Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress
Chapter 377 - 374: Justice_1

Chapter 377: Chapter 374: Justice_1

"County Lord, Father-in-law, Lord Zhou!" The clan leader greeted with a smile, then quickly summoned the servants to bring chairs and tea for Quan Yu, Lord Zhou, and Bai Jinzhi.

As soon as the clan’s descendants saw their ancestors, they all cried and begged their grandfathers and the clan leader for mercy, complaining loudly about their suffering in prison and the inedible prison food.

Contrarily, Bai Qingjie, who was usually the most pampered, knelt there in silence.

Bai Qiyun, worried about his son, wanted to go see him but seeing his father’s stern face, he held back his concerns and stood behind the clan leader, tightly gripping his clothes.

Bai Jinzhi cast a cold, mocking glance at the worried clan members who wanted to approach but dared not, and then turned to Lord Zhou: "My eldest sister should be arriving soon. Please wait a moment, Lord Zhou."

"County Lord is too polite! Too polite!" Lord Zhou continuously bowed to Bai Jinzhi.

The Brothel Madam quickly brought the mute girl from the carriage and stood at the gate of the Bai Clan ancestral hall, shouting: "Lord Zhou! Lord Zhou... I heard the Commandery Princess is looking for a mute girl named Yaniang. This girl is who I bought just yesterday. She is mute and cannot speak. Please see if it is her!"

"A prostitute dares to stand at the entrance of my Bai Clan ancestral hall!" Bai Qiyun said angrily.

Lord Zhou hurriedly motioned for the officials to pull the Brothel Madam away. After all, this was still the Zhen Kingdom Princess’s ancestral hall.

Bai Jinzhi, however, did not mind at all. He casually walked outside, followed by Quan Yu. Lord Zhou, seeing Quan Yu had left, quickly stood up and followed too.

Bai Jinzhi knew Yaniang and was very concerned about her safety.

She stepped forward, looking at the frightened little girl standing beside the Brothel Madam. The girl was clean with ill-fitting clothes hastily put on her.

"Fourth Young Lady, is it her?" Shen Qingzhu asked Bai Jinzhi.

Bai Jinzhi shook her head: "This is not Yaniang."

The Brothel Madam was both disappointed and relieved. This disobedient girl had been beaten twice since arriving and was covered in wounds. If she were the mute girl the Commandery Princess was looking for, there would surely be consequences for her deeds.

Soon, there was another shout outside the ancestral hall gate: "The four-horse carriage, the Princess of Zhen has arrived."

Bai Jinzhi turned towards the direction of the carriage.

The carriage quickly stopped outside the crowd. Chun Tao helped Bai Qingyan down from the carriage. Silence fell immediately. The townspeople looked at the renowned Princess of Zhen with awe, fear, or curiosity.

"Eldest sister..." Bai Jinzhi stepped forward and said to Bai Qingyan, "She only brought a mute girl, but not Yaniang!"

Bai Jinzhi pointed towards the Brothel Madam and said, "Ask how much silver she wants and let this girl stay at the ancestral home."

"Yes!" Shen Qingzhu nodded.

"Yaniang!" Bai Jinzhi gasped upon seeing Yaniang bent over, getting out of the carriage. "Thank heavens! Eldest sister has found Yaniang!"

"Commandery Princess..." Quan Yu greeted with a smile.

"Commandery Princess!" Lord Zhou followed Quan Yu, bowing to Bai Qingyan.

Bai Qingyan said to Quan Yu, "Thanks to Quan Yu for sending out people to find Yaniang. Now that she has been found, please ask everyone to return."

"Yes!" Quan Yu responded.

"Let’s go!" Bai Qingyan held Yaniang’s hand and walked towards the ancestral hall.

The clan leader led the elders to the gate to welcome Bai Qingyan, following behind her.

Once the Bai Clan members entered, the clan leader ordered to close the six courtyard doors of the ancestral hall. Bai Qingyan, however, said: "No need to close the door. Keep it open. Let’s discuss matters here in the courtyard where the ancestors and townspeople can see!"

Bai Qingyan sat on the chair Quan Yu had brought, her gaze swept over the clan leader, the elders, and the descendants held by officials. She spoke slowly: "Let’s start with the clan leader’s grandson, Bai Qingjie. What wrong he has done and how to compensate the victims one by one. After compensating the victims, we will talk about punishment."

After dealing with the descendants, it would be the turn of other clan members. Finally, it would be the clan leader himself.

Originally, Bai Qingyan intended to clean up the corrupted members first, then use the influence of the Crown Prince and herself as Princess to force the clan leader to step down. But now, with Mr. Gu’s records in hand, she didn’t need to use force. The clan members wouldn’t tolerate him as the leader any longer.

The descendants who drunkenly pushed Yaniang into the river panicked when they saw her standing by Bai Qingyan, looking to their Grandfather Fifth Lord for help.

Bai Qingping, supported by a servant, looked at Bai Qingyan’s cold and indifferent face and unfathomable eyes, tightening his fists as if seeing the King of Zhen he used to admire and Duke Bai Qishan.

People of the Bai family in Dadu all had this innate arrogance, even the women.

Magistrate Zhou took out Bai Qingjie’s record from the top and began reading...

Forcing sales, seizing ancestral properties, bullying men and women. Not only that, Bai Qingjie had been involved in two deaths, one trampled under his horse and another pushed from a brothel window during a fight.

These were indeed Bai Qingjie’s deeds, with evidence conclusive.

"Are the victims here?" Bai Qingyan asked.

There were supposed to be seven families. Only five showed up. The other two possibly either no longer existed or didn’t believe Bai Qingyan would handle matters fairly.

The clan leader knew they had to compensate the victims today. He had already instructed the clan to prepare, motioning to Bai Qiyun.

Bai Qiyun, furious, had no choice but to step forward, returning what was owed and compensating where necessary.

Such a large amount of silver made Bai Qiyun’s heart bleed.

An elderly victim, hair white, received the deeds for his ancestral home and land and cried with joy, bowing deeply towards Bai Qingyan: "Thank you, Commandery Princess! Thank you, Commandery Princess! I never thought I could get these back today. I thought the Commandery Princess was just putting on a show; my son didn’t even want to come. But we truly got it back! Thank you, Commandery Princess! I will remember your great kindness and virtue for a lifetime."

Bai Qingyan stood up, avoiding the old man’s bow, and said: "It was Bai Qingjie’s fault. As a daughter of the Bai family, I am deeply ashamed. I dare not accept your thanks."

"Lord Zhou, next..." Bai Qingyan ordered.

Magistrate Zhou read another descendant’s crimes. The victims who attended stepped forward to either receive compensation or reclaim their belongings.

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