Chapter 70 Confession
Shangguan Yee had always behaved in that way. She was self-willed, self-centered, smart in her conceit. Every inference she made revolved around her. Qin Yunzhuang schemed this to revenge her and her brother. Qin Yunuan listened with indifference. But that would work, too. At least it irritated Shangguan Yee and woke her heart of potential vengeance. It could be terrifying when a powerful heiress of the Shangguan Family started her revenge.
“If Qin Yunzhuang had retaliated against you for her face, I would still have believed it. But if she had done it because Qin Yuwan was about to marry your brother as a concubine,” Qin Yunuan raised an eyebrow, “Miss Shangguan, you have overestimated the friendship between my eldest and second sister.”
Shangguan Yee was naive and immature, but also very passionate.
“By the way, don’t you think that Grand Miss may just have arranged this meeting for your brother? Li might be the real killer for your brother. Maybe the person you hate should be Li.”
“Huh,” Shangguan Yee snorted coldly, “Who do you think Li is, that she could kill my brother? Does she dare? My brother had skills in martial arts. Li is a weak woman. Moreover, she was a weak woman that my brother would look down upon. How could she hurt my brother?” After her words, Shangguan Yee moved closer and said in a mysterious tone, “Actually, do you know that Qin Yunzhuang and her mother are far more powerful than you think. They have countless killers hidden behind their backs. Their skills were excellent, sealing throats with little blood.”
In fact, Qin Yunuan knew this a long time ago. She glanced at the gloomy expression of Shangguan Yee. She understood that she was no longer the lively and capricious Miss Shangguan.
“Thank you for sending me the notification in time,” Shangguan Yee raised her pitch, “I have made fake letters according to your instructions. The real one was burned by my brother after reading. So we’re even. Later in the public court, I would continue to come up with evidence. I will watch that little bitch Qin Yunzhuang fall down to hell.” Shangguan Yee said smilingly, taking a step back, “Looking forward to our second cooperation.”
“There won’t be a second time,” Qin Yunuan turned around coldly, dropping her a sentence, “I don’t cooperate with lunatics.”
After leaving the yard, Qin Yunuan glanced at Ting Xue who was staying outside. Ting Xue immediately followed and looked back at Shangguan Yee, who was still standing in the same place, “Miss Shangguan seems to be a little different. She’s becoming….”
“Terrifying, isn’t she?” Qin Yunuan didn’t look back, “Shangguan Yee’s heart is filled with hatred. She blindly immerses herself in her judgment and reverie. No one could pull her out. Sooner or later, She will be caught in a trap of her own making like Qin Yunzhuang, so stay away from her.”
Ting Xue listened and nodded firmly. The two walked to the back hall where Li Qiqi was temporarily held. Under the shade of the trees, a familiar figure flashed out of the door from a distance.
It’s Qin Zhi….
Qin Yunuan hid behind a silk tree unconsciously. She watched as Qin Zhi furrowed his brow and walked out of the house quickly. Looking around, he hurried out of the yard.
Qin Zhi? Li Qiqi?
Did Qin Zhi finally fail to sit still?
The court trial started again, and the atmosphere was a bit weird. Qin Yunzhuang leaned in Qin Linfeng’s arms and she was scared out of her wits. Shangguan Yee kept looking at her with a dark and complex look.
Yan Chengbing looked around and was about to speak when a ghostly female voice reverberated in the court.
“Master, I plead guilty.”
Li Qiqi spoke.
It seemed unexpected, but Qin Zhi and Qin Yunuan appeared to be calm. Qin Yunuan leaned forward her body and continued to listen to what Li Qiqi said.
“I killed him, and it’s also me who asked the young master Shangguan to go. I have loved the young master Shangguan for a long time. Unfortunately, I am now a married woman. I want to be with the young master Shangguan for the last time before he marries Second Miss Qin. But I didn’t expect the young master had such a pure state of mind. He was upright and refused to accept my intentions. He also verbally insulted me for not having women’s virtue. I got angry and killed him.”
Li Qiqi said in a faint voice, but her words were clear and organized. She kept her head down. Some messy hair covered her eyes, making it hard to see the colors in them.
She looked so helpless.
Qin Yunuan knew that these must be what Qin Zhi had demanded Li Qiqi to say. He used some unknown things as a bargaining chip, forcing Li Qiqi to give such untrue testimony. Li Qiqi was a concubine, but Qin Yunzhuang was an heiress. It became very clear who should be sacrificed and who should be kept safe at a critical time like this. At the same time, it could give Shangguan Yuan an explanation. Li Qiqi even admitted the offense of arranging “the private meeting of the two”, and Shangguan Rang suddenly became a straightforward gentleman.
It was obvious that Yan Chengbing would not let it go so easily. He asked seriously, “Li, as you have said that you killed the young master Shangguan, what about the murder weapon? Where did you leave the murder weapon? What kind of weapon did you use?”
A bleak smile appeared on the corner of Li Qiqi’s mouth, “A pointed dagger with a pair of silver swallow wings at the handle. The dagger was six inches long. It cuts iron like mud. If you put hairs on the blade and blow to it, they will break instantly. I left it behind a giant stone a hundred meter east to the thatched house.”
How could it be… all correct? It was exactly the same as that police officer’s report of the dagger found in the thatched house just now, the location and the details.
Qin Yunuan looked at Qin Zhi. Yan Chengbing had invited Qin Zhi and Shangguan Yuan for a talk in the inner hall, mostly the talk would be about finding the murder weapon. The Qi law stipulated that the observing officials were responsible for participation, assistance, and surveillance throughout the whole process of the case. She did not expect that Qin Zhi used the convenience of the position, instructed Li Qiqi to fake to protect the fame of the heiress of the Qin Family.
Someone should be responsible for this in the end. Qin Yunuan looked at Li Qiqi, who was not far from her death, and then at Qin Yunzhuang with tears all over her face and resentment for her. She had overachieved what she wanted.
“Master Yan, it’s me who killed the young master Shangguan,” Li Qiqi smiled bitterly and admitted.
“Impossible,” Shangguan Yee shouted first, “With your skills, how could you kill my brother?”
“I attacked while he wasn’t paying attention. The young master Shangguan had no guard against me, so it was easy to succeed.”
“Master Yan.” Qin Zhi turned his head slowly. It was unable to read joy or anger from his face, “The matter had already become clear, was further examination necessary?” He spoke to Li Qiqi again, “As a woman, you are of loose morals and ignorant of shame. You have committed murder. You dirtied the Qin Family’s face. Master Shangguan, you can rest assured that our Qin Family will never be tolerant with such a bitch, and she will be at your mercy.”
Qin Yunuan twisted her lips with scorn. Her good father might have done a lot of those things, offering people favors while selling others out.
Yan Chengbing frowned, “Master Qin, we have only Li’s words now. I’m afraid,” Yan Chengbing and Qin Zhi’s eyes met in the condensed cold air, but at that moment, Yan Chengbing stroke the sounding block and made a decision, “Li will be retained for the trial later.”
Faced with the obvious provocative behavior of Yan Chengbing, Qin Zhi did not object but simply saluted towards Shangguan Yuan with a righteous face, “Master Shangguan, you can rest assured that I will never cover for anyone of the Qin Family.”
It was approaching dusk when this serious trial ended with a bit frustrating ending. The village women with loose tongues had long spread out Qin Yunzhuang’s performance in the public court. She clamored, tried to slander her sister, also had correspondence with the young master of the Shangguan Family before marriage. Though the rumors were about Qin Yunzhuang, Qin Linfeng was the most irritated one.
“What are you looking at? Get out of here.” As he got on the carriage back to the mansion, Qin Linfeng looked around all the unwanted attentions for Qin Yunzhuang and protected his sister like a cow protecting its cubs.
Li Qiqi was only waiting for trial, but now she was a criminal who had pleaded guilty. Naturally, she was moved from the waiting room to the prison.
“Dine.” The jailer sent a bowl of white rice, with a few vegetable leaves drooping on top, and a little yellow soup underneath. It was already nice to be able to eat white rice in prison, but Li Qiqi had no appetite at all.
She leaned against the icy and damp prison door and watched the reddish setting sun penetrating through the tall, little window. The glow spread out in the room, picturing a lustrous and dazzling view.
Suddenly, the view disappeared and was replaced by a thin black figure. Li Qiqi was startled and turned back suddenly.
“Third Miss?”
“It’s me.” Qin Yunuan walked out of the corner where light and shadow interlaced. She looked back at the following Ting Xue and she immediately turned around and started chatting with the jailer outside the door deliberately to cover the two people.
Li Qiqi smiled sadly, “It is rare that Third Miss would be so thoughtful to see me. It’s really an honor.”
Qin Yunuan slowly squatted down to meet with Li Qiqi’s eyes horizontally. She spoke, “I’m here to find you, just because you are still valuable to me.”
Li Qiqi pointed to the vain walls in the prison and laughed, “Value? Third Miss, are you kidding me?”
Qin Yunuan said, “I need to ask you, what was the poison on the dagger? Was it unique to East Qin? You have seen Shangguan Rang’s wound, you must know.”
When the carriage was halfway to the mansion, Huang Dashi suddenly stopped her carriage, saying that Maner’s injury had deteriorated, and the blood that had been almost cleansed began to come out again. Maner’s face was turning blue and purple. She seemed very uncomfortable. Qin Yunuan immediately turned around and ran towards the county government.
She knew that Li Qiqi must know because she never felt that Li Qiqi’s identity was that simple.
“Third Miss thinks too highly of me,” Li Qiqi turned her head, “I am a woman from a bawdy house. I don’t know anything but prostitution and singing. How could I know about the poison?”
Qin Yunuan snorted coldly, “I have sent someone to check. You said that when you sang in the Su mansion, you changed your name to Lily. The miracle-working doctor and also the Master of my cousin Su, Sun Miaoyang also had a female disciple with the name Lily. You were so affectionate to my cousin. How could you not follow along when he left home resolutely to study medicine? When the fire broke out on the first night you married into the Qin Family, your eyes that lingered around my cousin Su were not the expression of unwilling and nostalgic. You were more surprised and puzzled, I was afraid.”