“Sis, you’re finally back!”
The moment he saw her, Lin Qingbei ran over with tears in his eyes.
“They were trying to steal the carriage!”
He pointed accusingly at the group in the courtyard.
“And they gave the wild chicken from noon to that woman!”
“Mother’s still hungry!”
“…”
Zhao Xiuxiu’s face reddened.
There was really no way to argue against that.
She had indeed eaten the chicken and drunk the soup.
Originally, she had wanted to leave as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, the Chen family had spent all this time arguing with the young boy over a carriage, leaving her caught in the middle.
As the daughter of a county magistrate, was she really lacking a carriage?
She couldn’t understand what Chen Feicai was thinking.
Now the troublesome one had returned.
How exactly was this situation supposed to end?
While Zhao Xiuxiu was silently lamenting her luck, Wang Chuntao suddenly rushed to her side and pointed aggressively at Lin Xiazhi.
“You came back at the perfect time!”
“Return our silver immediately!”
“Otherwise the magistrate will have you arrested and beaten!”
“My son is about to become the county magistrate’s son-in-law!”
“Let’s see if you still dare act so arrogant then!”
Lin Xiazhi’s icy gaze locked onto Wang Chuntao.
Casually twirling Bonebreaker in her hand, she walked forward.
“Zhou County is on the verge of collapse.”
“Who cares about a county magistrate now?”
“You think that can scare me?”
“If your magistrate father were truly capable, would he be secretly packing up his entire family and preparing to flee?”
“And you really think you’re someone important?”
She smirked.
“Believe it or not, all I need to do is shout this news outside.”
“Every villager will know your county magistrate is a coward.”
“When that happens, do you think you’ll still be able to leave safely?”
As Lin Xiazhi approached, Wang Chuntao’s heart trembled.
She quickly hid behind her son and Zhao Xiuxiu.
“D-Don’t come any closer!”
“My father isn’t running away.”
Zhao Xiuxiu stepped aside with obvious annoyance.
She had absolutely no desire to involve herself in the conflict between the two sides.
Unfortunately, Lin Xiazhi had already lumped her together with the Chen family.
A calculating look settled openly on Zhao Xiuxiu.
“Whether he’s running away or not doesn’t matter.”
“Of all people to offend, you chose me.”
“If you want to leave, you have two choices.”
“Leave behind one hand.”
“Or leave behind one thousand taels.”
“Choose.”
“A thousand taels?!”
Chen Feicai’s expression darkened.
“Why don’t you just rob us outright?”
“I am robbing you.”
“!”
“We don’t have any money left!”
“You stole our silver!”
“You sold all our houses!”
“Where would we even get a thousand taels?”
“You might as well kill me!”
Only today had Wang Chuntao and the others discovered that Lin Xiazhi had sold every single one of their properties.
Fortunately, the buyer happened to be a relative of the county magistrate.
During the ownership transfer, Zhao Xiuxiu had stumbled across the transaction.
Otherwise, they would still be completely in the dark, continuing to serve these three as if nothing had happened.
A strange smile spread across Lin Xiazhi’s face.
“I actually did kill two people just now.”
“One more won’t make much difference.”
“Come on.”
“Stick your head out.”
“I promise it won’t hurt.”
Wang Chuntao’s face instantly turned pale.
“Y-You really killed someone?”
“I did.”
“!!!”
Everyone present stared at Lin Xiazhi in disbelief.
Fear gripped their hearts.
“You’re all so afraid of dying.”
“But one thousand taels buys three lives.”
“What a bargain.”
“So?”
“Money or your lives?”
At the moment, Lin Xiazhi cared only about money.
Without money, nothing could be done.
Since the Chen family had walked right into her trap, there was no way she would let them leave easily.
Besides, Magistrate Zhao was still a government official.
Killing people openly under his nose would only create unnecessary trouble.
More importantly, she had promised Mu Zheng not to touch the Chen family again.
Especially Chen Feicai.
What relationship existed between Mu Zheng and Chen Feicai?
Chen Feicai was the male lead of the novel.
Secretly, he would later assist a certain prince in a rebellion…
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Lin Xiazhi’s mind.
Could it be…
Was Mu Zheng one of those future allies?
Had he already made contact with Chen Feicai?
The possibility seemed surprisingly high.
“Of course we want our lives!”
Wang Chuntao’s shrill cry snapped Lin Xiazhi out of her thoughts.
Looking up, she saw the old woman clinging tightly to Chen Feicai, trembling uncontrollably.
“Feicai!”
“Save your father and mother!”
“…”
Chen Feicai knew perfectly well that Lin Xiazhi would truly carry out her threats.
But he genuinely didn’t have that much money.
His face flushed bright red.
“We don’t have any silver!”
“Not a single coin!”
Admitting his poverty in front of Xiuxiu was humiliating beyond words.
He wished he could disappear into the ground.
“You don’t have it.”
“But she does.”
Lin Xiazhi looked directly at Zhao Xiuxiu.
“The daughter of a county magistrate can’t possibly be unable to produce a thousand taels.”
“He’s your man.”
“These two are your future parents-in-law.”
“Aren’t you going to pay their ransom?”
Chen Feicai’s eyes immediately lit up.
That’s right.
Xiuxiu had money.
His expression softened instantly.
Even his voice became several times gentler.
“Xiuxiu…”
“Could you help me this once?”
Compared to losing face in front of the woman he loved, Chen Feicai was far more concerned about the safety of himself and his parents.
As long as they survived, there would always be opportunities in the future.
One day, he would make Lin Xiazhi repay today’s humiliation a hundredfold.
Only then could he restore his heroic image in Xiuxiu’s heart.
Having finally found someone to squeeze money from, Wang Chuntao naturally wouldn’t miss this chance to save herself.
She hurried over with a flattering smile.
“Yes, Xiuxiu.”
“You don’t understand.”
“That little bitch is capable of anything.”
“Look at our injuries. She caused all of them.”
“If we don’t pay, one of our hands will definitely be cut off tonight.”
“Please help us.”
“As long as you do, you’ll have complete authority over this family in the future.”
“Even Feicai will have to listen to you.”
“We’ll never interfere.”
“What do you think?”
“…”
Could she honestly say she didn’t like that proposal?
Zhao Xiuxiu unconsciously tightened her grip on her sleeve.
As fate would have it, she happened to be carrying exactly one thousand taels.
The problem was that she wasn’t particularly willing to part with it.
She had fallen for Chen Feicai himself.
She had never intended to support his entire family financially.
Not only had he failed to provide a proper betrothal gift, but now he expected her to solve his financial problems.
How was that reasonable?
No.
The Chen family needed to give her something in return.
Having made up her mind, Zhao Xiuxiu turned toward Chen Feicai with a wronged expression.
“Feicai.”
“I can pay the silver…”
“Really?!”
Before she could finish speaking, Chen Feicai excitedly stepped forward and embraced her.
“I knew you cared about me.”
Blushing slightly, Zhao Xiuxiu pushed him away.
“As long as you’re willing to marry into my family.”
“And give me a child.”
“Forget one thousand taels.”
“Even three thousand taels would be worth it.”
Chen Feicai froze.
“Marry into your family?”
“What?!”
Wang Chuntao’s voice cracked from shock.
“Impossible!”
“I only have this one son!”
“If he marries into another family, who will give me a grandson?”
“No!”
“Absolutely not!”
Chen He looked equally horrified, as if he had just heard the most absurd thing imaginable.
His hair practically stood on end from anger.
“A son of the Chen family will never marry into another household!”
“So what if you’re the county magistrate’s daughter?”
“Even if the Emperor himself came, I wouldn’t allow Feicai to marry into your family!”
Zhao Xiuxiu’s face darkened.
A cold, mocking smile appeared.
They’re trying to play hard to get with me?
If she hadn’t genuinely liked Chen Feicai…
If she hadn’t already given him her innocence…
She never would have stayed here arguing with Lin Xiazhi.
Then she remembered that Chen Feicai had also slept with Lin Xiazhi.
The thought lodged in her throat like a fly she couldn’t swallow.
“Then solve your own problems.”
“I’m leaving.”
With that, she turned to go.
But Chen Feicai reacted quickly and grabbed her wrist.
“Xiuxiu!”
“My parents didn’t mean it that way.”
“I’m their only son.”
“They were just emotional after hearing the word ‘marry-in.’”
“Please don’t be angry…”