Chapter 141 Are you worried about me?
Xiao Luo's words were like a knife, piercing the hearts of everyone present.
This was the first time Jin Shu felt a heavy weight on her shoulders.
As a coroner and a member of the Six Doors, the idea that catching the murderer is punishing evil and promoting good has long been deeply ingrained in my mind.
But this time was different. Listening to his words, it would be a lie to say that I wasn't wavering.
Li Jin stood in front of her, so Jin Shu couldn't see the expression on Xiao Luo's face.
His cries echoed for a long time in the courtroom of the Jingzhao Prefecture, and Li Jin could not answer his question.
He crouched down, gazing at the boy's pained face, his gaze seemingly piercing through his skin and confronting his very soul.
"How much money do you need to redeem your sister?" he asked. "I can't help you with your sins. It's only right that a life should be paid for a life, even if you killed a vicious devil."
“Just as you have family, Niu Dai’s family also needs basic justice.” Li Jin’s words were gentle, touching Xiao Luo’s heart.
To some extent, it was indeed Niu Dai who caused his family's ruin and death.
Murderers should pay with their lives, but it seems unfair that someone who destroyed an entire family with just their words only receives moral punishment.
But the law is the law, and even Li Jin cannot transcend its existence.
He sighed; the anger that had been ignited in him earlier when Xiao Luo clashed with Jin Shu had long since dissipated.
He said, "I may not be able to help you, but maybe I can help your sister."
These words caused Xiao Luo, who had been kneeling on the ground for a long time, to kowtow and burst into tears.
If they had met Li Jin earlier, would these tragedies have been averted?
If Li Jin had known earlier that there was such a family in the capital, would he have been able to save them sooner, and would the Great Wei have had another happy family?
These questions will never have answers.
In Li Jin's dictionary, there is no such thing as "if".
He stood with his hands behind his back in Xiao Luo's dilapidated courtyard, watching the constables inventory all his property. A dark cloud seemed to hang over his heart, making him feel extremely depressed.
Although the case is closed, everyone feels extremely uncomfortable, and it's hard to describe the feeling.
"Public opinion can be a fearsome thing." Li Jin chuckled, glancing at Jin Shu beside him. "She learned a lesson from Xiao Luo."
He laughed self-deprecatingly, looking at the constables sorting through piles of garbage: "Even Shen Wen couldn't get any real information about the Xiao family."
No wonder Shen Wen seemed to have vanished into thin air after the case was closed. When they met by chance, he looked haggard, and all his unspoken words turned into a long sigh. He seemed to have aged several years overnight.
This person, who claims to be "omniscient," must have suffered a severe blow.
“Shen Wen has been reorganizing the Supervisory Council these past few days. This case has made him discover the flaws of the Shadow organization.” Seeing Jin Shu’s knowing expression, Li Jin became slightly curious and pointed to Xiao Luo’s small courtyard in front of him. “Mr. Jin, aren’t you going to ask me what I’m looking for in this messy place?”
That gaze made Jin Shu frown: "Isn't he looking for clues about 'Seven'?"
This woman, with her crystal-clear mind, is truly not lovable at all.
Li Jin's lips twitched, and he raised his hand to cough lightly: "I didn't see Song Zhen when I went to Jinhua Tower last night." His eyes fell on Jin Shu out of the corner of his eye, "But Song Zhen said that I should solve the case at hand first."
"After we returned, someone nailed a seven-pointed star into a pillar in the sect leader's courtyard with an arrow." He paused, leaning slightly towards Jin Shu: "What does Mr. Jin think?"
Jin Shu looked at Li Jin with a puzzled expression: "I'm not good at reasoning and solving cases. The prince keeps asking me what I think, and all I can do is make things up."
She complained somewhat, "Besides, compared to the number seven, the Prince's main courtyard is so dangerous that an arrow could be driven into it. Shouldn't that be more worrying?"
Under the tree, sunlight fell in patches on Jin Shu, caressing her uneven brows, which looked like she was filled with disappointment.
Li Jin, who had been in a bad mood, suddenly smiled and asked softly, "Are you worried about me?"
Jin Shu was taken aback.
“At this point…” Her brows furrowed even more, her lips drooped, she turned her head away, and sighed, “If something were to happen to the Prince, I really wouldn’t be able to find a job with such a high monthly salary right now.”
Yes, he can't stop talking about money.
Li Jin wasn't angry at all, and nodded seriously: "Yes, you were worried about me."
These words sent a warm sensation down Jin Shu's spine. Before she could even retort, Li Jin added with a smile, "Don't be afraid, the one who can kill me hasn't been born yet."
Li Jin smiled, glanced at Jin Shu, and walked into the inner room on her own.
The shadow that had been hanging over his heart because of the case was dispelled by Jin Shu's concern, and he felt much more at ease.
Jin Shu stood at the door, looking at Li Jin's smiling back, not knowing where to begin her吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for complaining/criticizing).
"Don't worry, Mr. Jin." Perhaps seeing her anxiety, Zhou Zheng said, "Back then, the prince led me and Bai Yu, the three of us, and we went in and out of the enemy's ranks three times without a scratch."
As he spoke, he gestured with his hands: "The prince on horseback was like a god, defeating the Northern Liang gang and making them run away in all directions! That scene! Even now, when I think about it, my heart still races."
The sun shines brightly, cicadas chirp, and a gentle breeze caresses the face.
The more excited Zhou Zheng spoke, the more bizarre Jin Shu's expression became.
“Lord Zhou,” she craned her neck back, “are we talking about the same thing?”
Zhou Zheng paused for a moment, then turned and pondered for a while: "I guess so."
Just then, Li Jin came out of the inner room with a yellowed and tattered piece of paper in his hand.
His smile remained unchanged as he held the paper in his palm and showed it to Jin Shu and Zhou Zheng.
“Case number seven, as expected, there’s some connection.” He said, pointing to his palm.
The thin, yellowed sheet of paper had torn edges and the vermilion seal had smudged, but it was still clear that it was a loan receipt.
“Ten years ago, it was four hundred taels of silver,” Li Jin said. “The lender was Lin Zhongyi.” His smile deepened. “Guess which Lin Zhongyi?”
The person who gave the Xiao family four hundred taels of silver ten years ago, the person who transported two cartloads of armor to the imperial palace six years ago, and the person who was hacked to death in the street by three robbers a month ago.
It's the same person.
Li Jin carefully put away the loan certificate, as it was the most crucial link that would allow him to legitimately intervene in Lin Zhongyi's case.
However, relying solely on this item would clearly be too simplistic to pry open the door to the Ministry of Justice.
He glanced at Jin Shu and asked with a smile, "Mr. Jin, have you ever been to a brothel?"
Jin Shu paused, "This..."
It seems a bit odd for a 22-year-old unmarried man to say he's never been there.
Feeling a chill run down her spine from Li Jin's teasing gaze, she snorted with a crooked nose, "What, Your Highness, a grown man without a wife, has never even been to a brothel?"
To everyone's surprise, Li Jin readily agreed, smiling broadly: "That would be wonderful if you had been there, sir!"
Li Jin cupped his hands in greeting: "Thank you for leading the way, sir, so that I, who have never been here before, can experience it."
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