The poisonous concubine is very arrogant, making the crippled king blush and his heart beat fast

Jiang Mengli smiled and said, "County Magistrate Lin, who said you stole grain? Don't be so nervous and afraid. Selling the grain is a good thing. You will definitely receive a reward from His Majesty."

County Magistrate Lin could no longer sit still, and ran over in a panic to look at a few bags, all of which had the word "relief" on them.

Shouldn't these grains be in the government warehouse? Why are they here?

Prefect Liu took a deep breath, trying his best to suppress his anger and said, "I'm sorry that the princess has spent so much money this time. The people will remember your kindness. You are the benefactor of the people of Huangzhou."

Jiang Mengli smiled modestly and said, "No, no, it's nothing compared to what the prefect did. I'm just doing my bit."

This sounded like sarcasm, but Governor Liu had to force a smile in response.

He couldn't say any more and made an excuse, "I still have official business to attend to. I'll have to trouble His Royal Highness Prince Yu and Princess Yu."

After bowing, he walked away. The moment he turned around, his smile instantly collapsed, as if covered by dark clouds.

Other officials followed suit, and seeing his expression, they dared not say a word.

"Sir, sir..." County Magistrate Lin hurriedly chased after him, he wanted to explain.

The prefect didn't stop until he was far away. He turned around and asked in a cold voice, "Tell the truth! Did you steal the food from the warehouse?"

County Magistrate Lin turned pale with fear and shook his head repeatedly, "No, really not. We all agreed to share the grain together, so naturally I wouldn't do anything mean. If I had stolen the grain, then... God bless you!"

The other officials didn't believe it at all and clamored to go to the warehouse to check.

The group returned to the yamen in a hurry and headed straight towards the warehouse.

Seeing the solemn expressions of the officials, the guards immediately bowed humbly and saluted, "Greetings..."

"Is there anything wrong with the grain in the warehouse?" the prefect asked hurriedly without waiting for the officers and soldiers to speak.

The officer bowed and replied, "Your Excellency, the key is not with me, but I haven't noticed anything unusual."

The prefect then remembered that the key was with him.

Food is such a precious thing that I don’t feel safe handing the key to someone else.

He took out the key from his pocket and quickly opened the door. The others immediately gathered around to see what was going on.

When the door was pushed open, everyone was stunned by the empty room. There was nothing inside!

"Where's the food? Where did it go?" the prefect roared, glaring at County Magistrate Lin with bloodshot eyes. "Did you steal the food and sell it to her? Speak up!"

County Magistrate Lin was so frightened that he shook his head. His throat seemed to be blocked and he couldn't utter a word.

The prefect immediately went to open another warehouse, but when he saw that it was still empty, his eyes blurred and he staggered back two steps.

"Sir!" The subordinates hurriedly reached out to support him to prevent him from falling.

"Food and silver are all gone!" The prefect was so angry that his hands and feet were shaking.

I have been hiding it all this time just to wait until the disaster is over so that I can enjoy the good life.

This was the biggest windfall I had ever made since I became the prefect, and now it’s all gone!

Everyone looked at County Magistrate Lin and was suspicious of him.

County Magistrate Lin looked at them with fear in his eyes and repeatedly retreated to explain, "It's not me. It's none of my business. No... If you don't believe me, go to my house and check!"

"I came here last night with my keys and took a look. I found everything was there and left. I didn't do anything else."

Now no matter what he said, no one believed him anymore.

No one else came to the warehouse last night except him, who came with the key. Considering what happened today, it was most likely him.

Someone suggested, "Sir, let's go to his house and check. Even if the grain is sold, the silver must be hidden in his house."

Everyone else agreed with this proposal.

Magistrate Lin, upholding the principle of a man of integrity, feared no accusations. He said firmly, "If I say I didn't take it, then I didn't take it. Go ahead and investigate, even turning the mansion upside down!"

A quarter of an hour later, the officers and soldiers began to search everywhere in the county magistrate's mansion, leaving no corner untouched, causing panic among the people in the mansion.

The magistrate's wife and concubines thought they were searching for some criminal and kept saying that there was no one hiding.

"Sir, please stop searching. Even if you gave us a thousand guts, we wouldn't harbor a criminal."

"Yes, my man is loyal to you and would never do such a thing..."

No one paid any attention to their words, and the officers and soldiers continued searching.

County Magistrate Lin stood straight and said, "I am upright and have nothing to fear from my own shadow. Only by allowing you to search me can I prove my innocence."

As soon as he finished speaking, an officer came running over from a distance and reported: "Your Excellency, there is food in a room in the backyard. It is the warehouse."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone rushed over.

County Magistrate Lin's heart skipped a beat, and he felt uneasy. He had a bad feeling, "How could there be grain in the warehouse..."

Oops! This was all planned.

My legs and feet felt weak, as if they were filled with lead, and every step I took was extremely difficult.

He didn't know how long he had been walking, but he finally arrived at an inconspicuous little house in the backyard. The bags of grain piled in the corner were particularly eye-catching.

The prefect pointed at the grain and asked coldly, "County Magistrate Lin, what else do you have to say? How much silver did the other grain sell for? Where is the silver in the treasury hidden?"

Faced with these questions, County Magistrate Lin shook his head and said, "I don't know why the grain is here, and I didn't take any silver!"

"It's Prince Yu and his men who are behind this. That's for sure. They're just trying to sow discord and turn us against each other."

His explanation was not convincing at all and no one believed him.

The prefect raised his hand and slapped him hard, his eyes sharp as he said, "Prince Yu and his men are here now. I won't do anything to you, but you must give me an explanation."

"Especially the silver. No matter what method you used, you must return as much as you stole. Otherwise, you will die and your entire family will be buried with you!"

County Magistrate Lin lost all his strength and fell to the ground.

The officers and soldiers carried away the bags of grain inside, and the house became empty.

Not long after, County Magistrate Lin arrived at the refugee camp in a rage.

At this time, the people were queuing up to get porridge. Because there were soldiers maintaining order, everyone was still very well-behaved.

Jiang Mengli personally served the porridge, and while scooping, he reminded everyone, "Don't crowd, the porridge will be very hot, eat slowly, everyone will get some."

"Princess Yu!" County Magistrate Lin suddenly shouted at her with a dark face, "What's going on with the grain?"

Jiang Mengli handed the spoon to the officer, walked out of the porridge shed and said with a smile: "County Magistrate Lin, I don't quite understand what you mean. I should be happy to see the people have porridge to drink."

"What a joke!" County Magistrate Lin was furious and cursed without restraint, "You damn woman, you schemed against me, you..."

Before he could finish his words, Jiang Mengli said to Long Er, "County Magistrate Lin seems to be losing his mind. Send him back quickly so that Doctor Jiang can give him some more injections."

Upon hearing this, Long Er immediately carried the howling County Magistrate Lin and left.

"County Magistrate Lin, goodbye! Seeing a doctor is more important." Jiang Mengli smiled brightly and gestured goodbye to him. "Thank you for selling me the grain...!"

Wen Mohan stroked his chin with his fingers, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, and he looked at her with interest.

This damn woman is becoming more and more interesting. It seems that if I want to understand her more, I must gain more trust...