Being stared at with a mocking look by a young girl, the Minister of the Supreme Court of Judicature felt humiliated.
Fuming with anger, he stepped down from the dais and reached out to tear off Ji Yunxi's veil.
Her fair complexion stunned everyone present. A hint of greed gradually crept into the minister's eyes. He reached out and pinched her chin, leering at her. "I'd advise you to plead guilty early and spare yourself some punishment. Otherwise, this pretty face of yours... won't stay intact for long."
After saying that, he casually patted her face, which made Ji Yunxi feel sick to her stomach.
She wriggled out of his grasp and turned her head away.
"Fine, fine, fine. Since you're so stubborn, let's see how long you can hold out! Guards!"
With a shout, several soldiers immediately surrounded her, brandishing their sticks and glaring at her menacingly.
The minister returned to his seat and let out a hearty laugh. "Since this maid is so headstrong, give her twenty blows with the bamboo board first and let her see what's what."
The soldiers rushed forward and grabbed Ji Yunxi's arms.
Just as the situation seemed desperate, a man's voice came from outside the door. "Your Honor, please wait!"
Frowning, the minister looked up and saw that it was his wife's younger brother, waving frantically at him from the door.
Reluctantly, fearing his wife's tantrums, he finally walked out. "What is it?"
"Brother-in-law, you can't touch this person. You can't!"
The minister was at the end of his tether. He lowered his voice and roared at the other man. "What do you mean I can't touch her! This is my territory. Is there anyone I can't touch?!"
"This person's identity is different! She's the Mistress of Dream Blossom Pavilion, Brother-in-law!"
The minister's face changed. He immediately turned to look at Ji Yunxi.
No wonder he had thought her quite noble when he first saw her. He just hadn't thought much of it because of the Jiang family's instructions.
In an instant, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, but he still stubbornly retorted. "You're not joking, are you?"
The younger brother rolled his eyes directly in front of him. "Why would I joke about this! The steward of the Western Rong branch of Dream Blossom Pavilion is right outside the door."
Realizing that the man wasn't lying, the minister was a bit scared. "Hurry up and take me there!"
As he walked, he thought to himself that if the woman inside was really from Dream Blossom Pavilion, he would have to let down the Jiang family.
But this matter was also the Jiang family's fault!
Maybe they had wanted to use him to get rid of the people from Dream Blossom Pavilion.
Thinking like this, the minister broke out in a cold sweat. He realized that he had been used as a pawn. That box of treasures wasn't wealth but a death sentence.
He quickened his pace and walked outside the yamen. He saw a young man with the token of Dream Blossom Pavilion on his waist, surrounded by people in blue shirts, holding swords.
There was no need to ask any more questions. The person inside must be from Dream Blossom Pavilion!
Lu Shu wore a mask and didn't show his true face. He said coldly, "Your Honor, when will our Mistress be released?"
"Of course, it will be right away. Right away..."
"Ah, I see. Then what about our Mistress's crime?" Lu Shu deliberately dragged out his words, irritating the minister's nerves.
His fat body trembled. "It's a misunderstanding. It's all a misunderstanding. The Mistress has no grudges against the other party, so of course, she wouldn't go and kill anyone."
Lu Shu sneered inwardly but didn't show it on his face. "Then we'll trouble Your Honor."
"No, no. It's no trouble at all. I'll release her right away. Right away..."
After saying that, he trotted into the room in a hurry. When he saw Ji Yunxi with her arms held by the soldiers, his eyebrows twitched.
"What are you standing there for? Let go quickly!"
The soldiers were stunned and quickly let go of Ji Yunxi.
Suddenly, her shoulders and arms lost their strength. She immediately stretched her muscles but didn't say a word.
The minister smiled obsequiously. "Mistress, why didn't you tell me your identity earlier? This made this humble one make a mistake. You're magnanimous. It's all this humble one's fault."
Ji Yunxi smiled slightly and then reached out and patted his face directly.
"There were so many people just now. I didn't want to reveal my identity. If you dare to breathe a single word about today's incident or my identity, I'll take your dog's life."
"Yes, yes, yes. This humble one knows. This humble one understands." The minister reached up to wipe the big drops of sweat on his forehead that were about to flow into his eyes.
"Mistress, this humble one still has one thing unclear. What do you think of this case?"
Ji Yunxi raised her eyebrows and looked at him disdainfully. "Aren't you the Minister of the Supreme Court of Judicature? Why do you still need to ask me? If you can't do your job properly, you might as well go back to the Imperial College and retake the imperial examinations. Otherwise, you'll forget how you became an official and why you're an official."
The minister knew that Ji Yunxi had seen or guessed that he had taken bribes. For a moment, he blushed with embarrassment.
"I wouldn't dare. I wouldn't dare."
Ji Yunxi sneered but didn't say anything else.
She tore off a piece of cloth from her sleeve and covered her face. When she walked out of the Supreme Court of Judicature, she saw Lu Shu leading the people from Dream Blossom Pavilion waiting outside.
There was curiosity, doubt, and confusion in these people's eyes.
After all, this was the first time the people from the Western Rong branch had seen the legendary Mistress.
When they saw her figure, they all knelt down in unison, including Lu Shu standing beside the yamen, and shouted in unison, "Welcome, Mistress!"
The sound was so loud that it scared the minister inside the yamen to tremble all over.
A soldier stepped forward. "Your Honor, just let this person go like this. How are we going to explain it to the Jiang family?"
"Explain it to them? I'll go and have a good talk with them!"
The minister's eyes were full of malice. He thought that he had given the Jiang family some face, but they had taken advantage of his kindness. They had asked him to do something on the surface but had actually used him as a pawn in secret.
Fortunately, he hadn't directly embarrassed her today. Otherwise, this yamen might have been razed to the ground.
Ji Yunxi looked at the kneeling people in front of her and said coldly, "Get up."
The whole road was cleared, empty and deserted.
But just then, Ji Yunxi noticed that someone was missing beside Lu Shu.
"Where's Qing Xuan?"
Lu Shu shook his head. He had left the Jiang Mansion earlier than Ji Yunxi, so he hadn't seen Qing Xuan.
Just then, a man stepped out of the crowd and said loudly, "Mistress, may I ask if that Miss Qing Xuan has been following General Su?"
Ji Yunxi immediately nodded. "Yes, that's her."
The man nodded. "Then I saw her. After General Su left the Jiang Mansion, that girl said something and then found an opportunity to enter the Jiang Mansion again. General Su has already returned because of the military affairs at the Seven Star Pass."
Hearing this, Ji Yunxi suddenly remembered that she and Qing Xuan had a special connection. He could find her, and she could find him too.
So she activated her spiritual power, closed her eyes slightly, and felt that the aura belonging to Qing Xuan was passing through the streets and alleys and heading straight for the back yard of the Jiang Mansion.
Suddenly opening her eyes, Ji Yunxi grabbed Lu Shu. "Come on, let's go and get her back."