Chapter 266
"Eldest Young Master …" The housekeeper was in a difficult position and looked pleadingly at Sang Wan.
Sang Wan knew that Shi Fengju was deliberately trying to make Shi Fengming suffer, so she smiled at the housekeeper and said, "Why aren't you leaving yet? Just do as Eldest Young Master says! Remember to ask someone to keep an eye on Second Young Master at the door. Don't let him cause any trouble again! "
"Yes." The housekeeper had no choice but to accept the order and leave.
Shi Fengju acted as if nothing had happened and ordered Liu Ya to light up the lamp and organize all kinds of documents under the light. On the other side, Shi Fengming had been eagerly waiting for his eldest brother to come and talk to him since last night. He waited impatiently, but there was no sign of him, so he couldn't help but ask someone to invite him over. Who knew that he would only see the housekeeper after waiting for so long?
"Where's my eldest brother? When will he come over? " Shi Fengming leaned against the caltrop flower lattice window and stood on his tiptoes, looking at the long corridor behind the housekeeper from the corner of his eyes.
Shi Fengming had a bad temper, so the housekeeper subconsciously took two steps back and forced a smile. "In a moment, the Old Slave will ask someone to fetch water. Second Young Master should wash up and sleep first! Eldest Young Master is busy right now, so I'm afraid he won't have time to see Second Young Master. "
"Busy?" Shi Fengming's eyes flashed sharply. "You really went to pass the message?"
"Second Young Master!" The housekeeper was shocked. "Even if the Old Slave had the guts, he wouldn't dare to deceive Second Young Master! Eldest Young Master really said so! "
Shi Fengming was both disappointed and depressed. Thinking about it, it was possible. How could he not be busy during the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce? He thought for a moment and said, "Then what about my sister-in-law? You can at least call her over, right? "
The housekeeper was shocked and thought that if he went over again, Eldest Young Master would be angry. He quickly smiled and said, "Eldest Young Mistress is waiting on Eldest Young Master. She won't have time!"
Shi Fengming became angry and glared at him. "Scram!"
The butler wiped his sweat and hurriedly retreated.
In Cui Liu Alley, Su Qing 'er sent Xiao Lian to a small restaurant nearby to buy a few dishes. The master and servant ate as they pleased. When they saw that the sky was gradually darkening and thought of the landlord's words, they couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive. They hurriedly closed the door to the courtyard and went to bed early.
Su Qing 'er lay on the bed and couldn't fall asleep. She recalled how she had hugged Feng Ming sweetly last night. In the blink of an eye, she was alone on a cold pillow. She couldn't help but feel even more melancholy. Without a man in the house, it was as if it immediately became different. It was as if danger was hidden everywhere in the darkness, causing her to tremble in fear and not dare to sleep.
After tossing and turning for half the night, Su Qing 'er finally closed her eyes and fell asleep. In his sleep he suddenly heard a mournful shout, "Not good! Fire! Fire! Come and put out the fire! "
Su Qing 'er was so shocked that her heart almost jumped out of her chest. She sat up on the bed at once. When she saw that there seemed to be a reflection of the fire outside, she screamed and sat on the bed. She shouted, "Xiao Lian! Little Lian! Get up quickly! Get up quickly and go out to take a look! "
Xiao Lian rubbed her sleepy eyes and got up from the ground. She casually wrapped herself in an outer garment and went out. After a while, she ran back in in a panic. "Miss, Miss! Not good! Not good! Our house is on fire! Miss, run for your life! "
Xiao Lian was so shocked that her teeth chattered. She put on her clothes and tied her skirt in a flurry.
"You didn't see wrongly!" Su Qing 'er's heart turned cold.
"Miss, you're right! Let's go quickly. It'll be too late if we delay any longer! "Xiao Lian said in a sobbing tone.
Su Qing 'er suddenly thought of Shi Fengju and gritted her teeth in hatred. She immediately understood and hurriedly got out of bed to put on her clothes. She wrapped up the remaining jewelry and clothes and went out with Xiao Lian.
"Put out the fire quickly!" "Oh no!" All sorts of noises could be heard. The courtyard door had been knocked open from the outside. Countless people were running back and forth with buckets of water. The kitchen was on fire, and it had already spread to the west wing. Soon, it would burn through the main room, and half of the sky was dyed red by the fire.
"Miss! Let's run for our lives! "Xiao Lian cried as she pulled Su Qing 'er and wanted to run outside.
"Wait!" Su Qing 'er grabbed her and said softly, "Are you crazy? We can't go out. We have to escape from the back door. If the landlord rushes over, we won't be able to leave! "
Xiao Lian was stunned and immediately understood. If the landlord came and saw this, he would definitely ask them for compensation. Her face turned pale and she hurriedly nodded. "Miss, you're right! Let's leave from the back door! "
Unexpectedly, before the master and servant had even taken two steps, they heard a burst of hurried footsteps approaching from afar. Someone shouted in a loud voice, "Watch everywhere for me, don't let this bitch escape!"
Su Qing 'er was shocked. She pulled Xiao Lian to hide in the shadows and hurriedly rushed toward the back door.
Unexpectedly, there were already people waiting at the back door. The torches were brightly lit. Su Qing 'er and Xiao Lian were caught off guard and were caught red-handed by the landlord.
"Alright, b * tch! You really want to escape!" The landlord pointed at Su Qing 'er and scolded her. With a wave of his hand, a few people stepped forward and captured Su Qing' er and her servant.
"What do you want to do?" Su Qing 'er struggled in shock.
"What do we want to do?" The landlord gritted her teeth and scolded, "Of course, we want compensation! You b * tch! What does it have to do with me that your man ran away? You're venting your anger on my house! You burned down such a big courtyard, and you still want to escape?! "
"What does it have to do with me?" Su Qing 'er clearly knew that she couldn't defend herself, but how could she bear to be wronged? She said in exasperation, "In all honesty, we were sleeping in the room and didn't know anything. We didn't set the fire!"
"If it wasn't you, then who did it?" The landlord sneered.
"How would I know?" Su Qing 'er was annoyed.
The landlord looked up and laughed. She spread out her hands and said in a strange voice, "You don't know? Then tell me, who should I look for? You're living in this house! If I don't look for you, who should I look for? "
"What are you doing? What's going on here? " The blazing fire had alarmed the patrolling soldiers. The constables from the government office had also arrived. They were organizing people to put out the fire while looking for the owner of the house.
"Sir, you've come at the right time! This house belongs to me. This b * tch rented my house and set it on fire. She's trying to escape punishment. Fortunately, I was more careful and caught her red-handed! "The landlord hurriedly stepped forward and said.
"Sir, I'm innocent! I didn't set the fire. I'm innocent! "Su Qing 'er looked at the constables pitifully. Under the dim light of the fire, she looked delicate and timid. Her eyes were bright, as if they were filled with worry. She looked very pitiful.
When the landlord saw that the constables were looking at Su Qing 'er with infatuation, she couldn't help but feel hatred in her heart. She spat at Su Qing' er and pointed at her. "You shameless b * tch! Who are you trying to impress by acting like a vixen? There are all kinds of fairies in Hangzhou. Do you think that we haven't seen the world? Don't think of using tricks to get away with it! The fire clearly started in the kitchen. You must have accidentally left the fire at night! Besides, if you didn't do it, why did you run away? Sir, look at you. You even took the bag. Instead of going out to put out the fire, you ran to the back door! Fortunately, I came quickly. Otherwise, who would I look for to compensate you? "
Su Qing 'er was so angry that her face turned pale. "You … You're twisting words and forcing logic! It really has nothing to do with me. I'm innocent! "
The landlord sneered. "Then why are you feeling guilty? Why are you running away? "
Su Qing 'er was speechless. After a while, she stammered, "I … I was afraid that you would blame me and want me to compensate you. That's why …"
"As expected, you have a guilty conscience!" The landlord clapped her hands and interrupted her. "If you're innocent, why are you afraid of being wronged? The adults will make a clear judgment! Do you think that the adults are muddle-headed? "
Su Qing 'er was at a loss for words. She even wanted to die. For a moment, she almost blurted out Shi Fengju's name, but she still had a bit of rationality left in her and managed to hold herself back.
Not to mention that she didn't have any evidence. Even if she did, would she be able to win against Shi Fengju? If she said Shi Fengju, wouldn't people ask why he wanted to harm her? Then, she wouldn't be able to hide the fact that she had seduced Shi Fengming to abandon his parents and wife and run away from home. The Shi family and Shi Fengming would be greatly disgraced. It would be impossible for her to turn things around.
Su Qing 'er immediately sobbed and cried out that she had been wronged. The landlord sneered at the side and scolded her countless times with the words "b * tch" and "little b * tch".
The leader of the constables got impatient and shouted, "Enough! All of you, come with me. When we reach the yamen, the adults will make a clear judgment! "After saying that, he waved his hand." Take all of you away! "
Su Qing 'er was shocked. Without any explanation, all the officials went forward to detain them. The landlord cooperated and said with a smile, "There's no need to trouble all of you. I can walk on my own! I also have the intention to ask the governor to make a decision! "
When the sky turned white, the fire was finally put out. Fortunately, it didn't implicate the surrounding residences and only this courtyard was burned down. The neighbors heaved a sigh of relief. After the landlord learned about it, she stomped her feet and cursed her bad luck.
After the trial, Su Qing 'er had no choice but to admit her guilt. The fire had started in the kitchen. The biggest possibility was that the master and servant had accidentally left the fire. Since they couldn't find any evidence to prove it, she could only admit to it.
The landlord had asked for an exorbitant price. He had calculated a large sum of money, such as the cost of the bricks and wood, the renovation, the cost of the furniture, the cost of labor, the cost of flowers, and so on. In total, it was 1,800 taels of silver. Su Qing 'er was so angry that her vision darkened and she almost fainted.
Su Qing 'er refused to pay so much and was only willing to pay 500 taels of silver. When the landlord heard this, her eyes almost spat fire. She glared at Su Qing' er and firmly disagreed. The two of them almost quarreled in the court again.
This was originally a simple matter, and the magistrate didn't have much patience. Seeing that the two of them weren't easy to deal with, he couldn't be bothered to mediate. Listening to their quarrel was really annoying, so he slammed down his gavel and awarded one thousand five hundred taels to withdraw from the court. Although the landlord felt regretful, she reluctantly accepted it and kowtowed to thank him. Su Qing 'er was shocked and angry, but she had no choice but to accept it.
Su Qing 'er only had a few pieces of jewelry left. She only had 100 taels of silver from the gold hairpin she had pawned yesterday. It was still far from enough.
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