After transmigrating into the body of a stepmother, I led the villains in a rebellion.

After saying that, Jiang Mubai turned to leave, but Lu Junheng grabbed his sleeve.

Lu Junheng's eyes were full of pleading and unease. "Young Master Jiang, my mother... she can't be harmed. You must save her."

Jiang Mubai patted Lu Junheng on the shoulder and comforted him, "Don't worry, since I, Jiang Mubai, have promised, I will definitely do my best. You stay here and wait for me, I'll be right back."

After saying that, Jiang Mubai strode away from the backyard, ordered his men to prepare a carriage, and headed straight for the county government office.

After Lin Shu and Qian Lifeng were brought back to the yamen by Constable Lü, Constable Lü truthfully informed the county magistrate of the matter.

The magistrate, knowing the truth, immediately sent Constable Lü to summon the two witnesses, Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao.

The two were so angry that they wanted to bite Qian Lifeng to death on the spot. They never expected that Qian Lifeng, that coward, would betray them so quickly.

That damned bastard, he's good for nothing but causing trouble.

The road was paved for him, and they were just waiting for him to leave, but unexpectedly, he still hasn't revealed their identities.

Even a pig is smarter than him.

However, there was no time for them to back out, so they had to suppress their fear and unease and go back to the yamen with Constable Lü.

Inside the county government office, the magistrate coldly observed Lin Shu, noticing her composed demeanor, showing no sign of fear or guilt.

Qian Lifeng, on the other hand, looked terrified and seemed more like a murderer than Lin Shu, the murderer himself.

With all the witnesses present, the magistrate and his men proceeded directly to the trial without wasting any more time.

The magistrate concealed the gloom in his eyes, recalled the silver that the owner of the charity hall had just delivered, and immediately made up his mind.

"Lin Shu, Qian Lifeng and the other two testified that you killed someone in the dilapidated temple. Is this true?"

"My lord, I am innocent! I am but a weak woman, how could I possibly have the power to kill someone?"

"This is all a frame-up by them. I beg Your Honor to investigate thoroughly and do justice for me," Lin Shu cried out directly.

Upon hearing her words, Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao immediately sensed something was wrong and began to argue, "Sir, everything we said is true..."

Seeing the two sides start arguing, the magistrate gently tapped the gavel to remind them to be quiet.

"Qian Lifeng, Wang Ermazi, Chen Biao, since you all accuse Lin Shu of murder, do you have any conclusive evidence? Or did you witness it with your own eyes?"

Although Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao hated Qian Lifeng to the core, they had to temporarily put aside their hatred in court.

“Sir, although we did not witness Lin Shu commit the crime, we did go to Lin Shu’s house on the day of the incident.”

"She even tried to kill us, but luckily we ran fast and escaped."

The magistrate immediately turned to Lin Shu, "Lin Shu, is this true?"

Lin Shu did not deny it, after all, it was the truth, and besides, she was waiting to set a trap for them.

"Yes, but they came to my house to kidnap my two sons. I had no choice but to do it."

One sentence thrust Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao into the eye of the storm.

They never expected Lin Shu to dare to admit to the crime in public and even reveal their identities.

Upon hearing this, the two men's faces turned deathly pale, fine beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads, and their legs trembled slightly involuntarily.

Wang Ermazi was the first to react and hurriedly explained, "Sir, we...we were just joking with Lin Shu, we never intended to abduct the child! She misunderstood and that's why she attacked us."

Chen Biao chimed in, "Yes, sir, we have no grudge against her, so why would we kidnap her child for no reason? This is entirely Lin Shu's side of the story, and we can't believe it!"

The magistrate frowned slightly. In fact, he had heard some things about child trafficking, but he was just doing his job because he was paid to do it.

There are some things he has to turn a blind eye to.

He struck the gavel again, saying, "I will distinguish right from wrong; you should stop trying to argue."

"Lin Shu, you say they want to kidnap your son, do you have any evidence?"

Lin Shu was taken aback. He didn't investigate such an important matter thoroughly, but instead traced it back to her.

A bad feeling crept into my heart. "My two sons can testify."

"Nonsense! How can your son testify? If he was acting on your orders, wouldn't that be wronging an innocent person?" The magistrate's tone shifted abruptly, his target clear: Lin Shu.

After hearing this, even a fool like Lin Shu understood the magistrate's intention.

He immediately retorted, "Then may I ask, sir, do they have any evidence or witnesses to support their charge of murder against me?"

"Isn't a corpse enough evidence?"

Lin Shu sneered, "Sir, if you were to conclude that I am the murderer based solely on a corpse, wouldn't the world be in chaos?"

"The corpse cannot speak; it cannot identify the murderer. It can only indicate that someone died, not directly prove that I am the murderer."

“Furthermore,” Lin Shu continued, his voice tinged with amusement and disdain.

“On the day of the incident, I did have a conflict with the two men, but that was to protect my family from harm. They tried to take my son away, and as a mother, how could I stand idly by?”

"As for the so-called 'silencing,' that's utter nonsense. If I truly intended to do so, why would I have allowed them to escape and falsely accuse me here?"

The county magistrate was forced into a corner by Lin Shu's reasoned and well-founded words.

Although he was the head of a county, he still had to be reasonable on the surface.

No one expected Lin Shu to be so difficult to deal with. No wonder the owner of the Heshan Hall, Earl Mingyang, was willing to spend so much silver to take her life.

To ease the tension, he immediately turned to Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao, "Do either of you have direct evidence to prove that she killed the person in the dilapidated temple?"

Wang Ermazi and Chen Biao looked at each other, speechless for a moment.

They did not have direct evidence to prove that Lin Shu was the killer; it was merely speculation.

But this statement is not very credible, and they certainly cannot say it aloud.

"Sir, we...we..." Wang Ermazi stammered, unable to get a coherent explanation.

The magistrate immediately understood their intentions.

Although he was very dissatisfied with the two, he did not intend to investigate further.

After all, their target is Lin Shu.

He coughed lightly and fixed his gaze on Lin Shu. "Lin Shu, there's no smoke without fire. Even if they didn't see you kill someone, it doesn't erase the fact that you did."

"A life for a life. I need to give the people an explanation, so you must pay for this with your life. Men, seize Lin Shu and the others."

Upon hearing this, Officer Lü and the others felt that the county magistrate had handled the matter too hastily, but they dared not object.

Upon hearing the magistrate's order, they all drew their swords and surrounded Lin Shu and his companions.

Lin Shu watched them rush towards him, his fists clenched at his sides, and his eyes flashed with a chilling killing intent.

If they want to find fault with someone, they can always find a pretext. If they find evidence that she committed murder, it's not impossible for her to accept her fate.

But if they dare to impose their will on her, they'll have to see if they're destined to do so.

"So, sir, you're determined to kill me today?"