Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter, mostly because they looked down on Lin Ping and, by extension, the City Lord's Mansion.

Lin Ping was not angry. He replied slowly and deliberately, "Although I am not a scholar, my good-for-nothing disciple is a genuine scholar!"

After speaking, Liu Yong, dressed as a servant, stepped forward, knelt before Lin Ping, and respectfully said, "Disciple Liu Yong greets his master!"

Lin Ping had long anticipated that the prefect would pull this stunt, so he had Liu Yong blend in with the servants. Because his attire was so ordinary, he didn't attract anyone's attention. Now, suddenly kneeling on the ground, everyone was astonished.

The prefect's eyes widened. He naturally recognized Liu Yong, but he never expected him to be Lin Ping's disciple. He hurriedly asked, "Liu Yong, when did you become Lin Ping's disciple?"

After Liu Yong had performed the proper courtesies to Lin Ping, he answered the prefect's question, saying, "I became your student half a month ago."

"May I ask, Your Excellency, does the scholar's mentor also have to kneel before you?" Lin Ping asked coldly.

The identity of Lin Ping's son-in-law is only valid within the city lord's mansion, while the identity of his mentor, a scholar, is valid in front of the prefect. Therefore, the prefect naturally has no reason to ask Lin Ping to kneel.

"Then answer while standing!" the prefect said through gritted teeth, wishing he could unleash his ultimate move beforehand to prevent Lin Ping from taking a few more people away.

Lin Ping ignored the prefect and instead smiled at Old Man Wang, asking, "Old man, think about it again. Was Wang Xiao'e bought by me, or was she taken away by me?"

There is a fundamental difference between buying and stealing; if it is truly bought, there is absolutely no guilt involved.

Old Wang felt flustered and naturally didn't want to lie, but Zhang Hongyuan's gaze was cold and sharp, so he didn't dare to tell the truth and lowered his head even further.

"Old man, the Prefect will back you up, so answer boldly and without worry!" Zhang Hongyuan said coldly to Old Man Wang, his eyes revealing a chilling and threatening look.

Since ancient times, the common people have never fought against the officials. Old Man Wang was so frightened that he trembled all over and turned pale, constantly weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

If he told the truth, he would inevitably be retaliated against by Zhang Hongyuan; if he lied, he might bring down the entire city lord's mansion, so naturally no one would retaliate against him.

Driven by the instinct to save his life, Old Wang lied and said, "It was... stolen!"

"How dare you, Lin Ping, forcibly abduct a woman! Guards, seize him!" The prefect immediately became energized and wouldn't give Lin Ping much time to explain. In any case, most people would believe the victim in such matters, just as some crimes tend to favor women.

To be honest, the prefect was afraid that Lin Ping would block his way with his words when he unleashed his ultimate move, so he planned to arrest him before that.

He even hoped that Jiang Yunying would rebel at this time, so that the large army stationed at the border of Jiangcheng Prefecture could launch an attack in a reasonable manner.

"Who dares?" Jiang Yunying finally drew her gleaming sword and shouted at the dozens of constables. Her powerful aura made them breathless.

"Your Highness, are you going to show favoritism to a criminal?" the prefect said sarcastically, wishing Jiang Yunying would step forward and kill the people.

"Hmph! I don't care who the criminal is. I only know that Lin Ping is my husband. Anyone who dares to touch him is an enemy of me, Jiang Yunying, and the entire City Lord's Mansion!" Jiang Yunying said arrogantly, exuding a strong kingly aura. Even Lian Ping, the heir of the Mountain City Lord's Mansion, was inferior to her.

Jiang Yunyu also took a few steps forward and shouted, "That's right! Anyone who dares to touch my brother-in-law is making an enemy of the City Lord's Mansion, and I, Jiang Yunyu, will be the first to not let them get away with it!"

Dozens of yamen runners trembled with fear. Not to mention the 10,000 private soldiers of the city lord's mansion, the sword in Jiang Yunying's hand alone was enough to give them a hard time.

Nobody's a fool; nobody's going to rush to their death.

Lin Ping was touched by Jiang Yunying's words and made a solemn vow in his heart: "I, Lin Ping, will definitely consummate my marriage with my wife..."

The prefect's smile was somewhat stiff. He hoped that Jiang Yunying would rebel, but the cowardly yamen runners dared not step forward, which made it impossible to convict the city lord's mansion.

"A reward of a thousand taels of silver will be given to anyone who captures Lin Ping!" Zhang Hongyuan shouted loudly at the opportune moment.

As the saying goes, a great reward will surely bring forth brave men, and four constables had already succumbed to the temptation and rushed over.

"You're asking for death!" Jiang Yunying's eyes flashed with a cold light as she prepared to kill these people.

Lin Ping grabbed Jiang Yunying's hand and said coldly to the prefect, "Prefect, you are too hasty. Old Man Wang insists that I stole his daughter, but he is not the only victim. Why not listen to what the other person has to say?"

"Who else?" the prefect asked impatiently, giving Lin Ping one last chance to speak.

“And Wang Laohan’s daughter, Wang Xiao’e!” Lin Ping said coldly.

Before the words were even finished, another commotion broke out outside the door. It was Wang Xiao'e desperately demanding an audience with the prefect.

Now that things had come to this, the prefect had no reason not to see Wang Xiao'e, so he could only order the gatekeeper to let her pass.

Lin Ping had already told Wang Xiao'e what might happen today. Now that she saw Old Man Wang kneeling on the ground, Wang Xiao'e immediately understood what was going on and hurriedly ran over.

He whispered urgently in Old Man Wang's ear, "Father, you're confused! You can't wrong the Prince Consort!"

Upon seeing Wang Xiao'e, Old Man Wang burst into tears. He naturally noticed the change in her and exclaimed in surprise, "Daughter, your eyes?"

“That’s right, it was the Prince Consort who treated her!” Wang Xiao’e nodded in response.

The prefect panicked, seemingly sensing that something was wrong, and hurriedly asked, "Who is there in the hall?"

Wang Xiao'e knelt down and replied, "I am Wang Xiao'e, the person you are looking for."

"Then tell me, how did Lin Ping kidnap you, and how did he abuse you?" the prefect asked, clinging to his last shred of hope.

To be honest, Lin Ping is indeed a spoiled brat. Even Jiang Yunying mistakenly believes that he bullied Wang Xiao'e. Therefore, Wang Xiao'e's appearance may not necessarily help Lin Ping out of his predicament.

Wang Xiao'e placed her hands on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Your Honor, you are innocent! The Prince Consort did not abduct me. I went there voluntarily. Moreover, the Prince Consort not only did not mistreat me, but also cured my eye disease. He is my savior. Please, Your Honor, investigate this matter thoroughly!"

Everyone secretly gasped. They hadn't expected Lin Ping to be able to easily thwart such a vicious scheme. With the victim clarifying the situation in person, there was naturally no need to continue the investigation.

The prefect gritted his teeth in anger and almost mumbled, "Since it's a misunderstanding, then all of you may leave!"

However, Old Man Wang remained kneeling before him, his conflicted expression suggesting he had something to say.

To be honest, before this, Old Man Wang did think Lin Ping was a bad person and was afraid that his daughter would be bullied, which is why he was taken advantage of by Zhang Hongyuan.

Now that Wang Xiao'e has clarified the facts in person, Old Man Wang feels guilty and wants to repay her kindness, so he wants to expose the fact that Zhang Hongyuan forced him.

Lin Ping seemed to see what Old Man Wang was thinking, and hurriedly whispered in Wang Xiao'e's ear, "Quickly take your father away, don't say anything, I will punish this villain Zhang Hongyuan later!"

Lin Ping knew perfectly well that he didn't believe he could bring down Zhang Hongyuan based on Old Wang's one-sided story. Instead of provoking the other party, he would rather obediently back down.

Wang Xiao'e understood Lin Ping's meaning and hurriedly pulled Old Man Wang away.

Just when everyone thought the matter was over, Lin Ping shouted, "Your Excellency, I also want to file a lawsuit against these two people!"