Just as the situation was reaching a boiling point, a thunderous shout came from behind, "Who dares to bully my daughter!"
Before the crowd could react, they were roughly pushed aside, and a tall general stepped forward. "Don't be afraid, girl. Dad's here for you!"
He was still in his armor, looking haggard and dusty, clearly having just returned from the military camp.
When Li Wanming saw her father, she let out a sigh of relief. Her eyes welled up with tears. "Dad..."
Li Rusong stepped forward and hugged his daughter tightly. His voice was choked with emotion. "I'm sorry, girl. You've suffered."
...
He and Yuan Jinqiu returned to the Li family at noon.
The two of them had been stationed at the suburban military camp all year round and rarely went home.
In the past two years, all three of their daughters had gotten married. With no more worries, and finding it uncomfortable to stay at home, they both tacitly used their busy military duties as an excuse to go home even less frequently.
Anyway, the suburban military camp was vast, with all the necessary living facilities. Yuan Jinqiu had several female lieutenants and private soldiers who had followed her since Fujian, so there was no inconvenience.
Even on Chinese New Year's Eve, Li Rusong and Yuan Jinqiu only planned to have a reunion dinner. After their daughters came back to visit on the second day of the lunar new year, they would return to the military camp.
But when they got home at noon today, they immediately sensed something was wrong.
Li's mother was standing in the middle of the hall, red - faced and shouting angrily.
"I've always said that girls shouldn't run around!"
"She even tried to do business and opened a wine shop. Now she's been caught by the Ministry of Revenue and thrown into jail! Selling fake wine, cooking the books, swindling. She's really shamed our Li family..."
Li Rusong was completely confused. He quickly grabbed her. "Mom, wait! Who are you talking about selling fake wine? Who's swindling?"
"Who else!"
Disgust flashed in Li's mother's eyes. She glared at Yuan Jinqiu and scolded, "Isn't it her good daughter?
"Li Wanming has been causing trouble outside. Now she's even cooking the books and evading taxes. She was thrown into the Ministry of Revenue's jail yesterday!"
Li Rusong's scalp went numb. "What did you say?"
Li's mother continued to cry and nag. "Song'er, listen to mom. Mom's not a heartless person, but the trouble the third girl has caused this time is too big for us to handle... Listen to mom. As long as you don't get involved, this won't be blamed on our Li family..."
Before she could finish, Li Rusong had already rushed out. The gust of wind his figure created almost knocked Li's mother down.
Li's mother was stunned for a moment. Then she cried and cursed loudly from behind. "You heartless wretch! You only care about your wife and daughter. You don't even treat your mother as a person..."
Yuan Jinqiu was much calmer. After listening to Li's mother's complaints, she first asked the old servant of the Li family for details. Then she said, "Wanming must be short of silver to manage this big problem. Qingyan, you and the others should inventory the family's money and valuables and come with me!"
Qingyan was her lieutenant. She had followed Yuan Jinqiu out of the mountain stronghold in Fujian. Later, she accompanied Yuan Jinqiu to the capital and was her most trusted confidant.
Qingyan replied "Yes" and immediately led a few people to the back.
When Li's mother saw something was wrong, she quickly stopped crying and chased after them. "What are you doing? What money and valuables... Those are all mine. You're not allowed to touch them!"
Qingyan glanced at her coldly. "Forgive me, madam."
She ordered two people to stop Li's mother and then led the others to the back residence to collect the money and valuables without looking back.
Li's mother was so angry and anxious that she stamped her feet and cursed.
Soon, Qingyan came out of the back residence carrying several boxes, which were full of silver notes and various gold ornaments.
Li's mother was stingy and frugal, with extremely gaudy taste. She only liked gold.
In her eyes, gold was shiny and heavy, which made people feel secure. It was much better than jade, gems, and pearls.
So all the money Li Rusong had given her over the years had been exchanged for gold ornaments and hoarded.
Except for some that were swindled away by the He family, she had really saved a lot.
It was precisely because Yuan Jinqiu knew Li's mother's hobby that she had let her manage the Li family's finances.
Now, it came in handy.
"Take it all."
Yuan Jinqiu gave the order and then turned around and walked out.
Li's mother watched helplessly as her wealth accumulated over the years was emptied. She rolled her eyes and fainted on the spot.
...
Inside the main gate of the Cheng residence in Pingkangfang, Li Rusong was hugging Li Wanming tightly, his eyes filled with tears.
Seeing his strong and capable daughter being bullied like this, Li Rusong felt heart - broken and was almost on the verge of crying.
The tall and skinny man in green felt a bit nervous when he saw Li Rusong in his armor and didn't dare to speak for a moment.
But the red - faced man didn't care. "Who are you? Are you going to speak up for this swindler? There are so many of us here today. You can't protect each other just because you're all officials! Let me tell you, no matter who comes today, she has to pay the money!"
"Want the money? Well, come and get it if you dare!"
Yuan Jinqiu pushed through the crowd and strode out.
Qingyan and the others were carrying money boxes and followed closely behind her.
Yuan Jinqiu stopped under the main gate, turned around, and calmly held the hilt of the sword at her waist. The black cloak behind her fluttered in the wind. Her eyebrows were raised, looking even more imposing than Li Rusong.
"Today, no matter how much debt my daughter has promised you before, I'll pay it for her!"
Yuan Jinqiu's words rang out clearly. She ordered Qingyan to open the money boxes and show them to everyone.
"If the Cheng family can't pay, the Li family will. If the Li family can't pay, we can even mortgage our house!"
After saying that, she took out a bronze token.
"My husband is a fourth - rank General Xuanwei personally appointed by the emperor. He's currently serving in the suburban military camp. If you're worried that we'll run away without paying, you can go to the suburban military camp and file a complaint with the general!"
"If you're still not satisfied, you can go to the Ministry of War, the Supreme Court, or the Censorate!"
"Under the feet of the Son of Heaven, in this clear and just world, there must be a place in this capital for you to seek justice!"
Yuan Jinqiu's voice was not very loud, but as a martial artist, there was a natural aura of killing in her voice. The scene fell silent, and every word she said clearly reached everyone's ears.
Everyone's expressions flickered, and they began to hesitate.
Many of them had been incited. They had heard that they could get money for causing trouble here, so they had rushed over without thinking, not knowing Li Wanming's background.
Now, when they heard the words "fourth - rank general", they couldn't help but feel a bit scared.
Not to mention Yuan Jinqiu's speech, which mentioned the "general", the "Ministry of Justice", the "Supreme Court", and the "Censorate".
Some people were almost scared out of their wits...
Who would dare to file a complaint with the Ministry of War?
Ordinary people would tremble with fear just entering a county government office, let alone these intimidating places.