Concubine Mei in the Cage

Fang Ting roared fiercely:

Don't even dream about it! If I kowtow to you today, I'll slash you with a knife!

If you kowtow a hundred times, I'll slash you a hundred times! You believe me? I'll definitely have someone destroy you!

Before Zhou Wanwan could speak, the Old Scholar Tree grabbed her tightly with its roots. These roots looked so thin that they were invisible even to those below the stage.

But these tree roots were very tough, and Fang Ting couldn't break free at all.

All I could see was Fang Ting, who seemed to be controlled by the Old Scholar Tree, constantly kowtowing.

Moreover, she was hit very hard; after only a few hits, she felt dizzy.

She kowtowed and cried, "Zhou Wanwan, I will never let you go in this lifetime! You just wait, I will find someone to kill you, waaaaah..."

She kowtowed a full hundred times, and as soon as she finished, she fainted.

Zhou Wanwan looked at her and said, "Send her back to her parents' house. I get annoyed just looking at her. Is she an opera singer? Keep singing!"

The stage was set up right in the middle, and a play called "Wang Baochuan's Bitter Waiting in the Cold Cave" was being performed on it.

The song tells the story of Wang Baochuan, a wealthy heiress who, despite her poverty, marries Xue Pinggui and endures years of hardship alone in a cold cave, waiting for her husband to return with great achievements.

A crowd of onlookers had gathered below the stage. The singing was slow and gentle, very traditional.

Zhou Wanwan listened with rapt attention. In her previous life, she would have hated these old operas, finding them boring and slow, and she would get sleepy after just a few lines.

But now, it's as if her bloodline has awakened; the more she listens, the more she enjoys it.

She was listening intently when she saw a woman not far away, followed by dozens of people, charging menacingly towards her.

Zhou Wanwan frowned and asked, "Who are you?"

The woman started cursing:

"Zhou Wanwan, is it? You've got some nerve, daring to make my daughter kowtow a hundred times. You're truly lawless."

"Guards, seize her and throw her in jail!"

Those around whispered, "Isn't that the prefect's concubine, Concubine Mei? This little girl is doomed; she's probably going to jail."

"Going to jail is practically the same as having no way out, isn't it? It's all over."

"I've heard that Concubine Mei is very powerful and is deeply favored by the prefect. This little girl is doomed this time."

"I knew it! Who would dare bully the prefect's daughter!"

Zhou Wanwan's men rushed out, and Concubine Mei sneered:

"A mere dozen or so young girls dare to challenge my men."

Look at my men, they're all strong and powerful, they could crush you with a single finger.

"Get them! Throw them all in jail!"

Zhou Wanwan looked at Concubine Mei with genuine curiosity. Concubine Mei was as fat as a pig; how could the prefect have taken a liking to her?

It's not her fault; she was genuinely curious.

At Concubine Mei's command, her men immediately rushed towards Zhou Wanwan.

Zhou Wanwan's subordinates were all young girls in their early teens, who looked quite young and were rather thin.

Once the two sides clashed, the young girls attacked quickly and ruthlessly, targeting joints and tripping opponents.

With a muffled thud, a burly man was thrown to the ground, raising a cloud of dust, and he couldn't get up for a long time.

The remaining men turned pale with fright and were quickly overwhelmed by the girls, retreating in disarray. They dared not make another move and obediently knelt on the ground.

Zhou Wanwan propped her head up and looked at Concubine Mei, saying:

"What do you think we should do now?"

Didn't you just say you were going to put me in jail?

Concubine Mei trembled with fright.

She had only vaguely heard that Zhou Wanwan came from a bandit background, but no one in the inner quarters had ever seriously said it, so she had no idea that she was so powerful and ruthless.

Her voice trembled as she stammered, "What... what do you want?"

Zhou Wanwan coughed lightly and said:

I've heard that the prefect has always doted on you.

"Then let's see how much he's willing to pay to get you back."

With a wave of her hand, someone immediately brought over a large iron cage.

Before Concubine Mei could resist, several people stepped forward and shoved her into the cage.

Zhou Wanwan looked at Concubine Mei in the cage and said:

"Didn't you say you were going to lock me up in jail? Well, I'll lock you up in a cage first."

That way, it's fair. You can calm down inside and I'll see if the prefect is willing to save you.

Cheng Chao, who was sitting nearby listening to the opera, quickly stood up and said, "Master, I'll go find the prefect right now and explain the situation."

Zhou Wanwan nodded, and Cheng Chao immediately ran towards the government office.

As soon as he entered the government office, he saw Prefect Fang drinking tea with Cheng Xiao. He looked at them and said, "Oh ho! You two still have the leisure to drink tea here?"

Cheng Xiao glared at him and said, "You disrespectful idiot, have you gotten used to being a lackey? What benefits has your master given you?"

Cheng Chao chuckled and said:

"Father, I'm willing to do this dog's job, but I wouldn't want to be anyone else's dog's slave!"

"Can't you guys really see how amazing Zhou Wanwan is?"

Cheng Xiao frowned and said:

Do you think everyone is as mentally challenged as you? How old is she?

How powerful can she be? She just relies on the advantageous location of Black Wind Stronghold, plus some of her subordinates are quite capable.

Cheng Chao curled his lip and said:

"Your men are capable? Ha! There are some things I don't want to tell you."

Uncle Fang's aunt went to settle scores with Zhou Wanwan...

Prefect Fang jumped to his feet and said, "What did you say?"

Cheng Chao coughed and said, "Anyway, your concubine was all talk and no action, and even wanted my master to go to jail, so my master locked her in a cage."

Prefect Fang's face immediately changed. "Absurd! Nonsense! Zhou Wanwan is simply outrageous!"

He led a group of yamen runners and rushed over. After listening to Xue Baochai digging for wild vegetables, Zhou Wanwan started watching Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai.

The people in the city were quite happy, since the show didn't cost any money and the music was all quite new.

Actually, these books were all written by Zhou Wanwan. She was just so bored at times that she thought of writing down the Four Great Classical Novels.

She also wanted to write more storybooks like this, and now she owns several bookstores, which are doing very well.

Zhou Wanwan watched with even greater interest, when Prefect Fang arrived with his men.

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "Lord Fang, you must be very busy! Since you're already here, why don't you have a cup of tea first?"

Prefect Fang was very reluctant, Fang Zhiyuan tugged at his sleeve and said, "Father, let's sit down and have some tea first."

Prefect Fang reluctantly sat down, while Concubine Mei in the cage next to him kept whimpering.

Prefect Fang sighed and said, "Zhou Wanwan, what exactly are you trying to do? Do you even know who she is?"

Zhou Wanwan looked at Concubine Mei and said, "Isn't she just your concubine? Could she have some other identity?"