HCB Chapter 359 Shen Li Goes to Prison
Chapter 359 Shen Li Goes to Prison
Chapter 359 Shen Li Goes to Jail
Shen Li then turned her head and looked at the clerk with considerable regret: "It's not that I don't want to do it, it's that they won't agree."
"Lord Shen, if this continues, things will really get out of control," the clerk said through gritted teeth. "You don't want to destroy everyone, do you?"
"Of course I don't want to." Shen Li's voice lowered: "Only you will be burned."
"Since Lord Shen will not heed my advice, then I, Gao, will take my leave." Seeing that Shen Li was determined, the man flicked his sleeves and left.
Shen Li watched his departing figure, smiled, and said calmly, "Guards, someone is impersonating Prince Yi's men to exonerate a criminal. Tie them up and send them to the authorities."
Once you're here, you're not going anywhere.
The clerk turned his head in shock. Before he could react, his shoulder was grabbed by Shaoyao and he was thrown among the villagers and tied up.
He genuinely hadn't expected Shen Li to do this. In his view, even if Shen Li didn't give face to the King of Chess, she would act as if nothing had happened and wouldn't arrest him.
Is this a deliberate attempt to openly break ties with the King of Chess?
She has such audacity!
"Lord Shen, think it over carefully. You should know there's no turning back now," the clerk threatened in a deep voice.
"Then what kind of path do you think has a way back?" Shen Li countered. "Are you here to provoke me?"
"Lord Shen!" the clerk gritted his teeth, "You'll regret this."
"You don't need to worry about that, you can't see it anyway," Shen Li said dismissively.
Shuntian Prefecture Government Office.
Cheng Sheng changed into his official robes and walked out of the government office. Standing on the steps, he saw hundreds of people walking towards him in a dark mass. People on the roadside followed suit, and the crowd seemed to occupy most of the street.
The last time he saw such a dense crowd was when there were rebels outside Kyoto, but he did not feel as powerless as he did when facing rebels.
Even if the rebels entered the city, they might not kill him, and even if they did, they wouldn't torture him. But what he was facing now was something that would both torture him and take his life.
He let out a long sigh, but when he stepped down to face Shen Li, he put on a smiling face and asked earnestly, "Lord Shen, what brings you here?"
Although Shen Li's official rank was not as high as his, Shen Li now held the title of Princess, so even a first-rank official would have to be more respectful to her.
"I apologize for disturbing you, Lord Cheng. I am filing a complaint against Wu Zihao for trampling on farmland and injuring people with his horse," Shen Li said loudly.
When Cheng Sheng looked at Wu Zihao again, he felt a wave of dizziness. He thought to himself, "You can't just abuse the law like that. You're getting yourself into trouble too."
Moreover, injuring someone is not as good as killing them; if he had killed someone, he could have been transferred to the Ministry of Justice.
This dispute is indeed within his jurisdiction. If it weren't for the special status of both parties, a beating and some compensation from Wu Zihao would have been enough to let him go.
However, he couldn't easily deal with these two people; he had to listen to what his superiors wanted to say.
"It is already late, so it is not appropriate to hold court today." Cheng Sheng said the explanation he had prepared in advance: "Then I will trouble you two to stay in my government office for the night."
One night is enough time for all parties to come and make their moves here, and he can meet His Majesty after the morning court session the next morning, which would make things much more convenient.
"Okay," Shen Li readily agreed.
Cheng Sheng led Shen Li's people and the bound men into the main hall, whereupon the constables shouted at the onlookers, "Disperse! What's there to see? Go back!"
Although the villagers were somewhat worried about Shen Li, they could only leave for the time being and come back to see her when the court session was held.
Some knowledgeable people say that since it involves the chief minister and the deputy chief minister, the case will eventually be dropped and there is no way it will be tried publicly.
After leading the two men into the inner hall, Cheng Sheng asked what had happened and realized there was another person present. He then pointed to the clerk and asked, "Lord Shen, who is this?"
"He impersonated Prince Yi's man to persuade me to disregard the law and lie in court, giving false testimony," Shen Li declared eloquently.
Cheng Sheng was stunned for three full breaths after hearing this, and then everything went black until his official position was truly over.
How did even the King of Chess get involved?
"So you're saying he's just a petty thief? Let's give him a beating and let him go," Cheng Sheng asked Shen Li with a forced smile.
Shen Li shook her head and said righteously, "Thousands of people have heard about this. If we don't give a public trial and an explanation, I'm afraid we won't be able to convince the public."
This means she doesn't want to let them go.
Cheng Sheng thought to himself, "Grandma, what kind of trouble are you trying to cause?"
"Guards, take them away and separate them into different prisons. Also, please have a doctor come to the prison to examine their injuries." He dealt with Wu Zihao and his group first.
Seeing that he had finally escaped Shen Li's control, Wu Zihao, who had been quiet for a while, became arrogant again and shouted, "Lord Cheng, Shen Li abused her power. Does she think she can escape the law?"
"Did I say I was going to run away?" Shen Li looked at Wu Zihao with displeasure: "Mind your own business."
Knowing he was safe here, Wu Zihao straightened up and glared at her, saying, "Shen Li, every lash you've given me will make you pay the price."
Logically, if someone were to make such outrageous remarks in court, the bailiffs should have taken action, but they looked at each other in bewilderment, and none of them dared to make a move.
In the face of power, even the stick in one's hand becomes a mere decoration.
Shen Li was most skilled at sophistry, but she disdained using it against a mad dog, so she simply raised her foot and kicked Wu Zihao in the stomach.
Even if Wu Zihao had taken some kind of super pill, he wouldn't have been able to withstand the injury and was practically sent flying, crashing hard into the door behind him.
"Ugh..." Wu Zihao fell off the door and vomited on the ground. His face was ashen, and he pointed at Shen Li for a long time without being able to speak before gradually fainting.
Shen Li finally felt some peace and quiet; after all, you have to use your fists to beat a dog.
Everyone present was stunned by the scene, and those spoiled brats were almost scared to death.
Even the clerk Gao shuddered. He had thought that Shen Li was more adaptable than Shen Zizai and therefore easier to deal with, but now it seemed that she was just a reckless and unconventional person.
Unfortunately, this hothead is actually quite capable and accomplished; anyone who crosses him is doomed.
"You guys had better give me your honest statements. If I find out who doesn't tell the truth, I'll make him the ringleader," Shen Li threatened Cheng Sheng in front of him.
The group dared not do anything but nod obediently, as they had already felt the pain in their stomachs from Shen Li's kick.
"Alright." Shen Li patted imaginary dust off her hands with satisfaction and asked Cheng Sheng, who was still sighing, "Lord Cheng, which cell will I be in?"
She knew perfectly well that assaulting someone would land her in jail.
If it weren't for this, how could things have escalated like this?
Cheng Sheng waved his hand, and the constables took the spoiled young men away. When only the two of them were in the hall, he whispered, "Hey, niece of the Shen family, what are you doing?"
“Since Uncle calls me niece, then I will speak frankly. My purpose here is to overthrow the Grand Secretary and strike at the Prince of Yi,” Shen Li said directly.
Upon hearing this, Cheng Sheng wanted to slap himself. Why did he have to ask such questions?!
He might as well not know! Getting involved in factional strife would be even more disastrous.
But given the current situation, he probably has no choice but to take sides; wavering will only hasten his demise.
“I won’t put you in a difficult position, Uncle. Your delaying tactic is brilliant. As long as we stall, His Majesty will make his decision,” Shen Li reminded him.
"Really?" Cheng Sheng knew that his question was a pointless one, but he desperately wanted a definite answer.
Shen Li nodded: "I guarantee it with my life."
“That won’t be necessary.” Cheng Sheng knew that Shen Li was no ordinary person, so he immediately breathed a sigh of relief and said, “It’s a pity that my niece has to spend the night in jail. I’ll have someone arrange the best single room for you right away.”
"No need, I'll just take a regular cell. I like it there." Shen Li said, tossing her hair to make herself look like a woman.
"Huh?" Cheng Sheng looked at the expression on Shen Li's face that showed not only no disgust but also a hint of anticipation, and a big question arose in his mind.
This is a prison sentence, not going home. He's never seen anyone as excited as Shen Li!
His mood at this moment was similar to that of Master Gao. This guy was a reckless and unruly fellow who was really a headache!
Shen Li then went to the women's prison, which was a large dormitory with more than a dozen people, and the conditions inside were extremely poor.
She thought she wouldn't see any acquaintances for many years in her previous life, but she didn't expect to see two familiar faces as soon as she was brought here by the yamen runners. They were two female prison guards.
These two female jailers had made things difficult for her when she first entered the prison in her previous life, not giving her good food or drink.
But later, after she helped raise money for the sick child of one of the female prison guards, not only those two, but also the other female prison guards secretly treated her differently. Although they would still send her spoiled food, they would also secretly send her delicious food.
Although Shen Li was imprisoned in this kind of jail for a year, she didn't suffer for many days. Although the food and drink weren't very good or exquisite, she still had basic meals.
The two female jailers were very respectful to Shen Li after hearing the yamen runner's instructions. One of them said:
"Sir, this place is simple. I will prepare clean bedding and a change of clothes for you. Food will also be provided separately. Please tell me what you need. Don't be shy with us."
"Nothing else, just that I'll prepare a set of these for the other sisters as well. I'm a clean person, and I can't stand people around me being dirty," Shen Li said.
"Oh, and we also need bathwater. If we don't have enough people, we can ask the sisters for help," she continued.
The two female jailers exchanged a glance, their faces showing distress. Not only was this troublesome, but how much would all these things cost?
Even though it was difficult, they readily agreed and decided to consult with the warden before making a final decision.
"By the way, they all have to be the best. I don't wear ordinary clothes." Shen Li said, putting on airs.
"Yes, sir, please wait a moment."
Seeing that the two looked genuinely troubled, Shen Li stopped joking with them, took out several silver notes from her left sleeve, and two small gold ingots from her right sleeve, and handed them over.
"That's all I have. If it's not enough, you can make up the difference. If there's too much, you don't need to report it. Just divide it among yourselves." Shen Li said this in a very soft voice, as if it were a joke between acquaintances.
"Divided...divided?" The jailer looked at the money in his hand; there were more than a dozen silver notes, each with a face value of one hundred taels.
Although the gold ingots were small, they were solid and heavy, and these two alone would be enough to purchase supplies for the prison.
So, the two of them can split over a thousand taels of silver? They've never even seen that kind of money, let alone gotten their hands on it.
Shen Li nodded.
"This is enough. We dare not accept the smaller ones." The jailer returned all the silver notes with trembling hands.
After working there for several years, they also knew what kind of money they couldn't accept: no money if they didn't do the service.
It's not that they have particularly good character, but money that doesn't belong to them comes with a price, often requiring them to bear a burden of guilt they cannot afford.
To put it bluntly, it's money that could cost you your life.
Such things are not uncommon in government service.
"Keep it. I won't ask you to do anything else, don't worry." Shen Li not only didn't take the money back, but also patted her hand to reassure her.
The two were still hesitant to accept it.
"You can go out and ask around, I'm a very nice person," Shen Li said patiently, then asked, "Where do I live?"
"Then thank you, sir. This way." Another female jailer led the way.
"That's more like it." Shen Li asked as they walked, "How old is the child?"
"Ten years old, a boy."
Shen Li then remembered that the girl she had saved had not yet been born at this time; she was only two years old back then.
"I will remember your kindness in taking care of me now. If you ever encounter any difficulties in the future, please come to the Gu residence to find me." Shen Li looked at herself and finally took the jade inlaid on her belt and gave it to her.
The jailers were stunned. Had she taken care of her?
"Keep it, you never know when you might need it." Shen Li insisted on putting it in her hand.
When she entered the prison cell, neither of the two female prison guards could accept the fact; they had never dreamed of anything so big.
Why are you pinching me? It hurts.
"Let me see if it's true?"
"Oh, then why don't you pinch yourself?"
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Shen Li looked around the cell; it was the same one she had lived in before, though it was a little earlier than usual, but she really felt like she was coming home.
There were about ten people in the cell, ranging in age from teenagers to those in their forties. Each of them sat in a corner, their prison uniforms filthy, staring at her.
She looked around but didn't see anyone she knew. It made sense, since those imprisoned here were either people who had committed minor offenses or those who had committed serious offenses and would be executed in the autumn. They almost never had long sentences.
"Looks unfamiliar, is this your first time here?" The woman in her early forties, with her relatively neatly combed hair and a blade of grass dangling from her mouth, was looking up at her.
Shen Li nodded: "Yes."
"That jailer is quite respectful to you, who are you?" the woman continued to ask.
"I'm an official, and my family members are officials too. I probably won't be staying for long, so please take care of me," Shen Li said honestly.
She knew that new inmates in prison needed to be taught rules, and in her previous life, she had been taught those rules by Caiyun, the prison's leader, a time when she felt utterly hopeless.
She accepted her fate passively, but Caiyun couldn't bear to part with her and took the initiative to care for her.
In this life, she used all her self-cultivation requirements on others. She was worried that she would get angry and take action, so she made it clear from the beginning.
However, as soon as she finished speaking, snickers rang out from inside the cell.
"Girl, you bribed the jailer with the little money you had, didn't you? If you want to suffer less in here, at least come up with a plausible reason. Who would believe you if you said you were an official?" A blond-haired girl next to the gang leader said.