"grown ups!"
A shout interrupted Zhao Lin's words.
Everyone turned around and saw that it was Liu Qiaoniang.
She hurried over, not even getting dressed, and fell to her knees, saying, "Please calm down, my lord. I acknowledge my guilt."
Li Xingye said sternly, "Do you know what crime you committed?"
"Woman, woman..."
Liu Qiaoniang glanced at Zhao Lin and said, "I don't know Mr. Zhao. Someone paid me 100 taels of silver to falsely accuse him."
"Really?" Li Xingye shouted, "Do you know the consequences of a false accusation? If someone threatens you, just tell them. I will take care of it for you."
Liu Qiaoniang shuddered, lowered her head and said, "I know. It was indeed a false accusation yesterday."
"Then why did you admit it voluntarily?" Li Xingye asked.
Liu Qiaoniang gritted her teeth and said, "That man only gave me ten taels of the one hundred taels of silver he promised. I've been waiting until now and still haven't received it. Of course, I don't want to do anything for him anymore."
There was a commotion among the crowd.
This sounds fine, but something doesn't feel right.
Li Xingye slammed the gavel and shouted, "How dare you, a little woman, tease me? Even if I only gave you ten taels of silver, compared to the consequences of a false accusation, ninety taels is nothing. How could I let you come forward and confess? Liu Qiaoniang, I consider your ignorance and will give you one chance. Think carefully before you speak."
Liu Qiaoniang kowtowed and said, "Sir, everything I said is true, and I am willing to take responsibility."
Li Xingye frowned and said, "Okay! Since you say someone paid you to slander Mr. Zhao, then who did it?"
Liu Qiaoniang said, "I don't know him."
"You don't know him?" Li Xingye snorted coldly, "If he didn't know him, why would he look for you? And why would you dare to do such a thing with him? Tell the truth. If you lie, you will be severely punished."
"mighty……"
The yamen runners on both sides shouted slogans at the right time, making Liu Qiaoniang tremble. She could only say, "The one who asked me to do this is my lover named Monkey. I heard that he didn't know him either. He just said that he had a grudge against Mr. Zhao, so he asked us to do this."
Li Xingye slammed the gavel and said, "Come here, take this bitch and catch the monkey."
Several yamen runners immediately took Liu Qiaoniang out to arrest people.
Sudi shouted, "And that old woman Wang, don't let her get away."
Zhao Lin stood up and bowed, saying, "Sir, this matter has nothing to do with me anymore. I beg to leave."
"Yes." Li Xingye nodded and said, "Go ahead. I'll contact you after I've dealt with this matter."
Zhao Lin and Sudi left the lobby. Sudi said unhappily, "Why are you leaving? I still want to know who slandered you. No, you know who it is?"
Zhang Fan chuckled and said, "They're just a few despicable people. Don't pollute your ears. Let's go sort out the files and try to finish them as soon as possible to avoid wasting time studying."
"I like what you said." Sudi said proudly.
Zhao Lin looked at Sudi strangely. Why was this guy so effeminate?
Zhao Linyi covered his stomach and said, "Oh, I need to go to the toilet. How about we go together?"
Sudi quickly said, "No, I just went. You go ahead, I'll go sort out the files."
After saying that, he ran away.
Zhao Lin frowned slightly.
There's something wrong with this guy, definitely something wrong.
Is it true, as Wang Ziyao said, that he has a preference for both Long Yang and Yang?
Zhao Lin shuddered suddenly.
It seems I have to be more careful next time.
Zhao Lin and Su Di were sorting through the files until the afternoon when Li Xingye sent someone to fetch Zhao Lin. He said, "We've investigated everything. It was done by Wang Lei, a foreigner who admired Yun Zhiyi. He had no money and no literary talent, so he was jealous of your love for him. That's why he deliberately found Monkey and Liu Qiaoniang to frame you. He's already escaped overnight. I've issued an arrest warrant, and I believe he'll be apprehended soon."
Zhao Lin said gratefully, "Thank you, sir, for clearing this student's name."
Li Xingye waved his hand and said, "That's unnecessary. I didn't do anything. But you, I think you already knew who did it yesterday. How did you get Liu Qiaoniang to turn against you?"
Zhao Lin smiled and said, "I found Liu Qiaoniang and used silver to make her tell the truth. When I found out it was Wang Lei who did it, I told them that Wang Lei had no money and would definitely not give them a hundred taels. When they couldn't get the silver they were promised, they naturally turned against me."
"Um."
Li Xingye nodded. Zhao Lin's words weren't watertight, but they weren't a big deal. Zhao Lin wasn't going to pursue the matter anyway, so Li Xingye didn't bother to dwell on it. He said, "Although Wang Lei has escaped, Liu Qiaoniang, Wang Pozi, and Monkey have all been detained. They've slandered you and ruined your reputation, which has violated the Great Qi Law. How do you want to punish them?"
Zhao Lin asked, "Is the child Liu Qiaoniang is holding hers?"
Li Xingye nodded and said, "Yes. I have specially ordered people to investigate, and the child is hers and Monkey's."
Zhao Lin sighed, "Although they do deserve to die, the child is innocent. If the two of them go to jail, what will happen to the child? Why not follow the previous sentence and let them work in the charity as punishment?"
Li Xingye was slightly moved. "Repaying evil with kindness is magnanimity. I'm very pleased that you have such a broad mind. But you must also remember that not everyone deserves this. Being too magnanimous will only hurt yourself."
Zhao Lin said gratefully, "Thank you for your advice, sir. It's mainly because they didn't cause any impact on the students, otherwise the students wouldn't have let them go."
"Very good, very good."
Li Xingye nodded repeatedly, looking at Zhao Lin with increasing satisfaction, and said, "Work hard. As long as you can pass the imperial examination, I will ensure that your future is worry-free. As for Fu Chengwang's words, don't take them seriously."
After a pause, Li Xingye smiled and said, "If you can make it into the top three, I will go to Minister Fu's residence to propose marriage on your behalf."
Zhao Lin quickly said, "Your Excellency is joking. But are you serious?"
Li Xingye was stunned for a moment, then pointed at Zhao Lin and laughed out loud: "You kid... I keep my word and never break it."
Zhao Lin bowed solemnly to Li Xingye and said, "Then I'll leave my care to you, sir."
"Oh? It seems you are very confident?" Li Xingye teased.
Zhao Lin said solemnly, "I dare not say I have confidence, but I can only say that I will do my best to live up to your expectations."
"Very good, very good."
Li Xingye said two more good words again and said, "Go ahead. This official's words will be valid forever."
After Zhao Lin left, Zou Yu came over and said, "Sir, according to the servants who were monitoring Zhao Lin, Zhao Lin didn't leave the house. He just sent someone out. As for where he went, we don't know."
Li Xingye said calmly, "Don't worry about it. Just confirm that it's a false accusation. Young people with talent, ability, and kindness are rare."
Zhao Lin returned to the storage room where the files were stored. Sudi immediately asked, "What did the Lord say?"
Zhao Lin said, "We've already investigated it. It was done by someone who was jealous of Yun Zhiyi and my good relationship."
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