After the cannon fodder father and daughter married into the family, the whole family regretted it

Fang Nanzhi lowered her head obediently, looking like she was listening to a lesson and not interrupting.

Mr. Deng's anger subsided slightly.

“Your investigation into the Chen family case attracted several waves of assassins, and you offended countless people, but I have never said anything against you.”

"It's because you're trying to clear your mother's name. This is something that's enough to defy the world. No matter who the other party is, it's something you have to do."

"But today, you argued with Xie Lang out of spite. Young people should have passion, but they should also plan their actions carefully."

"Do you understand?"

Mr. Deng sat down again, picked up his teacup, and looked at his disciple with an indescribable depth and complexity.

Fang Nanzhi took this to heart this time. She pondered for a long time, and Mr. Deng did not urge her.

After about half an incense stick's time, Fang Nanzhi finally spoke.

"The master wants me to know Xie Lang's family background and temperament in advance, so that I can think about how to resolve the conflict, instead of acting in anger without knowing anything."

For example, if the other party is unreasonable, insidious, and malicious, she can vent her anger by plotting behind the scenes, or she can temporarily endure it.

Being patient is not cowardice; it means staying within one's own bottom line. Even if one crosses that line, one should still have the integrity that a gentleman should have.

Mr. Deng nodded slightly.

"Life is short, only a few decades. If you act recklessly and offend people indiscriminately out of spite, you will be cutting off your own path."

"Zhizhi, you're lucky today. Although Xie Lang is domineering and arrogant, he can admit his mistakes and correct them. He has a big heart and can be considered a person of good character. But not everyone you meet in the future will be like that."

"A gentleman should have pride, but he should also be steady in order to last."

In fact, Mr. Deng was quite satisfied with his disciple's performance today.

His talent was second to none, he treated people with generosity, and he did not yield to the powerful; these were all things he had seen.

His friends were initially somewhat reluctant for him to take on a female disciple and to encourage the disciples to get along with each other.

Teenagers may be young, but they are beginning to understand some things.

If something happens when a man and a woman are together, it will really make the husband lose face as well.

Furthermore, they did not believe that the young girl's talent could be compared to that of their trusted disciples.

After half a day of testing, the teachers all changed their minds. They were very disappointed that someone with such talent was a woman.

If it were a man, his future prospects would be incredibly bright.

If they were men, they probably wouldn't be able to resist competing with Mr. Deng for the disciple.

After spending the afternoon with Fang Nanzhi and the boys, the teachers were even more impressed with her character.

Intelligent, quick-witted, and poised, a woman can also be a gentleman.

They were too narrow-minded before.

Fang Nanzhi was unaware of Mr. Deng's good intentions behind the scenes, but she understood his teachings.

She bowed with both hands and said, "This disciple will certainly remember this."

Mr. Deng took a sip of tea: "Well, in the future, if someone invites you to a poetry gathering or to go out for fun, you are welcome to go if you are interested, as long as you don't do anything that might cause offense."

It means to bring your maids and servants and openly play with others.

Fang Nanzhi nodded, then sighed, "I'm afraid I won't have time lately. I have a lot of classes to attend, and I also have to do free medical consultations..."

She blinked again: "Mr. Deng, the nights are short in winter, so why don't you assign less homework?"

Her little face was full of anticipation.

Mr. Deng was both annoyed and amused; this disciple certainly knew how to use force against someone.

“I see you go to the Ministry of Justice several times a day, you have plenty of time.”

Fang Nanzhi scratched her head, as if to say that she had something important to say.

But Mr. Deng didn't give her a chance to speak.

“The Chen family’s case involves either powerful families or noble families. You’ve offended a few, but you can’t offend them all. You still need to befriend several more.”

This is also one of the reasons why Zhizhi was allowed to spend time with several teenagers this year.

Fang Nanzhi's eyes widened in surprise, and she clutched her chest.

"Sir, how did you know?"

She never told Mr. Deng about the progress of the case, and Mr. Deng never asked about it.

Mr. Deng's lips curled into a sarcastic smile.

"The Minister of Justice and the Prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture are both capable ministers valued by His Majesty. With their abilities, the case has been delayed for a long time. It's not that they can't find out, but that the people behind them are too powerful and they can't be easily dealt with."

Mr. Deng may be too lazy to deal with mundane affairs, but that doesn't mean he's oblivious to what's going on around him.

With enough experience, one can guess some things without knowing the details.

Furthermore, he was also very concerned about the safety of his only disciple.

Since we've already come this far, Mr. Deng might as well teach a little more.

"Whether it is a noble family or a powerful family, such large families, with their large size and numerous branches, are destined not to become a monolithic entity."

"Furthermore, the children in their clan are well-educated and intelligent, able to distinguish right from wrong, and have their own understanding. They don't just believe whatever their elders say."

Fang Nanzhi was captivated. Did the master want her to use the power of the young scions of aristocratic families to protect herself?

Like the Jin family, it seems highly likely that there are problems.

Chief Jin had no goodwill towards her, but Jin Yunting was willing to befriend her, and that was a force to be reckoned with.

Fang Nanzhi felt her thoughts open up, and the heavy pressure she had been feeling lately finally released a little.

"Thank you for your guidance, sir." Fang Nanzhi's eyes sparkled, as if filled with hope.

Seeing that she understood, Mr. Deng said, "You made a mistake today, so you will be punished by copying the law of this dynasty once."

Fang Nanzhi's joy vanished instantly. She tentatively asked, "The law book, the whole thing?"

Mr. Deng nodded.

Fang Nanzhi felt like crying. The paper was as thick as a hand. How long would it take her to copy it?

She really shouldn't have sparred with Xie Lang today; she must have had another solution.

"I'll give you three months to copy slowly and memorize some of it. You can also copy law books to understand how the Chen case was judged back then, and how it should be judged now if the injustice is cleared."

Mr. Deng said.

Fang Nanzhi dejectedly agreed, it seemed she would have to spend another half an hour copying books every day.

It was already evening. After Mr. Deng finished teaching his students, he didn't ask her to stay for dinner and let her go home.

Fang Nanzhi bid farewell to the gentleman, got into the carriage, and was still thinking about the law book, feeling depressed.

Similarly, Xie Lang and his teacher were also punished when they returned.

He was slapped on the palm of his hand fifteen times until his hand swelled up. He was also punished by being forced to write ten small characters every day.

It's not for practicing calligraphy, but for cultivating the mind.

From this perspective, this exchange resulted in both of them suffering losses.

Fang Nanzhi went home and immediately went to find Bai Wu.

I want to know if they've said anything about Shadow 4, but there's been no progress.

Bai Wu stopped using torture. The other member of Shadow Four's entourage didn't even speak while being tortured, so there was no need to waste time.

Fang Yin had already instructed him to send someone to secretly keep an eye on Yun Congsheng.

Since one detachment has appeared in the Yun residence, there will likely be more.

Perhaps Yun Congsheng has some other connection with them, who knows?

Fang Nanzhi went to eat in disappointment, only to find out that her second uncle and aunt were not at home. They had gone to some estate to play, saying that there was a hot spring there.

Fang Nanzhi was envious, but she couldn't leave the capital right now because she had to be ready to deal with assassins at any time.

Qian Fengping was also envious. After she got married, she faced famine at first, then supported her children's education, and later ran a cake shop. She had to go to Beijing to manage the family business. She was always busy and the couple really didn't have much time to play.

But she didn't say it, knowing that her family was busy.

Fang Tong realized what was going on and promised that once the Chen case was resolved, he would take her out for a walk to clear her head, either by taking leave or waiting for his annual leave.

Is it possible to find out about the Chen case before the end of the year?

No one knows.

Even Chen Yong, one of the parties involved, wanted to end it all.

For some reason, lately several officials have stopped letting him appear in court or interrogating him.

He's been stuck in jail, and nobody cares about him.

His mind was preoccupied with things outside.

Two jailers came over carrying a food bucket, which contained half-spoiled rice porridge.

Even so, each prisoner could only get half a bowl.

When it reached Chen Yong, the bottom was still thick and the sour smell was even more obvious, leaving him unsure whether to be happy or sad.

He gripped the iron bars with both hands and strained to lean forward.

"Brother, have you investigated those pieces of evidence? We, the Chen family, are truly innocent."

The two jailers exchanged a glance, ignored him completely, and turned to leave.

Chen Yong became anxious: "Sir, when can I get out? I'm just the victim, I didn't do anything."

The two jailers stopped in their tracks. One of them turned around and looked at him with a half-smile: "You still want to get out?"

Chen Yong sensed something was wrong. Why couldn't he go out? He was there to complain.

"Do you know what crime it is to falsely accuse a powerful person in this dynasty? Besides, Princess Mingzhu is an elder whom even His Majesty respects."

“I didn’t make a false accusation; I have evidence,” Chen Yong retorted.

The jailer stepped forward, holding a torch, seemingly to examine him closely.

"Do you really think the adults can't find out about those fake pieces of evidence?"

"Putting everything else aside, you're just a powerless vagrant. You can't even explain where you got your evidence, can you?"

After the jailer finished speaking, he spat on the ground and left.

The two walked further and further apart, still discussing the matter.

"The case should be resolved soon. Didn't you say that Chen Yong was misled and had no choice in the matter? It shouldn't be considered a serious crime."

"What do you mean by being deceived? Chen Yong doesn't admit it either. It's actually best if he doesn't admit it. He's the culprit behind the false accusation. The magistrate can just use him to get by without offending the people behind him."

"Only by closing the case as soon as possible can we have a peaceful New Year."

"That's true. Even if you do your best to investigate these old cases, you won't get any good results. Think about it: in the past, His Majesty personally convicted the Chen family. If a problem is found, then His Majesty is wrong... How can you not offend His Majesty?"

"Shh, do you want to die? You're just blurting out whatever comes to mind."

The two jailers' voices grew softer and softer, but Chen Yong could still hear them clearly.

He was pale and paced back and forth.

According to the jailer, those adults didn't want to investigate the case properly and wanted to end it in a muddled way.

But why?

Previously, it was clear that they intended to conduct a thorough investigation, and they even brought him to the capital.

Chen Yong didn't know what had happened, but he remembered what Fang Nanzhi had said last time.

Suspicion of the Wang and Jin families?

He had heard of both of them; they were both powerful, century-old families that sometimes even challenged the emperor.

Is that why the adults don't want to investigate anymore?

If the investigation is successful, it will either prove that Princess Mingzhu was wicked and killed her husband, or that she offended a powerful family.

You can't please either side.

So they simply pinned the blame on him, making him the one who made the false accusation.

Finally, they deflected by saying that everything was fabricated and that there was no problem with the Chen case back then, so as not to offend anyone.

Only Chen Yong, an exiled prisoner, falsely accused a member of the imperial family and met a terrible end.

The more Chen Yong thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

Initially, this case was uncovered by Grand Princess Mingzhu, but now the fire has landed on her own shoulders, so she definitely doesn't want to investigate anymore.

Meanwhile, Mr. Yao, who secretly offered to help him and Mr. Chen, wrote a note saying that he would wait and see how things developed.

He didn't care anymore, why.

Something must have gone wrong. Could it be that the emperor no longer wants to investigate the case?

In fact, Chen Yong was often confused about many things.

He didn't know why Princess Mingzhu wanted him to file a complaint, but since he could get something out of it, he agreed.

The reason they later changed their tune was because Mr. Yao offered them even more benefits.

He didn't know if Mr. Yao was making a false accusation, and he couldn't understand the evidence.

All he knew was that Mr. Yao had promised him that no matter what the outcome, he would be able to leave safely, promised him wealth and honor, and promised his son a bright future.

Yes, Chen Yong never knew who did what Chen Zijun did back then, and he didn't care much about the truth.

Whether he was wronged or not, Chen Yong didn't care.

What good would it do to overturn the verdict? Would Chen Zijun be brought back to life? Or would the humiliation the Chen family had suffered over the years disappear? Would he become a young master from a prominent family?

He can't do even one of them, so what's the point of him caring?

He only wanted the benefits that Mr. Yao had promised.

But now Mr. Yao is asking him to come by himself. Does this mean that the other party's plan has gone wrong and they are going to abandon him as a pawn?

Chen Yong was very uneasy; he didn't want to be a scapegoat.

He was so worried that he didn't even eat the spoiled food that night.

Zhu Guanfeng saw all of this.

He knew that the timing wasn't right; he needed to push Chen Yong's anxiety to another level.

"My lord, we've found Yao Xin. He is indeed in the capital."

My subordinate rushed in to report.

Zhu Guanfeng raised an eyebrow: "So fast? Where is he? Is he being monitored?"

"He's in the Ministry of Justice prison," the subordinate said awkwardly.

Zhu Guanfeng...

He suspected he had misheard.

He looked at his subordinate in surprise, who quickly lowered his head and recounted what had happened.

"Yao Xin came to visit Wan Sheng, the boss, in prison."

Zhu Guanfeng was genuinely surprised.

Before his men could find Yao Xin, she showed up on her own.

Was Yao Xin truly fearless and confident that she wouldn't be exposed, or was it intentional?

"Go and have a look."

Now that the other party has appeared, Zhu Guanfeng certainly won't let the opportunity slip by.

When he walked through the passageway and arrived at Wan Sheng's cell door, he saw the two men sitting opposite each other, raising their cups to drink.

"I never expected that Sister Zixi would also... Sigh, after all these years, Brother Wan's long wait has finally come to an end."

Yao Xin, dressed in a long blue robe, sat cross-legged on a straw mat, showing no signs of being down on her luck.

His eyes were covered by a black cloth, but it couldn't hide his sharp edge.

At least when sitting next to Wan Sheng, their demeanor was on par; both were top-notch middle-aged handsome men.

Wan Sheng tugged at the corners of his mouth, but couldn't muster even a hint of a smile.

This was the result he least wanted to accept.

He wanted Zixi to live.

"Brother Yao, what brings you to the capital?" Wan Sheng suppressed his emotions and changed the subject.