Chapter 38 Murder

Now that the barrier is gone, I naturally want to hold him as he wakes up.

At this moment, the young lady put away her sharp teeth and became as docile as a cat. Her fur was soft, and Xiao Yu couldn't quite put her finger on what breed of cat she was, but she was soft and obedient. Every now and then, she would snuggle up in his arms, making her irresistible.

Since he no longer needed to tell stories on the overpass, Xiao Yu wasn't in a hurry to get up. He just kept staring at the young lady. Around 7 a.m., Song Luo Ning frowned slightly in her sleep, as if she were in a giant furnace. Even in early summer, it couldn't be this hot. A thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead, and she pushed the heat source in her drowsy state.

"My lady, are you awake?" Xiao Yu took her hand, leaned closer, and whispered.

The kitten seemed to be waking up. Xiao Yu was pleasantly surprised; it was the first time she had seen the young lady wake up, and her eyes were full of tenderness.

"Hmm~" Song Luoning responded subconsciously and turned away from her embrace.

"......"

Why did the young lady leave?

Xiao Yu was somewhat disappointed and wanted to pull the person back, but just as he reached out his hand, Song Luo Ning slowly woke up.

"My wife," Xiao Yu said softly.

Song Luoning stiffened, her reason returning. How could she have forgotten that this scoundrel was also in bed last night? She quickly lifted the covers to check her clothes, thankfully they were all neat and tidy. It seemed that this scoundrel had behaved himself last night, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hmm." Song Luoning responded faintly, lifted the covers, and got out of bed.

"Wife, aren't you going to sleep for a while?" Xiao Yu sat up and looked at her with eyes full of reluctance.

"Well, it's getting late. Doesn't my husband still have to go harvest the rice?" Song Luoning calmly put on her coat, automatically ignoring the burning gaze.

"There's no rush to harvest the rice." She patted the spot next to her. "My wife, lie down a little longer."

Song Luoning frowned, glanced at it, her face displeased, and said coldly, "No need." She turned around to pour herself a glass of water, and light shone in through the window: "It's getting late, husband, you should get up early too."

Although Deng Tu Zi was relatively well-behaved last night, his words this morning made people suspicious. Having lived as a young lady of a prominent family for eighteen years, this was the first time she had ever seen someone speak such shameless words with such confidence.

Even though her three elder brothers usually treated their sisters-in-law with great respect and love, how could she be so unrespecting of herself, being a woman herself?

She wondered if she could lie there a little longer, as she suspected she was about to indulge in debauchery during the day.

Seeing that Song Luoning was determined to get up, Xiao Yu pouted, lifted the bed curtains, and reluctantly got out of bed. Song Luoning sat down at the dressing table to do her makeup, while Xiao Yu finished getting ready first and went to the kitchen to make breakfast. The two ate quietly.

Xiao Yu drove the oxcart out the door. Now, everyone in the surrounding villages knows about Xiao Yu's rice harvest. As soon as she arrives in the village, families with rice will take the initiative to sell it, saving her a lot of effort.

On this day, Xiao Yu returned from harvesting rice and happened to run into Liang Chengqiu, who was leading four yamen runners to the village to handle a case. The men all looked solemn.

Xiao Yu was curious about the repeated incidents in the small village, so she asked the villagers and learned that a murder had occurred and the deceased was Chen Ziyi, the son of the village head.

Xiao Yi was genuinely shocked. In the eyes of the villagers, Chen Ziyi was a man of excellent character, family background, and ability. Many families wanted to marry their daughters to him. How could he have been killed?

Xiao Yu continued listening:

"He died in the back mountain, and his death was so gruesome..."

"Who says otherwise? Several groups of government officials have already arrived, and the coroner has come too."

"How could a perfectly healthy person be killed? He was the only scholar in our village."

Xiao Yu listened silently, feeling a pang of sadness. Chen Ziyi had helped her a lot before, so it was natural for her to feel bad about what had happened.

After the crowd dispersed, Xiao Yu drove the oxcart home. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he called out, "Wife, wife!"

Song Luoning was reading on the soft couch when she heard the sound. She put down her book, stood up, and looked out the window to see Xiao Yu rushing back, forgetting to even drive the oxcart into the side courtyard.

"My lady, something has happened outside!" Xiao Yu had already reached the window, her fair cheeks slightly flushed, and a layer of fine sweat on her nose.

Song Luoning frowned slightly, wondering what had happened to make this scoundrel so flustered. She said calmly, "Husband, don't rush, let's go inside and talk."

"Okay." Xiao Yu took a breath, turned around and went inside. The door was open, and Song Luoning had already gone to the round table and poured a cup of tea. Xiao Yu picked up a handkerchief to wipe his hands, met her eyes which were filled with worry, and took the tea.

Song Luoning: "My husband said something just happened. What happened?"

Xiao Yu sat down: "When I came back, I ran into Constable Liang. After inquiring, I found out that everyone in the village was saying that Chen Ziyi had been murdered."

"Hmm?" Song Luoning was taken aback, looked up at her, and asked, "Is what my husband said true?"

Xiao Yu sighed, a hint of regret in her voice: "It should be true, but this Chen Ziyi..." In the original owner's memories, Chen Ziyi had always been outstanding and seemed to have never made enemies with anyone. It was really hard to figure out why he was killed so inexplicably.

Furthermore, the original owner was just a minor character, and Chen Ziyi wouldn't be mentioned in the novel.

This made it even more difficult for her to know who the murderer was.

“Chen Ziyi has helped us a lot before, and I want to go and see if there’s anything I can do to help,” Xiao Yu said.

Song Luoning pursed her lips: "Yes, what my husband says makes sense, but..."

"Bang bang bang..."

There was a knock on the door.

Song Luoning was interrupted and turned to look out the window.

"Xiao Yu, open the door! Open the door quickly!" A strong male voice rang out from outside the door.

Song Luoning's beautiful brows furrowed: "Husband, let's go and take a look first."

Xiao Yu nodded, glancing at the door with a hint of doubt in his eyes, and said softly, "I'm afraid someone has come to sell rice. My wife, please rest first. I'll be right back."

As soon as the courtyard gate opened, several constables rushed in. The next second, Xiao Yu was subdued. Then Liang Chengqiu walked in slowly, glanced at Song Luoning who came out of the house, paused, and said in a deep voice: "Someone reported that Chen Ziyi had a dispute with Xiao Yu before his death, so according to the rules, we must take Xiao Yu to the yamen now to assist in the investigation."

Xiao Yu: "..."

Realizing what was happening, Xiao Yu struggled but couldn't break free. One of her arms was twisted behind her back, leaving her powerless. She said coldly, "You said it yourself that you were just assisting with the investigation. What do you mean by having them arrest me now?"

Liang Chengqiu waved his hand, and the two constables released Xiao Yu's arm and stepped back a little. Xiao Yu shook his arm: "Is this how Constable Liang usually handles cases? Arresting people without even knowing the facts?"

Liang Chengqiu, with his usual cold expression, glanced at Xiao Yu indifferently, ignoring her sarcastic remarks, and said to the constable, "Take her away."

Xiao Yu was pushed and shoved out of the courtyard by the yamen runners.

"Wait, let me say something to my wife first."

Liang Chengqiu didn't speak, his face was cold and expressionless. Fortunately, he stopped. Xiao Yu took the opportunity to quickly say a few words to Song Luoning before going to the county government office with them. Several villagers from Chenjia Village were also taken to the county government office with her.

The magistrate sat upright in the main hall of the county government office, holding a gavel. The magistrate of Linyang County was surnamed Zhang. He had just taken office not long ago. He and Chen Ziyi were classmates and had a good relationship. However, Zhang was much more talented in studying than Chen Ziyi. After several years of hard work, he had become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations), while Chen Ziyi was still a Xiucai (a lower-level scholar). After learning that Chen Ziyi had been murdered, Zhang was determined to bring the murderer to justice no matter what.

Although Xiao Yu did not hold an official rank, he was still a member of the royal family and a direct descendant of the founding emperor, so he was not required to kneel when meeting officials.

Magistrate Zhang was unaware of this matter. Seeing that someone in the courtroom was not kneeling, he slammed his gavel and angrily shouted, "How dare you, a lowly commoner, not kneel before me! How dare you defy the law! Guards, take him away and give him twenty strokes of the cane!"

"yes!"

Xiao Yu: "......" What's going on?

Xiao Yu did not kneel down, simply because as a modern person, he could not accept the ancient custom of kneeling so readily.

But they started by hitting me with a board...

What's even more unacceptable is that she's not a criminal, so why should she be punished just because she didn't kneel? Just as she was about to speak, another voice rang out in the hall.

"Wait a moment." Liang Chengqiu stepped into the hall, cupped his hands, and said, "My lord, Xiao Yu is a descendant of the founding emperor of the royal family..."

Upon hearing this, the magistrate was startled. He had heard that Linyang County was once the fiefdom of the Prince of Jin. Could this person be a descendant of the Prince of Jin?

Upon Liang Chengqiu's reminder, Magistrate Zhang broke out in a cold sweat. If he were to actually deliver those twenty strokes of the cane, and the higher-ups investigated, he would likely lose his official hat.

He took a slight breath, and without showing any emotion, turned his gaze to the people kneeling below the hall, and rebuked them: "Tell me everything you know, or don't blame me for using torture on you."

On the other side, Xiao Yu was taken away by the government, and Jiang Wanrou, along with Chen Yu and Song Luoning, came to the county government office. The area outside the main hall was crowded with onlookers. Pushing through the crowd, the group stood outside the hall.

Song Luo frowned as she looked at the hall, her attention focused entirely on the slender figure there. As she listened to the accusations made by the people in the hall, her ten fingers curled up under her wide sleeves, her palms clenched tightly.

"Xiao Yu, do you have anything else to say?" Magistrate Zhang asked sternly as the gavel struck the court.

Xiao Yu was speechless. Just because a few people saw him struggling with Chen Ziyi and went to the back mountain, they judged him to be the murderer. This case was being handled too frivolously.

Even if ancient technology was backward, one cannot condemn someone based solely on speculation, can one?

Xiao Yu argued, "But did anyone see me kill someone, or is there any evidence to prove that I killed the person?"

The magistrate ignored him completely, slamming his gavel: "How dare you! I see you won't shed a tear until you see the coffin. Summon the coroner."

As soon as he finished speaking, an elderly man in his fifties wearing a gray shirt was brought up. The old man bowed and greeted the county magistrate.

"Zhao, the coroner, recount the results of your examination in detail," the magistrate said.

The coroner respectfully reported, "Your Honor, the deceased suffered a severe blow to the head, and the back mountain was not the primary crime scene. We also found the murder weapon not far from Xiao Yu's house."

Xiao Yu: "..."

The magistrate slammed his gavel, and the courtroom fell silent. "Xiao Yu, do you have anything else to say? Guards..."

"Wait a minute." Seeing this, the clerk quickly stopped him. After all, he was newly appointed and didn't even understand the law of Bai Sheng.

The clerk whispered a few words in his ear, and the magistrate was stunned. His palms instantly became sweaty. He had almost made a big mistake again. He had made two mistakes in one day. He couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his forehead. His voice was obviously not confident: "Guards, take Xiao Yu to prison first. After the third time, take him to the capital and hand him over to the Dali Temple for trial."

"Yes!" Xiao Yu was pushed out by the yamen runners.

"......"

No, Xiao Yu was stunned. This was already a conviction? Where was the evidence?

What a corrupt official!

She now finally understands why so many people die unjustly. With this kind of judicial system, the real murderers go unpunished while innocent people are wrongly accused.

No wonder there was snow in June in ancient times. She is really wronged now. She has been arrested. What will happen to the young lady?

The thought of Song Luoning being all alone at home filled Xiao Yu with anxiety.

"Sir, sir, could you please send a message home for me?"

"Stop arguing! Let's go!"

"No, you..." Xiao Yu hurriedly took out two taels of silver from his sleeve and stuffed it into the yamen runner's hand: "Sir, please help me."

The constable took the money and said, "Hurry up and get going, stop arguing."

"......"

Xiao Yu's first reaction was that he took the money but didn't do the job!

Before he could say anything more, he was shoved into the cell, and then he heard the sound of locks being put on.

"I'm telling you guys..."

"You may leave now." A female voice rang out, and Cheng Qiu walked out from behind the two constables. Xiao Yu, as if grasping at the last straw, said urgently, "Officer Liang, I really didn't kill the person. Although I went to the back mountain, it was purely to set traps and hunt."

What a terrible ancient era! She didn't want to die like this, without knowing why. What would happen to the young lady if she died?