Chapter 57 On the way to the accident site, Zhou Jin and Jiang...
On the way to the scene of the accident, Zhou Jin and Jiang Han learned about the general situation from the guards who came to report the news.
It turned out that the team they had sent out to search for Chen Weiyu had suddenly heard a woman's cry for help while on duty. Accompanied by the increasingly pungent smell of smoke, they discovered that a thatched hut on the other side of the river was on fire.
Just as they were thinking about how to cross the river to rescue, someone in the team exclaimed: "Look! Isn't that Chen Weiyu?!"
The call came from one of the accompanying soldiers, skilled at identifying people. Looking in the direction he pointed, I saw a window of the burning house had been smashed open. A woman inside was clinging to the iron chains nailed in a cross-shaped pattern outside the window, screaming for help at the top of her lungs. Her face was clearly visible through the gaps in the chains.
"It's Chen Weiyu! It's her!"
"Hurry, find a way to save people!" the leader of the team gave the order.
They had originally planned to wade across the river, but it was over twenty feet wide, unfathomable, and the current was so swift that no one dared to risk it. By the time they finally made their way around to the other side, the house had been reduced to rubble, with only a body, charred beyond recognition, lying on the ground.
When we arrived at the scene, we saw that the ashes from the extinguished fire were still hot and covered the ground.
Zhou Jin and Jiang Han immediately went forward to check the body and found that only a charred skeleton was left.
After all, this was Zhou Jin's first time witnessing such a scene, and he sighed with some reluctance, "I never thought Ningxiangju's courtesan would die so tragically..."
Jiang Han approached the charred remains and squatted down to examine them carefully. After a moment, he stood up, removed his gloves, and said, "The body has been burned beyond recognition. We're not sure if it's Chen Weiyu."
Zhou Jin was a little surprised: "But didn't our soldiers say that they saw the person crying for help in that room was Chen Weiyu?"
"Report to the two adults! I just found this by the riverbank!"
Jiang Han quickly walked up to the soldier and took the item he presented.
It was a piece of red cloth covered in wet mud, with a small piece of wood wrapped inside.
Jiang Han took out the piece of wood and slowly unfolded the cloth.
Zhou Jin walked up to Jiang Han and asked in surprise, "Is this... a blood letter?!"
Although the writing on it is a little blurred by water stains, the content can still be recognized.
The owner of the blood letter claimed to be Chen Weiyu. The content of the letter had two main points: first, it confirmed the accusations against Lin Bowen; second, it cleared Fang Buyu of all charges, claiming that Fang Buyu's accusations were coerced, and that her own imprisonment was also the work of that person. This was because, while being mistakenly knocked unconscious and tied up here, she overheard a conversation in which the voice that had threatened her addressed the person she was speaking to as "Prime Minister!"
Zhou Jin said, "This must be Chen Weiyu's suicide note, thrown out from under the blazing fire."
Jiang Han put away the blood letter and handed it to his subordinate beside him, "Go and check whether this is Chen Weiyu's handwriting."
Zhou Jin pursed his lips and said nothing more. He walked over to the collapsed pile of charred wood and searched carefully, but found no suspicious clues. When he looked up and around, he noticed a house on the cliff of a nearby mountain.
The design of the house is quite unique, with a sense of luxury in its simplicity. It is obviously not something that can be built by ordinary craftsmen.
"Whose house is this?"
Jiang Han looked in the direction Zhou Jin pointed and heard the guard beside him reply, "Your Excellency, I noticed this earlier and have verified that its owner is Prime Minister Tuoba."
This time, Zhou Jin and Jiang Han looked at each other and understood each other tacitly.
"It seems that we have to go visit the Prime Minister."
＊
In his study, Tuoba Xuan was holding a brush, dipped in ink, and writing on a piece of rice paper spread out on his desk. His slightly chaotic brushstrokes betrayed the turmoil and restlessness within him at the moment.
According to secret reports, the emperor had ordered Liu Mingzhong to hand over his current affairs to another eunuch in charge of the seal yesterday, saying that he was sympathetic to Liu Mingzhong's hard work and was granting him a few days' leave. However, the deeper meaning behind this was clear to everyone.
This move not only concerns Liu Mingzhong, but also indicates that Fang Buyu's fate is in jeopardy.
It's a shame, it's a shame. If you had listened to your father's words, how could you have ended up like this? Now that things have come to this, don't blame your father for his ruthless actions... As for Yiyi, I will double my compensation to her in the future...
With his thoughts racing, Tuoba Xuan could no longer concentrate and angrily threw his brush down. The tip of the brush left a trail of ink on the white rice paper.
It was also at this time that he received a report from Sun Zhiming.
"You mean, Jiang Han from the Royal Guard is here?"
"Exactly. They're accompanied by Weizhou Governor Zhou Jin. They're coming with a group of guards and soldiers. Judging from their demeanor... they seem to be up to no good."
＊
"Master Jiang, Master Zhou, I am truly sorry for not welcoming you in person."
As soon as Tuoba Xuan stepped into the reception hall, he smiled broadly and put on a warm and hospitable look. He walked quickly towards Jiang Han and Zhou Jin who were waiting in the hall, "Someone, come and serve tea to the two adults."
Jiang Han bowed slightly and said bluntly, "No need, Your Excellency. Lord Zhou and I are here because of a case. I beg Your Excellency to cooperate with the investigation."
"Oh? What's that?"
"Could you please, Prime Minister, summon everyone in the palace? I have something to ask them."
Hearing this, Tuoba Xuan put away the already superficial smile on his face, "Master Jiang, what do you mean? How is the investigation going into the case of the Ningxiangju courtesan falsely accusing me? How come it's now my fault?!"
"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, are too kind." Zhou Jin hurried forward to explain, "It's just a routine inquiry."
"Routine questioning? Why ask everyone in my courtyard? Are you going to search my Prime Minister's residence next?"
Seeing that Jiang Han and Zhou Jin were both silent, Tuoba Xuan continued, "You two, one is of the first rank and the other is of the second rank, your official ranks are lower than this one. Without the emperor's decree, you probably have no right to search this one's residence."
Having said that, Jiang Han no longer hesitated. He rummaged through his shirt for a moment, then pulled out a palm-sized, gleaming golden plaque and held it before Tuoba Xuan. "This is the imperial decree. The emperor gave it to me, instructing me to investigate all officials involved in Fang Buyu's case, with no upper limit. Do you have any further questions, sir?"
Tuoba Xuan stopped talking.
Soon, everyone in the house was brought into the hall.
Jiang Han waved his hand, and his subordinate immediately understood and took out a scroll from his sleeve and handed it to Jiang Han.
Jiang Han slowly unrolled the scroll, revealing a portrait of a woman. Holding the portrait, he slowly walked past the group, asking each one, "Have you ever seen the woman in this painting?"
Almost everyone shook their heads, indicating that they didn't know him.
Of course, almost. Because one of them showed something strange.
When Jiang Han walked up to Liu Yiyi holding the portrait, her expression suddenly changed, and her eyes moved back and forth between the portrait and Tuoba Xuan who was not far away, "This...this..."
"Madam, have you ever seen the woman in the painting?"
Listening to Jiang Han's question, and then seeing Liu Yiyi looking at him with an inexplicably fearful look, Tuoba Xuan frowned slightly, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.
"Madam, please look me in the eyes and answer!"
Although Jiang Han's voice was not loud, it carried a deterrent force that could not be ignored.
Liu Yiyi looked at Jiang Han tremblingly, "May I ask, sir, why are you looking for this woman?"
"You don't need to know this. Just answer truthfully: have you ever seen the woman in the painting?"
Liu Yiyi was silent for a while, and finally said, "I have seen it."
"When did you see it?"
"The day before yesterday... the day before yesterday when I was coming down the mountain, I saw my husband and Sun Zhiming in the valley. Sun Zhiming was carrying an unconscious woman into a thatched hut."
Tuoba Xuan didn't say anything, but Sun Zhiming beside him shouted, "Liu Yiyi, what nonsense are you talking about!"
Jiang Han ignored him and continued to ask, "Who is your husband?"
"That's right... Prime Minister."
Jiang Han didn't seem surprised by this answer and asked, "Did you see what they were doing at that time?"
"They came out shortly after entering the thatched hut. My view was obscured, so I couldn't see what was going on inside. But later, I got jealous and asked Sun Zhiming. He said they had rescued the girl on the road, brought her to the thatched hut, and would let her leave when she recovered. Only then did I feel relieved."
Sun Zhiming rushed to Liu Yiyi angrily, "Liu Yiyi, when did I ever say that?!"
"Master Sun, you've forgotten so quickly what you told me right here yesterday morning!"
Sun Zhiming's expression was as if he had swallowed a fly, and he was completely speechless.
"Okay, I understand. Now, I'd like to inform everyone present: the woman in the painting is Chen Weiyu, the most popular courtesan at Ningxiangju. This morning, a charred body resembling Chen Weiyu's was found in a thatched hut at the foot of Four Seasons Valley."
"What?!" Upon hearing the news, Liu Yiyi seemed extremely frightened and collapsed to the ground.
Jiang Han put away the portrait and walked up to Tuoba Xuan, who still looked calm. "Prime Minister Tuoba, please come with us."
Tuoba Xuan's eyes were always on Liu Yiyi. Even when Jiang Han walked over, he ignored him. As if he didn't hear what Jiang Han said, he walked straight past Jiang Han, walked in front of Liu Yiyi, and slowly squatted down.
"Yiyi, I'm only asking you once, is everything you said true?"
He still had illusions and still wanted Liu Yiyi to make a choice in front of him, to admit or deny, to choose him or Fang Buyu.
"No, no, I was just talking nonsense!" Liu Yiyi grabbed Tuoba Xuan's sleeve and looked at Jiang Han pleadingly, almost crying. "Sir, I was just talking nonsense. I didn't see or hear anything! Please, don't take my husband away..."
Jiang Han walked up to Tuoba Xuan and said again, "Prime Minister Tuoba, please come with us."
Hearing this, Liu Yiyi threw herself into Tuoba Xuan's arms and cried loudly, "My dear husband, I'm sorry. I hurt you. It's me who hurt you..."
To outsiders, this was undoubtedly a pair of star-crossed lovers. The woman felt extremely remorseful for her gaffe and was extremely reluctant to see the man being taken away.
But Tuoba Xuan heard clearly what Liu Yiyi had just whispered in his ear:
"Tuoba Xuan, go to hell."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
