Qingyu Case: Female Minister of Dali Temple

Chen Shao still didn't urge him.

Shi Xing bent down, touched his forehead to the back of his hand, wiped the sweat off his face quietly, and hesitated for a moment before continuing, "The next day, I remembered that I had something else to do in the academy, so I went back to the academy first."

Chen Shao noted the date and urged, "April 23rd."

"April 23..." Shi Xing's throat was a little dry. "On April 23, I also went to Xia's horse farm to rent a horse at noon. After replacing the old donkey, I went to Daqiao Town. I went to Daqiao Town to help Liu Deming's family plant rice. Liu Deming's family already has a lot of land, and he was hired by Daqing's family to plant rice. Every year at this time, he would take leave to go back to help. I didn't want him to neglect his studies, so I took on his share."

Liu Deming clenched his teeth, his eyes turned red, and his hands hanging at his sides slowly clenched into fists. Obviously, Shi Xing's words hit him again.

Chen Shao glanced at him and interrupted Shi Xing forcibly, "What time did you arrive at Liu Deming's house?"

Shi Xing answered honestly: "It is already the end of the Chen hour."

Chen Shao: "Continue."

Shi Xing glanced at Liu Deming and continued, "When I arrived at his house, I happened to see his grandmother giving birth..."

"No need to say that." Chen Shao interrupted him again, "Just tell me what you went to his house for and when you left."

Shi Xinglian was silent for a while before continuing, "I went to his house and planted rice seedlings with his father and elder brother for most of the day. I left when it was getting dark. But halfway through, my stomach suddenly ached, so I stopped by the roadside and rested for more than three hours before I felt a little better. As a result of this delay, when I returned, the city gate was already closed, so I had no choice but to rest outside the city gate for the night."

Chen Shao reminded him with a smile: "Master Shi, do you want to change your statement?"

Shi Xing's heart tightened, thinking that he had let something slip, and he quickly reflected on himself from beginning to end, but he couldn't find what was wrong.

Chen Shao laughed softly twice and questioned, "Manager Xia's horse farm is not far from the city gate. If Master Shi really can't make it into the city, why doesn't he go to Manager Xia's horse farm to rest for a night?"

Shi Xing's forehead was covered with cold sweat. He bent down again, kowtowed, wiped his hands quickly, and explained dryly, "I don't want to trouble Shopkeeper Xia."

"Okay," Chen Shao didn't insist, "Then let's move on to March 17th."

"I rented a horse from Manager Xia's horse farm on the evening of March 16th. After exchanging the old donkey, I went to Zhougong Village. When I arrived at Zhougong Village, it was already dark. I stayed at Lao Jiang's house for a night. The next day, I worked with him all day and left in the evening. On the way, I felt a little tired, so I went to Dafeng River to relax..."

"I rented the horse from Manager Xia's stable at 25 minutes before the 7th hour on February 26th. After replacing the old donkey..."

After listening to him stumbling over February 26 and February 1, Chen Shaocai said, "Accidents always happen."

Shi Xing didn't dare to answer.

Chen Shao picked up the time node he had written down, read it twice from beginning to end, and suddenly asked, "On April 29th, you parked your carriage on the side of the road to rest for the night. Which side of the road was it, and where was the specific location?"

"Yes, yes..." Shi Xing sweat broke out like rain.

He was not afraid of torture. As long as he gritted his teeth and refused to admit his guilt, he could plead guilty when the case was brought to the capital. He had already checked and found that Li Zongyuan, the Minister of Justice, was an extremely lenient person. He would not file a case without solid evidence. However, he had planned everything, but he did not expect that this case would end up in her hands.

As she said, she was the Supreme Court Justice, and she could sentence him to death without handing the case over to others for retrial. She did not torture him, but it was more terrible than torture.

For a moment, Shi Xing wanted to admit all the crimes, but his strong unwillingness made him quickly suppress this idea. He closed his eyes, squeezed away the cold sweat on his eyelashes, and said with all his strength: "On the roadside two miles away from Xiaochang Village."

"There are two roads leading in and out of Xiaochang Village," Chen Shao asked calmly, "Which road are you referring to?"

Shi Xing reluctantly said, "The road to the southwest."

Chen Shao said slowly, "Although we are only resting for one night, people have the instinct to seek benefits and avoid harm. Tell me, what was the roadside where you rested like, and what was around it?"

Shi Xing's mind suddenly went blank.

Not only him, but also Li Tianliu, Fu Jiu, and the surrounding Yulin Guards and yamen runners could not help but feel nervous when they heard this question.

Looking at her, Li Tianliu couldn't help but smile. The others looked at Shi Xing with pity.

"The roadside where I rested..." Shi Xing couldn't answer.

Chen Shaoqian took a sip of tea and kindly "comforted" her: "It's okay, you can think about it slowly. We have plenty of time anyway."

The sweat on Shi Xing's forehead dripped onto the ground, and soon formed a small puddle of water. "The roadside where I rested was in a leeward valley, with a mountain on one side and a field on the other."

Chen Shao said slowly: "What kind of valley, what kind of fields?"

"That valley was formed by a landslide in the past. It's not very big, and only one carriage can park there. The fields..." Shi Xing said as he thought, "Those fields belong to Lianshao Village. They are all planted with wheat. Some of the fields have already been planted, but some have not yet been planted."

Chen Shao took notes and then asked him, "The murderer also drove a carriage. Did you see him when you stayed in the valley at night?"

Shi Xing said numbly: "No."

Chen Shao glanced at him and said, "On May 16, after you left Zhaojia Village, you went to Dafeng River to relax. Which part of the Dafeng River did you go to?"

Shi Xing subconsciously said, "We went to the Dafeng River on the other side of Quyangpo."

Quyangpo is on the other side of Zhaojia Village, which is exactly the opposite direction to Taojiazhuang.

Chen Shao asked: "Where is it in Quyangpo?"

Shi Xing said cautiously: "It's at the bottom of Quyangpo..."

Chen Shao asked nonchalantly: "What's in that part?"

Shi Xing gritted his teeth and replied, "I didn't notice it."

"How could I not notice it?" Chen Shao was very dissatisfied with his answer. "Since you are here to relax, you must have chosen a place that is pleasing to the eye. You chose Quyangpo, so in your mind, Quyangpo must have its merits."

Shi Xing couldn't answer.

Chen Shao said generously: "Can't answer? Then think about it slowly, I will ask the next question first. I heard that you often go to the dock to do odd jobs?"

It was a very simple question, but Shi Xing did not dare to let his guard down. After carefully thinking about the possible traps behind this question, he answered, "Yes, I go there often."