Chapter 9: Suicide to Escape Punishment (1)

The next day.

Yingtian Prefecture Yamen.

In the spacious and bright main hall, the "Justice and Honor" plaque hung in the very center, with dark patterns carved and emeralds inlaid; against the backdrop of the dark red wooden frame, the gilded characters shone brightly, appearing quite striking. Two rows of Yamen Runners dressed in dark red martial attire stood on the left and right, holding long staves, possessing quite a bit of majesty.

The villagers permitted to observe could only stand at the very back of the hall, almost standing outside. Even so, the villagers still stood stiffly, their bodies uniformly straight, heads bowed as low as possible, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Except for one person.

Lou Xiyan's gaze swept over the solitary figure sitting on the threshold with arms crossed and back against the doorframe. The defiant posture was completely out of place in the Yamen hall. A tattered hat obscured most of their face; although their expression could not be seen, Lou Xiyan could guess that they must be full of rage at this moment.

Thinking of this, Lou Xiyan felt inexplicably pleased.

He was in a good mood, but someone else was brimming with anger.

Noon is twelve o'clock, right? These idiots didn't sleep all night, who knows what they were fussing about. Early this morning, before the sky was even bright, they dragged her to the front of the Yingtian Prefecture, and she had been waiting stupidly in the sun until now!

The clothes on her body were coarse and thick, and her back had long been soaked with sweat. The hat covered her so tightly she couldn't breathe. Her forehead and face were already drenched in sweat. Glaring at the refreshed Lou Xiyan in front of the official desk, Zhuo Qing was irritated to the extreme.

Today's Lou Xiyan was very different from last night. He wore a purple-gold and white jade crown, and a dark red, gold-patterned long robe. Embroidered on the front lapel was a golden qilin, half-crouching and half-lying, its eyes bright and alert, poised to strike. Hanging from his pure black silk belt were emerald jade rings. A bright, shallow smile remained on his face, yet no one dared to act presumptuously before him.

"This subordinate pays respects to the Prime Minister." Vice Minister of Justice Wu Zhigang knelt halfway, feeling anxious and uneasy.

Although the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice were both supervised by the Prime Minister, in daily affairs, the review of criminal cases was managed by the officials of the Judicial Department. It was absolutely impossible to see the Prime Minister in the Prefecture Yamen. As a minor fourth-rank official, how could he not be terrified!

Sitting down on the chair to the side and waving his hand slightly, Lou Xiyan replied with a faint smile: "No need for formalities."

Wu Zhigang stood up straight slowly, but did not dare to sit down. With the Prime Minister here, how could he dare to sit in the main seat? Standing by the desk, Wu Zhigang asked respectfully: "Prime Minister, your visit today is..."

Lou Xiyan smiled in a relaxed manner: "Hundreds of villagers from Niu Family Village have submitted a joint petition to cry injustice for the case of Lin Bokang stealing and swapping military rations. What is your take on this?"

Lou Xiyan asked casually, but Wu Zhigang's face turned pale. He cupped his hands and hurriedly replied: "Prime Minister, please examine the facts. In this case, both human and material evidence are present, and Lin Bokang has already confessed his guilt. There is absolutely no injustice!"

"Absolutely no injustice?" Lou Xiyan looked at the woman beside the hall and asked: "Madam Lin, do you have anything to say?"

Zhuo Qing raised her eyes slightly to look. She saw a woman over fifty years old already kneeling on the ground. Although her voice trembled, she answered very loudly: "Replying to the Prime Minister, this commoner visited my husband on the eighteenth of this month, which was the third day after the Yamen convicted him. My husband said he did not steal or swap military rations; he was framed!"

Before the woman finished speaking, Wu Zhigang could no longer hold back and urged: "Absurd! It is written in black and white, with his own confession signed with his thumbprint. How can he claim injustice just because he says so?! Clerk, quickly bring the case files for the Prime Minister to review!"

"Yes, yes, yes." The man who had been standing timidly to the side immediately rushed to the back hall, and after a moment, ran out holding a stack of items.

Wu Zhigang hurriedly took the files and respectfully handed them over with both hands: "Prime Minister, these are the files for this case. The human and material evidence are complete; he cannot deny it!"

Zhuo Qing leaned against the doorway, her bright eyes squinting at Lou Xiyan, waiting to see his reaction. He had even brought Lin Bokang's wife here, so he must have already read the case files. In just one night, what else had he done?! There was a reason this man had reached the pinnacle of officialdom at such a young age.

Sure enough, Lou Xiyan did not take the files, but instead looked troubled and sighed: "One of you insists there is absolutely no injustice, while the other keeps crying injustice. Since that is the case, bring the prisoner here; I wish to interrogate him personally."

Wu Zhigang was startled, but did not dare to say anything. He whispered to the two Yamen Runners beside him: "You two, hurry and bring the prisoner Lin Bokang to the hall."

"Yes." The Yamen Runners took the order and left.

Who would have thought this would take half an hour. Zhuo Qing vaguely felt that something was amiss. Lou Xiyan, however, looked as usual, showing no signs of irritation. One hand tapped on the chair rhythmically. It was only hard on Wu Zhigang, who stood at his side; a thin layer of sweat seeped onto his forehead, but standing next to the Prime Minister, he did not dare to move at all.

Finally, the two Yamen Runners who had left returned. Wu Zhigang cursed in a low voice: "Why did it take so long?" Seeing that there was no one behind them, he asked urgently: "Where is the person?"

Both were panting heavily. One replied in a panic: "Reporting to the official, Lin Bokang... he committed suicide to escape punishment early this morning!"

Suicide to escape punishment!?

Zhuo Qing secretly observed Wu Zhigang's expression. After hearing the news, he almost couldn't stand steady, his face turning from white to green. It seemed he was also quite frightened; it didn't look like he was faking it. Lou Xiyan said nothing, his brows slightly furrowed. Perhaps even he had not expected the person to actually be dead!

Could it really be suicide? Zhuo Qing subconsciously denied it, because—it was too coincidental, the timing was controlled just right!

"The benefactor is dead?!" The villagers gathered outside widened their eyes in disbelief. They wanted to rush in, but with the Prime Minister present, they dared not act presumptuously and could only fret.

"Husband!" Upon hearing this, Madam Lin immediately collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. As if thinking of something, Madam Lin suddenly scrambled up, pointed at Wu Zhigang, and cried out: "My husband was wronged! He could not have committed suicide! It was you, it must have been you who killed my husband!"

Madam Lin lunged crazily toward Wu Zhigang, but was blocked by the Yamen Runners on both sides with their long staves, yet she continued to curse relentlessly.

Wu Zhigang came to his senses and shouted in a rage: "Shut up! Ignorant woman, stop disturbing the court! Throw her out!" Wu Zhigang looked cautiously at Lou Xiyan, fearing he would be enraged. Fortunately, the Prime Minister appeared to be deep in thought, as if he hadn't noticed the shrew's accusations.

"Let go of me!" Madam Lin struggled desperately, but after all, she was no match for two grown men. The Yamen Runners hoisted her up, one on each side, and dragged her out.

"Wait."

Just as Madam Lin was about to be thrown out, a cold voice sounded faintly: "Why the rush to drive people away? Whether it was suicide or murder, one will naturally know by looking at the corpse." A corpse would absolutely never lie!

The cold voice echoed faintly in the hall, sounding exceptionally jarring. Moreover, the one speaking was a strange person wrapped from head to toe in a gray robe. Wu Zhigang shouted impatiently: "Who are you?! How dare you make a scene in the hall!"

"I..."?

(End of chapter)