Chapter 689 The Death of Fang Ziming
When Chen Yongnian arrived with his men, Fang Ziming was sitting on the ground eating fruit.
When they looked up, their eyes met.
Seeing that Fang Ziming was unharmed, Chen Yongnian breathed a sigh of relief.
He waved for someone to wake up Xiao Fan and the others who had fainted.
I was startled when I caught sight of the half-eaten fruit on the table.
Looking again, Fang Ziming had finished eating the fruit in his hand.
"Open the door now!" Chen Yongnian shouted.
The officer holding the key was startled and quickly took the key from his waist to open the door.
I tried all the keys, but I still couldn't open the door.
The cells were all made of cast iron and had no keys, making them difficult to open by brute force.
Seeing Fang Ziming still eating fruit, Chen Yongnian became anxious and shouted, "Lord Fang, stop eating! Are you out of your mind?"
Fang Ziming gave a pale smile, signaling Chen Yongnian to stop, and said, "Yongnian, I suddenly regret that I should have listened to Qiqi's advice back then!"
Having served as an official for over a decade, I can never let go of this responsibility.
If they had given up when Wan Qiqi reminded them and hadn't continued to argue with Xie Xing, perhaps things wouldn't have come to this.
Unfortunately... it was all too late.
Fang Ziming looked at Chen Yongnian with tears in his eyes, "Yongnian, you're a good kid, but not ruthless enough, and neither is Qiqi..."
"Uncle Fang!" Chen Yongnian had a vague premonition that Fang Ziming was saying goodbye to him.
He wondered why the person who had given him clues the day before would say these things today.
Who exactly came, and what did they say?
A thought suddenly occurred to him, and he hurriedly said, "Uncle Fang, Miss Fang and Madam Fang are alright! Don't do anything foolish!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Fang Ziming had already swallowed the wine.
Tears suddenly welled up in his eyes.
His expression didn't show regret, but rather relief.
Fang Ziming smiled with relief.
A sudden sharp pain shot through my heart, and a metallic taste filled my mouth.
Chen Yongnian's eyes were filled with disbelief.
He gripped the iron bars with both hands, trying to break a hole in the cage, but he failed.
Seeing Fang Ziming spitting blood, he cried out in panic, "Uncle Fang, Uncle Fang... wait a minute, I'll come in right away and take you to see a doctor!"
After Chen Yongnian finished speaking, regardless of whether he had a key or not, he started kicking the iron gate.
In the past, during his patrols, he always had people check the cages to make sure they weren't loose, in order to prevent prisoners from escaping.
This was the first time he had ever felt that the iron gate was in the way!
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Several kicks in a row.
Finally, Chen Yongnian kicked open the iron gate.
He rushed in, picked up Fang Ziming, and wiped the blood from his mouth. "Uncle Fang, hold on, you can't die! If you die, what will happen to the people who support you?"
Fang Ziming's tears kept flowing.
He reached out and grabbed Chen Yongnian's collar.
He opened his mouth to speak, but it was filled with blood.
“Yongnian…I…I recognize…protect…protect…Xue…”
Fang Ziming coughed up blood and spoke in broken sentences, unable to utter a complete word.
After the word "snow" was written, the veins on his forehead bulged, and the hand gripping Chen Yongnian's collar tightened even more.
Then, the hand loosened and fell limply to the ground.
Those red eyes stared at Chen Yongnian, their light gone.
"Uncle Fang, Uncle Fang..."
Chen Yongnian's calls went unanswered, leaving only silence.
The surrounding officers and soldiers were also stunned, unsure whether they were shocked by Fang Ziming's death or frightened by Chen Yongnian's roar.
For a long time, only Chen Yongnian's crying could be heard in the prison.
For Chen Yongnian, Fang Ziming was a mentor.
If it weren't for Fang Ziming, how could he have entered the county government and learned so much?
Without Fang Ziming, he would still be the simple-minded boy at the edge of the village, following his wife around wanting to help but helpless.
Entering the county government office changed him drastically!
Chen Yongnian even knew that Cao Yuan was able to become his teacher and teach him to read and write at Fang Ziming's behest.
Fang Ziming was genuinely trying to cultivate himself.
Despite the many twists and turns, and the many unhappy moments, there were still many challenges along the way.
For Chen Yongnian, Fang Ziming's death meant not only that the case was still unsolved, but also that he felt guilty towards Wan Qiqi.
He promised his wife that he would make sure Lord Fang got out of prison safely.
But now, he's broken his promise!
"What happened? How did someone die?"
The sudden sound of voices broke the silence.
Chen Yongnian looked up and met Zhang Xiao's horrified gaze.
Yu Guangzhong saw Xie Xing frown, but showed no other emotion, as if everything was as expected.
Chen Yongnian clenched his fists, his eyes revealing disgust.
Immediately, he released Fang Ziming and knelt before Zhang Xiao, saying, "Lord Zhang, someone has poisoned an official of the imperial court. I beg you to investigate this matter thoroughly!"
"Poisoning?" Zhang Xiao looked astonished, then turned to Xie Xing, seemingly wanting to hear an explanation.
"Yongnian, do you have any evidence to support your claim?" Xie Xing asked in a deep voice, appearing as if it were none of his business.
In fact, this matter had nothing to do with him.
He only took Fang's wife and daughter away and said a few words to them.
As for who came and what they did, how would he know?
Chen Yongnian held up the leftover fruit and water jug, "My lord, if Lord Fang is in prison, how could he have these things? He died after vomiting blood after eating the fruit and drinking the wine!"
Zhang Xiao seemed to realize the seriousness of the matter and gestured to his follower, "Go, take it and have someone check it to see if it's poisonous!"
Even though Zhang Xiaoren sent someone to investigate, Chen Yongnian felt it wasn't enough.
He said in a deep voice, "Sir, all those guarding the prison today must be interrogated! Also, why can't the person in charge produce the key to the prison door?"
Zhang Xiao was nodding as he listened to Chen Yongnian's earlier words, but he suddenly paused when he heard the second half of the sentence.
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