Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 346 Fear
Granny Jiang sensed the unfriendly tone of the stewardess, and her heart sank. She wanted to ask a question, but the stewardess did not give her a chance to hesitate. She turned and walked forward, as if she expected her to follow.

Granny Jiang dared not disobey, so she quickly caught up and followed her all the way to the second floor.

Fortunately, the constables haven't arrived yet.

Granny Jiang glanced around and saw servants protecting their mistress as they walked out.

Granny Jiang gritted her teeth, her expression urgent, and said directly as she entered the room, "Madam, before the officials arrive here, you should quickly take your people out!"

There was complete silence behind the screen.

Granny Jiang cautiously raised her head and saw the figure behind the screen drinking tea, showing no sign of impatience.

A moment later, the teacup was placed on the table.

“Do you know who’s coming? Since the yamen runners have started barging in and arresting people everywhere, they’ll definitely guard the front and back gates of the estate.”

“You know in your heart that if you go out like this, you will definitely not escape. The reason you are so eager to give me advice seems to be for my sake, but in fact you are just afraid of being blamed by me.”

Granny Jiang swallowed subconsciously. Her thoughts had been seen through by the eldest daughter-in-law. She took a deep breath and said, "The owner here has some tricks up his sleeve. Even if the government comes, there's a good chance nothing will happen."

As Granny Jiang finished speaking, she seemed to hear the steward snort coldly: "Which merchant in Bianjing doesn't know a few officials? We know this place is run by the He family."

"My wife wouldn't have come if I hadn't found out the details."

Granny Jiang immediately smiled obsequiously and said, "Yes, it's the He family. He's related to Minister Xia of the Ministry of Justice by marriage. If anything happens, the Xia family won't stand idly by."

Finally, a faint voice came from behind the screen again: "Then why was someone able to sneak here? Why didn't the Xia family report it?"

This question stumped Granny Jiang.

"The commotion outside doesn't seem like a mere formality."

As if to confirm the woman's words, a scream came from outside the door, followed by someone shouting.

"Murder! Murder! The officers have killed someone!"

The scene immediately became even more chaotic.

But the shouts did not deter the officials. Instead, several authoritative voices rang out: "The county magistrate has ordered that anyone who resists arrest shall be killed."

Granny Jiang shivered inside the house. She had also encountered the yamen arresting people before, but it was clearly not like this.

This has escalated so much, even resulting in a death. How can this matter be left unresolved?

Why didn't the eldest master of the He family stop those people when he was clearly in the village?

The matron seemed to see through her thoughts and said coldly, "If we could have stopped her, things wouldn't have turned out like this."

These words reminded Granny Jiang.

"Then..." Granny Jiang asked in a trembling voice, "what happened?"

The matriarch frowned: "You're being watched, yet you don't realize it and still dare to gamble. Now you've even implicated our lady... If our lady's reputation is damaged in the slightest because of this, none of you will live."

Granny Jiang couldn't help but tremble; she truly hadn't expected that the He family could also encounter trouble.

"What would happen if it were really found to be gambling? Would they really... be executed?"

Now that the He family is in trouble, can she escape? You have to understand, she was the one who sent those invitations to each family.

Thinking of this, Granny Jiang felt her legs go weak.

Behind the screen, a calm voice came again: "The He family's crimes are not just about gambling. Since those people came prepared, they must be trying to kill the He family. They must have other evidence in their hands."

Grandma Jiang's vision blurred, and she felt even more terrified. She instinctively opened and closed her lips, but no sound came out.

Finally, a sound came from the doorway; the officials from the yamen had arrived. Granny Jiang looked towards the door in terror. If that door opened, she would be taken away and imprisoned just like them.

She instinctively moved closer to the screen, feeling safer there.

"Take her out!"

The woman behind the screen spoke again.

The head housekeeper glanced at Granny Jiang, who immediately stopped in her tracks; of course, she didn't want to go out.

To her surprise, the guards at the gate did not fight with the constables; instead, they were talking in low voices. Jiang Po could not hear what they were saying, but she knew that the constables had actually left.

A strong will to survive brought Granny Jiang's mind back to normal.

She knew where the road ahead lay, and who could lead her out of her predicament.

"Madam, save me!"

"Madam..."

Granny Jiang came to her senses and began to plead softly to the person behind the screen: "If you can save my life, I will be willing to do anything for you in the future."

But then I realized something was off.

"I'll do anything to repay you, Madam," Granny Jiang said, kneeling down and kowtowing repeatedly to the ground.

The person behind the screen stood up and came out. She was wearing a veil on her head and looked exactly the same as when she came.

"If you're smart, don't say anything out of line once you're inside." Xie Yuyan didn't linger any longer and walked out.

Granny Jiang understood what the eldest daughter-in-law was referring to. She couldn't say she had seen the eldest daughter-in-law, nor could she reveal her identity. Of course, Granny Jiang didn't know who the eldest daughter-in-law was at all; she was only certain that she wasn't a member of the Huang family.

As she watched the old lady's figure recede into the distance, with each step she took, Granny Jiang felt she was getting closer to death.

“Madam, I know many secrets of the women in the capital.”

“I can tell Madam everything.”

"Madam...please take me with you. If I stay, I will only face death."

"Madam, I will definitely be of use, and I will definitely be of use to you."

"Madam, I'm afraid things aren't that simple. What if those people also want to harm you? If they find out you're here, wouldn't that become a handle against you?"

"Madam."

Granny Jiang had already burst into tears, fear engulfing her completely. She felt a cold sensation on her neck, as if a blade were lying across it.

“They sell women. Those women are bought. If the authorities find out, they’re all finished. The lady doesn’t want to get involved in such things.”

“Even if Madam manages to escape from here, what if those people in the yamen regret it later and come to blackmail us…? Why don’t you… Madam also has some… evidence, which we can use as a bargaining chip.”

"They also sold the women to the Northwest..."

In the end, Granny Jiang thought of these words and tried to persuade the old lady. She knew many secrets of the He family; could these secrets be used to buy her life?

She lacked the ability to negotiate with the officials; it would have been different if the eldest daughter-in-law had spoken.

Although this method was not the result of careful consideration, in this critical moment, Granny Jiang couldn't care less about anything else; she had to do everything in her power to survive.

The figure in front of her finally stopped. Granny Jiang stared intently at it, almost breathless with tension.

Finally, she heard the voice say, "Take her with you when you go out."

Granny Jiang was so discouraged that she collapsed to the ground.