Shipin Dalizheng

A group of people sat down to rest. Zheng Changning asked casually, "Master Nangong, if a person's entire family dies, what should be done with their property?"

Nangong Jing said, "According to the laws of Dai Viet, the inheritance will be passed on to his brothers, nephews, and nieces. If there are no brothers or nephews, the inheritance will be shared by the clan."

"There are concubines, right?"

"It's hard to say. Those who have children will get it, but those who don't will get nothing. I'm afraid I'll be sold too. Unless..."

"Unless what?"

"No one in the family knew about the mistress. She also had the land and property deeds, so she sold them without anyone noticing and went away to live."

"That's really good. Does your Excellency think that Yang Liangui has a mistress?"

Nangong Jing's mouth twitched slightly. "Who knows? But we'll know soon. When Minister Jin hears that my brother-in-law was murdered by a thief who wanted his money, he'll definitely force me to investigate. After a while, the truth will be revealed."

"Look at the commotion this has caused. If Yang Liangui committed suicide, it would be confirmed by public opinion and the case would be closed."

"This is a difficult case to close. Yang Liangui must have had a reason to commit suicide, right? This accuser insists he was pushed down."

"Who pushed him overboard? Could it be his wife? It's common for couples to quarrel and fight. The son and daughter tried to separate them, and the whole family fell into the water. Several loyal servants went down to save their master, but none of them survived. What a pity."

Several yamen runners sitting nearby also sighed and said, "What a pity."

Hu Wang, who was lying not far away, moved his ears but still did not wake up.

Zheng Changning casually asked again, "Will the people who testify be locked up?"

"No, he can leave after recording his testimony. At most, he will be asked to stay at home and wait to be summoned at any time."

"Will the witnesses be monitored?"

"Absolutely not. A fight between a couple that resulted in manslaughter is a family dispute, not a criminal case. We cannot monitor witnesses."

"So that's how it is. This young master has finally solved my doubts. My lord, I just said it, but I didn't instigate anyone."

"Of course. I'm just updating you on Dai Viet laws. It's nothing much. Um, sir, have you rested well? It's time to get going."

A yamen runner came up and kicked Hu Wang a few times. Hu Wang didn't wake up until a long time later.

"Let's go. This is still far from the Jingzhao government office. We can't delay any longer. At this speed, the body will stink by the time we get back to the government office."

Hu Wang didn't have time to rest at all. Just this huge cart of corpses could exhaust ten or eight of him to death.

"Sir, I remember now. The master and mistress had been arguing all the way, and even started fighting on the bridge. The mistress started scratching the master, and the young master and mistress tried to break them up..."

"and many more!"

Nangong Jing's face was slightly angry, "You want to change your testimony?"

Hu Wang swallowed hard and said, "My Lord, I was frightened earlier and spoke without thinking. What I say now is the truth."

Nangong Jing stared at him for a long time, which made him feel cold inside.

"Master, please re-record your statement."

The lawyer took notes again.

"...The master and his family fell into the water. Zhang San, Li Si, Zhao Liu, and Wu Mazi were nearby and jumped in to save them. I can't swim, so I could only stand there anxiously. I saw with my own eyes that the master and his family frantically grabbed and pulled, and finally pulled the four of them into the water as well. In the end, none of them survived."

"Are you serious?"

"really!"

"Do you dare to sign?"

The confession was placed before him, and Hu Wang's hands were shaking. He signed it once, and if he wanted to change his words again...

The prefect's mysterious eyes make people feel cold. He will kill himself.

He bit his fingertip and left a bloody fingerprint.

The lawyer put the confession away, and Hu Wang clearly felt that the atmosphere had become softer.

"Sir, can I go now?"

Nangong Jing looked at him deeply and said, "Hu Wang, you can leave now, but you can't stay away. Maybe one day I'll have to ask you to testify in court."

Hu Wang swore to the heavens, "I will definitely wait patiently at home."

Nangong Jing did not trouble Hu Wang any more and ordered him to go back. Hu Wang ran away like a wild donkey that had escaped from its cage.

Nangong Jing turned around and said to Master Du San, "Jin Shizhao probably hasn't heard about the death of Yang Liangui and his family. When you return home, try to find a way to delay him and prevent him from returning to the Minister's residence."

Mr. Du Sanye understood what he meant.

"As for Fuxinzhuang, Hu Wang said his family fell into the water and drowned. Ask the veterans if anyone saw them. They can testify together. Hu Wang's testimony alone might not be enough."

The two exchanged glances. Although Hu Wang's testimony was thin, it was the most powerful testimony.

Mr. Du San asked someone to go back to Fuxinzhuang to pass on the message that the people guarding outside the manor could withdraw and only a few could be left to guard the yard. I believe that Manor Head Yang would not have any objection.

Zheng Changning yawned and said, "Really? I finally got a day off, but I witnessed such a family tragedy. I'm tired and want to go back to sleep. My lord, please take care."

Nangong Jing, however, was hesitant again. Because there were too many bodies, both men and women, being transported together, it seemed disrespectful to Madam Yang and Miss Yang, so he needed to find more carts to transport them. The yamen runners circled the nearby villages, but the villagers, hearing they were transporting the dead, naturally refused to borrow any. The yamen runners were not in a hurry and took their time searching. Finally, they secured a cart and hurried back to the capital, but the city gates were about to close.

During this period, Hu Wang ran back to Yonghe Town and found his sister Hu Bilian. He finished his words in just a few words.

Hu Bilian fell to the ground on the spot. She certainly had no feelings for Yang Liangui as a couple. She was just after his money. Now she heard that this wealth might be taken away by the eldest wife of the Yang family. Wouldn't she want to die?

She was about to burst into tears when Hu Wang roared, "Sister, there's no time to wail. Listen to me. Sell this family property, and we can flee to other places and buy houses and land and become landlords. Sister, you find a man to marry and become the legal wife, and I, your brother, will marry a woman and have a son to carry on the family line. Wouldn't that also give an explanation to our parents and ancestors?"

Hu Bilian is a naive and innocent girl with no ideas or schemes. It is her nature to depend on men. Now that her man is dead, she listens to her brothers.

"Now what?"

"Listen to me. Pack up your belongings at home and give me the deeds to the land and the house. I'll exchange them for silver."

Hu Bilian cried, "How can selling a house or land be so fast?"

Of course sales are slow under normal circumstances, but in extraordinary times, there are extraordinary measures.

"Just leave it to me, sister. Even if I lose a little, it's better than nothing."

Hu Bilian went into the inner room and handed him the house deeds and land deeds. Yang Liangui was afraid that the tigress at home would find out, so the deeds were all written in Hu Bilian's name.

Hu Wang took the deed and ran to Sun Ji Pawnshop in the west of the town. Someone who knew him greeted him, but he just grunted and fooled them away.

It was still light outside, and the clerk at Sun's Pawnshop dozed off. Hu Wang leaned over the high counter and slapped the deed over to him. "Pawn the house, local."

Chao Feng instantly became more alert, picked up the house deeds and land deeds and looked at them carefully. Yes, they were real.

"That's not your name, I'm afraid..."

He has also received people who stole house deeds and wanted to pawn them. Due to subsequent disputes, the price is usually very low.

Fortunately, Hu Wang had his sister's private seal, so Chao Feng had nothing to say. After a while of bargaining, he got more than a thousand taels of silver, which was 20% cheaper than the market price.

In this way, Hu Wang was quite satisfied and left with the silver bills.

A man came in from outside, wearing a black cloak and a large hat covering his face. As soon as he entered the door, he said, "Old Sun, I've made a fortune again!"