Xuan Yi came back to his senses and quickly bowed to Magistrate Cheng:
"Magistrate Cheng."
Magistrate Cheng gave a standard smile and said nothing more.
At the dining table.
Attendants began to serve the dishes, while Cheng Xu, sitting on the side, had a stiff expression.
Why did Mother invite this woman to their home for dinner again? Could it be that she really took a liking to her?
Magistrate Cheng paid no mind to Cheng Xu's scowl. She raised her wine cup and said:
"I didn't expect Jiaojiao to have her own insights into judging cases."
Nian Jiaojiao also picked up her wine cup to reciprocate:
"Magistrate Cheng flatters me. I am merely expressing some of my immature opinions, and I hope you will guide me further."
After speaking, Nian Jiaojiao downed the wine in her cup.
Magistrate Cheng burst into laughter. Why did she find Nian Jiaojiao more and more agreeable?
The two of them began to drink with each other, oblivious to their surroundings.
After several rounds of drinks, Nian Jiaojiao, supported by Cheng Xu, bid farewell to Magistrate Cheng.
Nian Jiaojiao was grateful for the first time that her original self was a street vagrant, unskilled in anything else but drinking, gambling, and whoring. Otherwise, with her previous life's alcohol tolerance, she definitely wouldn't have been able to handle it.
...
The Tong family.
A servant rushed into Tong Xiaoye's courtyard from outside with a panicked expression.
The door was knocked.
"Knock, knock, knock..."
"Come in."
Tong Xiaoye sat at the desk by the window, holding "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai," written by Nian Jiaojiao.
Without looking up, he asked:
"What is it?"
The servant replied anxiously:
"Young Master, Zhao Mazi's body has been found!"
Tong Xiaoye frowned and slowly looked at the person approaching:
"So what? Wasn't everything handled?"
That Zhao Mazi was greedy and insatiable. After being bribed, he had the audacity to come to their door again, attempting to extort them.
As the young master of a prominent family, how could he tolerate being controlled by a scoundrel? It had come to the point where the servants had gone to teach Zhao Mazi a lesson and then tied him up to be sold elsewhere as a miner.
When the servant arrived, he happened to witness Zhang Mu and her group tying Zhao Mazi to a tree. An idea struck him, and he decided to go all the way, eliminating the threat to prevent future troubles.
Even if something happened, Zhang Mu would be the scapegoat.
After the deed was done, the servant reported to Tong Xiaoye and was rewarded for his diligent work.
Therefore, Tong Xiaoye felt that even if something happened, the fire wouldn't reach him.
The servant looked extremely nervous and said with a trembling voice:
"But, but I heard that Zhang Shi's suspicion has been cleared. The magistrate is now sending people to investigate thoroughly, and they have already set their sights on the silver we gave to Zhao Mazi!"
Upon hearing this, Tong Xiaoye's heart tightened, and a hint of panic flashed in his eyes.
The attendant behind him quickly said:
"Young Master, do not worry!"
With that, the attendant turned to the servant and asked:
"Song Laosan, were you discovered by anyone when you delivered the silver?"
Song Laosan quickly shook his head:
"No, certainly not. We went to Zhao Mazi's house in the middle of the night. All the surrounding households had already extinguished their lights and gone to sleep."
The attendant asked again:
"Were you discovered when you went to find Zhao Mazi yesterday?"
Song Laosan shook his head again:
"No, no. I only sank the body after Zhang Shi and her group left."
After hearing Song Laosan's words, Tong Xiaoye's pounding heart relaxed slightly. He ordered Song Laosan:
"Do not reveal a single word of this matter to anyone. Otherwise, I cannot protect you. Once the situation blows over, it will all be in the past. Do you understand?"
Tong Xiaoye's voice rose slightly at the end, exerting pressure on Song Laosan, who was kneeling on the ground.
Song Laosan quickly nodded.
"You may withdraw."
Tong Xiaoye waved him away carelessly, feeling somewhat agitated. After the door closed and the person had left, the attendant behind him said again:
"Young Master, shouldn't we prepare for the worst?"
Tong Xiaoye gripped the book in his hand tightly:
"Xiao Zhao, what can I do then?"
Xiao Zhao immediately replied:
"Young Master, walls have ears. Song Laosan has already made a mistake in handling matters once. It's hard to guarantee that he wasn't discovered. I remember Song Laosan has a son. We can do this..."
Xiao Zhao's voice gradually became softer, while Tong Xiaoye's eyes grew brighter.
...
Qinghe Village.
The Nian residence.
As soon as Xuan Yi entered the house, Yu Chuan, who was looking out the window, noticed that Nian Jiaojiao was being carried back.
He strode out, looking at Nian Jiaojiao lying on Xuan Yi's back, and asked with concern in his voice:
"What's wrong with Wife?"
Upon getting closer, he also smelled alcohol emanating from Nian Jiaojiao. Before Xuan Yi could answer, he added:
"Why did Wife drink so much?"
"Magistrate Cheng invited Wife for a meal, and she drank a bit more during the banquet," Xuan Yi replied matter-of-factly.
Yu Chuan was somewhat surprised:
"Magistrate Cheng!?"
"Yes, I will place Wife on the bed first before I tell you all."
"Alright, it's cold outside, hurry inside."
Saying that, Yu Chuan led Xuan Yi to gently place Nian Jiaojiao on the wooden bed and quickly covered her with a quilt.
In the living room.
Xuan Yi called everyone together and concisely told Yu Chuan and the others what he had seen and heard that day.
Xing Yun's mouth gaped open as he listened. He exclaimed:
"Did Wife really qualify as a Tong student? And as the top-ranked one?"
Xuan Yi looked at his reaction, which was exactly the same as when he first heard the news, and couldn't help but chuckle.
Could he say they were worthy of being brothers?
Meanwhile, Nan Qing paid more attention to the case Xuan Yi mentioned.
Zhao Mazi, money, Zhang Jie, older brother...
Could it be that the young master of the Tong family thought his older brother was killed by him, hence he gave Zhao Mazi hush money, and then Zhao Mazi came to extort him, which led to his death...
The influence of powerful figures is terrifying.
Just by hearing brief clues, he could connect these threads and deduce the entire course of events with remarkable accuracy in such a short time.
However, he did not intend to share his deductions with his brothers, nor with Nian Jiaojiao.
The next day, Magistrate Cheng received an anonymous tip.
It read: The killer is the young master of the Tong family.
Magistrate Cheng frowned and asked the attendant beside him:
"Who delivered this letter?"
The attendant replied:
"My Lord, it was delivered by a child. Is there something wrong with this letter? I'll go investigate..."
Before the attendant could finish speaking, he was stopped by a gesture from Magistrate Cheng:
"No need. Since the sender used a child to deliver the letter, they wish to conceal their identity. Although we now have a direction for our investigation, we still lack any concrete clues. We can follow this lead, and perhaps there will be an unexpected surprise."
After speaking, Magistrate Cheng tapped the rosewood table beside him, lost in thought.
The Tong family...
"Yes!"
After the attendant bowed to Magistrate Cheng, he turned to find people to investigate the young master of the Tong family with.
Half a day later, the attendant, followed by two yamen runners, met Magistrate Cheng.
After paying their respects, one of the yamen runners directly reported the investigation results to Magistrate Cheng.