Chapter 140

Chapter 140

Liu Changyi left the yamen and headed straight to the Chen family.

Upon learning of his arrival, Wang Ying quickly summoned Qing Huai, Qing Song, and Lin Sui to discuss the matter.

Sitting in the private room of a teahouse, Wang Ying’s face was grim, with dark circles under her eyes. She hadn’t slept all night, frequently checking the experimental plot and leaving a note for Chen Qingyan in case he entered.

"Is there any news about Qing Yan?"

Liu Changyi nodded. "I just came from the yamen. Brother is being held in a single cell, which is kept very clean. There’s no need to worry about food either—my father specifically instructed the yamen, so they wouldn’t dare neglect him."

"That’s a relief…" Wang Ying had never experienced anything like this in either of her lifetimes. Last night, her mind was filled with wild thoughts, recalling ancient TV dramas where innocent people were imprisoned and subjected to various tortures, like having their fingers crushed. She was terrified until Liu Changyi’s words put her at ease.

Lin Sui asked, "When will Cousin be released?"

"That depends on the coroner’s autopsy. If he was indeed poisoned, they need to determine what kind of poison it was and whether it came from the ice sticks. They must confirm it has nothing to do with your shop’s ice sticks before they can release him."

Wang Ying’s expression darkened again. Without advanced technology, ancient investigations could take as little as six or seven days or as long as several months. What if Qing Yan remained imprisoned and missed his studies?

"I know who is behind this, but there’s no evidence at the moment."

Everyone turned to look at Wang Ying.

"The ice merchant in the city, Wei Linshui."

Chen Qinghuai asked, "How did you find out, Sister-in-law?"

Wang Ying explained how she noticed the troublemakers were the same group and had someone secretly follow them.

"Tian Ju and Ma Zhandong personally heard this person say he was instructed by Wei Linshui to deliberately cause trouble at our shop. When he saw our business wasn’t affected, he resorted to this despicable method!"

Everyone was instantly furious. "Is this true?!"

"Absolutely true. The person being followed is named Wan Liang, and he lives on Zhenghe Street. If we can catch him, we should be able to get a confession."

Liu Changyi said, "This is a serious matter. Let me go back and explain the details to my father first."

*

Three days later, the autopsy results of the deceased came out. It was indeed poisoning—the victim had a lot of food residue in his stomach, and the mice that ate it died quickly from the poison.

However, without modern testing equipment and since ice sticks melt in the stomach, it was impossible to determine what caused the poison.

The deceased was named Yan Er, twenty-four years old and unmarried. His only relative was his elder brother, Yan Da, who had been wailing that day.

Yan Da was summoned to the yamen for questioning, his heart pounding with fear.

An officer asked him about the time and process of his brother’s poisoning and which doctor he had called.

Yan Da answered each question, insisting that his brother had started feeling stomach pain after eating the ice sticks.

The officer glanced at him while holding a pen. Over the past few days, the constables had investigated around Yan Da’s home. Yan Da and his brother did not get along well. His brother was simple-minded, with the intellect of a four- or five-year-old child, and at his age, he still often wet and soiled his pants.

Before their father passed away, the old man had taken care of his second son. Though the younger brother was simple-minded, his clothes were always clean, and his hair was neatly combed.

After their father died, Yan Er lived with Yan Da, often going hungry, and his pants were constantly soiled and filthy, emitting a foul odor that made everyone avoid him.

During the autopsy, the coroner also found many sores and rashes on the deceased’s legs and buttocks, caused by prolonged exposure to wet and dirty pants. Although the body had been cleaned, it was clear he had lived in poor conditions.

So, the officer didn’t believe for a second that Yan Da would have spent money on ice sticks for his brother.

However, the Vice-Prefect had pressured them to close the case quickly, so the officers didn’t dare say much and had to write in the report that the death was due to poisoning from eating ice sticks.

*

Yan Da left the yamen and hurried toward the Wei residence.

In the Wei family compound, Wei Linshui, wearing thin silk clothing, reclined on a luohan bed while going through his account books.

The recent hot weather had been good for the ice business. Additionally, with the death of Old Master Song, who had ordered hundreds of ice blocks to preserve the body, Wei Linshui had made hundreds of taels of silver in just a few days.

Counting his money, Wei Linshui sighed inwardly—the wealthy were easy to profit from. If only a few more rich people died each summer.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed outside, and a servant came to report, "Master, a man named Yan Da is here to see you."

"What does he want?" Wei Linshui frowned. "Have him wait in the side hall."

"Yes."

Wei Linshui rose unhurriedly, his hand rapidly rolling a pair of walnuts. Soon, he arrived at the side hall. "Brother Yan, you’re here."

Yan Da immediately stood up. "Master Wei…"

"Sit. What brings you here today?"

"You said that once I delivered my brother’s body to cause a scene, it would be over. Why did the yamen summon me for questioning?"

"That’s just standard procedure for handling cases. Did you say what I taught you to say?"

Yan Da nodded repeatedly. "Yes, I insisted my brother was poisoned by eating their ice sticks."

Wei Linshui said, "Good, then. I’ve already made the necessary arrangements, and this matter will be resolved soon. I’ll have a servant give you two guan of cash later. Don’t come looking for me again after this."

"Okay, okay." Yan Da’s face lit up at the mention of money. Wei Linshui had already given him ten taels of silver to cause trouble, and now there was more money. If only this could happen every month…

Wei Linshui knew what he was thinking and sneered. "My money isn’t that easy to earn. Take the money and do the job well. If you don’t… I have other methods."

Yan Da broke into a cold sweat at his sinister expression and quickly dismissed his greedy thoughts. "Don’t worry, Master Wei. I won’t breathe a word of this to anyone!"

After leaving the Wei residence, Yan Da wiped the sweat from his forehead and thought, "No wonder they call him 'Water Rat'—he’s cunning and ruthless. I’d better take this money and stay far away from him."

*

Under normal circumstances, this would have been enough to close the case.

Wei Linshui had done this before, and it had worked every time. He thought he could easily bring down the Chen family this time as well.

Unfortunately for him, he had provoked Chen Qingyan. Not only was there the relationship between Deputy Prefect Wang and Liang Boqing, but Chen Qingyan himself was the top candidate in the prefectural and academy exams. The court highly valued such talents and would not carelessly close the case.

With Lord Liu also helping to rally support, the situation soon took a new turn.

The officers caught Wan Liang at a gambling den. Without even resorting to severe torture, a few threats were enough to make him confess everything. He was only doing it for the money and hadn’t committed any major crimes—at most, he’d face a few strokes of the cane—so he had no reason to cover up for anyone.

He not only revealed that Wei Linshui had paid him to cause trouble but also exposed the plot to frame the Mixue Shop with Yan Da’s help.

The yamen immediately ordered Yan Da’s arrest.

Wei Linshui was still unaware that his scheme had been exposed. That evening, he personally visited the Jizhou Vice-Prefect with a basket filled with silver. However, after knocking for a long time, no one answered. Eventually, the gatekeeper peeked out and said, "The master has already retired for the night. Please come back tomorrow."

Wei Linshui forced a smile. "I brought some local delicacies for His Excellency."

"The master isn’t accepting anything. Please leave!" The gatekeeper slammed the door shut.

Wei Linshui, rebuffed, sensed something was wrong. Vice-Prefect Zhao was usually notoriously corrupt and would profit from anything he could get his hands on. Why had he suddenly become so upright today?

Unexplainably nervous, he rubbed his temples to suppress the unease, then turned and hurriedly got into his palanquin to return home.

The next day, before daybreak, the door of the Wei residence was knocked upon, with several constables standing outside.

"Is Wei Linshui at home?"

The servant, terrified upon hearing this, rushed inside to report. Wei Linshui was jolted awake from his sleep and, before he could even properly dress, was taken to the magistrate's office.

Throughout the journey, he kept speaking humbly and politely, trying to get any information, but the officers didn’t reply a single word, making his hopes sink.

When he arrived at the yamen and saw Wan Liang and Yan Da kneeling on the ground, his last hope vanished, his legs going weak as he dropped to his knees.

Not long after, the Prefect, Vice-Prefect, and the Registrar, among others, came in from the back, ready to begin the court session.

Wei Linshui looked toward Vice-Prefect Zhao. Over the years, he had paid him substantial bribes, and Vice-Prefect Zhao had helped with previous matters, so he thought he could count on him this time too.

But Vice-Prefect Zhao wouldn’t even look his way, keeping his head lowered or turned away the entire time.

Soon, Chen Qingyan was also brought in. As a holder of the xiucai degree, he didn’t need to kneel; he simply bowed respectfully to the officials.

"Is the person below Wei Linshui?"

"Your humble servant is."

"Someone has accused you of deliberately framing others. Do you plead guilty?"

"Your humble servant knows nothing of this..."

"Wan Liang, repeat what you said yesterday from start to finish!"

Wan Liang tremblingly repeated what he had said the day before, including how Wei Linshui had instructed Yan Da to falsely accuse Mixue Shop.

"I ask you, why did you instruct Wan Liang to cause trouble at his door?"

"I... I was just jealous of their good business. I only caused trouble and didn’t do anything else!"

Yan Da also knelt on the ground, kowtowing and pleading innocence. "My younger brother really died from eating their bamboo tube ice pops."

Seeing that the two refused to admit guilt, the Prefect said, "Bring Wang Ying before the court."

Soon, Wang Ying was brought into the main hall. He immediately noticed Chen Qingyan standing to the side. A few days in prison hadn’t left him too disheveled—his clothes were still clean, and his hair neatly combed—which reassured Wang Ying.

"This commoner, Wang Ying, pays his respects to Your Honor."

"Wang Ying, you accuse Wei Linshui of hiring people to frame you for poisoning someone. Do you have evidence?"

"This commoner has evidence." Wang Ying turned and said, "You repeatedly claim that you bought our bamboo tube ice pops for your younger brother on the ninth day of the fifth month. I ask you, do you still have the bamboo tube?"

Yan Da was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head. "It was thrown out after eating. Who would keep a bamboo tube?"

Wang Ying had expected this response. "Then, may I ask, where did you buy this ice pop?"

"Of course at your shop!"

"Are you sure? Not bought elsewhere or from someone else?"

Yan Da insisted firmly, "It was definitely bought at your shop. I even stood in a long queue!"

Wang Ying turned and said, "On the ninth day of the fifth month, our shop was closed that day. The owners of several nearby shops can testify to this. I implore Your Honor to verify this!"

Yan Da continued to argue, "Then I must have remembered wrong. It was... it was the eighth day of the fifth month!"

"Tell me, would an ice pop remain frozen overnight without melting?"

Yan Da couldn’t explain it and, becoming desperate, his eyes rolled back as he fainted. Two officers threw cold water on him, and he soon regained consciousness.

The Prefect struck the judge's block. "Yan Da, confess truthfully now!"

Trembling in fear, Yan Da said, "This humble one confesses, this humble one tells everything. Wei Linshui instructed me to poison my younger brother, then move the body to the door of Mixue Shop to frame them..."

At this, Wei Linshui burst out, "He’s lying! It was he himself who thought Yan Er was a burden and poisoned him!"