Chapter 114 Slap in the Face, Shen Chu Finds a Suspicious Point

She suddenly realized that the cramping pain in her abdomen had inexplicably disappeared.

It was strange; she silently circulated her qi to sense it, but felt no discomfort or pain.

Could it be that the pregnancy was threatened?

She paused for a moment, then decided to try to find a doctor to ask her.

As soon as he stood up, the little boy ran over and bowed deeply. "Thank you both for saving my life. If I ever need your help in the future, I will do my best to repay you."

Chen Chu smiled. "Little brother, don't you have a name?"

The little beggar shook his head. "I don't have a name. Everyone just calls me the little beggar."

Shen Chu's heart softened.

The little beggar's stubborn gaze as he lay beneath the dog's mouth, desperately trying to survive, reminded her of herself ten years ago.

At that time, my father and the Shen family were beheaded, and my mother was so enraged that she died vomiting blood.

She ended up on the streets as a little beggar. Before meeting her master, she wandered aimlessly, drinking rainwater when thirsty and begging for food when hungry. Her most frightening moments were when she couldn't beg for food and was sick and lying in a dilapidated temple.

I was truly desperate at that time, afraid that I would die silently in the dilapidated temple.

But deep down she longed to live. She remembered her mother's dying wish to seek justice for her father and the Shen family.

It was this stubbornness that allowed her to survive and even meet her master.

Recalling the past, she couldn't help but reach out and rub his head, then untied the purse from her clothes and handed it to him.

“I know you don’t really want to kneel down to Wang Yao. Take this money for emergencies, consider it a loan from me. You can pay me back when you have the money.”

Seeing this, Li Chengxuan quickly handed over his money bag as well, saying, "If it's not enough, I have more here. Stay away from people like Wang Yao in the future."

You're lucky you ran into us today, otherwise you would have been bitten to death by that big dog.

The little beggar clutched the money bag, his eyes welling up with tears.

He sniffed and said in a muffled voice, "I will definitely pay this money back in the future."

Li Chengxuan waved his hand dismissively, "Just take it, it doesn't matter whether you return it or not."

He had a hundred taels of silver notes in his purse. Adding Ah Chu's money, a little beggar probably couldn't earn that much money in his entire life.

The little beggar touched his face, earnest and stubborn, "I really will pay it back. If I can't, I'll be your slave."

This is a stubborn child with a strong sense of self-respect.

Chen Chu couldn't bear to hurt him, so she smiled and said, "Okay, I'll wait for you to pay me back."

The little beggar breathed a sigh of relief, bowed to the two men again, and hurriedly ran away with his money bag.

"Okay, I'll wait." Shen Chu smiled and gestured for Li Chengxuan to leave.

The two turned the corner, and Li Chengxuan rubbed the bruises on his face, looking somewhat dejected.

"We didn't find a single clue, and we even got into a fight with Wang Yao. What bad luck!"

Shen Chu seemed to be deep in thought. "Why do you think Wang Yao would come here?"

Li Chengxuan was stunned for a moment before he realized, "Yes, the people living around here are all ordinary people, and there are no restaurants or teahouses. What is Wang Yao doing here?"

"Sigh, whatever he's doing here, let's deal with Ah Jun's matter first."

The two returned to the Censorate, just as Yang, the Vice Minister of Justice, came to deliver the case files.

Just as Shen Chu had predicted, the case of Zhou Jun injuring someone on horseback was concluded in one morning.

Zhou Jun was sentenced to exile in Yunnan.

Yang Sicheng smiled enigmatically, “Young Master Shen should review the case files as soon as possible; Zhou Jun is waiting at the city gate.”

Our superiors said that if no objections are raised within half an hour, Zhou Jun will have to set off.

Shen Chu tightened her grip on the dossier.

Li Chengxuan was furious. "Half an hour? Who decided on half an hour? The Inspectorate has the right to review any case with objections at any time."

Yang Sicheng spread his hands and said, "Young Master is right. It just so happens that a group of exiled prisoners are scheduled to depart at the end of the You hour today. We have limited escorts. We can't send a separate escort team just for Zhou Jun, can we?"

Li Chengxuan was so angry he wanted to roll up his sleeves. "I think you guys did this on purpose."

Yang Sicheng waved his hand, "You can't say that. The evidence in Zhou Jun's assault case is conclusive, and the facts of the case are clear. There is nothing to doubt."

Young Master Geng and Lord Shen, bound by brotherly affection, are determined to overturn Zhou Jun's case, which Lord Geng understands.

"The case file is here, Lord Shen, you'd better hurry up. Once it's outdated, even if a review is requested, I'm afraid you'll have to send someone to retrieve Zhou Jun yourself."

Yang Sicheng left triumphantly.

Shen Chu silently opened the file and quickly began to read it.

Li Chengxuan paced anxiously to the side, then peeked at the file and was overwhelmed by the dense, interconnected text.

It's all my fault for not studying hard when I was a child.

He punched himself in frustration and couldn't help but ask, "Ah Chu, have you noticed anything suspicious?"

Chen Chu rubbed her temples and said helplessly, "Why don't you go out for a walk first?"

Knowing he couldn't help, Li Chengxuan scratched his head and said, "Then I'll leave it to you, Achu."

The room quieted down, and Chen Chu calmed down and carefully went through the case file.

According to the case file, the coroner's conclusion was that Zhang Da's cause of death was a ruptured spleen in his abdomen, resulting in internal bleeding.

Attached is the diagnosis and prescription from Dr. Du of Huimin Pharmacy. The diagnosis was skin and flesh injuries as well as internal abdominal injuries, and he prescribed external and internal medications.

The deceased's family said that Zhang Da suffered from severe abdominal pain shortly after returning home and died before they could get a doctor.

Neither the testimonies nor the chain of evidence could be found to be suspicious, and it seemed to be just an accidental case of a horse running wild and injuring someone.

Is she just overthinking it?

Chen Chu rubbed her temples in annoyance when Li Chengxuan suddenly rushed in, "Chu, someone is looking for you."

------

At the Dali Temple, Geng Huaiyi sipped his tea and asked, "What time is it? Has Zhou Jun set off yet?"

Yang, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, said, "It will be 5:00 PM in a quarter of an hour. When the time comes, the exiled prisoners will set off on their way."

Don't worry, sir. Our case file is airtight; there's no way Shen Chu could have discovered any problems.

As long as no suspicious points are found, he cannot review the case, and the case will be airtight.

Geng Huaiyi chuckled, “I’ve said before that I’m not afraid of him reviewing the case, I’m just afraid he won’t find a reason to do so.”

Over the years, no one has been able to find any doubt in the cases I have adjudicated.

"That's right." Yang Sicheng said with a fawning expression, "Your Excellency is so meticulous that even His Highness the Crown Prince has praised you many times."

"Shen Chu isn't even qualified to carry your shoes. Since there's nothing suspicious about it now, she's probably gone to the city gate to see Zhou Jun off."

"I'm afraid we'll have to disappoint Lord Geng and Vice Minister Yang." A clear, melodious voice suddenly came from outside the door.

Shen Chu strode in from outside, holding the dossier in his hand.

"Young Master Shen!" Yang, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, jumped up in surprise.

Shen Chu glanced at him indifferently and placed the file in front of Geng Huaiyi.

"From now on, the Inspectorate will take over the review of this case. Lord Geng, release the prisoner!"

A large, round, red official seal was stamped on the case file, with the words "Inspectorate Review" written on it, which stung Geng Huaiyi's eyes.

How could Shen Chu possibly find anything suspicious in his files?

How did he do that?