Chapter 601 Confession
Just as Jiao Lianyu was about to enter the house to check, Qi Changlin finally recovered from his rage. He loosened his grip, and the blood-stained scissors clattered to the ground.
The village elder grabbed Qi Ji Dayeye's arm, his voice trembling, "That was Lord Qiu's youngest son. Changlin, you... what are we going to do?"
It was no wonder the village elder was so worried. Qi Ji Dayeye was also pale, his aged body seeming to be assailed by the cold wind, making him sway precariously, as if he might pass out if he couldn't catch his breath.
Earlier, Qi Ji Dayeye had only ordered people to guard the door, not daring to confirm Qiu Huaixin as the adulterer, precisely because of his identity. But who could have imagined that Qi Changlin would act so impulsively and rashly, killing him outright. m..oΓg
The village and the Qi family, whether they relied on Qi Changlin for support in the future or not, had now incurred a deadly feud. If the village was targeted by the Qiu family because of this, Qi Ji Dayeye dared not imagine what their future days would be like.
"One man's actions, one man's responsibility." A hoarse voice rang out. Qi Changlin, capable of passing the imperial examinations, was not foolish. He understood the worries of his great-uncle and the village elder. At this moment, staring at his blood-stained hands with red eyes, he spoke word by word: "If Lord Qiu pursues this matter later, I will bear it alone and will absolutely not implicate the village."
The village elder glanced at the crestfallen Qi Changlin, opened his mouth, and finally fell silent. Changlin was too engrossed in his studies. Even if Lord Qiu pursued the matter, would he personally take action?
Without even needing Lord Qiu's order, the yamen runners and the gentry from the prefecture would target the village to curry favor with Lord Qiu, leaving these common folk with no recourse.
Not to mention far away, the village elder recalled an old incident. Just because they had offended the young master of the Yulong Business, their village had to pay double the price for goods compared to other villagers.
If they couldn't afford the silver, they wouldn't buy. These shops didn't lack the profit from this, but to make things difficult for the villagers. Not only were the prices of cloth expensive, but also oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other daily necessities. The shopkeepers had colluded to target them, and they didn't lack this little bit of money.
It was Qi Changlin who had stepped in to mediate. Although he was still a commoner at the time, he was a scholar, and the young master of the Yulong Business had to show him some respect.
Furthermore, Qi Changlin was friendly with Jiao Lianyu. If one didn't look at the monk, one could still look at the Buddha. This matter was then resolved.
Thinking back to the scene of begging and pleading at the time, the village elder felt that offending just a merchant's son had caused the entire village to suffer. Now, they had offended the Qiu family, and the person killed was Lord Qiu's youngest son. The village elder dared not imagine what their fate would be.
"What happened? Why is everyone gathered here?" Suddenly, a voice sounded from outside the courtyard gate.
The villagers gathered in the courtyard simply turned their heads to look at the elegantly dressed young nobleman at the entrance. However, Qi Ji Tangbo, who was helping with the cooking, widened his eyes in shock, pointing a finger at the person at the entrance and exclaiming, "A ghost..."
Qi Changlin also suddenly looked up, his expression changing drastically, "You!"
"Huaixin?" Jiao Lianyu, who had returned from the house upon hearing the familiar voice, also had a look of great alarm. The other three friends widened their eyes even further. Then, as if remembering something, all three turned their heads in unison to look at the blood-stained bed behind them. Huaixin was standing perfectly fine outside the courtyard. Then who was the person killed on the bed?
Before anyone could figure it out, more commotion erupted from outside the courtyard. It was the yamen constables arriving on horseback.
"Encircle the courtyard!" The leading constable began giving orders before he even dismounted. A group of constables in their uniforms, with sabers at their sides, quickly surrounded the courtyard. The villagers who hadn't managed to leave were now trapped within Qi Changlin's courtyard.
The villagers standing outside the courtyard gate had already retreated far away, none daring to obstruct the constables. They were all terrified, but they didn't leave, as the village elder and Qi Ji Dayeye were still inside the courtyard.
Jiao Zhifu and Master Wei, who arrived on horseback a moment later, reined in their horses urgently. Both officials were somewhat exhausted from the hurried journey. This year was definitely a tumultuous one. They had galloped at full speed several times. If this happened a few more times, they wouldn't need to beg the court for retirement; their bones would be rattled to pieces, and they might as well die in the line of duty.
"Third Young Master?" Upon seeing the nobleman at the courtyard entrance, Master Wei, who had dismounted, felt his legs weaken, almost causing him to fall.
Jiao Zhifu took a closer look and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He had received news at the yamen that Qiu Huaixin was in trouble, and Jiao Zhifu was both anxious and uneasy.
Qi Changlin was friendly with Lianyu, and especially in recent times, he had visited the mansion frequently. Jiao Zhifu had met him several times and understood Qi Changlin's temperament. Upon hearing the news, Jiao Zhifu knew something was amiss and immediately rushed over with his men.
As soon as they reached the village entrance, they heard several women shouting loudly that someone had been murdered. Scholar Qi had killed someone! Jiao Zhifu almost fell off his horse. Seeing Qiu Huaixin safe and sound now, he truly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, it was a false alarm.
A moment later, the Qi family's main hall was not large enough. The weather was clear and crisp today, and with the entire village gathered around the Qi family's surroundings, Jiao Zhifu decided to hold the trial in the courtyard.
"Thank you, Third Young Master." Looking at the tea served by Shi Song, Jiao Zhifu did not stand on ceremony. He thanked him and then picked up the cup to take a sip. As a civil official who had rushed all the way, Jiao Zhifu didn't know how much dust he had ingested. He was indeed parched at the moment.
Master Wei, sitting below and assisting with the recording, also did not stand on ceremony. He finished a cup of tea in one gulp and glanced at the leisurely Qiu Huaixin.
Just a few days ago, there was the incident of the Qiu family's third young master forcing an elder to his death. Although it was later clarified that Madam Dou did not commit suicide by jumping into the well but was murdered by an assassin lurking in the well, Qiu Huaixin was then cleared of suspicion.
After a few days of quiet, there were rumors of the Qiu family's third young master taking advantage of his drunkenness to harass his friend's wife.
Looking at Qi Changlin's blood-stained hands and the embroidery scissors presented as evidence, Master Wei felt that not only was Qianzhong Dao in turmoil, but Qiu Huaixin was definitely having a run of bad luck. Otherwise, how could so many incidents happen consecutively?
Due to his advanced age, Qi Ji Dayeye was granted permission by Jiao Zhifu to sit on the lowest stool to observe. The village elder and others stood to the side. The Qi family's courtyard looked like a courtroom.
Without Jiao Zhifu needing to speak, Qiu Huaixin was the first to explain the situation. "I drank a bit too quickly at noon. After lying down in the guest room at the Qi family's, my headache persisted, so I asked Shi Song to accompany me out for a stroll to sober up."
There seemed to be nothing wrong with these words. At that time, Qiu Huaixin had gone to rest while drunk, and Jiao Lianyu, Qi Changlin, and the others were still drinking in the main hall, all somewhat tipsy. It was normal that they didn't notice Qiu Huaixin leaving the guest room.
"Then who was the adulterer in the room?" A villager asked subconsciously. When Jiao Zhifu and the others looked at him in unison, the villager realized he had spoken out of turn, and to the officials at that, making him turn pale with fright, his legs trembling.
Jiao Zhifu and Master Wei had handled countless cases over the years. Without Qiu Huaixin speaking, they knew the conspiracy involved. At this moment, Jiao Zhifu followed up on the villager's question, "Third Young Master, could you please tell us who the deceased is and why he was wearing your outer garment?"
Qi Changlin had been too enraged at the time, and the adulterer on the bed was lying on his side, his back to the door. Coupled with the outer garment of the same color, Qi Changlin, having lost his reason, failed to notice that this adulterer was not Qiu Huaixin at all. He then killed the person with a few snips of the scissors.
"Answering the official," Shi Song, who was standing behind Qiu Huaixin, stepped forward, bowed to Jiao Zhifu, and said, "I accompanied the young master for a walk in the back mountain, and unexpectedly encountered an assassination..."
According to Shi Song's account, the situation was dangerous at the time, and Qiu Huaixin had drunk a lot. Although they had temporarily avoided danger under Shi Song's escort, who knew if there were still ambushes ahead.
So, Shi Song decided to go all out. He had Qiu Huaixin take off his outer garment and remove his headdress. He then put the outer garment of Qiu Huaixin onto an assassin he had killed, and also placed his jade crown on the assassin.
Then, Shi Song carried the body back to the guest room at the Qi family's, intending to make it look realistic, making people believe that Qiu Huaixin had returned to the Qi family's residence. After completing all this, Shi Song returned to the back mountain to find Qiu Huaixin. Fearing any rash moves, they found a cave to hide in temporarily.
It wasn't until Qiu family reinforcements arrived in the back mountain after receiving the signal from Shi Song that Shi Song brought the now sober Qiu Huaixin back to the Qi family. As soon as they arrived at the courtyard entrance and before they could enter, they heard the news that Qi Changlin had killed someone. Before Qiu Huaixin could understand, the arriving constables had already surrounded the Qi family, and Jiao Zhifu and Master Wei had also arrived.
"You may step aside for now." Jiao Zhifu signaled Shi Song to step aside after listening to his account and then glanced at Qi Changlin, who was kneeling below.
Although Shi Song claimed that he had carried the corpse back to disguise it as Young Master Qiu San, Jiao Zhifu had just inspected the guest room. The blood had not only soaked the bed but had also splashed onto the walls and the floor.
If this were truly a corpse, considering the time elapsed, Qi Changlin might have gotten some blood on himself with a few snips of the scissors, but it would not have splashed so high and so far. This indicated that Qi Changlin had killed a living person, not a corpse.
However, with Shi Song's statement, Jiao Zhifu had to consider it carefully. If Qi Changlin killed someone, his life would be ruined, regardless of whether the person was an assassin. But if he had only made a few snips at a corpse, he could be acquitted.
(End of Chapter)