Chen Yu held the face towel in both hands, still hesitant.

King Jing leaned close to her and whispered, "If you want to prove your innocence, you must clear yourself of suspicion. Wear a veil and let them identify you."

Shen Yu put on a face mask and slowly walked past everyone.

Everyone nodded in agreement. "It's her."

“Last night, she fled Chengyuan with two strong men. I saw it, and that’s what it looked like.”

"It was her. She was the one who snatched He'er from the maid. I tried to take He'er back, but she kicked me eight feet away."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yu, ignoring the pain in her buttocks, grabbed a maid in yellow and dragged her in front of Prime Minister Kong, saying:

“Prime Minister Kong, this maid said that the villain kicked her eight feet away. I, Mu Chenyu, have never practiced martial arts, so where did I get such strength? Obviously, the villain is a martial artist, not me, Mu Chenyu.”

"This is not sufficient evidence."

“I have witnesses.”

A woman's voice came from outside the door. Everyone looked over and saw Bao Qianqiu leading a group of guards in. He walked up to Kong Xiang, bowed slightly, and then said:

“Your Excellency, these are the guards at the east and west city gates. They can testify that Mu Chenyu left the capital yesterday at Shenshi and did not return.”

The guards chimed in, "Yes, I was on duty at Shenshi (3-5 PM) and I saw Miss Chenyu leave the city with my own eyes."

"The guards at the East Gate did not see Miss Chenyu enter the city."

"Yes, Miss Chenyu is not suspected of committing the crime."

Kong Xiang was embarrassed. He had originally wanted to close the case as soon as possible and give Hongyu an explanation, but these people's testimony hindered the progress of the case.

He slammed his gavel in anger, glared at Bao Qianqiu, and shouted, "As the sister of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, how dare you trespass into the government office! Get out!"

Bao Qianqiu was speechless. Previously, these elders had intended to arrange a marriage between her and Song Hua, and she had always respected Prime Minister Kong. Even now that Prime Minister Kong was scolding her, she felt that she had been impolite and quickly bowed her head to apologize.

At this moment, Chen Yu strode over, stood in front of Bao Qianqiu, pointed at Kong Xiang and scolded, "You, the prime minister of a country, are unable to distinguish right from wrong. Just because I look similar to the criminal, you want to convict me? I think you are a toad trying to eat swan meat. In order to curry favor with the plaintiff, you are bending the law here and are unfair!"

Bang!

Kong Xiang was furious. He slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly. Pointing at Chen Yu, he ordered angrily, "Mu Chen Yu has no respect for the law and has defied me. Take her away and give her twenty strokes of the cane! Open the gates of the yamen so that everyone can learn from this."

Upon seeing this, Prince Jing quickly left. He had already instructed Master Gu to search for the murderer of the jade, and if any suspicious clues were found, it could help exonerate Chen Yu. He then rode to the palace to request the Emperor's intervention.

The gates of the government office opened, and a crowd gathered outside the fence to watch.

Benches were set up in the courtyard, and two yamen runners stood on either side, each carrying a wooden stick.

Shen Yu was brought up by two yamen runners and pressed down on a bench.

"beat!"

At Kong Xiang's command, two yamen runners swung their wooden sticks high, and with a snap, Chen Yu closed her eyes tightly and clenched her lips.

Didn't you call?

Shen Yu turned her head and saw a masked man protecting her. He had striking peach blossom eyes and fair skin. His mask was hanging down, and she could see his full face: cherry-red thin lips and a pointed chin.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears, and she smiled through her pursed lips.

Unexpectedly, after just over ten days, the lame man's abscesses disappeared, and his skin returned to normal.

At this moment, Kong Xiang leaned forward, squinting at the lame man. He remembered that last year when Japanese pirates attacked the southeastern coast, he had also gone to provide support. Unfortunately, he had fallen into the pirates' trap, but fortunately, a General Yu came to his aid and saved his life. The masked man in front of him looked remarkably like General Yu.

He lightly tapped the gavel and asked, "Who is this person? Why are you obstructing my judgment?"

The lame man straightened up, wanting to go and speak to Prime Minister Kong, but he stopped in his tracks as soon as he lifted his foot, fearing that the yamen runners would continue the torture.

He pointed to the door and said, “Sir, the guards of Qinghe County can all testify that Mu Chenyu returned to Qinghe County yesterday and did not leave. Whether it was Zhao Kang’er or He’er, they were both kidnapped by villains at night. How could it be Mu Chenyu? I hope you will investigate thoroughly, sir.”

What? The cripple spoke? His voice was as loud and clear as when they first met, and it was quite pleasant to hear.

Shen Yu was shocked, but also wept with joy. Through her blurred vision, she saw the cripple, who was indignant, with his arms hanging down, glaring angrily at Kong Xiang with a righteous indignation.

Kong Xiang, unusually, did not get angry. He explained to the lame man in a gentle voice, "It is not that I am not listening to your testimonies, nor that I am biased towards Zhang Hongyu."

The fact that the city gate guards did not see Mu Chenyu is not enough to prove anything, because there are also boats traveling between Qinghe Village and the capital's docks.

Besides, both Chengyuan and the Zong family have confirmed that Mu Chenyu abducted the child. Do you still dare to say she didn't go to the capital?

The courtyard fell silent instantly.

The cripple was extremely anxious. As soon as he and Old Li arrived in the capital, they heard about Shen Yu's case. When he arrived at the yamen, he saw the yamen runners about to torture Shen Yu, so he jumped over the fence to protect her.

Now, Kong Xiang suspects that Shen Yu took a boat to the capital. There are many boats at the dock, so he can only call all the boatmen to testify.

He walked towards Minister Kong, about to speak, but Minister Kong spoke first, "The docks have many ships, and countless ships from other places, making it a perfect hiding place for criminals..."

Kong Xiang's meaning was clear: the witnesses found at the dock were not sufficient evidence.

Then, Chen Yu shouted, "I, Mu Chen Yu, have never been to the dock. There is no need to go to the dock to find witnesses."

"The villain left the capital through the West Gate; I saw what he looked like."

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw a ragged beggar waving at Kong Xiang from outside the fence.

The beggar was dark-skinned and thin, but he did not appear weak; rather, he was strong, powerful, and naturally carefree.

Seeing the officials carrying a fence to make way for him, he leaped over the fence and entered the government compound. He then leisurely walked up to Prime Minister Kong, simply cupped his hands in a salute, and said, "My lord, I have seen what villains look like."

"Oh? The villain is masked, how can you see what he looks like?"

"Tch!" Brother Zhao chuckled. "A new brothel called Yihong Courtyard has opened in the capital. You've heard about it, haven't you, sir? Last night, I wanted to go in and have some fun, but I was kicked out because I didn't have any money. So I'm lying outside the city gate now."

Later, I saw the guards checking passing vehicles. A veiled woman leaned out of a window, her features strikingly similar to those of the beautiful Chen Yu. I thought I'd go closer for a better look, but then, as soon as the carriage stopped, the woman's veil fluttered up, and guess what?

Snap!

Kong Xiang slammed his gavel and roared, "Continue!"

"That woman's chin was sharp and thin, definitely not the round chin of Miss Chenyu. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'm afraid another miscarriage of justice would have occurred in the capital!"

Bang!

Kong Xiang slammed his gavel, interrupting Brother Zhao, and turned to look at Master Bai, whispering, "Go and call the painter over, and have him paint a portrait based on the beggar's description."

The portrait was drawn, and Master Bai looked at it in surprise and said, "Isn't this Qiu Shuang'er, the murderer in the Zhang Manguan case?"

Master Bai was shocked and hurriedly picked up the portrait to examine it closely. He was instantly dumbfounded. "No, Qiu Shuang'er was beheaded ten days ago. How could she have abducted the baby?"