The next morning, Shen Ruoyan left the house.
Old Madam Lu was worried and sent someone to follow her, thinking that she was going to find Lu Ankang to find out what was going on.
Later, the servants came back to report that Shen Ruoyan had only taken people to buy things for the prince, especially pens, ink, paper and inkstone, which were all selected by Shen Ruoyan himself. Only then did they feel relieved.
Madam Lu felt that Shen Ruoyan felt sorry for her son and had wronged him, so she went to buy some things for Lu Yan as compensation.
"Ma'am, this way please."
The waiter leading the way lowered his head respectfully, not daring to look around.
This is a very ordinary restaurant. In the land-scarce city of Shengjing, the flow of people is not very large, and the business does not seem to be prosperous, but the location is very convenient.
The first floor is where diners eat, the second floor is the private rooms, and above that is the accommodation. It had only been opened for a short time and there were only a few people walking around.
The waiter took Shen Ruoyan and his group to the private room upstairs, walked to the innermost part, and then opened the last room.
This room is not open to the public on weekdays and is only reserved for the boss's distinguished guests.
And Shen Ruoyan is obviously in this group.
"Madam, the person has been brought here." When Shen Ruoyan went in, the Dali Temple Minister was already waiting inside.
This inn is where they meet privately. From the outside, it looks like a private room, but in fact there is a secret room inside. Even if someone really follows them, they will not find any clues.
Next to the Dali Temple Minister sat a woman. Although she was called a woman, she didn't look very old. Even after all she had gone through, one could still see the beauty and charm of her youth on her face.
Even now, wearing coarse clothes, she looks different from ordinary women.
Shen Ruoyan sat down and looked carefully at the woman in front of her, and found that she was very patient.
From the moment she came in until the Dali Temple Minister spoke to her, she didn't raise her head, nor did she even move at all, as if she was an emotionless scarecrow, sitting there quietly pretending to be human.
“Madam Li, I guess no one has called you this for a long time.” Shen Ruoyan said gently.
Sitting in front of her was the wife of Li Qingzheng, whom they had been looking for for a long time.
After Li Qingzheng was beheaded, she seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth and her figure was nowhere to be found.
He has been disguising himself these days and hiding among the crowd, which is very stealthy.
Shen Ruoyan's words did not have any effect on her. The Dali Temple Minister smiled awkwardly. This woman was actually very difficult to deal with. When she was in the Dali Temple, she used the most cruel torture, but it was still difficult to pry her mouth open.
It was only later that he found a breakthrough and made the woman start to cooperate.
"Think about your family." The Dali Temple Minister lowered his voice.
As soon as he finished speaking, the woman slowly raised her head. She happened to meet Shen Ruoyan's gaze and subconsciously shrank for a moment, but soon became unresponsive again.
Seeing this, the Dali Temple official was afraid of angering Shen Ruoyan, so he explained: "I have found out that the Lin family was worried that Li Qingzheng would expose their corruption, so they used her family to threaten her and make her give false testimony to frame Li Qingzheng."
The cause of the incident was very simple. Li Qing was upright and incorruptible, and he would even risk his life for the people - Lin Si was scared!
Li Qingzheng's wife was named Yan Wanlan, the daughter of a merchant in Songyang County.
Her family favors boys over girls. Although she and Li Qingzheng are childhood sweethearts, the treatment they receive at home is very different.
Yan Wanlan also has a younger brother. Compared to her, her parents are more obedient to her brother. Yan Wanlan treats her younger brother as her own son, often taking him to her side to look after him without any complaints.
Lin Si had captured her younger brother and used him to threaten her family.
I thought it would take some effort, but who knew it would be so easy to succeed.
Shen Ruoyan listened quietly to the Dali Temple Minister's story, and felt that it was too absurd.
Who could have thought that such an upright official, a man for whom the people would risk their lives in rebellion to seek justice, would die for such a reason?
How ridiculous!
"Have you ever felt any regret in your heart for doing these things?" Shen Ruoyan really wanted to know what Yan Wanlan was thinking.
It is said that Li Qingzheng was aware of the injustice in her family, so after they got married, he was very considerate and respectful to her.
Everyone knows that Lord Li is the most henpecked.
As long as the lady speaks, no one dares to disobey!
In the minds of the people, they are the representatives of the fairy couple, so when Yan Wanlan later stood up to testify, it was so devastating to Li Qingzheng.
It can be said that Li Qingzheng did his best to be good to Yan Wanlan, but what about her?
Yan Wanlan's hollow pupils slowly began to brighten. However, it was only a transformation from a scarecrow to a living being.
She looked like a walking corpse. Although she was still alive, it seemed as if all her energy had been drained away.
If the result of framing Li Qingzheng was Lin Si's compensation and silencing of them, then Yan Wanlan should be living a very carefree life now.
But Shen Ruoyan didn't look like this.
"I'm sorry for him."
I don’t know how long it took before I heard Yan Wanlan’s hoarse voice slowly ringing out.
Perhaps because she hadn't spoken like this in so long, her words were somewhat halting, their voices like the hoarse hum of an old windmill. It felt like being sawed, quite uncomfortable.
"But I have no choice. If I don't do that, my brother will be killed by them..." Whether it was to convince herself or to appear more guilt-free, Yan Wanlan's voice became faster:
"I have no choice, I really have no choice!"
"No, you have a way!" Shen Ruoyan looked at her straight, not giving her a chance to escape, "You have a way, but you don't want to do it!"
Lin Si's kidnapping of the man further demonstrated his guilty conscience. Therefore, although he was the one threatening the man, he actually did not dare to act rashly.
Because once he is found out, his crime will only be more serious!
There might be room for reversal in the case of corruption, but if human lives were involved, then even if the emperor doted on Concubine Lin to the sky, there would be no way out.
In Dasheng, killing someone means paying with your life!
No matter who you are, you will be treated equally on this point!
Even if Lin Si really lost his mind and didn't care about anything.
But what about Li Qingzheng?
He is an honest official, but not an impulsive and stupid official without brains. If Yan Wanlan can tell the truth and discuss it with him, I believe that with Li Qingzheng's talent, he can also find a solution.
The Dali Temple's judge had investigated the case back then—Li Qingzheng initially refused to confess under torture, but upon learning that his wife had reported him, he actually began to waver...
The last straw that broke the camel's back was Yan Wanlan!
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