Chapter 79 Chapter 79 "You killed me on purpose."...

The man said nothing with a cold face.

Jasmine didn't ask any more questions, bowed, and walked with Shancha to a place farther away from Kyoto City without stopping.

After buying a bowl of rice from a farmer's house, the two of them squatted outside the yard to share the food.

Who else in this world has the ability and courage to save her? It's none other than He Congde.

The more she owed him, the more guilty Jasmine felt.

Shancha took a few bites of food and her mind started to work. "Besides Lord He, I can't think of anyone else. If we can go back, my wife might as well agree."

Jasmine: "Do you think the He family would want a murderer?"

Shan Cha shook her head in frustration. She was so confused. The He family didn't know before, but now that they knew her wife had killed someone, how could it be possible?

"Ma'am, where are we going next?"

"Walking is too slow. We have to find a car."

"It would be great if our car could also get out of the city." Shancha lamented.

"The people of Jingzhao Prefecture know that we have a carriage, and the driver must have been searched more thoroughly. That person was right to ask us to abandon the carriage. Let's go."

There was no place in the country where they could find a carriage. The two of them first took an oxcart to the market. Coincidentally, when Jasmine asked, someone offered to sell her the carriage and asked how much she wanted.

The horses had to be bought separately, and the carriages had to be provided separately, which all took time. Jasmine couldn't wait any longer, so she generously quoted a price, and the man readily sold the carriage to them.

Jasmine collected a lot of dry food along the way, filled half of the carriage, and then continued on her journey without stopping.

Jasmine originally wanted to go east, but the man who saved her before appeared again and told them to go south.

Jasmine didn't know the reason, and the man didn't say it either, but if the man was really sent by He Congde, Jasmine would of course believe him.

When the man saw her going south without saying a word, he was surprised that the little girl actually believed him, and he felt relieved.

If the Duke hadn't interfered, the man felt that the master and servant had a good chance of escaping.

I just hope they can escape further away so he can repay the favor.

The man watched the carriage go away. In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people appeared beside the carriage.

The carriage was surrounded, and the man immediately stepped forward with a knife.

Jasmine leaned out of the car window and looked at the scene in front of her with fear. She looked at the man with worry, fearing that he would die under the siege of the soldiers.

Fortunately, the man was a better fighter than she expected.

The man even took the time to turn around and yell at her: "Go!"

Jasmine didn't have time to say anything else. She retracted her head, pulled the frightened Shancha aside, and went to drive the carriage herself.

"Gee!" He flicked the whip and the horse started to gallop.

Jasmine cried with joy, thinking that she had made the right choice in buying this horse!

But immediately, the smile on her face disappeared.

How come... the horses are running away, but the carriage is still standing there?!

Jasmine glanced around and saw the tall and graceful Duke standing on her left, staring at her with a solemn expression.

Jasmine glanced away and went to look for the man who had rescued them, only to see him being attacked from both sides by Chunli Zuohe and was captured.

The chief of the Jingzhao guards, who arrived a step late, came forward to thank the Duke.

"Thank you, Duke, for your great help!"

"With so many people, they let two girls escape one after another. I should practice my skills when I get back."

The head guard quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead and replied "yes".

"Go ahead."

The head guard stood still and asked stubbornly, "Did the Duke personally take the prisoner back?"

"I have a mission here."

The chief guard immediately understood and called two soldiers to "invite" the prisoner to get off the car.

Jasmine stopped in front of the Duke as she passed him. She felt so sad. "Do you really want my son to die?"

There is nothing more heartbreaking than the person she loves trying to kill her.

"You brought this upon yourself." Four emotionless words.

Jasmine's heart was broken into pieces. At this moment, she still hated him a little.

She picked up a handful of grass and threw it at the Duke's face.

"What are you doing? Go!" Jasmine was pushed on the shoulder by the guard and had to move forward.

She heard someone behind her concerned about the Duke: "Is the Duke okay?"

But I didn't hear his voice.

Shancha's legs were weak and her face was covered with tears. Chunli kept his eyes on her, trying to tell her not to be afraid and that he would find a way to get her out.

But Shancha didn't even look at him.

...

The concubine was arrested, and it was the Duke himself who did it. This news spread quickly throughout Kyoto.

In short, the Duke has not yet returned to the capital from Ludao, and people inside and outside the capital admire the Duke very much.

Look how selfless the Duke is!

"That woman deserves this bad luck. If she hadn't left the Duke's Mansion and committed suicide, she would have been able to save her life."

"It seems that the Duke hates that woman to the core!"

"Minister He is a good official. But he has also suffered great misfortune."

He Mansion.

Mrs. He learned that Jasmine had been arrested, and also found out that He Congde had recruited experts to try to rescue Jasmine and escape. Mrs. He fainted on the spot again.

When Mrs. He woke up, tears started to fall before she opened her eyes.

She never thought that He Congde would help that vicious woman escape!

Mrs. He was afraid that the He family would become the laughing stock of the entire Kyoto city and that the father and son would lose their official positions because of this, but what she feared most at the moment was that He Congde would do something even crazier for that woman.

"Madam, Madam..."

Mr. He noticed her cheek twitching and called out to her.

Suddenly, Mrs. He sat up, pushed Mr. He aside, and rushed to the dressing table. She picked up the scissors on it and pointed them at her neck.

Mr. He was so scared that he turned around in circles.

"Go, tell him, do you want Qin Baixiang or his mother?"

"Madam, we can talk it over. You absolutely cannot..."

"Tell him! If he doesn't come back before evening, just tell him to go to my funeral! Go now!"

"I'll go, I'll go right away..."

Mr. He stepped back step by step, stumbling out of the door before turning around, grabbing the hem of his clothes, and rushing out of the mansion.

Duke Yan's Mansion.

Large landlord's yard.

The old man sighed and said, "Erlang hates Aunt Moli to the core. But it's no wonder, that woman is really evil to the core. Look, she's a liar, a cheater, and now she's even worse, she's a murderer. Fortunately, I didn't run into such a person, otherwise I would have been scared and couldn't sleep these days."

The eldest young lady's wife was also shocked, but it wasn't because of Jasmine's murder, but because of the Duke.

She had always thought the Duke favored the concubine, but now it seemed that wasn't entirely true. She had even thought the Duke was extraordinary, but now she realized he was no different from the eldest and fourth masters, equally cold-hearted. They were indeed brothers.

The old man was still rambling on. He was talking about how cruel and ruthless the concubine was. "...I heard, her own parents said, that she secretly hid a pair of scissors, waited for a man to take the bait, and then stabbed him in the heart, killing him on the spot! And she was able to escape. This woman is not simple."

The eldest young lady's wife listened impatiently: "Her parents say so, right? Who knows if her parents are helping outsiders?"

The old man subconsciously retorted, "How is that possible, ma'am? They are her biological parents. If her parents didn't feel guilty, she would have killed someone and just escaped. Her parents wouldn't have stood up to testify to outsiders."

The eldest young lady's wife said: "Maybe her parents don't love her?"

Grandpa: "There are no parents in this world who don't love their children."

The eldest young lady's wife: "Why not? My father doesn't love me."

The uncle, who had received many benefits from his father-in-law, immediately spoke up for his father-in-law: "It's not that the father-in-law doesn't love the lady, it's just that he loves his uncles and sisters-in-law more than the lady. If he really didn't love her, how could he give her everything she wants?"

"That's because..." The eldest young lady was so angry that she knew she was talking to a deaf person. She waved her hand and refused to argue with him anymore.

The eldest young lady then said, "Also, I heard that the man who was killed was killed because he bullied her. If that's true, then that bastard didn't die unjustly."

The master corrected her, "Madam, you heard wrong. That man is your aunt's fiancé. A woman obeys her husband at home and after marriage. Her parents betrothed her to that man, and no matter how unhappy she is, she cannot kill him. What do you think, Madam?"

The eldest young lady snorted arrogantly, "Unwilling? Forced? Even if you want me to, I'll kill you!"

The old lady who was sighing was suddenly frightened by the sound coming from the main room.

She stopped talking to Nanny Qian.

After a while, the old lady sighed again and said, "The Duke has really grown up. Compared to his father, he seems to be more..."

The old lady couldn't bring herself to say the word "cold-blooded". She only thought to herself, the Duke paid her respects every morning and evening, and kept calling her "mother". Did he really respect her?

Or was it just to maintain the dignity of the Duke's Mansion? The old lady couldn't guess.

Originally, the old lady thought she should be happy that her aunt had been caught, but now, for some unknown reason, she felt particularly heavy-hearted.

The old lady extended her hand, and Nanny Qian understood and helped her back to the house.

Four rooms in the west courtyard.

The Fourth Young Master's wife smiled and said, "I didn't believe it at first, but now I suddenly do. The Duke is truly so heartless to everyone. After all, I've been with him for over a year."

Ting'er: "That shows that the Duke is fair and treats everyone equally."

"Yes, everyone is treated equally. I originally thought that if anything happened in this mansion, at least I could be relied upon. But now it seems that is not entirely true. I am afraid that if something happens, before outsiders react, the Duke will kill his own people first."

Ting'er didn't dare to respond.

The Fourth Young Master's wife looked sad and asked tentatively, "Ting'er, if I divorce, will my family support me?"

Ting'er lowered her head and dared not speak anymore.

Seeing this, the fourth young master's wife turned her head away in dismay.

...

Jingzhao government office.

Jasmine thought she would be detained in Jingzhao Prison for two days before being tried.

When she was still in the Duke's Mansion, she had inquired about it. There were especially many cases in Jingzhao Prison, but there was only one Jingzhao prefect.

So what to do? Just pick the important ones and try them first. Jasmine felt that a crime committed by an ordinary person like herself was not as important as any other case.

She definitely won't be tried so soon. She might even be imprisoned for six months or a year.

Jingzhao Prison wasn't a good place to go, but it was better to live a miserable life than to die. At most, it was similar to the home she had lived in for over ten years.

At least her parents are not in prison.

But what Jasmine didn't expect was that she didn't even go to the cell in Jingzhao Prison.

On the day she was escorted to Beijing, she went to the government office and met her parents and the lame man.

"It's her, it's her! She's my eldest daughter who has a ruthless heart and deserves to be stabbed to death!"

Qin the trafficker was originally facing the light, he squinted his eyes, and when he saw the person coming in clearly, he immediately shouted at the Jingzhao prefect who was behind the case.

"quiet!"

County magistrates from other places would bang the gavel themselves, but officials in Kyoto City had their subordinates bang the gavel themselves.

Especially since Jingzhao Prefecture was so grand and majestic, even if it wasn't his first time there, how could Qin the merchant not be afraid? He immediately fell silent.

Qin Ku was timid and didn't dare to speak. She just looked at Jasmine who walked into the yamen, her face full of surprise.

There was even a moment of doubt on his face. Is this really their eldest daughter?

Qin Kushi tried to pull Qin Fanzi's sleeve, but Qin Fanzi gave her a warning look, which Qin Kushi immediately understood.

It turned out that he was not sure either. The reason why he insisted that it was the person was that if he was not found, the money they had earned would be lost.

Qin the dealer didn't care about whether the person was right or wrong. As long as he insisted on his promise, he would get the money when he got out. From then on, he was also a well-known local rich man!

When Qin Kushi met Jasmine's gaze, she immediately confirmed that she had found the right person. The person before her was undoubtedly their eldest daughter, Qin Baixiang.

Qin Kushi's face was still full of confusion. She looked Jasmine up and down, wondering how she could have changed so much.

Although she looked like she hadn't washed or combed her hair for several days, her black hair, fair and rosy face, and voluptuous figure were completely different from the impression I had of Qin Baixiang. It was obvious that she had been living a good life in the past two years.

Qin Ku thought about her own suffering and her eldest daughter's carefree life outside, and her heart was filled with endless resentment.

She stared at the person in front of her.

Lame knelt down politely and kowtowed to the prefect who was standing above him, saying, "Your Excellency, I am certain that this person is my future wife, Qin Baixiang."

Jasmine glanced coldly at Qin the trafficker and Qin Kushi. After hearing what Lame said, she glared at him with disgust and spat directly on the top of Lame's head, which was covered with sores. "Who is your wife? Do you think you are worthy?"

The Jingzhao prefect had seen many a scene, and he'd seen plenty of shrews. But the woman before him still frightened him. Was she truly a concubine from the Duke's mansion?

The Jingzhao prefect couldn't help but turn around and look at He Chenshi, who was hiding in the dark. Was He Chenshi really willing to marry this woman?

I'm afraid he was coerced or caught with some serious evidence?

Like the dealer Qin, the lame man only wanted to get the money quickly. After dividing the money, he could live a carefree life. If he lost the woman, he could find another one, but money was hard to come by.

Besides, even if he had nine lives, he would not be able to deal with someone as vicious as Qin Baixiang.

The lame man rushed forward and said, "Sir, my fellow villager Erhei was murdered by this woman. Please sentence her to death!"

Qin the peddler followed suit and prostrated himself: "I will also obey your orders, sir!"

Qin Kushi knelt behind Qin the trafficker.

The Jingzhao prefect said sternly, "Why do I need you to teach me how to do things? Why don't you take my place?"

The three of them lowered their heads and trembled, not daring to say anything.

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Lame, please explain the whole story clearly."

They had clearly told the official everything they had said when they came to report it, so why did the official keep asking questions? Lame was puzzled, but thinking that his words were flawless, he cooperated and did as he was told.

"...Erhei initially offered Qin the peddler a betrothal gift, intending to marry his daughter, Qin Baixiang. However, the girl refused to agree, so I wondered if she would be attracted to me. It just so happened that Qin the peddler owed me some money, so I decided to use the debt as a betrothal gift and come to ask for her hand in marriage. Unexpectedly, the girl was so vicious and killed Erhei. Fortunately, I ran away quickly."

Jasmine glared at him fiercely, then turned to the Jingzhao prefect and said, "Sir, he's lying. They broke into my bedroom in the dark of night. They wanted to bully me, so I had no choice but to do it."

The lame man nodded repeatedly: "Your Excellency, he is telling the truth. I beg your forgiveness."

Jasmine hadn't expected him to admit it. She stared at Lame in disbelief.

The lame man continued, "I was indeed possessed by a devil. I thought that the girl had to obey her father, as per her parents' orders and the matchmaker's words. Since her father agreed to marry her to me, it was normal for me to want to try to get along with her beforehand. Unexpectedly, Erhei also showed up. He refused to give up and insisted that Qin Baixiang make her own choice. The girl kept hiding in her room and refused to come out. I had no choice but to go in to look for her."

Jasmine said quickly, "Sir, it was Qin the dealer who lost money gambling and deliberately sold me to two families. Afterwards, the two families came to my house, and Qin the dealer asked them to bully me together. They deliberately touched my bed. This was not a matchmaker's words or my parents' orders! They are not worthy of being my parents! They are not my parents!"

Qin the peddler had a ferocious look on his face as he rushed forward and said, "Sir, this girl is not only vicious and cruel, but she's also cold-hearted towards her parents and brothers at home, treating them like enemies. When she was little, she was a beggar on the street. I took pity on her and picked her up, but she's become such a scoundrel!"

Qin Ku slapped her thigh and cried, saying that her life was miserable. Her words implied that she should not have raised her in the first place, and that she would not have gotten into the trouble today.

"Sir, it's true that they picked me up, but I didn't beg them to do so. They picked me up just because they wanted me to work for them and then sell me for a good price. Later, they treated me badly, and when I wanted to leave, they locked me up and beat me." Jasmine argued.

Qin the trafficker then explained, "Your Excellency, I have worked so hard to raise her. Now that she despises our poverty and wants to run away now that she has grown strong enough, I will not allow her to do so."

Qin Kushi echoed, "Your Excellency, the most important thing is that I have worked so hard to raise her. Seeing that she is still young, I am afraid that she will be in danger if she goes out. I and my husband can't bear to see our daughter. She has repeatedly tried to leave home, and my husband has threatened to break her legs. But that is not the case."

Jasmine rolled up her sleeves and said, "Everything I said is true. My old arm injury is proof! My lord, you can call a doctor and he'll tell you for sure!"

"quiet!"

The official slammed the gavel.

The entire yamen suddenly became quiet.

The Jingzhao prefect said sternly, "There's no need to discuss matters unrelated to this case. Next, I'll ask whoever you want to answer."

"Yes, yes."

"Listen to the adults."

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Qin Baixiang, do you admit that you are Qin Baixiang?"

Jasmine felt that the Jingzhao prefect was out of his mind. When had she not admitted it?

Jasmine was impatient inside, but she didn't dare show it on her face. She replied, "I admit it."

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Qin Baixiang, do you admit that you killed Liu Erhei with these scissors?"

The evidence pair of scissors was brought over. Jasmine recognized it immediately. She quickly glanced away and said, "I admit it."

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Since you admit it, do you have any objection to the confessions of your parents and the lame man?"

Jasmine naturally disagreed. She raised her eyes and said to the Jingzhao prefect, "Please understand, Your Excellency. I did not kill Liu Erhei on purpose. It was Liu Erhei who bullied me first, and I accidentally did it!"

The Jingzhao prefect didn't question the lame man and the others again. He just looked at Jasmine sternly and said, "You killed him on purpose."

This is not a question.

Jasmine met the Jingzhao prefect's sullen gaze. She suppressed her trembling hands and feet and pretended to be calm, saying, "Your Excellency, this is not right."

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Why is what I said wrong? You hid the scissors yourself. Why did you hide the scissors? Have you always had the habit of hiding scissors, or did you hide them just for a few days?"

Jasmine was anxious and lied subconsciously: "I used scissors to cut the thread and forgot to put it back."

The Jingzhao prefect deliberately asked, "Are you saying you used this chicken-killing knife to cut the thread?"

Jasmine's heart was pounding, and she was silent for a moment. After a while, she replied, "My family is poor, and I only have a pair of scissors."

"Then tell me what you were doing with the thread? To mend clothes? Whose clothes were you mending? And didn't you feel a pang on your head when you accidentally dropped the scissors on the bed?"

"My own clothes. The pillow was so high that I really didn't notice."

"What pillow do you use?"

Jasmine: "Straw pillow."

"My Lord, she's lying!"

After Jasmine finished speaking, Qin Kushi stepped forward and said enthusiastically, "She didn't even have a pillow to sleep on those days! There was a leak in her room, and the whole bed was flooded. The pillow got moldy and buggy, so she threw it away! I asked her to pick it up, but she refused. So I remember this very clearly."

"Qin Baixiang, do you have anything else to say?" She lied again and again. The prefect of Jingzhao obviously lost his patience and looked at her more sternly.

Jasmine doesn't want to die.

If the ruling is that Erhei bullied her first and she killed to protect herself, then there is still room for maneuver.

Jasmine bit her to death because she wasn't careful. "I remembered it wrongly. I didn't sleep with a pillow that night. I did leave a pair of scissors on the bedside table. Erhei suddenly pounced on me, and I desperately grabbed something nearby to block it. Who knew it would be a pair of scissors?"

Jasmine squeezed out two tears, her lips pursed, looking incredibly helpless and pitiful. She had thought about this so many times, and it seemed like she had shed all the tears she needed. Now she could only force herself to shed a few more.

"Please understand, sir. I am the victim! I didn't mean to do it. I really didn't mean to do it..."

"Whether it was intentional or not is not up to you to decide. I will make my own judgment."

The Jingzhao prefect didn't expect this to be such a tough nut to crack. What a trick! He refused to admit it even if he was beaten to death!

"Let me ask you a different question. How did you kill Liu Erhei?"

"I use these scissors."

"I know the scissors you used. I want you to describe in detail how you took the scissors and how you moved them. Please repeat it again."

Jasmine watched as the bailiff approached her carrying a tray of scissors.

Just as she opened her mouth, the Jingzhao prefect spoke first, "Don't tell me you forgot too."

Jasmine stared at the scissors before her and slowly reached out. She controlled her trembling fingertips, touched the scissors, raised her hand again, and switched direction.

Jingzhao Prefecture Governor: "Why? Do you need to think about it for a long time? Logically speaking, you shouldn't forget about killing someone."