PFC Chapter 236 Being Forced to Pay Debts
Chapter 236 Being Forced to Pay Debts
She first bowed respectfully to Feng Chenyi, then stammered, "Your Highness, my father already knows about this matter. He was afraid I wouldn't be used to it there, so he came to fetch me personally. The Prince Rui's mansion is in trouble now, and I really don't want to be a burden to you, so I..."
After saying this, Consort Tian began to sob softly, looking as pitiful as a child who was reluctant to leave.
Feng Chenyi didn't seem too surprised. Looking at Tianfei's appearance, he spoke indifferently as if it were none of his business: "Take care of yourself when you go back."
Consort Tian was somewhat surprised, clearly not expecting Feng Chenyi to agree so readily, and even forgot to sob.
Just then, dawn broke, and a group from Yunyi Manor, led by a freshman, arrived. The surrounding area gradually filled with people who were unaware of what had happened.
All that could be seen was the people from Yunyi Manor roughly inspecting the items brought out of the Prince Rui's residence. When they saw the carriage containing Zhai Yun and Feng Chenyi's belongings, Da Yi appeared quite satisfied.
Upon seeing the large number of carriages behind Consort Tian, he frowned. Just as he was about to make a move, Consort Tian hurriedly explained in fear, "This is my dowry, not the property of Prince Rui's mansion."
Yunyi Manor had a particularly large entourage; their group consisted of dozens of people, and apart from the dozen or so at the entrance, the rest had already entered the manor to search it.
No wonder Consort Tian was afraid and lacked confidence when speaking to them.
The surrounding chatter was endless; everyone was curious how a merchant guild dared to be so presumptuous at Prince Rui's residence! Although the Yunyi Merchant Guild had businesses all over the world, they all understood the principle that the common people should not fight against the officials.
Da Yi's eyes were fierce. He completely ignored Tian Fei and started rummaging through the carriage that Tian Fei had packed. Tian Fei's maid tried to stop him, but she was scared away by Da Yi's single look.
Feng Chenyi stepped forward at the opportune moment, stopping Da Yi from rummaging through Tianfei's luggage. Da Yi looked at Feng Chenyi with unfriendly eyes: "What? Does Prince Rui want to go back on his word? You promised not to take any of the valuables from Prince Rui's manor, and that's why Yunyi Manor agreed to let you use Prince Rui's manor to pay off the debt! If you go back on your word, don't blame us for not honoring our promise!"
Zhai Yun never expected that someone would take acting so seriously in their freshman year. Although these things would reach the ears of the nobles in the palace, it was clear that they were determined to keep their hands on Consort Tian's dowry.
Zhai Yun felt a pang of regret for not having clearly explained to her beforehand that she should take the dowry with her.
Feng Chenyi did not back down. He looked at Da Yi and said, word by word, "I did not take any of the property from the Prince Rui's mansion. These things belong to Consort Tian herself."
He quit as a freshman, slammed his sword on the ground, exuding a bandit-like air: "Prince Rui, don't blame me for not reminding you, your Prince Rui's manor is far less than one-tenth of the loan amount. Yunyi Manor has been borrowing money from you for long enough. Today, either leave everything behind, or pay back all 100,000 taels of silver!"
Sweet Concubine was so frightened by Da Yi's words that she almost lost her balance. Her dowry was all here. If these people took it all, wouldn't that be the death of her?
Consort Tian burst into tears, clinging to Feng Chenyi's hand and pleading, "Your Highness, please save me! All my dowry is here. If they take it away, how will I live?"
Feng Chenyi looked at Tianfei and gently patted her back to comfort her.
Da Yi was furious. He glared fiercely at Tian Fei and shouted angrily, "There's nothing of value in this Prince Rui's mansion to begin with. When Prince Rui agreed to use the mansion to pay off the debt without taking a single penny, our Yunyi Manor thought that you still had some dowry, and with this good location, we could sell it for a good price. But you took everything! What would our Yunyi Manor want with an empty mansion!"
Consort Tian was so frightened by the first day that she collapsed to the ground. As a sheltered young lady, she had never experienced anything like this before. Even though Prince Rui was still standing there, she was still completely terrified and at a loss for what to do.
She felt she couldn't take her things with her.
The crowd parted, and Lord Lu arrived late. He was terrified to see his precious daughter, and felt nothing but heartache. He ordered his men to help Consort Tian up.
Seeing this scene, Zhai Yun felt that the issue was no longer whether Da Yi was acting or not, but rather that he and Feng Chenyi had reached some kind of consensus. Otherwise, Da Yi wouldn't be so fixated on Tian Fei's dowry.
Lord Lu bowed to Feng Chenyi with a pained expression and said, "Your Highness, please think of a way! This is all the savings of the Marquis's mansion. When my daughter got married, I was afraid that she would have a hard life, so I gave all the money in the Marquis's mansion to her as dowry. If they take it away like this, what will happen to my daughter in the future!"
Feng Chenyi looked troubled. He tried to persuade the freshmen again: "I had no choice but to do it back then. I will take responsibility for my actions. I will pay back the money. Please let them go."
"Leave?" Da Yi smiled contemptuously, looking at Feng Chenyi without any fear on his face. Normally, he really wouldn't dare to speak to Feng Chenyi like that.
At this moment, he was almost ready to draw his sword, his eyes filled with ruthlessness as he looked at Feng Chenyi: "Leave your things behind, and you can all leave. Otherwise, don't blame Yunyi Manor for going to extremes!"
Lord Lu dared not provoke Yunyi Manor. Hearing Da Yi's threatening words, cold sweat poured down his forehead. He knew that it would be useless to beg Prince Rui now, so he simply pleaded with Da Yi: "Good man, my daughter really knew nothing about what happened back then! Prince Rui also said that one should take responsibility for one's own actions. If my daughter's dowry is used to pay off the debt, Prince Rui will be criticized behind his back in the future!"
The freshman didn't care about anything else. Listening to Lord Lu's rambling, he lost his patience, drew his sword with a "whoosh," and pressed it against Lord Lu's neck.
Lord Lu was so frightened by the sword suddenly pressed against his neck that he bent over, his eyes constantly looking to Feng Chenyi for help.
Da Yi coldly pointed at Tian Fei and said to Lord Lu, "You're her father? So you have the authority to decide what to do with these valuables? Since you two are here, give me a straight answer: keep the things or not!"
Consort Tian was already terrified and completely disoriented, but Lord Lu was still holding on. Looking at the sword that could slice his neck at any moment, he couldn't help but whisper to Feng Chenyi for help: "Your Highness, aren't you highly skilled in martial arts? Please chase them away!"
Before Feng Chenyi could answer Lord Lu's question, Da Yi had already brought his sword a step closer, threateningly asking, "What did you say?"
Lord Lu was so frightened that he trembled and repeatedly denied it: "No, no, I didn't say anything."
The onlookers finally understood what had happened: it turned out that the Prince Rui's Mansion owed 100,000 taels of silver, and the creditor had come.
Feng Chenyi pinched the sword pressed against Lord Lu's neck with two fingers and moved it outward by a fraction. Even just a fraction gave Lord Lu the feeling of escaping death.