Chapter 14 Blatant Murder
Tao Tao told Yu Shan to go to her shop early the next morning. Since her younger brother Yu He was injured, he didn't need to come over yet. She also gave them thirty-three taels of silver, which Yu He would repay the money tomorrow.
The remaining three ounces were their living expenses.
So she has to go back to South Street again.
It wasn't late in the afternoon, and as soon as she arrived, all the job seekers surrounded her, saying, "Pick me! Pick me!"
Seeing so many people, Tao Tao hurriedly called for a stop: "Fellow villagers, this job of mine is carrying a coffin. I only need one person. Does anyone here have the courage?"
Upon hearing that there were people carrying coffins, everyone looked at each other, their expressions hesitant.
Doing something so unlucky will bring you bad luck for the rest of your life.
As soon as she mentioned it, many people were dissuaded and dispersed. Surprisingly, only two old men remained, who were about the same height and build as her. She was a little worried about whether the old men could lift her up.
Old Man Lin put his hands on his hips, wiped his face, and asked thoughtfully, "Young lady, how much money can you offer? How about fifty coins?"
Old Sun then asked, "Are you only going to carry this coffin by yourself? One person won't be enough!"
Tao Tao scratched her cheek. "How about this, I'll take both of them, one tael of silver each. Besides carrying the coffin, there might be contact with the dead, or they might help with other things. Can you do that?"
When the people around heard that it was one or two taels of silver, they suddenly became restless. Several people came back and asked if they wanted it, but she refused.
Upon hearing that there was actually a tael of silver, the two old men hurriedly nodded in agreement, afraid that she would change her mind if they hesitated even for a second.
They're practically half-buried already, so why should they care about such things when they have money? Maybe they'll even go down to keep the person in the coffin company.
"Come find me at a funeral parlor called 'Life's Big Events' on Chengnan Street early tomorrow morning. We'll go together then, and remember not to be late."
The two old men nodded repeatedly, "Okay, thank you, boss."
The last thing to do is to find a Taoist priest.
She remembered that there was an old Taoist priest who had set up a stall on Chengxi Street for a long time, but that was several years ago. She hadn't been to Chengxi Street in recent years.
I don't know if he's still around.
She still had some time to try her luck today, but before that, she needed to go eat.
Tao Tao rubbed her rumbling stomach; she hadn't eaten all day, and when she got busy, she really didn't feel anything.
I randomly picked a noodle stall on the street and ordered a bowl of plain noodles.
Just as she was enjoying her meal, a chorus of screams erupted behind her, accompanied by hurried footsteps. She had barely taken a bite of her fried egg when a group of people passed by, kicking up a cloud of dust.
She quickly picked up the bowl of noodles, glaring indignantly at the group of people in front of her, dressed in blue-gray robes and carrying swords at their waists.
Who is this person?
"Isn't that one of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review's men?"
"Could it be that some major murder has occurred?"
The onlookers eating noodles nearby were discussing it in hushed tones.
Tao Tao didn't take it seriously and continued eating her noodles. Suddenly, she stopped eating as a thought flashed through her mind.
"Doesn't a murder mean there's a need to hold a funeral or something? Doesn't that mean there's more business to be done?"
She muttered to herself, turned to look in the direction they had run off, and hurriedly ate several mouthfuls of noodles.
"Check, please!"
Tao Tao steered the carriage in the direction they had just taken. As they drove, she felt something was amiss. Wasn't this the only road they had taken after leaving the Chen residence?
Seeing the Dali Temple Minister lingering at the gate not far away, she decisively turned her carriage around and left.
Suddenly, someone called out to her from behind.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she couldn't help but mutter, "What kind of eyes does this person have? How can they suspect someone from so far away?"
She continued driving, pretending not to hear.
As Zhao Li, the Chief Justice of Dali, walked and called out, he noticed that the person in front of him was walking further and further away. Sensing something was wrong, he waved his hand and quickly ordered someone to stop him.
Tao Tao stopped, looking at the person blocking her way, her face full of confusion: "Is there something you need?"
Zhao Li jogged over and stood in front of her, questioning, "Why did you hide when you saw people from the Dali Temple?"
"Oh, you're from the Dali Temple? I was truly blind to your greatness, I'm so sorry."
She jumped down, bowed, and apologized, a hint of fear on her face.
"I don't know why you gentlemen are blocking my way. I am a law-abiding citizen and have never done anything wrong."
He put his hands on his hips impatiently and stared at the woman in front of him, saying, "I'm asking you why you hide when you see us? Are you feeling guilty about something?"
"ah?"
She looked up at him blankly and said, "No, I really didn't know you were calling me. If I had known, I would have stopped immediately."
Zhao Li looked at her suspiciously, scrutinizing her from head to toe.
"Then what are you doing here?"
She calmly replied, "I was just about to go to West Street, but I haven't been there for several years, so I went the wrong way for a moment and I was just looking for the way."
"Do you know how to get there?"
Her bright eyes met his directly, without flinching or looking away. Her open and honest demeanor dispelled much of his doubt.
"Go straight ahead, turn right at the fork in the road, and then go straight for another three miles. You will arrive at your destination."
"Thank you, thank you, sir. I'll take my leave now."
She didn't leave after she finished speaking. Only after he nodded did she drive away.
Suddenly, someone from the Chen residence came to report.
"Lord Si Zhi!"
He looked somewhat anxious.
"What's wrong?"
"Lord Sizhi, Qiu Zhaolan is dealing with Consort He. The scene is a bit chaotic. Why don't you go and take a look?"
Zhao Li glanced at him and quickly walked forward.
"Where is the maid who delivered the letter?"
"Dead."
"What?!"
Zhao Li stopped and turned to look at him, his face filled with disbelief.
"Wasn't she with you? How could she suddenly die?"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead: "When we arrived, Qiu Zhaolan had ordered his men to beat Aunt He half to death. The last blow of the stick was so powerful that the maidservant rushed over to block it to protect her mistress."
"We didn't have time to stop them."
"you!"
As Zhao Li walked through the winding corridors and pavilions, just as he was about to step into the courtyard, a servant raised a blood-stained wooden staff high, about to bring it down, when Zhao Li shouted angrily.
He successfully immobilized the servants, and Aunt He, lying on the ground covered in blood, immediately cried out and reached out to him for help.
Standing to the side, Qiu Zhaolan's face was cold and hard, and his eyes revealed a chilling killing intent.
"Let's do it!"
She wanted this prostitute to know that even with the people from the Dali Temple around, she couldn't escape death.
Seeing this, Zhao Li quickly ordered everyone to go up and stop them.
Qiu Zhaolan frowned when she saw that the servants had been restrained. Wang Mama, who was standing next to her, stepped forward, snatched the wooden stick from one of the servants, and began to beat He Yiniang on the ground.
But before they could even begin fighting, they were subdued by the people from the Dali Temple, and the wooden staff in their hands was thrown to the ground.
Zhao Lizhen never expected that with the people from the Dali Temple present, they would dare to kill so blatantly.
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