Because Jing Chen was found, the notices posted in the city were taken down the next day. The news of Daozi's return to the capital spread like wildfire, and many people took action.
Because they were suspected of plotting to murder a relative of the Emperor, the Ji Family's residence was also sealed and investigated the next day. The related relatives were all grounded at home, suspended from work, and imprisoned. Such a commotion also alarmed some people.
Let's not talk about this for now. Jing Chen was picked up by someone from the palace yesterday, and there was no news about him. Yu Shu got up early the next day. After changing her dressing, He Fangzhi dressed herself neatly and waited for Xue Rui in the room.
Xue Rui didn't let her wait for long. As soon as the sun rose, he came to pick her up in a carriage, and the two of them went to the prison in the west of the city.
In the city of Anling, there were two prisons in the east and west of the city. One was for the convicted felons, and the other was for the prisoners who were waiting to be interrogated but hadn't been convicted. Both prisons were heavily guarded.
There was a saying that only in troubled times can there be severe punishments. The An Dynasty had been prosperous for three hundred years, and now it was peaceful. Compared to the previous dynasty, the criminal law was lenient, and there were few criminals sentenced to death. But in contrast, the law was strict. All major cases were jointly tried by the Ministry of Justice, the Supreme Court, and the Imperial Censorate, and there were few unjust or false cases.
The carriage stopped in front of Ningkang Street in the west of the city. Yu Shu and Xue Rui got off the carriage. The street was deserted, and there was no one in sight. There were two high walls across the street, and there was a small door in the middle. It didn't look imposing, but there was a stone tiger's head on the door, with sharp teeth and a pair of copper eyes, which made people who were timid shudder.
There were only two jailers guarding the door. They wore square hats, brown clothes, cloth boots, and a red unlined jacket. They held spears in their hands, and when they saw someone approaching, they crossed the spears in their hands to block the door and asked with a serious face.
Xue Rui held the official token of the Supreme Court and said that he was here to visit. The jailer recognized his position, so he respectfully invited him in, asked who he was looking for, and led the way.
After entering the door, there was a narrow alley, which could only allow four people to walk side by side. There were two jailers guarding at a certain distance. It wasn't the first time that Yu Shu was in prison. Last year, when she helped Xia Mingming raise money for the entrance examination, she participated in gambling and was arrested. But that was a small prison, not a big one.
After passing the alley, they suddenly saw a wide space. There were cells on all sides, and a road led to more than a dozen aisles. There were hundreds of large and small cells. The walls and eaves were raised high to block, and the eaves blocked the wind and rain, as well as the light. Everything was Cold.
The layout of this prison also had the signs. It was like a water, and the water was dry and swamp. The people day and night, and day, year. Yu Prison day.
"Xue Daren, this way."
The jailer led Xue Rui and Yu Shu to the front of a cell. He untied a string of keys from his trousers and stepped forward to open the door. 'Clatter! Clatter!' the lock was pulled out, and the jailer pushed open the iron door. He looked inside first, and then he turned his head to Xue Rui and said, "Daren, they are inside." Xue Rui took a piece of silver from his sleeve and handed it to the jailer. "Wait on the side," he said.
The jailer bowed his head and accepted the silver. He then walked away with a discerning eye.
Xue Rui stood outside the door, and Yu Shu went in alone. This cell was very different from the one she was locked in the last time. There were no bars on the outside, and it was just a stone house. There was a lot of hay on the floor, and a damp and moldy smell filled the air. There was a window at the top, and only a beam of light shone on the wall. However, the light was enough for Yu Shu to see the situation inside clearly. With one glance, she saw Xingxuan with disheveled hair, dressed in a yellowish prison uniform, hugging her knees and leaning against the wall. Without her veil, Yu Shu would not be able to recognize her.
It seems that even a beauty needs to be groomed. No matter how beautiful a bird is, it will still look the same when it falls into the mud.
Yu Shu smiled and walked forward. She stopped a few steps away from Ji Xingxuan and didn't make a sound. She crossed her arms and looked down at Ji Xingxuan from head to toe. When she saw Ji Xingxuan's disheveled appearance, she was secretly pleased. However, she was also a little curious as to what Ji Xingxuan was feeling right now.
"Have you seen enough?" When the jailer opened the door, Ji Xingxuan saw Yu Shu and Xue Rui outside the door, and she knew in her heart that they'd come to ridicule her, so she intentionally ignored them. But she'd underestimated their patience, and she'd overestimated her own endurance. She had spent a night in this horrible place, plus the injury on her back yesterday. The pain she had suffered since she was a child was not as much as what she had suffered in the past two days. At this moment, seeing the culprit appear in front of her, how could she turn a blind eye?
Hearing Ji Xingxuan's cold voice, Yu Shu calmly asked, "How does it feel in this cell? Did you sleep well last night?" Ji Xingxuan heard the ridicule in her words, so she closed her eyes and did not answer.
"It seems that I did not sleep well." Yu Shu answered her own question, "I am guessing that you do not like it here. But there is no other way. You will have to stay here for a long time. Murdering a relative of the Emperor is a serious crime. Before the case is fully investigated, you and Lord Ji will have to be wronged as prisoners.
Alas, you're young and full of vigor. It's not a big deal to stay in this damned place for a few days, but I heard that Master Ji was frightened and fell ill. He was also beaten. I don't know how many days he'll be able to endure. Perhaps he'll fall asleep tonight and won't be able to wake up tomorrow.
Ji Xingxuan raised her head abruptly, suppressing her anger, "Do not curse my grandfather. If anything happens to him, I will not forgive you in the future." "You won't forgive me? Haha!" Yu Shu tilted her head back and laughed, as if she had heard a joke. Squatting down, she looked directly at Ji Xingxuan and coldly said, "Will I forgive you?"
Ji Xingxuan turned her head away and snorted coldly, "You are merely colluding with Daozi to frame us. The innocent will know their innocence. Sooner or later, the truth will come to light. Do you think that everyone else is a fool to be fooled by you?"
"The innocent will know their innocence? You have the nerve to defile these words? "Yu Shu's face was full of ridicule." Have your Ji family not done enough shameful things? Have you, Ji Xingxuan, not done enough shameful things? Let's not talk about the past. Just recently, you found out that I was acquainted with Daozi and saw the announcement. In order to claim credit, you plotted against me, causing me to suffer the pain of having my finger cut off and almost being wrongly accused. If it weren't for my good brain, I would be the one in prison right now. You went for wool and came home shorn. You still have the face to blame me for framing you? Only you are allowed to harm others and others are not allowed to harm you. What kind of logic is this? Hmm? "
Ji Xingxuan's face reddened at her words. She clenched her teeth, not out of shame, but out of anger. She didn't feel that she had done anything wrong in plotting against Yu Shu. She only regretted that she hadn't thought things through thoroughly. In the end, she had been bitten back by Yu Shu and ended up in this state.
Yu Shu looked at Ji Xingxuan's expression and knew that Ji Xingxuan had no remorse. It wasn't that she hadn't seen this type of person before. To put it bluntly, only officials were allowed to set fires, but commoners weren't allowed to light lamps. They were allowed to point their fingers at other people's noses, but they weren't allowed to spit on them.
These types of people often spoke of benevolence, righteousness, and morality. Their actions were hypocritical, but in fact, all they thought about was themselves. They never thought about the life or death of others. When dealing with these types of people who couldn't be reasoned with, one should either not reason with them or not provoke them in the first place. Otherwise, once they set their eyes on you, they would be like maggots in tarsal bones, haunting you like a ghost.
For example, because of her dog shit life, Yu Shu was forced by the Ji family to become someone's concubine. Because of the Six Symbols Technique, she was threatened by the Ji family with jealousy. And because of the announcement, she got into an undeserved disaster and suffered the pain of having her finger cut off. All of these things happened one by one. Did the Ji family ever reason with her?
The only way to deal with these types of people was to use evil to control evil. Make them fear you, make them feel apprehensive, make them not dare to provoke you. Otherwise, as long as they don't die, as long as they have a breath left, they will rise from the ashes, making people restless.
Looking at Ji Xingxuan who was closing her eyes and pretending to be mute, Yu Shu's eyes flashed coldly. Reaching out with her uninjured right hand, she pinched Ji Xingxuan's sharp chin and turned her face towards herself. Coldly, she said: "I'm asking you a question. Why are you pretending to be mute? Don't you have this little bit of upbringing? How did that old thing from the Ji family teach you?"
Ji Xingxuan suddenly opened her red and swollen eyes. Her eyes were like needles as she grabbed Yu Shu's wrist and squeezed it tightly. Gritting her teeth, she said: "Don't go too far. Don't forget that your mother is a member of the Ji family. She's my third uncle's concubine."
Hearing this, Yu Shu didn't let go. Instead, she pinched Ji Xingxuan's chin and narrowed her eyes. "Are you threatening me?"
Ji Xingxuan endured the pain and said hoarsely: "I just want to tell you that you should always leave some leeway. If our Ji family doesn't have a good life, your mother won't have a good ending either." When she finished speaking, she saw a strange smile on Yu Shu's face. Suddenly, she moved closer to her. A gust of cold air blew on her ear, making her hair stand up. She heard a soft voice in her ear: "I'm the most heartless person. Even if she died in front of me, I wouldn't even bat an eyelid."
Perhaps it was because the cell was too cold, but Ji Xingxuan shivered. Her eyes widened as she stared at Yu Shu. The face in front of her was obviously that of an ordinary woman, but for some reason, it sent chills down her spine. Unconsciously, she loosened her grip on Yu Shu's wrist and let it hang by her side. She grabbed a handful of hay and used it to stop the chill in her heart.
Yu Shu pursed her lips into a smile. She looked at Ji Xingxuan with a calm and unruffled expression. She smiled to herself.
The reason why she came to visit Ji Xingxuan today was not to mock her, but to take the opportunity to strike her down. She wanted to leave a shadow in her heart so that when she came to pester her in the future, she would have to think twice about whether or not she had the ability to do so.
It wasn't that Yu Shu didn't want to eliminate the root of the problem. It was just that she and the Ji family hadn't reached the point where they were mortal enemies. It was different from Bi Qing and Qiu Biao, who insisted on fighting to the death. She wasn't a cold-blooded pervert who would kill anyone who offended her. Moreover, she didn't have the ability to wipe out the entire family.
"Ah Shu, are you done?"
Xue Rui was standing outside the door. He didn't know what was going on inside. It wasn't that his eyesight wasn't good, but that he was intentionally avoiding it. He didn't look or listen, but he felt that the prison wasn't clean. He didn't want Yu Shu to stay for long, so when he saw that it was about time, he called out to her.
"I'm leaving. Rest well. There's a good show waiting for you. Take care." Yu Shu let go of Ji Xingxuan's chin. She brushed her hand across the hair on her forehead. She felt that Ji Xingxuan was like a hedgehog, so she laughed foolishly and got up to leave.
"Big Brother, let's go."
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