pdf-ebookys Chapter 188: Mass Imprisonment
Chapter 188: Mass Imprisonment
"Brother and his gang caused trouble in the restaurant yesterday and insulted the prefect in public. Now they are being held in jail by the prefect. I don't know the details."
"What, in jail, what should I do?" Old man Li was suddenly panicked. If you ask what farmers fear most, of course they are afraid of officials.
He knew that the prefect was a higher official than the county magistrate, but how did they offend the prefect for no reason?
Suddenly, Old Man Li looked at Li Xiaoxiao with a bad face and asked, "Did you do this?"
"Sir, you really think highly of me. He is the prefect. Do you think I can know the prefect?" Li Xiaoxiao asked instead of answering.
Old man Li thought about it and it made sense. Although his granddaughter was cunning and treacherous, she had never left Jiunu County. How could a big shot like the prefect care about a little village girl like her? He was simply puzzled.
Then he looked at Li Dahai and began to blackmail him morally: "Dahai, no matter how wrong they are, they are still your brothers. Now that they are in trouble, you can't just ignore it. Come with me to the county government to ask what's going on."
"Grandpa, if you want to go, go by yourself. My dad won't go." Li Xiaoxiao replied before Li Dahai.
"I didn't ask you, so stop talking." Old man Li suppressed his anger and disliked his granddaughter even more.
"Dad, I think the same as Xiao Xiao. I won't go."
"Li Dahai, do you still have your father in your eyes?" Old man Li was angry. All of them were troublesome. Are they trying to torture him to death?
"Dad, there is no love for parents without reason, but there is no lack of love for parents without reason either."
This sentence made Old Man Li furious. The second brother's words implied that he was accusing him of being biased, but wasn't he biased, he just didn't know it.
Looking at his expression, Old Man Li knew that he would not follow him: "Second Brother, you have a big family now, you don't take me seriously anymore. Hello, you are so kind. Now your mother is lying in bed and needs someone to take care of her. Go and serve her."
Seeing that this approach wasn't working, Old Man Li changed the subject. He was determined not to let Li Dahai have an easy time.
"Dad, I paid five taels of silver as a tribute, so I don't care about this matter." Li Dahai replied in a deep voice, the light in his eyes gradually dimming. If parents don't like a child, no matter what the child does, he will not get the love he deserves.
"Li Dahai, you are such a ruthless person. We raised you from childhood and spent so much effort on you, and this is how you repay us. If I had known earlier, I would not have spent money to marry you a wife."
Sun was bought by Old Lady Li by accident when she went to the market. At that time, she and Old Man Li did not dislike Li Dahai so much. They knew that he was weak and were afraid that he would not be able to get married in the future.
She happened to meet Ms. Sun, who was only five or six years old at that time, very timid but very beautiful. The younger the girl, the cheaper she was, so Old Lady Li spent one or two taels of silver to buy her back.
"Dad, how can you say that? Among the four sons, what have my eldest brother and fourth brother's family done for this family? What have my third brother and I done for this family? All the money in the family was used to send my eldest brother to school, but in the end..." Li Dahai really couldn't say any more. There are some things that he cannot think about. The more he thinks about them, the sadder he becomes.
"Well, Li Dahai, you finally spoke your true feelings. Letting your eldest brother go to school is for the sake of honoring the family. Our Li family has a good life, but in your eyes it's partiality. The fourth brother is young and has several older brothers, so what if he does less? You have to remember all this." Old man Li was so furious that he was blowing his beard and glaring.
"Master, please go now. My family doesn't owe you anything. Five taels of silver a year is definitely the highest in Qinghe Village. You don't have to think about going to the government to sue my father. The government doesn't have the time to deal with your trivial matters."
Seeing the old man Li's stubborn look, Li Xiaoxiao started to chase him away. It was useless to say more to such a person.
"You disobedient girl, your whole family will suffer retribution, just wait and see." Old man Li left angrily, and before leaving, he did not forget to curse their family.
After leaving the tofu shop, Old Man Li went to the county government office again to find out what was going on.
The yamen runner at the door saw him and immediately called out, "Stop, old man. You can't just walk into the county yamen."
"Sir, this is what's going on. My son and daughter-in-law were thrown into jail yesterday for some unknown reason. I wanted to ask what happened." Old man Li had a flattering smile on his face. He was the head of the Li family and everyone went along with him. No matter who spoiled him outside, he would still bow his head when he should.
"Who knows who your son is? Leave quickly." The bailiff urged impatiently.
"Sir, my eldest son's name is Li Dajiang, my youngest son's name is Li Dahu, and also arrested were two daughters-in-law, a granddaughter and a grandson." Old man Li thought he had not explained clearly, so he repeated it carefully.
"I don't know. Let's go." The bailiff winked at him secretly, but Old Man Li couldn't see that if he asked someone to do something for him, no one would be willing to help him without giving him some benefits.
"You." Old man Li was so angry that he couldn't speak. He could only curse in his heart. Helplessly he returned to Qinghe Village.
The people in the prison are suffering terribly. It is winter now, and there is only one thin quilt in a cell at night. It has been used for many years and has become moldy and tattered.
Li Dajiang and his three companions were in one room, and Liu and her three companions were in one room. It was fine during the day, but the cell was extremely cold at night. There were three people sharing one quilt, and they were all looking after themselves.
Especially since Li Jiaojiao had a high fever. She had just been out for three days after her confinement. Her condition was even worse. She was lying in the cell with hay on the floor, talking nonsense.
Liu felt sorry for her daughter and kept calling out to the yamen runners, begging them to get a doctor. However, the yamen runners were not living Bodhisattvas and no one would be willing to do such a thankless task. So even though Liu shouted until her throat was hoarse, no one came.
Finally, on the third day, the prefect brought them in for interrogation. Li Jiaojiao woke up at this time. She looked haggard and listless, and she felt dizzy when walking, as if she would fall down in the next second.
The group of six stayed in jail for three days. They didn't eat well, didn't sleep well, and were cold and hungry. They all lost weight. The prefect looked at them and slammed the gavel.
The six people were so frightened that they knelt down before the prefect and kowtowed repeatedly begging for mercy.
"Sir, I know I was wrong. I will discipline my children strictly in the future and not let them say anything nonsense again." Li Dajiang looked sad. The days in prison were like years. He didn't want to stay there any longer.