The concubine, a former cannon fodder, becomes pregnant, and the childless prince spoils her rotten.

Lin Zhizhi did not respond, but felt that her uncle had never said a word in her defense before, but now he was looking at her with extreme disappointment.

Cheng Huilan originally wanted to do something else. She really didn't believe that Lin Zhizhi had the guts to do such a thing, completely disregarding the fact that Lin Yue was her uncle and Lin Ye was her cousin.

Before, her family did so many things because of Lin Feng, but Lin Feng never mentioned sending them to jail to suffer.

Could it be that Lin Zhizhi, a junior, could do such a rebellious thing?

It wouldn't sound good to sue one's own uncle in court.

Cheng Huilan naturally felt that Lin Zhizhi didn't have the guts, and even if she did, Lin Feng and Xu Jie would stop her.

Are we really going to just stand by and watch Lin Ye completely lose his chance to pass the imperial examinations?

Cheng Huilan didn't think her previous behavior was excessive at all. Lin Zhizhi hadn't been successfully sold, and she hadn't received any money, had she?

Since that's the case, then these things didn't happen, and Lin Zhizhi shouldn't pursue the matter.

Cheng Huilan had a thousand words to say, but with her mouth blocked, she was helpless.

When the family finally saw the prefect, they were completely panicked.

Cheng Huilan's eyes widened, her face turned pale, and she had lost her previous arrogance.

Lin Yue, who was already tongue-tied, knelt there and couldn't utter a single syllable.

Not to mention Lin Ye, who was stunned, even Lin Shangya, who was unwilling to accept it, was the same.

She never expected that Lin Zhizhi could be so ruthless. She had only thought that her cousin's personality had changed a lot and that she was strange.

Now she feels that she doesn't know Lin Zhizhi at all. Lin Zhizhi, who was so well protected, had such a smooth life and even climbed up to a high branch like a prince.

No matter how much the household mistreated her, it shouldn't have produced someone like Lin Zhizhi, who has ruthless methods and shows no regard for past feelings.

When the prefect saw Lin Zhizhi, his face showed a look of joy, clearly indicating that he still remembered her.

He personally greeted her, his attitude slightly warmer, and asked in a low voice, "Now that you've escaped, is Consort Feng Yao with you?"

Compared to Lin Zhizhi, the maid, Feng Yao's safety was clearly more important.

After all, her father was waiting at the Prince's residence at the moment. He was a senior official in the court, and the Emperor attached great importance to this.

Lin Zhizhi looked panicked and confused, her eyes filled with a blank expression, and she was covered in injuries and looked disheveled.

With tears in her eyes, she shook her head frantically, as if she were in extreme shock, and said, "I don't know."

The prefect was initially angry and extremely anxious, but upon seeing Lin Zhizhi's appearance...

He swallowed the words that were about to come out, turning them into a sigh, and said, "Don't be afraid. Tell me what happened. Now that we're here, we will definitely not let you be bothered by those bandits again."

Lin Zhizhi then recounted the events in fits and starts, her words a mix of truth and falsehood, while concealing the fact that Feng Yao had colluded with bandits to harm her.

This matter concerned the Prince's residence, and Feng Yao's involvement with bandits could not be mentioned in front of the Prefect.

Lin Zhizhi always felt that something was wrong with this matter; it was abnormal for a group of bandits to be hiding near the capital.

Only Feng Yao had the guts to negotiate with those bandits. It's unclear whether she was being used or if there were other reasons.

She still retained some information, made thorough preparations in her mind, and was extremely wary of the prefect in front of her.

The woman originally thought that Lin Zhizhi would make a scene in front of the prefect, after all, Lin Zhizhi had just escaped from the bandits and was then kidnapped to the village by her aunt and cousin.

She looked like she was full of grievances, so how could she remain so calm when she saw someone who could make the decision?

Having received Lin Zhizhi's instructions, she, along with her husband and mentally challenged son, simply knelt obediently on the ground, not daring to say a word.

Lin Ye was indeed so frightened that he didn't dare to say a word, let alone Lin Yue, who was already somewhat timid.

Even the usually arrogant aunt was deathly pale and trembling uncontrollably.

Lin Zhizhi had mentioned sending them to see the authorities several times before, but we thought she was just joking to scare them.

Cheng Huilan was apprehensive, never expecting to actually be brought here.

Unfortunately, his mouth was gagged, and he had no chance to defend himself.

When the prefect learned that Lin Zhizhi's return to the capital was delayed because she had been kidnapped by Cheng Huilan, the raging anger and anxiety in his heart seemed to have found an outlet.

He looked coldly at Cheng Huilan, "Such a vicious woman must not be let off easily. Drag them away and interrogate them properly. If what this young lady said is true, then lock them in the dungeon."

Lin Shangya, who hadn't spoken until now, looked at Lin Zhizhi as if she had grasped a lifeline.

She lunged at her, grabbing her leg. Lin Shangya's voice was pleading, "It's my fault, cousin. I was forced into this situation. Please, please let me go. I'll do anything you want, just don't put me in jail. I can identify my mother; it was all her idea."

Unexpectedly, Lin Shangya was willing to disregard even her own mother in order to escape punishment.

Cheng Huilan glared fiercely at Lin Shangya, almost choking on her own breath, and now her vision blurred.

Cheng Huilan couldn't withstand the torture at all and confessed to everything in no time.

Lin Shangya just stared at Lin Zhizhi, her eyes moist, tears falling in pairs, looking quite pitiful.

If one didn't know the truth, they would think that Lin Zhizhi had bullied her.

Lin Shangya glanced at the prefect, seemingly trying to elicit his pity and avoid imprisonment.

The prefect had no time to pay attention to any of this; he was only thinking about rescuing the person as soon as possible, otherwise he would surely lose his official position.

They might even be affected by the Emperor's wrath.

Lin Shangya didn't want to be imprisoned like this, so she held onto Lin Zhizhi tightly.

It was the woman standing nearby who forcefully pulled the person away and kicked them hard, saying, "When you were doing something naughty before, why didn't you think of this day coming?"

The woman was unaware that Lin Shangya had previously hired someone to frame Lin Zhizhi back in the Prince's mansion, intending to ruin her for money.

At this moment, I just felt that Lin Shangya was really good at acting, which made her even more malicious.

Then he thought about how he had taken in this family for so long, and how they not only coveted his money, but had almost killed him.

The woman was furious and threatened in a low voice, "You better behave yourself, don't think we can't see through your little schemes."

Lin Shangya bit her lip, her head lowered to hide her gloomy expression.

She only hoped that the high-ranking officials and dignitaries she knew would come and rescue her after hearing that she was imprisoned.

However, because she had always kept a low profile and hadn't actually had anything happen with anyone, Lin Shangya felt uncertain.

She just resented Lin Zhizhi, and at this moment she wouldn't say a word in her defense.

How could they be so heartless as to actually send their whole family to jail?