Chapter 249 Falling into the Quagmire

Lu Jun narrowed his eyes slightly, and raised the corners of his lips: "Mr. Su is handling the case according to the imperial order. How dare I overstep my authority? Please!"

Su Qianqian bowed and said, "Thank you, Lord Shaoqing!" She walked past Lu Jun and went to the back hall to find Lord Zhuang.

The bruises on Mr. Zhuang's face have faded a lot in the past two days, leaving only faint marks. He was sorting out the case files and checking the evidence and witnesses again. When he saw Su Qianqian come in, he invited her to look at the case files with him.

"Fang Youan said that Liu Zi had brought the leader to see him, and Liu Zi was just the leader of a branch of the Wanwu Shengcai Society.

After questioning Liu Zi's wife, she was told that these things were not something she should know about, and that many of his relatives had also joined the Wanwu Shengcai Club, and some had even made money. ”

Lord Zhuang took out a transcript and said.

"Those who make money don't invest much, and they stop at one time. Even if they make money, it's not much. Instead, it becomes a strong proof of luring others into joining the organization." Su Qianqian said as she looked at the transcript.

Knowing that this case would be tried by the Dali Temple, many people came forward to file lawsuits. These were people who had previously lost money and had been threatened so they did not dare to report to the authorities. But because the amount was not too large, they chose to swallow their anger.

"Xijing is under the feet of the emperor, yet so many people joined the guild and were harmed. This shows how powerful the guild leader is."

Lord Zhuang angrily knocked on a case file that had only a few words written on it.

"Chairman?" Su Qianqian looked over.

"Yes, there is a leader above the leader. These people have only heard of him. He is the head of the Wanwu Shengcai Society, but no one has ever seen him. Someone among the branch leaders mentioned him, and some members know about him."

"This is a tower-shaped organization, with a head, a president, branch leaders, and members." Su Qianqian laid out several case files.

"Yes, it is said that if a member raises 100,000 taels of silver to join the club, he or she can become a branch master and earn profits from the money invested by the members. Now there are seven branch masters found, which shows how staggering the amount is!"

Lord Zhuang tapped a few of the case files with his fingertips.

Seven hundred thousand taels, this is just the number that surfaced. This leader is simply a money-making machine!

"And the man who sold the official position we caught flatly denied that this had happened. He only said that he borrowed two thousand taels of silver from Fang Youan for turnover, and that he had never sold the official position."

Mr. Zhuang tapped another one and found that there were not many words on the transcript.

"How can you easily admit to losing your head? This kind of thing is usually very secretive, and there will never be a third person present. You just need to deny it when the time comes."

There is no audio or video evidence. Unless the person behind him is dug out, he will not plead guilty. If he pleads guilty, he will not escape death, and the person behind him will never let him go.

"Fang Youan has been doing business for many years and is not a careless person, so he asked the man to write down a receipt for the two thousand taels of silver, but did not specify the purpose of the money.

This person was not a serious businessman, nor was he a registered broker. He was just a broker who made profits by finding sellers and buyers based on information. So his claim of borrowing money for turnover must be a lie. ”

After saying this, Lord Zhuang knocked hard on the table.

"Master Zhuang, before the trial, can you let me meet this broker Wu Wencai?"

Su Qianqian asked.

"Of course you can. To be on the safe side, the people involved in this case have been detained separately. No one is allowed to enter or interrogate them without my permission. If Master Su wants to see me, I will have him brought to the back hall right away."

Lord Zhuang said, and called the lawyer to bring the captain of the police, take his token and go to the cell to pick up the person.

The two were analyzing the case when the lawyer brought the person in. Wu Wencai came in and knelt on the ground. After seeing Lord Zhuang, he stood up without saying a word.

Su Qianqian thought that this man looked like a weak scholar, not an opportunistic broker.

"Wu Wencai, you said that you only borrowed money from Fang Youan for cash flow. What did you use the money for?" Lord Zhuang asked in a cold voice.

"My Lord, my mother has been taking medicine for many years. The doctor's prescription contained very expensive herbs. I couldn't afford that much money at the moment, so I borrowed money from everywhere.

I have bought wooden furniture in Fang Youan's shop before, and I risked my dignity to borrow money from him. However, before the deadline, I was arrested for no reason and was accused of selling an official position. I haven't even become an official myself, so how could he be sold an official position? ”

When Wu Wencai opened his mouth, Su Qianqian could tell that this man was not a simple commoner. His logic was clear and to the point, and he was very calm and composed. He was not intimidated by Lord Zhuang's official power at all.

"Wu Wencai, what disease does your mother suffer from?" Su Qianqian asked.

"Xiaomin's mother...is suffering from a headache." Wu Wencai was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Su Qianqian to suddenly turn to this.

"How many brothers and sisters do you have in your family?" Su Qianqian asked again, without any logic at all.

"In my humble home..." Wu Wencai answered much slowly.

Lord Zhuang was also confused by Su Qianqian's question: Is this related to this case?

Su Qianqian: It’s not a court, why should it be related to this case!

[Wu Wencai had taken part in the imperial examination six years ago and won the title of scholar, but he failed in the provincial examination afterwards. In order to let him study in the academy, his family lived frugally and they were reluctant to spend money on the medical treatment of his sick mother. Three years ago, he had been confident in the imperial examination, but he still failed. The son of a county magistrate who took the examination with him and whose performance was not as good as his was on the list.

By chance, he found out that the county magistrate's son had used his test paper to get on the list, and his name was swapped with that of the county magistrate's son.

He also went to the county government to file a complaint and was beaten with a stick. He wrote a letter of complaint and put it in the report box, but naturally it fell on deaf ears. Later, he heard that someone had bought an official position, so he burned all his books and came to the capital, specializing in broker business. Soon after, he hooked up with a close follower of Lu Jing, a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue, and became close to Lu Jing. 】

The system finally unravelled the mystery and found out Wu Wencai's background.

Wu Wencai, who was listening to Su Qianqian's question, was struck by lightning. He was no longer as calm as before, but he couldn't say a word.

[It’s Lu Jing indeed. This time, I must chop off his claws! 】Su Qianqian said coldly in her heart.

Lord Zhuang was also shocked. He didn't expect that it was the eldest princess's son Lu Jing, who was usually gentle and elegant, and as good-tempered and self-disciplined as his father, but did such a heinous thing!

"Wu Wencai, do you know Feng Zhigao?" Su Qianqian suddenly asked.

Feng Zhigao was Lu Jing's close follower.

"Common people...common people..." Wu Wencai stammered, not knowing how to answer.

He thought that the world was unfair and allowed corrupt officials to run rampant, so why should he maintain his useless innocence? He might as well become a dirty hand and earn money to treat his mother's illness and provide his wife and children with adequate food and clothing.

"Wu Wencai, as the saying goes, a clean person is innocent. What you did must have some clues. You can't hide it by keeping your mouth shut. If you fall into the quagmire, you should think about turning back. Do you really want to be condemned by thousands of people and let your mother be ashamed of you?"

Su Qianqian said slowly.