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

Chapter 58 The Wind Rises

Since she wanted to teach the Third Prince a lesson, she naturally wanted to make things as big as possible.

The crowd fell silent instantly upon hearing this.

Looking at these people now, they'd be happy to be spectators, but if it involved them, they wouldn't stand idly by.

Being favored by the Third Prince, these people will only criticize her for not knowing how lucky she is.

So Ali said that she was just out for a meal and that the Third Prince had taken liberties with her, emphasizing that he was unwilling to give her a formal title.

She stood on the stage, tears welling up in her eyes: "If the Third Prince were willing to let me into his mansion, I would be willing to be a slave or maid. But, but he only wants to take advantage of me and has no intention of taking responsibility."

"Imagine your daughter, whom you raised with such difficulty, or your own sister, who, once taken a liking to a powerful and wealthy person, can only be played with and then they can just walk away. And your daughter's life will be ruined! Not only will she lose her chastity, but who would want someone the Third Prince has slept with, even a beggar thrown on the street? Aren't you afraid of becoming enemies with the Third Prince?"

“I know that women should not show their faces in public, but I have no choice. I have lost my innocence for no reason and have been suppressed by the Third Prince. I am the daughter of a Marquis, and I am treated like this. Then the wives and daughters of ordinary people will probably be beaten to death with sticks.”

Some people questioned, "How is that possible?"

"That's right, the Third Prince is usually very approachable, how could he possibly kill someone?"

Someone immediately explained, "There are plenty of pretentious people in the wealthy circles. This Third Prince's true nature has been revealed."

Ali ignored those words and just kept crying: "I, a young lady from a noble family, would not even be willing to be a maid, let alone a poor commoner? I'm afraid that after they've had their fun, they'll kill me to cover it up and avoid tarnishing their reputation."

"..."

Now, no one could find a reason to refute it, and they finally realized the seriousness of the matter.

Ah Li was extremely satisfied with everyone's awareness and performed even more energetically:

"I don't expect you all to fight against the royal family for my sake. I'm just saying this to warn everyone, and for all the girls to protect themselves. I'm relatively strong; I'm still alive and able to come out and warn everyone. But too many girls would probably think of suicide the first thing they do. My best friend from childhood is gone just like that, sob sob..."

She burst into tears at the opportune moment, feigning unbearable grief. It was as if she could no longer hold back her sobs. She choked out:

"Everyone, everyone must tell your neighbors, relatives and friends about this. I am not afraid of being disgraced, but I hope that no other girl will suffer the same fate as me."

Among those present were many who had been humiliated by prestigious families but could only remain silent. They too shed tears alongside Ali, stepping forward to admit that they had been violated.

"Just like this girl said, we are already like this, but we only want to help more people."

“Yes,” Ali concluded indignantly, “Moreover, it is the women who are forced, but it is us ordinary people who are oppressed. Who here, or anyone around them, has not been oppressed by those powerful and wealthy families? They eat the grain you grow, wear the cloth you grow, sleep with your wives, daughters, and sisters, and oppress your fathers and brothers. Why should we be bullied?”

People could no longer laugh. One by one, they lowered their heads. Most of those present were ordinary civilians, and the vast majority of them had been bullied. They seemed to have always been used to being oppressed, and even when they were beaten to death, no one knew how to resist.

"Why should we be bullied as human beings? Aren't we ordinary people the ones who work for the rich and powerful? If we don't listen to them and don't work for them, what are they if we're empty-handed?"

"Correct!"

"That's right!" they all exclaimed indignantly.

"Putting everything else aside, let's talk about food. Where does the palace get its food? They have to buy it from us. If we don't farm and sell to them, they won't even have enough to eat! Why should they eat our food and still bully us?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Everyone agreed.

"I'm saying this just to tell everyone that we are never inferior to others. They have money, we have food, cloth, and so on. We all exchange with each other. If we don't give them food, no matter how much money they have, they can only wait to starve to death. But we can grow food and weave cloth, so we won't starve to death. So, in some aspects, they are simply no match for us."

"They can't compare to us!"

At that moment, everyone straightened their shoulders, especially the farmers and grain merchants, who suddenly felt superior to others.

"Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. We are the water, and the royal family is the boat. We support them, and that's how they came to be. If we all opposed them, the Third Prince would never have been able to sit on that throne."

Seeing the fervor in everyone's eyes, Ali sighed, "Sigh, the masses... they never think for themselves, they just blindly follow the crowd. There's a good and a bad side to this."

Seeing that she had achieved her goal, Ali quickly stopped. She only wanted to use the masses to influence public opinion, but she never thought of leading them to rebel.

Even ten Alis couldn't withstand the chopping!

"In truth, our emperor is a rare and wise ruler, but he only has one pair of eyes and stands at a very high position, unable to see what is below. Some people have gone too far. The emperor is subject to the same laws as the common people. Therefore, this time, I will go to the palace to meet the emperor and, starting with the incident involving the third prince, tell him about these things that he has not seen. Let our people no longer live a life of oppression."

After saying that, Ali ran towards the government office. Many people spontaneously followed behind her.

The gatekeeper was startled to see a large, dark mass of people heading towards them. One of them immediately ran inside to report to the Prefect of the Capital:

"My lord, my lord! Something terrible has happened!"

The Prefect of Jingzhao was in his thirties, and coincidentally, his surname was Yin. He calmly sipped his tea, his face showing deep displeasure: "No manners!"

The servant immediately knelt down and said, "Sir, a huge group of people is rushing in aggressively!"

"What?!!"

Lord Yin was so frightened that his hand trembled, and he quickly led everyone out.

Ali handed over the complaint she had already written: "I'm here to file a complaint."

Lord Yin breathed a sigh of relief: "A whole bunch of people, I wondered what was going on. Turns out they've come to complain."

He unfolded the petition and his expression immediately changed: "How dare you slander the Third Prince! Guards! Give him thirty strokes of the cane!"

Ali pointed defiantly at the people behind her and said, "This is not slander; everyone here is a witness."

"Yes, yes, we are all witnesses."

Now Lord Yin couldn't punish him in public, so he could only say perfunctorily, "Alright, the complaint has been received. Go back and wait for news."

He turned around stiffly and walked back, his hands and feet trembling. My goodness, suing the Third Prince! This huge crowd of people is really scary.

It's really bad!

People say that the position of Prefect of the Capital changes hands frequently.

Lord Yin was on the verge of tears: his head felt like it was about to leave his body.

Ali also sent people to deliver petitions to the Court of Judicial Review and the Censorate, lest the officials in those offices be too low-ranking to file a complaint.

At that moment, the two men were having tea together. The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review and the Censor-in-Chief exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with solemnity.

"This matter..."

Inspector-General: "What are you looking at me for? Go see the Emperor!"