The magistrate paused, his eyes sharp, but he quickly returned to normal.

"So it's Guan Hong. I was wondering why I didn't see you this morning. What were you doing?"

Guan Hong showed no remorse. “Yesterday, I received a report that Su Xiucai’s sister had been kidnapped. Upon investigation, I found that the manager of Zuixianlou had taken her away.”

"Following the clues given by others, we found her in a mansion in the south of the county. Based on her description, we found the two girls who had just been murdered."

"Only when I went back into the house to check did I discover these tools used in the crime."

The soldiers behind them took out the tools used in the crime: whips, branding irons, bracelets, all stained with blood, and even fabric from the clothes of the two girls.

The two mothers nearly went crazy when they saw the tools; they never imagined the two had endured so much.

When Manager Wang saw those tools, he knew he was doomed. Unless he revealed Young Master Jiang, things would get out of hand.

Magistrate Jiang was furious: "Manager Wang, what else do you have to say? When you did all this, did you think about your wife, children, and parents? They are waiting for you at home."

His words were clearly a threat, causing Manager Wang to swallow the words he was about to utter.

He closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and buried his head in the ground: "This humble commoner deserves to die a thousand deaths!"

The magistrate was satisfied with his performance. As long as he admitted it, it wouldn't affect Feng'er.

"Alright, you can all leave now. This matter has serious implications, and I need to consult with my superiors. We will make it public in due course."

The magistrate gave Guan Hong a deep look, then strode away.

"Court adjourned!"

The two families sadly took their daughters away. Manager Wang, having admitted his mistake, quickly no longer needed witnesses, and the onlookers outside the courtroom sighed and left.

Su Yi took the day off today, so he naturally went back with him.

As soon as he entered, Liu Huan hurriedly asked him, "That Young Master Jiang is the real culprit, why did you stop me from reporting him?"

Just as Liu Huan was about to speak, Su Yi stopped her.

"This matter is not urgent. Once I find evidence against the magistrate, I will wipe them out in one fell swoop. This Manager Wang is just a tool to lower the Jiang family's guard."

Upon entering the Jiang family mansion, the county magistrate went straight to Jiang Feng's courtyard.

Jiang Feng was lying in bed, his body and face covered in wounds, and Madam Jiang was applying medicine to him with tears in her eyes.

"Ouch, it hurts, Mother."

Madam Jiang felt even more distressed: "Which heartless bastard dared to treat you like this? I'll make sure she suffers a terrible death."

When Magistrate Jiang entered and heard this, his brows furrowed even more. Madam Jiang, seeing the newcomer, went up to the magistrate and cried, "Brother, you must do justice for Feng'er! Look at what she's been beaten to!"

Magistrate Jiang snorted: "A doting mother spoils her son. His actions are related to you. You can leave now."

Madam Jiang was terrified of her brother-in-law and had no choice but to leave reluctantly.

Jiang Feng felt guilty and didn't dare to meet Magistrate Jiang's gaze.

Magistrate Jiang was furious. "Didn't I tell you not to act recklessly and to be careful? But you dare to mess with even Scholar Su's sister! I think you've become lawless!"

Jiang Feng himself felt wronged. "Uncle, this is not my fault. Blame that Manager Wang. He didn't explain things clearly and caused me to be so badly injured by that brat."

"Be more restrained in the future. Let's leave it at that for now. Since Manager Wang didn't remind you, let him take the blame for you. Don't cause any more trouble, understand?"

Jiang Feng was still unconvinced: "Uncle, are you just going to let all these injuries of mine go like this?"

Magistrate Jiang looked at him with disdain, "It's not worth it. I will stand up for you myself. Now is not a good time."

After finishing his speech hastily, he rushed back to the magistrate's residence to handle the aftermath.

A few days later, the verdict came out: Manager Wang was sentenced to twenty years in prison for murdering the girl and ordered to pay each family twenty taels of silver in compensation.

In one family where the girls were abused, apart from their own mothers, no one else had any objections or was even pleased.

Especially the men: "So much silver, it would only cost ten taels if we sold it."

“I’m warning you, don’t cause any trouble. If she hadn’t disobeyed and run away, none of this would have happened.”

The woman was so heartbroken that she fainted.

The other shop was the complete opposite; they didn't want money, they just wanted Manager Wang dead.

However, Jiang Feng still wanted to protect him; it was rare to have such an obedient lackey.

"Uncle, since they're making a scene, let's tell everyone that it's those two women who are indecent and greedy for money. Otherwise, who would like a child?"

Once this rumor spread, the people who had originally sided with the girl began to hesitate. With Jiang Feng bribing people to fan the flames, they naturally felt that the girl deserved it.

Guan Chang ate a kebab, his face filled with indignation. "This magistrate is inhuman. The person is dead, and he still slanders him like this."

Liu Huan had no appetite; she was too angry to eat.

Seeing their expressions, Su Yi said, "Don't worry, the retribution will come in a few days."

Sure enough, the girl's parents filed a complaint with the provincial government.

The prefect was a newly appointed imperial envoy, sent down specifically to investigate corrupt officials. As it turned out, Magistrate Jiang had run into the line of fire.

"You mean your daughter was murdered, but the magistrate handled it improperly?"

"Yes, sir. I have inquired and found that Manager Wang is a servant in the household of Magistrate Jiang's nephew. I believe that this matter is also related to that young master Jiang."

He said those words when he arrived, and a man in black even wrote him a complaint.

The prefect was a famous censor in the capital, upright and incorruptible. Upon seeing the charges, he wished he could tear those people to pieces.

"Let's go, let's go to Qingyang County first."

When Magistrate Jiang heard that the Prefect was coming, he was still surrounded by women and almost choked on his breath.

He hurriedly put on his trousers and went to the yamen, his hat even tilted to one side.

"I've met the adults."

Prefect: "I've heard that you treat human life with contempt. Is that true?"

Magistrate Jiang cursed the beggars under his breath, but quickly denied it aloud: "Your Excellency, I am innocent."

"Whether I have wronged anyone or not is for me to decide. Men, gather all the victims of this murder case here."

The previous judgment was disregarded. The prefect personally interrogated Liu Huan and summoned him for questioning before dismissing the crowd in the evening.

Magistrate Jiang stood beside him with a fawning expression, "My lord, I have prepared a small banquet and would be honored to have you attend."

The prefect waved his hand dismissively, "No need, I'm going out for a walk."

He looked down on the banquet prepared by Magistrate Jiang and refused to accept bribes.

A servant stepped forward and said, "Sir, I've heard that Chunhui Tower in Qingyang County is very famous. Why don't you go and take a look?"

He knew his elders loved gourmet food and insisted on trying local specialties wherever they went, so he had already inquired about it beforehand.

"Okay, let's go!" Although he didn't have high expectations for the food in this county, it was because he had been here before.

While Chunhui was busy, Xiaodong saw that the newcomer had an extraordinary demeanor and dared not delay, so he quickly stepped forward.

"Greetings, esteemed guests. There are no seats available inside. We will be sorry to trouble you to wait a little longer."

The people around the prefect wanted to reprimand him, but the prefect stopped them, saying, "It's alright, we'll just wait."

Seeing so many people inside, he wanted to see how delicious it was; it smelled quite good.