After the mind-reading and gossip-eating incident, officials in the imperial city were demoted one a

Ye Mian tried his best to suppress the surging anger in his heart. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned slightly white from the force.

After a while, he suddenly stopped, looked up at the blue sky, and tried to release the last bit of anger in his heart with his breath.

Looking up, Ye Mian saw the Xin family of three peeking out, and his anger flared up again, like a firecracker being lit.

When did someone move in next door, and when did they start spying on us?

[Oh no! My new neighbor next door caught me secretly eating watermelon!]

When Ye Mian discovered this, Xin Chonglian looked embarrassed and forced himself to explain:

"Lord Ye, we are new neighbors who have moved in. Madam originally wanted to visit, but unfortunately your household is currently holding a funeral."

My daughter discovered two thieves tracking us from within the manor. She witnessed them scaling the wall, which is why we are now on the wall. Please forgive us.

Xin Chonglian cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards them.

Ye Mian was still mentally preparing himself and hesitated to speak. Liu Yunshu, the matriarch of the Ye family, replied:

We've been quite busy with various matters these past few days, and we were unaware of our new neighbors. May we ask who the host is?

Madam Xin continued, "My husband's surname is Xin. This is my husband, Xin Chonglian, and this is my daughter, Xin Chuli."

My husband has just been transferred from Xuzhou, from his position as Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, to take up his post as Minister of Justice. Madam Ye, please forgive my rudeness.”

Ye Mian was surprised to find that the other party was a first-rank official, two ranks higher than him. However, he didn't take the official who had been transferred from elsewhere seriously. It wasn't easy for him to gain a foothold in the capital city.

The system kept transmitting her scumbag father's thoughts, and Ye Yaoyao sneered inwardly.

Lord Xin was already famous in the capital city when the late emperor was still in power. At that time, he was a genius boy who passed the imperial examination at the age of sixteen and became the top scholar. He was also Mr. Hua's most outstanding disciple.

The people all called him the reincarnation of the God of Literature. The late emperor wanted to appoint him to a high-ranking official position, but he refused and applied to go to serve as a local official.

After many years, he returned to the capital based on his political achievements, truly earning his official position through his own abilities.

Although the legend of Lord Xin no longer exists in the Holy Capital, the older generation and his generation still remember his name. He was a great figure, a model of virtue.

Even his son, Xin Churui, became the top scholar in the imperial examination a few years ago, but no one knew that they were father and son.

Don't compare yourself to others, you scumbag dad. You don't even have the chance to shine their shoes.

"Lord Xin."

Zheng Tianxing and Liu Yunshu, along with their five children, bowed to Xin Chonglian.

Zheng Tianxing looked at him with admiration, clearly having heard of his reputation.

"Lord Xin." Ye Mian returned the greeting casually, appearing somewhat nonchalant.

"How long has Lord Xin been standing on the wall?"

Xin Chonglian could tell that Ye Mian didn't take him seriously.

"When I came up, I unfortunately saw Lord Ye being beaten."

As soon as Xin Chonglian finished speaking, he seemed to realize that he had let something slip, and his expression immediately turned annoyed. He unconsciously put one hand to his mouth.

[Hahaha! This Lord Xin also knows how to stab his scumbag father in the back.]

Ye Mian's face darkened. He had actually been watching for so long, and had seen all of their family's shameful secrets.

Zheng Tianxing, knowing that Lord Xin disliked Ye Mian and not wanting to miss out on trouble, cupped his hands in greeting to Xin Chonglian and said:

"Lord Xin, I have come to the Ye residence to arrest the steward. My experience in handling cases is still limited, so I would appreciate your guidance."

The cases under the jurisdiction of Chang'an Prefecture and the Ministry of Justice are different. The Ministry of Justice is mainly responsible for hearing criminal justice cases reported by various localities.

Why would Zheng Tianxing need someone else's guidance when he's just a butler, someone who's already been identified? He's just trying to get someone to join him in the gossip.

In this way, Lord Xin can legitimately stand in the corner and continue to enjoy the show.

Ye Yaoyao was secretly laughing her head off and gave him a thumbs up several times.

“I didn’t expect there to be other evil servants. I thought it was just the four from before,” Xin Chonglian said with a shake of his head.

"Four more?" Zheng Tianxing looked at Ye Mian with surprise and a meaningful look in his eyes. Sure enough, the Ye family was not clean.

“I just witnessed four servants harassing Miss Ye for over ten years. You can take the prisoners back with you.”

After speaking, Xin Chonglian once again showed a look of annoyance. He shouldn't have told Zheng Tianxing this. He looked at Ye Mian apologetically once more.

"Sigh! I've been handling cases for so long that I've developed a strong sense of righteous indignation. Lord Ye, you won't blame me, will you?"

Ye Mian felt a mouthful of blood stuck in his throat. He forced a stiff expression and squeezed out two words through gritted teeth.

"will not."

Ye Li'an came out of the house, holding a piece of paper in her hand.

"Lord Zheng, this is a complaint against four servants for abusing my younger sister."

Ye Li'an had already retreated into the inner room when they arrived, and handed a written complaint to Zheng Tianxing.

The handwriting on the paper was strong and powerful, each word as if carved by a knife, exposing the crimes of the evil servant and, more importantly, revealing the cruelty of Ye Mian and his mother.

The further Zheng Tianxing read, the uglier his expression became. His lips were tightly pressed together, and his brows furrowed into a deep frown. He then gave Ye Mian a disdainful look.

"Lord Ye, your residence is in complete disarray!"

No wonder Liu Yunshu slapped him, he deserved it!

Ye Mian's lips moved, but he couldn't say anything.

“Those four are in the woodshed. My father ordered them to be flogged thirty times and then sold off. Fortunately, Lord Zheng, you have arrived. I think it is best to hand them over to the government for disposal.”

Ye Yaoyao's words effectively tore away Ye Mian's fig leaf.

Looking at these uninvited guests, Xue Ruoxue felt no better than Ye Mian. Why was Liu Yunshu so lucky, with so many people helping her?

Liu Yunshu sensed an unfriendly gaze but ignored it, turning to the servant beside her and giving instructions:

"You guys go and drag those four people out of the woodshed."

"Yes, ma'am."

Ye Yaoyao said to Zheng Tianxing again:

"Lord Zheng, the steward, relying on being my grandmother's distant cousin, disobeyed my second brother's orders. My father and grandmother caught a cold after sleeping outside all night the day before yesterday."

He was beaten with fifty strokes of the cane and was bedridden, unable to get out of bed; he still had to be dragged away.

Old Madam Ye had lost so many valuable things and was still grieving. Ye Yaoyao raised her voice and spoke close to her as she said this.

Zheng Tianxing looked at Ye Yaoyao with amusement, thinking to himself: This little girl is not to be trifled with.

"You two go and drag the steward over here, and let Lord Zheng take him back to Chang'an Prefecture."

"No, we can't take the housekeeper away."

Old Madam Ye was brought back to her senses by Ye Yaoyao's call.

Xue Ruoxue's heart tightened, and she quickly advised:

“Godmother, he is an official from Chang’an Prefecture, here to handle a case.”

Xue Ruoxue didn't want any parasites in the Ye family, but Ke Ren was the old woman's lover, and she didn't want the old woman to act impulsively and arouse suspicion.

Ye Jingyang spoke with a hint of schadenfreude:

“Grandmother, the steward was implicated by those three stewards. He embezzled a lot of money and will definitely be taken away.”

Madam Ye was still defending the housekeeper, loudly refuting him:

"Nonsense, I gave the steward all his money."