It's hard for my elder sister. I rely on the mountains to farm and pay off my debts.

Li Wen looked down at the ashen-faced old woman and asked, "Why did you give me the drug?"

Seeing that she remained silent, Li Wen continued to ask, "Did you tamper with the Song family father and son's meals this morning?"

Seeing that she still didn't answer, Li Wen knew that he couldn't get anything out of her, so he simply said, "Bring her family here!"

The old woman's face finally showed a look of horror, and she couldn't help begging for mercy.

The steward at the side also hurried forward to stop him, "Sir, this is not appropriate."

"How can you interfere in the affairs of the government? Come, arrest this man as well and bring him back for interrogation!"

The steward was completely panicked now, shouting at the top of his voice: "I am the steward of the Wang family. I have done nothing wrong. How dare you arrest me?"

Li Wen sneered, waved his hand, and said without hesitation: "Catch him!"

The officers rushed forward and tried to kidnap the man.

The farm steward tried to make a final struggle. As he retreated, he scolded the tenants and servants standing by, "Why are you still standing there? Stop them!"

These people were used to following orders, and for a moment they were instigated by him and seemed to want to step forward to stop him.

There are only a few officers, but there are dozens of people on the opposite side. If they really mobilize everyone, they will really run away and shout!

Song Zhi was anxious and was about to speak out to stop these tenants who were trying to resist the officers.

Li Wen drew his sword and said sternly, "Anyone who dares to move will be considered obstructing public service and will be killed without mercy!"

The servants of the Wang family were frightened by Li Wen's harsh shout.

The tenants who were originally ready to make some moves were frightened and immediately came to their senses by the angry shout. They were not servants of the Wang family, so there was no need for them to go against the officers for the sake of management.

The helpless manager of the farm was captured by two officers. He was unwilling to accept the situation and was still struggling desperately, shouting that the officers were arresting people indiscriminately and other disturbing words.

Li Wen was too lazy to listen to his nonsense and ordered directly: "Shut his mouth!"

“Wuwuwu…”

The steward was tied up tightly by the servants and thrown beside the old woman.

There was a foul smell that made the manager roll his eyes.

But because the rope was tied too tightly, he fell to the ground like a dead pig and couldn't move.

Only then did Li Wen glance at the dark-skinned and frightened farmers below.

He asked in a deep voice, "Are there any of you who have lost the master's livestock or damaged his property and are forced to stay here to work to pay off a debt?"

After a moment of silence, a thin, haggard middle-aged man mustered up the courage and stood up.

His voice trembled slightly as he spoke, "Sir, I have experienced something similar before, but I lost not one sheep, but twenty. As a result, I am no longer free and have to work on this farm."

Thinking that this might just be a conspiracy of the manager, he covered his cheeks in pain, tears sliding through his rough fingers.

Once someone took the lead, seven or eight more men stepped forward.

Some of them, like the Song family father and son, were burdened with heavy debts because they accidentally lost or killed the owner's livestock;

Some people accidentally broke the so-called extremely precious porcelain while working, and fell into the quagmire;

Some families could not make ends meet and had to borrow money and food from the farms.

However, I didn't expect that this loan would be like stepping into a bottomless abyss. The high interest rates kept accumulating like a snowball, and the final outcome became the current situation.

The reasons are different, but the outcomes are surprisingly similar.

Song Zhi looked at their backs bent by the heavy work day after day, and looked at their numb and sad eyes.

My heart choked.

They may spend their entire lives working like this day after day, exhausting their last breath, and eventually return to dust.

It turns out that this is what you can see at a glance.

Song Zhi turned her head away, not daring to look at their bitter and weathered faces again.

After hearing these tearful accusations, Li Wen frowned even deeper. This manager really took this framing, coercion and inducement to the extreme.

He was once forced into such a predicament by his boss. If he had not met the county magistrate who helped him, he might still be struggling in the abyss.

So after listening to the tenants' stories, Li Wen was disgusted to the extreme with the bad behavior of the farm manager.

Li Wen shouted loudly, "Catch all these lawless and reckless people and bring them back to the county government office to be interrogated by the county magistrate."

At his command, the accompanying officers acted quickly, subdued the accused managers and their accomplices one by one, and prepared to escort them back to the county government office.

This sudden change terrified the tenants present. They had been living at the bottom of society and had a natural fear of the government. At this moment, they were so scared that they knelt on the ground, trembling and not daring to look up.

Seeing this, Li Wen hurried forward a few steps and said in a rare gentle tone: "Fellow villagers, please stand up."

"I know you're all worried, but the county magistrate has sent us here to investigate any grievances you may have. Now that the culprit has been apprehended, I invite you all to accompany me to the county office to present your grievances to the magistrate."

The tenants looked at each other, with surprise and anxiety in their eyes.

One of them asked timidly, "Sir, will you really make the decision for us?"

Li Wen understood their uneasiness and patiently explained, "Don't worry, everyone. This matter is under the personal supervision of the county magistrate. He is impartial and selfless and will definitely give everyone justice."

"All you need to do is follow me to the county government office and tell us everything you know. We will handle the rest. We will definitely give you justice."

"I go!"

At this time, a tenant stepped forward and said, "If you are willing to make the decision for us, I will go even if it means climbing a mountain of swords and jumping into a pot of oil."

They have no way out. If the manager is finally released without any consequences, they will have no way out since they have come forward to report the case today.

At worst, you'll die. It's just a worthless life. What's there to be afraid of?

After thinking clearly about the key tenants, they also knew that at this point they had no choice but to move forward and could not retreat.

If adults could really make the decision for them, they would be able to break free from their shackles and regain their freedom!

The persecuted tenants agreed without hesitation.