Farm Girl's Manor
Chapter 724: The Last Struggle (1)_1

Chapter 724: Chapter 724: The Last Struggle (1)_1

The cells within the Ministry of Justice’s Prison typically held the Court’s major criminals and were usually sent to their designated locations after trial. Therefore, at the moment, the entire prison was not very crowded, and the cells near Mo Qingze’s were completely empty.

With Liyan and Tang Xin guarding outside the cell, Mo Yan confidently discussed plans for escape with her father, without fear of being overheard.

"... Father has a way to prove his innocence, and will be able to return home soon. Yanyan, take good care of the household, and just wait for father’s return with peace of mind," Mo Qingze said with a gentle expression, which alleviated some of the tension in the air.

Mo Yan, thinking these to be words of comfort from her father, quickly responded, "Father, you can rest assured that your daughter will take good care of home, and I will also find a way to rescue you. What you need to do is keep yourself safe. If someone wants to torture you, don’t try to withstand it... In any case, your daughter will certainly get you out!"

On hearing this, Mo Qingze’s heart was filled with mixed emotions. He didn’t want to reveal the entire strategy to his daughter, knowing her temperament, she wouldn’t disown him as her father even if she were upset with him putting himself in danger. However, the adversaries facing their family were too powerful, and if he didn’t seize this opportunity to bring them down, they would only come back with more vicious schemes.

Since they had already reached this point, there was no turning back. Telling his daughter the truth would only add to her anxieties. If King Heng or the Lin Family caught wind of it, their next move would be jeopardized.

Knowing that Mo Yan did not believe him, Mo Qingze stroked her head and said helplessly, "Father indeed has a means of escape, but the time is not right to tell you. On the day of the public trial, you will see that father did not lie to you! Besides, this matter is really aimed at the Crown Prince, and since he is aware, he will not ignore it. Rest assured!"

After listening to her father, Mo Yan felt that what he said made sense. With the situation escalating so quickly overnight, it was impossible for Chu Heng not to be aware of the intricacies involved. Knowing this, he wouldn’t just sit back and wait for doom. As long as Chu Heng was willing to take action and expose King Heng and the Lin Family’s schemes, her father would be safe.

She also didn’t discount the possibility that Chu Heng might push all the blame onto her father if he couldn’t cleanse himself of suspicion, but that seemed highly unlikely. If Chu Heng was truly without any means, he wouldn’t have been able to maintain his position as the Crown Prince for over twenty years while dealing with his poor health.

Thinking this, Mo Yan was somewhat relieved. Although she was curious about the means of escape her father had, she knew that pressing further would be futile as he wouldn’t reveal it. She simply said, "Since father is confident, your daughter won’t interfere any further! But as always, you must protect yourself. If King Heng and the Lin Family send someone to force you to confess to cheating, or to torment you with private punishment, don’t resist, just get through the torture for now!"

Having heard such words twice in a short span of time, Mo Qingze was moved yet amused. To prevent his daughter from worrying about this, he explained the penal laws of Great Chu to her with a chuckle.

After listening, Mo Yan realized she had made a huge blunder. The laws of Great Chu stipulated that suspects could not be subjected to private punishment before a formal interrogation.

Being accused of cheating with both witnesses and evidence against him, Mo Qingze was to be brought directly to a public court for trial, omitting the preliminary interrogation, which naturally meant nobody would torture him to extract a confession. During the public trial, if he could present evidence of his innocence, he would be cleared; but without evidence or refusal to accept the verdict, torture would be used to force a confession.

Of course, this was not absolute. Some local officials, for the sake of their political achievements, often resorted to private punishment to coerce confessions from suspects. While some of these suspects were indeed guilty and thus it was somewhat justifiable, there were also many who were wrongly convicted—how else could there be so many miscarriages of justice?