"Fine, have Cha Xiang invite Master Li over. Tell him that Fei Yun has already sold him out, and he can come to clarify things," Wu Caiwei shrugged indifferently.
"When did I say it was him?" Fei Yun looked up at her in disbelief, feeling she was blatantly lying.
Wu Caiwei ignored her. Li Zixin arrived quite quickly. He had been curious as to why Wu Caiwei's people had come to see him. Upon hearing from Cha Xiang, he was startled. While harboring some resentment, he rushed over immediately.
He knew Wang Yu Meng had earned a lot of silver, but upon entering her room and seeing the furnishings, he couldn't help but feel envious. Even the Li family at its peak couldn't compare to hers.
"Oh, County Magistrate Li is here, please have a seat." The maid, with keen eyes, served tea.
Seeing him sit down, Fei Yun eagerly defended herself, "Sir, I did not betray you. I truly did not say you were the mastermind."
While Cha Xiang was inviting County Magistrate Li, Fei Yun had been suffering torment. No matter what she said, Wu Caiwei and Huang Shijie simply ignored her. She was on the verge of tears, completely flustered.
Li Zixin felt an urge to curse. Her saying this was like protesting too much. Even if he had nothing to do with it, it would still arouse suspicion.
He kicked her to the ground, saying resentfully, "On my way here, I already heard about the good deeds you've done. I believe you haven't betrayed me, because we don't know each other at all. How could a dignified County Magistrate like myself be involved with a nobody like you?"
He then quickly apologized to the couple, "Don't believe her words. She made a mistake herself and wants to drag others down." Soudan Novel Network
Wu Caiwei looked at him with a half-smile, "County Magistrate Li, don't treat everyone like a fool. If you want to interfere, you need to see if you have the capability. Considering my husband has consecutively placed first in the examinations twice, and will likely do so again tomorrow, it's clear. Don't think I'm still a helpless woman who can be bullied by you. If my husband doesn't have a smooth passage tomorrow, I'll go all out and expose our grievances to the entire city. You'll say no one will testify for me; that's fine. Li Changqing is still in your manor, isn't he? Give him some silver, and I believe he'll stand by me, after all, he's good at reading the situation."
Li Zixin gave an awkward smile, "It seems I'm defenseless. We haven't reached a point of mutual destruction, have we? What's the need?"
It wasn't that Li Zixin wanted to compromise, but his uncle had told him that they had powerful backing, someone even his uncle couldn't afford to offend, let alone himself.
Wu Caiwei gave him a deep look. They still had to live in the county town and didn't want to fall out with this man, causing unnecessary trouble. She believed that by deliberately summoning him today, even if he didn't admit it, he would be on alert and act more cautiously in the future.
Wu Caiwei, with keen insight, changed the subject, "How do you plan to deal with her?"
Li Zixin was taken aback and said as a matter of course, "Naturally, she should be sent to the yamen. I trust the County Magistrate will handle it impartially."
Fei Yun never imagined that a county magistrate would fear a merchant. Even if her master was about to pass the xiucai exam, it shouldn't make the county magistrate so accommodating. After all, the county magistrate was a juren. No matter how foolish she was, she knew at this moment that the county magistrate had abandoned her. She became anxious. If she was really sent to the yamen, her life would be ruined. Everyone would know she had been to prison, and who would dare marry her?
She quickly crawled to Li Zixin's side, pleading, "Sir, absolutely not. If I, a woman, truly enter prison, my life is over. Isn't this forcing me to hang myself?"
Li Zixin saw the couple watching the scene as if it were a show and quickly distanced himself, "What use is it asking me? If you dare to do something, you must face the consequences. When you did this, you should have thought of the outcome. I'm afraid this matter will not only implicate you, but your parents will also face scorn from others in the future. This is your just deserts."
When Fei Yun heard him mention her parents, she stiffened. She knew he was forcing her not to implicate him, a silent threat. She felt hatred and regret.
If Fei Yun could understand this, how could Wu Caiwei not? However, she felt that since someone had taken their money, they should bear the consequences. If she and Huang Shijie didn't understand medicine, he might have missed out on becoming a xiucai tomorrow. Who could they turn to for solace regarding their hardships and suffering?
Seeing that pleading with Li Zixin was useless, Fei Yun quickly shifted her target. Wu Caiwei felt this girl must have thought she was easy to talk to on weekdays and that she would forgive her after doing such a thing. She hadn't forgotten how arrogant Fei Yun had been then. She calmly sat there, simply ignoring her.
Fei Yun collapsed onto the ground, despair washing over her. She recalled her family's poverty in childhood and having to sell herself just for a bite to eat. Now that she had grown up, she just wanted to buy back her freedom, but why was it so difficult?
Wu Caiwei had been watching her expression. Seeing her ashen and lifeless look, she grew vigilant and quietly reached for the whip at her waist.
As Fei Yun suddenly lunged towards a nearby pillar, the whip was swiftly thrown, wrapping around her waist and pulling her back.
Fei Yun had intended to smash her head against the pillar. As a weak woman, she couldn't possibly fight them. She hadn't expected that after she had just made up her mind and gathered all her strength, she would be pulled back. She couldn't help but sob uncontrollably, feeling that all paths were blocked.
Li Zixin's jaw dropped. He looked at her, somewhat shaken, not knowing if she knew martial arts or if she was just skilled with the whip. Had he been so negligent in paying attention to her over the years that he didn't even know she had this ability?
Wu Caiwei deliberately revealed a skill in front of him, wanting to warn him not to provoke her lightly.
In the end, Fei Yun and Li Zixin were escorted to the door. The reason Wu Caiwei handed Fei Yun over to Li Zixin was that she found her too troublesome. As for today, if she hadn't reacted quickly, she would have been unable to speak and would have been accused of taking a life.
Since Li Zixin had bribed her, he should be the one to handle it. Li Zixin stood at the entrance of Huang's house, looking at Fei Yun, whose hands were tied, and felt a headache coming on. If he let her go, he was afraid Wu Caiwei and Huang Shijie would ask questions, and he wouldn't be able to account for himself. But if he didn't let her go, even though his uncle would protect him at the yamen, he would still be reprimanded. After all, he had already warned him not to provoke the couple, and he had interfered in the middle.
Fei Yun was lost in her own world, weeping incessantly. If she were to die again, she didn't have the courage.
Li Zixin could only resign himself to his fate and took her back to the yamen. Without holding a public trial, he sentenced her to one year. Although people thought it was irregular, they recalled how the County Magistrate usually protected Li Zixin and dared not speak out. However, it wasn't a major issue, as the woman herself didn't protest her innocence, so it was likely true.