The jailer, of course, knew how terrifying the prison was in the eyes of the world. Bringing back such ominous news, he didn't want to linger. He simply said, "Alright, I've done what you asked me to do. Take care of yourself," and quickly left.
Wei Shuwan held the iron bar in a daze, without reacting for a long time. The icy touch traveled from her palm into her body, but she was reluctant to put her hand down.
After watching for a while, Wei Shuyao finally couldn't help but ask, "Third sister, why are you so panicked? Does Second Uncle mean he'll never get out of prison?"
In her confusion, Wei Shuwan couldn't tell whether Wei Shuyao genuinely didn't understand or was just making sarcastic remarks. She silently withdrew her hand and clenched it into a fist under her wide sleeve.
Her fingernails dug into her skin until it ached, but she gripped the cloth tighter and tighter, and two streams of tears fell down her cheeks.
Wei Shuwan felt her legs go weak, and she slowly slumped down, burying her head in her knees. Her hair, which had loosened during the struggle, fell down, blocking the dim, yellowish light that flickered between light and shadow.
At this moment, Wei Shuwan dared not think about what her father would encounter in Taiwan prison; she only thought about what way she could save the Wei family.
She forced herself to calm down, carefully sorted out the current chaotic situation, and tried to find a way to break the deadlock.
Now that Duke Sheng is aware of this matter, given the relationship between the Sheng and Wei families, he will likely take action on this matter. However, Duke Sheng is no longer in court, and his high reputation stems from his incorruptibility; expecting him to plead for the Wei family is virtually impossible.
Moreover, Wei Shuwan now knows that Crown Prince Zhu Haogan's favor towards the Sheng family stems partly from his affection for Sheng Yun. Given this situation, it's already commendable that Zhu Haogan isn't taking advantage of the Wei family's misfortune; how could he possibly help Duke Sheng plead with the Emperor?
Therefore, Wei Shuwan dared not place all her hopes on Duke Sheng alone; she had to think of other ways...
Li Qingchen.
This was a name that had unconsciously popped into Wei Shuwan's mind ever since the Wei family's incident, which is why she left Zi Qiao with the words "I'll wait for you" at the very end.
She wanted Ziqiao to go to the Xiaoqiaochuan Prince's Mansion for help, but she hadn't thought carefully about what to say to persuade Li Qingchen to take action.
In total, Li Qingchen had saved her three times. The first time was when she was tricked by Song Zichen and fell into a pond. The second time was when she went to the palace to attend the Imperial Concubine's plum blossom appreciation banquet and was pushed off Qixiu Mountain. The third time was when she encountered bandits in Yandang Mountain and was captured and taken to the Eighteen Linked Villages.
Moreover, she had taken Li Qingchen in when he was shot with an arrow, which could be considered as saving him once.
As Wei Shuwan recounted these past acts of kindness, her sense of hopelessness seemed to ease. Surely Li Qingchen wouldn't stand idly by this time?
But soon that unease returned. They had saved each other's lives, and their relationship seemed incredibly strong, but upon closer inspection, it didn't seem so.
The first time Li Qingchen saved her, he was afraid that if she died in the pond, it would attract the government officials and expose the weapons he had secretly hoarded at the bottom of the pond.
The second time she was saved was because she and Princess Yun'an fell off a cliff and into the water together. It's hard to say that she wasn't saved because Li Qingchen helped Princess Yun'an along with her.
As for rescuing her a third time, it might actually stem from a sense of guilt on his part, because his broken promise had put her in danger, and he didn't want to stand idly by.
Therefore, their relationship was mostly limited to the level of "helping out on a whim." It would be wishful thinking to expect Li Qingchen to risk angering the emperor to plead for the entire Wei family.
Thinking this way, Wei Shuwan's heart sank again, as if it had been submerged in icy water, making it hard to breathe.
...
Only Wei Shuwan and Wei Shuyao were locked in this cell, and the neighboring cells were all empty. The deeper the night went, the more frightened Wei Shuyao became, but when she looked back at Wei Shuwan, he had no intention of paying attention to her at all.
Wei Shuyao hugged herself tightly, her eyes darting around in fear. Finally, she steeled herself and walked over, sitting down next to Wei Shuwan.
"Third sister, let's talk for a bit."
Wei Shuwan was still at a loss and feeling frustrated. She glanced up at Wei Shuyao beside her and asked, "Don't you hate me for sending your older brother to jail?"
The mention of this matter still stirred up resentment in Wei Shuyao, but considering her current situation, she felt it was best to remain united for the time being. Therefore, she forcibly suppressed her hatred and spoke in an unusually sensible and obedient tone:
"Don't even mention my eldest brother, now the entire Wei family is in jail. Third sister, let's quickly think of a way to get out."
Wei Shuwan sighed softly, "What can we do?"
"Will the Sheng family save us? Will he go to the palace at dawn to plead for the Wei family?"
Wei Shuwan chuckled helplessly and said, "You haven't been in Shengjing for long, so you don't know what happened to the Sheng family two years ago. At that time, the Sheng family's nephew was imprisoned for murdering his wife. The presiding official wanted to give the Sheng family face and change the death sentence to exile, but the Sheng family said something to him that led to the nephew being sentenced to be cut in half at the waist."
"What did Lord Sheng say?"
“Sheng Gong said, ‘If a wife can be killed, it proves that this person has no feelings of kinship. Since there are no feelings of kinship, he and I are just strangers.’”
Wei Shuwan paused, then turned to look at Wei Shuyao: "Because it concerns human lives, Lord Sheng wouldn't even save his own nephew. My father's mistake has affected dozens of people. Do you think Lord Sheng would step in to save him out of personal feelings?"
Hearing this, Wei Shuyao felt a chill in her heart, but she was still unconvinced: "The Emperor hasn't even determined that it was my second uncle's fault yet, he's just been imprisoned pending trial, how can you, as his daughter, preemptively convict him?"
“I did not say that this was done intentionally by my father. It is just that since my father took on the job of Du Jian, even if someone was trying to frame him, he failed to discover and prevent it in time, which is also a dereliction of duty.”
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