The Double
Chapter 279 - 111 Mute Granny_2

Chapter 279: Chapter 111 Mute Granny_2

Tonger moved quietly to pour tea for Jiang Li. Jiang Li, deeply engrossed in thought, didn’t notice the tea near her hand. When she reached out to stifle a wave of nausea, the teacup clattered to the ground, and the scalding hot tea splashed all over Jiang Li’s arm.

"Oh no!" Tonger exclaimed in shock and hurriedly took a handkerchief to wipe Jiang Li, while wiping she said, "Miss, are you alright? Bai Xue, bring some burn ointment quick!"

Bai Xue hurried off, and Ye Mingyu, hearing the commotion, quickly came over and asked, "What happened? What’s going on?"

Tonger was so filled with self-reproach that tears were about to fall as she said, "It’s all this servant’s fault. I spilled the tea and scalded the miss. I hope it doesn’t leave a scar. What should we do..."

"Jiang Li, are you alright? Does it hurt?" Ye Mingyu turned to look at Jiang Li, only to see her sitting there in a daze, gazing at the shattered teacup on the floor.

Ye Mingyu initially thought Jiang Li was stupefied from the pain and quickly stepped forward, waving his hand in front of her face. "Jiang Li? Jiang Li?"

Jiang Li, still in a daze, directed her gaze towards him, as if she’d just come to her senses. However, she immediately stood up and said excitedly, "I know, I’ve got it!"

"Know what?" Ye Mingyu was puzzled, and so was Tonger.

"According to Northern Yan’s laws, with conclusive human and material evidence, one can accuse local officials at a higher court. But the higher court is Tong Zhiyang, who may not be willing to help. I’ve thought it through, and the only way is to bring this case to Yanjing City, and let Dali Temple reexamine it. But the case I want to investigate is not the Xue Family’s, but Feng Yutang’s. As long as Feng Yutang is involved in this case himself, he can no longer interfere with it. Evidence handled by Feng Yutang becomes invalid!"

This was to avoid conflict of interest. With the evidence "arranged" by Feng Yutang, Jiang Li might as well sort it out herself, because once at Dali Temple, none of Feng Yutang’s evidence would count. On the contrary, she had no relation with the Xue Family and was an outsider in truth.

Ye Mingyu, not being a man of officialdom and not very familiar with the bureaucracy of Northern Yan, only asked, "But why would Dali Temple take a case from Tongxiang?"

A case from Tongxiang, was it really worth making such a fuss about?

"That’s why we need to make a big deal out of it," Jiang Li said.

The act of knocking over the teacup reminded her that merely causing a splash in Tongxiang was far from enough. The stir needed to be bigger, much bigger; if it involved a noble from Yanjing City, even better. With all eyes drawn to it, the Xue Family’s case would no longer be just a simple case of a corrupt official. It might be framed as entrapment, possibly connected to past cases, or maybe even treated as an act of treason.

She was not afraid at all; she would turn the case into an ever-increasing uproar. If Dali Temple also refused to take it, she would go to the emperor. No matter how Emperor Hongxiao appeared to be at peace with Prince Cheng and Princess Ping, if a loyal and honest official was framed, it would lead people to question whether the emperor was truly Heaven’s chosen. Even just to stabilize the public’s heart, Emperor Hongxiao would not let it be. Besides, Prince Cheng and Emperor Hongxiao were natural born enemies.

Emperor Hongxiao would not miss any opportunity to disadvantage Prince Cheng.

Ye Mingyu thought about it and still didn’t understand, so he asked, "How do you plan to make a big deal out of it?" Frankly, the Xue Family had nothing to do with Ye Mingyu. However, since Jiang Li was so invested in this matter, and since he found Feng Yutang utterly abhorrent, it would be tragic if Xue Huaiyuan was wronged. Taking a stand against evil and upholding justice was the ethos of their martial arts world, so why not help out this time?

"Just examining the evidence from the records is far from enough. It doesn’t carry enough weight, it won’t make sense at Dali Temple," Jiang Li said: "We also need witnesses."

"Witnesses?" Ye Mingyu asked, "You mean the people of Tongxiang standing up to vindicate their former magistrate? How could that be possible? Didn’t you see how the common folk avoid the officials like the plague, keeping well out of their way? They’re utterly silenced, too scared to speak the truth, so how can they dare to stand up? And do you know, today the guards found out that those who spoke up for Xue Huaiyuan had their children taken away by the officials, using their families to threaten them. Even those with a sense of justice are too frightened to speak the truth, to prevent harm to their wives and children!"

Jiang Li said, "That’s because Feng Yutang has gone too far, and he gives the impression that he can stay in his position as magistrate for a long time. That’s why the people dare not speak. Once they believe that Feng Yutang might fall, they will gather courage to point out his crimes."