When the female supporting role has a beauty system

Chapter 1434 Jin Yue 35
Lin Jinyu is now half-dead, but that's not enough. If you owe someone a life, you have to pay with your own.

After sprinkling the powder, everyone dispersed upwind. Less than fifteen minutes later, the hibernating snakes emerged to hunt. Lin Jinyu could no longer scream; her head lolled to the side, and she was gone forever.

Tan You snapped her fingers: "Let's go, let's continue."

No one looked at Lin Jinyu's gruesome death any longer, and they all rode away.

Shortly after they left, a group of soldiers also reached the edge of the dense forest. One soldier, with a keen sense of smell, quickly noticed something amiss upon entering the forest: "My lord, young master, there's a smell of blood ahead!"

Cheng Qian frowned upon hearing this: "This is Yuncheng, under Lin Jinyu's jurisdiction. If a murder case is discovered, we must inform him."

Although he had no contact with his brother-in-law Lin Jinyu, he wouldn't confuse public and private matters. However, Cheng Qian felt his eyelids twitching, as if something bad was about to happen.

The scout returned quickly, accompanied by two constables who had regained consciousness. The constables' expressions were very strange, even extremely panicked.

"General! I beg you for help! Lord Lin has been murdered!"

Lin? Cheng Qian frowned. He knew that Lin Jinyu was the magistrate of Yuncheng County. Now that Lord Lin had been murdered, it meant that Lin Jinyu had been murdered?

Who harmed them?

He quickly dismounted, and because of the suddenness of his movement, Cheng Qian's face paled. He steadied himself, gripping the saddle, and asked, "Explain clearly, which Lord Lin are you?"

Head Constable Wang: "It's our County Magistrate, Lord Lin Jinyu!"

"Early this morning, we went to Peach Blossom Village outside the city to inspect and arrange spring plowing. But just as we entered the mountains, a huge boulder fell from the sky! Lord Lin's carriage was smashed to pieces..."

Cheng Qian, Cheng Kun, and several elite soldiers followed him into the dense forest, where the scene was horrific. A scattered carriage lay on the spot, a huge blue stone pressed down on it, and beneath the stone, a pool of blood had spread out.

Cheng Qian went around to the other side and only saw half of the body. But even that half of the body was too tragic.

Even someone like him who had been on the battlefield felt uncomfortable.

Lin Jinyu's exposed upper body was covered in wounds. Looking at those bloody holes, Cheng Qian suddenly thought of an animal: a snake.

But snakes should be hibernating at this time of year. And this injury was clearly not caused by a snake.

No, someone can awaken them.

Cheng Qian suddenly thought of the palace banquet.

Lin Jinzhu was disfigured, and Qi Shi and Lin Yuan were injured. Now that Lin Jinyu is gone, who would harbor such deep hatred for the Lin family? Besides that little monster, who else could it be?
Cheng Qian thought about it and felt puzzled. Tan You should be in the capital, which is three days' journey from Yun City. But now that Lin Jinyu is dead, does that mean... Tan You has left the capital?
How can this be allowed? A military officer's wife leaving the capital without permission is a serious crime if word gets out!
Cheng Qian's hands, hidden in his sleeves, were trembling. Tan You was heartless enough to simply walk away. But what about their Zhenguo Duke's mansion? No, given her meticulous nature, she still wanted her position as heir apparent.

She won't let the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion fall so easily.

Thinking of this, Cheng Qian felt relieved. Since she dared to come out, she must have already made all the necessary arrangements.

He glanced at Lin Jinyu's corpse and said calmly, "I am also very sorry that Lord Lin was assassinated. Let's make do with this. Send someone to the capital to deliver a message."

"Furthermore, search the mountain! These bandits dare to attack an official appointed by the imperial court in broad daylight! They're incredibly audacious!" At his command, the soldiers immediately scattered and began searching the mountain. Even if they were at odds behind the scenes, Lin Jinyu was still his brother-in-law in public. Knowing he was in danger, yet doing nothing about it—if word got out, wouldn't the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion lose its reputation?

Cheng Qian stood there with a bitter smile. His nominal "wife" and son had committed such a big crime, and not only could he not make a fuss, but he also had to help clean up the mess.

Because they are all in the same boat, their well-being is essential for their own well-being.

He could only pin the blame for Lin Jinyu's death on the robbers; as for whether or not the robbers could be caught, that was up to fate.

Cheng Kun had no feelings for the Lin family, but he was, after all, a veteran who had been through many battles. Seeing that Cheng Qian didn't even investigate and directly asserted that the murderer was a robber, Cheng Kun couldn't help but narrow his eyes with suspicion.

Although Cheng Kun didn't hold a high-ranking position for several decades, he had become a seasoned veteran through decades of political maneuvering.

Since returning to the capital, he had noticed something strange about the mansion, though he couldn't pinpoint the reason. But now, Cheng Qian's demeanor, while seemingly investigating the murderer, was actually a cover-up.

Cheng Kun didn't speak, but his gaze towards Cheng Qian became even more puzzled.

Having dealt with Lin Jinyu, Tan You and the others didn't linger on the road, braving wind and rain to head towards the border. As for Lin Jinyu, Cheng Qian was naturally there to handle him.

Even if it's just to protect his own position, Cheng Qian will handle this matter properly.

As Tan You had predicted, after patrolling the mountains several times, Cheng Qian, in full view of everyone, wrote a memorial about Lin Jinyu's death and sent it back to the capital on the grounds that the mountain bandits were rampaging and harming officials of the imperial court.

As for Lin Jinyu's body, it was collected by the mortuary and transported back to the capital by Lin Jinyu's servants for his funeral.

Two days had passed since everything was settled. Cheng Qian had no choice but to continue his journey to the border; he didn't believe Tan You would return to Beijing after dealing with Lin Jinyu.

I reckon she's already taken Cheng Sui to the border ahead of me. This woman is restless at heart.

Gritting his teeth, Cheng Qian mounted his horse and declared, "Let's go!"

That night, the army set up camp outside the city. Cheng Kun sat down next to Cheng Qian, carrying a pot of wine: "Where is Shi Lei, the bodyguard you just promoted?"

Cheng Qian's mind stirred slightly, but his face remained composed: "Lin Jinyu is dead. I sent him back to the capital to deliver a letter to my mother."

Shi Lei was a newly promoted guard after he left the capital, while the guards who had been won over by Tan You were still by his side. In the mansion, Cheng Qian had no choice but to endure their surveillance.

But now that they're all away from the capital, Cheng Qian needs to have his own people.

On the surface, he treated Shi Lei and Lu Jing and others the same.

Cheng Kun didn't figure out anything unusual, nor did he ask any further questions. He patted Cheng Qian on the shoulder: "I see. You've done a good job. Women are just timid and easily frightened."

Cheng Qian thought to himself: Someone like Tan You, could she really be scared?
It remains to be seen how the Lin family will react upon receiving news of Lin Jinyu's death.
That little monster is truly ruthless. He either doesn't act at all, or when he does, he severs the backbone of the next generation of the Lin family. Lin Yuan is just a fourth-rank official in the Ministry of Rites, with no real power.

Although he has a grandson, the child is only four or five years old. How many years will it take for him to grow up? Can Lin Yuan still hold on?
Lin Jinyu's death affects more than just the Lin family. For example, the Pei family—will Lin Jinzhu still be able to live a peaceful life from now on?