The Double
Chapter 289 - 113 East Mountain_2

Chapter 289: Chapter 113 East Mountain_2

One may ascend to the heavens if they find the Way, yet this proverb did not prove true for the Xue Family. Shen Yurong did find the Way, but only by climbing over the Xue Family’s bloodshed. And He Jun, a man of learning, was trapped in this mine, so emaciated he was nothing but skin and bones.

"Who are you, and why do you want to exonerate his lordship?" He Jun asked.

At this time, his mind was surprisingly clear, and he could still inquire of Jiang Li.

"My name is Jiang Li," Jiang Li responded candidly, to the astonishment of Ye Mingyu. She continued, "I am the legitimate daughter of the current Grand Secretary Jiang Yuanbai. I came to Tongxiang at the behest of the daughter of County Magistrate Xue, Xue Fangfei, to overturn the verdict against the Xue Family."

"Jiang Yuanbai?" The group was momentarily puzzled; for them, Yanjing was too distant, and the Grand Secretary in Yanjing City was an entity they had never even seen. Peng Xiao stared at her and said, "Miss Xue is already dead."

Jiang Li sighed inwardly. If even Peng Xiao and his group knew about this, Xue Huaiyuan was inevitably aware. Naturally, to torment Xue Huaiyuan, Yongning would certainly deliver one piece of bad news after another to him, causing him to live a life worse than death, slowly crumbling.

"Miss Xue is indeed dead, but her death was not straightforward," Jiang Li said. "I was an old friend of Xue Fangfei, and this time, I am here to clear the entire Xue Family of their wrongful charges."

Not only Peng Xiao and his group, but even Ye Mingyu was taken aback. He had never known that Jiang Li had any connection to that rascal Xue Fangfei. So, it seemed that the Xue Family’s disaster was not just a matter for Xue Huaiyuan alone, but the children of the Xue Family were also implicated; this was nothing short of a calamity that threatened to annihilate their entire clan. What kind of deep-seated hatred could lead to such a vendetta? Ye Mingyu sensed the complexity of the matter.

"How do you plan to overturn the verdict for the Xue Family? Why should we believe what you say?" He Jun asked.

Jiang Li stood up, looking directly into He Jun’s eyes, "I plan to use you as human testimony, the flaws in the case files as material evidence, to gather the people of Tongxiang, collect evidence of Feng Yutang’s crimes, go to the capital to overturn the verdict, and make it known to the whole world. If Dali Temple cannot clear things up, then I will enter the palace to present a memorial to the emperor. Feng Yutang is not the mastermind behind all this; there is someone else behind him, someone of sufficient significance to garner the emperor’s attention, and I have no fear that my appeal will go unheard."

"As for your question of how to believe what I say, Feng Yutang now has control over the whole of Tongxiang, and the people are even afraid to mention the Xue Family. The Xue Family is in this state, and you are no different. In fact, aside from me, no one has come forward to vindicate the Xue Family. I have no reason to deceive you. You now have nothing but your lives, and even these lives are hanging by a thread. If I wanted your lives, I wouldn’t need to go through such trouble; it would be effortless to take them."

Peng Xiao and the others fell silent.

Jiang Li was right. The four of them were now weak, sick, and crippled. Even the tall figure behind Jiang Li could probably take down all four of them by himself. If Jiang Li truly wanted to harm them, she wouldn’t need to bother fabricating any lies.

"Now, I only ask you, are you willing to go out with me and secure justice for your Lord Xue?" Jiang Li asked.

Her gaze was resolute, fearless, and inexplicably inspired firmness in others.

Peng Xiao was the first to lift his head and look at her, saying emphatically, "I’ll go out with you."

"I’ll go, too!" declared He Jun. "We’ve been stuck in this mine for so long, fifteen brothers, fifteen brothers tortured to death until only five of us were left! Why didn’t we wish to die, why did we cling to life until now? Is it because we are afraid to die? No! It’s because we hoped that one day we could go out and overturn the verdict for our lord, such a good man wrongly accused, it’s a laughingstock to the world! Now that you, miss, are willing to vindicate the Xue Family, we five brothers are willing to follow you!"

In a corner, Gu Da and Gu Er supported each other as they stood up. They were so weak that even Jiang Li couldn’t hear their hoarse voices, but she could see their lips mouthing the word "willing."

"But something’s not right," mumbled Ye Mingyu, smacking his lips. "At most, that’s four people. Weren’t there five of you who survived? Where’s the fifth person?"

Peng Xiao glanced at Jiang Li and then at Ye Mingyu, turned around, and walked forward, saying, "Follow me."

They walked past a chamber and up to a stone wall where a person was lying on the ground. At first glance, one might think he was already dead. It wasn’t until they approached and crouched down that they saw the person’s breath was faint but present. He was extremely fragile, like a candle flickering in the wind, threatening to extinguish at the slightest breath.