Chapter 393: Chapter 394: You Cannot

"We genuinely couldn’t find the person who bought the headpiece, and we were afraid of offending the Lord Prefect. So, we quickly brought in a craftsman overnight, found some similarly shaped jade, and after a full day and night of work, we finally managed to rush-produce a nearly identical headpiece to deliver."

After Manager Luo finished speaking, he lowered his head and waited in silence.

If this had happened before, a humble shopkeeper like him would never have dared to point a finger at the daughter of the Prefect here.

But who didn’t know that Prefect Xiao had been demoted? That was why he could now speak of the incident he had kept hidden in his heart without any fear.

"You’re lying," Xiao Wanyu struggled to pounce, but was blocked by the saber held by a government official at her side.

"My Lord, I don’t know this man at all! He’s spouting utter nonsense.

I never ordered any headpiece from them! I get it now—this must be a conspiracy cooked up with the Jin Family!"

Gao Ning didn’t even blink. "You think far too highly of yourself. Right now, Mr. Gu doesn’t even know you’re here making false accusations against him.

As for this shopkeeper, I myself had him brought here by express horse from the postal relay. In the time it took for him to travel, he had no opportunity to contact anyone else.

Ms. Xiao, your previous fabrications have already severely hindered my investigation. And you’re still trying to make excuses for yourself. It seems I have been far too lenient with you.

Take her away for punishment! If she still refuses to confess, then let her sample all the tortures our Shuntian Prefecture has to offer."

Xiao Wanyu couldn’t stop shivering. While she didn’t know the specific tortures of Shuntian Prefecture, as the former daughter of a prefect, she was well aware of what went on in a government office’s dungeons. In the past, she had treated it as a mere spectacle. She never imagined those same methods would one day be used on her. ’How can I possibly accept this?’

She knew what she had done wouldn’t hold up under scrutiny. The old maidservant and guards who had accompanied her out of the estate back then could still be found.

"My Lord, you can’t! I’m the daughter of an official family, and my current husband is in the Hanlin Academy! You can’t torture me!"

Seeing Gao Ning’s growing impatience, Steward Feng shook his head and sighed. "Even the Emperor is subject to the same laws as a commoner, let alone a mere concubine in another’s household."

"Besides, you’ve already confessed to lethally poisoning an appointed court official. For a crime like that, even a sentence of immediate execution wouldn’t be too severe. How dare you still claim to be the daughter of an official family?"

Xiao Wanyu cried, "But Ancient Wen Heng ordered me to do it! I’m not the mastermind!"

Seeing her still trying to drag someone else down with her, Gao Ning lost all patience. "Take her away."

Manager Luo knelt there trembling. He was starting to understand the situation. The daughter of Prefect Xiao had harmed some important court official, and the headpiece his shop had sold was somehow a crucial part of it.

He grew worried, afraid that Mr. Gao would implicate him in the crime.

Gao Ning glanced at Manager Luo. "Take him away to sign and press his thumbprint on his testimony. If there is nothing further, do not leave the capital for now."

As soon as he finished speaking, a government official came and led Manager Luo away.

Only Gao Ning and Steward Feng remained in the interrogation hall. "My Lord, the facts of the case are clear now. Shall we post the official notice?"

"Wait a little longer." Gao Ning prided himself on judging cases with fairness and impartiality. He knew there were still many inconsistencies in Xiao Wanyu’s testimony. Even knowing she was lashing out and falsely accusing others, he wanted her to confess to her own crimes with her own mouth.

"This woman is truly venomous. We had better find out exactly where she learned about using antagonistic ingredients. Who else knows about this? We should root them all out, lest more people fall victim to this."

Steward Feng said, "Your Lordship is wise. This subordinate hadn’t even considered that."

"Sigh... I’m just hoping to reduce the number of cases like this. That way, we won’t have to spend all day and night battling wits with these kinds of people."

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...

&

Before Lord Ning could summon him for another inquiry, Ancient Wen Heng had already heard that the case of the murdered husband was closed.

"They say a woman’s heart is the most venomous thing of all. Who would have ever thought someone would actually use clashing foods to harm another person?" Shan Ke’an said, shaking his head again and again as he stuck out his much larger belly.

Ancient Wen Heng replied, "It’s also a warning to everyone. I imagine people will pay more attention to what they eat from now on."

Shan Ke’an said, "You’re not wrong. My mother doesn’t even have time for me anymore; she’s started cleaning out all the schemers in our own household."

At this, Shan Ke’an leaned in slightly and said in a conspiratorial whisper, "And my mother really did find one! A concubine who, whenever my father went to see her, would eat certain antagonistic foods to prevent herself from getting pregnant.

You should have seen it! My father’s face went completely black, and he threatened to have the concubine beaten to death."

"And guess what happened next?" Shan Ke’an paused for dramatic effect. When Ancient Wen Heng didn’t take the bait, he wasn’t fazed. Even if his friend had no interest in listening to gossip, he was determined to share.

"My mother was furious at first, too. But then, for some reason, she ended up speaking on the concubine’s behalf. Now, that concubine is still living peacefully in the rear courtyard, though I doubt my father will ever dare visit her again."

Ancient Wen Heng shot him an exasperated look. "Your father must have forced her, right?"

Shan Ke’an thought for a moment. "I think she was a gift from my grandmother. She used to be her head maidservant."

Ancient Wen Heng fell silent, gazing quietly at the cup in his hands.

"Do you think Ms. Xiao really acted alone?" Shan Ke’an said, thinking of something else. "And don’t you think there’s something wrong with that woman’s head?

She could have been the proper wife of an official, but instead, she insisted on murdering her husband, only to end up as a lowly concubine in the Ning Mansion.

Now there are rumors everywhere that Ms. Xiao got involved with Lord Ning, and that’s why she was so ruthless with Lord Niu."

Ancient Wen Heng, "..."

"Did you ask me out today just to share all this gossip?" Ancient Wen Heng let out a long sigh. ’It seems Mr. Gao has already uncovered the truth, and his earlier summons was likely just to get a measure of me.

’Although this whole affair is disgusting, at least the outcome is good. I wasn’t dragged into it.

’Of course, that’s also because Gao Ning gave me a hand, likely out of consideration for Bai Jinglie.

’Otherwise, just being associated with a woman like that in the slightest would be enough to fuel endless speculation.’

"I’m getting sidetracked, sidetracked!" Shan Ke’an said with a quick laugh. "I actually asked you here today to ask for a favor."

Ancient Wen Heng scoffed. "Are you sure you’ve got the right person? It’s a wonder I’m not the one asking you for favors, yet here you are asking me."

’With Shan Ke’an’s family and marriage connections, is there really anyone in Shangjing he needs to ask for help?’

"I have a cousin in my estate..."

...

"So that’s the situation. I was just wondering, does your wife’s soap have that kind of effect?"

Ancient Wen Heng frowned. "My wife’s soaps are just for cleaning. They’re not medicine."

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