Chapter 156: Chapter 81 Framing Him_2
Du Changqing turned around, "What did you say?"
Lu Tong slightly lowered her head, and when she raised it again, her gaze had returned to its calm state.
She sighed, "Well, I originally did not intend to speak of this matter, but as misunderstandings snowball into something bigger, it cannot end well without clarification. It’s better to speak openly."
She walked to the tree, handed the lantern she was holding to Yin Zheng, and her gaze fell on the bloody corpse of the pig in the courtyard.
"A few days ago, I intended to make a new medicine. The ingredients and activators for this new medicine are quite special: half a bowl of freshly spilt pig’s blood, pig hearts, lungs, intestines, and stomach stored in wet mud for three days, as well as rotting pig head meat."
"I know these materials are not hard to come by, but after all, the medical hall is a place for medical treatment and selling medicine. If people saw blood and gore, it would inevitably cause panic. Moreover, most people only see the finished medicine when they buy it. Any inappropriate medicinal materials would affect their mood when taking it."
In the night, her voice was gentle and pleasant, speaking unhurriedly and clearly.
"Because I was worried about this, I went to Dai’s Butcher Shop to look for a live pig and bought one. Then, taking advantage of the night when no one was around, I dragged the pig back and buried it under the tree. The pig head meat was also specially wrapped and placed under the couch; it was not yet rotten, and opening the box would serve no purpose."
"I did this to avoid panic. I did not expect someone to see it, let alone cause such absurd suspicions." She smiled, glancing at Xia Rongrong with a meaningful tone.
Everyone suddenly understood.
It was for making a new medicine.
That was not impossible. It was common to hear about the development of new medicines that always required bizarre materials, such as insects, nails, hair, and stones. Rotten pig meat was certainly not beyond the realm of possibility.
Seeing this, Dai Sanlang hurriedly said, "Indeed, that is the case. Doctor Lu came last night to drag the pig away. Considering how frail she looked, I specifically picked out a lean one for her, and I was the one who took the bowl of pig’s blood for her. If you don’t believe me, you can go to my shop and see. The other half of the pig is still unsold in my shop, piece it together, and you can even make out a couple of pieces!"
With both person and evidence present, trying to impose a charge of murder on Lu Tong was truly a stretch.
Shen Fengying’s face looked somewhat ugly, having stirred up all this fuss for half the night, using so many people and horses, only to find half a rotten pig’s head?
Pah! He had made such an effort to show off in front of Pei Yunmeng, and now he was the butt of the joke!
Thinking this, Shen Fengying shot Bai Shouyi, the one who accused him with such conviction, a fierce glance. If it weren’t for this man’s guarantees when he made the accusation, why would he have made such a fool of himself!
Bai Shouyi’s face turned a bit stiff, a stiffness that was caught by Xia Rongrong at his side.
Xia Rongrong bit her lip.
She was originally scared, thinking that tonight Lu Tong would be taken away by the government officers, and then she would have to face the wrath of Du Changqing. But perhaps because Bai Shouyi shared the burden of anger, her fear wasn’t so profound.
Yet under the courtyard’s plum tree, what was dug up was only a half pig’s corpse.
How could it be a pig?
Clearly last night, she had pressed her eyes tightly against the crack of the window. The deep autumn wind was quiet, and she heard Lu Tong talking to the maid, amid the murmuring, the words "corpse" were especially clear.
That night, Lu Tong’s white cloak shined under the lamp with mottled bloodstains. That cloak was now wrapping the pig’s head, the hue of blood more numerous, deeper, almost soaking the fabric completely through, leaving no trace of white.
No, no!
Xia Rongrong suddenly realized.
Dai Sanlang said that he had killed the pig last night, but Lu Tong’s cloak had blood on it the day before!
She was lying!
Xia Rongrong’s eyes brightened as she grasped Du Changqing’s sleeve and pointed at the person in front of her. Her voice trembled slightly with excitement.
"She’s lying! I saw her bring back the bloody garment from outside the night before last, not last night. These are not the same thing! She’s deliberately blurring your vision; she really killed someone!"
Shen Fengying was somewhat skeptical, but Lu Tong remained composed as she looked over at Xia Rongrong and spoke calmly, "Miss Xia, are you perhaps dreaming or mistaken? Voicing over and over that I committed murder, now below the tree there is pig meat, under the bed a pig’s head. If you can find other bloodstained clothes, that would work too...but I’m afraid just your words alone aren’t enough to convict me."
"Or could it be... Does Miss Xia have some dissatisfaction with me?"
Xia Rongrong was taken aback.
Where could she find the evidence? All evidence had been erased by Lu Tong; the bloodstained garment had either been changed or had long been drenched in pig’s blood, leaving nothing distinguishable.