Chapter 920: Chapter 915: Search

Xingxing served tea to Su Jin to calm her down.

The Minister of the Ministry of Justice had never seen Su Jin so angry before.

Questioning the case was done with extreme caution.

The housekeeper stubbornly refused to confess, insisting that she did not poison Nanny Wei.

The case of the Ministry of Industry’s mansion poisoning Nanny Wei was executed flawlessly.

First, they beat the board, and after Nanny Wei brought up Su Jin as a backer, they offered a gift, apologized, and personally sent her away from the mansion.

Who would have thought that during a jovial conversation with the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s wife, a poisoned cup of tea would be served?

Upon hearing that the Ministry of Justice had summoned the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s wife for questioning, the Minister immediately rushed over.

However, Su Jin did not allow him into the Ministry of Justice, only let him be held outside like the onlooking citizens.

That housekeeper stubbornly refused to confess, and Su Jin coldly said, “Use punishment.”

The Dali Temple Constables pressed her onto a bench and began to beat her.

After twenty strikes, the housekeeper was bruised and soaked in sweat.

But she was beyond any pity.

Su Jin walked up to her, and she still cried out in grievance, “Are you trying to force me into a confession, Princess Consort?”

“Even if you beat me to death, I am still innocent.”

“I won’t confess to something I didn’t do.”

Su Jin found amusement in her heart.

These words truly sounded like she had suffered great injustice.

Su Jin looked at her and laughed, “Housekeeper, you are righteously crying out innocence because you are sure that the maid named Bibi is dead, leaving no witness, isn’t it?”

The housekeeper’s heart skipped.

She struggled to look up, staring at Su Jin’s confident face.

The housekeeper felt a bit guilty.

She indeed had someone kill the maid to silence her.

But the people were dispatched, whether the maid Bibi was dead or alive at this moment was uncertain to her.

If Bibi was not dead…

Then she was doomed.

After enduring the Dali Temple Constables’ solid twenty strikes, the housekeeper was so pained that she was curled up, a mere movement felt like being tortured.

At her most bewildered moment of pain, a constable ran over and said, “Princess Consort, a maid confessed having seen the housekeeper instructing the maid Bibi to pour something into the tea cup.”

The housekeeper’s back turned ice cold.

Not long after, another constable came saying, “The Minister of Ministry of Industry’s wife confessed prior to coming, admitting to the housekeeper that she wanted to vent for the big girl of the Ministry of Industry’s mansion, fearing Nanny Wei would climb up the Princess Consort Zhenbei’s high branch and later target the Ministry of Industry’s mansion. She struck preemptively before Nanny Wei fully developed.”

Su Jin looked at the housekeeper, “Did you hear that? Your Madam has already confessed on your behalf. Do you think clinging stubbornly will let you escape?”

The housekeeper’s face turned ashen.

Though she knew she’d become the scapegoat, she had loyally sacrificed her all for the Madam, and yet facing trouble, she hadn’t confessed, but the Madam disassociated herself thoroughly.

If the masters are heartless, don’t blame the servants for being disloyal!

The housekeeper’s heart turned cold. Due to pain, she struggled for a long time before speaking fully, “Lord Minister, please discern rightly. As a servant, I had no vendetta against Nanny Wei; no need to harm her. It was Madam who feared Nanny Wei would climb the Princess Consort Zhenbei’s high branch and instructed me to poison her…”

The Minister of the Ministry of Industry, standing outside and hearing this, turned ashen.

He couldn’t tell if the constables’ words were true, but the housekeeper confessed without reservation that the Minister’s wife had instructed poisoning.

With Princess Consort Zhenbei personally overseeing this case, once established, the least consequence would be her losing her honorable title as a Madam.

Su Jin looked at the housekeeper, “Confession leads to leniency, resistance leads to severity. The Minister’s wife is the mastermind, how did she instruct you to poison?”

Previously, the Minister’s wife publicly claimed she never instructed anyone to poison Nanny Wei, with maids and servants able to testify for her.

The housekeeper said, “I served Madam for over a decade; with just a glance, I could figure out her thoughts, no need for verbal instruction.”

Excellent.

Very excellent.

The Master wrote the confession, the housekeeper pressed her handprint, confirming her statement was truthful.

The signing was just a formality, as many outside witnessed everything.

After the housekeeper was taken away, the Minister’s wife was brought in, and the Minister of the Ministry of Justice questioned her.

Upon hearing the housekeeper had confessed and implicated her, the Minister’s wife turned as pale as paper.

“Slander!”

“She is slandering me!” the Minister’s wife blurted out.

Outside, the Minister couldn’t bear listening anymore. He pushed past the constables blocking him, exclaiming, “Is this how the Ministry of Justice conducts interrogations?”

“Tricking a mere housekeeper, sparking her internal rage, to implicate someone else?”

Su Jin looked at the Minister, “All’s fair in war, using this tactic during interrogations is common.”

“Why, shouldn’t this be used when questioning your wife?”

“A housekeeper so easily frightened into confessing her master, yet served faithfully for over twenty years as the Madam’s trusted aide?”

The Minister was speechless.

Though furious inside, he dared not refrain from paying respects to Su Jin.

Without engaging further with the Minister, Su Jin said, “Send people to search the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s mansion. Since there’s poison, the antidote should be found.”

The Minister resisted, “As a princess of noble status, while I am still a Minister without the Emperor’s permission, how dare the Ministry of Justice search my mansion?”

Su Jin, having said this, was not afraid of the Minister’s objections, “I believe Lord Minister knows the term ’execute first and report later?’”

Then, ignoring the Minister, she looked at the Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

What could the Minister do?

With Su Jin handling everything above, he was merely a runner.

Well.

Not even a runner, since the Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice ran errands.

The Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice took the Dali Temple Constables to search the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s mansion.

The citizens outside the Ministry of Justice watched in disbelief.

They all knew Marquis Dongxiang was swift and decisive, and the princess he raised was just as resolute.

Seeing this, it seems they wouldn’t stop until the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s mansion was done for.

Indeed—

Offending the Princess Consort Zhenbei would never end well.

Yet, it wasn’t even considered a direct offense—merely offending the maid beside her.

Gradually, rumors spread suggesting Nanny Wei was not even Xingxing’s aunt…

But no one believed this explanation. If she wasn’t the maid’s aunt, could she be the Princess Consort Zhenbei’s actual aunt?

The real aunt was Princess Jiuling.

At that time, it was getting late. The Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice took people to the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s mansion for searching; a round trip took more than half an hour.

By the time the Minister of the Ministry of Justice returned, it was already dark, and they were lighting lanterns outside the Ministry.

Seeing Su Jin wasn’t leaving, he didn’t ask proactively, cautiously adhering.

Nanny Ji, upon learning Nanny Wei had been poisoned and died in the street, took leave from Qin Hanhan and hurried to the Ministry of Justice.

Su Jin drank tea patiently waiting.

The Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice returned, handed over the found medicine packets to the Minister, saying, “Lord Minister, these were discovered in the Minister of Ministry of Industry’s mansion.”

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