The Ace Bigshot Becomes A Farmgirl

Shu Yu said, looking at Wei Qin, ”Did you accidentally board the wrong ship last May, the one where the Cheng siblings were, and thus became a servant in their household?”

Wei Qin was still in a daze. What did she just hear? Shu Yu said... she’s the county magistrate’s identity??

She’s the county magistrate?!

And what about Lord Cheng, aren’t they just ordinary wealthy families? They actually have such noble status?

”...Cousin Sister-in-law?” Shu Yu looked at her with some concern, ”Are you feeling unwell? Perhaps you should rest first, and we can come back later.”

Wei Qin snapped back to reality, ”No, I’m fine.”

She swallowed a bit, ”Are you really the county magistrate?”

Shu Yu, ”...”

She couldn’t help but exchange a glance with the others in the room, then chuckled, ”I am indeed the county magistrate, but that doesn’t really concern our relationship. You’ll understand it eventually.”

”Oh, oh oh.” Wei Qin quickly responded, ”By the way, what did you ask me just now?”

Shu Yu repeated the question, and Wei Qin replied, ”Yes, I did board the wrong ship at that time. After getting on the ship, I hid on the second level. Usually, the third level is where the distinguished guests reside, but the second level is where the servants of those guests live.”

During the day, those servants have to attend to their masters, so they are not in the rooms, which allowed her relatively more freedom.

Especially since the room she was hiding in belonged to Cheng Jiatong’s maid. Cheng Jiatong didn’t want to go to the southwest, so she made a fuss all the way, and the maid had to be by her side almost all day long to receive orders.

Before boarding the ship, she had bought some steamed buns and pancakes, surviving on these for three days on the ship.

Later, she had to scour other parts of the ship for food. The first two times were okay, but the third time she was caught red-handed by the two maids living in the room.

The maid brought her before the Cheng siblings. When Cheng Wen heard that someone was hiding in their maid’s cabin, he immediately said he wanted to throw her into the water. Previously, Wei Qin didn’t understand why he would kill without asking questions during their first meeting. After this incident, she understood that Cheng Wen must have done something heinous and thought she was hiding on the ship on purpose, intending to silence her directly.

But Cheng Jiatong, although both foolish and wicked, didn’t dare to take a life directly.

She asked about Wei Qin’s background and learned she was trying to go northward, then laughed to the point of tears, telling her that this was a southbound ship.

It was only then that Wei Qin realized she boarded the wrong ship in panic and wanted to disembark immediately.

But Cheng Jiatong didn’t agree. She saw Wei Qin as a source of amusement, not only forbidding her to disembark and find another route north but also falsely accusing her of stealthily stealing her belongings.

Wei Qin either had to sign a contract of servitude to become her servant, or when the ship docked at the next pier, she would send Wei Qin to the authorities.

Wei Qin didn’t dare to meet the authorities. She was nominally still the wife of that wealthy merchant, and if she met the authorities, she would surely be sent back to the merchant’s home in Huajiang Prefecture, where she’d continue living a life of eternal darkness confined to the back courtyard.

She had only just managed to escape and, if sent back, they’d definitely guard her even more strictly. She’d probably never get out again, nor see her own son for the last time.

She didn’t want to sign a contract of servitude and become a servant of the Cheng family, as there was no freedom there either.

But at the time, she had no choice, and based on Cheng Jiatong’s words and implications, she feared the only path was to sign the contract of servitude. If she were sent to the authorities, the outcome might be the same...