The number one rebel of the Great Wu

The main hall of the Shen family.

Sitting high in the hall, he frowned as he looked at the evidence presented by Magistrate Ma and his advisor, Master Hu.

Among this evidence, there are numerous charges and accusations, totaling over a thousand.

Magistrate Ma received bribes totaling a staggering 100,000 taels of silver.

Below the hall, Magistrate Ma and his advisor Hu led the way, with the Shen family members kneeling in a row behind them.

More than fifty people were implicated in this case.

Such a large sum of money gave even Shen Qingci a headache.

If these people are dealt with, the Shen family will lose face; if they are not dealt with, what if something else happens in the future...?

Shen Qingci was in a dilemma.

"How is Xiao Gengzi?"

Shen Qingci put down the evidence in her hand and turned to look at Xiang Rushuang.

"She is out of danger."

Shen Qingci nodded slightly and waved.

"Call him over."

A moment later, Chen Changgeng, still bruised and swollen, came out from the back room.

Seeing Chen Changgeng full of energy, Magistrate Ma and his advisor Hu widened their eyes in disbelief.

"Magistrate Ma, Clerk Hu."

"Greetings, young masters of the Shen family!"

Chen Changgeng smiled deliberately and bowed to the group.

The people below all looked grim, but none of them dared to utter a single word.

"What do you think we should do about this?"

Shen Qingci remained calm and asked without changing his expression.

Since Chen Changgeng has made such a big fuss, he must have already come up with a way to deal with it.

"The fact that Magistrate Ma handed over the evidence of his crimes is considered an attempt to offset his crimes with good deeds, and his merits and demerits will be balanced out, so he will not be held accountable."

"As for the young masters of the Shen family, those whose offenses are serious will be demoted to commoners, and if anyone comes to seek revenge, the Shen family will not care."

Upon hearing this, the three fools turned deathly pale.

The three of them have offended so many people. If the Shen family doesn't take action, wouldn't that be tantamount to letting them die?

Immediately, a chorus of pleas for mercy erupted from below the hall.

Shen Qingci frowned, first waving his hand to tell them to shut up, then asked in a low voice.

"So light?"

Chen Changgeng smiled slightly.

"Since Your Highness still cares about the Shen family's reputation and has no authority to punish Magistrate Ma, it would be best to lift the board heavily and then let it fall gently."

"If we really want to settle this, even if we beat up the entire Shen family, it won't appease public anger. It's better to let them do it themselves."

"Sacrificing the Shen family branch will enhance your reputation, won't it?"

Shen Qingci's expression changed slightly.

Indeed, her ultimate goal was to prevent trouble caused by a branch of the Shen family from affecting the entire Shen family.

"That Magistrate Ma... is corrupt and lawless, accepting such huge bribes, yet he isn't severely punished?"

"In my opinion, even if they don't behead him, they should at least be stripped of their official rank, right?"

Chen Changgeng smiled and looked at Magistrate Ma.

"Having learned from this experience, I believe Magistrate Ma will surely repent and start anew, won't he?"

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Ma was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes, and he kowtowed repeatedly.

"However, Magistrate Ma, the fields, houses, and jewelry you purchased with embezzled funds over the years will definitely be taken back by the Shen family."

"After all, this originally belonged to the Shen family. Are you willing?"

Your life is saved, what else is there to say!

Magistrate Ma nodded repeatedly.

Shen Qingci's lips curled slightly. Isn't this just confiscating someone's property?

If you say it, people should thank you.

"As for the members of the Shen family, Magistrate Ma secretly holds dirt on you."

"In the future, surely we won't be so foolish as to collude with Magistrate Ma to commit evil deeds again?"

These words were like a bomb dropped into the crowd.

The members of the Shen family all looked up, glaring at Magistrate Ma with extremely resentful eyes.

"Damn it, this kid's waiting for me here!"

Magistrate Ma immediately broke out in a cold sweat!

"Hahaha, okay, that's settled then, all of you, get out of here."

"As for the punishment of you Shen family disciples, the elders of the Shen family shall discuss and decide on the punishment one by one according to the evidence presented."

Shen Qingci realized that Chen Changgeng was deliberately preventing her from revealing the matter in order to prevent the two sides from trusting each other.

As long as Magistrate Ma remains in Jiangxia Town, it will be difficult for the two sides to cooperate in causing trouble and stir up any waves.

If a different county magistrate were to take office, he might accept bribes again and protect them!

Everyone withdrew.

Shen Qingci looked at Chen Changgeng with considerable satisfaction.

"Little Gengzi, you've suffered so much for this matter, yet you've helped so well."

"Tell me, how should I reward you?"

"I heard you went to the Moonlit Pavilion to redeem a girl there."

"How about I redeem that Jade Pearl girl for you and give her to you as a reward?"

After making so many promises, Shen Qingci is finally ready to deliver on them.

This time, however, it was full of threats.

Chen Changgeng simply cupped his hands in greeting.

"Your Highness misunderstands. I am a eunuch and do not associate with women. How could I be interested in such things?"

"However, regarding the reward, I do have a request. Miss Yuzhu is resilient in character; how about Your Highness takes her back to the Crown Prince's residence to serve as a maid?"

Chen Changgeng wanted Shen Qingci to take Yuzhu away, partly to repay a debt of gratitude, and partly to keep Geng Liang by his side.

"Oh, so you want me to take it back and keep it by your side, so you can see it every day?"

Shen Qingci deliberately gave a cold snort.

Shen Qingci didn't believe a word of the claim that he was averse to women, but Ru Shuang had already investigated the reason why Chen Changgeng wanted to redeem Yuzhu.

At this moment, Shen Qingci understood perfectly well, so she didn't hold it against Chen Changgeng.

"Your Highness is joking. The boy who was acting with me in prison earlier was named Geng Liang."

"He is quite clever, and I would like to take him back with me. I wonder if Your Highness would approve?"

Shen Qingci was prepared for this.

When Geng Liang was in prison, Shen Qingci noticed that he was able to act out this scene with Chen Changgeng.

If I really want Chen Changgeng to do things for me in the future, it won't work since he doesn't have many trustworthy people under him.

In fact, even if Chen Changgeng hadn't mentioned it, Yuzhu and Geng Liang's arrangements would have been taken back by her anyway.

This was something she had planned long ago; otherwise, she wouldn't have brought Geng Liang back to the Shen family along with her.

"Granted."

"But as you know, Geng Liang is not a castrated man."

"In the Crown Prince's residence, those who hold high positions and wield great power can only be eunuchs; those who haven't been castrated are destined to remain so for life..."

"They can only ever be the lowest-ranking servants!"

Shen Qingci was not only referring to Geng Liang, but also to Chen Changgeng when she said this.

Chen Changgeng immediately understood.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness. To repay your great favor, I will follow your lead from now on!"

Shen Qingci nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, go and talk to those two about this."

……

The Shen family's backyard.

Yu Zhu had already been brought over by Ru Shuang and had changed her clothes.

Inside the small pavilion, she met Geng Liang and learned that her mother had died, leaving her in a daze.

When she realized what was happening, she had already rushed into Geng Liang's arms and burst into tears.

Chen Changgeng watched this scene and waited for a moment. Geng Liang, however, noticed Chen Changgeng and quickly released Yuzhu, then knelt down.

"Brother Chen, thank you so much for rescuing Yuzhu and me this time."

"I, Geng Liang, will never forget this kindness!"

Yu Zhu wiped away her tears, and when she looked at Chen Changgeng, her face suddenly turned slightly red.

"My benefactor, what brings you here!"

The two of them had just met and were still shaken, so Geng Liang didn't have time to explain the whole story.

At this moment, Yuzhu was completely unaware of Chen Changgeng's identity!