Chapter 403 Sacrificing Family for Justice

Chapter 403: Justice Above Family Ties

Li Xiuwen had another residence in Suzhou Prefecture. By the time Song Tingzhou brought Meng Wan and the others into the city, it was already noon, so the group simply settled directly into the rear quarters of the Prefect's office.

Song Tingzhou had no time to rest before beginning the interrogation of Guang Zishun, who had been captured after letting his guard down. Meanwhile, Meng Wan and Fang Jinrong's husband entertained Fan Er and his men, whom they had sent for by letter before arriving in Suzhou.

"Second Brother Fan, we're much obliged to you this time."

This dreary, overcast weather was just right for a barbecue. Meng Wan sat on a small wooden stool marinating meat while chatting with Fan Er and the others.

Fan Er was stacking bricks together with Ge Quan. Since there was no grill here, and Meng Wan had said they needed something for roasting meat, they'd thrown one together on the spot—simple and convenient. Hearing Meng Wan's thanks, Fan Er waved his hand grandly. "Don't be so formal. It just so happened that we brothers had business not far from here, and we didn't really do much for you anyway. If we'd shown up any later, Brother Ge would've wiped them all out himself."

Speaking of which, Meng Wan was genuinely curious. "Brother Ge, were you always this badass?"

Fang Jinrong knew the answer without Ge Quan even having to respond. "Fan Er's wife already told me ages ago—Ge Quan got beaten up plenty as a kid. Old Man Ge was out raising hell every day, and they were constantly hunted down by enemies seeking revenge. They've been chased all over the map because of it."

Fang Jinrong didn't feel one bit sorry for him; every time he brought it up, he wanted to laugh.

Ge Quan's grimy hand reached over and pinched Fang Jinrong's fair cheek, instantly leaving two black smudge marks.

"Ahhh! Ge Quan!"

Fang Jinrong yelped and jumped on Ge Quan's back, who hauled him around the yard.

The whole yard cracked up. Fan Er and his crew all traveled by water routes—unlike the merchant ships of Yangzhou, they did business in the jianghu world, sometimes robbing from the rich and giving to the poor, to the point where they had bounties on their heads in some places.

But they were all sincere, good-hearted folks—they didn't envy the merchants their mountains of gold, nor did they envy big-shot officials their power to make the world dance to their tune. They were just a bunch of straight-shooting, open-hearted people.

After Meng Wan finished marinating the meat, he went to gather some vegetables suitable for grilling. The medicine shop had caraway seeds, which tasted just like cumin. Meng Wan had no idea if it was the same thing, but he'd asked A Xun about it once, and A Xun said it wouldn't hurt you and was fine in small doses.

Once things in the Jiangnan area were wrapped up, Chen Zhenlong would've definitely grown those chili peppers by then. When he got back, he was definitely gonna have a spicy meal to get his fix.

The charcoal fire got going, and skewer after skewer went on the grill. Soon, a smoky, charred smell filled the air. Fang Jinrong came running back at the smell. "Wan Geer, you've outdone yourself—everything you make tastes amazing. You might as well open a restaurant; it'd definitely outshine the Imperial Ultimate Tower in Shengjing."

One of Fan Er's brothers laughed. "Meng Fulang's got all kinds of ways to make money—why would he need to open a restaurant at all? More like other people should be cooking for him."

Fang Jinrong only knew that Meng Wan was wealthy; he didn't yet have a clue how much that really was. At the beginning of the year, when Chu Ci and A Xun got married, the gold and silver that Yu Yandong and Tang Jinshuang had brought him had doubled his wealth all over again.

With the courier stations now up and running across the southern Yu Kingdom, and with no more needing to skim off a cut for road repairs, next year Meng Wan's courier stations would pull in more pure profit than the Zhen Guan Workshop—and unlike the Zhen Guan Workshop's one-hit-wonder kind of profit, the stations boosted the economy and kept goods moving, meaning business would just keep getting better.

Meng Wan coolly sprinkled his homemade five-spice blend over the grilled skewers. "A meal is about caring for your family and shooting the breeze with like-minded friends. Where you eat and what you eat, that's secondary. Back when we were broke, eating fried dough and soy milk with my husband and my mom back home was just as heartwarming, right down to the soul."

No one could feel those words more deeply than these jianghu wanderers. Everyone was deeply touched and chimed in with agreement.

Ge Quan took down a handful of skewers sizzling with oil, sprinkled them with five-spice powder just as Meng Wan had done, and handed them to Fang Jinrong, who was practically drooling. "Eat up, careful not to burn your mouth."

Fang Jinrong took the skewers, blew on them, and took a big, impatient bite, grease running down his chin as he mumbled indistinctly, "Mmm... delicious!"

After the first bite satisfied his craving, he offered the second bite to Ge Quan. Ge Quan's eyes were full of gentle, doting affection as he took a bite from Fang Jinrong's hand and pushed the rest back to him.

There were too many people, and skewers alone weren't enough to fill everyone up. Zhifan and Zhimao had also prepared other dishes in the kitchen—mostly meat with some vegetables—and there was no need for fancy plating. Everything was brought out in big pots for everyone to share. They ate with great enthusiasm, faces flushed and glowing, and after drinking wine, they helped each other to their rooms to rest.

Meng Wan watched the sky darken, leisurely grilled another half-basin of meat skewers, baked five or six flatbreads, and paired them with a bowl of fresh bamboo shoot soup before heading to the front hall to find Song Tingzhou.

The layout of government offices was all similar, and Meng Wan was quite familiar with it. When going out, Chi Yu stuck to his side like a shadow. The two headed straight for the front hall, only to be told that Song Tingzhou had personally escorted the prisoner to the cells for interrogation.

Going to the cells meant using unsavory methods of interrogation.

Song Tingzhou hadn't spent long in the Ministry of Justice, but the cases he'd taken on were all major ones that subordinates couldn't handle—he'd dealt with vicious criminals and cunning, unyielding schemers. Ordinary interrogation methods simply didn't work on such people.

The methods used in the prison, while not usually life-threatening, were nevertheless rather cruel. Meng Wan hesitated for a moment and didn't go any further. Knowing Song Tingzhou wouldn't be out anytime soon, he picked up the food basket and returned to the rear quarters.

Song Tingzhou didn't return until late at night. Though the weather had started to warm up, the dark long gown he wore over his shoulders carried a chill, and when he took it off and hung it on the screen, a lingering odor of blood wafted into the nose—unpleasant to smell.

Song Tingzhou thought for a moment, then took the gown down again, grabbed a set of clean undergarments, and went out. He returned two quarters of an hour later carrying the dampness of a fresh wash, with his washed clothes hanging in the courtyard.

Meng Wan had already fallen asleep on the soft couch in the inner room, still fully dressed, with a writing brush in his hand, dangling precariously over his half-open palm. On the low table beside him were his unfinished picture book and two burned-out oil lamps.

Song Tingzhou walked over with light footsteps, bent down, and gently pulled the brush from his hand. Then he slipped both arms under Meng Wan and lifted him up with strength from his arms. Though his movements were gentle and slow, Meng Wan hadn't been sleeping deeply—he woke before Song Tingzhou could even lay him on the bed.

"You're back?" Meng Wan's voice was thick with sleepy nasality, his lashes trembling as he struggled to open his eyes and look at Song Tingzhou, seeing only a dark silhouette in the dimness.

Song Tingzhou set him down securely on the bed. "Mm. Did I wake you?"

Meng Wan shook his head and yawned, then scooted further in. "No, I wasn't sleeping deeply anyway. How's Guang Zishun? Did he talk?"

Song Tingzhou got into bed as well, spreading the thin quilt over Meng Wan, and lay down with a barely perceptible weariness. "He talked a little, but all trivial matters—things we could have found out anyway. Not enough for a death sentence. He hasn't breathed a word about what really matters."

Meng Wan pulled the quilt down a bit and automatically nestled into Song Tingzhou's arms. "Troublesome?"

Song Tingzhou held him and closed his eyes. "Not really. Three days at most."

Guang Zishun had been entrenched in Suzhou for a long time. He had personal desires and ambitions for advancement—people like that had the easiest weaknesses to find.

The next day, Meng Wan woke to the sound of Fang Jinrong's delighted laughter. After washing up and stepping into the courtyard, it was already quiet and empty. Fan Er and his men had other business to attend to—jianghu folk didn't stand on ceremony, and they hadn't even let Meng Wan and the others see them off. After one night's sleep, they'd left before dawn on their own.

Ge Quan had gone out with Song Tingzhou, taking some men with him. Qiao Xingyuan had been dispatched to the government office, leaving only Zhifan, Zhimao, Fang Jinrong, and Chi Yu in the courtyard.

"Where did that little rabbit come from?" Meng Wan asked.

Zhimao was doing laundry, Zhifan was preparing lunch in the kitchen, and Fang Jinrong and Chi Yu were crouched on the ground playing with a white rabbit.

The rabbit was pure white all over, not a single stray hair, with ruby-red eyes that looked timidly around. Its three-part mouth twitched occasionally—utterly adorable. Fang Jinrong held a small piece of vegetable leaf, offering it to the rabbit. "I bought it at the market. Out of the whole basket, this was the only pure white one—it looked so fun."

He'd bought it on a whim for the novelty; he certainly wouldn't be bothered to care for it for more than a few days.

Meng Wan nodded. "Nice. Fatten it up, then braise it in soy sauce."

Fang Jinrong glared at him.

Meng Wan grabbed a quick bite to tide himself over, then went back to revising the second volume of his comic book. Once it was polished, he took it out to find a bookstore and pay for printing himself. Suzhou Prefecture had a thriving literary culture, with twice as many bookshops as Changping. One of the more famous bookstores was run by an acquaintance of Meng Wan's.

"Meng Fulang, it's been years—you haven't changed a bit, still as distinguished as ever." A young woman set down her round silk fan and rose to greet him, her expression a mix of surprise and delight.

She was none other than Miss Shen, whom Meng Wan had saved on Giba Island. Back then, she had accompanied Lord Shen out with the intention of finding herself a good match. Later, Lord Shen fell ill, and she nearly became a "merperson" herself. A few years had passed, and she was now a married woman—though whether her marriage had gone smoothly was anyone's guess.

With courier stations at his disposal, finding people was easy. Meng Wan had exchanged letters with her after arriving in Yangzhou. Seeing her now, he noticed her expression was relaxed and gentle, nothing like the frightened, anxious woman she'd been on Giba Island. It seemed her days were treating her well.

He smiled. "Madam Er, you carry yourself with even more grace than before—the bearing of one who truly runs her own household."

Miss Shen's cheeks flushed slightly. "What bearing do I have compared to you, Meng Fulang? It's all just small-scale fuss."

She led Meng Wan upstairs in the bookstore, saying as they walked, "It's quieter up here—let's sit and talk."

When old acquaintances meet, even if they hadn't been particularly close, Meng Wan's life-saving kindness was real and substantial. Miss Shen's relationship with her natal family wasn't close, so she felt surprisingly relaxed with Meng Wan and shared what had happened to her over the years.

Back then, Lord Shen had been too deeply poisoned and passed away not long after returning home. He'd been in the prime of life and hadn't left any arrangements for after his death. The Shen family was in chaos for a while. But Miss Shen had made her plans well before Lord Shen's death—amid the family's turmoil, she'd taken her personal valuables and married herself off to an ordinary merchant who was chronically ill in bed.

Her mind had been in a whirl then, and she hadn't entertained any naive notions of marrying for true love. She only wanted to escape the Shen family—even becoming a widow free from anyone's control would have been fine.

But unexpectedly, it was a happy accident. After she married into the family, the merchant's illness actually improved, and the whole family treated her like a lifesaver. The merchant also promised never to take a second wife.

Although the couple had no children, the merchant's relatives asked for nothing more. Knowing that Miss Shen was proud and ambitious, her in-laws even entrusted her with managing part of the family's business by way of compensation, and this bookshop was one of those ventures.

"The books you sent last time, I had them secretly printed and then distributed in batches to small vendors as you instructed. They've been well received among ordinary people, and no one has traced them back to our bookshop." Miss Shen looked at the book in Meng Wan's hand and said knowingly, "Same approach this time?"

She wasn't foolish—anyone in Suzhou knew who the pictures depicted, and knew that Meng Wan's husband was the imperial governor sent by the emperor to implement new policies. Miss Shen guessed that Meng Wan intended to clear Lord Fang's name.

Meng Wan smiled and handed over the book. "Before, I was worried that someone might trace the books back to your shop and cause you trouble. Now that I'm here, there's no need to be so cautious."

Miss Shen was taken aback, and a memory surfaced in her mind of Meng Wan standing fearlessly on Giba Island, calm and composed before those wealthy merchants who sat on mountains of gold, as if she could hold the sky up if it fell—exactly the kind of person she wanted to become.

With Miss Shen, a Suzhou local, as a go-between, Meng Wan sent his books to various bookshops to be printed in volumes. He wasn't looking to make money off them; the price was set extremely low, and with the novel format and the region's extensive waterways, he believed they would soon spread throughout the south.

Song Tingzhou had said it would take at most three days to pry Guang Zishun's mouth open, and on the third morning, he got the name he wanted from him—Yao Jing, the eunuch superintendent of the Weaving and Dyeing Bureau.

Yao Jing was exactly who Song Tingzhou had been waiting for. He wasn't as tough as Guang Zishun. No matter how much he bragged before Song Tingzhou showed up, the moment he saw Guang Zishun, who was already in a sorry state, he was scared out of his wits.

Within half a day, Song Tingzhou obtained from him a confession about their collusion in registering surplus military land under their own names, along with a string of names, several of which belonged to Suzhou's two great century-old clans.

"My lord, there are seven or eight imperial candidates from Suzhou outside seeking an audience," Tao Shi ran into the dungeon to report to Song Tingzhou.

The anger on Song Tingzhou's face hadn't faded yet. He asked coldly, "What is it?"

Tao Shi dropped his voice and said respectfully with his head bowed, "They say they want to report that their family's land titles are questionable, and that they used their status as imperial candidates to register large tracts of land to dodge taxes."

"Oh?" A faint smile finally crossed Song Tingzhou's lips. "In that case, bring them before the court. Li Xiuwen is the Suzhou Prefect, so let him conduct an open hearing."

"Yes!" Tao Shi acknowledged and withdrew.

Li Xiuwen had been effectively sidelined these past few days, spending his days on edge in the government office, hoping that Song Tingzhou would finish interrogating Guang Zishun to save his own family, yet also fearing that Guang Zishun, in desperation, would drag him down too. His anxiety hit its peak once Yao Jing was brought in too. Now seeing a group of exam candidates come to stir up more trouble, he immediately ordered the court officers to drive them away.

His subordinate, the Assistant Prefect, quickly warned, "My lord, you must not. Lord Song ordered you to handle this personally."

The very mention of Lord Song made Li Xiuwen tremble. He didn't dare refuse again and could only order the gates of the government office to be opened for a public hearing.

"I, Jiang Yan of Jinghuan Academy, accuse the head of the Jiang family cloth merchant business, Jiang Shouwang, of using my and my family's exam degrees to register thousands of acres of prime farmland in our names, taking advantage of the court's tax breaks to dodge land taxes for decades!"

Jiang Yan, the ringleader, walked in and immediately accused his own father. Li Xiuwen, seated under the "Clear Mirror on High" plaque, nearly laughed, but he couldn't bring himself to.

He was fully aware of these clans' land fraud and tax evasion, and now that it was out in the open in court, he was just as guilty.