Exile with Storage Space: Family Fortunes in the Barren Lands-Chapter 758 - 0711: Helper (2)

People from the Yu Wen Family will go to the Wei Family tomorrow to discuss a marriage proposal.

The matter is urgent, and Li Yuzhu, Li Yuwen, Pei Shenyan, and Mu Yuanxiu followed Da Chuan to Hu De’an’s residence overnight.

The small house was in complete darkness.

Da Chuan lit a candle.

Everyone saw that in the middle of the main room, two people were tied to each of the two pillars.

One was fat, the other thin.

Li Yuzhu didn’t recognize Hu De’an, but she recognized the other person.

She stared at that person and exclaimed, "Isn’t this the attendant of Yu Wen Zan? He went to Zhen An Prefecture in the spring two years ago."

This attendant drove the carriage very recklessly, almost running over Liu Si Ni.

Li Yuwen wasn’t at the market that day, but later heard everyone discussing it. She sneered, "Oh, it’s him. He almost hit Si Niu that day."

"Hu Dejun? Is that you?" Pei Shenyan sneered, "Is it you causing trouble in the Wei Family’s matters? Did your family’s Second Young Master get involved in this?"

"Our Fifth Young Master is asking you a question, speak up!" Da Chuan rolled up his sleeves, put his hands on his hips, and walked up to the fat Hu Dejun with a fierce expression.

Earlier, when Da Chuan tied them up, he had already given them a beating.

The brothers couldn’t help but tremble when they saw Da Chuan.

"No... no, the Second Young Master doesn’t know about this," Hu Dejun, with his fat face pale, replied.

Da Chuan pointed at him, "Go on, keep making up stories." He went into the hall, and soon came out again, shaking several letters at the two, "What’s this? Is that character Zan from Yu Wen Zan, the Second Young Master Yu Wen Zan? Are the words inside written by him?"

The two were so scared their souls almost left their bodies.

Da Chuan handed the letters to Pei Shenyan.

Pei Shenyan glanced at the two tied men and unfolded the letters to read.

Gradually, the corners of his mouth turned into a cold smile, "What a scheme of a fraudulent marriage proposal!"

"Brother-in-law, report to the authorities," Mu Yuanxiu, who was also reading the letter, said, "This matter must be handled by the government for the Wei Family to escape trouble."

Pei Shenyan secured the letters and said to Da Chuan, "Da Chuan, quickly invite Mr. Song, the Capital Governor, to come here."

"Yes, Fifth Young Master."

The tied-up Hu De’an and Hu Dejun were pale with fear.

.

Upon hearing that Pei Shenyan had reported the case, the Capital Prefect brought his men and came overnight.

He was slightly stunned to see Li Yuwen and Li Yuzhu in the room.

Was he seeing things?

Are these...

The two daughters of Prince Luling from before?

Li Yuwen stepped forward, confidently greeting Song Prefect, "Mr. Song, long time no see, have you been well?"

"Good day, Mr. Song," Li Yuzhu also greeted.

Mr. Song awkwardly cupped his hands to both of them, "Very well, very well."

He was puzzled, why did these two come to the Capital?

With their hair styled as married women, are they married?

Pei Shenyan walked over, "Mr. Song, let me introduce, this is my wife, from the Li Family, and this is my sister-in-law Li San Niang, and this is my brother-in-law Mu Yuanxiu."

"Mr. Song." Mu Yuanxiu cupped his fists and saluted.

Only then did Song Prefect realize, indeed, the two daughters of Prince Luling are married now? No wonder they boldly returned to the Capital.

Now that they are married, they belong to another family, and the Emperor can’t say much.

However, that falls under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Clan Court, unrelated to his Capital Governor’s affairs.

Song Prefect’s daughter had some friendship with Li Yuwen and had benefited from her guidance, gaining a good reputation in the Capital, which also landed her a good match.

Pei Shenyan was also in favor with the Emperor.

Whether public or personal, Song Prefect had already sided with Li Yuwen and Pei Shenyan in his heart.

He asked Pei Shenyan about the details of the case.

Upon learning it involved the Yu Wen Family, he was greatly astonished.

This case is quite tricky.

Sweat started to form on Song Prefect’s forehead.

Pei Shenyan, noticing his difficulty, said, "Your Excellency has always handled cases impartially, surely this small matter can be resolved quickly, right?"

Song Prefect’s head suddenly felt twice as big.

Quickly resolved?

How is that possible?

If this matter goes public, someone from the Yu Wen family will end up in jail.

Won’t the Yu Wen father and son cause trouble for him?

Song Prefect was troubled, what should he do now?

Li Yuzhu whispered to Li Yuwen, "Elder sister, the prefect seems to be in a difficult position, doesn’t he?"

"I’ll go have a word with him." Li Yuwen smiled slightly at Li Yuzhu and approached Song Prefect, "Mr. Song, I have some personal matters to discuss with you. Please, come this way."

Song Prefect accompanied her with a smile, "Fifth Young Madam, please."

Li Yuwen led Song Prefect to the backyard.

Lady Sun, who had followed, lit a lantern and hung it on a small tree outside the backyard, then retreated back into the house.

In the small courtyard, only Li Yuwen and Song Prefect were present.

Li Yuwen smiled slightly and said, "Sir, it’s just the two of us here, let’s reminisce a bit."

Song Prefect was unsure of what she wanted to say, so he just echoed, "Please, Fifth Young Madam, do speak."

"Four years ago, you judged a case of a woman accused of murdering her own husband. The woman’s surname was Shen. Do you remember, sir?" Li Yuwen looked at Song Prefect, smiling as she asked.

Song Prefect felt a chill, "Ah... I have some impression of it..."

Li Yuwen continued, "That case happened at noon on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival. You were at home setting up an altar to worship your ancestors when you received the report and rushed to the scene, examined the evidence, and later found the woman guilty, but in fact..."

Before Li Yuwen could finish her sentence, Song Prefect’s face turned as pale as a sheet.

"My father was temporarily sent to the Ministry of Justice by the Emperor to handle some matters, and he had a careless attendant student with him who accidentally knocked over a lamp, burning a roll of the case files. He was scolded by the Emperor for that," Li Yuwen said with a smile, shaking her head, "My father was a careless person, and those around him were careless too. He really wasn’t suited for such meticulous tasks like reviewing documents."

Song Prefect didn’t know how to respond and just smiled awkwardly.

"Forget it, it’s old history, no need to mention it. By the way, Mr. Song, how is your daughter, Ah Yuan, lately? You know, I haven’t seen her in three years, and I do miss her," Li Yuwen suddenly changed the subject with a slight smile.

Song Prefect’s daughter had some connections with Li Yuwen.

Li Yuwen introduced one of Prince Luling’s students to Song Prefect’s daughter.

Unexpectedly, it led to a marriage.

The year Li Yuwen left the Capital, Song Prefect’s daughter had just given birth, and her husband had passed the imperial examinations.

The couple loved each other dearly and lived a happy life.

This brought great honor to Song Prefect.

Song Prefect remembered the great favor Li Yuwen had done for him and his daughter.

When mentioning his daughter, a smile finally appeared on Song Prefect’s face, "They live in Qingzhou Prefecture. Earlier this year they had another son. The couple came to the Capital for half a month during the new year and mentioned Fifth Young Madam then."

"Ah, why mention me? As long as she’s doing well, I’m happy. After all, we’re like sisters, aren’t we, Mr. Song?" Li Yuwen smiled.

"Yes, yes," Song Prefect also smiled.

Li Yuwen chatted casually with him, subtly reminding Song Prefect of how she had once helped him and his daughter, and recalling a wrongful conviction he had made.

That year, Song Prefect rushed to close a case and unjustly convicted a woman of poisoning her husband who had mistakenly eaten poisonous plants while working in the field.

Unable to bear the injustice, the wife ended her life with a rope.

The man’s mother couldn’t withstand the shock and also passed away.

The only remaining member of this family was a three-year-old orphan, who was helped by villagers with the funeral rites for his family.

When Song Prefect realized his mistake, he adopted the child.

The case was reported to the Ministry of Justice just when Prince Luling was temporarily overseeing matters.

Prince Luling immediately saw issues with the case and privately inquired with Song Prefect.

What conversation transpired between the two was unknown to Li Yuwen, but the result was that an attendant student accidentally burned the case files.

That wrongful conviction was conveniently erased by a fire.

Listening to Li Yuwen’s casual chat, Song Prefect was already frightened to the core.

Who said the people of Lu Ling Royal Mansion were all fools? This Li Yuwen was even more cunning than those veteran ministers in court.

She actually remembered the weaknesses of him and his daughter!

He didn’t need to think to understand the underlying meaning of her words, which was a reminder for him to handle the Yu Wen family’s fraudulent marriage case properly.

Faced with either being hated by the Yu Wen family or safeguarding his official position, he immediately chose to protect his position.

He believed that if he handled the case impartially, the Yu Wen family wouldn’t dare do anything to him. At worst, he’d just offend them.

But if he didn’t help Li Yuwen, knowing her temperament, she would definitely cause an uproar.

Not only would he lose his position, but he might even get beaten by Li Yuwen.

She wasn’t even afraid of confronting the Emperor; she certainly wasn’t afraid of a minor prefect like him.

"Fifth Young Madam, it’s getting late, we should deal with the case promptly. When my daughter returns to the Capital, our office will invite Fifth Young Madam to a gathering," Song Prefect clasped his hands with a smile.

It was a sign of agreement, and Li Yuwen returned the gesture with a smile, "Thank you for your invitation, sir. Today’s case will be quite a burden on you."

"It’s my duty, it’s my duty," Song Prefect said, nodding with a wry smile.