Su Ruojin had no idea that she was being watched by Tong Mingshan. Not long after she returned to her room, An Yi came back.
"Master, we found this." An Yi handed over a blue cloth bag with plain flowers.
Su Ruojin opened the cloth bag, inside which were account books wrapped in oilcloth.
As Su Ruojin opened the ledger, her brows furrowed more and more as she looked at it.
What a character, Tong Mingshan!
Before becoming the prefect of Yulin, Tong Mingshan was the assistant prefect of Yulin, a seventh-rank official who assisted Qin Wenqing, the prefect of Yulin at the time, in managing various affairs of Yulin.
Former Prefect Qin Wenqing got into a fight while drinking at a brothel, vying for the most beautiful courtesan, and ended up killing the man.
The other party was the only son of a wealthy man from a fairly well-off family. He immediately reported the matter to the prefect, who had witnesses and evidence to prove it. There were also many guests who witnessed the incident.
Even a prince is subject to the same laws as a commoner, let alone a prefect.
Qin Wenqing was immediately dismissed from his post and sentenced to beheading.
After Qin Wenqing's death, Tong Mingshan succeeded him as the prefect of Yulin. He coveted the Xu family's Yunhu Lake and used every means to force the Xu family to ruin. He not only seized Yunhu Lake but also seized the Xu family's property.
This ledger records how Tong Mingshan gradually seized control of Yunhu and the Xu family's property.
Xu Jinling has such evidence in his hands, yet he still dares to stay at Yunlai Inn. He's incredibly audacious.
Tong Mingshan should be searching for them everywhere.
However, considering Xu Jinling's physical condition, Su Ruojin guessed some of the reasons.
It must have been during these events that Xu Jinling was poisoned and beaten by Tong Mingshan's men, leaving her in this state. If she continued to wander, she would only face certain death, which is why she secretly hid here.
Given what Tong Mingshan did, it was impossible for him to openly search for Xu Jinling and his nephew. He could only search for them secretly, and it's possible that he didn't know the two men were there at the time.
He probably couldn't have guessed that the Xu family uncle and nephew would still dare to hide in Yulin City; as the saying goes, it's darkest under the lamp.
It wasn't until Fang Dongming reported to the authorities that they sent people to arrest him.
So, by this calculation, it seems I've ended up being the one who caused Xu Jinling and his nephew to get arrested?
Su Ruojin looked at the account book in her hand and pondered for a moment, "An Yi, have the people from the Dark Alliance investigate the Xu family."
"Yes, Master." An Yi turned and left.
Su Ruojin cannot make a judgment based on a single account book.
If it's true, it seems that Xu Jinling was certain that he would die if he was arrested and taken to the yamen, so he entrusted everything to her before he died, which can be considered a gamble.
If the gamble pays off, the Xu family's misfortune may not be fully redressed, but as long as evidence is preserved, there will be a chance to uncover the truth someday.
The gamble was lost, and everything vanished without a trace, burying the Xu family's entire existence.
But in that situation, Xu Jinling had no other choice but to gamble.
Xu Jinling was prepared to die.
In fact, most of the poison in Xu Jinling's body has been neutralized. As long as he takes the medicine prescribed by Su Ruojin on time, he will be fine.
But he is still weak, and no one knows what will happen to him if he is caught by the yamen runners. That's why Su Ruojin gave him a pill in advance, so that at least his life could be saved.
Looking at the ledger in his hand, he figured that Tong Mingshan wouldn't kill Xu Jinling and his nephew anytime soon unless he got his hands on it.
He was probably also afraid that Xu Jinling would hand over the ledger to someone else, which would cause trouble.
If true, this involves many lives, enough to warrant a death sentence for Tong Mingshan.
"Yanluo, let's go for a walk."
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