She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 252 - 251: Hitting a Wall

Chapter 252: Chapter 251: Hitting a Wall

Liang Qiyuan climbed up from the ground, his eyes still defiant as he looked at Zhou Bingyi.

Zhou Bingyi softened his tone, speaking indifferently, "When Biyao first visited the Qi family, the family servant from Duke An’s Mansion hadn’t even arrived, nor was there any message. When she went the second time, the servant from Duke An’s Mansion had only arrived a quarter of an hour earlier than Shuyu and Biyao, which even surprised the Qi family. Moreover, Biyao had said that the first time she visited Qi Ye, she didn’t keep it secret from her sister-in-law and niece, the former disapproved, and the latter was even more averse to the matter."

Liang Qiyuan’s eyes flashed fiercely, as if that was exactly the case. Lady Liu had mocked more than once, saying that the daughter of a prefectural magistrate currying favor with an abandoned peasant wife was utterly unbefitting of an official family daughter’s status.

Zhou Bingyi stared at Liang Qiyuan, taunting, "What I can’t figure out is why Shuyu and Biyao, with their status as the children of a fourth-rank officer from the Prefectural Magistrate’s Family, would bother to lower themselves to socialize with Qi Ye. The result? No sooner had the two children left than you were ordering someone from their household to serve you refreshments at your mansion. Did I underestimate the high status of you, Liang Qiyuan?"

"I, it was the foolish acts of Lady Liu, I, I was unaware," Liang Qiyuan tried to make himself sound more innocent.

Zhou Bingyi sneered, "Sending your household servant to the Qi family’s snack shop to disrupt their business, was that Lady Liu’s idea too?"

Liang Qiyuan immediately replied, "Yes, indeed, I’ve even reprimanded Lady Liu for it, and all the servants in Lady Liu’s quarters are aware of this matter."

"Ha ha," Zhou Bingyi asked with a sardonic laugh, "Bribing the hooligans to create trouble at the snack shop, and later their relatives and ruffian friends swarming the Yamen to lodge complaints, must that be Lady Liu’s doing as well? Shall I help you plead, reopen the case and let you out, perhaps put Lady Liu behind bars to face charges instead?"

"Think carefully about the whole affair, which part did you consider carefully before acting? I ask you, Lord Jiang questioned you twice at the second hall, why didn’t you speak up to defend yourself? When the charge of rebellion was being pinned on your head, you still refused to admit that personal grudges led you to act foolishly. Do you still think you can leave the prison unscathed and even bring charges against Jiang Yifan?"

Liang Qiyuan opened his mouth but said nothing. That was indeed what he had been thinking, hoping that once his brother-in-law, the distinguished prefect, arrived in Qingyuan County, Jiang Yifan would immediately kneel before his brother-in-law and him, desperately begging for mercy, still expecting his brother-in-law to charge him.

Zhou Bingyi’s face darkened, as he said, "Let me tell you the situation now. Apart from your silence, all other testimonies and confessions are in hand, and everyone in the prison, along with the troublemakers who submitted petitions, has admitted to taking silver from you to cause disturbances at the Yamen entrance. With people causing a ruckus at the county government office and many townspeople witnessing it, there are plenty of people who could testify. Looking closely at this case, it could certainly be settled as inciting a mob to storm the Yamen, which equates to rebellion."

Zhou Bingyi’s last sentence was said softly, yet it was chilling.

Liang Qiyuan’s complexion changed dramatically, and in a panic, he threw himself at Zhou Bingyi’s feet, clutching his legs, pleading with a cry in his voice, "Brother-in-law, please save me, I truly had no thoughts of rebelling. It was just that I couldn’t swallow my pride; I wanted to disgrace Lady Qi and Jiang Yifan. I had no thoughts of rebellion; brother-in-law, believe me, please explain this to Jiang Yifan, I was truly not rebelling."

Zhou Bingyi stood up, looking down at Liang Qiyuan, and said, "I can only have Jiang Yifan question you once more; at that time, answer the questions truthfully and don’t think about cutting corners. The current Qingyuan County is not a place where a lowly prefect like me can do whatever I please. I’ll go and speak with Sixth Master Rong and Qi Ye to see if they would be willing to let this go."

Liang Qiyuan, with an increasingly sluggish gaze, watched the jailer open the cell door, as Zhou Bingyi walked out. His heart, however, was filled with puzzlement. Why not seek help from the steward of Duke An’s Mansion? Could it be that Sixth Master Rong and Qi Ye were more important than the steward of Duke An’s Mansion?

Zhou Bingyi, who sought an audience with Jinrong, was turned away. At the gate of Jinrong’s temporary residence, Wan Yan apologized very sincerely, "Lord Zhou, please forgive us, my young master must avoid being too closely associated with court officials, especially when your brother-in-law is..., not that my young master is excessively cautious, but this matter is truly too sensitive."

Zhou Bingyi’s expression hardened, his mood utterly despondent. The excuse that a prince shouldn’t be too intimately involved with court officials was nonsense for Prince Yu. Everyone in the court knew that Prince Yu never cared for taboos and would engage with anyone when he felt like it. However, if he was not interested, even if a first-rank officer eagerly greeted him, he would ignore them.

But should it involve rebellion, that was a different matter entirely. Indeed, it would be inappropriate to associate. If out of caution Prince Yu intervened, demanding severe punishment for those suspected of rebellion, it would be expected.

Zhou Bingyi bowed and said, "I have a message; could Steward Wan possibly relay it to the young master?"

Wan Yan looked even more anxious, "Lord Zhou, it’s better to find another channel. With the incident in Qingyuan County, my young master is already very vexed. As it stands, my young master wishes to leave but fears being implicated, staying here only out of necessity. Please leave, Lord Zhou."

Returning from Jinrong’s residence, the sun had already set. Zhou Bingyi walked into the county government office under the dim light of the autumn twilight, officially entering Qingyuan County Yamen as the prefect.

Jiang Yifan welcomed Zhou Bingyi into the inner hall, offering him the seat of honor, and asked, "Has my lord had dinner yet, or should we serve tea first?"

Only then did Zhou Bingyi realize how hungry he was. With a wry laugh, he said, "Busy with all this for half a day, I’m indeed famished. If there’s ready made food available here, it would trouble Lord Jiang to bring some."

Jiang Yifan responded, "I didn’t know when my lord would return and also haven’t had dinner. The food here in the Yamen is just simple soups and dishes. I hope my lord does not mind."

"Lord Jiang is considerate, causing both you and me to delay our dinner."

"I will order the meal straight away. To dine with my lord is my good fortune," Jiang Yifan promptly stood up and bowed.

After a tense day, Zhou Bingyi was truly touched by Jiang Yifan’s words, nearly forgetting that the current standoff was crafted by this very young man.