On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

"You...you are talking nonsense!"

Wang was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She suddenly jumped up from the bed and pointed at the Fifth Aunt. She was so angry that her whole body was shaking. The calmness she pretended to have on her face completely collapsed, leaving only twisted anger and fear.

"Bitch! How dare you curse the master and the Wang family?! Come on, slap her in the face! Tear this bitch's mouth apart!"

"Bang!" However, as soon as she finished speaking, the heavy brocade curtain of the warm room was suddenly lifted open!

Wang Fu, the trusted butler who had just been sent out to gather information, rushed in crawling and tumbling!

His face was as pale as a death, the melon-shaped cap on his head was askew, revealing a few wisps of gray hair. The hem of the silk robe that symbolized his status as a butler was covered in mud, and his crotch was wet, emitting a foul stench!

He fell heavily to his knees on the cold floor with a thud, his voice filled with tears and extreme fear, like a dying wail:

"Madam! Madam! Something terrible has happened! I just wanted to sneak out through the most hidden corner door in the back garden... I was thinking... I was thinking of paying a large sum of money to bribe the guard... But... But as soon as I stuck half of my body out... I was... I was hit by a crossbow arrow with a cold gleam!"

He was shaking like a sieve, his fingers digging into the floor tiles, as if he could still feel the coldness and breath of death from the metal arrowhead pressing against his forehead. "The soldier said he was following orders from the Crown Prince to seal off the Wang family residence and kill anyone who trespassed! Madam! I... I almost couldn't make it back! We... We were surrounded! Completely surrounded! Not even a fly could get out!"

He almost screamed at the end, his voice filled with utter despair.

"boom--!"

Like the final heavy blow, it shattered all the luck and forced calmness in Wang's heart!

It also completely shattered the last glimmer of hope of everyone in the warm room!

"Plop!" Wang's legs softened, as if all the bones were pulled out, and she fell heavily back onto the Arhat bed, her body hitting the rosewood with a dull sound.

Her face instantly turned from pale to ashen, and then from ashen to a dying purple!

The huge fear was like an icy tide, instantly flooding all her senses!

She opened her mouth and made a "ho ho" sound in her throat, like a fish out of water, but she couldn't utter a word!

My vision went dark, I saw stars, and my chest felt so stuffy that it almost exploded!

The carefully maintained decency and dignity completely collapsed at this moment, leaving only a trembling woman consumed by fear.

"what--!!"

"It's over! It's completely over!"

"The soldiers are surrounding the mansion! They're going to confiscate the property! The men will be beheaded! The women will be made into court prostitutes! Wuuwuwu..."

"I don't want to die! I don't want to be sold to that kind of place!"

The warm room suddenly exploded!

The concubines who had just held on to a glimmer of hope completely collapsed!

The Seventh Aunt let out a scream so shrill that it didn't sound like a human voice. Her eyes rolled back and she fainted, collapsing limply on the carpet.

The Third Aunt seemed to have her soul taken away. She collapsed to the ground, covering her face and crying bitterly, her shoulders shaking violently.

The other concubines were running around the room like headless flies, screaming and pushing each other!

Some were frantically tearing their hair and clothes, some rushed to the window and banged on the closed frame in vain, and some were curled up in the corner like ostriches, holding their heads and trembling, making suppressed sobs.

The servants were also frightened and turned pale. They huddled in a corner farther away, not daring to breathe, their eyes filled with fear of an unknown fate.

The Fifth Aunt looked at the chaotic scene in front of her that was like purgatory, and looked at Wang's ugly appearance of complete collapse and loss of soul. The corners of her mouth curled up in a cold arc that was filled with endless sadness and a hint of relief.

She slowly walked to the carved wooden window and reached out to push one open.

Dusk was falling, and a cold wind with a salty smell blew in, blowing her white clothes.

Outside the courtyard wall, the silhouettes of black-armored soldiers standing like silent iron towers can be vaguely seen in the twilight. The cold murderous aura can be felt through the high walls, like an invisible noose, tightly strangling this luxurious cage.

She closed her eyes, and two lines of tears silently slid down and dripped onto the cold windowsill.

This golden cage... this man-eating wealth... will eventually collapse.

Well... well...

Desperate cries, helpless screams, the harsh sound of porcelain breaking, and the dull thud of furniture being knocked over, all echoed, collided, and fermented wildly in this mansion that once symbolized wealth and power.

The prosperity and luxury of the past, under the crushing of cold weapons and absolute power, are as fragile as bubbles in the sun, and will burst at the slightest touch.

......

Deep in the backyard of the county government office, there was a woodshed that was temporarily used as a prison cell.

It was dark and damp, and the air was filled with a strong smell of mold, rotting hay, and a faint, disgusting odor of blood.

A dim oil lamp hung on the wall, its bean-sized flame flickering in the draft, causing the shadows of objects in the room to twist and sway like ghosts, barely illuminating the piles of firewood and scattered hay in the corner.

Wang Youde was like a puddle of mud, curled up on a pile of hay that smelled of mold and urine.

His prison uniform was dirty and tattered, covered in dust and dried blood.

His face was bruised and purple, and the wound on his forehead, left by Mao Mengji's personal soldier "accidentally" bumping into the door frame, had formed a layer of dark red scab, like an ugly centipede lying there.

His fat body trembled uncontrollably due to the cold and the fear that penetrated deep into his bones.

He stared blankly at a spider in the corner that was slowly spinning a web. The spider was tirelessly spinning silk and weaving, as if it was weaving an invisible web of death from which there was no escape.

He seemed to see a microcosm of his own destiny.

From a high-ranking, powerful seventh-rank county magistrate to a prisoner.

The huge gap and extreme fear were like a cold poisonous snake, gnawing at his internal organs and almost devouring him completely.

The dilapidated wooden door of the woodshed made a teeth-grinding groaning "creak" and was slowly pushed open.

In the dim and flickering light, a young figure dressed in indigo Confucian robes and with a posture as tall as a bamboo walked in. It was Xiao Hanzhou.

Behind him followed two expressionless Jinwu Guard soldiers standing with their swords drawn. They were like two door gods, blocking most of the light at the door and bringing an even heavier sense of oppression.

Wang Youde shuddered violently like a frightened beast and looked at the dazzling light at the door in horror.

When he saw clearly that the person coming was Xiao Hanzhou, a trace of confusion and emptiness flashed across his eyes, and then a strong desire to survive broke out!

He rolled and crawled to Xiao Hanzhou's feet, holding onto the corner of Xiao Hanzhou's clean robe with both hands, tears streaming down his face, and begged in a hoarse and desperate voice:

"Xiao... Young Master Xiao! Sir Xiao! You are the Crown Prince's most distinguished disciple, the God of Literature incarnate! I beg you, I beg you to have mercy on me and speak a few good words for me in front of the Crown Prince! I... I am innocent!"

"This is a huge injustice! Those are all false accusations. Someone is jealous of me, someone is framing me! Your Highness, the Crown Prince, is very perceptive and has a sharp eye. He will definitely clear my name! Please save me! Save the Wang family! The Wang family is willing to give up all their wealth! I only ask Your Highness to show mercy! Spare this prisoner's life!"

He banged his forehead heavily on the cold, hard, dusty ground, making a dull "bang bang" sound, and each kowtow was filled with the despair of impending death.

Xiao Hanzhou looked at the fat man at his feet who was once so arrogant and omnipotent in Hu County, but now as humble as dust. He saw the glaring stains on his prison uniform and smelled the foul odor emanating from his body. A trace of imperceptible disgust and a complex trace of pity flashed in his eyes.

He slightly frowned his handsome brows and took a step back. His movements were elegant but carried an air of inviolable distance. He calmly brushed away Wang Youde's grimy hand. His voice was calm and still, like a deep pool and ancient well, with a condescending indifference:

"Wang Youde, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has issued an order. At noon today, the prisoner's carriage will be paraded through the streets for public viewing throughout the city."

“Parade…parade through the streets?!”