Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

Scarface watched as his waiter ran off to report to the authorities. He sneered and sat down in the hall with an air of arrogance.

His henchmen stood with their arms crossed, showing no fear whatsoever, as if waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

Seeing this, Ming's expression gradually darkened.

When she first arrived in Qingzhou, she was law-abiding and never made enemies with anyone. So who was it that was making trouble for her?

Just then, Ji Mingzhe, who was studying in the backyard, heard the commotion and rushed out.

Upon seeing the mess inside the house, with all the objects destroyed, the boy's brows furrowed instantly, and anger surged in his eyes.

"Ah Zhe! Come to your older sister."

Mingyi quickly called him over.

Ji Mingzhe snapped out of his daze and quickly walked to her side. The nine-year-old boy was still quite thin, but he clenched his fists tightly, glaring at the scarred-face man sitting in the center, his eyes full of resentment.

Scarface, feeling impatient under the intense gaze of a teenager, snapped, "You little brat, look again! Believe me, I'll gouge your eyes out!"

Mingyi was startled and immediately reached out to firmly shield Ji Mingzhe behind her. "What kind of skill is it to scare a child!"

She lowered her head and gently comforted him, "Ah Zhe, don't be afraid. Your sister has already reported it to the authorities, and they will take care of us."

She said this, but she was very unsure of herself. The other party was obviously well-prepared, and she was afraid that the government would not be able to do anything to them.

But she wouldn't accept swallowing this bitter pill.

However, given the current passive situation, we can only take it one step at a time for now.

Before anyone knew it, the area outside Baicaotang had become crowded with local residents watching the spectacle. The crowd was so large that not a single person dared to speak out in support of the righteous cause.

It was simply because everyone recognized the scarred man.

The other party was a notorious local tyrant in Qingzhou City, who made a living by collecting debts and causing trouble. He had government officials backing him up and was used to acting arrogantly and domineeringly.

The surrounding businesses have been harassed and exploited by him for years. Only by paying exorbitant protection fees on time can they barely maintain a peaceful life.

Seeing that he was the one causing trouble and that the victim was a weak woman, everyone felt nothing but sympathy.

Everyone secretly shook their heads—this girl dared to confront the authorities and completely break off relations today; she probably wouldn't be able to stay in Qingzhou in the future.

Before long, several constables dressed in black uniforms arrived unhurriedly, shouting loudly, "Make way! This is official business!"

The onlookers quickly moved aside to both sides.

The constable strode into the ransacked Baicaotang, his rough gaze sweeping over the scene before he barked in a deep voice, "Who reported to the authorities?!"

Mingyi stepped forward and said politely, "Sir, it was I who reported this to the authorities."

"What is it about?"

Mingyi said, "This group of people broke into our shop without cause, smashed our belongings, caused trouble, and even threatened my brother and me. We beg the magistrate to do justice."

The constable glanced at the scarred man, frowned, and was somewhat annoyed that he had caused him trouble.

The scarred man had long since lost his fierce aura. He cupped his hands in greeting to the leading constable and said in a familiar tone, "Officer, it's all a misunderstanding."

"The previous owner of this shop owed me money and ran away after mortgaging the shop. I'm just here to reclaim my own property. I didn't hurt anyone and there was absolutely no trouble caused for no reason."

As he spoke, Scarface took out the IOU and mortgage documents that he had prepared beforehand.

The constable didn't even bother to verify, and casually said, "I see. Since it's a debt dispute, it doesn't count as intentional troublemaking. You can settle it privately."

After saying that, he was about to leave with his men.

The scarred man grinned broadly: "Take care, officer!"

"Wait!"

Mingyi spoke, his voice clear and strong.

The constable looked at her with displeasure: "Is there anything else?"

Mingyi pointed at the scarred man, "This man just made advances at me in broad daylight, are you all just going to sit idly by and do nothing about it?"

Scarface immediately retorted, his face turning bright red, "Bullshit! I've never touched a single hair on your head!"

"Officer, you little bitch, you're just spouting nonsense!"

Mingyi quickly replied, "Just now, when his men were smashing up the shop, this man stood by, spewing vulgarities, saying that I, a woman running a pharmacy, had seduced countless men. He even boasted that if I obediently submitted to him, I would avoid this disaster today. The whole neighborhood heard these words; how can I deny it?"

"You're talking nonsense! When did I ever say such a thing!"

Mingyi then looked at the onlookers outside the door: "Did any of you neighbors hear the disrespectful things he said to me just now?"

The merchants and ordinary people outside the gate had long been exploited by Scarface and harbored deep resentment. How could they possibly stand up and testify for him? They all remained silent.

Such a reaction, in the eyes of the constables, was an admission that the matter had indeed occurred, leaving Scarface speechless and unable to defend himself.

The constables didn't dare openly protect Scarface, so they turned to Ji Mingyi and asked, "What are your demands?"

Mingyi glanced coldly at the scarred man beside her, whose veins were bulging and face was flushed, and said in a firm voice, "Take this man to court and deal with him according to the law!"

She knew that if she let the matter drop today, this person would only take advantage of her and come to vandalize her shop every few days. Would she still be able to keep her shop open?

She just wanted to make a big deal out of it.

The constable had no choice but to say, "Then let's go back to the yamen!"

Scarface has lived for so many years, and he has always been the one bullying others. He has never been framed and made furious.

As he passed Mingyi, he paused briefly, then said in a low, menacing voice, "You think going to court will solve everything? You're dreaming! Let me tell you, the one who sent me to cause you trouble today is someone from the government!"

Mingyi's face darkened, and she had guessed most of what was going on, but she did not back down because of Scarface's threat.

Seeing that she had more backbone than most men, the onlookers were curious about what would happen next, so they all followed her.

-

Before long, the group arrived at the government office.

At midday, Qingzhou Prefect Li Dan was hastily summoned from the secluded haven of his concubine in the backyard. His clothes were disheveled, and his delighted mood had been abruptly interrupted, leaving him with a face full of impatience and displeasure.

After leisurely taking his seat at the judge's table, he slammed his gavel and shouted gruffly, "Who dares to cause trouble and disturb my rest! Tell me the reason!"

Mingyi knelt with her maid, and she said loudly, "My lord! This man led a group to smash my shop, damage my medicine equipment, and even made lewd remarks and insulted my reputation in public. He is arrogant, domineering, and lawless. I beg you, my lord, to do me justice!"

"Sir, she's slandering me! I didn't do anything wrong..."

Before the words were finished, the gavel slammed down heavily in the courtroom.

"Insolence! I haven't asked you anything, so shut up!"

Scarface looked embarrassed and could only shut his mouth in embarrassment.

Li Dan had no intention of carefully examining the case; extremely impatient, he immediately made a decision: "For gathering a crowd to cause trouble and disturbing the peace, according to local law, the punishment is twenty strokes of the cane, to be carried out immediately!"

The constables immediately stepped forward.

Scarface panicked instantly. He thought that with the government backing him up, he would definitely be able to get away unscathed. He didn't expect that the prefect was completely unaware of the situation and immediately wanted to punish him with twenty strokes of the cane.

But he dared not reveal Li Yunwan's identity.

Mingyi breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the sign and was about to kneel down to express his gratitude.

Just then, the advisor appeared. He bent down and whispered a few words quickly into Li Dan's ear.

Just as the bailiffs were about to bring down the execution board they had raised high, Li Dan suddenly raised his hand to stop them: "Wait."

The bailiff looked bewildered, immediately put away the torture board, and stood aside with his hands at his sides.

A sense of foreboding suddenly rose in Mingyi's heart.

Li Dan looked at Mingyi, stroking his beard, his eyes now filled with scrutiny. He, however, was more amiable towards the scarred man, giving him a chance to explain.

Scarface was overjoyed. He immediately climbed up from the torture bench, recounted what had happened, and then presented the evidence.

Li Dan didn't even bother to glance at the evidence, and immediately slammed his hand on the table, saying, "You came to collect debts and reclaim your property; that's perfectly reasonable. Release you without charge!"

Mingyi said urgently, "How can Your Excellency make such a hasty judgment!"

But Li Dan, already deeply biased, was enraged by her public questioning and shouted, "You audacious scoundrel! Fabricating facts and making baseless accusations against innocent people, you dare to defy me in public and show contempt for the court! Your crime is doubled!"

"Guards! Take this woman and her maid to the dungeon to await further orders!"

The constables stepped forward, holding shackles and approaching step by step.

Yuegui was terrified, her face turning deathly pale and her whole body trembling. She had no idea what awaited them after they were imprisoned.

"Young lady, what should we do?"

Mingyi's face was very pale. She glanced at Mingzhe outside the door, who was anxious to come in, and immediately shook her head at him.

Ji Mingzhe finally stopped, his eyes red-rimmed. He hated himself for being unable to do anything to protect his older sister.

Scarface, standing to the side, was extremely smug.

As for the onlookers outside, they were not optimistic about Ji Mingyi's weak and isolated position, so this outcome was within their expectations, though they were somewhat disappointed.

Mingyi's hands were both shackled, and he was treated like a prisoner.

"Lord Li, what an imposing official air you have!"

A clear voice suddenly rang out from the crowd.