Chapter 128 The cat catches the mouse, seizing the opportunity to survive...
Ye Lan shook her head and replied truthfully, "This cannot be confirmed at the moment. I have only heard that she has a wide variety of jobs in Yinzhou and that street vendors often see her moving back and forth in the streets and alleys."
"Therefore, most of her actions in life are traceable. Except for one year when she had to stay at home for several months to recover from a cold that did not improve for a long time, she has never disappeared from the public eye for a long period of time."
"Of course, she was an orphan after all. When she was young, she did some petty theft to survive, so she wasn't exactly clean. But after she grew up, she became more restrained and knew to look for work everywhere."
Fu Jun nodded, offering no comment, but asked again, "What do people in Yinzhou City who know her think of her? What kind of person do they consider her?"
Ye Lan said, "Most people say she has a quiet and reserved personality, doesn't talk much, but is very hardworking."
Fu Yun said, "She sounds like a rather dull person, but that doesn't quite match her style of leaving her mark all over Yinzhou City. The two contradict each other and have a strange sense of incongruity."
Ye Lan's eyes darkened slightly as he explained, "The people I sent there privately checked the files at the local government office. While we can't rule out the possibility that she might have been a petty thief, there is indeed no record of her committing any crimes, including murder or arson."
Fu Yun fell into a brief silence. He couldn't tell whether the woman had any problems or how she had gotten in touch with the daughter of the former head of the Wang family.
He simply couldn't believe that the daughter of the former head of the Wang family would become such a close friend, even like sisters, to a nobody with no status or other outstanding abilities.
There must be some other story behind this. Could it be that she saved the life of the former head of the Wang family's daughter? Only in this way can we explain how two people who have no connection would suddenly come together and become inseparable best friends.
"Alright! We can only follow up on this later. She is now living in Lingzhou City with that woman who was distributing porridge. If her identity is really suspicious, we will eventually be able to find some clues."
Ye Lan's expression was cold and his voice was icy: "I will send people to keep a close eye on her. If she dares to cause any trouble and bring us big problems, my knife will be the first to kill her."
Fu Yun was both amused and exasperated: "She doesn't deserve to be punished like this. As it stands, she hasn't broken the law, but there's some suspicious cooperation between her and the woman distributing porridge."
Zhilan remained silent for a moment before issuing an order: "The identity of the woman distributing porridge must be investigated further. Whether it is in Yinzhou City or Lingzhou City, everything that happened to her must be thoroughly investigated. If necessary, coercive measures can be taken. Ask these two people to go to the Ministry of Justice. They should be able to find out something."
Fu Yun agreed: "At worst, we can use a trick to deceive them. As long as we break through one person's psychological defenses, we won't be far from the truth."
Actually, there was another point that Fu Yun didn't say. For some reason, he had a feeling that this matter might be related to Mu Xin. She had been unusually quiet lately, which was not like her usual vengeful personality. Could she be brewing some big move?
"By the way, what's been going on with the Wang family head, the Su family head, and the bandit Mu Xin lately?"
Zhilan said, "The head of the Wang family was severely punished after being imprisoned some time ago. Fearing further torment, he finally signed a confession and swore never to do it again. She said she would turn over a new leaf, let the young husbands in her family leave the hellhole, allowed them to pack their bags and go back to their own homes, and compensated them with a lot of silver. As for the husbands who had children, they could choose whether to leave or not, but they could not take the children with them. They were all Wang family children and were absolutely not allowed to be left to wander outside. She would personally raise the children."
Fu Yun: "..." She's definitely a clever one; no wonder she's been able to live so freely for so many years. Realizing that sophistry and threats were no longer effective and that she could no longer escape punishment, she switched to a compensation tactic.
"Was she sentenced?"
“Speaking of this makes me angry.” Ye Lan’s face showed annoyance: “I don’t know what’s wrong with those young husbands. After they received the compensation money and learned that they could leave the Wang family, they all said that they would not pursue her crimes anymore. They even each had a letter of forgiveness, begging the government to spare her life for the sake of the child.”
Fu Jun was speechless for a moment. He really didn't expect things to take this turn. Is it really true that money can make the devil turn the millstone, while being penniless makes you the one turning the millstone?
This society is just that cruel; truth is born from money, and without wealth, one cannot speak out.
I heard that these young men all come from poor backgrounds. Perhaps this compensation money will be enough to make their families live comfortably for several years.
Then she thought that she was, after all, the child's mother, and the hardships they had endured for the sake of the child seemed less important.
Perhaps the men here are strong when they become fathers; as long as their children can grow up safe, happy, and in luxury, they are willing to swallow any bitter pill.
Fu Yun sighed, realizing that the crime of forcibly abducting a man could not be prosecuted or punished.
After all, the victims had forgiven the main perpetrator and there was a collective plea for leniency, so the government couldn't be too harsh and had to listen to the public's demands from time to time.
But behind the scenes, it's unknown whether anyone is offering her advice or suggestions.
"What other things did she do? For example, kidnapping Lu Zhisheng and entertaining unidentified guests in the middle of the night."
The reason he didn't mention being kidnapped was because he knew it wasn't Wang who did it, but Su Tan. She just didn't like him because he was out of control, and since she also didn't get along with Wang, she decided to kill two birds with one stone by kidnapping him and then framing Wang.
This way, he can suffer, and the Wang family will be taught a lesson.
After all, at that time, the imperial court was keeping a close eye on her because of the forced abduction of men from the common people.
In terms of villainy, Su Tan is even worse than the Wang family. At least the Wang family is bad in the open, while she plays dirty tricks in the dark, specializing in stabbing people in the back.
Even tigers don't eat their cubs, and even though the child's biological father landed her in prison, she still wanted to raise the child.
Based on this alone, she is far superior to Su Tan.
Su Tan felt that her children were useless pieces of a game as soon as she discovered that they were no longer under her control, and she wished they would die without a burial place.
As for kidnapping Lu Zhisheng, he knew that the head of the Wang family did not actually dare to harm Lu Zhisheng. She was just driven by lust and wanted to force him to agree to become one of her husbands, just like she had done with the other young men she had brought back to the Wang family.
Ye Lan scoffed, her tone filled with resentment: "She can't escape the blame for kidnapping Young Master Lu, but Young Master Lu wasn't actually harmed, and the man surnamed Wang didn't rob her. Even if she's punished, she won't be locked up for long. At most, she'll be imprisoned for two months."
Fu Yun: "..." Were kidnapping sentences so lenient in ancient times?
Wouldn't that mean he could just sit in jail for two months and be released unscathed?
"As for receiving unidentified guests in the middle of the night, she insisted that she had not committed any crimes, but was simply having a late-night chat with her friends, drinking and having fun."
Zhilan's expression was solemn: "She is very cautious. Among the people we have investigated, those who had direct contact with her were all local merchants, and we did not find the entrance to the secret passage in her house. In other words, she did not personally contact foreigners, and she knew how to clear her name. Therefore, even if we suspect that she is conspiring with rebels to do something detrimental to the court, we have not found any strong evidence that she has been in contact with spies. The government has to rely on witnesses and physical evidence. We cannot prosecute her until we have this evidence."
Fu Yun then asked, "What about Su Tan's situation? Is it the same?"
Zhilan helplessly spread her hands: "It's exactly the same. If the two of them weren't always at odds and were business rivals who only wanted to trample each other underfoot, I would have suspected that they had cooperated."
Fu Yun shook his head and said with certainty, "Based on my understanding of Su Tan, she has a very high opinion of herself and thinks that the Wang family is just a newly rich and powerful family that has entered the market halfway and cannot be compared with the Su family, which has been established for decades. That's why she targets the Wang family. In recent years, she has been suppressed by the Wang family and lost face in front of the major families in Lingzhou City. She is already furious and still harbors resentment. She can't wait to crush the Wang family. So I think it's impossible for her to cooperate with someone she hates so much."
“Hmm.” Zhilan nodded, agreeing with Fu Jun’s point of view: “I think so too. We will change the direction of our investigation. In addition to continuing to investigate their interpersonal relationships, the Judicial Bureau will also focus on investigating whether there are any overlaps among the people they have been in contact with.”
Zhilan's arrangement was reasonable. If he were in a situation where he couldn't find evidence, he would also change his approach and attack from the side instead of directly.
Perhaps the person they both came into contact with at the same time is the key; she is very likely the intermediary.
As for the Wang family head exchanging pleasantries with local merchants in the middle of the night, it was merely a ploy to confuse the public and conceal her true intentions.
Fu Yun said, "You've really worked hard. They are more cunning and treacherous than we imagined. But this also means we are very close to the truth. Generally, the investigation becomes more and more difficult when we get close to the truth. The investigation will probably be even more difficult in the future."
Zhilan looked arrogant and said domineeringly, "It doesn't matter. Let them do whatever they want. I'll play along to the end."
"No matter what their motives are, whether it's for power, wealth, or family feuds and national hatred, as long as they have something to gain, they will inevitably show their true colors one day. Now it's time to see who can hold their breath the longest."
She curled her lips into a smile, as if she had thought of something amusing, her expression tinged with a hint of mockery: "Speaking of which, I have to admit that I'm probably a restless person. Since I ascended the throne, those old ministers in the court have caused me no shortage of trouble. Recently, they've been much quieter and haven't caused any trouble. Since they've stopped causing trouble, I find the days of going to court a bit boring. I always feel like something's missing. Isn't that strange?"
Fu Yun: "..." This is probably what they call a life of toil!
Anyone with lofty ambitions will not allow themselves to slack off, because they are already used to high-intensity and high-burden work, and they will feel uncomfortable if they have free time.
Don't ask him why he knows so much, because that's just who he is.
He comforted you, saying, "Don't worry too much about it. These are normal feelings. You've just developed a habit over time, and it's hard to change it all at once. Besides, you're in a high position, so it's not a bad thing to be vigilant."
Zhilan's expression shifted, and her eyes shone brightly as she looked at Fu Jun: "You make sense. Then I don't need to take it to heart. I can take this opportunity to stretch my muscles and have some fun with them."
Fu Yun: "?" So, this is what you really think. What you want is the thrill of cat and mouse?
Ye Lan twitched her lips, lowered her eyes, and tried to pretend she hadn't heard her master's shocking words.
To avoid giving Su Xiaolangjun the impression that His Majesty was combative, she took the initiative to remind him, "Your Majesty, it's getting late, you should return to the palace."
Zhilan paused, a hint of embarrassment flashing in her eyes. She coughed lightly and said seriously, "Then let's go back first!"
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