After being reborn, I stole the female lead's cheat ability and raised the empress.

Chapter 243 Breaking Free (Part 4)

As everyone shared their stories, Zhao Jihua skillfully steered the conversation, extracting information from many officials.

She had already made up her mind; this farce should come to an end.

Zhao Jihua suddenly raised her voice, which boomed like a bell: "Enough! Do you know who you are talking to? I am Her Majesty the Empress!"

In an instant, the world seemed to freeze, everyone stood still, their anger and disdain turning into terror.

Zhao Jihua sat upright at the makeshift table, calmly watching the group of people being escorted in front of him.

She gently smoothed her sleeves, her voice low but carrying an innate authority: "Gentlemen, do you still remember how you spoke so arrogantly to me before?"

The village chief snorted coldly and said with his neck stiff, "Hmph, you think you're an empress? You're just an ignorant young girl who thinks she can control us just because she has some troops."

A villager with a fierce face chimed in, "That's right! We have the governor backing us up! You dare to touch us!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jihua's lips curled into a cold smile.

She stood up, looking down at the kneeling crowd, her face showing no smugness, only bone-chilling coldness and majesty.

"Raise your head!"

Everyone looked up nervously, but when their eyes met her cold, sharp gaze, they quickly lowered their heads again.

"I traveled here incognito, hoping to see the hardships of the people and the true state of the common folk under this peaceful and prosperous world. I never expected to witness such a deplorable scene!"

Zhao Jihua's words were filled with disappointment and anger: "You insulted officials of the imperial court, showed no respect for the law, and have corrupt officials backing you up, acting recklessly. How dare you!"

The village chief trembled with fear. "Your Majesty, we were blind! It was that prefectural official who gave us the idea. We were completely misled! Please, Your Majesty, have mercy!"

As he spoke, he kowtowed heavily again, and his forehead quickly became red and swollen.

"Your Excellency, humph! Very well indeed!" Zhao Jihua narrowed his eyes slightly, a cold glint flashing within them. "I will settle accounts with him myself. As for you, don't even think about escaping easily."

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, spare my life..."

Zhao Jihua loudly questioned, "Why did you commit such evil?"

The village chief said, "We had no choice. Years of famine forced us to resort to this heinous act in order to survive."

"To make a living? You could farm or do other jobs, or work in factories where the wages aren't bad... There are so many other options, yet you choose to let your wives sleep with other men and have their children! To put it bluntly, you're just lazy, greedy, and selfish!"

She turned to the generals behind her and said, "Lock all these people in prison. I will investigate the truth and then decide their fate."

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

The crowd cried and wailed, but Zhao Jihua remained unmoved.

She knew that if this matter was not dealt with seriously today, where would the authority of the national law be?

How can we appease the public?

After everyone was escorted away, Zhao Jihua gazed at the seemingly peaceful yet secretly decaying village.

He secretly vowed to eradicate the corrupt forces behind this and restore a true era of peace and prosperity to the people.

Xia Li, Zhao Jihua, and Tao Yao searched through the crowd for the woman who had helped them, and finally found her in a dilapidated house.

When the woman saw them, a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by worry.

“You’ve really come back, but my child…” The woman’s voice trembled, filled with worry.

Xia Li held her hand and comforted her, "Don't worry, we will protect your child and give you and everyone in the village justice."

After a search, the officers found the village's account books and related evidence, confirming the existence of surrogacy crimes in the area.

Those villagers involved were arrested one by one, and they will face severe legal punishment.

Looking at everything before him, Zhao Jihua was filled with mixed emotions.

Xia Li also earnestly recounted what she had seen and heard in the village, forcefully pointing out the harms of surrogacy and the practice of selling wives.

Zhao Jihua immediately issued an edict abolishing the practice of selling wives and making surrogacy illegal.

Finally, Xia Li and the others decided to help the village improve its livelihood, and the village chief also vowed to turn over a new leaf.

Zhao Jihua sneered: "Repent and start anew? Hmph! Sure, but you'll only be able to repent and start anew in the slave market."

Just then, a group of women rushed over, crying and shouting.

Their hair was disheveled, their clothes were tattered, and their faces were streaked with tears. "Your Majesty, please, please release our men!"

Zhao Jihua asked in bewilderment, "They treated you like that, and you still want to plead for them?"

A thin woman spoke first, her voice trembling with tears, almost pleading, "Although...although...we don't have men, how can we live!"

Her words acted as a fuse, instantly igniting the emotions of the other women, who echoed her sentiments, their cries and pleas for mercy mingling together.

Xia Li stood aside, looking at the chaotic scene, and frowned slightly.

She took a few steps forward, her posture upright and her expression resolute, her gaze sweeping over the faces of the group of women.

"Quiet down!" she said, her voice clear and strong, standing out in the noisy environment.

The women were stunned by her shout, and their crying gradually subsided.

"You say we can't live without men?" Xia Li's eyes revealed a hint of confusion and regret.

She shouted, "Sisters, broaden your horizons!"

It's not that you can't live without men, it's that you can't live well because you have men.

The women: ! ? ? ? !

They were so shocked they even forgot to cry.

Xia Li hesitated earnestly: "But normally, you surrogate mothers earn money to support the family and take care of the children. What have the men done? They sit back and enjoy the fruits of others' labor, idle away their time, and some even take money from home to gamble and beat their wives and children... Now that something has happened, you are still thinking about them."

As Xia Li spoke, she gently shook her head. "Think carefully, what would your lives be like without their burdens?"

It means working at sunrise and resting at sunset; it means not having to diligently serve him and constantly worry about being beaten or scolded by him for not doing enough; it means not having to worry about him selling your own children for money; it means not having to be unwillingly sent to other men's beds; and it means not having to keep giving birth! You don't have to give all the money you earn to him, but can spend it however you want...

Wouldn't your lives be easier and more harmonious?

The women looked at each other, speechless for a moment.

One of the slightly younger women muttered to herself:

"But...we're used to having men around."