Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 486 Escape
Bianjing, the Xia family.

Xia Mengxian, dressed in a long robe, sat upright in a chair, looking at the imperial guards who came to arrest him. His face was square and his complexion was somewhat pale, but his gaze was still sharp. When he didn't speak, he still carried a sense of superiority and authority. However, when Xu En walked in, the uncontrollable twitching of the corner of Xia Mengxian's mouth betrayed his panic at this moment.

Xia Mengxian took a deep breath and slowly stood up, looking at Xu En: "I have already resigned from my post and am at home. The court still sent the Imperial Guards here. They really think too highly of me."

Xu En smiled and said, "I didn't expect to see Master Xia dressed so well again."

This is an irony; besides these clothes, he has nothing left.

Xia Mengxian felt a tightness in his chest. He wanted to say something to Xu En, but Xu En's face darkened and he ordered, "Arrest all members of the Xia family. Put the men in the Ministry of Justice prison and the women in the Censorate prison to await interrogation."

Xia Mengxian's lips twitched again, his entire face contorting: "What crime have I committed that warrants the involvement of my family?"

Xu En raised his eyes, and Xia Mengxian felt as if that gaze could capture his spirit. His superficial aura was shattered in an instant, and in the blink of an eye, Xia Mengxian looked flustered and haggard.

Xu En coldly replied, "How dare you presume to discuss the laws and regulations of the imperial court?"

As soon as he finished speaking, two men from the Imperial Guard stepped forward and pressed down on Xia Mengxian's shoulders.

Xia Mengxian wanted to walk out on his own, but Xu En clearly wasn't going to give him any dignity. Thinking of this, he struggled unwillingly. Seeing this, the soldier ruthlessly elbowed him in the waist. The pain made Xia Mengxian curl up involuntarily. The soldier then pressed down on his back and dragged him out fiercely.

Another group of soldiers and constables, upon receiving the order, stormed into the inner quarters to arrest the person.

Soon, Li and the others were driven out.

“My lord,” the military envoy stepped forward and said, “Xia Ziqiao and Xia Erniang are not in the house.”

After the incident at the Dengwen Prosecutor's Office, the yamen ordered patrolmen to guard the Xia family and prevent anyone from escaping. Clearly, Xia Mengxian's two children had left home before this.

Xu En instructed, "Inform the city gate commander to carefully check those leaving the city, and do not let any suspects escape."

Li was terrified, her eyes glazed over, and she was in a daze. Especially when she saw her husband's disheveled appearance and imagined her own fate, she almost collapsed to the ground.

Xu En stepped forward, ignoring Li Shi, and pointed to a steward: "Take him away for interrogation and find out the whereabouts of Xia Ziqiao and Xia Erniang."

Soon after the steward was taken away, screams erupted. The servants gathered in the courtyard were all pale, fearing that it would be their turn next.

Xu En's gaze swept across the faces of the group. This move was not only to find out about Xia Mengxian's two children, but also to prepare for the formal interrogation that would follow.

“Pull him over and ask him.”

Xu En pointed to several people in succession. The sound of caning in the backyard never stopped. Finally, someone couldn't bear it any longer and revealed the inside story: "Fifth Prince went out last night."

"Second Mistress..."

"Second Madam... was sent to the Xie family."

Upon hearing the steward's words, Li staggered and collapsed to the ground.

Xu En said, "Want to escape punishment by pretending to be a married woman? That depends on whether the Xie family is willing."

According to the laws of the Great Liang Dynasty, an unmarried woman must have a marriage certificate, complete the betrothal ceremony, and send the betrothal gifts to her husband's family in order to be considered a member of the husband's family and thus be exempt from this crime.

Li kept her mouth tightly shut, refusing to say another word.

Xu En made up his mind, waved his hand, and ordered soldiers to come and take the people away.

The group was led out of the Xia family mansion.

With his hands bound, Xia Mengxian frowned and showed dissatisfaction and anger when he saw Li walk out unharmed.

Li's eyes narrowed. Her husband wanted her to hang herself to avoid humiliation. But she stared at the rafters for a long time, ultimately unable to make up her mind. She would rather be exiled to Lingnan for exile; at least she could survive.

Furthermore, he's not dead, so why is he making demands of her?

Li's eyes were red. Marrying Xia Mengxian, she ultimately gained nothing and even ruined her family. If she had known this would happen, she would have preferred to marry a merchant and live a simple life. The Xia family members were being escorted to the yamen (government office).

A steward stopped Xu En's carriage and handed him his calling card.

“Your Excellency,” the steward bowed, “I am the steward of the Xie family, and I have been ordered by my master to speak with Your Excellency.”

Xu En did not dismount, but gestured for the steward to speak.

The steward said, "The second young lady of the Xia family came to our mansion alone. The master is dealing with her matter and will definitely give the yamen an explanation."

Xu En remained calm and said in a businesslike manner, "I will report the facts to the Emperor. What happens next is Xie Shumi's own business."

The steward was taken aback, not expecting this Magistrate Xu to be so disrespectful, and could only awkwardly agree.

Xu En spurred his horse forward. He had found Xia Erniang's whereabouts, but where had Xia Ziqiao gone? As he pondered this, a commotion suddenly broke out among the onlookers.

"I've finally caught you."

"You're the one who stole my pancake."

The voice sounded somewhat familiar.

Xu En couldn't help but turn his head to see what had happened, and then he saw a familiar face—it was someone from Madam Xie's side.

Yang Xiaoshan was holding a beggar and cursing, but when he met Xu En's gaze, the expression in his eyes immediately changed. His anger vanished without a trace, and he calmly nodded to Xu En, clearly having something to say to him.

"Let's go, let's go to the Ministry of Justice prison first."

As the escort team moved forward, Xu En reined in his horse and deliberately lagged behind.

"It's gone, it's all gone."

The soldiers began to disperse the crowd. Taking advantage of the chaos, Yang Xiaoshan moved closer to Xu En and quickly handed him a letter.

……

At the residence of Privy Councilor Xie.

Xia Jingxian sat in Madam Zhou's room.

Madam Zhou personally served her a cup of hot tea and comforted her, saying, "Don't worry, Master will be back soon. I'll also send someone to find Rang-ge'er; they'll surely come up with a solution."

“Poor thing,” Madam Zhou said, taking Xia Jingxian’s hand again, “Why is it so cold?”

Xia Jingxian wanted to say something, but couldn't get a word in edgewise. Madam Zhou instructed the head maid, "Quickly, go and get a hand warmer."

After arranging these things, Madam Zhou asked again, "Have you eaten anything?"

Xia Jingxian had no choice but to respond, so she shook her head and said, "The house is a complete mess... not yet..."

“I’ll go get you some food,” Madam Zhou interrupted Xia Jingxian. “You need to eat something to have the strength.”

After that, under Xia Jingxian's watchful gaze, Madam Zhou left the house.

The room returned to tranquility, and Madam Zhou's concern and anxiety vanished completely, as if they had never existed.

Xia Jingxian couldn't help but clench her handkerchief tightly.

If the Xie family refuses to help her, she might be demoted to the brothel or exiled as a government slave, and her future life would be worse than death.

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