Do Not Offend the Reborn Wicked Wife

The fact that Li Qingmu extorts Zhao Bapi to supplement household expenses made Long Yue very happy, and he took the silver note and kept it safely.

He looked up and saw Zhao Wanqing leading dozens of his subordinates, aggressively surrounding them, "Hmph! Arrest these three Jianghu swindlers!"

"Hold on!" Qi Jingyu stood up to stop them, "Zhao Bapi, aren’t you afraid of getting your whole family executed for treason for doing this?"

"Hehehe, just because you say you’re an Assistant Minister, you think you really are? Show me your official seal!" Zhao Wanqing sneered as he took a wooden stick from one of his men, "If you can’t show it, then you’re impersonating a court official, and that’s an added crime!"

"Your earlier disrespect, offending the current Holy Emperor, I will also report to the government. The three of you are done for!"

At Zhao Wanqing’s command, the men immediately surrounded the three of them, sticks raised to strike.

But to his surprise, the slightly older man dodged quickly and sat back where he was, and then there was a series of crackling sounds as the servants in front all fell to the ground.

Not only that, but they knocked over the people behind them as well, including Zhao Wanqing himself, who was also pinned beneath two servants, struggling to breathe.

He slapped the two fools on top of him, yelling angrily, "Get off! Get off me! I’m going to be crushed to death!"

Zhao Wanqing scrambled up in a panic, looking at the three of them with horror, his previous arrogance gone, tentatively asking, "Who are you really?"

Ordinary people wouldn’t have such sharp skills. He hadn’t even seen the man’s moves, and his men were all knocked down instantly, which really made his heart tremble.

"Someone you can’t afford to provoke!" Qi Jingyu snorted coldly.

Just the fact that you brought people to assassinate the Emperor earlier is enough to have your whole family executed for treason.

Noble families are not easily shaken, so we start by cutting off their claws and then deal with them one by one.

Zhao Wanqing wasn’t a fool. Since dozens of people were knocked down in an instant, he knew he couldn’t afford to offend them, so he anxiously looked towards the main entrance.

Seeing a servant coming to report that Mr. Zhang had arrived outside the mansion, Zhao Wanqing eagerly urged, "What are you standing there for? Go invite Mr. Zhang in, quickly!"

Seeing County Magistrate Zhang arriving with a dozen Government Officials, Zhao Wanqing felt even more at ease, greeting him with a smile: "Mr. Zhang, you finally came! Three Jianghu swindlers just came to my house, extorting three thousand taels of silver from me. Please, you must uphold justice for me!"

"Is there such a thing?" County Magistrate Zhang squinted, looking at the three surrounded by the Zhao Mansion’s servants.

County Magistrate Zhang, whose real name is Zhang Pengju, had already reached his forties, with a slight sprinkle of gray at his temples, a cold expression, and high cheekbones, always presenting himself as a noble gentleman but in reality extremely greedy.

There’s a saying that the big red government office opens southwards, having a justified argument but no money, you better not come in — that’s satire aimed at him.

Leading the Government Officials to Qi Jingyu, he looked them over and determined that Li Qingmu must be the leader since he seemed older than Qi Jingyu, automatically ignoring Long Yue since she was a woman.

In this feudal society, women had no status, and their words carried no weight.

"Bold scoundrels, how dare you commit fraud in broad daylight! Do you three admit your guilt?"

Zhang Pengju intended to take the lead, establish the charges, and then take them back to the government office for questioning.

Qi Jingyu curiously examined County Magistrate Zhang, not answering but questioning, "The silver note was forcibly given to us by Zhao Bapi; what crime do we have?"

Zhao Wanqing’s face twitched, angrily yelling, "He... he impersonated a Sixth Rank Official, claiming to be Vice Minister of Ministry of Revenue named Qi Tianyu, and even arrogantly claimed his surname equals to longevity with heaven. Please, sir, investigate clearly!"

Zhang Pengju was alarmed that such blasphemous words could be uttered, clearly showing no regard for the current Holy Emperor, solidifying the charge.

He then loudly commanded the Government Officials, "Men, take these three scoundrels back to the office and question them severely!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wanqing immediately approached with a smiling face, reminding, "Mr. Zhang, they extorted three thousand taels of silver from me, so please make sure to help me get it back."

Li Qingmu was too powerful for him to demand it himself, so he could only seek help from County Magistrate Zhang.

Zhang Pengju’s eyes brightened. Such a large amount of silver, once in the government office, would essentially enter his own pocket!

He coughed lightly, dismissively saying, "Rest assured, I will ensure justice is served."

He cleverly played a word game, promising to uphold justice, not to return the silver.

Later, he would just say the silver wasn’t found, and Zhao Bapi wouldn’t dare strong-arm the government office for it, right?

A character like Zhao Bapi would never dare so to do; this civilian had no courage to contest with the government.

Thinking of the three thousand taels about to come his way, Zhang Pengju felt elated, but just as the Government Officials were about to arrest the three, an objection was heard from behind.

"Wait a minute!" Qi Jingyu slowly stood up, exuding an emperor’s aura naturally cultivated over the years.

Zhang Pengju turned around, surprised, and asked, "What else do you have to say?"

"County Magistrate Zhang, can anyone prove you are the county magistrate here, please show your official seal." Qi Jingyu spoke slowly, his smile relaxed.

Zhang Pengju roared angrily upon hearing, "You fool! I have held office here for over ten years, there is hardly a household in the county that doesn’t recognize me. Also, these Government Officials can testify for me; what need is there for an official seal?"

He paused before continuing, "Moreover, you, a Jianghu swindler, by what right do you demand to see my official seal? Do you think you deserve it?"

In times like these, were fraudsters so brazen? Daring to demand an official seal from him to prove his own status?

Utterly preposterous!

Qi Jingyu replied with a laugh instead of anger, "If Mr. Zhang doesn’t carry his official seal at all times, then why should I?"

"Ah? This..." Zhang Pengju was momentarily speechless.

But he quickly asked again, "I have the whole county as witnesses, and I brought Government Officials, what do you have to prove you are who you say you are?"

"What a coincidence, I have this!" Qi Jingyu casually pulled out a gold token, with an ’Internal’ character carved on it.

This was a pass from the Internal Affairs Bureau, allowing free access to the harem. It wouldn’t make sense for Qi Jingyu to carry the Imperial Jade Seal at all times, so only this token would suffice.

Seeing this token, Li Qingmu and Long Yue couldn’t help but laugh out loud, rarely seeing this young fellow using a pass from their backyard to impersonate a Sixth Rank Official.

But to cooperate with his act, they held their tongues.

County Magistrate Zhang, seeing the token, was immediately terrified. Such gold tokens were reserved for Imperial use, and anyone caught counterfeiting such items faced the death penalty for their entire family.

But considering Zhao Bapi’s claim that they were swindlers, coming to extort money — such deeds could hardly be done by a Sixth Rank Official, right? A county magistrate like him could pocket tens of thousands of taels a year.

For safety’s sake, he cleared his throat and announced, "This...official, please accompany me back to the office for now, where I will thoroughly verify your identity!"

Zhao Wanqing could tell he was chickening out, urgently reminding again, "Mr. Zhang, don’t forget my three thousand taels of silver!"

"Silence! I said, first we return to the office, then we decide!"

Li Qingmu lazily stood up, holding Long Yue by her slender waist, and said, "Let’s go, let’s visit the government office as guests."