Xia Yunfei gritted his teeth, in too much pain to speak. He called over an Imperial Guard to announce the Emperor’s decree, but added a private instruction: they must treat the Si family kindly.
"Do not be rude under any circumstances."
The leader of the Imperial Guard nodded. These Si family members were strange, but he didn't care about anything else as long as he could scrape together some personal profit.
He politely ordered the Si family to separate into men and women, then led his men to search the premises. The more they searched, the more alarmed they became; the Left Prime Minister's Manor, just like the Right Prime Minister's Estate, was completely empty.
He wasn't angry, though. He simply turned around and reported the situation to Xia Yunfei.
Xia Yunfei was startled. Could it be that it wasn't the Si family who had emptied his manor? He bit his lip and commanded, "Take them all away to prison and wait for the Emperor's judgment!"
"Huh?"
"Say that again. My ears are acting up; I didn't hear you clearly."
Si Jiuyue crossed her arms over her chest and scoffed.
Xia Yunfei immediately changed his tone, fawning, "Miss Si, this is the Emperor's decree. I have no choice in the matter. Please... if you would, please this way?"
"Fine!"
Si Jiuyue was finally satisfied with his attitude.
The Imperial Guard were shocked once again. It was their first time seeing a prisoner under arrest acting so arrogant. It was truly outrageous! They wouldn't have believed it if they hadn't seen it with their own eyes.
The Si family members themselves hadn't expected Si Jiuyue to get such a grip on Xia Yunfei in such a short time. She stepped forward to support Old Madam Si and followed the Imperial Guard out of the Si residence.
"Grandmother, Father, Second Brother, Third Brother, sisters-in-law, let’s go!"
The Si family members gasped in shock. They still had silver hidden in their pockets. They hadn't expected the officers to stop searching them! Jiuyue was truly impressive!
Everyone followed behind Si Jiuyue. There wasn't a trace of fear on their faces; instead, they felt as though nothing could daunt them.
After arriving at the prison, the Emperor didn't even meet them. He merely sent another decree, stating that Prime Minister Si had colluded with foreign tribes to plot treason, but in view of the family’s long history of loyal service, he would spare their lives.
However, they would not escape punishment. They were ordered to be exiled as commoners to Weijiqiao Village in Suizhou Prefecture, Suizhou Commandery, starting tomorrow.
That region was a desolate place of shifting sands and Gobi desert, with only tiny patches of oasis. Exile there was essentially a death sentence. Even as commoners, they were required to wear thirty-pound wooden shackles, which could not be removed even while sleeping at night.
Si Jiuyue wasn't worried in the least. She had her Dimension, she was well-versed in both letters and martial arts, and she had medical skills. She feared no one. She would just treat it as a trip to the Northwest.
Upon entering the prison, the Si family discovered that four or five hundred members of their extended clan had been thrown into jail with them. Seeing the main branch of the family, the extended relatives were furious, cursing the Si family incessantly.
The elderly aunts of Si Boyan were particularly vicious, jumping up and down with rage.
"You bunch of scourges! Si Boyan, tell us, why did you have to rebel? Rebellion is one thing, but you didn't even succeed, and now you’ve dragged us all down with you. Si Boyan, you really are a fool!"
"That's right! We were living perfectly fine, and now, because of you, our entire clan is finished!"
"Waaah, this is hateful! You all deserve to die!"
"Why don't you just go die!"
It turned out the ruthless Emperor hadn't just exiled the extended family; the entire clan was to be sent away. The prison was nearly bursting; even fellow villagers who shared their surname had been rounded up.
The Si Clan Patriarch remained silent. He had enjoyed many benefits from Si Boyan, and he couldn't bring himself to kick a man when he was down. The other villagers didn't have much to say either. They were used to farming; moving to a new place and suffering a bit more was just more of the same to them.
Only the married-off daughters of the Si family were livid. That included Si Boyan’s three elder sisters, one younger brother, and two younger sisters. Each of their households had been implicated as well. Some were in despair, while others sat in their cells, wailing.
Si Boyan hung his head, his face full of guilt. He hadn't wanted this, but he couldn't explain anything now. Could he tell them the Emperor had deliberately framed him?
Only Si Jiuyue was kept in a separate cell—a special treatment she had demanded from Xia Yunfei. The jailers knew Si Jiuyue was no ordinary person and didn't dare provoke her. They had never seen such treatment for a prisoner before; Si Jiuyue was the first.
Night fell. Everyone sat on the floor, dejected and wilted like frost-bitten eggplants. The prison was dark and damp, filled with fleas and rats. The Si family could only sigh and endure it.
Because they were young, the two Si sons were allowed to stay with their mother. Si Yunche rubbed his shriveled stomach and looked at his mother pitifully. "Mother, Che'er's stomach is empty. Che'er wants to eat. Che'er is so hungry." Madam Fang sighed and patted his small head. "Just endure it, dear. There will be food in the morning. Just hold on!"
Seeing his brother about to cry, Si Yunjin quickly sat beside him and patted his own stomach. "Brother, hold on. Jin'er is hungry too, but Jin'er can endure it."
"Okay!" Si Yunche’s small face crinkled as he listened to his stomach growl helplessly.
Si Jiuyue, kept in the innermost cell with no one around, finally dared to enter her Dimension. She quietly retrieved her Invisibility Cloak, used a pair of pliers to pry open her lock, and then locked it back up behind her.
She left a note on the ground: *I will return by the third watch. If you dare to investigate, watch your own lives.*
Donning the Invisibility Cloak, she left the cell. She was relieved to see that her family hadn't suffered any physical abuse, but she didn't dare bring food out from her Dimension yet, fearing she would terrify them. She had to think of another way.
When she walked past a female jailer, an idea struck her.
She took a plate of mung bean cakes from the Dimension, placed it out of thin air behind the jailer, and blew into her ear. The jailer jumped in fright.
"Who... who is there? Come out!"
"I’m not afraid of ghosts or spirits! Come out!"
The plump jailer held a wooden truncheon, her legs trembling. Si Jiuyue whispered eerily into the jailer's ear:
"You... bold... jailer. I am an ancestor of the Si family, come from the underworld to protect my descendants. Go, give these mung bean cakes to the women of the Si family, or I shall drag you down to the underworld with me this instant."
"Go... now!"
She dragged out the end of the note, sounding exactly like a vengeful spirit from a ghost story.
The jailer looked left and right, seeing absolutely nothing. Then she turned around and saw a large plate of mung bean cakes sitting on the table behind her. At the sight of the cakes, her hair stood on end.
"Ye... yes, I’ll go right away, I’ll go right away! Please, don't hurt me!"
Her voice was thick with impending tears.
By then, the prisoners had all been changed into uniform white prison robes. The jailer searched for a while until she found the cell housing the women of the main branch of the Si family.
She tossed the mung bean cakes inside with a vicious scowl.
"Here, take this! And don't you dare speak a word of this!"
The women of the Si family stared at the plate in stunned silence.