Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

In the back room, Grandmother Jia and the others were anxiously awaiting the results of the investigation.

Suddenly, the housekeepers rushed in, shouting in a panic, "Madam, something terrible has happened! It was Master Rong! Master Rong did this!!"

"What!?"

Lady You, Grandmother Jia, and the others were shocked and stood up.

"It's Rong-ge'er. The prefect and Master Lian have found the evidence. It's the murder weapon that killed Master Zhen. It was buried by Master Rong-ge'er behind the wall in his study."

It really was Little Rong who did it…”

The housekeepers and their wives were making a lot of noise, as if they had seen it with their own eyes and were absolutely certain of it.

Grandmother Jia and the others hurriedly inquired about the situation, but the result left them all speechless.

It was Jia Rong!

How could that be...?

It seems quite reasonable.

In the side hall of the front courtyard, a dozen or so members of the Jia family from other branches who had not been allowed to follow the investigation also heard the same news.

"What a terrible thing to do..."

As the eldest branch of the Jia family and the head of the clan, Ningguo Mansion was watched over day and night by the vast majority of Jia family members.

No matter how small the disturbance in Ningguo Prefecture was, it would not escape their notice.

Therefore, most of them had heard the rumors about Jia Zhen's incestuous relationship with another man, and had even cursed and mocked him behind his back.

Given that everyone knew Jia Zhen was strict, even tyrannical, in disciplining his son, when they heard that Jia Rong was the one who had harmed Jia Zhen, they were shocked, just like Grandmother Jia and the others. After that, they understood and even became certain of it.

Some shallow and arbitrary people have already begun to criticize Jia Rong!

This is the era we live in; most people are ignorant and foolish, lacking the ability to think independently.

In a society governed by men, it can be incredibly easy to frame or slander someone. A little bit of so-called evidence is all it takes to convict someone.

This is why there are so many wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice.

Because in this era, there are no more means and methods to investigate the beginning and end of a case, so people easily believe what they see and hear, and are unwilling to think things through repeatedly.

Unless, of course, they themselves are the ones who have been wrongly accused!

Most people in the Jia family had already concluded that Jia Rong was guilty.

As elite figures in contemporary society, Jia Lian and Weng Ziqin would naturally not be so reckless and arbitrary.

They arrived at the location where the evidence was found and carefully examined and collected evidence.

However, nothing seemed amiss. It appeared that Jia Rong had hastily buried the dagger in the courtyard after his impulsive crime, and it was discovered by the people searching along the high wall.

Jia Rong could barely stand. He collapsed to the ground and hurriedly crawled to Jia Lian, crying, "Second Uncle Lian, it really wasn't me, it really wasn't me."

Someone must have framed me on purpose. You know me; even if you gave me a hundred lives, I would never commit such an unforgivable crime!

I am truly innocent. I implore Uncle Lian to investigate thoroughly and ensure the real culprit is brought to justice…

Jia Rong's tearful pleas for mercy made Jia Lian look somewhat embarrassed.

Meanwhile, Weng Ziqin was also carefully observing the reactions and emotions of everyone in the Jia family.

He discovered that when the suspect was identified as Jia Rong, the Jia family didn't seem too surprised!

This is interesting.

If this is true, it is a case of patricide, and the deceased was the heir to a noble title. I'm afraid even His Majesty will find out about it tomorrow!

The Jia family is about to become famous.

After working so hard late into the night, Weng Ziqin finally made some progress and breathed a sigh of relief.

Knowing that powerful families often had the habit of hiding their faults, he adopted a show of judicial impartiality and incorruptibility to avoid trouble, and said to Jia Lian, "I request that General Jia summon the people around Young Master Rong. I wish to interrogate them more thoroughly to avoid wrongly accusing Young Master Rong."

Although Jia Lian held a second-rank title, he humbly referred to himself as "lower official," but in terms of official rank, he was two ranks higher than Jia Lian!

He was unaware that Jia Lian had been removed from his position as commander.

Therefore, from the moment he arrived, he, as the local official, was still the presiding judge of this case, and Jia Lian could only assist him.

Jia Lian sighed to Jia Rong, "Don't worry, if you are truly innocent, no one can falsely accuse a member of the Jia family!"

Jia Lian's words seemed to be specifically addressed to Weng Ziqin. Weng Ziqin simply smiled, but Jia Rong, as if he had found a pillar of support, quickly expressed his gratitude.

Now that we have a suspect, we finally have a direction for the investigation.

Everyone around Jia Zhen and Jia Rong, including the gatekeepers throughout the Ningguo Mansion, was interrogated.

Almost half an hour passed, and while there were no particularly important discoveries, many dark secrets of the Ningguo Mansion were uncovered.

Including Jia Zhen's incestuous relationship...

Weng Ziqin just smiled to himself, showing nothing and not intending to reveal anything.

Firstly, she feared incurring the wrath of the Jia family; secondly, such things were not actually that rare.

As far as he knew, there were countless...

Therefore, he almost believed that Jia Rong was the murderer in this case.

There was nothing they could do. Despite their thorough investigation, which lasted for so long, they hadn't found a single clue pointing to the second suspect!

If Jia Rong was framed under such circumstances, how secretive and powerful must the real culprit be?

If that's the case, they might not be able to catch the real culprit even if they investigate until dawn.

This wasn't something he wanted to do. He was a local official, not a real parent, and he also had to consider the costs of investigating cases.

Therefore, if he cannot close the case, he would rather arrest Jia Rong first and then wait for the Ministry of Justice to take over.

"General Jia, please forgive my rudeness."

Based on the testimonies and evidence, it is believed that Young Master Rong is the murderer. This official wishes to lead a search of Young Master Rong's residence, including all places where he frequently resides, to see if any other evidence can be found in order to compile the case file.

Hearing Weng Ziqin's tone, which indicated that he was already convinced that Weng Ziqin was the murderer, Jia Rong panicked completely.

He first clung to Jia Lian's leg, then to Jia Zheng's, begging and wailing not to search his room...

Jia Zheng looked sorrowful and sighed, "Let the Prefect search. The innocent will clear themselves. Why are you afraid of being investigated?"

Seeing that Jia Lian and Jia Zheng had agreed, Weng Ziqin didn't stand on ceremony and immediately led his men to Jia Rong's study and residence.

Then, Weng Ziqin and other officials and yamen runners in Shuntian Prefecture all knew why Jia Rong was afraid of being investigated.

This young master Rong's study, aside from its outward appearance resembling a study, is surprisingly full of interesting things once you look inside...

They had never even heard of the various jade and wooden "playthings" they had collected!

One can imagine how flamboyant Young Master Rong usually played in his study.

Jia Rong's face was ashen; he knew his innocence was gone...

But at the same time, I was praying in my heart, that they wouldn't find out, that they wouldn't find out...

However, things often don't go as planned.

Under the search of the experienced constables of Shuntian Prefecture, Jia Rong's carefully hidden items were completely exposed.

"Sir, we've made a discovery!"

The sharp-eyed Jia Rong saw this from behind, and his face turned ashen. He collapsed to the ground and fainted.

But nobody cared about him.

Weng Ziqin and the others all looked at the newly discovered evidence.

A series of paper effigies, each with a steel needle stuck in it...

For Weng Ziqin, who has extensive experience in handling cases, this kind of thing is all too familiar!

The art of curses is the most favored and relied-upon method by those in the world who have the intention to harm others but lack the ability to do so.

Although Weng Ziqin did not find it useful, countless people still firmly believed in it.

Even the imperial court, when enacting laws, considered such actions to be a grave crime of ulterior motives and sowing discord, and would punish them severely once discovered.

Because people in the world believe in ghosts and gods.

Even the bravest person wouldn't dare to openly defy ghosts and spirits.

Therefore, if such insidious and treacherous sorcery is discovered, a person must be convicted.

Weng Ziqin glanced at Jia Rong, who was lying unconscious on the ground, and shook his head. How could such a person become the heir of the Duke's mansion? Moreover, he even had the audacity to kill his father.

"Zheng Lao, General Jia, you have seen the situation."

Young Master Rong had long harbored the intention to kill his father, and the death of General Wei Lie was likely premeditated by him.

I intend to arrest him and bring him to justice. What do you two think?

Jia Zheng shook his head, reluctantly turning his head to the side.

Being convicted of patricide carries a minimum penalty of death.

Jia Lian replied, "I know my nephew well; he is by no means a vicious person. I simply cannot believe that such an audacious act could have been committed by him."

Weng Ziqin could understand Jia Lian's concerns; if this matter were to spread, it would have a huge impact on the Jia family's reputation.

However, he hadn't slept through the investigation and was exhausted after two or three hours.

"I understand General Jia's love and care for his nephews and nieces. Please rest assured, General, that I will absolutely not torture Young Master Rong until your family gives up on exonerating him."

With your esteemed family's capabilities, I believe it would be quite easy to persuade the officials of the Ministry of Justice to conduct a second review.

Even if Young Master Rong did not commit the crime of patricide, the fact remains that he used sorcery to curse his father.

Therefore, I implore General Jia not to be too lenient and to allow me to detain Young Master Rong and bring him to justice.

I have also promised the General that if the General discovers any new leads and sends them to the Shuntian Prefecture, I will certainly re-examine this case.

As a third-rank official of the imperial court, Weng Ziqin would not have been so easy to talk to if he were not dealing with the Jia family.

Jia Zheng also shook his head at Jia Lian.

Seeing this, Jia Lian had no choice but to give up and bow to Weng Ziqin.

"Hahaha." Weng Ziqin chuckled softly. After working for most of the night, he could finally call it a day and head back to the yamen. (To be continued)