When Yan Tinghao rushed to knock on the door, Lin Qingge's room was still lit by candlelight.
"My lord, bad news! Bad news!"
"Enough, you always say the same thing. Those who know something has happened, and those who don't would think you're cursing me daily, wishing for something to happen to me!"
With that, Lin Qingge patted her not-disheveled clothes, lifted the hem, and walked directly towards the prison.
"Hey, no, my lord, do you know what happened?"
Yan Tinghao scratched his head and followed, tugging on the rope. The poor proprietor of the Tangtang Restaurant, despite his old age, was dragged back and forth like a dog by the overly energetic Yan Tinghao.
Lin Qingge arrived at the prison and asked Ling Han, the death row inmate and jailer, "What's going on?"
"Reporting to my lord, they both took poison and committed suicide."
Chen Rao, who couldn't sleep due to the pain from the beating and witnessed the entire suicide process of Tang Wan'er and Liu Jinhua, grumbled unhappily, "Bah, they got off too easily, those two bitches! If they had fallen into my hands, I guarantee they would wish they were never born!"
As Chen Rao's scolding fell silent, several sharp gazes fell upon him.
"Lu Mingxuan, go to the Yi Zhuang and get someone to take their bodies away."
After giving the order, Lin Qingge glanced at Ling Han with unease, pointed at Chen Rao in the distance, and instructed with three words: "Alive."
Ling Han nodded, seemingly reluctant, indicating he understood.
Here, Yan Tinghao said with his head drooping, "My lord, why did they feel so desperate?"
"Shouldn't it be that they had thought it through, which is why they chose to end their lives in this manner?"
"But, my lord—"
"No 'buts,' your lord is neither here nor there."
Saying this casually, Lin Qingge walked out without looking back.
Seeing this, Yan Tinghao hurriedly called out, "My lord, that's not the way back to the backyard!"
"Shut up!"
Lin Qingge, unable to bear it any longer, continued walking forward while raising her middle finger.
Yan Tinghao, somewhat confused, looked down at his waist and below, then continued to shout, "My lord, it's so late, where are you going? Shall I accompany you?"
"Thanks, but no thanks!"
Lin Qingge quickened her pace, and in a blink of an eye, she had turned out of the yamen and disappeared from Yan Tinghao's sight.
"Strange, I haven't done anything to displease my lord recently. Why is my lord so annoyed with me?"
Yan Tinghao said as he walked back into the prison. Glancing at the proprietor of the Tangtang Restaurant he had tied to his side, he seemed to realize something, "I know, it must be you who displeased my lord, that's why my lord doesn't want to talk to me!"
The proprietor of the Tangtang Restaurant, inexplicably blamed but daring not to utter a sound: ...
At the same time.
Lin Qingge, who had left the yamen, got into a carriage waiting two streets away. As soon as Lin Qingge settled into her seat, a teasing and infuriating voice sounded from inside the carriage: "My lord, Officer Yan has always considered himself your right-hand man. If Officer Yan were to know that you only excluded him, he might cry himself to death in the outhouse?"
"Heh~ If he were to know what we're busy with in the middle of the night with his big mouth, we might as well go home, wash up, and sleep. Does Advisor Hua think my actions are a bit improper?"
After speaking, Lin Qingge narrowed her eyes slightly. As if sensing the warning, Hua Jinrong hurriedly changed his tune, "My lord is like a star of literature descended to earth, with flawless plans. How would we dare question your decisions? Your student is just a bit curious, thinking that my lord is upright and cannot tolerate the slightest imperfection~"
"The law is not without human sentiment. I would not be lenient with treacherous villains and fierce bandits, but Tang Wan'er and Liu Jinhua were two weak women who had suffered greatly from bullying. Of course, for whatever reason, killing itself is wrong. However, the inhumane torment they endured from the Chen brothers over the years has already absolved them of most of their sins. Moreover, Tang Wan'er also produced the ledger of the Chen brothers' misdeeds. Their merits and demerits offset each other, so it is reasonable to let them live."
"It is their good fortune to have met my lord, but also their misfortune."
"Advisor Hua, what do you mean by that?"
Hua Jinrong unfolded his fan and waved it, "It is fortunate for them that my lord devised this stratagem of 'the cicada shedding its shell' to help them live better lives in the future and avoid being hunted by the Chen brothers. As for their misfortune, it is precisely because they met my lord. If they had not met my lord, let alone a different magistrate, even your lord's teacher, Lord Xu, might not have been able to see through their trick. It is possible that the unlucky Chen Rao would have been made a scapegoat, and Tang Wan'er would have gone unpunished, while Liu Jinhua would also have been spared punishment for being coerced."
After hearing Hua Jinrong's words, a hint of realization flickered in Lin Qingge's eyes, "So that's how it is, I finally understand."
"Understand what, my lord?"
Lin Qingge, being asked, shook her head, "It's nothing, just a trivial matter of no consequence."
The carriage arrived ten li outside the city and stopped for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Soon, there was movement outside. Lin Qingge lifted the curtain and stepped out of the carriage. Not far away, two beautiful women were standing there, looking expectantly. They were none other than Tang Wan'er and Liu Jinhua, who were supposed to have committed suicide by poison in prison.
Seeing Lin Qingge approach, Tang Wan'er bowed deeply, "This concubine thanks my lord for saving my life once again!"
It turned out that after the court session ended, Lin Qingge had kept the two of them alone and given them the fake death medicine made by Murong Bai. She instructed them to take the fake death medicine in front of Chen Rao that night. After confirming they were dead, Qin Han would come with a cart to pick them up. However, instead of taking them to the Yi Zhuang, he would take them directly outside the city. After waking them with Murong Bai's specially made soul-reviving incense, they were to take the carriage prepared by Hua Jinrong and leave Changzhou County. From then on, they would change their names and surnames and start anew somewhere no one knew them.
As if overwhelmed with emotion, Tang Wan'er grabbed Lin Qingge's hand, tears in her eyes, and said, "My lord's great kindness, this concubine has no way to repay in this life. If there is a next life, this concubine is willing to be your ox or horse." With that, she even threw herself into Lin Qingge's arms.
"Uh—"
Lin Qingge, caught off guard by the other party's boldness, froze for a moment. However, before she could push her away, she heard Tang Wan'er's deliberately lowered voice, "My lord, my father gave this to me for safekeeping before he was murdered. My father once instructed me to live no matter what, protect this item, and pass it down to my descendants. After this ordeal, I am heartbroken and will likely have no descendants in this life. Therefore, I present this item to my lord."