Chapter 101 Exquisite Interrogation Techniques

The Imperial College, South Campus dormitory.

Li Jin sat imposingly in front of the sage paintings in the main hall, looking at the two letters sent by Shen Wen in his hands.

The investigation into Liu Qi was quite lengthy; he had done a lot of bad things at the Imperial College over the years, relying on his family's influence.

He forms cliques, isolates students, has mediocre grades, and his father pays for everything to be taken care of for him. Just as Vandi said, he's a complete scoundrel.

At this moment, after being kindly persuaded by the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, he finally adopted a haughty and nonchalant attitude, standing in front of Li Jin with his arms crossed and a look of disdain on his face.

Especially with Li Jin's broad shoulders and narrow waist, dressed in a light yellow shirt, looking every bit the pretty boy, she didn't take him seriously at all.

Incompetent and easily manipulated – that was Liu Qi's first impression of Li Jin.

Seeing Liu Qi's fearless attitude, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy panicked and hurriedly stepped forward to pull him away: "What are you doing? This is His Highness Prince Jing, you should at least pay your respects!"

Unexpectedly, Liu Qi snorted coldly, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and without even looking at Li Jin's face, greeted him perfunctorily, "Your Highness Prince Jing."

After saying that, he gave a crooked smile.

He's just a leisurely prince with no real power; he's nowhere near as powerful as the Crown Prince's tutor!

Li Jin glanced at the expression on his face, neither angry nor anxious. She simply lowered her head, looked at the paper in her hand, and read it to him line by line.

"He led men to beat up the Youzhou scholar, stripped him naked, beat him until he suffered a brain hemorrhage, and then threw his books and clothes into the pond." He raised his eyes and glanced at Liu Qi. "Your father spent two hundred taels of silver to settle this."

The person in front of him remained unmoved, a hint of doubt rising on their face.

“They collected so-called protection fees at the Imperial Academy, one tael of silver per student per month,” Li Jin chuckled. “And you and your henchmen actually took that money and squandered it at brothels, spending lavishly on the courtesans.”

“You forcibly take a respectable woman home to be your concubine. If she resists to the death, you sell her to a brothel.”

Li Jin raised her eyebrows as she read this, looking at his face with a hint of sarcasm: "Liu Qi, you're really something."

At that moment, the overwhelming sense of pressure emanating from him startled Liu Qi.

His previously nonchalant demeanor softened slightly, and a fleeting look of surprise crossed his face.

That is, in an instant.

“If Your Highness is here to settle scores later, you’re too late. Once the money is in place, those people will behave themselves.” As he spoke, he proudly raised his head: “The laws of the Great Wei state that if the people do not report to the authorities, doubtful cases will not be investigated.”

The sight of this thug-like student in front of them was truly an eye-opener for everyone.

He grinned, rolled up his sleeves, and said calmly, "Besides, even if they take the money and continue to sue, they'll sue the Jingzhao Prefecture. What does it have to do with the Six Doors?"

When he said these things, he had a smug look about him that made him want to punch someone.

Jin Shu stood beside Li Jin, glancing at his arrogant and domineering demeanor, and took a deep breath.

The saying "If the people don't pursue it, the officials won't investigate" is such a one-sided interpretation that he actually used as a weapon.

Li Jin glanced at him, changed tactics, and asked directly, "What if I told you that Su Ziping's case could also be settled with money..."

Jin Shu gasped, looking at Li Jin's profile in surprise.

The man, with a spoiled and arrogant air, sighed and shook his head.

"As you probably know, the poorest place in the Great Wei is the Six Doors." He flicked his fan open and his gaze fell on Liu Qi's face.

"The day before Su Ziping died, you had a big argument with him. After that, some people saw you go to the pharmacy, and others saw you sneaking out of his room..." Li Jin laughed, "You're so experienced now, you've handled things more than once or twice. I've even summoned you here. I don't need to teach you what to do next, do I?"

A complete shrewd businessman.

At this moment, Jin Shu couldn't find the words to describe the shock she felt.

She gradually came to understand why this handsome, meticulous, and strategic man was regarded as a playboy and idle sect leader in the court and among the people.

If Li Jin were to act, most people wouldn't be able to spot the flaws.

He directly judged Liu Qi as unintelligent, took advantage of his arrogance, lowered his own level, and then followed his line of thinking to find flaws.

It's just one interrogation technique, but I never expected him to use it in such a novel way.

Logically speaking, ordinary people are not easily fooled in this way.

Even if you committed the crime yourself, you'll still feel intimidated by the Six Doors and the Ministry of Justice to some extent.

Only those who are already used to taking shortcuts and considering it their due to using money to solve everything will, in the present moment, bite into Li Jin's bait with their habitual way of thinking.

Once Liu Qi takes the bait, everything he says next will be the truth.

As time passed, Li Jin smiled and waved her fan, watching Liu Qi's expression gradually change from disdain to surprise, and then he fell into deep thought.

The longer he remains silent, the bigger the matter behind it must be.

Li Jin was neither in a hurry nor urging.

A cup of tea, a quarter of an hour—they sat there, waiting for Liu Qi to weigh the pros and cons alone, and then come to a conclusion that would still allow him to escape by sheer luck.

The strange standoff before them left the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy and Chen Xi, who was standing next to Zhou Zheng, completely baffled.

The two stared at each other for a long time, unable to figure out Li Jin's intentions.

Li Jin's brows twitched slightly only after Liu Qi looked away and scratched his head.

The fish has taken the bait.

Liu Qi pursed his lips, looked at his face, and asked cautiously, "Your Highness, are you truly capable of handling this?"

Li Jin nodded, looking at his face: "Touch the silver in your pocket, and think about what it can't solve?"

He smiled slightly and said, "Your family has been detached from the court for quite some time now. Whether what I said earlier was true or false, haven't you already tasted the sweetness of it?"

Li Jin raised his hand and pointed at Liu Qi in front of him: "You pay."

Then, he pointed to his heart with his thumb and said, "I'll get things done."

He laughed: "It's only natural!"

Even so, Li Jin gripped the fan with a bit more force. The black fan swayed slower and slower in his hand.

The more Liu Qi hesitated, the more eager he became, and the more intense and attractive the light in Li Jin's eyes became.

On the surface, he smiled gently, his smile as warm and radiant as the gentle sunlight on one's face. But only Jin Shu and Zhou Zheng knew that Li Jin was burning with rage and ready to pounce.

He had almost no doubt that this person, who had neither knowledge nor ability, was the one causing trouble in the Imperial Academy and committing the heinous crime of poisoning a fellow student.

This place should have been the highest institution of learning in the Great Wei Dynasty, a place that should have been cultivating talents for the world.

In just six short years, Grand Tutor Su Yu has managed to turn things into this chaotic mess.

After a long pause, Liu Qi finally couldn't resist the good news of such an easy way to get away with his crime. Standing in front of Li Jin, he nodded and said, "You're right, you're right! I didn't expect you to be one of us. Now I'm relieved."

“That’s right, I bought the Gelsemium elegans, I put the Gelsemium elegans in, and I’m the one who poisoned him.” He rubbed his hands together. “I’ll pay double whatever his family asked for, and I’ll give the Six Doors ten thousand taels of silver after it’s done.”

After saying that, Liu Qi waved his hand dismissively: "I don't need this little bit of money."