Chapter 60 I didn't realize you were such a grateful person.
Ah Chan rolled her eyes inwardly. Who would want to read a book? It's pointless. Humans always like to ban strange and weird things, and she has no interest in understanding them.
Her little scheme was so easily seen through, so she had no choice but to change tactics and start reasoning with him: "Lord Bai, you said you were able to kill the tiger demon so quickly, wasn't I partly responsible for that?"
"Oh? How so?" Bai Xiuming asked cooperatively.
"If I hadn't gone through so much trouble, suppressing my fear of the tiger demon and feigning compliance to coax it into your presence, you wouldn't have been able to kill it so easily. When your Mingjing Division is rewarding its members, you shouldn't have forgotten about me."
"Is this my fault?"
Achan immediately and generously forgave him: "It is a great virtue to admit one's mistakes and correct them. But what about my tiger skin?"
Bai Xiuming neither agreed nor refused, but simply asked, "What do you need the tiger skin for?"
Achan answered quite frankly: "To make a mattress? I thought the tiger demon's fur was very warm. In winter, it would definitely be more effective than a hot water bottle for keeping warm on the bed."
Bai Xiuming pondered for a moment, then remained silent.
"For that tiger skin, I designed a three-meter-long bed for it in advance. Lord Bai, can you bear to let my design go to waste?"
"It sounds like you really need this tiger skin."
Achan nodded vigorously. Yes, that's it. She needed it so badly.
“Once the goods enter the Mingjing Division, they belong to the government,” Bai Xiuming said slowly. “However, I allow you to buy them for one thousand taels of silver.”
Achan took a deep breath: "Sir, how can you charge such an expensive amount as a thousand taels of silver when we have such a good relationship?"
She held up five fingers: "Five hundred taels!"
Bai Xiuming said with regret, "It seems you don't really want it. In that case, I'll just have to give the tiger skin to whoever wants it."
"I want!"
Achan's first attempt at bargaining ended in failure.
Although spending a thousand taels of silver to buy the pelt of a third-realm tiger demon was already considered a good deed done by Bai Xiuming, she still put in the effort and spent so much silver.
Ah Chan regretted that she should have brought Hui Niang along; she was good at bargaining.
"My lord, may I go and see my tiger-skin rug first?" Achan was afraid that he would change his mind at the last minute, so she planned to take her tiger skin home in a little while.
"The case involving the tiger demon has not yet been concluded, and it will take several more days before the tiger demon's body can be disposed of."
Achan glanced at him with distrust: "In a few days, you won't be giving the skin to someone else behind my back, will you?"
She knew that humans had always loved monster fur, and that black tiger's fur would definitely be in high demand.
"If you are worried, you can pay a deposit first, and I will definitely reserve it for you."
Achan patted her purse, generously took out a ten-tael silver ingot, and stuffed it into Bai Xiuming's hand: "You've accepted my deposit, so you can't go back on your word."
Bai Xiuming didn't seem to mind the small amount of silver and casually put it away, saying, "No problem."
"My lord, when your Mingjing Division kills a demon, are they all dissected and only the useful parts are kept?" Achan asked, feigning curiosity.
Bai Xiuming turned his head and looked at her intently: "What do you want to ask?"
Ah Chan's eyes flickered slightly; this person was indeed very perceptive.
"I wanted to ask, was the body of the fox demon who saved me... disposed of in the same way?"
Unlike humans, Achan didn't believe in the indestructibility of the body after death. Their demon race's tradition, in human terms, was savage and bloody. Any enemy was fair game for prey.
She just felt that although she didn't look very good when she left her body, it was still her own corpse, so if she could buy it too, she would buy it.
What do you plan to do with its body?
"Bury him, after all, he saved my life. I should visit his grave to offer incense and sweep the tomb during festivals," Achan replied matter-of-factly.
"I didn't realize you were such a grateful person."
"Of course I am."
"Unfortunately, the fox demon's body is not in the Mingjing Bureau."
"Not in the Mingjing Division? Then where is it?" Achan was somewhat surprised. Could it be that Qingyu Mountain knew she was dead and took her body back?
But she immediately gave up on the idea. Impossible. Her grandmother disliked humans and had almost no contact with the Great Xia. She didn't care when her sister went missing. Now that she was dead, her grandmother probably wouldn't even glance at her, let alone ask for her body back.
Moreover, her inner core is gone, so to the demon race, she's probably only worth a little bit of flesh and blood, which her grandmother probably wouldn't want.
Could it be... the Northern Wilderness?
As Chan thought of this, she frowned slightly, feeling somewhat unhappy.
"The Ming King took the body away," Bai Xiuming said without hiding anything.
"The Bright King?" This answer was completely unexpected. "What does the Bright King want with that corpse?"
"Would you like me to ask him for you?"
Achan shook her head vigorously: "There's no need for that. I'm just a little curious, but I don't want to know the truth."
Ming Wang is a fifth-realm cultivator; they seem to be able to see through many secrets, just like her grandmother. Heaven knows if he can detect her abnormality; Achan doesn't want to appear in his sight.
Achan didn't press the matter, and the topic ended there.
In fact, Bai Xiuming was not unaware of the reason.
The answer Ming Wang gave at that time was that the fox demon's father had a past relationship with him, and since he was the descendant of an old friend, the body should be kept by him.
If there is an opportunity in the future, it should be handed over to her elders.
Bai Xiuming would not casually tell others about matters concerning the Ming King's private affairs.
After speaking with Bai Xiuming, Achan looked at the sky and realized that the curfew had definitely passed. What was she going to do tonight?
"My lord, the antidote is all ready. Can I go home now?"
"Once your statement is recorded, I will send someone to take you back."
"Okay," Achan reluctantly agreed, then asked, "Aren't you going to see me off?"
"I, the official, wish to hear the case."
"Are we interrogating Lin Ting and her whole family? Sir, may we observe?" A-Chan suddenly became interested and didn't want to go home anymore.
What do you think?
Ah Chan pouted, knowing it wouldn't work.
Bai Xiu summoned a subordinate and ordered him to take A Chan for questioning.
The whole process was very short. The other party only asked some questions about Zhan Cao and her relationship with Lin Sui. The most difficult question to explain was why she knew Zhan Cao, but this question was deliberately glossed over, probably because Bai Xiuming had given an explanation.
After taking her statement, Ah Chan signed it, and that was the end of her job.
When the Mingjing Guard opened the door to the interrogation room, Achan saw Feng Yang standing at the door.
"Miss Ji, the master asked me to escort you back."
"Thank you for your help, Lord Feng."
Ah Chan yawned; she was already a little sleepy.
On the way back, she tried to get some new information from Feng Yang, but unfortunately, he was too tight-lipped. Either he couldn't say anything, or the adults would beat her to death if she did. So A Chan could only go home with a belly full of questions.
After Achan left the Mingjing Division, Bai Xiuming returned to the main hall of the division. The hall was brightly lit, and the two rows of Mingjing Division guards on the left and right had swords at their waists and serious expressions.
"Bring Yao Dingbang up here," Bai Xiuming said in a deep voice after taking his seat.
Before long, Yao Dingbang, drenched in sweat, was dragged into the hall.
"My lord, my lord, I'll confess everything." Before Bai Xiuming could even speak, Yao Dingbang had already begun kowtowing incessantly.
He originally wanted to conceal some of his crimes, thinking that he might get a lighter sentence.
But once he was in prison, whether he wanted to or not, he ended up confessing everything, whether he should or shouldn't have said.
The prison was no place for humans, and those people didn't care about his identity; they didn't want him to live at all.
Yao Dingbang was originally afraid of death, and even though he knew he was doomed this time, he would try to prolong the day as long as possible.
"Where did you get the Zhan grass?" Bai Xiuming asked.
"It was obtained by Huang from her maternal family. One of her great-aunts used to live in the Northern Wilderness, where you could buy Zhancao. She was the one who told us the uses of Zhancao. I was really just confused at the time and believed her."
What did you do after you got the Zhan Cao?
“We fed the dandelion to Tingting who had just been born, and then we had a few chance encounters with a female Taoist priest. I told her some of my sister’s private matters, and my sister was deceived by that female Taoist priest.”
"continue."
"Later, the female Taoist priest told my sister that the child in her womb was incompatible with her, and we secretly used some methods to make her encounter danger during childbirth. She believed it." Yao Dingbang took a few breaths and felt relieved after revealing these secrets that he had kept hidden in his heart for many years.
He continued, "Later, at the urging of Madam Huang and the female Taoist priest, my sister sent her daughter away, and Madam Huang brought my daughter to replace her."
He finished speaking in one breath, then looked up at Bai Xiuming, who was sitting in the hall with an indifferent expression: "My lord, I really didn't lie to you. At that time, I was just a minor official of the seventh rank. Our Yao family had also fallen into ruin. The only person we could rely on was my brother-in-law, but my sister looked down on me and didn't want to help me at all."
I was thinking of using my daughter to get some benefits in return. After adopting Tingting, my sister seemed like a completely different person. She treated me much better and gave me a lot of favors behind my back.
"Are you trying to tell me that the magical artifacts found in Lin Heng's and Yao's houses have nothing to do with you?"
“It’s related,” Yao Dingbang said, his voice trembling.
"reason?"
"Because... because my sister didn't give me enough benefits, I used all the money she gave me to buy wild herbs. Without money to spend, my official rank rose too slowly. Many years have passed and I'm still only a sixth-rank official, while my brother-in-law was able to rise to the top in one step and was directly appointed as a second-rank general. I was temporarily... temporarily bewitched."
"Who helped you this time?"
“Yes…” Yao Dingbang hesitated for a moment, but still said, “She is Huang’s sister-in-law. She discovered Huang’s deal with her aunt and came to Huang as well.”
"name."
Shen Yuehua.
“Shen…the Shen family of Xiling?” Bai Xiuming asked after only a moment’s thought.
"Yes, I heard she is a distant relative of the Shen family. I've heard people say that the Shen family is powerful. They have produced many demon hunters. Although they don't serve in the government, they are very prestigious among the people."
Bai Xiuming didn't need his explanation, and continued to ask, "What did the Shen family do?"
"She gave us a pair of jade pendants, one of which was engraved with my son's birth date and time, and the other with Lin Heng's birth date and time."
Tingting gave Lin Heng a jade pendant engraved with my son's birth date and time, instructing him to carry it close to his body. Unexpectedly, not long after, my son seemed to have suddenly gained enlightenment and actually passed the imperial examination for the first degree.
From the beginning, he knew that his eldest son was stupid and did not have high expectations for him, only wishing him to be safe.
But later, his eldest son passed the imperial examination for the first degree and then the county-level examination for the second degree... His expectations for his eldest son grew, and he became increasingly unable to stop pushing him.
"I remember you have two sons, both of whom benefited from Lin Heng's good fortune?"
“My youngest son borrowed the luck of Tingting’s fiancé, but unfortunately his talent and luck are too average, not even as good as Lin Heng who has never taken the imperial examination.”
Yao Dingbang's tone revealed a hint of dissatisfaction.
"And whose luck did you borrow?"
"It's...it's Lin Cheng and Lin Yi."
Feeling Bai Xiuming's cold gaze, Yao Dingbang tried to explain: "I don't borrow luck all year round. The two of them rarely come back, and Tingting can't contact them. I can only put the luck-borrowing artifacts in their room. I can only borrow a little each time they come back to the capital. It doesn't have much of an impact on them."
“Lord Yao is quite honest,” Bai Xiuming said.
"I dare not, I dare not conceal this from you, sir." Yao Dingbang kowtowed again. "Sir, I am selfish and despicable, but I truly have no intention of disrespecting His Majesty whatsoever. Please investigate thoroughly, sir."
"I understand."
Yao Dingbang suddenly raised his head, a glimmer of hope flashing in his eyes.
But then Bai Xiuming’s words plunged him off the cliff: “Unfortunately, Lord Yao does not know that the emperor of the previous dynasty once issued an edict to add a clause to the many laws of the Mingjing Bureau, which states that anyone who uses herbs such as 'Zhancao' to deceive officials is guilty of treason and will be executed along with their entire clan.”
Yao Dingbang collapsed to the ground, everything went black before his eyes. He was finished, completely finished.
Yao Dingbang, who seemed to be in a daze, was dragged away, and soon after, Huang was dragged up as well.
Next up were two brothers from the Yao family.
After Bai Xiuming questioned each person, the testimonies he obtained were not significantly different.
After the questioning ended, he sat in the hall in deep thought.
Although Yao Dingbang and Huang were the planners of this matter, they only had a superficial understanding of it, especially regarding the matter of borrowing luck. If other people's luck and talent could be easily borrowed with just magical artifacts, the world would have been in chaos long ago.
There must be some unknown secrets involved, and only the Shen family, who presided over the transfer of fortune, knew these secrets.
The Shen family wielded considerable power in Xiling, yet Lin Cheng had become the General of Anxi and stationed in Xiling a few years prior. It was difficult for him not to connect the two events.
It seems the Shen family has overstepped their bounds.
Bai Xiuming stood up: "Jiang Kai."
"Your subordinate is here."
"The Huang and Yao clans are suspected of treason, and all members of the clans have been brought back to the Mingjing Division for trial."
"Yes." Jiang Kai accepted the order and left.
The Yao family originally lived in the capital, and the main branch of the Huang family had also moved to the capital a couple of years ago, which saved him a lot of trouble.
As for the other members of the tribe, the only option is to notify the local authorities to cooperate in arresting them.
Overnight, the Mingjing Division confiscated the property of two small families in the capital, using the charge of treason. The next day, some officials in the court began to impeach the Mingjing Division for abusing its power.
However, this time the emperor did not watch the spectacle. Instead, he directly reprimanded the censor who impeached the Mingjing Division and even demoted him from the capital.
The court officials immediately realized the seriousness of the matter, and no one mentioned it again.
After the morning court session, the emperor summoned Bai Xiuming to the imperial study to inquire about the case. Finally, when he asked about Shen Shi, Bai Xiuming said, "When I sent people there, Shen Shi had already committed suicide and left a suicide note, taking all the blame."
The emperor chuckled, "She's certainly well-informed, managing to infiltrate even the Mingjing Division. I truly underestimated the Shen family. Things are probably getting restless over in Xiling."
Bai Xiuming remained silent. The most restless person His Majesty spoke of was his biological father, the Prince of Xiling.
The emperor glanced at him and said helplessly, "I'm talking to you."
"Your Majesty, I will immediately lead men to slaughter the Shen clan and avenge them!"
The emperor tossed an inkstone at him in an annoyed manner. Bai Xiuming caught it and carefully put away the imperial gift.
"Send more people to keep an eye on the Shen family. They have many connections with the demon race, and I will deal with them sooner or later."
"Your Majesty is wise."
"Lin Cheng... he was indeed deceived, so we won't pursue the matter further. When will he be able to return to normal?" the emperor asked.
"At most half a month, after I finish the trial, I will immediately execute the culprit. The matter of borrowing the goods will not have much impact on General Lin and his son," Bai Xiuming said.
"Alright, once he recovers, let him return to Xiling as soon as possible. Although the eldest son of the Duke of Song has good cultivation, his abilities are still lacking and he needs to be properly trained. The complaints from the border generals of Xiling have all reached my desk. It's a pity that the shrewd mind of the previous Duke of Song was not passed on to either his eldest son or his eldest grandson."
Bai Xiuming listened quietly to the emperor's ramblings without interrupting. He had no right to interfere in military affairs.
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