Joy of Life: Starting by clinging to the eldest princess's coattails!

Chapter 135 Laughing at Poverty, Not Prostitution

Suzhou City, the ancestral home of the Su family.

The patriarch, Su Peisheng, sat in the main seat of the main hall, holding a secret report he had just received, his brows furrowed.

Many people saw the thunderclap at Linhu Xiaozhu last night.

He sent people to investigate, but the results left him somewhat uncertain.

The major families had all secretly investigated the rumors about the Little Phoenix.

Those rumors were spread by Xie Yu, Ye Baizhou, and Chen Youliang in order to downplay the negative impact of the princess's premarital pregnancy.

Su Peisheng was well aware of this.

But that thunder last night—

He looked up at the butler standing in the hall: "Did anyone actually see that lightning bolt?"

The steward bowed and said, "Reporting to Master, almost everyone in the western part of the city saw it. Lightning struck down from the sky and hit the lakeside cottage right there."

Su Peisheng remained silent for a few moments.

If it's fake, how do you explain that thunderclap?

"Immediately send a complete message to the Prime Minister about this matter," Su Peisheng said in a deep voice, "and see how the Prime Minister views it."

"Yes, Master." The steward bowed and quickly left.

The main hall fell silent.

Su Peisheng leaned back in his chair, gazing at the daylight outside the door, his mind replaying one question over and over:

Could it be that the princess is really carrying a little phoenix girl?

At the same time, many other families in Suzhou were doing the same thing as the Su family.

In the secret rooms of each household, pigeons flew one after another into the distance, each carrying the same message:

A thunderclap appeared at the lakeside cottage, the assassin was punished by heaven, and it was suspected that the Phoenix Maiden had appeared.

These messages will reach the capital, the Northern Qi, the Dongyi City, and all those who are concerned about Suzhou.

The top of Bao'en Temple Pagoda.

Wu Feng stood at the top of the tower, overlooking the entire city of Suzhou.

He closed his eyes and listened to the chirping of birds around him.

A swallow landed on his shoulder and chirped a few times.

Wu Feng opened his eyes, a smile playing on his lips. Quite a few people had indeed appeared.

At Hu Sanniang's home.

After Xie Cai returned, he told Hu Sanniang about his plan with Wu Feng.

Hu Sanniang hugged her four children, her face filled with fear, but she still nodded: "Cai'er, Mother will listen to you."

Around noon, a series of hurried footsteps could be heard outside the door.

A large troop of constables rushed over and surrounded Hu Sanniang's house.

Hearing the commotion, the neighbors all peeked out to see what was happening.

Zhao Bantou, accompanied by a doctor carrying a medicine box, pushed open the courtyard gate and went inside.

Soon after, Hu Sanniang and her four children were carried out.

Hu Sanniang's lips were black and her face was ashen. The four children also had dark purple lips and lay on the stretcher with their eyes closed, as if they had been poisoned.

The surrounding crowd pointed and whispered, "What's going on?"

"It looks like they've been poisoned—"

"What crime did Hu Sanniang's family commit?"

Zhao, the head constable, waved his hand, and the constables carried the stretcher away quickly.

As the crowd gradually dispersed, Xie Cai hid in the shadows at the alley entrance, covering her mouth to stop herself from crying out loud.

She saw the faces of her mother and the children, and although she knew they were fake, her heart still ached terribly.

She didn't look again, turned around and ran away.

She hadn't run far when a group of constables suddenly rushed out of the alley and pinned her to the ground.

"Let me go!" Xie Cai struggled.

The constables ignored her, tied her up, and escorted her toward the prefectural government office.

The top of Bao'en Temple Pagoda.

Wu Feng grinned, revealing a cruel smile.

The changes in Hu Sanniang's family attracted many suspicious people.

Those guys who were hiding in the shadows and peeking around have now revealed their tracks.

With a light tap of his foot, he unleashed the full power of his Flying Willow and Light Smoke Technique, his figure transforming into a blur as he swept down from the tower.

Not long after.

Prefect's Yamen.

Teams of constables rushed out and, guided by Wu Feng, captured all the suspicious people who had appeared near Hu Sanniang's house.

When those people were taken into prison, their faces still showed confusion and fear.

One of the middle-aged women, with a cold look in her eyes, struggled a few times as she was being dragged into the cell by two constables.

The prefectural government's prison.

Zhao Bantou led Xie Cai in.

The cell was dimly lit, and the air was thick with the dampness and the smell of blood.

When they reached a cell, Zhao, the head of the squad, stopped.

Inside was a woman whose limbs were fixed to a wooden frame, her body covered in blood, and her mouth was gagged with an iron chain, so she could only make muffled whimpering sounds.

Zhao, the squad leader, pointed at the woman and asked, "Miss Xie, look, isn't this her?"

Xie Cai leaned closer and took a closer look at the face.

Even now, filled with pain and resentment, she recognized those eyes.

"It's her!" Xie Cai nodded repeatedly. "It's her! She poisoned my mother and children!"

Zhao, the squad leader, nodded: "Alright, your task is complete."

Xie Cai was stunned for a moment, then her face showed urgency: "Brother Zhao, what about the antidote for my mother and the others?"

Zhao, the squad leader, said, "We found a lot of drugs on her, but we still need to identify which one is the antidote."

Upon hearing that further identification was required, Xie Cai's expression once again revealed anxious worry.

Inside the cell, the soft clanging of chains could be heard.

Upon hearing Zhao Bantou's words, a sinister glint flashed in the woman's eyes.

Zhao, the squad leader, glanced at her, then looked away and said to Xie Cai, "Don't worry, Miss Xie, we have plenty of ways to deal with tough people. She'll talk to us."

After saying that, he led Xie Cai away from the prison cell.

Behind me came the slight swaying of the chain and the woman's muffled sobs.

The backyard of the prefectural government office.

Wu Feng sat in the study, facing Xie Yu.

Xie Yu closed the register in his hand and said, "Among those people we just arrested, many were spies from other countries and other forces in Qing Kingdom. Others were from other families in Suzhou City who wanted to gather information."

Wu Feng nodded: "Just deal with these people according to the rules."

"I understand," Xie Yu replied.

Wu Feng stayed at the prefectural government office for half an hour, explained the matter clearly, and then got up to leave.

Outside the prefectural government office.

As soon as Wu Feng stepped out, he saw several people standing not far away.

Hu Sanniang was with her four children, and Xie Cai stood beside her; the family seemed to be waiting for him.

Upon seeing him come out, Hu Sanniang immediately led the children over and knelt upright on the ground.

Xie Cai also knelt down.

"Lord Wu," Xie Cai's eyes were red and her voice trembled, "thank you so much for saving my family! We will remember your great kindness for the rest of our lives!"

Hu Sanniang and her four children also kowtowed, saying, "Thank you, sir."

Wu Feng waved his hand: "Get up, there's no need for that."

He glanced at Xie Cai, said nothing more, picked up his embroidered spring knife, and turned to leave.

At Hu Sanniang's home.

The family returned home with the joy of surviving the ordeal.

Hu Sanniang sent the four children away, took Xie Cai's hand, and her eyes reddened again.

"Cai'er," she asked, her voice trembling, finally voicing the question that had been weighing on her mind, "what exactly did that person say about the brothel yesterday?"

Xie Cai's expression stiffened for a moment.

She looked at her mother's aged face, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but then she swallowed it back.

Hu Sanniang grasped her hand, tears streaming down her face: "Mother doesn't despise you, Mother loves you so much—"

Xie Cai's eyes also reddened.

She bit her lip, forcing a smile, and said, "Mother, please don't ask anymore. It's all in the past now. As long as our family is alright, that's all that matters, isn't it?"

Hu Sanniang hugged her tightly and burst into tears: "My poor Cai'er—"

Xie Cai also hugged her mother tightly.

Four years ago, her sister was targeted by the Ming family, assaulted, and then sent to the Ming family's brothel.

Unable to bear the humiliation, the older sister jumped off a building and committed suicide.

My brother-in-law took the four children to their home in the countryside, saying he was going to seek justice, and then never returned home.

She and her mother simply couldn't afford to raise four children.

So, feeling a bit resentful, she suggested going to Kyoto to find a place where she could reason things out and get justice for her sister's family.

Unable to dissuade Xie Cai, Hu Sanniang allowed him to leave Suzhou.

For the past four years, Hu Sanniang has received letters and money from Xie Cai every year.

It was with this money that she was able to barely raise her four children.

Now that Xie Cai has returned, she has brought her family to the city, bought a small courtyard, and started a vegetable selling business.

But now she finally realized that all the money Xie Cai had sent back over the past four years was earned from working in a brothel.

The two hugged and cried for a while.

A child's knocking came from outside the door: "Grandma! Auntie! We're hungry!"

Hu Sanniang released her grip, wiped away her tears, and called out to the outside, "Coming, coming."

Xie Cai wiped her face and stood up.

The mother and daughter exchanged a glance, neither of them mentioning what had just happened.

Hu Sanniang patted her hand and said softly, "Cai'er, it's all in the past now."

Xie Cai nodded, her eyes still red, but she managed a smile.