Chapter 36: Relying on the prefectural government office. "Sir, the judge of the Siliyuan...

Inside the prefectural government office.

"Sir, Feng Wei, the judge of the Sili Court, requests to see you." Shi Ying reported to Zhou Jin.

"Feng Wei? Please ask him to come in." Zhou Jin nodded slightly and gave the order.

Soon, Shi Ying led a burly middle-aged man wearing a black official hat and dark blue official robe into the hall.

Feng Wei was dressed in his official uniform, exuding dignity. However, a fawning smile covered his face as he bowed to Zhou Jin and said, "How are you, Your Excellency the Prefect?"

Zhou Jin walked out from behind the desk calmly, shook hands with Feng Wei and exchanged pleasantries: "Master Feng, I apologize for not welcoming you in person." Then, he raised his hand to gesture to the pear blossom stool beside him, "Please sit down."

After Feng Wei sat down, Zhou Jin personally poured him a cup of fragrant tea. As the aroma of tea lingered, Zhou Jin slowly spoke, "Master Feng, what brings you here today?"

Feng Wei looked around at the attendants with a hint of caution. Zhou Jin understood and waved his hand for the attendants to leave, leaving only Shi Ying and the other two.

When there were only three people left in the room, Feng Wei finally took out a piece of letter from his sleeve and handed it respectfully to Zhou Jin.

"What is this?" Zhou Jin put down the teacup and took the letter.

"Your Excellency may wish to open it and read it," said Feng Wei.

Zhou Jin carefully opened the envelope and pulled out a piece of paper, only to find that it was not a letter, but a complaint.

"It's actually... a complaint?" Zhou Jin looked puzzled as he quickly scanned the contents of the complaint.

Feng Wei explained, "This complaint was filed by Chen Weiyu, the most popular courtesan at Ningxiangju. She is also the plaintiff along with over twenty other women from Ningxiangju. They are jointly accusing Wang Gui, the registrar of Jiusu County, and Lin Bowen, the former prefect, of raping women and forcing them into prostitution."

After Zhou Jin finished reading the complaint, he closed it. Every word was so heartbreaking, but he didn't show it on his face.

He looked at Feng Wei with doubt: "Master Feng, what is your intention in handing this complaint to me?"

Feng Wei looked back at Zhou Jin inquiringly. "Although Lin Bowen has passed away, he was once the governor of a state, and Wang Gui is still a serving official. I dare not act on my own, so I have come to ask for your instructions on how to handle this matter."

Zhou Jin did not respond directly, but took a sip of tea from the cup and said slowly:

"During the Ming Zhao period, the Crown Prince proposed 'independent magistrates', advocating for vertical jurisdiction from the central government to the local level, freeing it from the control of local prefectures. He also proposed the establishment of the Sky Eagle Pavilion to oversee officials, investigate corruption, and enforce discipline. Following your majesty's adoption of this proposal, magistrates of a prefecture were now held by the Tongpan, answerable only to the central government."

He looked at Feng Wei meaningfully and said, "Therefore, the prefect has no right to interfere in the trial. Lord Feng, do you understand what I mean?"

The more Feng Wei listened, the gloomier his expression became.

Everything Zhou Jin said made sense, and he had no way to refute it. He could only nod and smile awkwardly, "I understand."

When seeing Feng Wei off, Zhou Jin gently handed the complaint back to him, smiling solemnly: "Master Feng, just uphold the idea of ​​fair law enforcement. Even if someone sues me, Zhou Jin, in the future, there is no need to inform me. I will judge according to the law."

Feng Wei stared at Zhou Jin in silence for a long time. Finally, he nodded, putting away his previous flattery, and said solemnly, "Your Excellency is absolutely right. Thank you for your guidance."

Watching Feng Wei's departing figure, Zhou Jin sighed, "The Crown Prince proposed reforms to promote judicial justice, and it took much hardship to achieve them. Yet Feng Wei is so easily willing to hand over this power, viewing it as a tool to win over officials. It's truly pathetic."

Shi Ying echoed, "I hope he can listen to your advice this time and turn back from his wrong path."

"I hope so." Zhou Jin sighed softly.

*

"waste!"

Tuoba Xuan was furious. With a wave of his sleeve, he swept the exquisite blue and white porcelain teacup on the table to the ground like autumn wind sweeping fallen leaves.

After the teacup rolled a few times in the air, there was a loud "bang" sound, and small fragments flew everywhere and shattered into pieces.

The confidant Sun Zhiming and several guards were frightened by the sudden sound and trembled all over. Their knees bent involuntarily and they knelt on the ground, their foreheads pressed against the cold ground. Cold sweat dripped down their faces and they didn't even dare to breathe.

"Please forgive me, sir." Their voices trembled slightly, as weak and powerless as fallen leaves in the autumn wind.

"There are only a few of them, and you can't even kill them or find them. Now, a prostitute has appeared out of nowhere and dares to openly accuse the imperial officials!"

Tuoba Xuan's eyes widened as he pointed at the group of trembling men, his tone full of disappointment and anger.

"The Weizhou Tongpan actually accepted the case and is now teaming up with the Sky Eagle Pavilion to investigate, even implicating Wang Xin! Will the investigation lead to me next? You bunch of useless people, what use are you!"

Sun Zhiming raised his head cautiously and said tremblingly, "Sir, Fang Buyu only went to question the Fifth Concubine. There should be no concrete evidence to accuse the Prime Minister's Mansion at the moment."

Hearing this, Tuoba Xuan's anger erupted like a volcano. He slammed the table, shaking the whole room, as if even the air was trembling.

"Do we have to wait for him to slowly find evidence?!"

After taking a few quick breaths, Tuoba Xuan calmed down a little.

He had a gloomy face and his eyes were like knives, scanning Sun Zhiming and several guards.

"What's the current situation of the three people who may have had access to the letter?"

Sun Zhiming quickly replied, "The person who escaped earlier is called Tang Suzi, and she's now living in Fang Buyu's residence. After our previous assassination attempt on her failed, she's become very cautious, making it difficult for our men to approach her, and we haven't found another opportunity to attack her."

Seeing Tuoba Xuan's face becoming increasingly gloomy, Sun Zhiming quickly continued, "But based on the information we have so far, the letter should not be in her hands. Otherwise, given her relationship with Fang Buyu, she would have given the letter to Fang Buyu long ago."

Seeing Tuoba Xuan's expression ease slightly, Sun Zhiming continued, "As for the other two, according to our speculation, the letter is most likely in the hands of Lin Bowen's only daughter, Lin Xiangli. We have recently learned the location of the temple where her mother became a nun, and we plan to send people there to search for clues. That's basically the situation."

After saying that, Sun Zhiming lowered his head and held his breath waiting for Tuoba Xuan's instructions. The whole room fell into a brief silence.

Tuoba Xuan paced back and forth in front of them, his brow furrowed, as if thinking about something.

After a moment, he stopped and stood still, his eyes coldly scanning Sun Zhiming. His tone was icy but unquestionable, "Continue to send more people to search for the whereabouts of Lin Bowen's daughter, Lin Xiangli. Make sure to find the letter. At the same time, send people to check on the brothel woman who filed the complaint to see if there's any chance of taking action against her. Remember, we want to be absolutely sure. There can't be any more mistakes!"

*

Inside the Tanshan Temple, smoke is curling and Buddhist chants are lingering.

In front of the Buddhist temple, golden light flickered, and Lin Xiangli respectfully took a lotus lantern from the hands of a kind-faced monk.

She held the lamp carefully, knelt on the soft cattail mat, lowered her head, and silently recited her father's name in her heart.

Then she stood up and took the flame from the monk's hand. The flame swayed gently in the breeze and she touched it carefully to the wick.

With a soft "puff" sound, the wick was instantly ignited, and the flame gradually spread, gently bound by the lamp wall.

Although the Buddhist hall was brightly lit, the light of this lamp seemed insignificant, as if it didn't matter whether it was lit or extinguished, but Lin Xiangli's heart was completely illuminated at this moment.

Holding the lamp, she walked lightly to the lampstand and gently placed her lotus lantern in the gap between the countless lamps arranged in a staggered manner.

Then, she closed her eyes again, clasped her hands together, and recited the scriptures she had learned in the past few days with great piety, praying for her father's salvation.

After finishing the lamp offering ceremony, she walked out of the Buddhist hall, searched the crowd with her eyes, and walked to a monk who was lighting incense in front of an incense burner.

When she gently called "Mother", Lin's mother turned around, bowed slightly to her, and whispered "Amitabha".

She raised her hand and gently wiped away the tears on Lin Xiangli's face, held her hand tightly, and gently comforted her: "Nannan, don't cry."

Then she took Lin Xiangli's hand, slowly walked down the steps, and came to a lush Bodhi tree.

Under the Bodhi tree at dusk, there is a sense of tranquility and peace, as if it can wash away all the dust in the world.

Mother Lin took her daughter to sit on the steps surrounded by trees, hugged Lin Xiangli's shoulders, and patted her back gently.

"Nannan, don't be too sad. Your father has us praying for him, and he will surely rest in peace."

Lin Xiangli's tears silently fell, and strings of tears dripped onto her clothes at her knees. Her voice was choked with sobs, full of confusion and sorrow: "Mother, I really don't understand why things have become like this. How did our family come to this point..."

She recalled the past, tears glistening in her eyes, as if reflecting those carefree times: "Didn't we live well before? Father was deeply loved and praised by the people, and you and Father were even more loving. We lived such a happy life back then. But then, how did everything change... I really don't want to believe it, Father, how could he become like that..."

Having said this, Lin Xiangli could no longer continue. She buried her head deeply in Lin's mother's shoulder, tears streaming down her face.

Lin's mother continued to pat her back gently, her words bringing back memories. "Your father wasn't a bad man. In his first five years as an official, he never took a single needle or thread from the people. I remember one time, during a disaster relief operation, he toiled for three days and three nights straight, and a local resident, to thank him, forced a large cabbage into his mouth."

Mother Lin looked off into the distance, as if transported back to those days. "You were young then, so you probably don't remember much. I remember that time your father brought home that cabbage and treated it like a treasure. He kept it in the center of the living room, and he wouldn't eat it even when it was almost rotten. He said he wanted to use it as a constant reminder that the way to be an official is to serve the people."

Lin Xiangli also raised her head, tears still on her face. "I really don't have much memory of that cabbage, but I remember a famine when I was a child. The relief grain from the imperial court was delayed, and my father gave away almost all of our rice to help the victims. For that month, we only had one meal a day, and it was just thin porridge with not many grains of rice. At that time, the people all praised my father as a living Bodhisattva..."

At this point, her eyes dimmed again: "But...why did father change later?"

Her eyes fell on the incense burner on the steps. The incense sticks that had just been inserted were burning slowly, and the ashes were falling one by one, as if no one could stop the passage of time and changes.

Mother Lin sighed deeply: "When surrounded by fame and fortune, people's desires will gradually grow, and their original intentions will be lost unknowingly..."

She looked back at Lin Xiangli and gently wiped the tears from her daughter's eyes with her fingertips. "Nannan, people's hearts are fickle, and this is a fact we cannot change. We can't control the changes of others, but we can hold on to the kindness in our hearts. In this world, everyone will leave us, and the only one we can truly rely on is ourselves."