Jail

The Ministry of Justice Prison was an official prison in Chang'an, the capital of the Great Qi Dynasty, second only to the Heavenly Prison in importance. It was where people with heinous crimes or officials who had committed serious crimes and were awaiting execution were imprisoned all year round.

The small area was divided into several sections by iron bars. A passage led inside, and the entire space was dimly lit, giving the illusion of darkness. The bricks and stones on the walls and floor were mottled, and there were faint scratches near the iron bars. An indescribable fishy smell permeated the air.

The sound of hurried footsteps broke the silence, and noisy voices mixed with the woman's cries of pain came from the door.

"Hey, hey, be gentle, brother, it hurts!"

Being pushed into the cell, Aruo rubbed his shoulders, which were a little sore from being held behind his back, with a grimace in his mouth. "What kind of Ministry of Justice is this? They are clearly being unreasonable and abusing their power!"

In the passage where candlelight flickered, only figures were seen standing still, no one was moving. The guard in the corner ignored the complaints of the prisoners and stood aside loyally to his duty.

Suddenly, screams began to be heard one after another, each one shrill and piercing enough to make one's heart tremble. Aruo felt a chill in her heart and pursed her lips, not daring to complain anymore.

However, the single cell of six or seven square meters was empty, with only a narrow wooden bed and some dry grass beside it, emitting strange smells such as urine. Occasionally, there were some strange noises in the grass, which scared Aruo so much that he only dared to stay at the door of the prison and did not have the courage to sit on the wooden bed.

"Someone, come here! I'm being wronged!" Aruo waited for half an hour without any follow-up communication, and could not help but shout, "Su Zirui, you bastard who is seeking revenge for personal gain, come and interrogate me immediately! I'm an innocent citizen!"

"Little girl, were you wrongly imprisoned?"

A slow voice came from the next cell. Aruo was startled and turned his head suddenly, only to find that there was someone in the dark wall next door!

A shadow staggered over, his gray hair combed meticulously, his thin body covered with a half-worn robe, his eyebrows and beard hung on his thin face, hiding the thick wrinkles, his hands folded behind his slightly hunched back.

He walked a few steps with such difficulty that he sat on the ground, panting and holding onto the cell door. He looked kind and amiable, and had a scholarly air that was out of place in this prison. The old man adjusted the hem of his robe and waved to Aruo, "Come on, little girl, tell me what grievances you have."

Being in prison at such an old age, will he ever see the light of day again in this life?

Aruo suddenly felt that the people in the Ministry of Justice were too heartless and hard-hearted! Killing people is not the right thing to do. The man is so old, he won't live for many days even if he is out in the open, and they actually locked him up in jail!

Aruo poked her head out suspiciously. There was no one else in the dark corridor, and the two guards didn't move. She gave up and sat down next to the old man, chatting with him through the iron bars. "What's the point of telling you, old man? Can you help me?"

"We're both incarcerated, so it's better to speak out than to hold it in." The old man stroked his chest-length beard and spoke in a leisurely tone. "Besides, you kept calling officials' names in prison. Aren't you afraid of being dragged off and tortured?"

Aruo quickly covered her mouth, glaring with indignant eyes. "I'm being arrested and tortured just for calling my name? Is this place so ruthless? He locked me up without any reason and didn't even give me a chance to appeal myself?"

"So tell me, why did he lock you up in here?" The old man's persuasive tone reminded Aruo of the tone used by the actor Zhang when he was telling stories.

Aruo also wanted to know why she was imprisoned. She always felt that her life was at best a farming story, and would never become a suspenseful crime-solving story.

"What happened is, the prisoner he captured took me hostage, then the prisoner ran away, and I wasn't killed, so he thought I was in the same boat with the prisoner. Don't you think it's unfair? It's like frost in June!" Although it's only the end of March.

Feeling aggrieved, Aruo finished speaking in one breath, then folded his hands and looked at the old man angrily. He saw that he maintained the posture of sitting cross-legged, with his eyes drooping and his face peaceful.

"Old man, are you listening?" Aruo waited for a long time without any response, then bravely reached out to touch his nose. The old man suddenly looked up, frightening Aruo so much that he almost fell backwards and sat on the ground.

The old man, unaware that he had frightened someone, tilted his head and smiled slightly, "Haha, sorry, I'm old and I tend to doze off."

Aruo wiped his face, turned his back silently, grabbed the prison bars with both hands, and shouted outside, "Seek justice~"

"Hey, hey, hey, I heard it. Speaking of which, this kid was also fooling around. He finally escaped death, but ended up in the Ministry of Justice jail again. No wonder you said he abused his power." The old man stroked his beard and said slowly.

"Isn't it!" Aruo excitedly grasped the bars in front of the old man, resonating with him. "He's lying and framing loyal officials, yet he still claims to be a god at solving cases. This is clearly unworthy of his position!"

"Yeah, yeah, that's right, this kid is so bad." The old man nodded repeatedly with good temper, "It's been very boring these past few years. I thought he had turned over a new leaf, but I didn't expect him to be so bad."

"How many years? Old man, how long have you been in prison? Wasn't there an amnesty last year? What crime have you committed?" Aruo remembered that last year a favored concubine of high rank gave birth to a prince, and the emperor had issued a general amnesty. The floating population in the capital increased sharply, and the old man didn't even enjoy this benefit. The old man's crime was probably not small.

You really can't judge a person by appearance. At his age, he can still accomplish great things. On the other hand, she and Cai Xin, at such a young age, can only struggle to make a living. Aruo silently shifted her hips, creating a safe distance. The withered hands reminded her of the legendary Nine Yin White Bone Claw.

"Hehe, don't worry, little girl. He is just trying to scare you." The old man still had a kind look on his face.

Aruo looked at him suspiciously.

"Ahem, of course, it's also possible that you really will be sent to jail."

"Old man, you're kidding me." Aruo felt that he was far away from the days when he wanted to beat people at every turn. He patted his chest and silently told himself not to get angry. In this era, medical care is backward and blocked mammary glands can be fatal.

The old man suddenly came closer and said in surprise, "Oh, the little girl is pretty."

"...Thank you." Aruo curled the corners of his mouth. He had been around beautiful women for so long that he thought it was just an old lady chatting with him in good faith.

"Come, come, I'll tell you the boy's secret." The old man waved his hand and said kindly.

Although his long eyebrows obscured his obvious expression, Aruo still felt that the old man suddenly exuded a kind of gossip-loving aura. He shook his head decisively, "No need. I have no interest in his secrets."

What are the Four Princes of Beijing? Pah! What woman is so short-sighted as to fall for such a man? Cai Xin's information is incomplete. She did ask Zhang, the actor. Three of the Four Princes of Beijing are indeed the dreams of many girls, but this one is an exception!

“Know yourself and know your enemy, and you can fight a hundred battles without danger.” The old man narrowed his eyes slightly and twirled his beard, looking mysterious.

Aruo tilted his head and thought for a moment, "That's right, then I'd like to ask for your guidance, old man."

It would be best if this man had some secret like homosexuality, so that she could have a backup. Aruo guessed maliciously, pretending to listen.

"Su Zirui, though only a young man, has been in the Ministry of Justice for nearly five years. He's judged backlogs and doubtful cases, corrected unjust and wrongful convictions, and thoroughly pursued evidence, dealing with everyone from corrupt officials to the suffering common people without a word. He's a master of cases, akin to the Zhao Guanghan of the modern era. He's known for his sternness within the Ministry. Furthermore, due to his brutal torture and punishment methods, he's even known as the living Yama."

"Old man, what's your grudge against him?" In history, this great judge surnamed Zhao was beheaded. Aruo moved his lips, thinking that he should have some more ideas. "Besides, I don't want to know what this man's achievements are. Can you tell me something meaningful?"

It's not a blind date, why say all this nonsense?

"Don't interrupt, little kid. The good show, no, the important part is yet to come." The old man frowned.

"Apart from 'young and promising', I haven't heard anything useful. What else do you want to say about 'natural genius'?" Aruo muttered.

"More than that, this boy is the only son of the current cabinet elder Su Qing."

Su Qing, she knew, was one of the most remarkable men of the past twenty years in the Great Qi Dynasty. Born into a humble family, he had been bullied by his clan members as a child, but he fought his way back, leaving the clan with his mother and establishing his own family. He rose through the ranks, married the daughter of a marquis, and later, through his own merit, became a prominent official of the Emperor.

The actor Zhang Du made up no less than ten grassroots legendary stories about this life trajectory and told them in teahouses for many years, and every show was packed.

Aruo suddenly pounded his palm with his fist, and understood, "So it's a competition of fathers."

Oh no, I’ve gotten into trouble with a second-generation official, who has a bad temper and bullies others. What should I do?

"Hey, little kid, don't interrupt. Who is Pin's father? This Su Qing is Su Zirui's father." The old man blew his beard and glared at Aruo.

Well, the kids are all out. Aruo looked at the dark roof above him speechlessly, and endured it because of his age.

"He doesn't rely on his identity as Su Qing's son. At the age of thirteen, he went to the northwest battlefield to gain experience. At the age of fifteen, he led troops to wipe out the evil bandits. At the age of seventeen, he became an official in the court. Now he is only twenty-two years old and still unmarried. His family is wealthy. Although he likes to joke and is a bit dull, he is still quite interesting. The most important thing is that he doesn't have a concubine and doesn't do anything extravagant. He deserves a beating, but his appearance can compare with most girls in the capital..." The old man became more and more excited as he spoke.

Ang? Compared to a girl? The more Aruo listened, the more she felt something was wrong. She quickly raised her hand to interrupt his flattery, "Wait, old man, are you setting up a matchmaking agency?"

She was even more exaggerated than a matchmaker. Aruo turned around unhappily, propping up her chin, "Thank you, old man. I'm even less interested in him now. I just want to get out of this damn place."

He looks like a girl, and he doesn't have any concubines at home. Who knows if he has various servants... These have nothing to do with her. She wants to know this man's explosive weakness.

The old man touched his nose in grievance and said, "It's quite nice here. It's much better than that boring Dali Temple. They don't clean it very often."

"Old man, you sound very experienced." Is there a comparison of prison environments? Aruo had never heard of this before in all his life.

"Mr. Chen, why are you here again?"

Beili, dressed in a red official robe, looked at the two people sitting by the prison door and chatting excitedly with a strange expression.

"Beili?" Aruo's face lit up with joy and he stood up quickly.

Bei Li nodded at her, opened the cell door next door with the key, and helped the staggering old man up. "Let's go."

"Eh? Where are you taking him?" Aruo remembered hearing someone say that those who were suddenly taken away from the prison were about to...

"Of course, that." Beili hesitated a little, and his face was not very good.

Aruo's heart skipped a beat and his eyes suddenly turned red.

"It's okay, it's okay," the old man understood Aruo's intention and said with a smile, "They took pity on my old age and prepared a good room for me."

Did he really think she was a child? Aruo clutched the cell bars with both hands, her face undisguised with worry, but she didn't know what to say. The old man, with his back to Beili, blinked at her, a hint of a smile on his face.

Is this the carefree attitude of an older person? He actually faced death with such composure! Aruo bit her lip and sniffed. This state of mind… She felt ashamed of herself.

"Take him away." Beili looked at them in confusion and ordered the officers behind him to help the old man leave.

"Beisato, he's not really... that, right?" Aruo asked anxiously, "This old man seems to be a good person. Did he commit a crime?"

"He..." Beili was at a loss for words, folding his hands in annoyance, "Is this the time for you to worry about others? Think about your own situation, okay?"

Her situation? Aruo's eyes widened, her face full of innocence and kindness.

"Do you know that Bai Yong's gambling house is the hiding place of the previous baby loss case? We went to surround and bust him because we received a tip-off that Bai Yong hid the stolen babies in the gambling house. We didn't expect such a scene to happen... We were stopped on the street when we were chasing him before and Bai Yong got away once, and this time... No wonder the adults are so angry." Beili didn't know why Aruo was so unlucky. If it was really a gambling case, it would be fine, but it was related to the baby loss case.

Holy shit, have the people in Tiger Village fallen to the point of stealing babies?

Aruo was indignant. She could accept bandits, but what she hated most in her life was human traffickers. If she had known this would happen, she would have dragged Bai Yong down directly.

"Beili, I swear, I really didn't. I really went there just to get back Changsheng's mother's relics..." Aruo grabbed the iron bars with both hands and said aggrievedly.

She had already explained the whole story, but she had omitted the accidental incident where she had deliberately taken the opportunity to pounce on the hairpin. She simply said that she had found the hairpin in the gambling house, and then she insisted on being a suspect in the case and argued her case. "You adults can't arrest me without knowing the truth. Why would I steal a baby? I'm not married and I can't have children..."

At this point, Aruo would rather die than let them know that Bai Yong and she had an inexplicable relationship.

"Okay, okay, I will report everything to the adults. Don't panic, there must be a misunderstanding here." Beili believed her. Cai Xin had come to her house as soon as possible to tell her the whole story, and it was exactly the same as what she said, and the gold hairpin was still pinned in her hair.

Seeing that the girl was panicking and talking nonsense, with red eyes and a pitiful look on the verge of tears, Beili had no choice but to comfort her, "Our master is fair and will never wrongly accuse you."

I’m afraid he thinks she is innocent!

Aruo had a lot of grievances and could only look at him eagerly, secretly swearing that if she got out safely, she would never accept Beili's breakfast money again.

Thinking of his master's cold face, Beili was a little confused, "Aruo, have you seen our master before?"

Aruo paused, then said decisively, "Impossible, I haven't seen it."

"Really?" Despite her innocent expression, Kitasato, a veteran of the Ministry of Justice and a master of subtle observation, sensed something was amiss, but he had no clue what it was. Even if there was, the likelihood of her ever having any connection with her master was incredibly small.

"Do you think your master would be so easily forgotten if we'd dealt with him before?" After all, his appearance was more beautiful than most of the girls in Beijing, beautiful and elegant, especially his eyes, sharp and cold, paired with his upright posture and the fierce and sharp techniques he used when fighting. Needless to say, he really looked familiar...

An idea suddenly popped up in his mind. Aruo shook his head and decisively discarded all possibilities. "Anyway, I don't know such a person. Beili, I want to go home..."

"Do you think the Ministry of Justice is an inn? See these iron bars? Most official prisons are just wooden bars. Didn't you hear the screams over there? Everyone in the capital knows how harsh the interrogation in the Ministry of Justice is. The Lord is the most proficient in this. There is no secret that he can't get out." Beili wanted to remind this ignorant girl.

"You mean, those screams just now were caused by your master?" Aruo recalled the various screams when he first arrived, a little bit unbelievable, "Your master looks so gentle, but I didn't expect his methods to be so... cruel."

Now, it is even more impossible for her to tell what happened before, absolutely not!

"So be content. If it weren't for us, you would have been dragged to the other side for torture. In that case, flogging, standing cangue, falling wood... which one can you endure?"

So this is how the living Yama the old man talked about came about. Aruo bit her lip and looked at him eagerly.

"I will definitely repay you with a generous gesture in my next life. But Beili, is your lord the Lai Junchen of the current dynasty? I am willing to confess everything without any trial." Aruo insisted that she was a good citizen and was most willing to cooperate with the police and the public.

"You are talking nonsense again. Be careful not to be overheard." Beili said seriously. The lord is someone he trusts, and he cannot slander him even as a joke.

"Brother Xu, didn't you say that your master is very observant, has a heart as solid as a rock and is not susceptible to any provocation, has no prejudice against officials and civilians, is a god at solving cases, and will never wrong any innocent person. He is extremely fair and rigorous, and acts according to the law. Any word of justice is appropriate to describe him, right? How can this be inconsistent?" Aruo puffed up his cheeks and had some complaints about what the honest and simple Xu Tian had said before.

"Who made you run into this? The adults brought you back because they thought you were a suspect." Beili knew that Aruo could not be related to this case, so he took care of him many times.

No way, Aruo doesn't believe that she has any suspicion.

"Tell me, did you adults have a very hard childhood, um, I mean, a serious injury or something? Or were you deceived so badly that your personality changed drastically?" Otherwise, why would your personality be so twisted? Aruo asked, stroking his chin in confusion.

"How could it be? Our master is from the capital, and his mother is from a prominent family. He is also the only son, so he has been valued and cultivated since he was young... As for being injured, the master is a martial arts master with great skills, and he has capable people around him. Although he may be injured occasionally, it is impossible for him to be seriously injured." Beili was puzzled by her doubts.

"Oh, he has a happy family, a smooth childhood, and is successful at a young age, but he still develops this kind of personality. I guess he is really born to be unpleasant." Aruo shook his head regretfully. There is no hope for him.

Seeing her talk getting more and more outrageous, Beili couldn't help but remind her, "Aruo, haven't you heard that walls have ears? If you keep talking nonsense like this, I can't protect you."

She didn't even notice that this was the Ministry of Justice, yet she was criticizing the head of the Ministry of Justice. Bei Li shook his head, thinking that she was really naive and didn't know the dangers of the world.

"Then when can I leave?" Aruo tactfully changed the question. She knew she was lucky. If she had been sent to the Dali Temple or Jingzhao Yin, she would probably have had to wait for Caixin to come and redeem her with all her wealth. Oh, and the old man said the prison conditions there weren't very good.

Kitasato consoled him, "Anyway, once the adults are done with their work, we'll find a chance to plead for you. But it's curfew now, so you'll probably have to spend the night here."

Aruo felt so sad that she could only nod.

Seeing her aggrieved look, Beili laughed and shook his head before leaving, intending to find someone to add a blanket for her. As soon as he turned the corner, he encountered Su Zirui, dressed in a red robe and a black hat, discussing the case with Xu Tian. He quickly saluted, "Sir."

"What do you think of Bai Yong today?" Su Zirui nodded and asked about the case. When he was stopped that day, it was Beili who took the opportunity to follow him.

"It is indeed the thief from that day. He is quite skilled in martial arts, especially in light skills. Moreover, we later discovered that there are several secret passages behind the gambling house, leading to the outside of the city and the market respectively. It is very suspicious." Beili described the secret passages behind the gambling house in detail. That was why it took some time to catch up with Bai Yong and Aruo.

Su Zirui nodded, his eyes slightly cold as he remembered that he had lost the suspect twice because of the same person.

"By the way, sir, I have questioned the woman who was brought back today, and she is indeed not a suspect." Beili waited for a while and did not receive any further orders from his superior, so he thought about talking about another matter.

"Since everything has been clarified, just let him go. My Ministry of Justice is not an inn and we will not take in unnecessary people." Su Zirui waved his hand casually.

"That's good. I guess she's scared too." Xu Tian's expression relaxed, and a smile appeared on his honest face.

"Why? Do you know her?" Su Zirui asked, a rare question. "I've seen you take good care of her today."

"Yes, she sells breakfast at Fengxian Bridge every day, and we often patronize it. My lord, she's just a little girl, very timid, and usually very quiet. This time, I'm afraid there's some misunderstanding. We've all asked around, and we know she was originally helping someone retrieve stolen items from the gambling house. It really has nothing to do with Master Bai and the others," Xu Tian said honestly. He has a daughter of his own, and he felt a little sympathy for Aruo and Caixin, two girls of similar age who had already started working independently.

Afraid? Observant? Raising an eyebrow, were they talking about the same person? Su Zirui raised his eyebrows, curling his lips in a faint, sarcastic smile. His obedient appearance just now had actually managed to fool his capable subordinates.

"Ahem, sir, that girl's personality is a little... naughty, but she's not a bad person." Compared to the honest man Xu Tian, ​​Beili knew the personalities of the two girls better. They were just well-behaved in their daily lives.

"If there is nothing else, you can leave tomorrow. But Captain Xu, when we investigate and conduct interrogations, we must base our judgment on the evidence and not let personal relationships influence our judgment." Su Zirui pointed out something.

"Yes, I understand." The two men responded with a salute.

Su Zirui glanced at the two of them, said nothing more, and strode away.