Chapter 25: May I ask, my lord, what crime have I committed?

Su Hanwei did not know how long she had been kneeling. Even after the funeral procession had departed and the clamorous gongs and drums had faded into silence, the sound still burned in her soul like the fires of hell.

There was no one in this world who would pity her. Even her grandfather, knowing she had committed such grievous wrongs, would surely never forgive her, would he?

What was left for her now?

She had knelt for an entire day. Even as passersby walked back and forth, pointing and whispering at her, she felt absolutely nothing.

She had spent the whole day deep in thought, until finally, one figure emerged in her mind.

It was her Brother Shucheng. It seemed he was all she had left.

Only Brother Shucheng would understand her, right?

After all, everything she had done was for his sake.

Her Brother Shucheng had become her entire world.

When Su Hanwei finally pulled herself up, her knees ached as if they had been shattered by a hammer. Enduring the agony, she shuffled step by step toward the home of Liang Shucheng. She had a thousand words she longed to pour out to him.

Meanwhile, at the Liang residence, the entire family was kneeling in the main hall. Zhao Mingshan, the Assistant Magistrate, stood with his back to them, his hands clasped behind his back. He had just returned from the funeral at the Xu estate. Dressed in solemn attire, his cold, imposing presence made everyone in the Liang family struggle to draw breath.

"It has been three days. Where is the money?"

Liang Shucheng had failed to launder the money for them. Therefore, his original eight thousand taels, plus the funds from others, totaling twenty thousand taels, had to be recovered.

Liang Shucheng could not produce the money, but he had already devised a contingency plan.

"My lord, if I may be honest, it was actually the Prefect who ordered me to do this. Would you like to go and speak with him?" Liang Shucheng whispered.

Su Tong?

He was his subordinate. Su Tong had originally been a successful candidate in the imperial examinations and had started his career as a fifth-rank official. Yet, after a lifetime of service, he had only reached the fourth rank and could climb no higher. This was because Su Tong was incorruptible; he never knew how to flatter, nor did he join factions or engage in graft. Consequently, once he reached the position of Prefect, he was effectively pinned down, never to ascend again. Had it been otherwise, given his reputation and talent, at his advanced age of nearly seventy, even if he could not serve as a grand chancellor, he should have at least been a powerful provincial governor.

Zhao Mingshan knew Su Tong well; the man was an unyielding, stubborn old fool. He had never taken a bribe in his life, living solely on his meager salary. It was highly unlikely that he would ruin his lifelong reputation for a mere twenty thousand taels of silver. Clearly, Liang Shucheng was framing him.

This brat had seduced the Prefect's granddaughter, yet was now framing her grandfather—he truly was a piece of filth.

Liang Shucheng needed to provide Zhao Mingshan with an explanation, and Zhao Mingshan, in turn, needed to provide the others with an explanation regarding the lost funds. If he could remove Su Tong, an eyesore, would that not count as an explanation? Otherwise, he would have to pay out twelve thousand taels of silver himself, which would cost him his very life savings.

"Since you claim that Prefect Su ordered you to do this, do you dare to accompany me to confront him?" Zhao Mingshan asked coldly.

"This... this... my lord, could you perhaps leave me out of it?" Liang Shucheng whispered.

Heh, this boy was truly despicable. He wanted to frame Su Tong yet stay in the shadows, likely hoping to continue exploiting Su Hanwei until there was nothing left of her.

To topple a Prefect was not something that could be achieved with a few words from Liang Shucheng. If it were that easy, Zhao Mingshan would have removed him long ago; the only reason he hadn't was the lack of leverage.

"You, a mere base-born commoner, dare to frame a court official without a shred of evidence? Who gave you the gall? Guards, seize everyone in the Liang household!"

Zhao Mingshan’s original intent was not to make arrests, but to threaten Liang Shucheng into acting as a witness. Removing Su Tong was difficult, but dealing with a commoner like Liang Shucheng was a matter of a single word.

"My lord, please calm your anger! I am willing to serve as a witness! Furthermore, I have material evidence! Evidence that will confirm Su Tong's guilt!" Liang Shucheng, terrified, began kowtowing frantically.

He had originally thought that if he could get Zhao Mingshan to take down Su Tong, he could continue to deceive the now-destitute Su Hanwei and toy with her until he grew bored. In any case, without Su Tong, Su Hanwei was nothing more than an empty shell.

With a witness secured, Zhao Mingshan was now considering how to fabricate the material evidence.

"Oh? You have material evidence? Is it reliable?"

"Reliable, absolutely reliable!"

Liang Shucheng crawled over to Zhao Mingshan and whispered something. Upon hearing it, the latter wore a sinister smile.

"Go and wait for me at the gates of the Su estate."

"Yes, yes, I shall go at once!"

Zhao Mingshan flicked his sleeves and strode out of the Liang residence. Liang’s father, pale with terror, whispered, "Son, is there truly evidence that it was the Prefect who did this?"

"There is!"

Liang Shucheng could consider himself lucky amidst his string of misfortunes. Zhao Mingshan had just searched the house and found not a single tael of illicit silver, as Xu Muquan had already swindled it away. Had the money been found, the fate of the Liang family would have been far worse.

However, he had given five hundred taels of silver to Su Hanwei, and she certainly would not have spent it, saving it instead to buy various things. That silver was the material evidence.

After Liang Shucheng left, Su Hanwei arrived at the Liang residence. She walked with a staggering gait, like a soulless corpse, muttering to herself: "Brother Shucheng, where is my Brother Shucheng?"

Liang’s parents called out to her several times, but she offered no response, wandering in and out of the courtyard like a ghost. Failing to find Liang Shucheng, she left the residence in a stiff, mechanical trance.

Not long after, Zhao Mingshan, accompanied by over a hundred soldiers, entered the Su estate. He was now wearing his official robes, looking immensely imposing. Su Tong, feeling a sense of unease, heard the commotion in the front courtyard and hurried out to investigate. Seeing Zhao Mingshan standing in the courtyard, Su Tong was startled. Normally, no officials visited the Su residence; why had Zhao Mingshan come?

"This humble official pays his respects to Magistrate Zhao."

Su Tong bowed, but Zhao Mingshan did not react. Seeing the hundred soldiers lined up neatly in the courtyard, Su Tong was completely bewildered. Even if Zhao Mingshan had come, why bring so many troops?

"My lord, what brings you here?" Su Tong asked.

Zhao Mingshan did not answer. At that moment, Liang Shucheng trotted in. Only then did Zhao Mingshan speak.

"Su Tong, for all your life you have boasted of your integrity and uprightness, yet I never imagined you were this kind of man! Do you confess your crimes?"

Su Tong was completely baffled, unable to grasp the situation.

"Dare I ask, my lord, what crime has this humble official committed?"

Even as he spoke, a dark premonition began to settle in his heart.

"The Assistant Magistrate’s office issued twenty thousand taels for disaster relief, and you have embezzled every single coin. Su Tong, you possess unimaginable audacity!"