Yu Shu had originally thought that it was inconvenient for Jing Chen to come out of the Palace, so his people had not come for a few days. Who would have thought that it was not inconvenient for him to come out, but he had no time to see her?
"Why is Miss Shui Yun so ill?" Yu Shu asked Jing Chen with her usual expression. She was very curious about what illness it was that was more serious than her broken finger.
Jing Chen did not notice Yu Shu's displeasure and said, "The day before yesterday, Chong Yun brought us to tour the capital. Shui Yun was so happy that she played until late at night. As a result, she caught a cold. That night, she returned home with a fever. She only got better yesterday."
Yu Shu made an 'oh' sound. She did not express any concern for the younger shimei's health. Instead, she asked Jing Chen with a faint smile, "What happened? Did you guys come out to play the day before yesterday? Why didn't you call me?"
Jing Chen was stunned and asked strangely, "Didn't you say that you had something to do and couldn't come?"
Hearing this, Yu Shu frowned, "When did I say that? Why don't I remember? Did you come to find me the day before yesterday?"
Jing Chen nodded and said, "That day, Chong Yun and I left the Palace and went to his guesthouse to pick up shimei. I wanted to go to Doctor He's house to find you. They felt that it was too troublesome to go back and forth between the south and north of the city. Chong Yun sent someone to invite you, but you said you had something to do and couldn't come."
"Ha." Yu Shu gave a fake laugh and thought that this was interesting. She had been staying at home for the past few days. Other than Gui Liu and Lao Chui who came to deliver letters, no one else had come to ask her to go out. But someone had copied what she said and told it to Jing Chen. There must be something fishy going on.
Yu Shu's attitude made Jing Chen feel that something was wrong. He asked her in confusion, "Why didn't you say you had something to do?"
Yu Shu smiled and didn't intend to expose him. "You're right. Now that you mention it, I remember that I did have something to do the day before yesterday."
It was meaningless to put it bluntly. At most, Jing Chen would ask Liu Tan again. It would just be one more explanation. If the errand runner was lazy and didn't look for her, it would be fine. If Liu Tan didn't send someone to look for her on purpose, he wouldn't admit it.
"Right." Yu Shu cleverly chose to skip this topic. "How long are you going to stay in the palace? Didn't you say you were going to move to the Princess Mansion?"
Jing Chen said, "Soon, the Princess Residence has been tidied up. All that's left is to clean it up."
"That's good." It would be easier for her to find him after he came out.
The two chatted for a while. Yu Shu heard the faint sound of a stick striking outside. She looked at the rising sun and guessed that the trial had begun. She stood up and walked to the door. Yu Shu pricked up her ears and listened to the movements in front of her. She turned her head and asked the two bailiffs waiting outside the door, "Is the trial starting?"
The Supreme Court's trial was held in the Magistrate's office. It wasn't shown to the public and the commoners weren't allowed to watch. It was very quiet.
The bailiffs said, "The trial has begun. Miss, please wait. When it's time for you to go to the court for questioning, someone will come to summon you."
"Okay."
Yu Shu walked back and sat down. She smiled at Jing Chen and said, "Did you hear that? The trial has begun. Let's sit for a while."
Yu Shu didn't intend to talk to Jing Chen. If the crime of murdering the Emperor was cleared, then so be it. After all, she was the one who framed him. However, Ji Huaishan stole the questions and Ji Xingxuan cheated. This was a fact. She didn't need to lie and they didn't run away.
Jing Chen's hearing was much better than Yu Shu's. As he sat there, he could more or less hear the sound of the gavel being struck, as well as the interrogating voices of the interrogators. After a while, he suddenly asked Yu Shu seriously, "If this crime of favoritism and corruption is carried out, how will the punishment be?"
Yu Shu replied, "The punishment will be one hundred lashes. He will be demoted to a commoner and be sent out of the capital."
Jing Chen frowned, "One hundred lashes. Won't that kill?"
Yu Shu seemed to remember that killing was a taboo in Jing Chen's sect. She said, "Don't worry. The whip is very thin. I have asked Brother Xue. It will only hurt. It will take at least two or three hundred lashes to kill someone."
Jing Chen's eyebrows relaxed. He hoped that those who bullied Yu Shu would get their retribution, but he didn't want to see anyone die because of it.
After waiting for another two cups of tea, Jing Chen was asked to go to the front for questioning. Yu Shu was left to continue waiting.
"Summon the witness, Yu Shu of Yiyang!"
When Yu Shu was called to the front hall, the trial had just ended. Before she reached the door, she saw the grandfather and grandson of the Ji family kneeling on the ground.
Both of them wore grayish-white prison uniforms. Ji Huaishan's hair was disheveled, and his legs were shackled. His back was bent, and he looked like an old man with one foot in the grave. He was ill and breathless, and his former majesty was nowhere to be seen. Ji Xingxuan's hair was haphazardly tied behind her head with a rope. The thin prison uniform she wore made her look so skinny that a gust of wind could blow her over. She didn't look like the Fourth Miss Ji of Yiyang City, who was famous throughout Yiyang City.
When they heard that Yu Shu was going to the court, their bodies stiffened at the same time. But they didn't look back.
Jing Chen didn't stand for questioning. The Supreme Court had prepared a chair for him. After the questioning, he sat on the side to listen to the trial.
The other person sitting next to him was the representative of the Celestial Commissioner, Junior Supervisor Ren Qiming. Except for Liu Tan, almost everyone who was at the Celestial Commissioner's office that night was present. Oh, there was still one more thing missing.
"Lord Bing, Yiyang's Yu Shu is here."
Sitting in the main hall was the chief judge of the case. He was a second-ranked official in the imperial court, Chancellor Guo Huai 'an. Cases of favoritism and fraud were common. Moreover, when the Dayan Examination and the Imperial Examinations were held together, there were many students who were caught cheating. If Ji Huaishan's case was just an ordinary case of fraud, Guo Huai' an wouldn't have to personally interrogate him. He could have just handed it over to his subordinates. But because it was related to the treason of murdering a relative of the Emperor, the Emperor specially ordered a strict investigation. That was why he was the chief judge.
"Bang!"
"Who are you?"
Guo Huai 'an was fifty-three years old. He was slightly plump. Although he had a white face and looked kind, he was famous for being ruthless. Five years ago, there was a big case in An Ling. The Fourth Princess's son-in-law trampled a pregnant woman to death on horseback when he was drunk. One corpse and two lives were lost before he left.
The magistrate didn't dare to make a noise and hastily closed the case, letting the son-in-law get away with it. Unexpectedly, the pregnant woman's husband went to the Supreme Court to beat the drum to complain about his grievances. He survived after being beaten fifty times with iron rods. Guo Huai 'an accepted the case that day. After finding out the truth, the next day, he sent people to the Fourth Princess's residence to kidnap the son-in-law and interrogate him. In the end, the son-in-law was sentenced to be hanged. His death shocked the entire An Ling City. Later, some people jokingly called him the White King of Hell.
"Student Yu Shu kowtows to Your Excellency." Yu Shu claimed to be a student, so she didn't kneel. Instead, she crossed her thumbs and bowed. She raised her head slightly and glanced at Xue Rui who was sitting at the side. Today, he was wearing a formal red muslin robe, a black leather belt around his waist, a black cong hat on his head, and a white jade square hole on the brim of his hat. His eyes were looking at his nose, and his nose was looking at his heart. His dignified appearance made her a little displeased.
Xue Rui was also looking at Yu Shu. Indeed, he didn't miss the displeasure in her eyes. He folded his thumbs on his knees and made two circles. He hid his smile in his eyes. He knew that she was a vengeful person and wouldn't forget so quickly.
"Yu Shu, this official wants to ask you. Do you recognize the two people kneeling on the ground?" Guo Huai 'an asked.
Yu Shu turned her head to look at the grandfather and grandson who were kneeling on the ground with their heads lowered. She said, "I recognize them. This is the Celestial Commissioner, Right Judge Ji Huaishan, Lord Ji. The other is the Ji family's fourth daughter, Ji Xingxuan."
What followed was a series of questions and answers. Guo Huai 'an hadn't tried Ji Huaishan's crime of stealing. He first asked about how Jing Chen was framed on his way back to the capital and lost the Yellowfrost Stone. Later on, it was discovered in Ji Xingxuan's hands. Yu Shu answered every question. She was still a scoundrel. However, she didn't explicitly say that the Ji family was involved with the traitors. This was because Xue Rui had reminded her in advance that this Guo Huai' an who was trying the case today was an expert in interrogations. It wouldn't be good if she said too much.
During the course of Guo Huai 'an's questioning, neither Ji Huaishan nor Ji Xingxuan interjected. After she had answered, Guo Huai' an questioned them again. Only then did the two claim that they were innocent. Ji Huaishan said a few words before coughing repeatedly. Ji Xingxuan continued to answer, "Lord Bing, this little girl doesn't dare to say half a word of falsehood. The piece of jade that belonged to the Daoist was indeed something that I accidentally picked up. If it wasn't for the Junior Supervisor's guidance, grandfather and I wouldn't have known that it was a treasure. If Lord Bing doesn't believe me, you can ask my maidservant, Yun He. I picked up this piece of jade in Yiyang City and showed it to her when I got back. According to the time, the Daoist hadn't been harmed at that time. He must have lost it by accident. He definitely didn't get it from the hands of a thief.
This is all a misunderstanding. "Ji Xingxuan was smart. She knew that the Daoist, Jing Chen, was helping Yu Shu make a false statement. Therefore, she didn't say that Yu Shu was falsely accusing her. She only said that it was a misunderstanding.
"Summon the handmaiden, Yun He." Guo Huaian ordered someone to summon Ji Xingxuan's handmaiden to the court. Because the witness who testified and the witness who vouched for Ji Xingxuan were not in the same place, Yu Shu and Jing Chen were waiting in the side hall and didn't see anyone else.
Before Yun He was brought to the court, Guo Huaian first asked Ren Qiming to confirm Ji Xingxuan's words. Then, he asked Jing Chen again for confirmation. When exactly did he lose the Yellowfrost Stone?
"I only remember that the Yellowfrost Stone was still with me before I left Yiyang. I don't know anything else." Jing Chen lowered his eyes slightly and lied. He hid the fact that he had given the Yellowfrost Stone to Yu Shu and that she had lost it.
Guo Huaian knew that Jing Chen had suffered along the way and lost a part of his memory. Therefore, he didn't question him further.
"Milord, I've brought the Ji Mansion's handmaiden, Yun He."
Yu Shu was no stranger to Ji Xingxuan's chief handmaiden, Yun He. She turned her head to glance at her and saw that her eyes were bloodshot. She was glaring at her fiercely, as if she couldn't wait to pounce on her and bite her.
"Yun He, do you recognize this item?" Guo Huaian gestured for a runner to bring a tray down for her to see. On top of the tray was the Yellowfrost Stone that Xue Rui had requested from Yu Shu a few days ago.
"In reply to Your Excellency, this servant recognizes it. Our young miss picked up this stone when she returned to her hometown last year. Because this stone looks unique and beautiful, the young miss kept it."
Guo Huaian had carefully interrogated Yun He and had a good idea of the case. He knew that the crime of colluding with the traitors to murder the imperial family was too far-fetched to be confirmed. Thus, he changed the topic and asked with a stern expression, "Then how did it end up in the hands of Daozi and Miss Yu? This official wants you to tell me the truth. Did your young miss use this Yellowfrost Stone to exchange for the Yunhua Astrology examination papers in the twelfth year of Baotai?"
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