On the day of the granted marriage, the daughter of a general wept and was reborn!

Lord Zhou raised his head and spoke in a low voice: "Those who raise prices by one tael of silver above the market price shall immediately hand over the illegal profits. Those who refuse to comply shall be punished with twenty lashes of the cane. Those who raise prices by ten taels of silver above the market price shall hand over the illegal profits and be punished with fifty lashes of the cane. Those who raise prices by fifty taels of silver above the market price shall be sentenced to exile."

As soon as the words fell, the faces of those wealthy people changed instantly, and they couldn't help but feel a pang in their hearts.

Shen Wantang remained calm and raised his eyes slowly: "Everyone, now you have raised the price of grain to one ounce of gold for one bushel of rice, which is enough to sentence you all to exile. If you don't know the law, it's fine, and I can also sentence you at my discretion. But when you opened the store, you came to the government office in person to sign the agreement. At that time, the people in the government office told you. Now you are breaking the law knowingly, which is an even greater crime!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone fell to their knees.

"Sir, please spare my life!"

Everyone pleaded for mercy in unison.

Seeing that these people were genuinely afraid, a trace of barely perceptible peace flashed in Shen Wantang's eyes.

However, Cen Xiao, who had been staring at her for a long time, noticed it and instantly understood Shen Wantang's intentions.

"In my opinion, it is really outrageous for you to drive up the prices to this level. Even if you are beheaded, it is too cheap for you."

Then, Cen Xiao clicked his tongue.

After he finished speaking, those people became even more anxious and burst into tears.

After leaving them alone for a while, Shen Wantang slowly spoke: "However, there is an opportunity to make a contribution right now."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone fell silent, staring at Shen Wantang with eager eyes, waiting for her to say something.

"Now, the government needs to find another granary. It needs to be well hidden and on high ground. If anyone can help, they can make amends for their crimes."

As soon as the words fell, everyone instantly became alert and raised their hands: "I, my granary will do."

As if they were afraid that others would steal their credit.

"Although we are only looking for one place now, there is no need to worry. In addition to the granary, there is also the matter of grain. If anyone is willing to sell the grain to the government at the previous price, I can exempt you from punishment."

Shen Wantang stated his ultimate goal.

"Sir, I will give it to you for free. Please, sir, spare my life!"

One of them couldn't wait any longer and spoke up again and again, tears and voice falling together: "My child, he was born less than a month ago..."

Shen Wantang cleared his throat and continued, "No need to give it away for free. Otherwise, if it gets out, everyone will say that our Nanzhou Prefecture is oppressing the people and squandering their wealth."

Although it was late, Shen Wantang was a man of action.

He waved his hand and called the accountant who had been waiting for a long time.

"Then I'll have to trouble the accountant to go to each household and order some food."

After sending these people away, Shen Wantang let out a long breath and rubbed his aching brows.

Qing'e brought a bowl of calming tea.

"Where has Pei Qing been these days?" Shen Wantang took a sip and asked slowly.

"You finally noticed that Pei Qing is missing." Cen Xiao raised his eyebrows.

"A few days ago, I sent Pei Qing to Mo County to pass on the message. Otherwise, the food would have arrived later." Cen Xiao continued speaking, raising his head like a child waiting to be boasted.

Shen Wantang's eyes lit up - it turned out that he knew it all along.

Well, how could a smart man like him not guess it?

"He came back yesterday, but I sent him to do something else." After a moment, Cen Xiao hesitated and glanced at Qing'e beside him, "You go down first. I have something to talk to your young lady."

Qing'e looked at the lady next to her and saw Shen Wantang nodded, then she stepped back.

"But was he sent to secretly protect the eldest prince?" Shen Wantang asked.

Cen Xiao raised his eyebrows slightly and smiled calmly: "Smart."

But as soon as he took a sip of tea, Cen Xiao felt something was wrong.

"Miss Shen, I'm afraid your temper changes so quickly. You were angry that day, but today you're nervous about the Crown Prince."

After he finished speaking, Shen Wantang realized that he had been exposed.

She hurriedly covered up and said, "The eldest prince is a noble, how can I not worry about him?"

But Cen Xiao saw through her little trick at a glance.

Seeing that Cen Xiao stopped asking questions, Shen Wantang continued, "How do you plan to deal with the eldest prince's matter?"

This is also what worries Cen Xiao.

I met the eldest prince a few days ago and wanted to move him to the marquis's mansion, but he refused.

If we forcefully send him to the Marquis' Mansion, it will probably backfire. If he goes off-key during the process...

Cen Xiao sighed and said quietly, "He doesn't want to go to the Marquis' Mansion. He said he wants to be an ordinary citizen."

It is easy to say, but it is not easy for ordinary citizens to do it.

It is difficult to establish one's own family. If one is asked about one's origin, how can one answer?

"It is safest to send him to the Marquis' Mansion." Shen Wantang spoke slowly.

Cen Xiao's eyes flashed, and he had more guesses about Shen Wantang in his mind.

"If he doesn't want to go, then let him want to go." Shen Wantang raised his eyebrows, already having an idea in mind.

The next morning, it was just dawn.

People began to walk on the street.

Although the man was dressed in rough clothes, he looked dignified and looked like the son of a poor family.

Suddenly, a group of people jumped out from behind the man and grabbed a sack and put him up without saying a word.

The man struggled at first, but soon lost consciousness.

At that time, Pei Qing, who was following in the dark, hurried forward, but could not find any trace of Ji Xunze.

"what!"

Cen Xiao hadn't even opened his eyes when he heard the news brought by Pei Qing and stood up.

"Young Master, I saw it with real eyes. When I went to look again, the eldest prince had already been kidnapped." Pei Qing spoke hurriedly, his tone full of guilt.

Pei Qing thought that no one in Nanzhou knew Ji Xunze's identity, so he didn't follow closely. Unexpectedly...

"Did you see the person's appearance clearly?" Cen Xiao suddenly sat up, grabbed the smock beside him and put it on.

"I couldn't see clearly because he was wearing black clothes. I chased him for a long time, but he disappeared in front of the gambling house." Pei Qing said in detail.

Time waits for no one, so the two of them set out to look for someone.

By then, there were already a lot more people on the street.

The two of them walked all the way to the door of the gambling house.

"Are you sure you disappeared in front of the gambling house?" Cen Xiao asked with a frown.

Pei Qing nodded firmly: "I'm sure."

There are no other shops near this gambling house, only a gambling building standing here. I guess it can only be here.

The two of them walked forward slowly and Pei Qing knocked on the door.

After a long time, the door slowly opened a crack.

Through the gap, one could see the clothes of a gambling house clerk - they were exactly the clothes worn by the person who had kidnapped Ji Xunze.