Chapter 100: County Magistrate’s Case 1
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
County Magistrate attached great importance to the reputation of West Mountain College, so he started the interrogation.
Su Bin was involved, so he went to the county office together. The dean of the college thought highly of him and asked one teacher and two students to keep him company.
County Magistrate asked what was going on.
Honglian panicked when she did not see the two men. But she still insisted on what she said before.
“Officer, I am Honglian from Yihong Courtyard. My good sister asked me to return one book of the Analects to a student from West Mountain College.”
County Magistrate’s eyes were burning. “What is your sister’s name? Where is she from?”
“She is my sister at the Yihong Garden. Her name is Hongzhu, and she has been sold since she was a child. She doesn’t even know where she is from. Also, she passed away five days ago.”
“Who can prove that?”
Honglian had to tell them the names of the two girls from Yihong Courtyard.
County Magistrate gave them a token. “Bring them to Yihong Courtyard for interrogation!”
Honglian felt even more anxious seeing County Magistrate’s thorough investigation.
She had no choice but to continue with the confession.
“But I didn’t expect that the book would be ruined by this girl. The name in the book can’t be seen clearly, but I remember that the two words are definitely Su
Bin. ”
“I later learned that this girl is Su Bin’s wife.”
“Maybe she knocked down the book accidentally, but when she saw the name in the book was her husband, she erased the name in the book so her husband would not be implicated.”
Qin Zhenzhen responded to the County Magistrate’s question with composure.
“I am Qin Zhenzhen, and I came here with my Fourth Brother to visit my husband.”
“I wanted to inquire if I could prepare food for him during the examination. I was concerned that he might fall ill from consuming the food and miss the examination, as happened last year.”
Su Bin observed Qin Zhenzhen as she spoke and noticed that she had lost weight, her complexion had improved, and he detected a cunning gleam in her eyes.
“I had been waiting at the gate of West Mountain College, hoping someone
would fetch him after class. However, I accidentally knocked over the items in this woman’s hands.”
“While assisting her in picking up the book, I noticed it was soiled. I used a handkerchief to clean it, but instead of becoming clearer, the words grew darker and illegible.”
“At that point, I considered wiping off the ink and rewriting the text, which would have resulted in damage to the book.”
“But I refrained from doing so because she claimed to recognize the two words.”
“However, truthfully, those two words resembled dog bites, and I couldn’t discern their meaning. If I had been able to identify them as ‘Su Bin,’ I would never have imagined the gravity of the situation.”
“If I had foreseen this outcome, I would have destroyed the entire book or fled with it.”
Honglian’s eyes widened. “You’re lying! Anyone who can read would recognize those two words!”
Qin Zhenzhen held her ground. “I may not know many words, but I cannot mistake my husband’s handwriting for Su Bin’s. It is not my husband’s handwriting at all!”
The County Magistrate and the Strategist exchanged a meaningful glance, privately contemplating that the chubby girl appeared to be truthful. It was highly probable that the woman from the brothel was the one fabricating the story.
Perhaps the name written in the book was indeed Su Bin’s, but it had not been penned by Su Bin himself..