Chapter 249 Heartbreak [Together]
Fenghuang went out to chase Yiren, but soon came back.
She looked at Li Nuo and Song Jiaren, shook her head and said, "I didn't catch up with her."
Yiren is at the fourth realm. If she is determined to leave, Fenghuang, an ordinary person, will definitely not be able to stop her.
Li Nuo looked at the music box in her hand. It was something she loved very much and was so precious that she didn't even let Ning'er touch it. But before she left, she kept it.
And the words she just said didn't sound like a farewell, but more like a parting.
For no reason, those words were particularly distressing.
Looking at the direction where Yiren left, Jiaren gently let go of Li Nuo's hand, lowered her head and thought for a moment, then said softly, "Husband."
Li Nuo looked at her.
Thinking of Yiren's farewell, she felt guilty. She raised her head, looked at Li Nuo, and asked, "Am I too sorry for Yiren?"
She had never felt this way before.
But since I started practicing new skills, this guilt has been growing day by day.
Until just now, when I saw Yiren's tears falling, this guilt reached its peak.
Li Nuo didn't know how to answer.
In this matter, the mother-in-law was wrong, the Song family was wrong, and even she and Jia Ren chose to ignore her.
The only one who did nothing wrong was Yiren.
If I have to say sorry, then everyone is sorry to her.
Without waiting for Li Nuo to answer, the beauty left quickly: "I'll go after her."
Fenghuang looked at Li Nuo with a helpless expression.
She had helped them enough, but Yiren also had her own ideas.
Obviously, she chose to let go completely.
She sighed softly, this might be an injustice.
now.
Chang'an, somewhere at the city gate.
Song Yiren stood under the towering city wall and took a last look at Chang'an.
Just as she was about to walk out of the city gate, a panicked and fearful voice suddenly came to her ears.
“Help!”
"Let me go, please let me go!"
“No, no!”
She turned her head and looked in the direction of the sound, and saw a man molesting a woman in the street.
The woman's face was full of fear, and she asked for help in panic, which attracted the attention of passers-by.
However, after just one look, they moved away.
Judging from the man's clothes and accessories, he is either rich or noble. He is surrounded by several ferocious guards. Ordinary people dare not provoke him.
Chang'an is full of powerful and influential people and important figures. Ordinary people need to be extra careful when living here.
A moment of compassion may ruin their lives.
But they were also confused.
It was a rare thing in Chang'an where a decent woman was molested in the street.
This kind of typical evil young man and vicious slave, molesting women in the street, is a plot that only appears in operas and novels.
How could those truly wealthy and powerful children do such a thing that would lower their status? They could choose the top courtesans in all the major brothels in Chang'an at will. They were rich and powerful, so what kind of woman could they not get?
Even if he really likes a good girl, he has countless ways to make her submit.
Worst case scenario, if you want to do something perverted, you can secretly hire someone to knock them out, or sneak in at night without leaving any evidence.
He actually dared to do such a thing in the street in broad daylight. Could it be that this person is not from Chang'an? Has he really never suffered the iron fist of the Dali Temple?
"Let her go!"
Just as most people were watching from afar, a shouting voice was suddenly heard.
A young woman strode over.
Bang!
The young man who molested a decent girl in the street was kicked away by the beautiful young woman. The guards who wanted to stand up for their master were also punched by her. In an instant, they all lay on the ground wailing, unable to get up.
"pretty!"
“Well done!”
"What a skill lady!"
The crowd watched this scene from afar, applauding and cheering for this heroine who stood up for justice.
Although they themselves did not dare to take action, they felt happy when they saw someone standing up for injustice and beating up the spoiled and evil servants.
Song Yiren walked forward and helped the woman who had been molested and was half naked, with most of her shoulders exposed, to put on her clothes, and then asked, "Girl, are you okay?"
The panicked look on the woman's face disappeared. She looked at Song Yiren in astonishment and angrily asked, "What are you doing?"
Song Yiren was slightly stunned and asked, "I saved you, you..."
The woman shook her hand off and said, "What do you mean you saved me? I was just playing around with this young man, why do I need you to save me? Why are you meddling in other people's business? Really, you've ruined our good time..."
She hurried to the noble young man who was kicked away by Song Yiren and lying on the ground, and asked with concern: "Young Master, Young Master, are you okay?"
Seeing this scene, not only Song Yiren was dumbfounded, but even the onlookers were stunned.
They were actually acting?
It was a scene where a dandy young man flirted with a common girl in the street...
Is this still possible?
Since it's just a play, the government naturally has no right to interfere.
After being astonished, people couldn't help but sigh.
These rich people really know how to have fun...
They would never imagine such a thing in their lifetime.
They were just wondering how it was possible that a woman could be molested in the street in Chang'an.
After all this time, it turned out to be a misunderstanding.
Song Yiren was speechless, and did not even look at the couple. When she was about to leave, the woman squatted on the ground, gently shook the nobleman's body, and said, "Young Master, get up..."
However, no matter how she shook him, the young master did not react at all.
As if she realized something, she stretched out her finger and gently felt the young man's breath.
The next moment, her face turned pale, and she sat down on the ground, mumbling, "No, no breath..."
After she realized what was happening, she immediately pointed at Song Yiren and shouted, "Murder, murder, help!"
Song Yiren was stunned for a moment. She had only made a slight move just now to teach him a lesson. How could she possibly kill him?
She walked up quickly and felt the man's pulse. After his body shook, his face gradually turned pale.
Dead...
She didn't use any strength at all, how could he die?
The situation was full of twists and turns, and the scene was completely silent.
I thought he was flirting with the girl, but it turned out to be just a play.
I thought I was just standing up for justice, but it turned out to be meddling in other people's business.
What’s more serious is that this misunderstanding actually resulted in a loss of life.
The crowd had been gathering here for quite some time. A team of guards came here on patrol and found something unusual, so they hurried over immediately...
…
Li Mansion.
Before the lady came back from chasing her lover, Song Yu hurried over.
As soon as he ran into the yard, he said in panic: "Brother-in-law, it's bad. Yiren was involved in a murder case and was arrested and taken to the Chang'an County Government!"
Li Nuo was also stunned when he heard this, and said in shock: "What!"
Song Yu said anxiously: "The news just got back to the Song family, and I came to find you, let's go and take a look first!"
When Li Nuo and Song Yu arrived at the Chang'an County Government Office, their father-in-law and mother-in-law had already arrived.
He walked forward and asked, "Where is Yiren?"
As soon as Song Zhe received the news, he rushed over from the Ministry of Personnel. At this moment, he still looked a little dazed and did not answer Li Nuo immediately.
County Magistrate Pei came over, sighed softly, and said, "The Zongzheng Temple has taken over the case, and Miss Song has been taken away by the Zongzheng Temple."
Li Nuo frowned and asked, "Why would Zongzheng Temple take over? Could the deceased be..."
Pei Zhe nodded and said, "The deceased is the county magistrate of Fengyang..."
Although the Viscount is the lowest rank of noble in Daxia, he is still a noble.
The powerful people in Daxia all have royal blood. When powerful people commit crimes or cases involving powerful people are handled by the Zongzheng Temple. Even the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple have no say in them.
The deceased was a powerful person, and it was reasonable and legal for the Zongzheng Temple to take over.
Li Nuo looked at Pei Zhe and asked, "Does Lord Pei know what happened?"
Pei Zhe nodded and said, "I have already made inquiries. Although this case originated from a misunderstanding, it did cause a loss of life, and the victim was a viscount. This is indeed a bit troublesome..."
From Pei Zhe, Li Nuo quickly learned the whole story.
The whole thing is made up of a series of misunderstandings and coincidences.
The county magistrate of Fengyang and a prostitute were playing a role-playing game in the street.
Yiren misunderstood that he was molesting a woman and attacked him.
Although the kick was not heavy, Fengyang County Man had suffered from a heart disease since birth and had always been weak. For an ordinary person, that kick would at most cause some physical pain, but it happened to take his life.
These misunderstandings and coincidences have led to the current results.
Who could have thought that there would be someone so perverted as to play with this kind of sentiment, acting like a dude and flirting with decent girls in the street.
Without knowing it, Yiren's behavior constitutes manslaughter.
In Daxia, there are six types of murder, namely murder, intentional killing, fighting killing, manslaughter, killing for fun, and negligent homicide.
Premeditated murder is the most serious crime and shall be punished by death.
Manslaughter is the least serious crime and the punishment may be reduced or exempted at the discretion of the court, but the lightest punishment is exile and imprisonment.
But all of this is based on certain prerequisites.
If the person killed is a rich and powerful person, no matter what the reason is, the crime will be aggravated to the third degree and the death penalty will not be commuted or exempted. Even if it is the lowest level of rich and powerful, they will still have to pay with their life.
This law has never changed since the founding of Daxia.
Su Qing couldn't help asking, "What will they do to Yiren?"
Song Zhe moved his lips but said nothing.
If Yiren had killed just an ordinary playboy, her rank could have reduced her sentence a lot.
But the person who died at her hands was a powerful person. Even if Song Zhe killed the powerful person himself, he would have to pay with his life.
County Magistrate Pei shook his head and said, "Killing a powerful person, whether it is accidental or negligent, should be executed according to the law, and there is no redemption..."
When Su Qing heard this, his face turned cold and he turned around and walked outside.
Song Zhe quickly grabbed her wrist and asked, "Where are you going?"
Su Qing said coldly: "I will go to that Zongzheng Temple and rescue Yiren!"
Song Zhe said: "Calm down first..."
Su Qing said angrily: "Yiren is about to be beheaded by them, how can you expect me to stay calm!"
Li Nuo also stepped forward and said, "Mother-in-law, please don't worry. I will go to the Zongzheng Temple to see Yiren and find out the whole story first. Even if they want to convict Yiren, they have to go through the Dali Temple..."
With my mother-in-law's personality, she is really capable of committing a prison break.
Let’s not talk about whether she can rescue Yiren from Zongzheng Temple. Even if she can, they can’t escape from Chang’an.
Even if she took Yiren back to Sanqing Sect, the matter would not be over.
Kidnapping people from the Zongzheng Temple prison was tantamount to declaring war on the imperial court.
The Sanqing Sect is very powerful, but it is far from enough in the face of the state apparatus.
Matters in the underworld can be resolved using underworld methods.
When it comes to official matters, the methods used by the official should be used.
Su Qing calmed down after hearing Li Nuo speak. In order to reassure her, Li Nuo comforted her and said, "Don't worry, no matter what, I won't let Yiren get hurt..."
Watching Li Nuo leave, County Magistrate Pei sighed again and said, "Alas..."
Su Qing glared at him and said unhappily, "What are you sighing about!"
Pei Zhe shook his head and said, "I sigh for Lord Li."
Su Qing frowned and asked, "What's wrong with him?"
Pei Zhe explained: "He is practicing Legalism. According to Daxia law, Miss Song committed a capital crime. Judging from Lord Li's appearance, he should be able to save her, but if that happens, his path to Legalism will be cut short..."
Although he did not amend the Legalists, as a county magistrate he needed to be familiar with the laws and had a good understanding of the Legalists.
Even if a Legalist accidentally makes a wrong judgment, his cultivation will still regress.
Deliberately shielding a death row prisoner, especially a close relative, is a violation of the Legalist taboo. It won’t be long before all your cultivation will be lost, and you will never be able to practice Legalism again in this lifetime.
I don’t know how many disciples of the Legalists gave up on the Legalists for this reason.
This is heartbreaking.
It is also the most effective means for the powerful to deal with the Legalists.
Instead of engaging in a battle of wits and courage with them in the court, it would be better to simply destroy their Legalist hearts so that they can no longer practice Legalism, and naturally they will no longer cause trouble for the powerful.
Compared with Legalism, Confucianism has higher requirements for moral character. If they cannot practice Legalism because they are shielding their relatives, they will not be able to switch to Confucianism.
In today's court environment, it is extremely rare to find someone who is willing and capable of reforming the legal system.
That's why Pei Zhe sighed repeatedly.
Su Qing heard this and looked at her husband.
Song Zhe also nodded slightly.
Su Qing looked in the direction where Li Nuo left.
If what they said was true, it meant that Li Nuo had to choose between Yiren and the law-reformer.
She wasn't entirely sure what choice he would make.
After thinking about it, she took a deep breath and said, "I'll go find Li Xuanjing!"
Song Zhe shook his head and said, "It's useless. No matter who takes action between the father and the son, the result will be the same for him..."
Su Qing said: "Then I'm going to find him too!"
at this time.
Han Palace.
In a magnificently decorated hall, the Prince of Han suddenly stood up, looked at the young man who walked in, and asked, "Is it done?"
The young man nodded and said, "The woman has been taken to Zongzheng Temple. It depends on whether Li Nuo can save her."
The Prince of Han sat down slowly, a smile on his face, and said: "If he saves her, he won't have to cultivate the Fa family. If he doesn't save her, the people of the Song family will definitely have a grudge against him in the future. Moreover, even if he wants to save her, Zongzheng Shaoqing is Li Shou's biological father. Lin Ting, Lin Ting, you are worthy of being Uncle Lin's son. You can actually come up with such a heart-breaking method..."
The young man waved his hands and said modestly: "This method has been used by our predecessors. I am just following its example..."
One wants privileges, the other wants to eliminate privileges.
The Legalists and the powerful have been mortal enemies since ancient times.
After hundreds of years of fighting, the powerful and wealthy naturally have extremely rich experience in dealing with the Legalists.
Although the Legalists pursued justice.
But they are also human.
As human beings, we have selfish desires.
If money can't buy them, beauty can't seduce them, and power can't corrupt them, then buy, seduce, and corrupt their relatives.
When they can only choose between their relatives and spiritual practice, appear at the right time and give them different choices.
Most people will compromise at this step.
For those who refuse to compromise, use this method over and over again. One day they will compromise. Even if they are determined to follow the path of Legalism to the end, they will eventually become a lonely person.
The Prince of Han looked at the young man and said with a smile: "You young people still have good brains. However, I have a question, how did you make Li Shou die at that time?"
The young man smiled and said, "Your Highness, don't worry about this. In short, Your Highness, don't worry. Even if the best coroner comes, he won't be able to find any problems with Li Shou's death..."
The Prince of Han glanced at him and said, "You are always so mysterious. Forget it, I won't ask anymore. However, I really want to see what Li Nuo looks like now. Why don't we go to Zongzheng Temple and wait for him?"
The young man said quickly, "Absolutely not. I have investigated him carefully. Li Nuo is quite capable, especially in solving cases. In order to avoid revealing any flaws, it is better to stay away from him."
That being said, the Prince of Han was really itching to see him, and couldn't help but say, "Let's not go to Zongzheng Temple. Can we find a teahouse or tavern nearby? I feel really uncomfortable without seeing him..."
The young man thought about it and could only say: "Okay then..."
Zongzheng Temple.
At the door.
Among the nine temples, Zongzheng Temple has a special status.
Unlike other departments of the imperial court, the Zongzheng Temple was directly involved in state affairs and only managed matters concerning the royal family and the powerful. It had a great deal of independent discretion in matters concerning the royal family and the powerful. Even the three provinces found it difficult to interfere in the internal affairs of the Zongzheng Temple.
At the entrance of Zongzheng Temple, two fully armed guards wearing armor stretched out their hands to Li Nuo and said, "Zongzheng Temple is a restricted area. No unauthorized persons are allowed to enter."
Li Nuo took out a waist badge and said, "I am Li Nuo, the Secretary of the Honglu Temple. Please report to me."
The two guards looked at each other.
What is the Honglu Temple Secretary?
But the name behind the Honglu Temple Secretary does have something to it.
One of them turned and walked into the Zongzheng Temple, then quickly came out and said, "Master Li, please come in."
The layout of the Zongzheng Temple is very similar to that of the Dali Temple. As soon as Li Nuo stepped into the Zongzheng Temple, he saw that the open space in front was surrounded by people.
In front of a corpse covered with a white cloth, several women were crying sadly.
A middle-aged man in a scarlet official uniform stood there, his face blank and painful, looking haggard and collapsed.
The official uniforms of officials from various departments of the imperial court were slightly different. Li Nuo could infer from his official uniform and the insignia on it that this person was the Shaoqing of the Zongzheng Temple.
Just now in the carriage, Steward Wu had told him that the person whom Yiren had accidentally killed was the son of the Junior Official of the Zongzheng Temple.
If the normal inheritance of titles was followed, by the time of Fengyang County Master's generation, he should have been the second-class Fengyang County Earl.
The Shaoqing of Zongzheng Temple was originally the first-class earl of Daxia, but his only son committed a capital crime. After he passed the title to his son, he spared the death penalty by demoting his title by one rank, and finally he was only left with the rank of a county magistrate.
If he cannot give birth to a son in his lifetime, this title will be taken back by the court.
This case was under the jurisdiction of the Zongzheng Temple, and the deceased was the son of the Shaoqing of the Zongzheng Temple. The deceased's family members were all here, and Li Nuo really felt a headache.
The guard walked up to an official and whispered something to him. The official walked over slowly and said, "Honglu Temple Secretary, what are you doing here at Zongzheng Temple?"
This official should be another Junior Secretary of the Imperial Clan. Li Nuo could only bite the bullet and say, "The case of the county magistrate of Fengyang involves my wife's sister. I heard that the Imperial Clan has taken over the case, so I came here to learn more about it."
Before the official could speak, the middle-aged official standing next to the corpse turned his head abruptly, strode forward, and shouted sternly: "What are you doing here? Get out!"
After all, the other person had just lost his only son, so it was understandable that he had a bad attitude. Li Nuo said politely, "I understand the feelings of this gentleman, but this is a murder case after all, so it is better to understand it clearly. I think this gentleman would not want the son of Fengyang County to die unjustly."
The middle-aged official clenched his fists, his eyes were bloodshot, and he said fiercely: "My Shou'er was killed by her own hands. Countless people witnessed it. How could she be wronged? Mr. Li, I know your father is Li Xuanjing. I will tell you today that even if your father Li Xuanjing comes, I will make the murderer who killed Shou'er pay with her life. She will die without a doubt, and not even the king of heaven can stop me!"
He was obviously extremely angry. After saying this, his chest was still heaving violently. The look he gave Li Nuo was extremely fierce, like a wild beast ready to devour its prey.
But the next moment, his pupils suddenly shrank.
Soon, the fierce look in his eyes gradually faded away, his chest stopped heaving, and he seemed to have regained his composure.
Behind Li Nuo, there was a sound of steady footsteps.
An elegant middle-aged man walked slowly towards me with his hands behind his back.
Another charming woman whose exact age could not be determined followed closely behind him. Her footsteps were so light that there was no sound when they landed, making the footsteps of the person in front of her seem particularly clear.
The Zongzheng Temple, which was originally extremely noisy and filled with all kinds of discussions and crying, suddenly became quiet.
Even the dog that had been barking in the corner seemed to be affected by the quiet atmosphere and hid behind a tree with its tail between its legs.
Only a steady sound of footsteps could be heard, and every step seemed to fall into everyone's heart.
An extremely depressing atmosphere gradually spread invisibly.
When this kind of oppression reached a certain extreme, the elegant man walked to the side of Li Nuo, looked calmly at the middle-aged official opposite who had completely calmed down, and said: "Release him."
(End of this chapter)
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