The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 8 Night Interrogation of the Female Prisoner

In the state of Bei, a person who could become the prefect of a prefecture.

It's at least a diploma from someone who passed the imperial examinations twice.

He has a high IQ, and it's not low either.

The interrogation continued uninterrupted until midnight (11:00 p.m.) that night.

Finally, some useful information was sifted out:
For example, four prison guards, including Yu Lao Er, went to cell number 7 of the Jia class the night before last.

They also raped four women, and two of them attempted suicide.

Another example.

The most beautiful pork vendor.

Not only were they unharmed that night.

The next day, the person even used a gold bracelet to ask the kitchen maid to help steam five hundred mixed flour buns.

Is this something a fool would do?
Even more bizarrely!
After a brawl, more than twenty wives from prominent families dressed themselves up as crazy old women.

They even smeared feces and urine all over themselves.

What are they after?
Prefect Zhao looked at the summary of information in his hand with a gloomy face.

Even when the pork vendor knelt before him, she didn't receive a kind word from him.

His voice, coldly squeezed out from between his teeth:

"Gan, I ask you, what were you doing last night at the hour of Chou (1-3 AM)? Think carefully, if you tell even half a lie, I will have you flogged! The child in your womb will not survive after ten strokes of the cane!"

Gan Minglan mimicked the original owner's expression and replied bluntly:

"My lord, I bought a lot of steamed buns last night. My mother-in-law, husband, and son are still hungry. I want to give them steamed buns to eat."

"What about the steamed buns you bought?"

"I don't know! I woke up from a nap and all my steamed buns were gone! Your Honor, I'm accusing them of stealing my steamed buns."

"Ha, five hundred steamed buns, and those twenty-odd women ate them all in one night?"

"They haven't eaten for two days and two nights, and they say they're so hungry they could eat half a cow!"

With an expression that said, "I didn't lie at all," she stared straight at Prefect Zhao and nodded vigorously.

Prefect Zhao felt a throbbing pain in his head.

You might think she's silly, but she answers everything you ask, and she doesn't seem guilty at all.

To be honest, she's not stupid; she can take other people's exaggerated words as the truth.

She keeps calling me "Your Excellency," which makes me want to laugh out loud.

If it weren't for the fact that she was pregnant, I would have been tempted to torture her.

Prefect Zhao rubbed his throbbing temples, gritted his teeth, and continued to ask:
"Didn't you buy five hundred steamed buns? Why haven't you eaten a single one?"

Upon hearing this, the other person slapped their head in frustration, their face filled with obvious pain.

"I'm so angry! If I had known they would steal my steamed buns, I would have eaten a few more even if I had to stuff myself!"

Even Prefect Zhao could only sigh and say: "Fools have their own kind of luck."

The "good deed" that Yu Lao Er had the cook do, including the effects of purslane, had already been discovered by Prefect Zhao.

The reason why we are so certain that Gan Minglan did not eat the steamed bun is...

Because of the baby in her belly, who is still alive and well.

Given how much she ate during the day—several large steamed buns—there's no reason she wouldn't touch five hundred steamed buns.

Thinking of this, Prefect Zhao couldn't help but slam his hand on the table:

"How dare you change the subject! I'm asking why you didn't eat the steamed bun you got!"

“My lord, that old woman gave me half a basket during the day, and I hid half of it! We ate this last night, and I’m saving the new ones for my mother-in-law and husband.”

"You're quite filial!" Gan Minglan puffed out her chest:

“My father said that after getting married, I should be filial to my parents-in-law. My father-in-law passed away early, so I have to give my mother-in-law the same filial piety I had for my father-in-law!”

Prefect Zhao: "."

His eyes were fixed on the woman in front of him, and he started a new topic:

"I heard that a few people tried to bully you last night?"

“They didn’t bully me, they bullied Wenxuan’s wife! Your Honor, why aren’t those who did bad things arrested and punished? My husband said: ‘If an official doesn’t serve the people, he might as well go home and grow sweet potatoes.’”

Prefect Zhao: "."

After asking around for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, I didn't get any useful information.

They even took on a case involving the theft of 500 steamed buns!
When interrogating the other women in cell number seven of the Jia family, Prefect Zhao felt that his career was in grave danger.

"Your Honorable Prefect, I, a humble woman, wish to sue those four jailers for defiling me!"
My husband is merely a student, insignificant in status, but my father is a teacher at Qingshan Academy! I beg Your Honor to grant me justice!

Qingshan Academy was the most renowned academy in Daming Prefecture, second only to the official schools.

Several high-ranking officials in the imperial court were graduates of Qingshan Academy.

Local officials fear not only popular uprisings, but also scholars who can reach the emperor directly.

Prefect Zhao's expression was solemn:
"This is the first time I've heard of this matter. I will send someone to investigate later. If the situation is true, I will definitely stand up for you."

However, a murder occurred in the night watchman's cell last night; seven guards were killed! Was anything unusual in your cells last night?

The woman suddenly raised her head, her gaze intense, her voice trembling with barely suppressed excitement:
"Your Honor, are those four beasts who humiliated this woman dead? Which hero took action?"

Prefect Zhao's lips twitched as he regretfully informed her, "Yu Er and the others were not on duty last night!"

The woman kneeling on the ground was so angry that she pounded her chest with both hands:

"Those damned bastards, why weren't they the ones who died!"
Good sir, next time you'll be more careful; they're easy to recognize.

One was seven feet tall, another was as thin as a stick, and yet another was shorter than a woman; the worst of them all was that two-hundred-pound fat man.”

Prefect Zhao wished he could shut the woman up.

If a few more people die, he'll lose his official position.

The thought that this group of people would be exiled the day after tomorrow morning was unbearable.

Perhaps the headmaster of Qingshan Academy is waiting outside.

He decided to lock up Yu Er and the others first, determined not to give anyone any leverage against him.

Ordinary cells are now dangerous.

A death row cell without even a skylight, where even rats can't get in, must be safe, right?
Thinking this way, Prefect Zhao made the arrangements accordingly.

After personally interrogating all the women in cell number 7 of the Jia family, he left the interrogation room with heavy steps.

They all really think he's some kind of upright and just official.

The young mistress of the Zuo family, who was the direct descendant of the family, did not mention a word about being defiled.

They actually kept claiming to be defending the head of the Zuo family!
The Zuo family paved numerous roads and built countless bridges for Leyuan County.

It's simply unreasonable.

The crime of "aiding the enemy" was established by the emperor's golden words!
The main culprits have all confessed and accepted their punishment!

Could a mere fifth-rank prefect really overturn his family's case?
Anyone with eyes can tell what's going on.

The way the imperial court is behaving these days is exceptionally ugly.

Prefect Zhao looked up at the sky:
Despite the bright sunshine, I felt ice-cold all over.

Is there any hope for this dynasty?

(End of this chapter)