Having this reaction proved that the son was indeed his precious treasure. All of Song Chuyi’s painstaking efforts to extract the whereabouts of his son and wife from Madam Fang’s side had not been in vain.

Song Chuyi smiled with satisfaction, her tone softening slightly. “Since you keep insisting it has nothing to do with him, then who does it have to do with? I know you, Estate Owner Huang, think you have backing that can protect you, but you should also consider that Magistrate Song is not some poor scholar without foundations either. When both sides fight in court, who wins and who loses is uncertain, but the people in between can easily become cannon fodder. Don’t you agree?”

Estate Owner Huang heard that the speaker seemed to be a young lady, but then he immediately felt he was thinking too simply—where would there be such a formidable young lady, not only sharp-tongued but also keen-eyed and quick-witted, carrying at least ten thousand schemes in her heart?

He had been led along by her words just now, unable to even utter a word of denial. His eyeballs rolled behind the black cloth, and he asked somewhat unwillingly, “How do I know you’re not trying to trick me?”

Ma San was impatient with all this beating around the bush. He stretched out his foot and kicked his back again, cursing as well. “Damn it! You really think you’re somebody important? We went through so much trouble to go to Changsha to find your ancestral home, following the trail to your wife and son staying at your country sister-in-law’s house—do we still have time to trick you?! Let me tell you honestly, we’ve already caught the servant who agreed with you back then to make a false accusation after the woman killed herself by running into a pillar. We’re just waiting for you alone. You’d better tell me the truth!”

The last trace of hope in Estate Owner Huang’s heart vanished. He collapsed on the ground like a homeless dog, looking completely resigned to his fate. “There’s nothing else to say. As long as you don’t implicate my son, I’ll agree to anything.”

Song Chuyi had been waiting for exactly these words. She sneered and said, “There’s nothing for you to agree to. You just need to honestly tell the officials who connected you, who arranged the bridge, and who personally handled having you slander Magistrate Song. That will be enough.”

But saying these things would mean death, wouldn’t it?

Even if the Song family was willing to spare him then, the people behind him weren’t easy to provoke either. Estate Owner Huang’s face turned ashen, and even the hair on the black mole on his cheek was visibly trembling.

After contemplating for a long while, he finally agreed, but couldn’t help trying to negotiate conditions with Song Chuyi. “Can the young lady guarantee I won’t die… preferably…”

“Preferably you’d also have fields and land, be reunited with your wife and beloved son and daughter in domestic bliss, right?” Song Chuyi lowered her head and glanced at him. “I heard that your father opened the ancestral hall and removed you from the clan register because you refused to support him in his old age, adopting your cousin to care for him in his final years. But as soon as the old man died, you used silver to pave the way and kicked your cousin out again. These fields and lands were never yours to begin with. It was Magistrate Song who originally awarded them to you, but your cousin’s family has never accepted it. They’re probably just waiting for the next magistrate to sue you again.”

Such a person—if he were still allowed to prosper and become a wealthy estate owner with fields and land, who knows how many more people he would harm in the future?

Estate Owner Huang struggled and quietly tried to justify himself. “So Magistrate Song isn’t a good person either. Why must you help him?”

Song Chuyi acted as if she hadn’t heard, intensifying her tone to threaten him. “What words should and shouldn’t be said when you’re in court—you’d better weigh it carefully in your heart. I know you’re a two-faced person who loves to sit on the fence and grab grass from both sides, but that’s fine. I now hold your promising son and your precious daughter in my hands. If you say even one wrong word, I can make your entire family die without a burial place in an instant. If you don’t believe me, feel free to try!”

Even such old matters from years past could be dug up. How could Estate Owner Huang dare not believe what this young lady said? He fell silent for a while, curling up in the corner sighing and lamenting, looking as if his heart and liver had been carved out alive.

Song Chuyi instructed Ma San to watch the man carefully and stepped out of the courtyard.

Ye Jingchuan followed her out closely. Seeing the vast expanse of white ground, he asked somewhat curiously, “Where did you recruit so many fierce subordinates from? Are you comfortable using them? If not, I’ll find some reliable people for you?”

Song Chuyi saw that Qing Ying and Qing Tao had already followed out, so she shook her head. “There is indeed something I need your help with, but not this. These people are ones I requested from my uncle. I know their backgrounds well, so don’t worry.”

When Ye Jingchuan heard the people were from the Cui family, he naturally didn’t ask further. Instead, he focused his attention on Song Chuyi’s mention of needing help and immediately became energized. “What is it? Tell me, there’s nothing I won’t do for you!”

“I heard the Ministry of Justice has been putting great effort into investigating this case.” Song Chuyi stood under the banyan tree and swept her gaze across the courtyard, then turned to look at Ye Jingchuan. “Why don’t you take the opportunity when you’re visiting Lord Cen’s residence with Guo Yantang to drop him a hint?”

Ye Jingchuan immediately understood Song Chuyi’s meaning. She wanted to use his and Guo Yantang’s mouths to make Cen Biliang suspect Estate Owner Huang.

He was going to help Song Chuyi anyway, and now the task she was asking him to do was just a matter of opening his mouth, so naturally there was no reason to refuse. After thinking for a moment, he nodded. “I have no reason to decline this, but how should I say it so it doesn’t seem too deliberate?”

After all, he was from the Prince of Zhennan’s household, and everyone knew the Prince of Zhennan’s household and Changning Earl’s household were family friends.

Song Chuyi curved her lips into a clever smile, her long eyelashes fluttering up and down like butterfly wings. “Isn’t that simple? You just need to say that Estate Owner Huang approached you privately wanting to sell the two plots of land in Yongzhou, and that he also said some inappropriate things while drunk. Wouldn’t that work?”

Estate Owner Huang on one hand kept claiming the land had been seized, while on the other swore that the land could be immediately sold. When Cen Biliang routinely opened court to inquire, the already disciplined Estate Owner Huang would naturally tell the truth. The servant that the Ministry of Justice had been frustrated about not finding had now been found, and Huang Zhen’er being alive and well was already an indisputable fact. The family of the girl who died in Huang Zhen’er’s place had all been found—ready-made witnesses were all present. Add to that the land agency that had already been taken care of, and wouldn’t the case already be very clear?

Ye Jingchuan only needed to think briefly to understand Song Chuyi’s meaning. He clapped his hands excitedly. “I understand! You just need someone to provide supporting evidence. Once I remind Uncle Cen, he’ll naturally think of the suspicious points in this case. When Estate Owner Huang is interrogated, Uncle’s innocence will naturally be proven.”