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墨書 Inktalez
It was him again, that same person! How could he be so relentless!
Ye Xiaohan felt a surge of anger at the thought of Liu Yuan being behind all this chaos. She realized she had been too lenient before; the next time she encountered him, regardless of whether he was the county magistrate's son, she would make sure he was left incapacitated.
If her guess was correct, and Liu Yuan was indeed the backing behind Liu Wen, then everything started to connect. Liu Yuan had heard about the Liu family’s affairs, or perhaps Liu Wen had learned about Liu Yuan from Yang Juanjuan. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that the two factions had joined forces, colluding to target Ye Xiaohan.
Their motives were clear: Liu Yuan sought revenge and relished in Ye Xiaohan's misfortune, while Liu Wen and her husband were after the Liu family's inheritance and also wished to see Ye Xiaohan fail.
Thinking about it, Ye Xiaohan felt quite unfortunate to have caught the attention of these two unscrupulous groups.
One wielded power and influence, while the other was entrenched in the Liu family’s affairs. They were working together seamlessly without any sign of letting up. It seemed likely that the poisoning incident had been orchestrated by Liu Wen and her husband, with Liu Yuan responsible for escalating matters and ensuring she ended up in jail.
With this realization, many previously puzzling aspects fell into place. It explained how those who framed her could access the products and why they dared to arrest her without regard for the law.
Now everything was clear; it wasn’t just one person but two different factions that had colluded against her.
Ye Xiaohan reviewed the situation in her mind and had mostly pieced it together correctly. However, this did little to ease her worries; instead, it deepened her anxiety.
Liu Yuan's power was not to be underestimated, which was why she had refrained from confronting him directly before. Meanwhile, Liu Wen and her husband had been pushed to a dead end; they would never give up on the Liu family's inheritance.
The combination of a madman and a desperate criminal was truly terrifying.
What mattered most now was establishing contact with the outside world. The longer she stayed inside, the worse things would become; she needed to find a way out quickly.
The prison had already been "taken care of" by Liu Yuan, and she feared that even with a normal application, she wouldn’t have a chance for visitation. Liu Wen might be able to come, but Ye Xiaohan hoped she would never show up again!
It was impossible to go out for a while, so she could only try to find a way to have the people from the six families visit her in prison.
Ye Xiaohan buried her head in thought, completely oblivious to the passage of time, until someone gave her a gentle shove. It was then she realized that the guard had brought dinner; it turned out she had been lost in her thoughts.
However, none of her ideas were useful.
“What are you staring at? Hurry up and eat! The guard will come to collect the bowls soon, and they don’t care whether you’ve finished or not. Once they take them away, you’ll be left hungry in the middle of the night!” A prisoner named Yan shot her an annoyed glance, as if she found Ye Xiaohan’s behavior inconsiderate.
Another prisoner who had previously participated in bullying chimed in, “You’re not complaining about the food here, are you? Better rein in that attitude of yours. This is what we eat here; if you don’t want it, just let us have it!”
Yan glared at that person, who sulkily returned to their pile of belongings.
Ye Xiaohan hadn’t expected them to offer a reminder, even if they seemed fierce. “Thank you. I was just lost in thought and didn’t notice. I’ll eat now.”
Since being locked up, it had almost been two nights without food. No matter how much she resisted, her body was honestly reminding her that her stomach was already starting to churn and make noises.
If she didn’t eat something soon, her strength would decline. Ye Xiaohan told herself to be rational; no matter how unappetizing it was, she needed to maintain enough energy.
Tonight’s dinner consisted of rice with yellow vegetable leaves. Ye Xiaohan took a bite of rice and assessed it; the ratio of rice to sand was about seven to three. After swallowing a piece of vegetable leaf, she noticed that the kitchen had skimped on salt—it had no salty flavor and certainly no other taste.
The most astonishing thing was that it didn’t even have the taste of the vegetables themselves.
Struggling to swallow the meal down, Ye Xiaohan let out a light sigh of relief, feeling a sense of burden lifted.
“Ha!” The prisoners nearby mocked her reaction. “Newcomer, don’t worry! After staying here longer, you’ll be fighting over this food too.”
Ye Xiaohan recalled the previous meals; they had mostly been watery porridge. It seemed that rice mixed with sand was considered high-end dining here.
However, she found it strange that the prisoners' attitudes towards her had changed somewhat. Although it wasn't very obvious, she could sense that it was no longer the intense hostility she had faced when she first arrived.
What was going on? Ye Xiaohan felt that these people's thoughts were changing too quickly for her to keep up.
Yet, she didn't ask out of curiosity; as long as this positive change could be maintained, she didn't mind.
"Hey, newcomer, who came to visit you today?" Yan asked. She was the leader of this cell, occupying the largest space and having the most neatly arranged bedding.
Upon hearing this, Ye Xiaohan realized that these prisoners were all somewhat curious. It dawned on her that being confined in this cell completely cut off their communication with the outside world, and the only connection they had was through visits.
Even when someone else's relatives came to visit, it was a fresh opportunity for them.
Ye Xiaohan didn't hide anything; there was nothing to conceal. In fact, she wanted to present her situation to them, letting them see her 'misery.'
After all, these people were bothering her because they thought she was living well. If they knew that she was just as miserable as they were—if not more so—perhaps they would harass her less in the future.
With this thought in mind, Ye Xiaohan adjusted her facial expression to appear more pitiful: "That woman is my husband's aunt, and the young one is her niece."
"That woman is your husband's aunt? Then why did she ask you for your family's inheritance? Come on, how did you end up here?" one prisoner asked.
Another one chimed in quickly, "And what about the young one? Since she's your aunt's niece, why is she forcing you and your husband to divorce?"
"Yeah, what's going on?" The other prisoners became gossiping enthusiasts. The newcomer’s plight was one of their sources of entertainment; whether it would cause psychological harm to others was beyond their concern.
However, Ye Xiaohan was completely unaffected by any potential emotional harm. Her mind raced as she quickly got into character, performing a heart-wrenching tale of a 'Feudal Patriarch' persecuting a poor daughter-in-law, seizing her inheritance, forcing her to divorce, and compelling the husband to marry his own niece.
Ye Xiaohan drew upon years of acting experience to narrate the bizarre events surrounding her family—from the bankruptcy of the Liu family to how she was framed and imprisoned by Liu Wen.
They added many remarks about the "Feudal Patriarch's cruelty" and "the daughter-in-law's silent suffering," making the prisoners feel as if they were experiencing it themselves, cursing Liu Wen.
"This old woman pretends to be kind, but she is truly wicked, her heart is black. She doesn't even spare her own nephew's inheritance; she's a beast!"
"Seeking wealth is one thing, but to poison and frame others, ruining someone's face in the process—what a sin!"
Amidst the chorus of condemnation directed at Liu Wen, Ye Xiaohan lowered her head, sobbing quietly, wanting to cry but afraid to do so loudly, looking quite pitiful.
The prisoners, having heard about others' misfortunes, satisfied their curiosity and found Ye Xiaohan somewhat more agreeable, no longer targeting her as before.
One of the softer-hearted ones came over to comfort her a bit.
Ye Xiaohan choked back tears and said, "Having fallen to this state, I probably have no chance of turning things around. My only wish now is to see my family once."
"But your aunt bribed the guard and won't let them in, right?" The person looked regretful.
Ye Xiaohan wiped her tears and looked at them with pleading eyes. "Sisters, I'm someone without any ideas; my mind is a mess right now, and I can't think of anything. You are all smarter than me; could you help me come up with a way? I just want to see them."
"This..." Everyone felt troubled. "Once you're in here, it's all the same. How can it be so easy to see your family?"
Ye Xiaohan said, "I still have some silver hidden away. As long as you can let my family in, I will have them bring the silver with them. At that time, I can show my gratitude to all of you sisters and also reward the guards."
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