"Yu Liniang, what is your relationship with Lin Yougui of Linjia Village?"
"Replying to Your Honor, this humble woman has no connection whatsoever with Lin Yougui." After entering Dali Temple, Yu Liniang did not seem as frightened as ordinary commoners. Facing Shen Yun's questioning, she did not show the slightest hint of panic. Yet, it was precisely this composure that signaled she likely had something to hide.
At that moment, a bailiff entered to report, "Sir! Lin Yougui tried to flee, but our men have captured him and brought him back."
Shen Yun and Xie Hui exchanged a look. Xie Hui glanced at Yu Liniang and said, "I shall leave things here to Master Shen. I will go and meet this Lin Yougui."
Afterward, no matter how Shen Yun questioned her, Yu Liniang seemed determined not to utter another word.
About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a bailiff came in from outside and whispered something into Shen Yun's ear. One could vaguely hear mentions of what Lin Yougui had done.
The previously stationary Yu Liniang suddenly shifted her feet. Shen Yun knew the time had come.
And so, he repeated the question he had asked before.
"Yu Liniang, speak the truth regarding your relationship with Lin Yougui."
"Sir, this humble woman has no relationship with Lin Yougui."
"Oh? But Lin Yougui has already confessed. He admits to having an affair with you." Shen Yun observed the expression on Yu Liniang's face as he spoke.
There was only a momentary flash of panic before she quickly regained her composure, repeating her previous statement that she had nothing to do with him.
Shen Yun was not surprised by her reaction. He picked up his tea, took a sip, and calmly uttered two words:
"Yunzhou."
Yu Liniang, who had been perfectly composed, suddenly changed expression and jerked her head up to look at Shen Yun.
"Yu Liniang, that arsenic belonged to you as well, didn't it? You were involved with Lin Yougui, and you weren't satisfied with just seeing him in secret. So, you decided to go all the way and poisoned Chen Shi and her three children to death."
Yu Liniang had been barely holding on; hearing this, she collapsed to the floor. "It wasn't like that! It wasn't, it wasn't!"
Shen Yun struck while the iron was hot, intentionally saying, "Even a tiger doesn't eat its cubs. If it wasn't you, could it have been Lin Yougui?"
Yu Liniang had already broken down the moment she heard the word "Yunzhou." Yunzhou was a pact between her and Lin Yougui that no third person knew about. She never expected that Lin Yougui would actually betray her! They had made a promise!
Yu Liniang immediately threw the pact to the wind and shrieked, "It was Lin Yougui! It was him! He was the one who wanted to kill that woman Chen Guiyue! It was him, not me!"
"Why did he want to kill Chen Shi and the three children? They were his own flesh and blood."
"What does flesh and blood matter? Lin Yougui cursed his two daughters every day, calling them money-losers. He said Chen Guiyue dug up a wild mountain ginseng in the mountains. It happened that a landlord's daughter needed it for childbirth, so it sold for a lot of money all at once. Chen Guiyue said she wanted to save the money for the children's education, but Lin Yougui wanted to use it to open a shop. She wouldn't agree."
Once she started talking, the rest was not so difficult to say. Moreover, Yu Liniang still harbored a sliver of hope; after all, she wasn't the one who did the deed—it was Lin Yougui.
Lin Yougui had been having an affair with Yu Liniang for a long time, and his relationship with Chen Guiyue was not as it appeared to outsiders. The money Chen Guiyue received from selling the wild mountain ginseng was merely the fuse that ignited Lin Yougui's murderous intent.
After poking a hole in an egg, he placed the poison inside. Nowadays, commoners were very frugal; they would not throw away a cracked egg.
Lin Yougui had calculated well. By putting the poison in the egg, Chen Shi would be poisoned whenever she decided to cook it. By then, he would happen to be away from home, allowing him to easily clear himself of suspicion.
When Lin Yougui found out that Yu Liniang had confessed, he cursed her as a "vile woman" in a rage. The two of them ended up in a physical scuffle right there in Dali Temple.
The truth of the case had come to light. The two were escorted to the dungeons to await their eventual sentencing.
However, Xie Hui still had some doubts.
"Master Shen, how did you know they planned to go to Yunzhou?"
Yunzhou was something Shen Yuan had heard in her previous life, but Shen Yun had long since prepared a response.
"Yunzhou is far from the capital. When Yu Liniang was young, she followed her father, a traveling physician, to Yunzhou and stayed there for quite some time. It was merely a guess on my part."
"This junior has learned something today," Xie Hui said.
Shen Yun quickly said he didn't deserve such praise. He was feeling quite guilty; without his daughter, this matter truly wouldn't have been resolved. He didn't have the heart to take the credit.
This case was particularly heinous. Lin Yougui was certain to face death. As for Yu Liniang, although she didn't commit the act herself, she was still an accomplice.
Even if she escaped the death penalty, she would be sentenced to exile. Once on the road to exile, it would be less painful to just be beheaded.
The case was solved. Although it wasn't his own doing, Shen Yun still felt a sense of relief.
When he finished his shift and returned home, it showed on his face. As soon as Shen Yuan saw him, she knew her father was in a good mood.
"Father, is the case solved?"
"I haven't even settled the score with you for dressing up as a servant to go to Dali Temple yet." Even though his daughter had been a huge help, Shen Yun felt he couldn't praise her. This time it was Dali Temple; who knew what she might do next time?
"But I was a big help! Merit cancels out the fault, so you can't scold me anymore."
Shen Yun didn't say yes or no, but Shen Yuan knew her father didn't plan to punish her.
"Father, tomorrow I'm going to the Imperial College with my sister-in-law to see my brother."
"I see."
Shen Yuan turned to leave but then came back to the door.
"Father, I saw him last time—Lord Xie is truly very handsome. Is he engaged?"
For a young lady nearing her hair-pinning ceremony to ask if a man was engaged—it would be scandalous if someone else heard.
"You're just a young girl; what do you care if he's engaged or not? Is this something you should be asking so blindly?"
"I was just asking in passing…"
In truth, Shen Yun had misunderstood. Shen Yuan simply thought Xie Hui was good-looking and wanted to see if the girl engaged to such a handsome man was also exceptionally beautiful; she had no other intentions.
Shen Yun, however, thought his daughter had taken a fancy to Xie Hui. After calming down, he said to her, "Xie Hui's maternal grandmother was a Grand Princess, the late Emperor's younger sister and the current Emperor's aunt. His mother is the Kangle County Princess, personally titled by His Majesty. As for your father, I am a fourth-grade official. I am nothing in comparison."
The underlying meaning was that their social statuses were mismatched, and she should give up on the idea as soon as possible.
Shen Yuan blinked, wondering why her father had suddenly started talking about Xie Hui's family background.
However, as a filial daughter, how could she allow her father to belittle himself?
So, she patted her father's shoulder with great solemnity. "What's wrong with the fourth grade? Just because you're fourth grade now doesn't mean you'll be fourth grade forever! Jiang Ziya became Prime Minister at seventy, and you're still young! I have high hopes for you!"
Shen Yun: "…"
After Shen Yuan left, Shen Yun went to the inner chamber of his study to weep before his late wife's memorial tablet.
"Yan Niang… our daughter is so bold, she even dares to think about the Emperor's nephew."
"What am I to do, Yan Niang…"