Chapter 251 Reopening of an Old Case
The bright moon shines, and the winter chill is biting.
Inside the Prince Jing's residence, Li Jin looked at a box full of poems, books, calligraphy, and paintings, and exchanged a glance with Jin Shu, who was equally puzzled, unable to guess Song Zhen's intentions.
In the study of the Song residence, He Lin's gaze was like a knife, stabbing at Song Zhen's cheek, and she spat out a few words viciously: "Song Zhen, you better listen to me clearly."
"Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he wouldn't be able to take you away from me." After saying that, she released Song Zhen's collar, pulled the knife out of the wardrobe, and hid it behind her back.
Moonlight streamed into the room, filling it with a deep blue glow.
He Lin looked at Song Zhen, who was standing blankly in the closet, and said in a tone of disappointment, "If you want to get rid of me, that's fine. Come and fight me. I'll talk to you after you win."
She exhaled a long breath and kicked the assassin who was lying lifeless on the ground: "Don't think that just because you're a scholar, I'll show you mercy."
In the moonlight, she glared fiercely at Song Zhen, and then, to his stunned surprise, pushed open the door and left.
After a while, Song Zhen, who was curled up in the closet, finally came to his senses. He took a deep breath and raised his hand to cover his burning cheek.
I was laughing at Li Jinqing for being too difficult a while ago, but I never expected to be the same way.
"Probably not." He chuckled softly and sighed.
After that, thanks to Song Zhen, Li Jin and Jin Shu lay on the ground and unfolded the scrolls he had sent, one by one.
As Li Jincai saw more of the exhibits, he realized that the paintings and inscriptions on the scrolls had a deeper meaning.
"Vast and boundless, the spring breeze in February is like waves. The wind is like waves, a thousand years of loyalty and righteousness, stirring the soul." Li Jin glanced at the ancient temple in the forest in the painting, and paused for a moment, "This is Lin Zhongyi."
Jin Shu paused, leaned closer to examine the painting in his hand, looked at it several times, and frowned, saying, "Is Your Highness perhaps hallucinating from anxiety?"
Li Jin remained silent and picked up another scroll.
"The setting sun and gentle breeze are warm, and the green mountains stretch for thousands of miles. I return to my humble abode with the fragrance of incense fading, and wild geese fly in the clouds from dusk till dawn." He said, "This is Yang Qingyun."
In the painting, a large tree has fallen over a dilapidated house, and there is a box under the tree. On the other side of the box, a person is lying in the sun.
"So that's how it is!" Li Jin stared blankly at the paintings, taking a deep breath.
For the first time, he gained a direct and profound understanding of Song Zhen's talent.
"The inscription is for the person, while the painting depicts the burial site." Li Jin exclaimed incredulously, "Song Zhen is truly a genius, to think of such a method."
"It's just so-so." Jin Shu frowned and crossed her arms. "Yang Qingyun's picture is easy to recognize, but Lin Zhongyi's picture has too many mountains with ancient temples."
Li Jin glanced at her face and said with a faint smile, "As long as you have a direction, you can find it."
After saying that, he rolled up the scroll in his hand and looked at Jin Shu's tired expression: "Shu'er, go and rest. I can manage here by myself."
The smoke from the incense burner drifted lazily, and the candlelight flickered.
Seeing Li Jin's faint smile, Jin Shu was a little annoyed. She turned around and emphasized again, "It's Jin Shu, Mr. Jin."
Li Jin nodded: "Shu'er is absolutely right."
Seeing his "what can you do to me?" look, Jin Shu's lips twitched.
How could there be such a thing in the world! So… She clenched her fist, and after a long while, took a deep breath: “Forget it, a good woman doesn’t argue with a man.”
But Li Jin stepped forward, bent down, and laughed: "But I'm not a good man."
Jin Shu was stunned.
"Everyone knows that Prince Jing is a playboy." He raised the corners of his lips even higher and shook his head. "Therefore, he is not a good man."
Seeing his expression, Jin Shu pouted and said, "If I accidentally beat up a 'spoiled brat' one day, wouldn't that be considered a chivalrous act of upholding justice and helping the weak?"
“No.” Li Jin straightened up, shook his head with a smile, “It counts as assaulting a member of the royal family, which is punishable by death according to the law.”
Inside the room, Jin Shu stared at his face in surprise, stunned for a moment before taking a deep breath, her face clearly saying, "You're ruthless."
Seeing her furious expression, Li Jin was in a good mood: "Aren't you going to rest?"
Jin Shu pursed her lips, glared at him, and turned to leave.
"No bowing?" he chuckled. "A fine..."
Before he could finish speaking, Jin Shu cupped his hands, bent at a ninety-degree angle, and said fiercely, "This subordinate takes his leave!"
After saying that, he turned and walked away quickly.
The smile on Li Jin's face didn't disappear until she was completely out of sight.
He turned around, bowed his head as he arranged the paintings in front of him, and said casually, "Since you're here, have a cup of tea before you leave."
Outside the door, Su Siyuan, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review who had been hiding in the shadows, finally stepped out with a sword in hand, frowning and looking unhappy: "I thought I could send a sword out of nowhere and catch the Prince off guard."
He threw his longsword at the door: "I didn't expect that Your Highness already has another favorite."
Li Jin turned around, glanced at him, and said nothing.
Looking at the box in front of him and the scroll spread out on the table, Su Siyuan sat down on the octagonal chair next to him and poured himself a cup of tea: "Since Your Highness already knows that Song Zhen is in control of the whole situation, why don't you confront him face to face?"
Su Siyuan, holding his teacup, pointed to the box: "Isn't this faster than you analyzing and reasoning on your own here?"
As night deepened, the city of Chang'an was utterly desolate.
Moonlight filtered through the bare ginkgo trees in the courtyard, casting dappled shadows that completely concealed the hidden guards on the roof.
Li Jin carefully rolled up the scrolls one by one, cleared a space on the antique shelf next to him, and placed them there.
After a long pause, he spoke slowly and deliberately: "Your presence here means that the Crown Prince has made the first move against Song Zhen."
Su Siyuan took a sip of tea and nodded, saying, "With the personal guards taking action, Zhao Chengping faced an extremely difficult situation." He paused, then put down his teacup. "This time alone, there were more than a dozen people involved; they were determined to take Song Zhen's life."
A dozen or so people.
Li Jin stood with his hands behind his back, turned around and looked at Su Siyuan: "Was he injured?"
Su Siyuan shook his head: "Although Zhao Chengping is no ordinary person, it is clear that Lian Shui is above him." He sighed, "Although the prince specifically said that we should find a way to injure Lian Shui's arm, Zhao Chengping has already done his best by blocking him outside the Song residence. He can't even touch him."
“Fortunately, Miss He pretended to leave but secretly protected us. Otherwise, with only a few of us, we would inevitably have made a mistake.” He glanced at Li Jin, stood up, cupped his hands, and knelt on one knee. “Your subordinate has failed in his duties. Please punish me, Your Highness.”
Li Jin remained expressionless, toying with the white jade paperweight in her hand, and shook her head: "I don't blame you."
Even he hadn't expected that the Crown Prince would be so ruthless, completely disregarding the fact that the officials hadn't yet left the capital, and ruthlessly eliminating dissidents.
He pondered for a moment, watching the flickering candlelight.
"Su Siyuan," Li Jin called softly, "General Su, are you afraid of death?"
Su Siyuan looked at Li Jin with suspicion: "Is Your Highness joking?"
Li Jin chuckled and personally helped him up: "We can't put off bringing up this old case any longer."
"Since he is so ruthless, then I will play along and take advantage of the presence of all the officials to strike at his root."
He paused, looked at Su Siyuan's face, saw him cup his hands in greeting, and smiled as he replied, "Yes."
The case, which is six years old and involves royal bloodlines, has been reopened, and the Six Doors are not qualified to handle it.
Only the Dali Temple submitted a new memorial during the morning court session.
When Su Siyuan submitted his memorial revisiting the old case, the court officials were in an uproar.
Li Yi glanced at his righteous face, his gaze shifting back and forth between Li Jin and the Crown Prince.
"Do you know what you're saying?" Li Yi asked, raising his eyebrows as he held up Su Siyuan's memorial.
"Your Majesty, I know," Su Siyuan said, his voice rising eight decibels. "Six years ago, there was the case of the First Prince Li Mu's rebellion! There are many doubts! With new evidence now available, the old case should be reopened! To uphold the dignity of the law! To protect the prestige of the royal family!"
"How dare you!" Xu Weiyou stepped forward, pointing at Su Siyuan's face: "A case personally approved by His Majesty! How did it become a miscarriage of justice in the mouth of you arrogant little man?! Do you have any respect for the law?! Do you have any respect for His Majesty?!"
Su Siyuan frowned and glanced at Xu Weiyou: "What, is the Minister of Justice afraid?"
He laughed: "I only said that the old case was reopened, not that I said wrongful conviction! There are doubts about this, let's check it. Why is Lord Xu acting like someone stepped on his tail, blowing his beard and glaring?"
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