"Third Brother, take Lord Jin and leave first," Su Ruojin shouted.
"Xiao Jin, what about you?" Su Wenzhou asked anxiously; he couldn't leave Xiao Jin alone.
"It's okay, I can protect myself."
There are no known number of people outside. An Yi took a few more away, and Su Ruojin sent some others out. Now, there are only a dozen or so people left.
"Princess, you go first, I will cover your retreat."
As more and more rockets were fired into the house, the fire gradually grew larger, and Liu Jing became somewhat anxious.
If it were a face-to-face confrontation, he wouldn't be afraid; he would risk his life to protect the princess.
But now, he's worried about what might happen if the rocket hits the princess.
"Let's go together!" Su Ruojin stopped hesitating, pushed open the door, and prepared to dodge the rocket and rush out.
But when Su Ruojin pushed open the door, she was shocked by what she saw.
She knew Tong Mingshan wasn't a good person, but she never imagined he could be so ruthless.
The gate outside the courtyard had been broken open. Through the gate, Su Ruojin could see many villagers tied up, gagged, and kneeling on the ground. There were old and young people, and everyone's eyes were red with fear. They had no idea what they had done wrong.
Tong Mingshan stood behind the villagers. When he saw Su Ruojin come out, he smiled.
"Zhao Ruojin, if you obediently surrender, I will release these villagers; otherwise, they will die because of you. Can you bear the responsibility for that?"
Su Ruojin was so angry at Tong Mingshan's twisted and distorted statements that she almost laughed. "Tong Mingshan, you forcibly abducted women, framed your superiors, used every means to seize the Xu family's property, murdered dozens of Xu family members, and even stole iron ore and weapons to the Bei Li people. Each of these crimes is enough to make you die a hundred times over."
"And now you still refuse to repent, threatening me with the lives of these villagers. Tong Mingshan, do you really think you can do whatever you want just because you have the backing of the Northern Li people and are a distant relative of the Empress Dowager?"
At this point, Su Ruojin turned to look at Prefect Jin, who was being protected by Su Wenzhou, and said, "Lord Jin, you saw all of this, didn't you?"
Yulin is under the jurisdiction of Ningcheng. The way to Yicheng is through Ningcheng. Su Ruojin had already asked An Yi to find Lord Jin and tell him everything.
Jin Chuan was the prefect of Ningcheng and had a fairly good reputation as an official. When An Yi told him everything Tong Mingshan had done and presented the evidence, Jin Chuan was shocked.
However, he couldn't possibly believe what An Yi said based on just one side of the story.
Seeing that Prefect Jin was hesitant, An Yi spoke to Jin Chuan as Su Ruojin had instructed.
“Lord Jin, you are nearly fifty years old. If you do not achieve any more political accomplishments, you will remain in this position for the rest of your life, and you may even be ousted from this position.”
Tong Mingshan has now become the prefect, so how can you guarantee that he won't set his sights on your position one day?
If you're willing to take the gamble, and you win, you'll be a good official who rids the people of evil, gaining a lifetime of good reputation and rising to prominence, securing a place for yourself in the capital. If you lose, you'll simply maintain the status quo.
Whether to gamble or not is up to you, sir, but Mr. Jin, you only get one chance; once it's gone, it's gone forever.
If An Yi reveals his identity as a member of the Prince's Mansion, Jin Chuan will not hesitate and will firmly stand on Xiao Yan Chu's side.
However, this matter involves the Su family case, and Su Ruojin is unwilling to use the power of the Prince's Mansion to oppress people, lest she give others grounds for criticism.
Only by letting Jin Chuan, an outsider who has no connection with the Su family or the Regent, witness and prove everything firsthand can the public be convinced!
Moreover, in terms of jurisdiction, no one is more suitable than Jin Chuan, which is why Su Ruojin asked An Yi to go to him.
Jin Chuan was certainly aware of the incident involving Qin Wenqing and the Xu family in Yulin, but since Tong Mingshan had already submitted the case file, which contained all the witness testimonies and no complaints from the victims, the case was naturally closed.
But now Tong Mingshan is involved in the illegal sale of iron ore and weapons to Bei Li, which is intolerable to any official of the Great Chu with a conscience.
Jin Chuan had served as the prefect of Ningcheng for many years. Although his political achievements were mediocre, he would never do something as treacherous as betraying the Great Chu.
Moreover, what An Yi said really struck a chord with Lord Jin. He was getting older and didn't have any strong background in the capital. If he wanted to get promoted, he would have to have outstanding political achievements.
If he can really crack the Tong Mingshan treason case, with such political achievements, it's not impossible for him to be promoted to the capital.
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