Chapter 56 Trusting the Xie Family’s Young Lady Once Left the City Gate
Su He stayed at her mother's house, and Chunhua Courtyard was empty for a while.
Xie Wuhen also felt empty inside.
With nothing to do at night, he simply strolled around the mansion and went up to the Wangxiang Pavilion.
The sky was bright with a moon and sparse stars, and the evening breeze was gentle. He casually asked, "Young Madam, are you really willing to stay at the Li family?"
Wu Sheng replied, "Boss, since you asked this, I wonder if anyone would dare to force the young lady."
Xie Wuhen said "Oh", but he was still uneasy.
After all, my wife and Li Jianye have never gotten along, and we can't let her suffer any losses in the Li family.
He then ordered: "Send someone to pick up the young lady and bring her back home early tomorrow."
Wu Sheng clasped his fists and replied "Yes".
While chatting, Xie Wuhen caught sight of the fire outside the East City.
Under the bright moonlight, the fire looked like an orange ball, burning in the night.
He wondered, "Why is there a flood outside the city?"
Wu Sheng also looked towards the outside of the city and said, "Don't worry, boss. That's a melon field, not a residential area."
"How could the melon field flood?"
"Maybe a melon thief burned down someone's melon shed."
Xie Wuhen was silent for a while, then instructed, "Go and find out the situation tomorrow."
Wu Sheng lowered his head and replied "yes".
The flame burned for at least half an hour before gradually dimming.
Xie Wuhen watched the firelight completely dim before he walked down the Wangxiang Pavilion and returned to Chunhua Courtyard.
He had a dreamless night and got up at dawn the next day to go on duty.
As soon as Xie Wuhen left, Su He entered the mansion.
At that time, the driver Fu Sheng was about to drive to the Li family to pick someone up. When he saw the young lady coming back alone, he was quite surprised: "Young lady, you are back so early."
Su He said calmly, "I couldn't sleep well at the Li family, so I came back early."
Fu Sheng bent over and smiled, "The young master probably thought of this as well, and even told me to go pick up the young mistress as soon as possible."
Su He said, "Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Fu." Then he went back to Chunhua Courtyard.
Yesterday she and Zhang Xiuhua stayed in a dilapidated temple outside the city, and only entered the city with the crowd after dawn.
Although it was a hard night, Su He was in high spirits because he had avenged his great hatred. He even asked someone to prepare a pot of fruit wine and invited Chunlan and Zhang Xiuhua to drink with him.
Chunlan was carefree and drank to her heart's content.
Only Zhang Xiuhua was worried: "We didn't go to the Li family yesterday. If the son-in-law knew about this, I'm afraid we wouldn't be able to explain it clearly."
Su He didn't care: "Even if he found out that I didn't go to the Li family, he would definitely not connect me with Liu Dazhong's death."
"But if that's the case, Master's trust in Young Lady will definitely be greatly reduced."
"Don't worry, auntie. I have my own way to deal with it."
Zhang Xiuhua wanted to ask how to deal with this, but knowing that Su He was not a talkative person, she refrained from asking any more questions.
No one can predict what the future will be like, so let’s just fight against the enemy with our troops and flood the water with our earth!
After daybreak, the melon fields welcomed the first batch of melon pickers.
A middle-aged man first discovered the melon shed that had been burned into ruins, and then he found a charred corpse on the ruins, as well as a long knife not far from the corpse.
The long sword had been burned black, but one could still faintly see the official logo engraved on the handle.
If this long sword belonged to the deceased, then the deceased was a court official.
How can it be tolerated that court officials were burned alive?
The melon farmers spread the news from one to another, and then from two to ten, and then someone went to the government office to report the case.
The newly appointed prefect immediately sent people to the scene to investigate. After several comparisons, they finally confirmed that the deceased was Judge Liu Dazhong, who had inhaled a large amount of drugs before his death and therefore failed to escape from the fire.
Liu Dazhong was not only a court official, but also related to the Zhou family. His sudden death was truly horrifying, so the Dali Temple was ordered to intervene in the investigation.
The two yamen will investigate together to find the murderer as soon as possible.
The news of Liu Dazhong's death quickly spread to teahouses and restaurants in the capital.
Some people sighed, but more people applauded and said, "Evildoers will be punished by God."
In the Wuyou Teahouse.
Anzi reported the rumors outside to his master in detail.
Zeng Yidao smiled when he heard that.
An Zi asked, "Sir, do you also think that Liu Dazhong deserves to die?"
Zeng Yidao fiddled with his teacup and replied calmly, "I'm happy for someone else."
An Zi was puzzled: "Who are you happy for, sir?"
Zeng Yidao replied calmly: "You don't need to ask more about this."
Liu's house in Tongxin Lane.
Liu Jiao, who had always been domineering, fainted several times from crying. Without her father's protection, she no longer had the confidence to act recklessly in her life.
Song Sheng was secretly delighted. Now that his father-in-law was dead, he could finally stand up straight and live his life with dignity.
But when I thought of that female creditor, I couldn't help but feel a chill down my spine.
It was obvious that his father-in-law died at the hands of that woman, and he was also an accomplice, so he had to keep this secret.
The new prefect summoned him several times, asking him why he took his father-in-law to the melon field and what happened after he went there that night.
He had prepared a speech in advance and his answer was flawless.
Liu Qinian, the Minister of the Dali Temple, even ordered an investigation into the entry and exit records of the city gate that day.
After all, the murderer is suspected to be quite familiar with the melon field and is also very familiar with Liu Dazhong's situation. It is very likely that he is a person from the city who went out of the city to commit the crime.
However, since it was neither a festival nor a holiday that day, there was no martial law at the city gates, and investigating was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
As a result, there was no progress in the case for three consecutive days.
Li family's Moxiangyuan.
After lunch, Zhang Qian'er sat in a daze in the idle room.
Li Jianye wanted to fumigate Datura stramonium in the main house, so she could only stay in the spare room to avoid the unpleasant smell.
She already knew the news outside - she knew that a judge had died the day before, and that the Dali Temple was investigating the entry and exit records at the city gate.
She thought for a moment and called Dong Ye: "Find someone to go to the Dali Temple to deliver a message."
Dong Ye was confused: "What message does the young lady want to pass on to the Dali Temple?"
Zhang Qian'er's face was gloomy. "Just say that on the day of the incident, at the hour of You, the young mistress of the Xie family left the city gate."
Dong Ye paused and asked, "Miss, are you trying to frame that young lady as a murderer?"
Zhang Qian'er sneered, "I saw her leave the city gate with my own eyes, so there's no such thing as 'slandering'."
"Even if she left the city, it doesn't mean she killed anyone. Besides, who would believe that a weak woman who couldn't even tie a chicken could kill a burly judge? Besides, the eldest son of the Xie family is the Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple. Those officials will definitely not do anything to her. Miss, you'd better not try this trick."
Zhang Qian'er's face fell: "Why, now you want to teach me how to do things too?"
Dong Ye choked: "I dare not."
Zhang Qian'er gritted her teeth and continued, "Even if I can't do anything to her, she'll still be in big trouble. She might be publicly questioned, detained, or even spend a few days in jail. Last time, I tricked her into exposing Xie Jia's Second Son, and she got away with it. This time, I'm going to make her look ridiculous."
Dong Ye felt that his master was really crazy about this young lady, but he didn't dare to persuade him any more. He just replied "yes" and turned to leave the house.
In addition to investigating the tea master, Xie Wuhen has been secretly paying attention to the progress of the melon field murder case these days.
He didn't expect that the fire he saw that night when he stood on the Wangxiang Pavilion was the same fire that burned Liu Dazhong to death.
He went to ask Liu Qinian about the case, but Liu Qinian evaded the issue, saying, "It's just an ordinary murder case. You don't need to pay attention to it. Just focus on doing your job for the Emperor."
Xie Wuhen had no choice but to give up the idea.
One day, he was reading documents in his public housing when Liu Qinian unexpectedly walked in and even closed the door. "Wuhen, I want to tell you something."
Xie Wuhen replied: "What is it, sir, please feel free to speak up."
Liu Qinian sat down on the chair opposite him, a cautious look on his face. "Today, someone came to the yamen to report that the young mistress of the Xie family had left the city gate on the night Liu Dazhong was murdered."
Xie Wuhen paused when he heard this, and thousands of thoughts flashed through his mind.
But he didn't show it on his face, and asked tentatively: "I wonder who reported it?"
Liu Qinian smiled and said, "That man claimed to be a blacksmith from a shop on Zhuque Street. He said he saw the young lady leading a maid out of the city gate at the hour of You that day. The time of leaving the city at the hour of You and the crime occurring at the hour of Xu makes the connection perfectly. Anyway, his story is very convincing."
Xie Wuhen poured a cup of tea for Liu Qinian: "My wife has always loved tea. I guess she went to the woods outside the city to collect the morning dew to make tea."
"Estimated?" Liu Qinian looked at him meaningfully. "Wuhen has been married for so long, and yet he doesn't even know where your wife goes on a daily basis?"
Xie Wuhen pretended to smile awkwardly: "My wife has a free and easy temperament, I never restrict her."
Liu Qinian joked: "Young people are just spontaneous."
Xie Wuhen clasped his fists and said, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, sir."
Liu Qinian took another sip of tea and said, "Good tea."
Then he stood up and said, "I came here today for no other reason than to communicate with you. Your wife is your family member. As colleagues, we trust you and her as well. We will not interrogate or detain her. Anyway, you just need to know this."
Xie Wuhen saluted again: "Thank you for your consideration."
Liu Qinian waved his hand and lowered his voice. "Verbal thanks are useless. Just give me two packets of the good tea the emperor gave you."
Xie Wuhen lowered his head and said, "I will send it to your public housing in a moment."
Liu Qinian was satisfied. He laughed twice and turned to leave the house.
As expected, Xie Wuhen sent two bags of good tea to Liu Qinian through Xiao Liuzi.
He then left his post and returned home.
Su He had a very leisurely time these past two days. Apart from reading storybooks and developing poison techniques, he would sit in the corridor, enjoy the breeze and eat some snacks.
He also sorted the delicious snacks into different categories and put them into food boxes, and took them to Xie Erlang in Anxinyuan.
One day she was in a good mood and made a kite for Xie Erlang with her own hands.
The wild geese on the kite were painted so vividly that Erlang clapped his hands in delight: "Sister-in-law can draw big birds... Now that I have a big bird... I want her to draw another one."
She asked, "What else are you drawing?"
"Draw my mother, my father, or my brother...that's fine too."
"Aren't you afraid of your brother anymore?"
"Sister-in-law is not afraid, and Erlang is not afraid either."
Two people, one big and one small, were running and flying kites in the garden at night.
But the wind was too weak and the kite could not be flown.
Xie Erlang was so angry that he puffed up his lips and kicked off his shoes.
Su He had no choice but to pick up the shoes and bend down to put them on him.
Xie Erlang pursed his lips, feeling aggrieved. "It's pitch black, not fun at all... Next time, can sister-in-law take me out to play during the day?"
Su He didn't know how to respond for a moment.
Xie Erlang is a person who cannot stand in the light. If he is taken out of Anxinyuan in broad daylight, more people will see him, which will definitely make Xu Nanzhi more embarrassed.
She replied tactfully, "If Erlang behaves well and doesn't lose his temper, I'll talk to your brother. If your brother agrees to let you go out and play during the day, then I'll play with you during the day."
A child's temper can come and go as he pleases. Xie Erlang instantly smiled and said, "Then I'll listen to my sister-in-law."
Su He praised him and then sent him back to Anxinyuan.
When she returned to Chunhua Courtyard from Anxin Courtyard, Xie Wuhen had been off duty for quite a while and was sitting in the house peeling chestnuts for her.
He had known that she often went to Anxinyuan, but he did not stop her. He just turned a blind eye.
She pretended to be happy and said, "My husband bought chestnuts for me again today?"
He said "hmm" calmly and brought the peeled chestnuts to her: "Eat it while it's hot, my lady."
She saw that he looked unhappy: "My husband, have you encountered something unhappy?"
He denied it, saying, "It's just that I'm busy with work and a little tired."
"Then my husband, take a hot bath later to relieve your fatigue."
He hummed again and asked, "The day before yesterday, my wife returned to the Li family. Did Li Jianye give her any trouble?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
