Chapter 63

"Master Zhang, can there still be a real case under torture?" Shen Shaoqing was the first to stop Master Zhang, unwilling to let him torture.

Lord Xue in the middle looked around and decided to bring out a big shot to calm the situation.

"Your Majesty takes this case so seriously. If you end it hastily, wouldn't that undermine the royal dignity?"

After being surrounded by all this, Lord Zhang was speechless and just stared at Jian Xinyi with his bare eyes, which was frightening.

If there is sufficient evidence, the Ministry of Justice will not have to rush to use torture.

As long as Jian Xinyi doesn't say anything, there might be a chance.

"The Poor Relief Gang always targets officials in the imperial court, and my father is just a bookseller. Someone must be trying to frame the official's deceased partner and the Poor Relief Gang."

But she couldn't say who it was.

To frame a member of the royal family without any evidence in a place like this would not be enough for her and Lao Lin to survive even if they were given eight hundred lives.

The interrogation room was silent for a long time, as quiet as before, with only the sound of flipping pages of books, as if it was a trial for her.

After a long pause, Master Zhang's eyes lit up as he pointed at the case files on the table and said loudly, "Lin Zhimin was a Jinshi (Jinshi) from Ningyuan thirty years ago, with a bright future ahead of him. Yet, after only one year in Luzhou, he resigned and returned home. Why would he resign on his own if he wasn't completely helpless with the officialdom?"

"Or did you resign because you were being ostracized and had evil intentions in your heart?"

Jian Xinyi frowned. "How can such an old incident be used to convict someone of this crime?"

There was another silence.

The candlelight flickered back and forth, and a man in a white robe with a green background and floral patterns walked in and said something to the person in the middle.

Jian Xinyi's heart sank.

Master Xue frowned, his expression serious, and whispered to the man, "Even so."

Lord Zhang next to him didn't care about this and his expression changed immediately.

"Both the witnesses and the physical evidence from the Poor People's Helping Hands Gang can prove that Lin Zhimin was involved and suspected of murdering Mr. Cao."

The situation reversed in an instant.

"Take it out."

The man in the green robe took out the thing in his hand tremblingly.

"The Ministry of Justice sent people to the back room of the bookstore and found relevant materials related to the Poor Relief Gang, including a large amount of silver. They also found testimony from the official's servant at the time, proving that the two men had an argument."

Just as Jian Xinyi was about to reach out to take the materials, Mr. Zhang pushed her away. "Ms. Lin, do you understand now?"

She looked at the evidence before her and shook her head slightly.

impossible.

Based on her understanding of Lao Lin, he would definitely not do such a thing.

What to do, how to say it?

"The back room of the bookshop...we originally exchanged it with the official. Now the right to use it is in his hands. How can it be used as evidence?"

Thinking of this, Jian Xinyi felt more confident. "The servant's testimony is naturally the same."

Master Zhang quickly saw through the flaw in Jian Xinyi's words. "Even if it's a replacement, how can a backyard be worth the same as the house?"

"With the contract as evidence, it's impossible to fake it."

Although she was uneasy, she didn't dare show it, for fear of losing this game.

The three adults took turns interrogating her for a while, but they really couldn't find out anything, so they had to let Jian Xinyi go first.

But when Jian Xinyi mentioned that she wanted to visit Lao Lin, she started to resist in every possible way.

There was no other way, she could only solve it herself.

When she got home, she went straight to Lao Lin's room and turned the bookcase and bed upside down.

But apart from some small pocket money, I didn't find anything useful.

Lao Lin didn’t get the contract back. Is he still in the bookstore?

But now the bookstore has been sealed off by the Ministry of Justice. Not to mention Jian Xinyi, even Mu Zhubu and the others may not be able to enter.

Is there no other way but to force my way in?

Jian Xinyi raised her leg to walk, but was tripped by something under her feet.

She stood up in pain, and was hit by the cabinet above her head. The books on the cabinet fell down and hit the teacup on the table. The cup rolled under the table, but fortunately it hit the books and did not break.

Jian Xinyi quickly picked up the cup, picked up the book that was on it, and opened it to take a look.

It turned out to be the bookstore's account book, which was recorded up to yesterday afternoon.

But the case happened yesterday, why is this account book here?

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Jian Xinyi's face.

She quickly put the other books away and took a look at the contents.

These are all Lao Lin’s favorite historical classics, nothing else.

There seems to be only one possibility, he has come back.

In other words, he was not the Mr. Cao he met in the bookstore at all.

cup.

Jian Xinyi quickly picked up the teacup and looked at it carefully, and sure enough, she noticed something unusual.

There is some white powder in this teacup.

There is also a little bit on the ground.

Unfortunately, this group of people had made all the plans, but they didn't expect Lao Lin to come back early, so they had no choice but to use this method.

Unfortunately, he missed a step and forgot that after the tea dried up, the remaining medicinal powder would crystallize, leaving many flaws.

Jian Xinyi decided to go all out and quickly ran to the door.

If someone carried Lao Lin out of the door, there should be footprints.

But the door was very clean, without any traces.

I guess this group of people wiped out all traces after they left.

When she was at a loss, she heard someone calling her from outside the door.

"Is Miss Lin here?"

When Jian Xinyi heard the voice, she was a little confused and looked through the crack of the door.

The person who came was Mu Xin.

"Miss Lin, my master has received a letter and ordered me to deliver it to you as soon as possible."

Jian Xinyi took the thick envelopes, and a look of sadness appeared in her eyes. "Thank him for me."

"The master said that the affairs of the court are too complicated and have harmed you."

When Mu Xin said this, he didn't dare to look at her.

"If Miss Lin has any instructions, please go directly to Prince Xing's Mansion."

Even if no one said it, Jian Xinyi had already broken into Prince Xing's Mansion.

Jian Xinyi took the badge and understood.

Qian Yuan must have known that she had trespassed into the palace, so giving her a badge was justified.

There is no time to say anything more now, as the person hasn't come back yet.

"How is the Luo Shan incident being handled?"

Mu Xin knew that she was anxious, so he said a lot of things.

"Now that the snow has stopped falling on Luoshan Mountain, the master has set up several disaster relief halls, providing porridge and grain, exempting this year's taxes and labor service, and allowing men who are still able to rebuild their homes. Monthly wages are paid according to the standards of fifth-level craftsmen. Now that the situation has improved, I believe he will set off for the capital soon."

Jian Xinyi listened to this series and lowered her head slightly.

"Thank you very much."

She held the pile of thick envelopes, thanked Mu Xin, and went straight to the study.

Since Qian Yuan was in Luoshan, he still ordered Mu Xin to send these things over, which means that this should be strong evidence to suppress King Geng.

Jian Xinyi moved very slowly, fearing that she would accidentally damage these precious evidences.

But when she saw it, she was dumbfounded.

Even though she knew that everything the Poor Relief Gang did was directed by King Geng alone, she had no idea that the Poor Relief Gang could cause such a big stir in the court.

Kill loyal ministers, protect treacherous ministers, seek corruption, and seek personal gain.

This is no longer something that a commoner like Jian Xinyi can get involved in.

This evidence should appear when it is most needed.

She quickly put away the evidence and then went out. She wanted to go straight to the Dali Temple to discuss countermeasures with Mu Zhubu, but was stopped by Mrs. Zhang at the door.

"Xiao Yu'er, I finally see you."

Granny Zhang's legs and feet were hardly moving, tears welling in her eyes. She grabbed Jian Xinyi's sleeve and said, "Why are the authorities arresting people for no reason? I was chatting with your father outside the day before yesterday, how come he's suddenly in jail?"

"The day before yesterday?"

Jian Xinyi was a little excited. If what Mrs. Zhang said was true, then the fact that Lao Lin had returned home would be irrefutable evidence and could not be false.

"Yes, he came home early the day before yesterday, and I was wondering. He looked at me and asked me what things a girl needs to prepare for her wedding."

Mrs. Zhang wiped her tears and said, "I understood as soon as I heard it. I think she knew you were getting married and was preparing things for you."

Jian Xinyi was also stunned. She didn't think that Lao Lin came back early to prepare for this matter.

Presumably, his cousin was telling him about her own affairs, and he didn't want to be embarrassed anymore, so he started to make preparations with full heart and eyes.

Even if she was to marry into the royal family, he was willing to do his best for his daughter.

It’s a pity that before he even set foot into the royal family, he stepped into the prison of the Ministry of Justice.

"Thank you so much, mother-in-law. If anyone from the government asks about this, please explain to them that Old Lin has been wrongly accused."

Jian Xinyi kindly comforted Mrs. Zhang a lot, which made her feel a little better.

After the New Year, the streets are still decorated with lights, and the Lantern Festival is just a few days away, making it very lively.

However, Jian Xinyi had no interest in enjoying the excitement and went to the Dali Temple.

But when they arrived at the gate of Dali Temple, they saw that it was her who came, and they didn't even let her know and directly drove her away.

"Miss, you'd better leave. Even the Dali Temple can't handle your situation now."

Even the guard on duty at the door spoke like this, so it must be that Shaoqing stepped in and directly refused her entry.

At this point, asking the chief clerk for help would probably be of no use, and it might even get her into trouble.

Jian Xinyi thought about it again and again. Since they wouldn't let her in, don't blame her for using that trick.

She thought carefully about what she had experienced here, and in a moment, tears gathered in her eyes.

"Can I see the Shaoqing? I really have very important evidence to submit to him."

She acted pitifully, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

Seeing her like this, the guard didn't dare to make a decision for a moment. The two looked at each other and one of them had to go in to report while the other continued to watch her.

After a while, Lord Shaoqing walked out from the door with a very serious expression.

"Miss Lin, this case is now under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice. Please do not come here again and disturb the peace of the Dali Temple."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Jian Xinyi naturally didn't give him this opportunity. When she saw him raising his leg to leave, she immediately stepped forward to stop him.

"Master Shaoqing, I know you are always fair and just, but now I am at my wit's end."

She quickly took out the account book from her sleeve and opened it to show him.

"Look, this account book I brought with me was left at home by Old Lin. He returned home early that day and was not in the bookstore. He was framed and ended up in the bookstore."