Chapter 345 This is a complete conspiracy!
She insisted on going in to see for herself, but once inside, what she saw was no different from what those people had described.
wrong.
Lin Shiyuan wouldn't speak nonsense; he only risked coming in because he had evidence, intending to find strong evidence to bring down Prince Xin.
Yao Qingling stared blankly at the chaos before her. Collapsed pillars barely held up the top, and rubble knocked the things inside to pieces. There were many things buried underneath, and it was impossible to tell what they were.
But, but so many craftsmen, not a single one survived; they were all crushed to death.
An official in a purple robe approached, holding the jade belt at his waist, and said, "Madam Yao, it's dangerous here. You should go out."
Yao Qingling stared coldly at him, questioning the cause of the craftsmen's deaths. The official replied indifferently, "What's so strange about that? The rescue tunnel took a whole day and night to dig through. These craftsmen were already injured, and the excessive lack of education made it impossible for them to endure, so they died."
"Even without such serious injuries, being stuck here for a day and a night without food or water, with only a small amount of air, would suffocate you to death."
Yao Qingling was furious when she heard the official casually determine the cause of death.
Just as she was about to say something, Imperial Censor Cao arrived.
He also asked Yao Qingling to speak up, so as not to be hurt by the chaos of the world.
"...It's not safe here; there's a possibility of it collapsing again at any time."
The censor forcibly dragged Yao Qingling away.
Qingling was furious: "Who is that official?!"
Imperial Censor Cao snorted coldly: "An investigator sent by the Court of Judicial Review."
He gave Yao Qingling a wink, signaling them to change the setting.
Qingling had been digging all day and was now exhausted, so she had to return home first.
The censor and his wife came over and gathered in the Magnolia Courtyard to talk.
Madam You was panicked, not knowing what had happened, but seeing Yao Qingling's forced composure, she thought, her niece was struggling to support the Marquis's mansion alone, she couldn't hold her back. Staying in the capital to help her was also helping her own husband.
Lady You arranged for someone to prepare dinner, but she never went up to disturb them or ask any questions. Instead, she kept a close watch on the Marquis's residence.
Qingling had no appetite, so He Yin saw that her hand was injured and brought some medicine to apply to it.
Qingling said, "Imperial Censor Cao, have we fallen into a trap?"
Prince Xin and the Minister of Works deliberately obstructed their investigation, which only fueled their determination to investigate further. As a result, two cases were being pursued simultaneously. Beneath the excavated tunnel, no evidence was found; even the witnesses were dead.
With Prince Shin's faction cleared of suspicion, the only remaining investigation is the major case at Yongning Temple last year.
She clenched her fingers, blood seeping from the ruptured wound, but she seemed oblivious to the pain.
"Miss, let go." Seeing this, Lou Yue quickly pried Qing Ling's fingers apart.
Qingling took a deep breath, closed her eyes, leaned her head back in the chair, and various deductions came to mind.
Imperial Censor Cao said, "The most likely scenario is that they discovered Lin Shiyuan was investigating, so they moved the iron ore in advance. As for the smelting equipment, those that could be moved were moved, and those that couldn't be moved were destroyed during the explosion."
“Those craftsmen, from the moment they stepped into that underground cavern, were destined never to leave.”
Lou Yue couldn't help but ask curiously, "But they were all crushed to death. If I were Prince Xin, I would at least kill them first, and then when the explosion happened, they would just be corpses, so that I could ensure there were no survivors."
Survival is a human instinct. If those craftsmen were alive before the explosion, surely some of them would have hidden in a corner, barely clinging to life? And surely some of them would have been fleeing for their lives amidst the tremors?
In short, she still felt that the cause of death of those craftsmen had been obscured.
Qing Ling opened her eyes and slowly said, "If I were Prince Xin, in order to avoid suspicion and to leave no survivors, I would put drugs in their food after transporting away the ore and equipment, making them weak all over."
"If the explosion is triggered at this time, those people can maintain their escape posture, and because they cannot dodge in time, they will be injured by stones. The soldiers guarded the scene after the explosion, ostensibly to prevent further accidents, but in reality, they were just delaying time to ensure that everyone was dead."
Lou Yue said, "If we let the coroner investigate, wouldn't they be able to find out if they had taken any drugs?"
Imperial Censor Cao laughed at Lou Yue's naiveté.
If they don't want people to know the truth, the powerful and wealthy have plenty of ways to cover it up. Coroners are human too, and they have weaknesses that can be exploited.
Lou Yue said dejectedly, "What should we do then..."
Qingling clenched her fingers and suddenly laughed.
He Yin looked at her and gestured with her fingers: "What are you laughing at, Miss? Have you thought of a good idea?"
Qingling said, "The fact that there is no Lin Shiyuan's body down there means that he escaped."
Her eyes brightened: "I'm wondering if he's already obtained the evidence."
But why hasn't he shown up yet?
But no matter what, she can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Wait a moment!
Yao Qingling had just breathed a sigh of relief when the rest of her breath caught in her throat: "Oh no!"
She jumped up, gripping the handrail. Lou Yue exclaimed, staring at her hand, "Miss, can't you take better care of your hands!"
Qingling's hands trembled with pain, but her face was deathly pale: "Sheng Dahe! Sheng Dahe!"
She was too emotional to speak coherently, and no one understood what she meant.
Imperial Censor Cao's expression was grave.
His wife had already told him everything about the Shengda River.
If the collapse of Yongning Temple is not investigated further, then in order to quell public resentment, the imperial court, under the impetus of Prince Xin and the Minister of Works, will blindly believe the theory that it is caused by vengeful spirits and will do everything in its power to hunt down the bandits!
Sheng Dahe was already furious about the burning of the warehouse, and if Yao Qingling hadn't kept him in check, he would have caused trouble long ago.
However, now that the imperial court is going all out to suppress the bandits, it's like adding fuel to the fire, forcing Sheng Dahe to rebel.
In this way, the imperial court wouldn't even need to go to great lengths to search every mountain valley; these people would simply come to them on their own!
This is what Yao Qingling is worried about!
"Madam Yao, don't worry, I'll go with you to see those people. With me here, perhaps we can persuade them—"
Before he could finish speaking, an arrow suddenly struck the door with a thud.
Nie Yun pulled out the arrow and saw a note attached to it that read: "The officials forced me to rebel, so I had no choice but to rebel."
Then, a commotion arose outside.
Nie Yun's expression was grave: "I'll go out and take a look."
She returned in less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.
His face looked even worse.
"They stormed into the residences of several officials, and other wealthy merchants were also implicated. The most seriously affected was Jin Mantang."
Qing Ling's lips trembled with anger: "Foolish! Sheng Dahe, that brute!"
Xiao Pingfeng rushed over and overheard Yao Qingling's angry outburst. He said, "Miss, this can't be blamed on Boss Sheng."
"The court has forced him to this point; he has no way out. If he does nothing, it will be no different from surrendering."
He added, "After the fire at the dock, all the gates of the capital were heavily guarded. After the collapse of Yongning Temple, the city gates were closed, allowing only entry but not exit. Even if Sheng Dahe wanted to leave with his people, he couldn't."
"This is a complete conspiracy!"
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