Chapter 2 The Next Morning
The next morning, a carriage hastily departed from Nan Gu Alley and headed west.
No sooner had Madam Bai's carriage left than the news was delivered to the Shuntian Prefecture Yamen. Prefect Bai, his gaze still fixed on the official document in his hand, sternly ordered the guard who delivered the message, "Send people to keep an eye on Lai San and Xiao Liuzi, and also dispatch someone to watch the Li family."
After the guard received the order and left, Prefect Bai continued his work, his stern face flashing with a fierce expression.
The carriage traveled for over fifteen minutes before reaching the main gate of the Li residence. The gatekeeper, upon recognizing Madam Bai's carriage, quickly sent someone inside to announce her arrival while he himself hurried out to greet her.
Madam Bai had a younger brother. The Li family had only had her as their child in her early years, and both Master Li and Madam Li believed they would only have this one daughter. Despite their disappointment, they could only raise Madam Bai as they would a son.
Unexpectedly, when Madam Bai was twelve years old, Madam Li became pregnant again and gave birth to Li Tai ten months later. Due to the two-year age difference between the siblings, Li Tai was only six years old when Madam Bai got married.
Now, the Li father had long since retired, and Li Tai was still accumulating experience in the Hanlin Academy. To advance further in the future, he could only rely on Prefect Bai, his brother-in-law.
"Sister." Li Tai was not on duty today and was at home, personally going to the gate to welcome Madam Bai in. "Why did you come in person on such a cold day? You could have just sent a message back if there was something. There was no need for you to make this trip."
Madam Bai was proud and did not have much affection for her only brother. She even resented Li Tai's birth for causing her parents to neglect her and focus all their energy on their son.
"Father is in the study. I have something to discuss with him." Madam Bai walked briskly towards the study.
Her childhood memories had long since faded. Madam Bai did not even recall how her father had held her hand to teach her calligraphy in the study. After her brother's birth, she had never returned to the study to read again. The resentment and hatred she felt then were so intense.
Time had passed, and both the path leading to the study and the study itself, with its largely unchanged layout, felt so unfamiliar.
Li father was already in his seventies and enjoyed copying calligraphy and paintings in his study during his leisure time. He was also surprised that his eldest daughter had returned in such a hurry without sending a message, assuming something major must have happened.
A moment later.
"You are foolish! If this matter gets out, won't it ruin Li Ze's reputation?" Li father angrily slammed his hand on the table, unable to refrain from reprimanding Madam Bai for her rash and foolish actions.
Li Tai also looked speechlessly at Madam Bai, who, with her neck stiffened, did not believe she had done anything wrong. The damage to the Bai family's reputation was minor. The crucial point was that his elder sister had bribed prison guards to kill a prisoner, which would also mean the end of his brother-in-law's position as Prefect of Shuntian.
However, Li Tai knew Madam Bai's character. She was arrogant and looked down on others. Even if everyone said she was wrong, she would not admit it. Moreover, since Li Tai had something to ask of Madam Bai, he naturally dared not scold her directly like his father. Instead, he had to defend her.
"Father, elder sister was also driven by her love for her son. And those rumors have been spreading like wildfire. I've heard about them even in the Hanlin Academy. Elder sister's actions were a preventive measure," Li Tai said with a smile, trying to smooth things over. Even if his brother-in-law was truly impartial, he could not possibly let the murderer of his own son live comfortably in prison. His elder sister's private actions were definitely unnecessary.
"Zhao Hui is supposed to marry a princess after this spring imperial examination. If the palace hears these messy rumors, this marriage might fall through," Madam Bai regretted that she could not say these words to Prefect Bai, but fortunately, she had the support of her maternal family.
Li father and Li Tai had no objections to Bai Zhao Hui marrying a princess. On the contrary, if the Bai family truly formed a marital alliance with the imperial family, it would bring nothing but benefits to Li Tai. As the uncle of the imperial son-in-law, Li Tai would at least not have to waste time accumulating experience in the Hanlin Academy. He would surely be transferred to one of the Six Ministries, and in the future, he might even be enfeoffed as a marquis and appointed as a minister.
With a long sigh, Li father knew that further words were useless. He looked at Madam Bai and said, "Li Ze already knows and will surely clean up the mess for you. With this, I'm not afraid of anyone investigating later."
"The key is that Lai San and Xiao Liuzi!" Madam Bai's face showed a hint of ruthless severity. "It's better to be safe than sorry."
"You don't need to worry about these two," Li father said, stroking his snow-white long beard. His outwardly peaceful and loving face flashed with a murderous intent. These two must not be kept alive, and even Steward Zeng could not remain in the Bai residence.
After Madam Bai had lunch at her maternal home and returned, her mood had improved considerably. At least her worries about the future had been resolved. However, this good mood did not last for more than fifteen minutes before it vanished completely.
"You're saying Master opened the treasury?" Madam Bai sprang to her feet. Upon hearing the wet nurse say that Prefect Bai had moved an entire carriage load of items from the treasury, even though Madam Bai usually paid little attention to such jewelry, clothing, and fabrics, she was now angry and heartbroken.
At Yufeng Tower Inn, Zhan Feiyu also looked helplessly at the entire carriage of compensatory gifts sent by Prefect Bai. The pearls and various gemstones alone filled five boxes. Zhan Feiyu suspected that Prefect Bai had emptied his entire treasury.
"Miss, these items are not even one-tenth of a percent to the Bai family," He Nuan said as she put away the gift list. In reality, they were not as valuable as the items the Bai family had sent the first time. That time, they had not only included a precious Duan inkstone but also rare ancient books, which were truly treasures that could not be found by chance.