Chapter 131 Bribery

Chapter 131: Buying Off

The Ministry of War's dispatch was delivered to the house. Two thousand troops from several garrisons near Shengjing were mustered and stationed at the camp on the outskirts of the capital. Song Tingzhou had to take the dispatch and go there to show his face, get acquainted with the troops, and notify them to depart exactly four days later.

He left early. Meng Wan stayed home to have breakfast with Chang Jinhua. After the meal, he took Bi Yun, Xue Sheng, and a few household servants, and stormed over to the family that Qing Xing had saved.

That family was easy to locate. Qing Xing had been walking from the Xu residence toward the city gate closest to town when she encountered the man—whether he had attempted suicide, slipped accidentally, or been pushed remained unclear.

There were only two alleys with a well at their entrance. For something as serious as a murder, you didn't have to pry. Just stand where the old folks gathered, and you'd hear most of it in no time.

"Zhang Erlang hasn't gotten up yet? I heard him talking with quite a strong voice last night."

"Really? His father said he was bedridden and near death?"

"You still believe old Zhang's lies? If his son were dying, would he be eating meat and fish every day?"

"And his mother keeps crying to the neighbors that her Erlang is unlucky, harmed for no reason."

"Do you reckon Zhang Erlang was really pushed into the well?"

An old man pursed his lips at that. "I could believe someone pushed him into the well, but can that little girl push a strapping young man into the well?"

The others also didn't believe that Qing Xing, such a petite girl, could have pushed Zhang Erlang.

But they figured it simply—at most, Zhang Erlang had slipped and fallen in himself, and the Zhang family was just trying to shake down the girl.

After all, they were all neighbors, and everyone knew the Zhang family's character.

Meng Wan eavesdropped for a while, and once he got the Zhangs' address, without another word, he made a show of leading his crew straight to their door.

The group sitting in the alley saw this and scattered swiftly, each one nimble as a rabbit.

But once home, they hid behind doors and walls, straining their ears to catch what was happening outside.

Meng Wan sent the servant with the loudest voice to knock on the door.

"Zhang Shichun! Come out and face our master!" The Song family always kept a low profile and didn't have attendants shadow them. This was the servant's first time acting so cocky, and his eyes darted around nervously; he looked more like a pickpocket than a bully.

Meng Wan gave him a speechless glare. "What are you afraid of? Shout louder."

The servant braced himself and hollered a few more times before someone finally came out slowly from the courtyard. It was a woman, screeching curses. "What's all the hollering? The gate's open—why don't you just walk in!"

"Master this, lady that—who do you think you are, throwing your weight around at our place! I—"

The woman saw the big crowd at the door and swallowed her curses mid-sentence.

"Who are you looking for?"

That day Meng Wan wore a black long gown, with a dark red vest embroidered with black patterns over it. On his head he'd swapped his usual silver hairpin for a gold one with a dangling red pearl. As he moved, the red and gold shimmered together, making his expressionless face look even more striking and cold, like he was no ordinary mortal.

His lips parted, and the words came out ice-cold. "Looking for your second son."

The woman was first taken aback by his chilling aura, then she stiffened her neck and lied, "My Erlang is sick, still hasn't come to, can't get up!"

"Not awake?"

Meng Wan casually pulled a handful of gold nuggets from his robe and toyed with them in his hand. The golden nuggets rolled nimbly between his milky-white fingers. The woman couldn't tear her eyes away; her little bead-like eyes followed them left and right.

Meng Wan casually tossed her one and asked coldly, "Is he awake now?"

The woman held the tiny nugget in both hands, but her greedy eyes kept darting to the pile still in Meng Wan's hand.

Meng Wan squinted and held the nugget up to her face. "Want it?"

The woman nodded frantically.

Meng Wan's face hardened. "Then take us in to see your second son."

The woman looked torn, clearly worried about something.

Meng Wan's money was hard-earned; he wasn't about to give it away for free. He signaled Xue Sheng, who swiftly snatched the gold nugget back from the woman's hand—so fast she didn't even react.

She slapped her thigh in a panic. "I never said you couldn't see him—come in then!"

Meng Wan ignored her and stepped inside.

The woman chased after him. "West room, he's in the west room!"

In the west room's bed lay a young man in decent spirits. He was flustered at first seeing so many people burst in, but when he saw Meng Wan, his expression turned shy.

"This gentleman—"

"Xue Sheng, bring me a stool."

Meng Wan wasn't here for a sick visit. Once Xue Sheng brought the stool, he flicked his sleeves and sat upright. "You are Zhang Shichun?"

The nineteen-year-old young man flushed. "Yes."

Meng Wan toyed with his jade pendant as a distraction, his voice clear and pleasant. "You're clearly recovered. Why do you stay indoors all day, refusing to show your face?"

"Ah?" Zhang Shichun hadn't expected that question and was momentarily stunned.

His mother hurried into the room and spoke before he could answer. "Erlang hasn't fully recovered yet! Just yesterday he told me he was dizzy and couldn't remember things—he didn't even recognize his own elder brother."

She winked at Zhang Shichun. "Right, son?"

Prompted by his mother, Zhang Shichun stammered, "I… I'm not quite clear-headed. The doctor said I need to rest a few more days and shouldn't see… see people."

Meng Wan watched their little act coldly. "Not clear-headed? You must still be clinging to hope, aren't you?"

"Zhang Shichun, don't you realize that someone tried to silence you because you offended someone or witnessed something you shouldn't have?"

Zhang Shichun looked confused. "Ah?"

A faint crease formed between Meng Wan's brows. Zhang Shichun's expression didn't seem fake—as if he truly knew nothing. Could he simply be someone who accidentally fell into the well? Or had he witnessed something without even realizing it, and genuinely forgotten?

"How did you fall into the well that day?"

Meng Wan asked, his gaze fixed on Zhang Shichun's face. The other replied without hesitation, "A female doctor pushed me in."

Meng Wan couldn't help but laugh at his brazenness. "Did you see her push you?"

Zhang Shichun hesitated. "Well… I had been drinking. I just felt someone push me, and then—"

"It was her! Don't let her small frame fool you—she's got a lot of strength!" his mother exclaimed dramatically.

"Heh."

Meng Wan laughed coldly, ignoring her baseless shouts, and continued speaking to Zhang Shichun: "You were on the verge of death back then, and it was that female doctor named Qing Xing who saved you, disregarding her own reputation. Where were your family members at that time? Now, if you readily believe others' words and bite the hand that saved you, you do not deserve to be called a person!"

Zhang Shichun's mother was about to say something more, but Meng Wan took out the gold nuggets again, grabbed a handful, and placed them in her hand. "Think carefully before you speak again. Who pushed him?"

Zhang Shichun's mother delightedly clutched the gold nuggets, examining each one closely, and quickly replied, "Got it, got it. It was our Er Lang who was drunk and confused, and he fell in on his own."

Meng Wan nodded in satisfaction and tossed the remaining gold nuggets onto Zhang Shichun's bed. "When Shuntian Prefecture's court convenes in a few days, you know what to say, right?"

Zhang Shichun's mother scrambled onto the bed, searching for the gold nuggets, and promised, "Rest easy, sir, we won't speak wrongly. That female doctor is our Er Lang's benefactor. When the magistrate hears the case, we will certainly restore her innocence in court."

She had finally figured it out—this man was on the female doctor's side!

Leaving the Zhang residence, Meng Wan's face turned cold. As he boarded his carriage, he looked at the crowd gathering again in the alley—no doubt discussing his recent showy visit to the Zhang family.

"Someone must have already approached the Zhang family beforehand." Perhaps even from the start, Qing Xing's rescue of the man was a trap set by others, waiting for her to fall into it.

Bi Yun asked from the side, "Now that the Zhang family has agreed to change their story, is Miss Qing Xing in the clear?"

Meng Wan sighed softly. "Do you think scaring them a little and bribing them with gold will make them truly clear Qing Xing in court? No way. If they can compromise for money to wrong an innocent life, they will deceive me for riches and influence just as easily."

Bi Yun was confused. "Then why did you still give them money, sir?"

Meng Wan lowered his eyes, his long, butterfly-wing-like lashes casting a shadow. "I can see that the Zhang family has poor character. The person behind this probably knows even better that they cannot be trusted."

With such a family of weathervanes, and rumors spreading about someone openly bribing them, who could feel at ease?

He and Song Tingzhou were about to leave, couldn't keep waiting while the forces behind this stalled. He didn't know what they were stalling for.

Since they didn't want the trial to happen, Meng Wan had no choice but to force the Shuntian Prefecture to hold court.

His gold was not so easily taken.

—

The next day, news that the Xu family's legitimate daughter had been violated, which had been tightly concealed, suddenly spread like crazy. Meanwhile, Qin Jiao, the heir of the Zhongyi Marquis residence and the brother-in-law of the crown prince, was arrested by the Shuntian Prefecture as a suspect.

Qing Xing, not yet cleared of her own grievances, was now summoned again as a witness in Qin Jiao's case.

The jailer Meng Wan had bribed earlier sent word that Qing Xing was to be brought to court. The weight finally lifted from his heart.

After discussing with Song Tingzhou, they prepared to set off southward on the day of Qing Xing's trial.

But the scene that day was even bigger than he expected.

This was a public trial. Qin Jiao, the Xu family's legitimate daughter's personal maidservant, Qing Xing, and the Zhang family all gathered in the courtroom.

However, Qin Jiao not only did not have to kneel like the others but even had his own seat. His lawyer was actually a crown prince's aide in disguise, coughed twice loudly, glaring at Qin Jiao to signal him to stand properly in the court.

Qin Jiao, feeling he had caused trouble for his brother-in-law, reluctantly shifted his seat.

The Shuntian Prefecture magistrate, under immense pressure, opened court and began questioning witnesses.

"Xu family servant Cui Liu, did you personally see Qin Jiao abduct your young lady?"

Standing in a corner of the crowd, Meng Wan's brow furrowed slightly.

This involved the legitimate daughter of the Xu family's honor, so he had thought the trial would not be public. It seemed Lord Xu had decided to sacrifice his daughter to set up this scheme.

The maid said firmly, "Reporting to Your Honor, I did see it with my own eyes. The heir of Marquis Zhongyi was wearing a pale white robe, wasted, and he abducted my young lady right in front of me and the coachman."

The lawyer interjected at the right moment. "You say the heir was wasted. So you, along with three maids and a coachman, couldn't stop a drunkard?"

The maid shot back, "Everyone knows that Marquis Zhongyi's family is a martial arts lineage. The heir has practiced martial arts since childhood and could draw a two-stone bow at fifteen. We maids couldn't move him at all, and the coachman was old and frail."

The lawyer put it bluntly, "All witnesses are Xu family servants, so naturally you can say whatever you want. For all we know, your young lady was meeting someone in secret, and you all conspired to falsely accuse the heir!"

The maid was indignant. "You... if you don't believe us, we've got other witnesses!"

Pointing at Qing Xing, who knelt on the ground with a pale, haggard face and frail condition, she said, "After our young lady was found, she was unwell. We invited this female doctor to treat her. She also saw the heir personally carrying our young lady back."

The maid suddenly pulled out a hanky and started crying. "At the time, the heir's robe was stained with our young lady's blood. That bloody clothes is still at our house. We can present it as evidence right now to see if it was the clothes the heir was wearing that day!"

The court officer presented the bloody clothes submitted by the Xu family. After examining it, the Shuntian Prefecture magistrate asked Qin Jiao, "May I ask the heir, are these the clothes you were wearing when the Xu girl was attacked that day?"

Qin Jiao looked at the garment stained with large patches of blood and said lightly, "Tch. Yes, those were the clothes I wore that day."

Qin Jiao's lawyer and the watching Meng Wan both gasped.

This man was too reckless. With no surveillance cameras these days, why would he admit it so easily? He should've dodged and argued more!

The lawyer quickly tried to fix things. "Your Honor, the heir found Miss Xu on the street that day. At that time, Miss Xu had already been attacked, half-covered in blood and unconscious. The heir had seen Miss Xu at a palace banquet before, so he stepped in to protect her reputation. He quietly brought her into his own carriage and personally escorted her back to the Xu residence."

He said indignantly, "But Lord Xu, while expressing gratitude to the heir, let him stay to change into clean clothes, and then turned around and sued him!"

The Shuntian Prefecture magistrate's head was throbbing. He rubbed his temples and grilled Qing Xing, "Female physician Miao Qing Xing, did you treat the Xu family's legitimate daughter? Did you see the heir of Marquis Zhongyi, Qin Jiao, at the time?"

Qing Xing's eyes wandered among the people in the courtroom, then quickly glanced at the commoners watching outside. When she spotted Meng Wan and the elderly man behind him, she saw Meng Wan gently shake his head.

Remembering the message brought to her by A Xun that day, Qing Xing withdrew her gaze, her unsettled heart suddenly calming. She suddenly said loudly, "I did see the Qin heir at the Xu residence at that time."

A flash of coldness flickered in the lawyer's eyes. He stared at Qing Xing coldly for a few seconds, then reported to the Shuntian Prefecture magistrate, "Your Honor, as I understand, this woman is a criminal who attempted murder. How can her testimony be considered evidence?"

If it hadn't been for someone protecting this female doctor and keeping her alive to testify, and the crown prince's people couldn't act too conspicuously, Miao Qing Xing would have been the one to fall into that well that night.

"Your Honor, I have something to say," Meng Wan spoke up at just the right time.

The Shuntian Prefecture magistrate, seeing some young man, looked impatient. "This is a public trial of the Shuntian Prefecture. You commoners can watch but don't interrupt the court!"

Meng Wan bowed slightly, presenting a complaint with both hands, and said respectfully, "Please calm your anger, Your Honor. I'm the County Magistrate's husband of Hexian County. In my early years, I studied law with my husband. This time, entrusted by the Miao family, I am serving as the lawyer for Miao Qing Xing in the case of her alleged attempt to murder Zhang Shichun."