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Chapter 278 You deserve to die
That night, Zhu Yu didn't sleep well. Although he didn't toss and turn and couldn't fall asleep, he still slept restlessly.

The more she experienced things with Lu Qing, the clearer she became at understanding how treacherous their environment was.

This trip to Shuo Kingdom was indeed a risky move, but as she realized how serious the problems in Shuo Kingdom were, she felt that it was worthwhile for them, both personally and professionally.

Firstly, it helped solve the problem for the people of Shuodi, allowing them to live and work in peace and contentment. Secondly, it also allowed my father to put aside his previous carelessness and laxity and to cheer up from now on.

This would greatly increase the probability for them that the Prince of Shuo would become Lu Qing's ally in the future.

After all the twists and turns, and despite all the good deeds and efforts, Zhu Cheng, with a single phrase like "deeply entrenched and complex," wanted to appease the Pang family, to raise high the bar for all their numerous mistakes and conspiracies, and then lightly put them down and let it go.

If this weren't his own father, and if it weren't related to their future plans, Zhu Yu would have wanted to say, "He deserved to die!"
Although she knew that Lu Qing was always reliable and steady in his work, and that his calm and composed demeanor meant he had a backup plan, Zhu Yu was still uneasy and frustrated because all her efforts had not yielded a clear response from Zhu Cheng.

The next day, she woke up feeling listless and in a bad mood due to the troubling dream from the previous night, but she still insisted on getting up and going to the yard to practice the self-defense techniques that Lu Qing had taught her.

After breakfast, Zhu Yu and Lu Qing went to see Zhu Cheng, who was busy gathering manpower from his reliable personal guards to prepare for the departure to take over all matters related to the Wutie Mine.

Upon hearing Zhu Yu say that she and Lu Qing were going to the prison, Zhu Cheng readily handed over the interrogation to the two of them, whether because he felt that his attitude towards the Pang family the day before might offend his son-in-law and wanted to take the opportunity to make amends, or because he was simply too busy. He even gave them a waist token.

Zhu Cheng initially took off his waist tag and handed it directly to Lu Qing, but Lu Qing seemed not to see it and dodged it.

Zhu Cheng was taken aback, but he was quick to understand. He paused for a moment, then handed the item to Zhu Yu.

"I'll leave this matter to you. I'm sure you both know how to handle it and can do it properly," he said to the two men in a tone full of trust.

Zhu Yu simply nodded indifferently, his attitude neither warm nor cold, maintaining a level of politeness.

The two men took the tokens and left the Prince Shuo's residence. Instead of rushing straight to the prison, they wandered around the capital for a while, until it was almost lunchtime, before finally heading to the prison.

When they arrived, the jailer was preparing to feed the prisoners when he saw Zhu Yu and Lu Qing arriving with the Prince of Shuo's waist token. He hurriedly came forward to greet them and pay his respects.

"Has the food been put in?" Zhu Yu looked at the wooden bucket containing the rice and dishes.

"Reporting to Your Excellency, not yet!" Although the guards didn't know what these two people did, they were carrying the Prince of Shuo's waist token, so they were definitely not ordinary people. Therefore, the guards were extremely respectful, even somewhat trembling with fear.

“Apart from the Left Chief Clerk and the Jia family, everyone else, let them eat first,” Zhu Yu said to him. After thinking for a moment, he asked, “Is the food you prepare here just enough, or is there a little to spare?” “Sir, not just enough, there’s definitely a little to spare,” the jailer replied. Suddenly, a thought struck him. “Have you two not eaten yet? I’ll arrange for something delicious to prepare for you right away…”

"No need, this is fine, no need to prepare anything special for us." Zhu Yu waved his hand, "Go put out the rice first, just give us a bite of the rest."

The jailer agreed repeatedly and ran off with a blank look on his face. After a while, he returned with two bowls filled with some food. The food looked rather ordinary and bland.

"My lords... this... isn't to your liking, is it...?" The jailer was still unsure and asked hesitantly.

“It’s alright, let’s go. Take us to Jia Jun’s wife’s cell,” Zhu Yu said to him, then glanced to the side. “Take that wooden stool with you; we can’t exactly stand outside the cell eating with our bowls in our hands!”

It's not even appropriate to sit on a bench outside the cell and eat...

The jailer secretly grumbled to himself, but dared not say it aloud. He could only obediently carry two wooden stools in front of him and lead the two men to the cell where Jia Jun's wife was being held, and respectfully place the wooden stools there.

Zhu Cheng was generally quite benevolent in governing Shuodi, so there weren't many people in the prison. There was no one else around Jia's wife's cell, and it was quiet. She sat listlessly on the ground, leaning half her body against the wall.

Hearing a sound, Madam Jia hurriedly struggled to get up, only to see the jailer respectfully setting out stools for Zhu Yu and Lu Qing. Upon closer inspection, she recognized the two men as people she had seen at her home the day before, and immediately knelt down.

"My lord, I am innocent!" She looked much more haggard overnight, probably because she had cried a lot. Her eyes were so swollen that she could hardly open them. "I don't understand. My husband was clearly murdered, so why did you arrest me and put me in this prison?"
"I have elderly parents-in-law and two children at home. How are my parents-in-law and children supposed to survive if the adults lock me up like this without any reason!"

She must have been hungry by now. Although she spoke with a sorrowful tone, her eyes involuntarily drifted toward the rice bowl in Zhu Yu's hand, and she even subconsciously swallowed.

"We brought you here for a reason. As long as you are innocent, do you think we're afraid we'll conjure up some evidence to frame you?" Zhu Yu said coldly, looking at the pitiful state of the Jia family's wife. She held the bowl of rice in her hand but didn't put it to her mouth. "I'm asking you, before you went back to visit your family, did Jia Jun do anything wrong?"

"No, everything is fine." Madam Jia was crying so hard that she could hardly shed any more tears. "My husband never lets me interfere with his affairs outside, but I can tell with my own eyes that he's either riding high or having a smooth ride."

That's why, when I saw him hanging from the rafters, I simply couldn't believe he would take his own life!

"Has the Left Chief Secretary ever come to your house to wait for you before?" Zhu Yu asked.

Madam Jia shook her head: "I've never been here before. I didn't even know he had such a relationship with my husband, so I was quite surprised to see him come out of my house."

I'll be making up for this month's missed monthly votes with an extra chapter tomorrow, so starting at noon, there will be a total of four chapters~ Mwah! Wishing everyone a happy holiday in advance!