Redressing wrongful convictions
Perhaps because the others were at a distance, Li Yin did not smell any other medicinal scents.
On the table in front of them, glass goblets were arranged neatly, filled with delicacies. After all the food was served, a woman dressed in purple and wearing a jade crown was left beside each person. She bent down and handed a pair of chopsticks to each person with her slender hands.
Li Yin observed the actions of the person beside him. This person moved more slowly than the others, standing out like a crane among chickens. Li Yin reached out and took the chopsticks. They were entirely black, neither cold nor hot to the touch, and carried a faint scent of green wood.
There was no other smell besides this one. The person beside her still didn't leave. She stood there, upright, looking at Li Yin.
Li Yin felt somewhat uncomfortable being stared at like this, and he frowned slightly.
The others, however, did not seem as uncomfortable as Li Yin. Instead, under the watchful eyes of those around them, they casually picked up their chopsticks, rolled up their sleeves with one hand, and used the other hand to pick up a small amount and put it into their mouths.
The person next to Li Yin seemed to have noticed Li Yin's discomfort, but she did not look away and continued to stare.
Li Yin gently put down her chopsticks. Yu Shu noticed her unusual behavior and took a step forward. Just as she was about to say something, someone grabbed her arm. Yu Shu was about to utter a rebuke when she saw the face of the person beside her.
With striking features and a natural, unadorned face, he wasn't stunningly beautiful, but he was unforgettable. Although his features weren't particularly outstanding among the crowd, they were quite distinctive on their own.
It was precisely because of her distinctive features that Yu Shu recognized her at a glance: Qi Xue, the daughter of General Qi, a rebellious woman who was often criticized.
On the high platform, Zhao Lianying frowned slightly upon seeing this. Yu Shu was startled. Qi Xue let go of her hand, and Yu Shu quickly stood aside and followed behind Qi Xue.
A veil about one person wide was placed in front of Qi Xue, which just covered her face. Her figure was not particularly outstanding among the group of women in purple, so Zhao Lianying did not notice her.
Li Yin noticed the movements around her and looked up to meet Zhao Lianying's smiling eyes on the high platform.
Zhao Lianying had exquisite features and was dressed in finery. Her hair was adorned with a delicate hair ornament that swayed in the wind. The ornament had a hollow design and a small silver bell hanging in the air. She was dignified and her movements were so subtle that the ornament made almost no sound. She raised her cup to Li Yin and said, "Sister Li, what happened this morning was my fault. Please don't take it to heart. Consider this cup of wine my apology to you."
After speaking, she held the wine glass to her lips and took a small sip, wetting the corner of her lips and making them appear even redder. Her eyes were fixed on Li Yin.
Seeing this, Li Yin reached out and took the cup, saying, "Your Highness, you are truly courteous." Upon hearing this, Zhao Lianying's smile froze, and she gripped the chopsticks even tighter.
Li Yin brought the wine to her lips, but strangely, she couldn't taste it. She didn't drink it, but only lightly touched her lips. Seeing that Li Yin hadn't finished drinking it, Zhao Lianying said, "Sister, this wine is a precious gift from the Emperor. Wouldn't it be a pity if you didn't finish it?"
Upon hearing this, Li Yin smiled and said, "Your Highness, I was not born into a noble family, and I originally had no chance to try these things. I am able to drink them now only because of Your Highness's tolerance."
Zhao Lianying found it particularly pleasing to the ear and said, "In that case, sister should finish drinking it all."
Li Yin looked at Zhao Lianying and said, "Slow and steady wins the race, Your Highness. This is a fine product; I want to savor it slowly."
Zhao Lianying laughed after hearing Li Yin's words. Before she could speak, someone else chimed in, "Miss Li, you really are... I would be embarrassed to say what you just said."
Everyone was surrounded by veils, making it difficult to see clearly. Everyone was about the same age and had similar figures, so even if you knew where the sound came from, it would be hard to tell who made it.
Li Yin wasn't annoyed by those words, but simply said calmly, "You all have a point." As she spoke, she poured the wine into a glass cup, lowered her eyes, and seemed lost in thought.
In Zhao Lianying's eyes, this scene appeared as Li Yin being ashamed and enraged by the words. She deepened the curve of her lips and pretended to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, alright, hurry up and eat, otherwise it won't taste good when it gets cold."
Sure enough, as soon as she played the bad cop, someone sang a duel with her, and a good cop came out, saying, "Your Highness is so kind that you didn't kick this kind of person out to avoid losing face."
But as soon as she said this, the other sisters didn't respond as she expected. Her brows furrowed slightly, and when she looked at Gu Si, there was a hint of reproach in her eyes. Gu Si glanced at Zhao Lianying, feeling uneasy and dared not speak, so she silently lowered her head.
Seeing her best friend's expression, Chen Si felt a mixture of disappointment and confusion. Her friend hadn't come that morning, so she naturally didn't know what had happened that morning.
Zhao Lianying was quite pleased with this. She said, "Alright, alright, let's eat." With that, she raised her hand, indicating that everyone should start their meal.
Li Yin lowered her eyes to look at the food in front of her, picked up her chopsticks, and just as she was about to pick up a piece of bamboo shoot, a pebble was thrown at her chopsticks.
Li Yin smiled and continued to move his hands, picking up something, but it wasn't a bamboo shoot; it was a pebble. When Qi Xue saw Li Yin pick it up, a look of surprise and delight flashed in her eyes.
Li Yin tossed a pebble into the cup, gently put down her chopsticks, and glanced at the person beside her, who was preventing her from eating.
Zhao Lianying was watching Li Yin's every move. Just as she was about to ask Li Yin if the food was not to her liking, Li Yin stood up, bowed respectfully to her, and said, "Your Highness, I need to go to the restroom, please excuse me."
Zhao Lianying was taken aback at first. She hadn't expected Li Yin to be here and to blurt out such a thing, and to say it so frankly and without any hesitation.
Without waiting for her reply, Li Yin said to Qi Xue, "Please lead the way, young lady."
Chen Si now admires Li Yin a bit. This man is really straightforward and doesn't speak falsehoods. He doesn't seem to care much about saving face.
She smiled again, "This sister is quite insightful, she knows her family's background very well. I just wonder if her husband is also from a humble background and doesn't care about face like her."
At this point, she put down her chopsticks and added, "Oh dear, I suppose your husband is just like you, or maybe he taught you all of this."
Everyone except Li Yin was shocked upon hearing this. What was this person thinking, daring to slander Wen Youqing? Li Yin remained silent and followed Qi Xue.
Qi Xue slowed her pace when Shen Si uttered the word "husband." The Wen family had zero tolerance for such disgraceful words, and in their eyes, this person's behavior was blatant suicidal.
She originally thought that Li Yin was practically a member of the Wen family and would care about this matter, but to her surprise, Li Yin acted as if he hadn't heard anything and kept walking.
Therefore, Qi Xue only slowed down by one step before picking up again, and the two quickly parted ways.
After going downstairs, we arrived at the first floor, where there were screens of mountains, flowing water, and trees. We raised our glasses and chatted happily.
They walked around the screen, with Wen Youqing sitting to one side. He tapped his fingers lightly to a rhythmic beat, the rhythm matching the occasional glimpse of light color peeking out from behind the screen.
He stopped tapping when the screen reached its end, and looked at it with a smile. A woman in purple stepped out first, followed by a person with a graceful figure, whose silhouette alone was like a painting.
He watched the figure grow smaller and smaller until it disappeared around the corner before turning his gaze back to the person diagonally opposite him. That seat was now empty, the wine glasses on the table were still full, and the food on the table was untouched, indicating that he had been gone for some time.
Wen Youqing glanced at him once and then looked away. She slowly stood up and left. Zhao Jianxiao glanced at him once, feeling displeased, but his smile remained unchanged as he discussed the so-called situation with the people around him.
The palace grounds are filled with trees. As soon as you step out of the building, you are greeted by lush greenery and a gentle breeze caresses your face. The treetops rustle, the branches whisper, your clothes flutter, and the wind swirls around you.
Li Yin followed Qi Xue to a tree. Qi Xue first looked around before gently clapping her hands. A man walked out slowly from behind an archway. He was dressed in green, with sword-like features but a scholarly air about him. His hair was as black as ink. He said to Li Yin, "Miss Li."
Qi Xue pointed at Qi Shixu and said, "This is my brother, Qi Shixu, who works at the Dali Temple."
Upon hearing the name Dali Temple, Li Yin quickly looked up at Qi Shixu. Whether she was taken aback by his quick reaction or by Li Yin's beauty, she was speechless for a moment and her ears turned red.
Li Yin stepped forward and asked, "Why did you help me?" She was looking at Qi Shixu, but she was asking about Qi Xue.
Qi Xue looked at her brother's reddened ears and felt speechless. She said, "There are doubts about the Li family case. My brother and the He family have never gotten along. He wants to use this to find something to do with the He family."
Qi Shixu noticed Qi Xue's gaze, coughed, turned his head away, and said, "That's true."
Upon hearing this, Li Yin pondered for a moment and said, "The lives of more than one hundred people in the Li family were all innocent."
Qi Shixu had considered that the He family might fabricate facts, but at least they would have some basis in their arguments. However, he did not expect that they would be completely innocent. This was full of loopholes. The fact that the He family could do this meant that it was not the He family alone. There must be someone higher up covering for them.
This case is more complicated than he knew. He said, "Tomorrow, the Dali Temple will write down the case details one by one. Once we know the reasons for the crime, we can overturn it." However, he was not sure whether the reasons for the crime would be displayed or whether they would be distorted.
But in Jincheng, the Li family, Li Chuangming is a well-known merchant. Qi Shixu was taken care of by him when he was a child and was wandering outside. For this reason alone, he must help Li Yin clear his name.
He had considered the consequences, but after a moment's thought, he said, "The case involves too many people, young lady, you must be careful and protect yourself."
Li Yin nodded calmly, but his heart was in turmoil. The injustice had finally found a way out, and the injustice could be redressed... But could it really be redressed? In the capital, power was everything, and people believed that power was the only thing that mattered.
In Li Yin's heart, the words "rehabilitation" were more like waves, the hope of the waves rising high, or like ordinary waves that could not be stirred and silently returned to the sea. They existed and appeared, but did not last long.
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