If you were cold and aloof in your past life, why are you crying in this one?

The area near the imperial prison was dirtier than other places, and Xi Lingxian reprimanded her severely, refusing to even get out of the carriage.

He opened the car window and nodded to Lu Yun and Xie Chenxu, without giving Wang Jue even a glance.

Lu Yun still felt aggrieved. It's not that people are worried about scarcity but about inequality; it doesn't make sense.

"Miss Xi, why are you treating her differently?"

Xi Lingxian knew what he was talking about. She scratched her cheek, shrugged helplessly, and said, "It's all because you, Young Master Lu, were too easy to talk to. I didn't even have a chance to negotiate with you before you agreed. If I had offered you money then, wouldn't that have been humiliating you?"

"..."

That makes so much sense that Lu Yun couldn't refute it for a moment.

"So it's my fault for being too good-natured?" Lu Yun glanced at the person in the snow-white dress beside him. "But I was clearly doing it because..."

Wang Jue said in a low voice, without much emotion, "Don't worry about anyone's feelings. From now on, everything will be handled officially."

Xi Lingxian paused, then gave a forced smile, "Yes, yes, I don't have any special relationships with anyone, so there's no need for me to do this for anyone's sake."

Wang Jue said casually, "This is not a place for a young lady. Go back."

"Jiankang City isn't yours. I can go wherever I want, and that's none of your business."

Xi Lingxian was not one to be mild-mannered or submissive. She looked at the three men outside the car with her eyes fixed on them. "Since you pride yourself on being upright gentlemen, don't try to be like those petty people who get angry and seek revenge in secret."

She could handle Xiao Yun's revenge, but if that madman Wang Jue followed suit, not only her, but also her father and elder brother would be in trouble.

Okay, she's comparing him to that guy Xiao Yun.

Wang Jue's gaze was gloomy, his emotions unreadable.

Lu Yun and Xie Chenxu sensed something was wrong, but they couldn't pinpoint what it was.

……

Gu Rong and Qian Yuanfu requested that Shen Pu be sentenced to death and that the Shen family manor and his land be confiscated.

Now that the chain of evidence has broken, everything could be lost.

Undeterred, Gu Rong hatched a plan. He approached his sister, Madam Xie, who had married into the Xie family, hoping she could help him leverage the connections of the Wang and Xie families to jointly crush the Shen family.

Who wouldn't covet the immense wealth of the Shen family?

Madam Xie and Madam Wang have often abused their power and committed illegal acts, especially since today's target is the Shen family, who possess countless valuable possessions.

Grand Commandant Wang usually stayed at Consort Li's place, but on the first and fifteenth of each month, he would still come to his wife, Lady Wang, to at least give her some face.

After many years of marriage, they had a basic level of trust and understanding. For Lady Wang, getting a token from Grand Commandant Wang was a piece of cake.

Wang Dun felt guilty towards his wife. Over the years, as long as she didn't go too far or interfere with his and his son's plans, he turned a blind eye.

It was late at night when Xi Lingxian was sound asleep when she was suddenly awakened by the noisy and chaotic footsteps outside.

Tao Zhi lit the ram's horn palace lamp by the bedside, her expression anxious. "Young lady, something terrible has happened! Lord Shen has run into trouble in prison."

Xi Lingxian was instantly wide awake. "What happened?"

"I heard that he was poisoned, and when the jailer found him, he was already unconscious."

"Miss Shen came to the family's door, kneeling before the head of the household, begging for his help. When the wall falls, everyone pushes it down; the Shen family has now become the target of everyone's criticism."

"Hurry up and get me dressed and comb my hair."

Cai Ping paused, then pressed down on Xi Lingxian's hand. "Young lady, no matter how close you and Miss Shen are, you can't disregard the situation of the head of the family and the eldest son."

"Does the young lady know why the Shen family is isolated and helpless? It's because the Gu family and the Wang and Xie families are related. Throughout the court and the country, who dares to risk offending the Wang and Xie families for the sake of the Shen family?"

"Does the young lady really have the heart to let the head of the family and the eldest son go against the tide and offend everyone in the court?"

Even a maid understands this principle, so how could Xi Lingxian not know it?

But now is the time when the Shen family needs people the most. If she stands idly by at this moment, how desperate will Sister Qingdai be...

and many more!

When she went to visit him in prison, she couldn't even see the criminal Zhao Ping. Who could possibly have such extraordinary abilities to poison Uncle Shen in the imperial prison?

The imperial prison's penal code was controlled by the Langya Wang clan, so there's only one possibility for the current situation.

This was tacitly approved by the Wang family; in the power struggle between the Gu and Shen families, they silently chose to abandon the Shen family.

mean!

Xi Lingxian's palms suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

She used to be sharp-tongued, but I always felt that Wang Jue still had some principles.

The loopholes in the evidence are already there; if we follow the clues, the truth will come out sooner or later.

But it turned out she was too naive; the Wang family seemed to have no intention of conducting a thorough investigation at all.

Who's right and who's wrong depends entirely on their words.

Who would bother working hard for someone insignificant if there were something to gain?

……

Xi Jian was largely unable to help his niece Shen Qingdai with her requests.

The only thing she could do was take her to visit Shen Pu, and she had to pretend to be his servant. Shen Qingdai didn't dare to ask for too much and nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Xi Lingxian dressed neatly and followed along.

She only had time to hear the whole story while in the carriage.

"Did the incident happen tonight?"

"Yes, I spent a lot of money bribing people in prison. A jailer saw that something was wrong and sent a beggar to my house to deliver the message."

Xi Lingxian's expression turned grave. "Someone wants to die so there are no witnesses? Someone from the Gu family?"

A chill ran down Shen Qingdai's spine. "No matter whose side they are on, the Wang family's hearts are undoubtedly biased."

"Fanfan, you need to be careful of Wang Jue."

Xi Lingxian now feels like killing him.

I knew he was driven by profit, but I never imagined he could be so utterly shameless.

Truly, a man who is not ruthless cannot be a true hero.

Shen Pu was moved to a simple inn near the imperial prison. Xi Lingxian arrived with her father and saw that the most skilled physicians in the Wang family, Physician Xu and Physician Lang, were there. She sneered inwardly, thinking, "As expected of the Langya Wang family, they have to go all out when they're putting on an act."

They tacitly condone harming people while pretending to ask doctors to save them.

If they were to actually be saved, would they cry or laugh?

"Everything was fine during the day, how could someone suddenly die?"

"Brother Gu, don't worry. It's probably because Lord Shen feels guilty and remorseful, and he can't face everyone, so he wants to end his life in the quiet of the night."

"How foolish of me! I never intended to kill him. We've known each other for so many years. We could have just talked things out. Why did I do this?"

Xi Lingxian didn't recognize the old men who were speaking, but from what they were saying, it wasn't hard to tell that they were the heads of the Gu and Qian families, Gu Rong and Qian Yuanfu.

The person wasn't even dead yet, and they were already weeping uncontrollably.

With such a great acting ability, why doesn't she work for a Southern opera troupe?

Xi Lingxian held back her anger and held Shen Qingdai's hand, who was disguised as a servant.

As you approach, you'll see Wang Dun and his son Wang Jue in the room next to Shen Pu's.

"Your Excellency, I have thoroughly examined Lord Shen's cell and found two pieces of something resembling spices that were not completely burned in the charcoal brazier. I believe this is the culprit behind Lord Shen's poisoning and fainting."

It was winter, and because of Shen Pu's special status, the jailer had arranged a charcoal brazier for him to keep warm.

Unexpectedly, this became the opportunity for the mastermind to strike.

When Wang Dun saw Xi Jian appear, he stood up and cupped his hands in greeting, "Brother Xuanping, you've heard the news too?"

"Yes, this matter is of great importance. I can't even sleep peacefully at home, so I decided to come and take a look."

After saying that, he pointed helplessly to Xi Lingxian behind him, "This girl stayed up late tonight, and insisted on following me when she heard I was going out. I just can't do anything about it."

Wang Dun was not angry at all; instead, his expression instantly became more kind and gentle. "It's nothing serious. Just let her play along."

As he spoke, he pulled Xi Jian aside and said something that Xi Lingxian couldn't hear.

Wang Jue stood with his hands behind his back to one side, listening to the head jailer report something in a low voice. Xi Lingxian glanced around, accidentally met his meaningful gaze, and then looked away with a sense of unease.

Both of the Wang family's pharmacists had treated Xi Lingxian before, and she recognized them.

The two men recognized her too.

Taking advantage of the fact that there were few people around, Xi Lingxian asked in a low voice, "You two? How is the person in bed? Is their life in danger?"

"Don't worry, Miss Xi. She just fainted and inhaled very little toxin. We've already used acupuncture to expel it. She'll be fine after some rest."

Xi Lingxian clearly felt the hand holding her suddenly tighten.

She squeezed his hand back as a gesture of reassurance.

Xi Lingxian led Shen Qingdai out of Shen Pu's place and into the side hall. She glanced around and saw a dense crowd, with people who should be there and those who shouldn't be there.

She stomped her foot, put her hands on her hips, and shouted, "How could someone come up with such a poisoning method? The killer behind this is utterly depraved. May God bless him to trip and fall to his death in the snow!"

"..."

There was a moment of silence in the hall.

Xi Lingxian blinked, her face completely innocent: "What...what happened to me?"

Do you dare to get angry? If you do, it means you have a guilty conscience.

The Gu and Qian families froze for a moment before averting their gaze.

I no longer look at this naive little girl.

Shen Qingdai was disguised; to outsiders, she appeared to be a thin, delicate-looking servant, and no one would think much of it.

Xi Lingxian chose a cushion to sit on and pulled "Shen Qingdai" to sit next to her.

He whispered, "Don't worry, your uncle is very lucky and his life is not in danger."

Shen Qingdai nodded and whispered, "They want the Shen family's money, I'll give it to them. I just hope my father is alright."

They can't possibly steal enough; those greedy people want to ruin their families so they can take the money just because they want to.

Xi Lingxian sighed and hugged her. "It'll be alright."

"Sizzle—"

The sound of shattering porcelain cut through the air, followed by the exclamations of the Wang family servants.

"Young master, your hand?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that a cup with crackled ice patterns had inexplicably shattered into pieces in Wang Jue's hand, with sharp porcelain shards piercing his palm and drawing blood.

Shen Qingdai glanced at her and nudged Xi Lingxian with her elbow. "The teacher seems to be in a bad mood."

Xi Lingxian ignored her, "Are you in a good mood? Am I in a good mood?"

who cares.