Chapter 188 On the Edge of the Cliff, A Narrow Escape
Taiji Hall, Imperial Study.
Just as Li Jin was about to go in, Eunuch Lin pulled him back and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, please calm down."
After saying this, Eunuch Lin smiled slightly, bowed, and went inside first.
"Your Majesty, Prince Jing has arrived."
Li Jin stood at the door, pondering his words several times before lifting her clothes and stepping over the threshold of the study.
Inside, the Crown Prince and Xu Weiyou had clearly been waiting for a long time.
Li Yi raised his hand to rub his forehead, not even glancing at Li Jin, and went straight to the point: "The West Market is in an uproar. What exactly happened? Why were you there? How did Su Yu's son get involved?"
Four questions came in quick succession.
"Two carriages collided in the West Market, and a box fell from one of them, containing a woman's corpse," Li Jin said calmly. "I happened to be traveling when I encountered this, so I went up to question her."
"The coachman took out an official document, saying that he was doing a favor for the government and was taking the box outside the city. The document was signed by the eldest son of the Grand Tutor's family."
He stopped talking at this point and stood quietly to the side.
Li Yi pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and laughed: "The signature of Su Yu's son? Su Hang from the Provincial Administration?"
His gaze sharpened as he stared at Li Jin: "And this person just happened to be there? Could there be such a convenient coincidence in the world?"
"That's why I invited Lord Su to the Six Doors for a chat," Li Jin replied respectfully.
The atmosphere in the study became somewhat subtle as he recounted the entire sequence of events.
Time passed slowly, and Li Yi, observing his composed demeanor, snorted coldly, "Please? A little chat?"
"Wasn't it you who dragged the Crown Prince into the middle of the city, causing unrest among the people?"
Li Jin understood immediately upon hearing this.
This case is far more complex than it appears on the surface. The Crown Prince and the Ministry of Justice are after the woman in that box.
He raised an eyebrow, glanced at the Crown Prince standing silently to the side, spread his hands, and shook his head innocently: "It wasn't me."
"The box fell off the carriage and cracked. Whether I intervened or not, it was a scandal in the whole city, with everyone watching."
Standing to the side, Xu Weiyou saw that Li Jin had cleared himself of all charges with just a few words, so he stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, Prince Jing has downplayed the seriousness of this matter. It was his coroner who opened the box in front of everyone."
"The Six Doors is the most core institution within the Three Judicial Offices. As the head of the Six Doors, His Highness Prince Jing should have foreseen such an impact and should have alleviated the public's concerns."
"But he did the opposite, which is why, in less than an hour, there has been a storm and people are in a state of panic."
In the study, smoke curled slowly from a large, flat, round incense burner.
Li Yi tapped his fingertips on the rosewood desk in front of him: "What you say is absolutely right."
He glared at Li Jin's face, his expression seemingly suppressing anger: "What else do you have to say?"
"Your subject is innocent." Li Jin remained expressionless. "When the box fell, it broke open, and an arm fell out." He glanced at Xu Weiyou out of the corner of his eye. "Even if your subject didn't intervene, this matter would still cause a great uproar in the city."
“How can Your Highness Prince Jing distort the truth like this?” Xu Weiyou refused to back down and argued with him in the study. “If the box hasn’t been opened, the people’s anxieties…”
"Lord Xu," Li Jin's voice suddenly rose a few decibels, "Are the people worried about the corpses in boxes found on the road? They're probably worried about who could commit such a heinous act!"
“I never said the case was unsolved, nor did I simply stand there and abandon it. Furthermore, I specifically reassured Lord Su, telling him that even for the sake of the Crown Prince, I would clear his name.” Li Jin raised an eyebrow, watching Xu Weiyou’s face turn pale and then flushed. “What else does Lord Xu want from me?”
"Or, in Lord Xu's view, the correct course of action is to drive the people away after they have already seen a hand being pulled out from inside, and tell them that nothing has happened?"
With just a few words, Xu Weiyou, whose hair was half white, was rendered speechless, his face flushed red. His lips trembled as he retorted angrily, "Clever words! Clever words indeed!"
At this moment, only the Crown Prince noticed Li Yi's expression.
He rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought.
Li Jing's heart skipped a beat, and he stopped Xu Weiyou, saying, "Lord Xu, be careful what you say."
He stepped forward, his tone gentle: "Your subject has something to say, and would like to hear your third brother's opinion."
"Ask." Li Yi raised his hand and pointed at Li Jin. "Ask whatever you want." He sneered. "Once you've argued it out, it'll save me the trouble."
The Crown Prince nodded and looked at Li Jin: "Although Su Hang's name is on that paper, the fact that Third Brother took him away in front of everyone makes him a suspect to everyone."
Li Jin's heart tightened.
As expected of the meticulous and shrewd Crown Prince, unlike Xu Weiyou, he struck at the heart of the matter with his first words, directly seizing upon Li Jin's only mistake and dealing with it severely.
"Can this matter be considered a case of presumption of guilt?"
According to the laws of the Great Wei Dynasty, in cases of doubt, the guilty party is presumed innocent. Violators will be punished, in minor cases, with their salary reduced or dismissed from office, and in serious cases, with their titles stripped or their official positions revoked.
Li Jin glanced at him, his expression darkening considerably: "I did not say that Lord Su was a suspect."
"But what you have done is to announce to the world that he is a suspect."
These words almost pushed Li Jin to the edge of a cliff.
Li Yi looked at everything before him, sat up straight, and said nothing, nor could he say anything.
If Li Jin fails to launch a counterattack, the case will likely end up in the hands of the Ministry of Justice.
Li Jin pursed her lips, her palms were sweaty, but a faint smile still lingered on her face.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, feigning doubt: "Second Brother, you're still so fixated on this case, is it perhaps related to you?"
Li Jingyi paused.
"When the Ministry of Justice summons suspects on ordinary days, do they do it secretly under the cover of night?" Li Jin asked with a look of surprise, glancing at Xu Weiyou, whose face was frozen.
This move was brilliant, turning a seemingly hopeless situation into a life-saving one.
Seeing that things had gone far enough, Li Yi pointed a finger at Li Jin's cheek and said, "Insolence!"
The three people in front of them knelt down in unison.
Li Yi sneered: "After arguing for so long and blaming each other for so long, what's next? Who can tell me what's the next step in this case?"
He took a deep breath: "Although Li Jin's handling of the matter was flawed, he made a valid point: to dispel public concerns, the best way is to catch the murderer and announce it to the world. That's more effective than anything else."
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the three men: "Now, who will arrest this person?"
He rubbed his hands together: "After all this arguing, isn't it all about jurisdiction over a case?"
Before Xu Weiyou could even speak, Li Jin solemnly declared, "It should be handed over to the Ministry of Justice."
Even Li Yi was stunned.
Is Li Jin just going to abandon this case like that?
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