Xiao Ci ordered the constables to bring the main members of the Xia family back to the county office. He planned to personally interrogate them first thing tomorrow morning. For now, he needed to take Zhong Li to the family medical clinic for bone setting.
Back in the carriage, Xiao Ci carefully checked her for any other injuries.
Looking at her swollen, red cheeks, he regretted having come to Jingzhou alone this time.
If he had brought two attendants to guard her, perhaps none of this would have happened.
Seeing his guilty expression, Zhong Li comforted him, “I’m not seriously hurt. They were just angry that I ran away without their permission and slapped me a few times. They didn’t do anything worse…”
“The number of slaps isn’t what matters. It’s that the Xia family is abusing their power, ignoring the law, and acting recklessly. You are of proper status, not a servant of the Xia household—they have no right to treat you that way…”
He would not let this matter go so easily.
Previously, when he accompanied her back to the Xia family’s home for her formal return, though the estate was large, the interior was plain and simple. The furniture was decent but unremarkable, exuding a frugal atmosphere.
But today, when he arrived unexpectedly, he found the Xia residence’s furnishings completely different from his memories.
Just the set of Huanghuali rosewood chairs and tables in the front hall were worth a fortune.
Not to mention the valuable calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls, the rare antiques displayed on the Curio Shelf, and from the front courtyard to the back pavilion, the carved beams and painted rafters, the pavilions by the water, and the uniquely shaped Taihu stones in the pond…
Xia’s father, a deputy transport commissioner, couldn’t have made such a fortune from just pocketing small bribes.
If he investigated the origins of their wealth, the Xia family’s good days would be over.
Inside the clinic, the doctor setting Zhong Li’s dislocated arm treated her gently.
Though it hurt, it was bearable.
The truly painful injury was her sprained ankle.
The moment the doctor touched it, she winced quietly, but she wasn’t a child—no matter the pain, she refused to pull her foot away.
Xiao Ci, standing beside her, noticed her fear and tension, then suddenly called her, “A-Li.”
When she turned to look at him, he lifted her chin and lowered his head to kiss her.
Then, he gestured to the doctor.
The doctor understood immediately.
While Xiao Ci distracted Zhong Li, he gripped her ankle and corrected the dislocated joint.
Zhong Li was still flushed with embarrassment from being kissed by Xiao Ci in front of others, and the sharp pain in her ankle soon brought her back to reality.
By the time she looked up, the doctor had released her ankle. “It’s done.”
Xiao Ci’s tongue was halfway out when the doctor spoke, so he reluctantly withdrew it and let go of Zhong Li.
Blushing, Zhong Li glared at him.
Even back in the carriage, her cheeks remained hot.
The swelling and bruises from being beaten looked even redder and puffier under the steam of the heat.
Xiao Ci’s loathing for the Xia family deepened.
Taking the ointment prescribed by the doctor for swelling and bruising, Xiao Ci said, “Let me apply the medicine…”
“Okay.”
Xiao Ci had already washed his hands in the clinic.
After scooping up some ointment, he gently rubbed it onto her swollen cheeks.
Her face heated further, and the ointment melted quickly without much rubbing.
He smiled, “After all the times I’ve kissed you, how can you still blush?”
“But kissing in front of others is embarrassing.”
“Hm, it’s yours—I won’t kiss you in front of others anymore.”
After applying the ointment, he lightly touched her lips with the back of his finger and lowered his eyes, asking, “When there’s no one around later, can I kiss you?”
Zhong Li’s lashes fluttered.
She didn’t refuse outright.
He took that as consent and continued the lingering kiss.
Xiao Ci had originally planned to solve the theft of the county’s treasury funds and then take Zhong Li and her grandmother back to the capital.
After all, he had only taken half a month off, and over ten days had already passed, leaving barely three days to travel.
But with the Xia family’s sudden trouble, and his intention to investigate Deputy Transport Commissioner Xia, he wrote to the Court of Justice and extended his leave by seven days—enough time to deal with the Xia family’s affairs.
Just as he expected, the Xia family’s wealth had questionable origins.
Not only was Xia’s father suspected of embezzlement, but the Xia family’s shops and estates had never been audited.
There were also serious crimes like issuing forged money and illegally seizing commoners’ farmland and homes.
The Xia family’s roots were deep and powerful in the region.
Five years ago, through marriage ties with the Xiao family in the capital, they had grown even more greedy and unscrupulous.
Local officials in Jingzhou, intimidated by the Xiao family’s influence, dared not offend the Xia family.
Xiao Ci hated those who oppressed the people above all else.
In just seven days of decisive action, he almost uprooted the Xia family completely.
Cornered with nowhere to run, the Xia family sent Xia Zhiyi herself to beg for leniency, hoping he would go easy on them.
At this point, the Xia family still believed Xiao Ci was holding a grudge over the forced marriage from before.
But in Xiao Ci’s eyes, the only right thing the Xia family ever did was send Zhong Li into his care.
“Madam Xia, you should go back. I have no quarrel with you,” Xiao Ci said.
He had no intention of making things difficult for a woman, and the Xia family’s downfall was beyond any one woman’s ability to stop.
Xia Zhiyi cried as she left.
How she would face her family’s accusations, no one could say.
But people must take responsibility—she must, and so must the Xia family.
After dealing with the Xia family’s affairs, it was finally time to truly set off for the capital.
The gap between Zhong Li and him had been bridged.
After several days of simple life—carrying water, cooking, chopping wood, washing clothes, working from dawn to dusk—Xiao Ci was reluctant to leave.
He could already foresee that once back in the capital, he would be busy with official duties every day, unable to enjoy such peaceful moments with her.
So he explained to her in advance, “Once we return to the capital, I’ll be busy again, and I’m afraid I’ll neglect you…”
She was understanding.
Leaning into his embrace, she lightly tapped his chest with her fingertips. “If you have me in your heart, it’s not neglect.”
After packing their luggage, the couple went to the jewelry shop to return the estate.
The things he had bought in recent days couldn’t be brought along, so they sold them all.
Considering her grandmother’s age, the carriage traveled slowly, and the return trip took three and a half days.
Finally, her grandmother stopped mistaking Xiao Ci for Chunshan.
At last, she remembered his real name.
Along the way, Zhong Li repeatedly told her grandmother, “Grandma, I gave birth to a child named Xiao Ye. He is three years old now, your great-grandson…”
The old woman laughed every time, but soon forgot again.
Zhong Li patiently repeated the story over and over.
Each time the old woman heard it, she laughed until she couldn’t close her mouth.
Before they departed, Xiao Ci sent a letter to his aunt at home explaining the circumstances behind Zhong Li’s substitute marriage and her escape.
He concealed some details, merely stating that Zhong Li had no choice but to leave due to the Xia family’s insatiable greed.
He asked his aunt to plead their case to his parents and to not blame Zhong Li.
As expected, after they returned home, his parents and aunt said nothing against Zhong Li.
Not only did they understand her unavoidable hardship, but they also praised her kindness and filial piety, truly accepting her.
Shortly after Zhong Li’s return, she was confirmed pregnant.
Seeing the couple’s harmonious relationship, Xiao’s parents were overjoyed.
Xiao Ci only just learned the delights of those special pleasures—and was then forced to go vegetarian.
He went to seek advice from Pei Huaijin on how Pei had managed to wait two years before his wife conceived while maintaining a happy marriage.
Pei Huaijin recommended the same clinic.
It was then Xiao Ci learned of this method.
When the doctor was inserting the needles, he gave a special warning: “This method is the most effective, but not foolproof. Previously, two gentlemen had acupuncture, but because they were too frequent in their conjugal relations, their wives still conceived…”