In the back hall of the county government office in Lingle County, Yin Deyuan, looking travel - worn, was invited in.
Yin Deyuan had met Magistrate Hui before. At first, he thought this young county magistrate, coming from a noble family in the capital, would surely be a dandy and couldn't possibly achieve any real political merits. But after the second meeting, Hui Zhenyu, with his handsome appearance and sharp eyes, made Yin Deyuan not dare to have any thoughts of deception.
Making a deep bow, Yin Deyuan pretended to be extremely anxious. "Your Honor, I don't know what crime my son has committed. He has been an honest boy since childhood and would never do anything illegal!"
Hui Zhenyu smiled faintly. "Officer Yin, please don't be impatient. I only judge cases based on evidence. Whether Yin Qingxuan is guilty or not doesn't depend on your words."
He then raised his voice and ordered his attendants, "Bring in Pei Xia and Zhao Quan."
The veins on Yin Deyuan's forehead throbbed. As far as he knew, Pei Xia was not only the head constable of Lingle County but also the husband of that woman Qi Jiao - the father of the kidnapped children. How could this man not take revenge?
What was meant by "a son embarrassing his father"? This was it.
At this moment, Yin Deyuan really wished he could shove Yin Qingxuan back into his mother's womb so that he would never be born...
"Your Honor! My son is dull - witted. He just admired Constable Pei and Lady Qi and wanted to make friends with them. He was just muddle - headed and used the wrong method... But he had no ill intentions! And he never thought of harming the two children! Please, Your Honor, make a fair judgment!"
Did Magistrate Hui not know what Yin Qingxuan was up to? If the Yin family's descendants hadn't been envious of the prosperous business of Tanghan Weaving, how could they have done such a despicable thing? He just didn't know if Yin Deyuan had given his silent approval.
Pei Xia soon entered. He kept his eyes straight ahead, bowed to Magistrate Hui who was sitting at the upper seat, and then stepped aside.
Magistrate Hui glanced at Yin Deyuan. "For the sake of fairness, I'll let Zhao Quan describe what happened that day. Pei Xia is a victim's family member, so he should avoid any suspicion."
Yin Deyuan felt a cold gaze on the back of his head and couldn't help but feel a bit flustered. He stammered, "Your Honor is right. Your Honor is right..."
Zhao Quan was a young man with a loud voice. In just a few words, he clearly described how Yin Qingxuan and Qiao Haicheng had conspired to kidnap the children and the wet - nurse. He also specifically pointed out that Chunniang's husband had been bribed and threatened by them.
With both witnesses and physical evidence, if it weren't for the involvement of the prefectural city, Magistrate Hui would have been too lazy to waste his breath on Yin Deyuan. He said directly, "Yin Qingxuan and Qiao Haicheng have no regard for the law. In broad daylight, they instigated the Qiao brothers to kidnap the children and the wet - nurse and even used a sleeping incense. Their means are extremely vicious and they are unforgivable. There is no room for compromise in this matter. Zhao Quan, take the criminals into custody. No one is allowed to visit them. Wait for my final judgment."
"Your Honor... There must be some misunderstanding! Your Honor, please let me see my son. He must have been harmed by that scoundrel Qiao Haicheng!"
"Officer Yin, if a son does wrong, the father is to blame. Since things have come to this, you'd better think about how to compensate. If your attitude is good, I may consider a lighter sentence..."
Meeting Magistrate Hui's eyes, Yin Deyuan's dejected spirit was suddenly lifted.
Alas, it was really a case of losing both the wife and the soldiers. The expensive lawyer he had hired would be of no use. From now on, he might as well consider this son dead. But at least he could minimize the impact of this incident. He'd better go and apologize.
The next day, the steward of the Yin family came to visit.
Qi Jiao received him in person.
The Yin family's steward put on a very humble attitude and said a whole lot of nice words. Besides paying a high amount of medical expenses, he also presented three shops in the prefectural city and the weaving method of Yin's Snowflake Satin.
The silver and the shops were one thing, but Yin's Snowflake Satin was a first - class fabric well - known throughout the Dacheng Empire. This compensation was no small matter. Even ten thousand taels of silver might not be able to buy it.
Qi Jiao thought that the head of the Yin family was a smart man. It was quite a bargain to use a non - disclosed weaving method to save Yin Qingxuan's life.
She asked Sanniang to take good care of the gifts and then nodded non - committally. "I've always respected the head of the Yin family. I have no grudge against the Yin family. As long as the culprit is punished as he deserves, I have nothing to say. But my family's pet dog was seriously injured while saving the children, and the children's wet - nurse was so frightened that she has fallen ill. This..."
The steward was not as stupid as Yin Qingxuan. His mind worked quickly and he immediately made a decision on behalf of his master. "Yes, yes, yes. All losses should be compensated by the Yin family."
Saying this, he passed over several large - denomination silver notes.
Qi Jiao lowered her eyes and frowned, as if the silver notes were too hot to hold. "Oh, doing business is not easy. How can I not understand the difficulties... But anyway, they shouldn't have had any thoughts about my children!"
Since they had done something evil, it was impossible not to make them pay a heavy price.
The steward said that was right, sighed softly, and then bowed deeply to Qi Jiao. He carefully asked about the well - being of the two children. The matter of compensation was finally settled.
Finally, after each of them was given thirty blows with a bamboo stick, Magistrate Hui sentenced Qiao Haicheng and the Qiao brothers to three years in prison, and Yin Qingxuan to two years.
After this incident, Qi Jiao and Tanghan Weaving became completely famous in Yulin Prefecture.
Everyone knew that her family had the support of Magistrate Hui, so no one dared to have any evil thoughts. Some smart people even began to think about cooperating with Jiao Niang Restaurant and Tanghan Weaving.
It was said that after getting the weaving method of Yin's Snowflake Satin, the ingenious embroiderers improved it and wove a more exquisite Zhuanghua Satin, which became extremely popular for a while.
Magistrate Hui and Fang Yunxin were amazed when they saw it. They sent a lot of Zhuanghua Satin and down products to the Marquis Mansion and the Duke's Mansion in the capital.
As for the Yin family, seeing that Tanghan Weaving had a continuous stream of new products, they couldn't help but feel envious and eager. Yin Deyuan took the initiative to come to Qi Jiao to discuss cooperation.
To be honest, although Tanghan Weaving was very popular, it had far less foundation than the large Yin family business.
Qi Jiao knew that her specialty was not in this area. At first, it was just an idea of processing duck down that led to the establishment of Tanghan Weaving...
The Yin family, on the other hand, was a real family of cloth merchants. Cooperating with such a mature and large business, she was really afraid that her own business would be swallowed up completely.
So Qi Jiao took the initiative to propose the idea of investing with technology.
She only wanted one percent of the shares of the Yin family business. As for Tanghan Weaving, she would just let it grow freely.
Yin Deyuan hesitated after much consideration.
But the second young master, Yin Qingyue, advised him to agree to Qi Jiao's request. "Father, we should take the long view. Qi Jiao's achievements will definitely not be limited to this. We might as well pave the way for the future. We won't be wrong."
Yin Deyuan then realized that he was really old and not as bold as the young people. So he entrusted the matter of Qi Jiao's investment to Yin Qingyue completely.
**
Now, let's talk about Chunniang.
On the second day after Xiaojiao and Ahu recovered, Chunniang packed her things and came to Qi Jiao to resign.
She took out all the money on her and the rewards she had received before.
Qi Jiao was lying on the couch, looking at the account books. Hearing the noise, she raised her eyes. "What are you doing?"
Chunniang choked with sobs. "Madam, I really... I really have no face to take care of the young master and young lady anymore. These are all I have. I hope they can make up for a tiny bit of my fault..."
Qi Jiao sighed. She got up and helped Chunniang up. "Chunniang, why do you have to do this? The responsibility doesn't lie with you. I know your difficulties. Even if I was a bit angry that day, I never really blamed you. If anyone is to blame, it's those with greedy hearts and base natures."
She added, "You are also a mother. The separation from your daughter must be heart - wrenching. Well, go back and visit Niuniu these two days... And think about getting a divorce."
Chunniang's eyes suddenly widened. "Madam, do you mean..."
Qi Jiao looked at her calmly. "A divorce. Why? Do you want to spend the rest of your life with that scumbag?"
Chunniang unconsciously shook her head and then nodded, which made Qi Jiao both amused and annoyed.
"As long as you say the word, I'll help you get a divorce. In the future, you can bring Niuniu with you. I'll still pay your salary. If Xiaojiao and Ahu grow up and are weaned, you can also stay and work in the shop. How about it? Think it over carefully."
Chunniang was obviously tempted. After a while, she grabbed Qi Jiao's arm and pleaded, "Madam, I want a divorce. Please help me."
Qi Jiao smiled. "It's good that you've thought it through. Go back. Go and bring Niuniu back. Remember not to provoke that man. Keep calm for now. I'll help you."
Chunniang was gentle - tempered and usually followed Qi Jiao's lead. Now she regarded Qi Jiao as her greatest backer. She nodded and left.