!"
The words "niece-in-law" and "cousin" caused Wang Pan'er to freeze on the spot, completely stunned.
Good grief, she was introduced to the parents looking like this?
Sun Mingyuan wasn't angry at Mu Chuan's outburst. He cheerfully arranged for a carriage to take them back to the manor, and kept winking at Mu Chuan.
Like a mother hen protecting her chicks, Mu Chuan escorted Wang Pan'er back to the manor. The ladies had already prepared hot spring water so that Wang Pan'er could bathe and change properly.
Wang Pan'er changed the water three times to thoroughly clean herself. After putting on clean clothes, she walked out of the bathroom, where Mu Chuan, dressed in men's clothing, was already waiting at the door.
Her half-loose hair, which had been loose while dressed as a woman, was tied back into a high ponytail. She looked beautiful, but Wang Pan'er couldn't help but feel a little regretful: "I wonder when I'll be able to see the beautiful Mu again."
Mu Chuan rolled his eyes in annoyance.
Every single one of these people loved to annoy him. He couldn't help but wrap his arms around Wang Pan'er's shoulders and shake her violently to vent his anger, then pulled her into his arms and led her to the dining room.
Despite Mu Chuan's innocent-looking face, he was surprisingly strong. Wang Pan'er was shaken so hard that her head spun and she was dragged along, feeling weak and powerless.
What are we going to do?
"Have a meal."
The mention of food brought a burst of energy back into her head. Wang Pan'er patted her stomach and said, "You know what, I didn't feel hungry when I was busy with important things, but now that you've brought up lunch, I suddenly feel like I could eat a whole cow."
Wang Pan'er took the initiative, breaking free from Mu Chuan's embrace and pulling him along as they rushed towards the dining room.
Speaking of having a big meal, Wang Pan'er suddenly remembered her "old buddy" in the dungeon and said to Mu Chuan, "By the way, ask someone to tell the uncle in the cell next to mine that he can come out now."
Mu Chuan nodded.
Wang Pan'er added, "And then there's Su Lingya and the eldest madam of the Su family. Su Lingya is Xiaoyao's good friend. I've been searching through the account books in the Su family for so long, and I haven't found any trace of either of them being involved in the private ironworks."
The implication was that they wanted Mu Chuan to avoid implicating the two of them when handling the case.
Mu Chuan naturally understood: "The First Madam has already divorced Master Su, and according to the established social order and ethics, she has nothing to do with the Su family. As for Su Lingya, as long as she is removed from the Su family's clan register and enters the maternal ancestral hall with the First Madam, it won't be a big problem."
Strict laws and regulations can have a deterrent effect, but it is unreasonable for law-abiding citizens to be implicated and suffer undeserved disasters, in the eyes of Wang Pan'er, who has been influenced by modern thought.
Fortunately, Mu Chuan's reply was quite kind and righteous, and Wang Pan'er was very satisfied. She hugged Mu Chuan's arm and said coquettishly, "I understand, I understand. You are the best. I will have Xiao Yao relay the message."
The manor was large, but no matter how large it was, it was only a short distance from the bedroom to the dining hall. The two of them joked and teased each other, and soon arrived at the dining hall.
Wang Pan'er stepped into the dining room and paused.
Almost everyone he knew was there. The women of the estate even brought out a large round table from the storeroom to entertain the guests.
Two younger sisters, Tao Shuo, Aunt Tian, Shopkeeper Xu, Madam You, Xianying, Mo Feng, and their uninvited imperial envoy cousin.
Sun Mingyuan was considered a distinguished guest, and everyone pushed him to sit in the host's seat.
Wang Pan'er had not yet sat down at the table, and the ladies had not yet served any dishes. The table was set with some fruits, snacks, and tea. Everyone was listening to Wang Xiaoyao and Xianying vividly describe the course of the case.
Upon seeing Wang Pan'er enter, Sun Mingyuan immediately stood up to greet her: "Oh, niece-in-law, you've worked so hard, please take a seat!"
He had no airs of a high-ranking official and mingled with everyone. He even personally poured Wang Pan'er a pot of tea, saying, "I'll toast you with tea instead of wine."
Wang Pan'er felt like she, an introvert, had become a toy for the extroverts, forced to drink tea, and then listened to Sun Mingyuan explain: "To arrest the prefect and the chamber of commerce, there's no way the yamen would be as efficient and harmless as an execution ground. Besides, if we raid them, they won't have time to destroy the evidence, so Xiao Chuan and I decided to pretend to believe their judgment, which implicated you and made you go to the guillotine."
Wang Pan'er replied, "The imperial court is investigating the case of smuggled iron for the sake of the people's well-being. If we can help, we should do our part. Now that the criminals have been brought to justice, why don't you experience the local customs and culture of Jinzhou?"
She winked at the young woman waiting in the dining room, signaling for the food to be served, and said with a smile, "The land on my estate is all used to grow medicinal herbs, so there's not much to see. But the young woman in our kitchen is a first-rate cook. Please try some of the food from our estate first."
The dishes were ready and kept warm in the kitchen. As soon as Wang Pan'er signaled to serve the dishes, the kitchen staff piled the table high with plate after plate.
The lunch was a great success, with everyone enjoying themselves immensely and leaving satisfied.
Sun Mingyuan was unable to experience the local customs and culture of Jinzhou Prefecture as Wang Pan'er had hoped. The criminals were apprehended, and the follow-up work was extensive.
Cases of great importance that even the Emperor is paying attention to must be transferred to the capital.
First came the ransacking of the house, then the inventory, and then the consolidation and organization of the clues that Mu Chuan had already investigated. Sun Mingyuan was so busy that he couldn't even think about having fun.
After a thorough investigation, the amount of embezzled funds was so large that Sun Mingyuan clicked his tongue in disgust, simply lamenting that they were "huge rats."
By the time all the evidence was compiled and everything was settled, more than half a month had passed.
With the situation in the capital unstable, Sun Mingyuan could not afford to indulge in pleasure in Jinzhou. He immediately ordered the criminals and the confiscated items to be escorted back to the capital.
Mu Chuan and his entourage were also on their way back to the capital, as they needed to report back to the Emperor together.
Mu Chuan also invited Wang Pan'er and her sister to visit the capital.
Wang Pan'er had already agreed to Mu Chuan's request, and Mu Chuan wouldn't allow her to refuse.
Wang Xiaoyao's best friend, Su Lingya, was deeply affected. Although she and her mother were spared from being implicated thanks to Mu Chuan's protection, her father, who had always been a positive figure, suddenly became the culprit in a major case, shattering her worldview and requiring time to repair and rebuild. Qianji Wanying Pavilion initially received strong support from Su Lingya, and during Su Lingya's most difficult period, Wang Xiaoyao decided to stay in Jinzhou Prefecture to support her friend through it all.
Wang Chengxi felt that if Wang Xiaoyao didn't go, her older sister and future brother-in-law would definitely spend a lot of time together, leaving her alone and feeling lost. Following Xianying's words, and hearing her sisters' talk about the differences between men and women, she felt uneasy and unwilling.
In the end, only Wang Pan'er went to the capital with them.
But there's plenty of time in the future. Next time I go to Beijing, I can invite everyone to come along. There will be many more opportunities.
Wang Pan'er packed her bags with great enthusiasm and boarded the carriage on the day Mu Chuan and his party returned to the capital.
People spontaneously came to see them off.
Manager Xu and Madam You bowed to the head of the household, Mu Chuan, in farewell.
Tao Shuo and Aunt Tian stood together. Tao Shuo gave Wang Pan'er a large bag of tea bags to cool her down. Aunt Tian learned to read at the medicinal cuisine restaurant and wrote a halting letter home, which she wanted Wang Pan'er to give to Li Qingyan.
Wang Chengxi hugged Wang Pan'er, gave her a talisman she had obtained from a temple, and then looked longingly in the direction of Xianying.
Xianying noticed the gaze, walked over, half-squatted down, and patted Wang Chengxi's head: "Brother has important business to attend to in the capital. Brother will reserve a room for you at our home in the capital. You can come anytime you want."
Wang Chengxi slipped a note into Xianying's hand as well. Xianying carefully placed it into her inner pocket: "With our sister Chengxi's blessing, we will surely have a smooth journey."
Wang Xiaoyao stood on one side of the carriage, his height already surpassing that of Wang Pan'er.
This is the first time the two sisters have been separated since leaving the mountains. Wang Xiaoyao has grown from a timid little sister into a very, very reliable boss.
She confidently assured Wang Pan'er, "I will help take care of the medicinal cuisine restaurant. Chengxi is also very sensible, so there's no need to worry. Sister Pan'er, you can have a great time in the capital without any worries about us."
Looking at her two younger sisters, whom she had raised so well, Wang Pan'er couldn't help but feel proud. How could she possibly need to worry about them?
Not only these relatives and friends, but also some ordinary people who came to see him off after hearing the news.
The prefect and the chamber of commerce were raided, and the gold, silver and other valuables were to be sent back to the capital as evidence in court. The rice, flour and oil stored in the warehouses and facilities that were seized were distributed to the people by Sun Mingyuan according to the household registration of the prefectural government. The medicinal materials were donated to Taihetang and kept for their free clinic.
The people were very impressed with the imperial envoy's actions, but also felt guilty towards Wang Pan'er, who had risked her life to get into the situation and had been pelted with rotten vegetables and eggs.
Some of them carried baskets of eggs, while others brought homemade snacks, intending to give them to those returning to Beijing.
Wang Pan'er stopped them: "None of us here are short of money. These eggs and food are for everyone to enjoy. You don't need to feel guilty for throwing rotten eggs and vegetable leaves at me. We've already set a trap and walked to the execution ground. How could we not know everyone's indignation? You were just misled into believing the wrong facts."
Hearing this made everyone feel much better.
She shooed away the crowd that was trying to gather around her: "We're leaving now, everyone go home early, no need to see us off anymore. If you really want to thank us, please patronize my family's medicinal cuisine restaurant."
Wang Pan'er waved to everyone who came to see her off, climbed into the carriage, and happily embarked on her journey to the capital for sightseeing.
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