Chapter 71

Prefecture office.

"Trash, all trash! We still haven't caught anyone yet!"

The Prefect was furious, his expression ugly.

He now regarded Yin Qi as a murderer; since the other party could sneak into the prefecture office and silently kill four foreigners, couldn't he also silently kill him?

There is only a thousand days of being a thief, where is there a thousand days of guarding against a thief?

Head Runner Wang and the others lowered their heads, not saying a word.

At this moment, a yamen runner ran over quickly and said, "My Lord, a Japanese person has come from outside, saying he is a classmate of Yin Xuan and wants to go to the jail to visit the Yin family?"

"A Japanese person!"

The Prefect was shocked, his face solemn.

He hadn't expected at all that a Japanese person would actually run out to intervene.

Refuse?

He didn't dare.

Two years ago, they suffered a crushing defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War; now, the imperial court is terrified of foreigners, and that includes the Eastern Ocean.

But agree, wouldn't his plan fall through?

The foreigners wanted to deal with the Yin family, and he was completely pushing the boat with the current.

He could solve the case and also reap a good benefit.

As for Yin Chengtao's friend working in the Ministry of Personnel, he would just push all the responsibility onto the foreigners when the time came.

After struggling for a long time.

The Prefect gritted his teeth and said, "Let him go."

Although benefits were important, he didn't dare to offend the Japanese; if things went wrong, he might even lose his own official hat in the end.

As long as one keeps their youth, are they afraid of having no benefits?

"Yes, My Lord!"

The yamen runner nodded and turned to leave quickly.

Just as he walked out the main gate, a clerk walked toward him quickly and entered the main hall.

The clerk held a stack of paper drafts in his hand and said in a deep voice, "My Lord, I have a major discovery: this Yin Qi is very likely the famous Ximen Yaochuixue."

"What, Yin Qi is Ximen Yaochuixue?"

The Prefect's face changed again, and he exclaimed.

Ximen Yaochuixue was a famous scholar known throughout the world.

One of the promoters of the vernacular Chinese movement, the creator of vernacular poetry, and an object of admiration for countless people.

He was also a Confucian scholar and knew very well the terrifying influence of such a figure.

Not to mention anything else, if the other party just scolded him in the newspaper, he would definitely become notorious and be denounced by countless people.

The clerk nodded and said, "Yes. This is a paper draft we found in Yin Qi's study, which includes unpublished vernacular poetry and unpublished subsequent chapters of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*."

The Prefect hurriedly took the paper drafts and quickly checked them, his face becoming more and more solemn.

His expression changed, and finally a fierce look flashed in his eyes: "Come, seal the *Ming Pao* newspaper office for this official, and arrest Tao Chengzhang and Zhou Zhangshou. Also, continue to search for Yin Qi; without my order, the city gates are not allowed to be opened."

Since he had already done it, there was no way back.

To avoid Yin Qi's future revenge, he could only try his best to strike the other party down with one blow.

Jail.

The world was in chaos, so naturally there were more prisoners.

Today the government arrested dozens of members of the Yin family, resulting in there not being enough cells, so they could only put seven or eight people in one cell, among which Yin Chengtao's family of four were locked together.

Yin Chengtao and his wife, as well as Yin Xuan and Yin Shishi, were still confused until now.

Why did the government want to arrest them?

Although they didn't know the specific reason, seeing the foreigners beside the Prefect, they could probably guess some reasons—it was nothing more than the Prefect being sycophantic to foreigners and acting as their accomplice.

Thinking of this, Yin Chengtao and Yin Xuan felt despair in their hearts; they knew the government's methods too well.

Yin Mu held her handkerchief and shed tears secretly.

Although Yin Shishi was still shaken, she knew that Second Brother had already escaped and would definitely find a way to rescue them.

Step! Step!

In the dim jail, footsteps approached.

Yin Chengtao and the four of them looked up and saw Fujiwara Jiro walking over with a yamen runner.

Seeing Fujiwara Jiro, all four eyes lit up, and they quickly stood up, because this Fujiwara Jiro was Japanese, and perhaps he could rescue them.

"Uncle, Aunt, Brother Yin, Little Sister Yin!"

Fujiwara Jiro arrived outside the cell; after greeting them, he waved his hand, and the yamen runner nodded and bowed before turning to leave.

Yin Xuan hurriedly walked forward and said excitedly through the fence, "Jiro, you've come."

Fujiwara Jiro nodded and said, "I also just received the news, so I rushed over. Brother Yin, are you all okay?"

Yin Xuan said, "We are fine for now. Jiro, you came from outside; do you know why the government wants to arrest us?"

Yin Chengtao and the three of them looked at Fujiwara Jiro upon hearing this.

Fujiwara Jiro said in a deep voice, "According to the news I received, it's because all the foreign technicians at your family's steam engine factory were killed, and someone informed that you secretly executed them because they no longer had any utilization value; it also said that the previous case of the murdered foreigners was also done by your Yin family, saying that you extremely hate foreigners."

"What, how is this possible?"

The four were shocked upon hearing this.

Yin Xuan said excitedly, "China really lacks technicians; we are happy that they are working for us, so how could we kill them all? Also, those foreigners living in the prefecture office, although we have some grievances with them, we have no enmity with the church, so how could we destroy their whole family for no reason? This is framing and entrapment!"

Yin Chengtao's face looked ugly.

He also thought it was framing and entrapment, but who exactly was this person?

At the steam engine factory, there were hundreds of workers.

Wanting to assassinate all the foreign technicians among them wasn't an easy thing.

Fujiwara Jiro sighed, "How could I not know it's framing and entrapment, but your government is inactive and even helps the Westerners act as accomplices; what can be done about this?"

Yin Xuan felt anger, unwillingness, and despair in his heart.

He had never hated the government and the Manchu Qing imperial court as much as he did at this moment.

To please the foreigners, they actually wantonly slaughtered the gentry!

Yin Chengtao and his wife, as well as Yin Shishi, all fell silent.

Fujiwara Jiro looked at everyone and gritted his teeth, saying, "Brother Yin, actually, there is a way to rescue you?"

Yin Xuan was startled: "What way?"

Fujiwara Jiro said, "We Japanese possess extraterritoriality in China; as long as you become Japanese, the Manchu Qing government naturally won't be able to do anything to you."

Yin Xuan frowned and asked, confused: "How to become Japanese?"

Fujiwara Jiro smiled slightly: "It's very simple. Since you and Xuezi have mutual affection, you can marry into my Fujiwara family, and then you will naturally be Japanese in the future."

Yin Xuan hurriedly asked, "Then what about my parents and little sister?"

Yin Chengtao stared at Yin Xuan with a fierce gaze, like a lion on the verge of going berserk.

And Yin Mu held him tightly, shaking her head with tear-filled eyes, her gaze filled with pleading.

She knew her husband hated the Japanese; he wouldn't even agree to Yin Xuan taking a Japanese woman as a concubine, let alone letting Yin Xuan marry into the family.

However.

This was a way for her son to survive!

Yin Xuan didn't notice his parents' expressions, but Fujiwara Jiro took it all in.

But he remained calm, thought for a moment, and gritted his teeth: "Sorry, Brother Yin, I have no way to help your parents. But Little Sister Yin, if she is willing to marry me as my wife, then she will naturally be Japanese."

"I don't agree!"

Yin Shishi's face changed, and she couldn't help but shout sternly.

Although she yearned for democracy abroad, she had been influenced by Yin Chengtao since childhood, and she had no good feelings toward Japan.

Yin Xuan hurriedly persuaded, "Little Sister, why don't you agree? I know you are worried about Mom and Dad; I also couldn't possibly watch Mom and Dad suffer the disaster of imprisonment. But only if we get out first can we think of a way to rescue them."

This was his true thought, not out of fear of death.

Furthermore, he didn't feel there was anything wrong here.

Yin Shishi said righteously, "I don't need him to rescue me; I believe Second Brother will definitely find a way to rescue us."

Yin Xuan stomped his feet and said, "Your Second Brother's martial arts are not bad, and he even has a Master Chen, but can they break in and rob the jail? Little Sister, listen to me; this is not the time to be willful. After we get out, I will naturally think of a way to rescue Mom and Dad."

"No, I won't be separated from Mom and Dad!"

Yin Shishi still shook her head firmly and said, "And Big Brother, Second Brother is far from what we see; if he wants to rescue us, he won't recklessly rob the jail. Anyway, I believe in him."

Yin Xuan said urgently, "Why won't you listen to reason? What kind of person is your Second Brother, don't I know? Furthermore, even if he could think of some way, wouldn't it be easier for him to rescue Mom and Dad after we get out first?"

(End of chapter)