Ling Yin never thought she would return here.
For this, she had traveled for almost a whole day. After much hesitation, she finally crawled in through the dog - hole near the backyard kitchen under the cover of night.
It was through this very hole that she had left this home. She never expected that just a few days later, she would be crawling back in the same way.
Straightening her clothes, Ling Yin made her way skillfully to Xia Shouzheng's study. The light was still on inside. She could almost guess that the man must be standing behind the desk with a frown, poring over the letters and papers from the capital, plotting something.
For the so - called official career, he had long lost his conscience.
But she still had hers!
After hanging her head and pondering in the corner for a long time, Ling Yin finally took the heavy steps.
This would be the last time. If he remained stubborn, she would no longer care about him!
Noticing a figure approaching the study, the guard lurking in the dark immediately stepped forward to stop the person, but froze when he recognized who it was.
“M - Miss?”
The joy in his voice did not move Xia Lingyin in the slightest. She still looked cold and said calmly, “Get out of the way. I want to see Father.”
The guard didn't dare to stop her and immediately stepped aside to let her in.
Inside the study, Xia Shouzheng was dealing with official business. The annoying sound of the door being pushed open interrupted his train of thought. He was about to scold when he looked up. The words got stuck in his throat and he couldn't utter a sound for a long time.
He never thought she would come back!
Or rather, after realizing Ling Yin had left, sometimes he thought it was not a bad thing. In case his scheme failed, at least his daughter would not be implicated.
Xia Lingyin didn't know what was on Xia Shouzheng's mind. She just closed the door, walked calmly to the desk, her lower lip trembling, her expression restrained and patient.
It took her a while to find her voice.
“Now the imperial army has arrived in Yangxian. Are you still going to be so stubborn?”
There was no over - joyed crying of a long - separated father and daughter, nor a moment of tenderness between family members. As soon as Xia Lingyin opened her mouth, it was like stabbing a tube into her father's heart.
The atmosphere in the room instantly froze. The joy in Xia Shouzheng's heart at seeing his daughter again faded completely, leaving only boundless anger.
He casually grabbed the teacup at hand and threw it violently at her.
“Shut up! Xia Lingyin, you still have the nerve to come back!”
The broken porcelain pieces scattered like flowers at her feet. The tea splashed on Ling Yin's skirt, but she remained unmoved, her expression indifferent.
“I'm not like you. I haven't harmed innocent people. Why shouldn't I have the nerve to come back?”
What responded to her was a burning pain on her cheek and a swollen half of her face.
“Someone, take the young lady back to her room. Without my order, no one is allowed to let her out!”
After taking a sip of the cold tea, Lu Yinxi finally felt the heat subside a bit, but her heart was still pounding.
When she heard Shang Luoshu say that he had seen Ling Yin in the Xia Mansion, she begged him to take her there. As a result, she saw Ling Yin in front of Xia Shouzheng's study and then heard their conversation.
The young girl never expected that Ling Yin was actually Xia Shouzheng's daughter. This way, her previous actions could be reasonably explained.
Compared with Lu Yinxi, Shang Luoshu was more concerned about Xia Shouzheng. Even at midnight, this man was still in the study. It would be a bit difficult to deal with him, and they had to make a long - term plan.
The man told her his thoughts, and Lu Yinxi nodded in agreement. But it was already late, and it was not appropriate for them to continue investigating. They said goodbye and went back to their rooms to sleep.
Meanwhile, on the official road from Guangling to Yangxian, a well - trained army was on the march. Their orderly and powerful steps made the earth tremble.
The next day, when Lu Yinxi woke up, it was already bright.
She had been away from the capital for many days, and it was rare to have such a peaceful sleep. She overslept a bit. Besides, Shang Luoshu had ordered not to wake her up deliberately, so she slept until now.
“Where is the prince?”
While having breakfast, Lu Yinxi casually asked Hongrui and Hongmei beside her.
“Back to the fourth young lady, the prince went out early in the morning. He said he was going to solve the problems of taxes and food.”
The young girl nodded and didn't ask further.
Xia Shouzheng needed to be dealt with, but the problems faced by the common people couldn't be ignored either.
Even though they all claimed that the Xia Magistrate had never mentioned increasing taxes, Shang Luoshu still, in the name of the imperial court, exempted the people of Yangxian City from taxes for the next three years.
When the common people heard this, they all cheered and celebrated, spreading the news from mouth to mouth. Some smart ones had already sensed something was wrong.
It was the imperial court that was said to have increased the taxes, and it was also the imperial court that said to exempt the taxes for three years. But if you compared them carefully, you would find that the former was just the one - sided statement of the Xia Magistrate, while the latter was said by the prince sent by the imperial court.
Did you see the personal guards guarding the posthouse? They were brought by that prince!
While proclaiming the order in Yangxian, Shang Luoshu also sent someone with his personal written order to Pingqiang to spread the news. The people there were as miserable as those here.
Thinking of this, Shang Luoshu couldn't help but feel lucky that he had asked the emperor for an imperial edict before leaving the palace. Only in this way could he act expediently in Yangxian.
Compared with the high - profile behavior of Prince Jing, Lin Zihan chose to conduct an undercover investigation.
He changed into a coarse - cloth gown and darkened his face, then took the opportunity to visit ordinary people. However, after running around for a whole morning, he didn't get any useful information.
No matter which family he visited, once the topic of taxes was mentioned, they would say that Lord Xia had never increased the taxes. When it came to Wang Dali, they would say that he was a bandit who occupied Yangxian City and robbed the granary, almost starving the people in the city. Thanks to Lord Xia's excellent leadership, he saved the people and borrowed food from Guangling, so they had managed to survive until now.
Every word was full of loopholes, but they still insisted that what they said was true. It was really hard to find a way to deal with this situation!
After breakfast, Lu Yinxi originally wanted to go to the Xia Mansion to see Ling Yin. After all, after seeing her being locked up by Xia Shouzheng last night, she and Shang Luoshu had returned. She didn't know how Ling Yin was now.
But when traveling, she didn't know what identity she should use to visit for a while. The fourth young lady of the Lu Prime Minister's family definitely wouldn't work. What about the fiancée of Prince Jing?
But what was the difference between that and the fourth young lady of the Lu family?
Just as she was纠结, Hongmei told her that Lu Hu was asking to see her.
Since coming to Yangxian, Lu Hu had seemed to disappear. He wouldn't show up unless someone called him, as if he had become the coachman in the Lu Prime Minister's Mansion again.
Now that he had taken the initiative to ask to see her, Lu Yinxi naturally wouldn't refuse.
“Do you have something to tell me when you come to see me?”
Lu Hu clasped his fists and knelt down. “This subordinate dares to ask the fourth young lady, when will we set off for Longxi?”
At first, the reason why Lu Hu had compromised and was willing to come to Yangxian was partly because of Shang Luoshu's identity, and partly because he was afraid that the assassination would happen again. Following Prince Jing would ensure safety.
But now, Prince Jing had already arrived in Yangxian. After this matter was settled, he would surely set off back to the capital. But his responsibility was to take the young lady to Longxi.
“Miss, this is the expectation of the master and the mistress. Only when you reach Longxi can they feel at ease in the capital.”
To be honest, Lu Yinxi was not the kind of person who would avoid problems. Retreating to Longxi was not her style. But once it came to Mrs. Lu, she had to hesitate.
“Please give me some more time to think.”
Noticing that the fourth young lady's attitude had softened, Lu Hu didn't dare to force her and silently chose to retreat.
But no one had expected that “storms can come unexpectedly and misfortunes can befall people overnight”. What was just a choice about Longxi now would later become a place they had no choice but to go.