Zhao Jiaqi saw that the steward was worried about her safety, and she chuckled twice.
"If you speak, this princess consort might spare your life, but if you don't, it's a definite death sentence. Even if you don't speak, I believe many people in the Chu residence will tell me!"
"Of course, even if you don't say anything, my people will find out. You still won't be able to save your lives then!"
The steward was clever and quickly understood the pros and cons. He hurriedly replied,
"Reporting to the princess consort, I will tell you everything I know. I beg the princess consort to spare my life!"
He stepped forward to grab the princess consort's leg, but Xiao Ce, standing by, kicked him away. "Speak!"
Chu Wencai looked at the incredibly sharp sword tip pointed at him. He swallowed nervously and told them everything he knew.
It poured out of him like beans from a bamboo tube, not a single detail left out!
"The master of the Chu residence is named Chu Xiong. He has a daughter named Chu Xiangxiang, who is a noble consort of the Yun Kingdom. Because of this connection, they have been accustomed to acting outrageously in Hexinzhou, and many local officials dare not speak against them."
"It's not that they don't want to speak, but the Chu family is very generous with their money. They usually bribe officials with banknotes or gold, and at the very least, with beauties!"
"Because of this, the entire Hexinzhou, and even the officials of Qingjiang Prefecture, have been bought off by the Chu family. All profitable businesses are controlled by the Chu family. As for businesses they couldn't control, those belonged to powerful families, so the Chu family would not easily provoke them!"
Did this imply that her tavern was not taken over by the Chu family?
Zhao Jiaqi did not answer, continuing to listen to him ramble. Time ticked by, and in the blink of an eye, an hour had passed. Chu Wencai had only just stopped talking.
"This princess consort did not realize that the Chu residence had produced a noble consort, and that she had caused so much harm to Qingjiang Prefecture!"
It was laughable. Although the Inner City was within the territory of the Yun Kingdom, the Inner City was a separate domain.
"I wonder if Huangfu Xi is aware of this matter!"
Xiao Ce frowned and took a step forward. "Does the princess consort mean to say that the Emperor tacitly allowed such things to happen?"
Zhao Jiaqi smiled at Xiao Ce. "That's what you said, not me!"
However, this was not important. What was important was how to resolve this matter. She sat in her chair, crossing her legs and stroking her chin.
After a while, she said, "Send someone to deliver the steward and his confession to Huangfu Xi, and see what he says!"
Xiao Ce was slightly stunned. Only then did he realize that the princess consort's move was brilliant. He immediately dispatched someone to send them to the Yun Kingdom overnight.
As the guards were escorting Chu Wencai away, Xiao Ce specifically instructed, "Be careful of them being silenced!"
Upon hearing this, the escort became even more cautious and vigilant.
At that time, Fan Zehao had also finished interrogating the magistrate. Although the information obtained was not much, it was all useful. The two of them reviewed it in the bedroom and came to a conclusion.
"Miss Chu Lian of the Chu residence has quite the skills. If she doesn't use silver to smash things, she uses gold, and if that doesn't work, she resorts to beauty traps. We really need such talent here!"
Fan Zehao tapped her head. "What are you thinking about? The Chu residence is clearly a trap. We now have both testimony and evidence. Tomorrow, I will issue an imperial decree to confiscate her property and bring her to the Inner City yamen for interrogation!"
Zhao Jiaqi had no objections to this. "That's good. It will let Chu Lian and Chu Xiong taste what it feels like to be tied with ropes in the middle of winter, paraded like monkeys in the snow for everyone to see!"
Fan Zehao chuckled. His wife was indeed petty and loved to hold grudges.
"However, you mentioned that testimony and evidence are complete. But this is your one-sided statement. What will you do if they ask you to provide witnesses and material evidence?"
Fan Zehao frowned. "What do you mean? I am the witness, and the design drawings you drew are the material evidence. Not to mention that the villagers will also testify for you. What are you afraid of?"
After saying that, he took off his cotton-padded jacket, revealing his inner garment, and said domineeringly, "I am the sky in this Inner City. What evidence do I need to punish someone?"
Zhao Jiaqi turned her head and stared at the ceiling with a sigh. His words were quite obnoxious, but the reality was indeed so.
Some people had a sleepless night, while others slept soundly.
The next morning, Fan Zehao issued a decree.
The town head of Mengshui Town was promoted to the magistrate of Jinchang County, and Liu Feng, the village chief of Nanlan Village, became the town head.
The original magistrate of Jinchang County had disappeared, and even the yamen runners in the prefecture yamen remained tight-lipped.
The next morning, Fan Zehao and Zhao Jiaqi and their entourage returned to the Inner City overnight. The villagers of Nanlan Village were also released early in the morning and went their separate ways.
Inner City.
Granny Li was surprised that the apprentice she had taken in was actually the princess consort. After staying there and asking carefully, not just once, she confirmed that Madam Fan was indeed the princess consort, and then she came to her senses!
She lamented what good deeds she had done in her past life to have such great support in this life!
The day the couple returned to their residence, Fan Zehao ordered Liu Erlengzi and Wang Juxiang and their group to be released. Since the matter was over, there was no need to dwell on it.
If they knew their mistakes and corrected them, their future days would only get better. If they didn't, Uncle Liu would certainly not let them off.
He had now transformed from a nobody to someone important, from a village chief to a town head. Fan Zehao guessed that he would be overjoyed, slapping his thigh at home and laughing heartily!
By the time they returned to their residence, it was already noon.
The midday meal was simple. After lunch, everyone gathered to chat. Duan Yao, in particular, had been cooped up in the prince's mansion for far too long. She vowed that the next time they went out, she would definitely tag along.
She grabbed Zhao Jiaqi's hand and refused to let go. "I'm telling you, our workshop is making a lot of money now. I received another sum yesterday. Let's go over the accounts carefully today!"
Zhao Jiaqi's head spun when she saw the thick stack of ledgers, not just one, but a pile.
She politely refused, "There's no need to go over the accounts. Sister-in-law has always been very meticulous in her work. I trust you completely!"
"How can that be? It's my responsibility to be meticulous. Besides, no matter how good our relationship is, we must be clear about financial matters. Otherwise, if we fall out over this in the future, it won't be worth it!"
Zhao Jiaqi saw that she was going to play the card of "even brothers should settle accounts clearly," and she had nothing more to say!
"Well, sister-in-law, why don't you let my accountant go over it? I really can't think straight when I see these numbers!"
It would be understandable if it was just a month's account settlement, but this was for more than half a year. With money coming in and going out, if she had had no money when she first transmigrated, seeing how much she had earned might have given her some motivation.
Now, she had absolutely none. How much money she made was just numbers to her, and the decimal point had just moved a few places forward.