Jiang Li walked out of the tavern.

Ye Mingyu had been squatting by the street for quite some time. Seeing Jiang Li approaching, he spat out the grass root he’d been chewing and asked, “How did it go? Finished talking?” He didn’t ask who Jiang Li had met or what she had done. If it were Ye Jia’er, he would have inquired, but when it came to Jiang Li, sometimes he felt that despite being a junior, she showed more judgment than people his own age, and there was no need to worry. More importantly, Ye Mingyu believed that even if he asked Jiang Li, she wouldn’t tell him anyway.

Why waste the effort? Might as well not ask.

Jiang Li nodded, “Finished. Uncle, let’s go back.”

The matter of meeting Ji Heng, or even conversing with Ji Heng, didn’t weigh heavily on Jiang Li’s mind. Although rumors painted Ji Heng as someone with unpredictable moods, Jiang Li believed that was merely his outward appearance. His actions all followed his own calculations. After their several encounters, and having thought it through carefully, she concluded the possibility of Ji Heng disrupting her plans was extremely small. Even if she truly interfered with Ji Heng’s affairs, to him it would be a trivial matter of no consequence. He wouldn’t bother taking action personally. The reason he had followed from Xiangyang to Tongxiang was because her actions were too strange—he wanted to be a spectator.

So be it, let him watch. She never feared being the actor, but the beginning, development, climax, and resolution of this play would all be controlled by her.

Ji Heng wasn’t important. What mattered was that in seven days, Father would be executed. If she couldn’t find evidence to overturn Father’s case, she had to prepare for the worst—rescuing him from the execution ground. However, whether such a rescue could succeed, and whether it would implicate many people even if successful, also required serious consideration. So the most thorough approach was still to work on finding evidence.

Ye Mingyu, seeing Jiang Li say they should return, readily agreed. The inn where they were temporarily staying was also in Qingshi Lane, not far from the sealed-off Xue residence. One would think Feng Yutang’s people would monitor where they lodged, and choosing Qingshi Lane was far too conspicuous. But Jiang Li wanted exactly this fanfare—she wanted Feng Yutang to know she had come to settle scores.

Upon returning to the inn, Ye Mingyu sent people to get some food and also asked the guards to inquire about the terrain in the area. Jiang Li stayed in her room alone. Ye Mingyu gave her the case files from the Xue family case and didn’t dare disturb her, only having Tong’er and Bai Xue wait outside the door, ready to help if Jiang Li wanted tea or food.

Jiang Li was carefully examining the case files.

If possible, she needed to find the doubts and loopholes in the Xue family case files, seize upon these doubts and loopholes, and investigate step by step. Even if that didn’t work, she could deliberately magnify them to muddy the waters and buy time for Xue Huaiyuan.

The case files were likely prepared by Feng Yutang’s people. Perhaps due to Princess Yongning’s instructions, Feng Yutang’s version of the Xue family case files concealed everything flawlessly, describing Xue Huaiyuan as an utterly corrupt official whose crimes were too numerous to record. As Jiang Li read, she gradually felt like sneering coldly.

Not a single thing listed had actually been done by Xue Huaiyuan. Instead, they were all deeds that matched the current Tongxiang Deputy Magistrate Feng Yutang, nearly item by item. Yet Xue Huaiyuan had confessed. Jiang Li could imagine what they had done to make Xue Huaiyuan admit to these crimes—perhaps it was precisely for this reason that Xue Huaiyuan had been tortured until he lost his sanity.

In a certain sense, these case files were indeed flawless. Feng Yutang must have expended great effort to pin these crimes on Xue Huaiyuan. But because everyone in Tongxiang knew what kind of person Xue Huaiyuan was, these accusations seemed especially ridiculous.

Jiang Li finished reading at a glance, taking in ten lines at once.

She could pick out some small loopholes from the case files. For instance, the disaster relief silver that Xue Huaiyuan allegedly embezzled had been dug up in the Xue family’s backyard. But the disaster relief silver from that year had indeed been distributed clearly to every single citizen. The newly appeared “silver” was probably added by Princess Yongning’s people themselves.

Feng Yutang could fabricate nonexistent crimes for Xue Huaiyuan, but he couldn’t erase Xue Huaiyuan’s past benevolence and achievements. On this point alone, if Jiang Li held fast, she could fight for a thread of opportunity for Xue Huaiyuan.

“It’s not enough,” Jiang Li murmured. This was far from enough. The small opportunity this created for Xue Huaiyuan was hardly worth mentioning. Once Princess Yongning and her people realized what was happening, they could use Feng Yutang’s current position to fabricate more evidence and embellish further, rendering this evidence useless.

She had to make it so Feng Yutang couldn’t function in his role. Even though he was Tongxiang’s Deputy Magistrate, he must no longer be able to interfere in the Xue family case. How could she accomplish this? Jiang Li pondered deeply.

Tong’er tiptoed over to pour tea for Jiang Li. Lost in thought, Jiang Li didn’t notice the tea cup right beside her hand. She reached out and pressed down on it unintentionally. The tea cup fell to the floor with a clang, and the scalding hot tea spilled entirely onto Jiang Li’s arm.

“Heavens!” Tong’er cried out, hastily grabbing a handkerchief to wipe Jiang Li’s arm while saying, “Miss, Miss, are you all right? Bai Xue, get some burn ointment!”

Bai Xue hurried off. Hearing the commotion, Ye Mingyu rushed over, asking, “What happened? What’s going on?”

Tong’er was so guilty tears were about to fall. She said, “It’s this servant’s fault. I was pouring tea and burned Miss with it. What if it leaves a scar? What should we do?”

“A Li, are you all right? Does it hurt?” Ye Mingyu turned to look at Jiang Li, only to see her sitting there in a daze, staring at the tea cup shattered into pieces on the floor.

Ye Mingyu thought Jiang Li had been stunned by the pain. He quickly stepped forward, waving his open hand in front of her face, “A Li? A Li?”

Jiang Li blankly shifted her gaze to him, seeming to snap back to reality just then. But immediately she stood up, excited, “I know, I know now!”

“Know what?” Ye Mingyu was baffled, and Tong’er was equally confused.

“According to the Northern Yan legal code, with both witness and physical evidence, one can file charges against a local official with the superior prefecture office. But the superior prefecture is under Tong Zhiyang, who may not be willing to help. I calculated over and over—only in Yanjing City, where the situation is complex, could I bring this case to Yanjing and have the Court of Judicial Review reinvestigate. But what I need to try isn’t the Xue family’s case, but Feng Yutang himself. As long as Feng Yutang is himself involved in this case, he can no longer interfere in it. Any evidence that passed through Feng Yutang’s hands won’t count!”

This was about recusal. Feng Yutang could fabricate evidence without any scruples now, and Jiang Li could let him do so, because once it reached the Court of Judicial Review, all of Feng Yutang’s evidence would be inadmissible. She, on the other hand, had no connection to the Xue family and was a true outsider.

Ye Mingyu wasn’t someone from the official circles and didn’t understand Northern Yan’s governmental system very well. He simply said, “But why would the Court of Judicial Review take a case from Tongxiang?”

Would a Tongxiang case really warrant that?

“That’s why it needs to be made into a big issue,” Jiang Li said.

Tong’er’s action of spilling the tea cup had reminded her—to make everyone notice this cup of hot tea, creating a splash in Tongxiang alone was far from enough. The commotion needed to be bigger, bigger, even bigger. If it could implicate some noble person in Yanjing City, that would be even better. That way, with all eyes focused on it, the Xue family case would no longer be simply a corrupt official’s case. It might be a frame-up, it might involve an old case, it might even be treason.

She wasn’t afraid at all. She would make this case bigger and bigger. If even the Court of Judicial Review didn’t dare take it, she would file a direct petition to the Emperor. No matter how Emperor Hongxiao appeared to get along with Prince Cheng and the Princess, when an upright official was framed, all under heaven would question whether the Son of Heaven held the Mandate of Heaven. Even just to stabilize people’s hearts, Emperor Hongxiao wouldn’t let things take their natural course. Moreover, Prince Cheng and Emperor Hongxiao were natural enemies.

Emperor Hongxiao wouldn’t pass up any opportunity that might cause Prince Cheng to suffer.

Ye Mingyu thought for a moment but still didn’t understand, so he asked, “How do you plan to make it big?” Actually, to Ye Mingyu, the Xue family had nothing to do with him. But because Jiang Li cared so much about this matter, and because Ye Mingyu also found Feng Yutang utterly disgusting, if Xue Huaiyuan really was wronged, it was truly pitiful. Hating evil and upholding justice was the nature of people from the martial world—being so, what harm in drawing his sword to help when seeing injustice?

“Just investigating the evidence in the case files is far from enough. It doesn’t carry enough weight and wouldn’t hold up at the Court of Judicial Review,” Jiang Li said. “We also need witness testimony.”

“Witness testimony?” Ye Mingyu asked. “You mean having Tongxiang’s common people stand up to vindicate their former County Magistrate? How is that possible? Haven’t you seen how those common people avoid officials like mice avoiding cats? They’ve reached the point of ‘speaking with their eyes on the road’—they don’t even dare speak the truth. How could they dare stand up? And do you know, the guards learned today that previously when someone spoke up for Xue Huaiyuan, the authorities arrested that person’s son and used parents and children as threats. Even those with true righteousness in their hearts don’t dare speak the truth—the calamity must not reach wives and children!”

Jiang Li said, “That’s because Feng Yutang has gone too far, and moreover, Feng Yutang gives people the feeling that he can sit securely in this Deputy Magistrate position for a long, long time. That’s why the common people dare to be angry but don’t dare speak. Once the common people believe that Feng Yutang might fall, they’ll develop the courage to point out Feng Yutang’s crimes.”

“So? Are the common people you want to find the witness testimony?” Ye Mingyu asked.

“No,” Jiang Li shook her head. “What the common people can say is only Feng Yutang’s evil deeds and County Magistrate Xue’s integrity. These words can only serve as the last straw that breaks the camel’s back. They shouldn’t appear now, but at another time, when they’ll have much better effect.”

Ye Mingyu was even more confused. “Then A Li, who is the witness testimony you’re looking for?”

“The yamen runners,” Jiang Li’s gaze was deep. “Xue Huaiyuan’s former subordinates. Now all the yamen runners in the county office have been replaced by Feng Yutang. Those runners were all people of firm character. Feng Yutang replaced them with his own people, and no one knows if the original ones are dead or alive. If alive, they’re evidence; if dead, their corpses are also evidence. The entire county office’s yamen runners all dying unnatural deaths—that would surely be one of Northern Yan’s strange occurrences, wouldn’t it?”

Ye Mingyu was stunned listening to this.

Jiang Li’s gaze was calm, yet when she spoke these words, a chill flew from her eyes. But thinking about the scene Jiang Li’s words described, Ye Mingyu couldn’t help but feel his spine tingle. In the martial world, those who wiped out entire families were extremely rare, and even then it was due to deep blood feuds. Of course, there was also the saying about “a new emperor, new ministers,” but Feng Yutang was merely a small Deputy Magistrate. Could changing a Deputy Magistrate really require so many lives?

“A Li, how do you know these runners were all people replaced by Feng Yutang? You’ve never met them,” Ye Mingyu suddenly remembered something.

Jiang Li smiled, “You can tell at a glance. How could proper yamen runners have such bearing? Their words and actions show they don’t even know basic official etiquette. I don’t know where Feng Yutang found such a rabble. They were probably local thugs and ruffians before. When former County Magistrate Xue was there, how could he have had such subordinates? Unless he wanted to ruin his own reputation.”

Ye Mingyu saw her reasoning was sound and nodded, “Indeed so. I also saw those yamen runners weren’t any decent people.”

“A Li, do you want our guards to search for people everywhere in Tongxiang?”

“Not exactly. Although Tongxiang is small, the terrain is complex. I should find a map. But the problem is, once Feng Yutang discovers we’re looking for these runners, he’s very likely to hide them.”

“Then we’ll snatch them!” Ye Mingyu said without hesitation.

“We do need to snatch them, but not right now,” Jiang Li considered for a moment. “Uncle, there’s a mute woman in the county office who empties the night soil. Can you have your people find a way to bring her out to meet with me, without alerting anyone or being discovered by Feng Yutang’s people?”

“One person?” Ye Mingyu patted his chest. “No problem. I’m quite handy at abducting people.” Seeing Tong’er and Bai Xue’s stares, he scratched his head, “Last time Tong Zhiyang’s concubine and son—didn’t I personally abduct them? To this day Tong Zhiyang hasn’t discovered I was behind it.” He spoke with a somewhat proud air.

“Not abduct. This mute woman very likely knows where the runners are now,” Jiang Li said. “So, we must be careful.”

Ye Mingyu stood up, “Don’t worry. When has Uncle ever botched something for you?” He walked a few steps, then suddenly turned back and asked, “But this mute woman is called mute woman—she’s not actually mute, is she? If she’s mute, how will you question her? Does she know how to read and write?”

“She’s not mute,” Jiang Li said behind him. “She can speak.”

…

Ye Mingyu left.

After Ye Mingyu departed, Jiang Li had someone bring in paper, brush, and ink, and began carefully drawing a map for Ye Mingyu. No one understood Tongxiang better than she did. She knew every place in Tongxiang. If there was anywhere she didn’t know, it would be the now completely renovated county office—Feng Yutang had turned the county office into “his” county office, and Jiang Li didn’t know exactly how much had changed inside.

But for everywhere else in Tongxiang, she knew it like the back of her hand. With this map for his operations in Tongxiang, Ye Mingyu would be like a tiger with wings—no one could make it more detailed than she could.

After finishing the map, she began examining the case files again, recording the places with loopholes to see if she could use them later to uncover more evidence.

Without realizing it, time passed quickly. Bai Xue and Tong’er called Jiang Li to eat, but Jiang Li couldn’t spare the attention. The sky gradually darkened, and oil lamps were lit in the room. Only then did Jiang Li realize it was already night. She looked out the window and asked with a frown, “Uncle hasn’t returned yet?”

Bai Xue shook her head.

“Why has he been gone so long…” Jiang Li murmured. Just as she was speaking, Ah Shun, who served Ye Mingyu, came to report, “Young Miss, Third Master has returned and brought the mute woman back. Would you like to see her now?”

Jiang Li was pleasantly surprised, “I’ll come right away.”

When she went to the room to see the mute woman, the woman was wolfing down food, as if she hadn’t eaten anything good in a long time. Ye Mingyu sat to one side, legs crossed, gnawing on a steamed bun. Seeing Jiang Li arrive, he said as if claiming credit, “A Li, how about that? I brought the person back, and not a single person noticed.” Then he said, “Bah, Feng Yutang is really unlucky. He had people follow me. If I hadn’t had someone disguise themselves as me to lead them away, who knows when I could have shaken off that trouble. The place where the mute woman lives wasn’t under surveillance, but just to be safe, I still waited until dark to bring her over.”

Jiang Li looked at the mute woman.

The elderly woman with graying hair swallowed the last mouthful of congee, then looked at Jiang Li.

The mute woman’s face was deeply wrinkled with age, her eyelids drooping, her back hunched, her frame thin and small—she was just a frail elderly woman on the verge of death. Probably because she worked emptying night soil, her entire body emanated an unpleasant odor that others would avoid.

But Jiang Li showed no expression of disgust. She simply said calmly, “Mute Woman.”

The mute woman looked at Jiang Li for a while, then suddenly spoke, “Who are you?”

Ye Mingyu was startled. All along the way, from when he brought this old woman away, she hadn’t spoken a single word. Even her surprise at being taken away was only momentary. Having heard that elderly people were this unflappable, Ye Mingyu had assumed the old woman was slow. When Jiang Li had first said the mute woman could speak, Ye Mingyu thought it was a joke. Who knew the mute woman would actually speak now? Her voice was hoarse but still quite clear. He muttered, “She really can talk.”

“My name is Jiang Li.” Jiang Li looked at her and smiled. “Mute Woman, I’ve asked you here to inquire about County Magistrate Xue’s former subordinates—where they are now.”

The mute woman said, “I don’t know.”

Jiang Li smiled, “How could you not know? Feng Yutang replaced all of Xue Huaiyuan’s people, but he alone didn’t replace you. Probably because he thought you wouldn’t cause trouble. But I know you do know, don’t you?”

The mute woman said, “I know, but I can’t say. If I speak, I’ll lose my life.”

“Don’t you want to take revenge for County Magistrate Xue?” Jiang Li smiled. “County Magistrate Xue was a good person.” There was another sentence she didn’t say—Xue Huaiyuan had once helped the mute woman.

The mute woman had originally been a widow whose husband died young. She had no children and didn’t remarry. Because of her ugly appearance and being alone, she was often bullied. When Xue Huaiyuan brought his family to take up his post, the mute woman was already an ugly old woman who was bullied by others.

She often picked up leftover food that others had discarded, but was unwilling to beg on the streets. She often went hungry, eating irregularly. Xue Huaiyuan, seeing she was elderly and truly pitiful, had her empty night soil at the county office. She could receive some monthly wages, enough to eat her fill and dress warmly.

Without Xue Huaiyuan, the mute woman would probably have frozen to death on some winter day long ago. And the reason she was called “mute” was because after years of being bullied by others, she gradually became unwilling to speak, and others assumed she couldn’t speak. But Jiang Li knew the mute woman could speak, because once when Xue Zhao gave her wild fruit he’d picked, she heard the mute woman say “thank you” to Xue Zhao.

Feng Yutang had replaced everyone in the county office except the mute woman, probably because he thought she was just someone who emptied night soil, of no use, and moreover, she was mute—even if she truly saw or heard something, she couldn’t tell anyone.

But the moment Jiang Li saw the mute woman still there at the county office today, she knew her opportunity had come.

The mute woman looked at Jiang Li woodenly, making her seem like a fake puppet. She said vaguely, “Why should I trust you?”

“This isn’t about trusting me,” Jiang Li said softly. “This is about trusting fairness and justice.”

“Is County Magistrate Xue’s imprisonment fair? Is someone like Feng Yutang sitting in the position of local official just? Setting aside everything else, when County Magistrate Xue was here, Mute Woman, you lived much better than now, didn’t you? At least you ate your fill and dressed warmly, didn’t you?” Jiang Li smiled, her gaze sweeping to the table beside them, where the food had been completely cleared by the mute woman. The winter clothes the mute woman wore had many holes torn in them.

The mute woman lowered her head.

The wealthy young miss before her spoke correctly. In the past when Xue Huaiyuan was here, she ate her fill and dressed warmly. Xue Huaiyuan’s son Xue Zhao and daughter Xue Fangfei often sent things to help her. Now, although she was still at the county office, forget about monthly wages—even what she ate daily was leftovers from the yamen runners.

Life was hard. The days under Feng Yutang’s administration were like those days when she was bullied in her youth. But why in this world did good people never live long while scourges lasted a thousand years?

The mute woman raised her head again to look at Jiang Li. She asked, “Why do you want to help the Xue family?”

“I have a connection with the Xue family,” Jiang Li said. “I’m also acting at someone’s request to vindicate the Xue family. Please rest assured, I won’t tell others that you told us these things. Feng Yutang won’t be able to trace it to you either. I can guarantee your safety.”

The mute woman laughed hoarsely. When she laughed, the wrinkles on her face bunched together, yet compared to her earlier gloom, she looked much more kindly. She said, “What do I have to fear? I’ve lived this long—I’ve lived enough already. I’ve stayed at the county office just to see how long Feng Yutang can remain as Deputy Magistrate. I hoped to take revenge for the Xue family, but I couldn’t do it. I waited and waited, and finally, I’ve waited for you.”

Ye Mingyu’s mouth fell open. For so many words to suddenly come from this taciturn old woman was truly astonishing. Yet what she said was moving.

Jiang Li quietly looked at her. After a long moment, she reached out and grasped the mute woman’s hand. “Thank you.”

The young, full hand and the aged, withered hand clasped together, as if injecting new life into the elderly woman. The mute woman’s eyes became very bright. She spoke slowly but clearly, word by word.

“Feng Yutang and his people replaced everyone in the county office. When Magistrate Xue was imprisoned, his subordinates refused to accept it and were locked up. One who struggled fiercely, Xiao Hei, was killed by them. As for the rest, Feng Yutang was afraid killing too many would cause trouble, so he sent them to the mine tunnels at East Mountain to dig ore.”

“East Mountain mine tunnels?” Jiang Li was surprised. “Isn’t that an abandoned mine?”

The mute woman glanced at her. “How rare that you know about it.”

Ye Mingyu interjected, “What mine is that? Tongxiang has a mine?”

The mute woman sighed, “Few people know about the mine. By the younger generation, let alone outsiders, even Tongxiang locals don’t know Tongxiang has a mine. Decades ago, someone dug up gold in East Mountain in Tongxiang. Others said it was a gold mine and reported it to the court. The court sent people down to survey and had people mine the tunnels. But after digging for a whole year, aside from a little on the surface, no gold mine was found. The officials in charge of mining were all dismissed, and this mine became an abandoned mine.”

Jiang Li listened to the mute woman’s words, her expression not surprised like Ye Mingyu’s. The younger generation in Tongxiang, and even some older people, didn’t know about this, but she knew. Before Xue Huaiyuan took up his post, he studied Tongxiang’s past, and he had personally examined the matter of the East Mountain mine.

Jiang Li asked, “If it’s an abandoned mine, why would Feng Yutang send them there?”

The mute woman sneered coldly, “Because Feng Yutang wants to torment these people. He sent them to the mine and makes them work in the tunnels from dawn to dusk until they dig out gold. Everyone knows East Mountain can’t produce gold—those people will never be able to dig out gold in their lifetime, and they’ll never be able to come out.”

“This is abuse of authority. Mine excavations all require reporting to the court. He’s actually mining gold privately. Even if it’s an abandoned mine, this is enough to constitute a crime!” Jiang Li said angrily.

“Miss, you should know that no one working in the mines has a comfortable life. Moreover, Feng Yutang intended to torment them from the start, so he would only intensify his cruelty. I heard Feng Yutang’s subordinates say those runners were stripped naked, their limbs bound in shackles, forced to work all day. If they don’t work well, they’re beaten and kicked at every turn. Deaths and injuries are common occurrences. Fine seven-foot tall men living worse than dogs. If this continues, who knows how many can hold on, how many are still alive.”

“This is too much!” After hearing the mute woman’s words, Ye Mingyu slapped the table. “Simply unconscionable!”

Jiang Li pressed her lips together without speaking. Making former yamen runners into slaves for others to drive—Jiang Li could imagine their miserable current state. Such torment was not only physical torture but also devastating to their self-respect.

Feng Yutang truly did whatever he wanted in Tongxiang.

“That’s all I know,” the mute woman said. “Miss, if you want to find those missing runners, go look at East Mountain. But don’t let anyone discover you—Feng Yutang’s subordinates are still monitoring there… Do you know where East Mountain is?”

“I know,” Jiang Li said. “I know how to find those people.”

The mute woman looked at her and slowly said, “Miss, I don’t know what your background is, but since you’ve begun investigating the Xue family case, I hope you’ll investigate to the end. These old bones of mine are about to enter the coffin. As long as I can see the Xue family vindicated and see that Heaven still has fairness and justice, sacrificing this life of mine is nothing to question.”

“Rest assured,” Jiang Li looked at her and said as if taking an oath, “I swear I will investigate to the end. I won’t give up halfway. No matter what troubles I encounter, I absolutely won’t abandon this. If I violate this oath, may I be struck by Heaven’s thunder.”

The mute woman’s heart settled.