Chapter 539, Third Update

Meanwhile, on the other side, Minister Xing took Xiao Heng out of the city overnight to investigate the case. Xiao Heng held the position of Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, and in principle, he was not supposed to participate in the investigation. However, Minister Xing had recruited him because he valued Xiao Heng's ability to solve cases.

The position of Secretary was just a facade.

The Minister of Justice was surnamed Xing and named Shuwen.

This name doesn't sound like someone who could become a high-ranking official, but Xing Shuwen actually did.

Xing Shuwen was one of the few ministers of the Six Ministries who came from a humble background. He had suffered a lot before finally getting into the Ministry of Justice.

Without the support of his family, it was much more difficult for him to rise to the top than for those noble officials. He was sent to a post outside the capital twice, once because he offended someone, and the other time because he touched a power he shouldn't have touched.

But he must have been really tough, because he survived all that.

He was of good character and came from a good family, which met the emperor's standards for selecting people, provided that he could catch the emperor's attention.

"It was actually a coincidence," Minister Xing said to Xiao Heng in the carriage. "My second assignment was in a small county near Fengdu Mountain. I handled a case where the victim was someone from the Princess's residence."

Xiao Heng was unaware of this matter.

Before leaving the capital, he hadn't thought he would enter the Six Ministries, so he hadn't paid special attention to their activities. Princess Xinyang was monitoring the court, so he occasionally heard about some officials' misdeeds—such as the ledgers of Zheng Siye of the Imperial Academy who had accepted bribes.

However, it is clear that Minister Xing is not among those with incriminating evidence.

He was an honest and upright official.

The carriage bumped along the rugged path, and the two men swayed slightly.

As he swayed, Minister Xing continued, "To be honest, he was just an insignificant servant who was bullied by a local gentryman who has some familial ties with people in the capital. Do you know what anyone else would have done in his place?"

Xiao Heng understood that he wasn't asking him a question.

As expected, Minister Xing continued, "Major issues are minimized, and minor issues are resolved. Sometimes, the lives of ordinary people are worthless, and even the lives of servants are worthless. Princess Xinyang asked me at the time, 'Magistrate Xing, do you dare to investigate this case?'"

Xiao Heng could almost picture Princess Xinyang's expression at that moment.

"I asked the princess, 'I've investigated, and something's happened. Can you protect my family?' The princess said, 'I can't. Your case isn't for me; it's your duty. You can choose to be a good official or a corrupt one, and you'll bear the consequences yourself.' Oh dear, how heartless! I thought at the time. Hmm... even now, I still think the princess was too cold-hearted. She's a princess; wouldn't it be easy for her to protect a few people? She's putting me on the spot, not even giving my family a way out..."

"But Liu Lang, that's just how the world is. From the day I chose to become an official, I myself set my family's fate on an unpredictable path. No one forced me; it was all my own choice."

"The case reached the capital. Did you know that the local gentry was actually related to the Duke of Luo's family? I almost died, but Heaven spared me. His Majesty heard about the case and transferred me back to the capital, so I was saved."

“She helped you,” Xiao Heng suddenly said.

"What?" Minister Xing looked at Xiao Heng, puzzled.

Xiao Heng said, "Princess Xinyang, she helped you."

Minister Xing was taken aback.

Xiao Heng dusted off his wide sleeves: "Otherwise, why would His Majesty have heard about your case, and why would he suddenly transfer you back to the capital? There are so many murder cases in the country."

"Ah...this..."

Minister Xing was overwhelmed by the shock. To be honest, he had considered the possibility, but after meeting Princess Xinyang several times, she made no attempt to ask for his gratitude.

She didn't even speak to him.

Is it really necessary to do good deeds anonymously?

What was Princess Xinyang after?

Is he a good official?

Is it his face that's the picture?

Rumors circulated that Princess Xinyang had many male lovers.

Minister Xing touched his rough face. Once upon a time, he was indeed a handsome man in their county…

"My lord! We've arrived!" The coachman stopped the carriage.

The reason why Minister Xing spoke those words to Xiao Heng in the carriage was because he sensed that this matter was not simple and that the forces involved behind it might be beyond their imagination. He was worried that Xiao Heng would not dare to investigate further, so he wanted to use his own deeds to influence Xiao Heng and inspire him to become a good official who was not afraid of powerful figures. Even if no one protected him, he would surely be able to rise to great heights.

However, it seems like things went wrong.

"Ahem." Minister Xing cleared his throat. "You may leave."

This is the address of the third witness they eventually found.

Unfortunately, they came up empty-handed.

The witness has not returned home for the past few days.

The case of Vice Minister Li is both simple and complex. Vice Minister Li was traveling out of the capital to visit his concubine and illegitimate son who were being raised on an estate when he encountered a group of robbers. The guards accompanying Vice Minister Li managed to drive the robbers away in time, but two of them resisted fiercely and injured Vice Minister Li. The guards had no choice but to kill the two men.

But to everyone's surprise, when they were sent to the local government office, one of the deceased became a law-abiding citizen.

The family of Liangmin came to their door, saying that Vice Minister Li had beaten their son to death.

The identities of the other robbers were also confirmed, but none of their eyewitnesses were at home.

Based on Minister Xing's many years of experience in handling cases, this was a premeditated frame-up, and the purpose was not to target Vice Minister Li, but rather the case under Vice Minister Li's control.

Xiao Heng was a trustworthy person, so Minister Xing didn't mince words with him: "The Xianleju case is of great importance, and both the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Ministry of Justice are investigating it."

Xiao Heng nodded, then asked, "Then why are the people from the Jingzhao Prefecture unharmed?"

Minister Xing said thoughtfully, "There is only one possibility."

The capital city government has been bought off.

Xiao Heng had also guessed this possibility. He said solemnly, "If Minister Li continues to investigate, there will be danger. It will be danger for you, sir."

Li Shilang was merely following orders; the decision-making power lay with Xing Shangshu. Therefore, the other party was actually targeting Xing Shangshu.

The above is a speculation based on the clues currently available; whether it is true or not remains to be verified.

Unable to find any witnesses, Minister Xing took Xiao Heng and boarded a carriage back to the capital.

The carriage hadn't gone far when an arrow whistled into their carriage and embedded itself in the wall between Xiao Heng and Minister Xing!

The arrow was so powerful that it pierced the ground, and the fletching was still shaking violently. This shows that if the arrow had hit either of them, it would have killed them instantly!

Minister Xing's eyes turned cold: "Assassinate a high-ranking official? Luckily, I was prepared!"

After saying that, he took out a bone whistle and blew it loudly.

One sound, two sounds, three sounds passed.

The expert who should have appeared has yet to materialize.

Minister Xing was dumbfounded: "What's going on? I spent a fortune to hire a master from the martial arts world!"

"That's all," Xiao Heng said calmly.

"No way?" Minister Xing's eyes widened as another arrow shot in, this time hitting Minister Xing's crotch. Minister Xing felt his little manhood getting a bit cold!

"Get out of the car!" Xiao Heng said.

Minister Xing lifted the curtain, grabbed Xiao Heng's hand, and jumped down from the carriage with him.

The moment the two fell to the ground, a volley of arrows rained down, riddling the carriage with holes!

Minister Xing held his breath.

If Xiao Liulang hadn't jumped off the carriage in time, they would both be riddled with holes by now!

"How outrageous! Who did this! Don't let me find out! Otherwise, I will definitely find out and ruin him!"

call out!

Another arrow came flying, nearly hitting Minister Xing in the buttocks!

"ah!"

Minister Xing jumped up suddenly, grabbed Xiao Heng's hand, and ran away!

At first, Xiao Heng thought that the group was after Minister Xing, until they entered a forest and Minister Xing fell down a hillside. Instead of chasing Minister Xing, the group attacked Xiao Heng.

Xiao Hengcai finally understood that shooting Minister Xing was a mistake, and that their target from the beginning was himself.

They weren't trying to use Li Shilang's case to warn Xing Shangshu to stop; they planned to use Xing Shangshu to take him out of the capital to investigate the case, and then kill him on the way!

That's a brilliant tactic.

It seems that Mo Qianxue's case was a setup from the very beginning.

Xiao Heng looked at the five men in black approaching him and coldly asked, "Who is your master?"

The leader of the men in black said coldly, "We're all going to die anyway, what use is knowing our master?"

Xiao Heng calmly asked, "I need to die knowing why."

The leader of the men in black sneered, "Very well, I'll tell you then, the one who wants to kill you is our young master."

Xiao Heng looked at him coldly: "Who is your young master?"

It sneaked out again at midnight!

(End of this chapter)