TGCFNM -Chapter 21 The Wu Lianzhi Case Concluded

Prefect Cheng straightened his back and brushed aside the steward’s arm. Looking at Nanny Zhao, his voice heavy, he said, “Your young lady died tragically. You may resent me for that, but slandering a court official is a grave crime—it will implicate your entire family. Do you have any evidence?”

Nanny Zhao let out a bitter laugh, her voice filled with hatred. “The Feng family has indeed fallen. We can no longer escape your grasp. But the Feng residence still stands. I buried the dregs of the medicine you gave Lianzhi. I saw you kill her with my own eyes. I saw you smash Wu Lianzhi’s limbs. That blood-stained hammer—I buried that too.”

“You are merely harboring resentment and fabricating lies to slander me,” Prefect Cheng replied calmly, not taking her seriously at all.

Nanny Zhao touched her neck and said slowly, “But when you sent someone to kill me, Captain Qi saw it with his own eyes. That man has already been bound and has confessed everything.”

Prefect Cheng gave a cold snort. “It was the Feng family who bullied others too far. And now you come to slander this official again!”

Nanny Zhao pointed at him and cursed, “I blame myself for not being able to dissuade my young lady—letting her fall into your honeyed trap and lose herself, ultimately losing her life and destroying the Feng family! I am willing to go to the capital to testify. Even if I lose my life, I do not fear it.”

“My lord!” Wu Lianzhi’s spirit drifted before Chu Ling. “My mother-in-law and I once lived in the secluded rear hall of the Confucian Temple. Lord Cheng wrote many things there—poems filled with his frustrations and grievances.”

Chu Ling immediately beckoned Wan Sanjin and whispered a few instructions into his ear.

Wan Sanjin looked at her in astonishment, but still followed her orders and hurried down the mountain first.

Prefect Cheng flicked his sleeve slightly, maintaining a calm and arrogant demeanor. “It is merely a petty county magistrate coveting my official post, joining hands with the commoners to extort a confession from me—even collaborating with a heinous family like the Fengs. It truly brings shame to the court. Once I report this to my teacher, I will have you all taken down in one sweep!”

With her hands clasped behind her back, Chu Ling smiled wickedly. “While staying at the Confucian Temple, Prefect Cheng made many disparaging remarks about the court and His Majesty, and even carved numerous seditious verses. Now that I have presented those poems, I would like to see whether Grand Tutor Sun—who has tens of thousands of students—would be willing to stand up for you.”

Lord Cheng’s composed expression finally changed.

“Qi Da!” Chu Ling barked sharply.

“Your subordinate is here!”

“Seize him!”

“Yes, my lord!”

“Magistrate Chu! I am the current prefect. You dare to arrest me? You dare?!” As a scholar, Lord Cheng was no match for Qi Da’s iron grip and was quickly forced to his knees.

Looking down at his venomous face, Chu Ling shook a brocade pouch from her sleeve, slowly untied it, and took out a jade bi-disc.

“Prefect Cheng’s arrangements were flawless—what a pity. I obtained this jade disc before you did. So every word you said afterward, no matter how affectionate it sounded, I never believed a single one.” She gave it a slight shake before putting it away, ordering that Prefect Cheng be taken away. The steward by his side was also detained and escorted off.

Prefect Cheng opened his mouth to argue further, but an enraged Qi Da grabbed a clump of dry grass and stuffed it into his mouth before dragging him down the mountain.

“Everyone, please escort Prefect Cheng down the mountain together. When officials from the capital arrive, remember to recount truthfully everything you heard today,” Chu Ling said with a smile and a polite bow. The commoners readily agreed.

Miss Cheng, left where she stood, looked lost and bewildered. She found Nanny Zhao and opened her mouth several times, unsure what to ask.

Nanny Zhao looked at her, a trace of pity in her eyes. “You are the daughter born to young lady’s former betrothed by an outside woman. Young lady brought you to her side and raised you for over ten years—feelings have grown. If you are willing, then return with her to the Feng family to keep vigil.”

“Nanny Zhao, you should return as well,” Chu Ling suddenly said. “The truth behind Wu Lianzhi’s case has come to light. She must be grateful that you uncovered the real culprit. There is no need for you to waste your life here.”

Nanny Zhao’s lips trembled in pain. At last, unable to hold back any longer, she let out a wail and fell to her knees.

Chu Ling placed the embroidered pouch into the coffin and instructed that the lid be closed. “Let Wu Lianzhi rest in peace.”

The remaining townsfolk nearby stepped forward to help lower the coffin into the grave. Chu Ling personally scooped up a handful of yellow earth and scattered it down.

“Lord Cheng will certainly be punished for this. That is my promise,” Chu Ling said, gazing at Wu Lianzhi.

The people assumed their county magistrate was speaking to the coffin, and one by one they began to murmur words as well—urging her to rest in peace, saying that evil would meet its retribution.

Wu Lianzhi bent toward Chu Ling in a slow, respectful bow before her figure gradually faded from sight.

“Wu Lianzhi’s obsession has dissipated. She has entered reincarnation,” the Ghost Scholar said.

Chu Ling knew that. Still, it was a pity—the case had not been concluded in a satisfactory way.

A murder from over a decade ago—even if Nanny Zhao had preserved evidence—could not serve as ironclad proof to overturn Lord Cheng’s position. After all, it amounted only to Nanny Zhao’s side of the story.

So Chu Ling had taken another path. She arranged for the common people to attend and hear the trial, to clearly understand the crimes Lord Cheng had committed. That step was merely to prevent Grand Tutor Sun in the capital from interfering.

Otherwise, with the court now rotten to its core, if Grand Tutor Sun chose to intervene, Lord Cheng might truly have escaped unscathed.

The words Wu Lianzhi spoke at the end were what truly ensured Lord Cheng could never rise again—those grievances from his days as a xiucai, his deep resentment toward the court and the aristocratic families. Not only would that make Grand Tutor Sun hesitate to extend a hand, he would likely rush to distance himself.

After descending the mountain, Chu Ling found Zhuifeng at the foot. Zhuifeng was a wild horse, but Zhang Dong had probably treated it too well. This time, even though Chu Ling hadn’t tethered it, it didn’t run off.

Still, she didn’t dare ride it on the way back, so she led Zhuifeng slowly along the road.

“Master,” Chu Ling said quietly, “of the three cases I’ve handled, two were resolved through unconventional means.”

In the Cui Xi case, since it involved ordinary people, she only needed evidence and witnesses to conclude it. But with Master Zhang, she had to pretend to be a corrupt official; with Prefect Cheng, she had to condemn him based on his character and conduct.

In short, none of them could be closed solely on the basis of evidence and testimony.

“I understand that princes, nobles, and prominent clans are different from common folk,” Chu Ling sighed. “But I thought that under the law, everyone ought to be equal.”

In ancient times, saying that everyone was equal was a joke. But now, even the laws of Great Zhou seemed like a joke.

“My lord,” the Ghost Scholar called softly, “you have already done more than enough.”

“If…” Chu Ling let out a breath. If the protagonists truly overthrew Great Zhou, would they really establish a new order? Would there truly be a brighter future?

“My lord, if what?” the Ghost Scholar asked.

“Master, if someone were to overthrow Great Zhou, what do you think?” Chu Ling asked.

The Ghost Scholar was momentarily stunned. Stroking his beard, he asked, “Does Your Excellency believe Great Yuan plans to attack us?”

“No. Internal strife,” Chu Ling replied.

The Ghost Scholar sighed. “Whether it is Great Yuan invading or princes fighting for the throne, it is always the common people who suffer.”

Chu Ling murmured, “Yes. Unless absolutely necessary, it would be better if there were no war.”