Chapter 448: Righteousness Prevails
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Li Xingbiao was starting to panic. While Fu Mingzheng seemed to be competing with him in rhetoric, he was actually subtly threatening and intimidating him to ensure that Yang Yizun’s assassination attempt on the Wangfei would become an ironclad case.
If he was sensible, he would confess quickly and help frame and accuse Yang Yizun. If he resisted to the end, he would die, and his wife, children, and family would suffer too.
If he yielded to the Fu family, Empress Dowager Min wouldn’t let him off. If he didn’t, the Fu family wouldn’t let him off. It would be fine if he had no choice, but now that he had a choice, he didn’t know which way to go for survival. Li Xingbiao’s eyes were panicked, and he was sweating despite the cold weather.
Fu Mingzheng smiled mysteriously at Li Xingbiao, patting his shoulder gently, “Regretting it now? Think it over. Apologize to me, and you still have time.” With that, he walked past him and glanced at Yang Yizun’s body before going over to see Tang Chunlai bandaging Mingzhu’s wound.
Mingzhu smiled as she looked at him, “Fourth Brother is here.” She knew that Yuwen Chu couldn’t possibly leave her unattended. There must be other arrangements. Her family wouldn’t ignore what happened here. Yang Yizun’s rush to the gate of Ying Wanf Mansion would have alerted someone to the situation.
Fu Mingzheng’s response confirmed her suspicions, “Been here for a while, but seeing you’re busy, I didn’t want to disturb.”
Zhou Shuyi, who was nearby, listened silently, feeling quite speechless. As an elder brother, knowing his sister was committing murder inside, he actually didn’t intervene, waiting until the deed was done before leisurely coming to watch. Shouldn’t he have acted earlier to protect the pregnant woman and her child from being frightened?
However, Mingzhu understood Fu Mingzheng’s intention. He was giving her a chance to grow safely by letting her handle things herself. It was the same old saying: relying on heaven, earth, and parents is not as good as relying on oneself. She felt a bit proud but also worried that Fu Mingzheng would scold her for her injured wrist, so she discreetly shrunk it into her sleeve.
Fu Mingzheng understood her reaction but didn’t say anything. A minor injury in exchange for saving a valuable asset, this deal was profitable.
With the manpower brought by Fu Mingzheng overseeing the scene, it was well “protected.” Soon, officials from the Dali Temple and the Ministry of War arrived.
The officials from the Dali Temple were allied with Fu Mingzheng. Seeing his demeanor, they knew what he was up to. Of course, they discreetly collected evidence of Yang Yizun’s criminal behavior. While Mingzhu appeared calm on the surface, she was actually delighted. Suddenly, she heard someone beside her ask in a deep voice, “Your Highness, please describe the situation again.”
The speaker was tall, dark-skinned, with a beard, and a serious expression, giving off an aura of righteousness. Mingzhu recognized his attire as that of a commander from the Five City Guards Office, but she didn’t know which one specifically, so she looked to Zhou Shuyi.
Zhou Shuyi quickly said, “This is Commander Li from the Five City Guards Office.”
“I am Li Dazhong. There are some doubts here. As you are the party involved, I must ask for an explanation.” Li Dazhong gave Mingzhu a formal salute, his attitude neither good nor bad, just business-like.
Wasn’t this the father of that girl who almost jumped into the moat because of Fourth Brother and then had a jade pendant taken by Fourth Brother? Mingzhu suddenly realized and looked at Fu Mingzheng. Didn’t they owe each other favors? That meant they had regular interactions. Why was Li Dazhong pressing her like this?
Fu Mingzheng avoided eye contact, pretending to be focused on other people and things, unwilling to meet Mingzhu’s gaze. But Li Dazhong was getting impatient and raised his voice slightly, calling out again, “Your Highness?”
He must have offended someone again! Maybe it was about that girl, Li’s daughter. Although Lady Qian apologized in person the next day with the jade pendant and gifts, the Li family didn’t say much at the time, but who knew what they really thought? Mingzhu complained about her unreliable Fourth Brother while bracing herself to deal with Li Dazhong.
Fortunately, Li Dazhong was not a malicious person and had a good understanding of the situation. After listening to the whole process, he didn’t make any remarks unfavorable to the Ying Wang Mansion. Instead, he quickly ordered the scene to be cleaned up and prepared to leave with Yang Yizun’s body, casually picking out a few people who were present at the time.
Mingzhu cleared her throat, and Fu Mingzheng couldn’t keep up the act, so he had to step forward to greet Li Dazhong, “Master Li, you’ve worked hard. Would you like to have a cup of tea before leaving?”
Li Dazhong ignored him, solemnly saying, “Eating and drinking would undermine the reputation of impartiality and integrity. Please don’t delay my handling of the case.”
Fu Mingzheng was momentarily at a loss for words, feeling unable to respond adequately.
Mingzhu looked at him disdainfully, indicating that this was the consequence of offending people everywhere.
Li Dazhong signaled for his men to leave, but someone didn’t want him to leave just yet. Hu Tong, the newly appointed deputy chief eunuch of the Chongzheng Palace, hurried over with a few eunuchs, intercepted Li Dazhong, and demanded an explanation, “Yang Yizun was ordered to arrest the suspect. How did it turn into an assassination attempt on the Wangfei? He has always been loyal and never made mistakes. How could he suddenly become so audacious? There must be a misunderstanding! Mr. Li, do you see anything unusual?”
Mingzhu was a little nervous. Any hint, intentional or not, from Li Dazhong would be a card for Empress Dowager Min to play. Even if she couldn’t overturn the case, it would still cause trouble.
Fu Mingzheng wasn’t in a hurry, whispering softly, “He’s not that kind of person.”
Sure enough, Li Dazhong remained solemn, stating, “We are still investigating and cannot draw any conclusions. Based on the evidence at the scene, it is possible that Yang Yizun attempted to offend Wangfei. Sorry to disappoint Deputy Chief Hu!”
“Mr. Li! Think carefully before you speak!” Hu Tong was very angry. He was young, handsome, and just gaining popularity. Sometimes he was more trusted by Yuwen Bai than even He Zhengtu. He appeared quite arrogant at the moment.
Li Dazhong replied calmly, “Even in front of His Majesty, I speak the truth.”
Hu Tong found fault, “Why do you give us such a look? Who are you giving that black face to? Is it for His Majesty?”
Li Dazhong remained silent for a moment, then looked directly at Hu Tong and said in a loud voice, “This is how I naturally am! Deputy Chief Hu, please watch your words!”
The two stared at each other for a while, with Hu Tong losing ground. He sneered three times coldly, “Fine, fine, very good! Mr. Li is indeed upright. We’ve seen it! After we return, we will definitely speak well of you in front of His Majesty.”
A blatant threat.
But Li Dazhong acted as if he hadn’t heard it, maintaining his serious expression, and left with his men, still wearing a black face.
Mingzhu admired, “Truly like father, like daughter. Fourth Brother, wasn’t Li’s daughter just as righteous when she stopped you from leaving and demanded compensation?”
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
