Ink Burns

Chapter 189 Let's go together

Upon hearing Shan Yue's words, Madam Zhou frowned deeply, and she let out another soft sob: "Yes! The two brothers have always been good friends. I don't know what terrible thing Chen-ge did yesterday that drove Su-ge to punch someone!"

Therefore, in Madam Zhou's mind, everyone Chang Yusu was involved in deserved to die.

So, Chang Yusu was the judge of the capital, truly achieving the goal of punishing everyone who deserved it.

Madam Zhou couldn't stop her tears, wiping her eyes with a silk handkerchief: "In the past, it was all fine. They only beat ordinary people or minor officials. They beat those people, but how could they beat our own family members like this!"

Madam Zhou was truly heartbroken. Her daughter had just been betrothed and was now a widow, and her son had been detained by the Prefect of the Capital.

But upon further reflection, he also felt that he had some luck on his side. As he thought about it, he blurted out, "Fortunately, Sister Zhu died at the right time, and Xue Taibao is useless now. Although Xue Xiao is a scoundrel, he would never stand up for his younger brother born to his second wife. Since no one is standing up for Xue Chen, I hope this matter can be left unresolved!"

It's such a pity about the Xue family's fortune!
Wait a minute, if Yu Niang were to marry into the Xue family as a widow, would she still have a chance to inherit the family heirloom of the Xue family's direct line?
As soon as Mrs. Zhou finished speaking, her mother nudged her shoulder.

After a moment of surprise, Madam Zhou realized that the person in front of her was Qingfeng, whom Madam Zhu had recruited. It was somewhat inappropriate for her to say in front of others that the timing of killing Madam Zhu's son was not bad.

Madam Zhou stretched out her hand and sobbed, "Yue Niang, just pretend I'm talking nonsense—I sent someone to the Prefect of the Capital to find out what was going on yesterday, but there's still no reply. I'm very anxious!"

Shan Yue's expression was sincere, and she unconsciously leaned forward, getting closer to Madam Zhou: "You sent someone but received no reply. Where is the Marquis? The Marquis is in charge of the Western Hills Camp, and his connections in the capital are extensive. How could he have the wrong person?"

Madam Zhou wept and smiled bitterly: "Don't mention it. The Marquis is always tired of Su Ge'er causing trouble everywhere. Before, he would praise him for the character of a tiger cub from the Chang family. But ever since he helped Su Ge'er settle the case a few years ago where he trampled an eighth-rank official to death on horseback in the street, the Marquis has always wanted to teach him a lesson."

"When the news came back yesterday that Chen-ge'er had been beaten to death by Su-ge'er, the Marquis said, 'It would be good to send him to the Prefect of the Capital for some discipline. In any case, the Prefect of the Capital wouldn't dare to really touch my son. It wouldn't be a bad thing to scare him and let him know the immensity of heaven and earth.' — I knew then that the Marquis was determined to make him suffer!"

As Madam Zhou spoke of her sorrow, tears welled in her bright eyes. She pulled down half of her stand-up collar to show Shan Yue: "Look at this! Yesterday I begged the Marquis to discipline Su-ge'er, and the Marquis laid a hand on me!"

Two purplish-blue handprints on his neck.

The marks, a patchy purple, clearly show the force of two hands gripping the neck.

Madam Zhou's mother glanced helplessly at Madam Zhou, then immediately looked at Shan Yue's reaction.

Seeing Shan Yue's somewhat surprised and distressed expression, the unfamiliar mother sighed and explained the situation from the side: "The Marquis was really angry, which is why he took such drastic measures. Usually, the Marquis and his wife are a respectful and harmonious couple."

Shan Yue nodded and replied, "Of course!"

Then, in a hurry, she changed the subject: "If the Marquis doesn't care, does that mean the Grand Princess doesn't care either? Does that mean Princess Suiyuan doesn't care either?"

Speaking of the Grand Princess Jing'an, Madam Zhou softened her tone slightly: "I went to see her last night. I heard that the officials left behind by the Prefect of Jingzhao yesterday were stubborn and refused to cooperate. The person who is changing shifts today is from Jiangnan, so perhaps they can be more accommodating."

Mrs. Zhou glanced at the sky outside the window, her face showing some anxiety: "It's so late and there's still no news. I don't dare to go and urge them. I can only wait anxiously like an ant on a hot pan."

Because the duty shifts of the Prefect of the Capital rotate at the hour of You (5-7 PM), it is not yet time.

Shan Yue spoke soothingly and empathetically to Madam Zhou: "It's not dark yet. Some things are hard to do in the daylight. Please be patient—I'll wait with you."

Madam Zhou gratefully extended a claw to Shan Yue. The claw was slender and white, indicating that Madam Zhou had taken good care of herself despite her limited resources. The middle finger of the claw gleamed, revealing the aquamarine that Madam Zhou had bought with the proceeds from Shan Yue's reproduction of the painting.

Shan Yue quickly reached out and grasped Madam Zhou's hand, speaking earnestly: "After all, Chen Ge'er is dead and cannot be brought back to life. We can't let the eldest young master also suffer the same fate, can we? I asked around, and according to the laws of the Great Wei Dynasty, if the Xue family issues a letter of understanding, the eldest young master will not be sentenced to beheading and lose his life."

Without hesitation, Madam Zhou replied, "Execution? I never intended to execute him. What I wanted was for Su Ge'er to come out unharmed—as if this had never happened at all!"

Shan Yue was stunned.

Madam Zhou laughed and said, "Look at you, you silly child. We just need to wait for the Prefect of the Capital to open the gate. We can either send in a servant to take the blame, or send in a medical certificate that the other party had a serious illness. There were too many people watching the 'beating party' that day, so it's not convenient to send someone in to substitute someone else. We only need to provide a prescription for Xue Chen's old, incurable illness. In this way, no one can determine whether it was our Su-ge'er who killed the person."

Madam Zhou spoke with such ease and familiarity that it was clear she had done this quite often.

Shan Yue moved the muscles around her mouth and smiled in response to Madam Zhou: "How meticulous! Wasn't that the same way you dealt with that lowly eighth-rank official who was trampled to death by a horse?"

Madam Zhou placed her finger in front of her lips and gestured for Shan Yue to be quiet: "Although this method is simple, it is not appropriate to say it aloud."

Shan Yue understood, and her expression softened a bit: "Now that you have a solution, why were you in such a hurry just now?"

As Madam Zhou spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again: "Is the Prefect of the Capital a place for humans to live? I feel sorry for my Su-ge'er having to sleep on a hard bed, eat coarse rice, and drink cold well water! If I could be allowed in, I would at least send some satin bedding, chicken soup, and milk—besides, I'm also curious what kind of evil he's possessed that makes him want his own brother-in-law to die!"

The reassuring smile on Shan Yue's face had been honed to perfection.

His face remained impassive, but a surge of anger welled up inside him, rising straight to the top of his head.

When someone else dies, regardless of who it is or whether they deserve to die, the mother of the murderer's primary concern is that her son can no longer sleep on a soft, silken couch, nor drink steaming hot chicken soup and sweet, rich milk.
The myriad things and paths of the world are so unjust, unfair, and unjust.

The mountain moon felt both sorrow and inspiration.

If she could eliminate one or two of the hundreds of injustices and unfairnesses with her solitary courage, even if it was as small as a mayfly trying to stop a chariot, it would still be valuable and meaningful.

"Knock Knock-"

Someone was knocking on the door from outside the corridor.

Shan Yue followed Madam Zhou's gaze.

This old woman was familiar to her; she had seen her before.

She was the personal mother of Princess Fu Mingjiang of Suiyuan.

Shan Yue's smile vanished.

"The Prefect of the Capital has made arrangements, and our Princess will be going with you. She is waiting at the gate now. Madam Zhou, if you have anything urgent to attend to, please hurry up and prioritize. Don't keep our Princess waiting too long." The old woman clasped her hands together in front of her stomach, her attitude was very polite, but her words were not very respectful.