After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Li Yanting said, "Tomorrow is the court hearing. Based on the current evidence, your head is definitely going to be chopped off."

Erlai chuckled self-deprecatingly: "Chop it then."

"Did Ningnan instigate this?"

"It has absolutely nothing to do with my older brother!" Li Erlai shouted.

"Then why did you confess to the county constable that night that Ning Nan had instructed you to do it?"

"I was out of my mind back then, and I was just talking nonsense."

Li Yanting sneered, "If you confess that Ning Nan ordered you to do it, he might be the one who gets beheaded, and you might be the one who gets exiled."

"I fucking said it has nothing to do with my older brother! I killed Li Baoxin! I don't like him! So what?" Er Lai shouted loudly at the students of Li Family Village, his eyes red-rimmed.

"My uncle died a very tragic death."

"I know," Erlai said, his lips trembling as he burst into tears. "I know he died a terrible death."

Li Erlai hung his head, his shoulders shrugging... his suppressed sobs echoed softly from the bottom of the prison.

Li Yanting waited silently for a while before continuing, "Why did you suddenly have the urge to kill your uncle that night?"

"I didn't mean to kill him!" Er Lai shouted. "He was trying to make things difficult for Big Brother again with the household registration issue! He called Li He to fetch Big Brother, so I went over to argue with him!"

His hoarse voice came out from his lungs.

The night before last, when his older brother came to visit him in prison, he felt guilty and didn't know why he had lost his mind. He said that his older brother had ordered him to do it and he just wanted his head to be chopped off as soon as possible. He kept saying that he killed the person and that it had nothing to do with his older brother. No matter what his older brother asked, his mind was numb and he didn't know how to answer.

Now that the student has asked this question, many grievances have finally been poured out from his heart.

"I didn't kill him... I don't know either..." Erlai cried.

"If you're just going to argue with your uncle," Li Yanting said, "then why did you bring a knife?"

"I carried a knife because... someone was following my brother that day, trying to harm him, so I brought a knife and even fought with that person," Li Erlai said. "After I subdued that person, I sharpened the knife in the backyard, sharpened the knife..."

Sharpening the knife… Er Lai’s voice suddenly stopped, and his eyes gradually widened.

Memories obscured by pain, confusion, horror, regret, annoyance, and so on—a variety of complex emotions—gradually resurface at this moment, and fragmented images slowly connect into a line in the mind.

Sharpening the knife... Sharpening the knife... Sharpening the knife...

After using the knife, whether it was for slaughtering pigs, chickens, or killing people, he would sharpen it on the whetstone in the backyard. This was what his father said: knives are very precious. When slaughtering pigs, if the knife is sharp enough, the pig won't feel pain. When we pay back our debts in the next life, people will be more polite to us.

That day, he clashed with Wen Liang a few times, even slashing Wen Liang's arm; there was blood on the blade… When he got home, Qian Sijin and the others were interrogating Wen Liang… What was he doing? He was sharpening his knife. He fetched a bucket of water from the Erhu River, sat on a stool, and poured the water ladle by ladle onto the whetstone in the backyard. Then he pressed the knife against the whetstone, sharpening it over and over again. He even asked the Imperial Guards if they wanted him to sharpen their Embroidered Spring Blades too… He had been eyeing the Embroidered Spring Blades for a long time…

then……

Li He arrived, saying the village head wanted his elder brother to come over to discuss household registration matters… He was furious, put down his knife, and rushed out… the knife… sharpening the knife…

"I didn't bring a knife...that's right," Li Erlai's pupils dilated, and he murmured, "I didn't bring a knife...I didn't bring a knife..."

Li Yanting frowned: "What did you say?"

*Slap slap slap!* Li Erlai scrambled across the ground, his dark hand emerging from behind the iron bars, grabbing Li Yanting's sleeve and crying urgently, "I didn't bring a knife!" He cried out ecstatically, "I didn't kill the village chief... Go, go, go find my elder brother, tell him, tell him... I didn't bring a knife..."

……

……

The Jingbei Marquis's residence is located on Taiping Street in Shangyuan County.

The main gate is located on nine white stone steps, and the front of the gate is about two zhang deep.

The gate was nine feet tall, and was inlaid with sixty-four golden rivets, neatly arranged, smooth and shiny, exuding an aura of power.

Taiping Street is full of nobles and officials.

The Zhenguo Marquis's residence is located on the east side of the street, while the Jingbei Marquis's residence is located on the west side.

I've been to this street twice in Ningnan.

They were all visiting the Zhenguo Marquis's residence.

So the further he walked, the more uneasy he felt.

Looking around, along this east-west street... the Marquis of Zhongzhen's Mansion, the Marquis of Jinxi's Mansion, the Marquis of Mingzhong's Mansion... large and small, marquises, earls, viscounts, almost all lined up on one street.

The owners of these titles were all ennobled for their great military achievements. The Marquis of Zhongzhen led the White Spear Army and fought alongside Princess Xuanwu and Grand Prince Consort Shangguan Ke in battles across the north and south. The Marquis of Jinxi led the Great Western Army and fought alongside the Grand Prince Consort against the Qing. The Marquis of Mingzhong defended eastern Zhejiang to the death, rose again after three defeats, and finally defeated the Qing army... and so on. All of these were hereditary titles that were tied to the fate of the nation.

However, since the Southern Liang dynasty inherited the throne from the former Liang dynasty, in order to respect the six founding dukes who followed the founding emperor in conquering the country, and also to reserve titles for future generations who were capable of launching a northern expedition and recovering lost territories, they were not granted the title of duke. Otherwise, even if they were granted the title of king, it would be difficult to reward their contributions.

Grand Prince Consort Shangguan once defied public opinion and posthumously conferred the title of Prince of Jin upon the deceased Marquis of Jinxi. Although the title was not hereditary, it still caused an uproar among the civil officials and drew criticism from the imperial clan. However, Grand Prince Consort Shangguan disregarded this and insisted on preserving the title of a prince from a different surname. To this day, the Marquis of Jinxi's family remains deeply grateful to the Grand Prince Consort Shangguan's lineage as the Zhenguo Marquis's family.

This was his third time visiting Taiping Street.

Unexpectedly, it was the Marquis of Jingbei's residence that came this time.

Ning Nan gazed at the Marquis's residence from horseback.

I originally thought it was because my uncle was a military officer under the Marquis of Jingbei, and after he got old, he was taken care of by the Marquis of Jingbei in the Marquis's mansion. I thought I should dismount and enter through the side gate.

But when Uncle Fu told them to stop at the main gate and said he would go in first to report to the master, Ning Nan gradually realized that something was wrong.

The large white horse beneath him was restless and snorted a few times.

He stroked the horse's snow-white mane, patted its head, and comforted it.

Next to the main entrance was a small black door. Uncle Fu knocked on that small door and went inside.

About half an hour had passed since Uncle Fu stepped over the two-foot-high threshold and disappeared into the Marquis's mansion.

Ning Nan waited patiently.

Not long after.

Behind the high walls of the Marquis's mansion, a slightly hurried sound of footsteps could be heard.

immediately.

The main gate of the Marquis's residence was wide open.

Ning Nan quickly dismounted.

For wealthy and powerful families, the central gate is not opened casually; it is a matter of etiquette for welcoming distinguished guests.

He thought about it.

As a prestigious family, the Marquis of Jingbei's residence must take security very seriously. There were three muskets strapped to his waist in a leather pouch. He wondered if he should take them off later and hand them to Qian Sijin and the others for safekeeping.

At that moment, a tall but somewhat hunched figure stepped out from inside the gate.

The figure was surrounded by about several dozen people.

Ning Nan frowned.

The man descended the steps surrounded by a crowd, with Uncle Fu supporting his hand.

Ning Nan took a few steps forward, frowned, and asked, "Grandfather?"

Ning Changling was somewhat uneasy. After years of fighting in the north, a man who had always kept his life on the line, he now seemed like a somewhat timid old man.

He looked at Ning Nan for a moment, and finally, he smiled calmly: "Bai Xuan."

Ningfu said that his grandson now has a courtesy name.

Ning Changling looked at his grandson and said, "I've always forgotten to tell you... When I was young, I rendered some service to the late emperor... um... I was granted a marquisate by the late emperor."

"Hmm," he turned his head, gestured like a child towards the black plaque with gold lettering on a background of the Marquis's residence, and smiled, "—Marquis Jingbei."