Wu Linshun knew very well that if he didn't investigate thoroughly, he would be doomed to death.
"Madam Su, my crime is truly unforgivable. I hope you can show some leniency. I am solely responsible for my actions, and I don't want to implicate our Wu family because of my mistakes."
Xiao Lingyu frowned and reiterated, "Manager Wu, this isn't a matter of whether I want to show leniency or not, but whether the laws of Beiyi will show you leniency. Now that you've been tried and sentenced, can the things you've revealed be used to redeem yourself and meritorious service, or can your sentence be reduced? The county magistrate will handle the matter according to the laws of Beiyi. Do you understand?"
Wu Linshun glanced at Wu Qingshan. His father looked haggard, with dark circles under his eyes and white hair at his temples. He was obviously much older than before. His father was still running around for him at such an old age. The little hope he had that he could survive was completely extinguished at this moment.
"Madam Su, I understand. I want to expose to you the incident of Xu Liangxiao murdering his brother ten years ago..."
“Bang!”
Wu Qingshan was so angry that he slapped Wu Linshun in the face and said angrily: "You rebellious son! How could I give birth to such a bastard like you?"
Wu Huaiyuan hurried forward to calm Wu Qingshan down, "Grandfather, calm down. Don't let your anger ruin your health."
Wu Linshun confessed, "Dad, I really know I was wrong. I plead guilty and accept the punishment."
“You, you…”
Wu Qingshan was so angry that he didn't know what words to use to curse him, and he even cursed himself.
Wu Qingshan glanced at Wu Huaiyuan with resentment. If he had known what happened yesterday, he would not have had the face to invite Madam Su to the county government office.
Now his son not only robbed property, but also joined his boss in murdering others. This is a crime punishable by death.
Xiao Lingyu listened quietly to Wu Linshun's story. He was surprised for a moment, and then his expression returned to normal.
In the original owner's memory, she had heard a little about all the dirty things that happened in the backyards of the aristocratic families in the capital.
Her former mother-in-law occasionally summoned her to the palace to teach her how to maintain her favor. She also veiledly told her some palace fighting tactics and let the original owner figure it out on her own.
The original owner was very smart and knew that her future destiny was to face the turbulent circumstances in the palace. She didn't want to be arranged like this, and was glad that she observed mourning at the age of fifteen.
Although she would not marry into the royal family for the time being, she was still implicated in the struggle for the throne.
Xiao Lingyu did not find it strange that the Xu family would kill people for the sake of their family property. They were all doing it for their own interests, and the difference was just a matter of minorities.
Xiao Lingyu asked, "Are the Xu family's second and first wives from the same mother?"
Wu Linshun shook his head. "The second wife of the Xu family is the daughter of the second wife. The old master of the Xu family favors Xu Liangxiao. The Xu family's wine business, carpentry workshop, cloth shop, tea shop, porcelain kiln and other industries can be said to have grown bigger and bigger after the first wife, Xu Liangyun, took over from the old master. Yulanxuan was built from scratch by Xu Liangyun and his wife. Xu Liangxiao took advantage of his favor to take away two-thirds of the Xu family's assets, but these two-thirds of the assets are not as good as Yulanxuan."
Xiao Lingyu understood that besides being greedy, Xu Liangxiao also felt inferior to his elder brother Xu Liangyun, and also had a hint of jealousy.
"Okay, I get it. Are you sure you can get Xu Liangxiao to tell you on his own initiative?"
Wu Linshun thought that Xu Liangxiao would never admit what happened that year. He was the only one with him at that time, so the only option now was to deceive him.
"There is a way."
Xiao Lingyu turned his head to look at Lin Kun not far away, and left the cell first.
Lin Kun came in with a long lock: "Village Chief Wu, Scholar Wu, the time has come."
Wu Qingshan stared at Wu Linshun for a few moments with a complicated expression, then left the cell with Wu Huaiyuan and Lin Kun.
"Grandfather, let's go fill our stomachs first and come back in the afternoon."
Wu Qingshan nodded and said, "Let's go to your second uncle's house."
Su Ning'an stood by the carriage carrying two large food boxes, leaving an empty seat for Xiao Lingyu to sit on. The rest were filled with flowers. There was also a truck loaded with flowers tied to the back of the carriage.
Su Ning'an saw from afar that Wu Qingshan left the yamen with his shoulders drooping. He couldn't help but pout and frown. It seemed that what Wu Linshun said did not help him get his sentence reduced.
"Boss of the Su family." Lin Kun stepped out from the gate and asked in surprise, "Why did you buy so many flowers?"
"My mother wanted to buy these." Su Ning'an jumped off the carriage with the food box. "These flowers should be kept in my yard."
Lin Kun had an intuition telling him that the Su family's yard would soon be completely new.
Mrs. Su might have renovated the Su family yard to resemble the yard she had in the Duke's Mansion.
"Boss of the Su family, go in first, your mother is waiting for you."
After Su Ning'an carried the food box in, Lin Kun ordered Xingyun and Xingying to drive the carriage and truck into the backyard of the government office...
"Master Miao, this is ten taels of silver for the car rental fee. Please keep it."
Miao Xiantong took the money with a smile and said, "Madam Su, I didn't expect you to make money so quickly."
Xiao Lingyu said, "Last time when I went to Wufeng Mountain to hunt wild boars, I discovered chili peppers and tomatoes, rare ingredients mentioned in ancient books. I took them home to cook and they tasted just as good as the books said. So I took them to a county restaurant to sell them. The owner of Shizui Yulan was very knowledgeable and bought some back. I didn't expect the dishes made with chili peppers and tomatoes to be so popular."
Miao Xiantong believed her words without any doubt. Those who taught Xiao Lingyu to read and write were all great scholars of the time, so he naturally had access to many collections of books.
"Mrs. Su, are peppers and tomatoes really that delicious?"
"Master Miao, you'll know after you try it." Su Ning'an strode in with a food box in hand. "I just happened to bring a plate of stir-fried beef with chili peppers from Shizai Yulan."
Suningan opened the lunch box and the unique aroma of chili wafted out.
Su Ningan first brought out the stir-fried beef with peppers. "The green ones are the hot peppers. Come and try them. They're delicious."
Master Miao sniffed, his mouth watering at the sight of the dish in front of him. The food smelled delicious. He took the chopsticks handed to him by Su Ning'an and said to the mother and son with a thick face, "Then I'll try it, just one bite."
After a while, Lord Miao seemed to have forgotten that he had just said that he would only taste one bite. He ended up eating seven or eight bites before reluctantly putting down the Kuaizi.
"Mrs. Su, chili peppers do have a unique flavor. They make delicious dishes fragrant and delicious. I'd like to ask if chili peppers can be grown on a large scale?"
Miao Xiantong knew that this pepper was very rare and expensive at the moment, and ordinary people could not afford it.
Xiao Lingyu knew he had the people in his heart. "Master Miao, I discovered two types of peppers from Wufeng Mountain: pointed peppers and chili peppers. They are seasonings like onions, ginger, and garlic. There's also a rare vegetable, tomatoes. They can't be grown on a large scale yet. I'll try planting them in Guihua Village next spring. If they're successful and yield a good harvest, Master Miao will promote their cultivation, which will benefit the people."
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