Chapter 921 - 923 - : Turning Defeat Into Victory, A Good Move_1
Passersby, fearful of being inadvertently harmed, panicked and scattered. Only when the horse carriage of the Bai Family had gone far did people regain their composure and start discussing fervently.
"Something dreadful must have happened again in Beiyu City. Tsk, did you hear? A servant stole the master’s property and colluded with the enemy to betray the country. He must have the audacity of a lion and the gall of a leopard. Were those behind it the Turkic people?"
"Whoever it is must be extremely powerful; otherwise, who would dare take such a risk?"
"Indeed, to use hidden weapons to commit murder and silence someone in broad daylight, right here in Beiyu City, is not something ordinary people would dare to do."
"Stop guessing, everyone. Let’s hurry to the Government Office entrance and see what’s really going on!"
...
The noise of the street faded; the person hiding around the corner frowned. The assassination arranged by the prince hadn’t succeeded? What were they to do now?
Suddenly, his expression changed. It was all over, they had been duped, and even he had fallen for it. If Kuai Wen was like a frightened bird at this moment, how could he not have been tricked? No, he must report to the prince immediately.
The horse carriage sped up, forcing Kuai Wen and the others to jog to keep from falling. At this point, those who were more cowardly started to cry, sobbing as they spoke, "Manager Kuai, let us beg our mistress; she has the kindest heart. Let her spare our lives."
Kuai Wen’s heart was cold. Prince Duan had clearly told him that even if something went wrong, they should place the blame on Bai Ruozhu. As long as it could be pinned on Bai Ruozhu, he, the "uninformed," would be safe and promised future glory and wealth, along with a position of nobility.
But why was Prince Duan trying to kill him before he even stood in the Public Hall? Was it because Bai Ruozhu had learned of the plot first and taken the initiative?
So his life was worth so little after all? What happened to the promised glory and ranks?
While Kuai Wen was still hesitating, another person below shouted, "I don’t care anymore. I will confess everything. We were only following Manager Kuai’s orders and were completely unaware! If we don’t confess now, what if his people come to the jail and kill us?"
In the horse carriage, the corners of Bai Ruozhu’s mouth lifted further. A single piece of hidden weaponry had shattered their final sense of security; this move had indeed been the right one.
Soon, Bai Ruozhu arrived at the Government Office, had Kuai Wen and others brought in, and loudly announced, "Please inform Lord Kuai that Bai Ruozhu is here to confess her faults. I present four servants guilty of collusion with the enemy and betraying our country, and I request that His Lordship personally interrogate them."
Kuai Minglang emerged from the back hall, feeling a headache coming on at the sight of Bai Ruozhu. In the past six months, he had seen this woman in the Public Hall several times, but what for today? Had a servant stolen something from her home?
When Bai Ruozhu saw Lord Kuai come out, she immediately bent her knees and knelt on the ground, loudly declaring, "The married woman of the Bai Family, Bai Ruozhu, is here to confess my faults. The manager of my household was instigated by someone else and secretly transported goods to the Turkic Country, a crime of collusion with the enemy and betrayal of the country. I dare not conceal the slightest bit and wish for His Lordship to personally clarify the truth."
"What? Collusion and betraying the country?" Lord Kuai looked at Bai Ruozhu as if she were a monster. Even if it truly was a servant secretly colluding with the enemy, shouldn’t they have been pulled out and dealt with quietly?
Alas, she’s a woman after all, impulsive enough to do such self-destructive acts.
At that moment, an officer from outside announced, "City Lord Meng Liangshen has arrived!"
Following that, Meng Liangshen entered from outside and looked at Kuai Minglang, saying, "My foster daughter mentioned she wanted to come today to plead her guilt. I wanted to see what this was all about. Kuai, you can proceed with the trial. I am here only as an observer and will not intervene."
Kuai Minglang stood up to pay his respects to Meng Liangshen, then sat back down in his place after hearing his words and continued with the trial.
"Bai Family, please explain the specifics," Kuai Minglang stated.
Bai Ruozhu knelt on the ground without getting up; she had bound knee pads around her legs before leaving the house.
"As a woman, I cannot truly carry branches on my back as men do, so I can only kneel here to ask for punishment," she started. "The matter begins from when I returned to Beiyu City. A steward under my command reported to me that a relative of his, while trading on the border, had seen our family’s toothpaste being sold in large quantities to merchants from the Turkic Country. But there had been no such bulk transactions in the Toothpaste Shop recently, so I immediately sent subordinates to investigate. It was then we discovered that Kuai Wen, the manager of the Toothpaste Workshop, had been bribed and had secretly shipped a batch of toothpaste to the Turkic Country."
"Although I was in Jiangnan before, I’ve always been concerned about the country’s security. How could I stand by and watch the underlings commit such acts of betrayal? Today, I have brought them in for Your Honor to interrogate, hoping that you can also uncover the person who instigated this behind the scenes," Bai Ruozhu continued, bowing her head to kowtow, her voice rising significantly, "Even though I was not in Beiyu City before, I feel guilty about this affair. The batch of goods that Kuai Wen dispatched cannot be retrieved anymore. I am willing to offer a batch of toothpaste to the Imperial Court to show my sincerity in asking for punishment."
Kuai Minglang’s eyelids twitched. Investigate the person behind the scenes? Why did he feel like this was a deep pit waiting for him to fall in?
Meng Liangshen’s eyes, however, flashed with approval. This Bai Ruozhu was indeed clever, playing a good move that turned defeat into victory!
As for the toothpaste offered to the Imperial Court, once the emperor knew that she was framed by Prince Duan, he would naturally compensate her. Besides, would she care about that little bit of silver? This move could also mean her family’s toothpaste would soon enter the palace, possibly soon surpassing the Du Family’s number one ranking.
At this moment, Kuai Wen’s subordinates could not wait any longer and shouted, "Mercy, Your Honor! We were only helping Kuai Wen with his work, not knowing he was colluding with the enemy. We wouldn’t have dared if we knew, not for all the courage in the world."
Another hurriedly said, "We really didn’t participate; it was all Kuai Wen’s doing himself. Please Your Honor, see the truth!"
Kuai Wen, irritated, glared at the two men. These ungrateful wretches, they disassociated themselves from him the moment there was trouble. How had they fawned over him before?
Then someone reported from outside that several witnesses to the case had arrived, and Kuai Minglang immediately called the witnesses in for questioning.
It was the relative of Zuo Hongyun linked to the case. Once Zuo Hongyun received the news from Bai Ruozhu, he immediately convinced his relative to come forward to testify. That relative recounted in detail what he saw while he was engaging in trade on the border.
Next were several workers from the Toothpaste Workshop, who attested that before their master returned, Manager Kuai had them rush a batch of goods and then had them loaded onto a horse carriage, though they did not know where it was to be sent.
Zuo Hongyun was also there, presenting his account book to Kuai Minglang, proving there had been no large transaction recipients for the Shop lately.
Then Bai Ruozhu submitted the secret letter, and with that, the charges against Kuai Wen for colluding with the enemy and embezzling from his master were solidified. Of course, in the face of treason, embezzling his master’s property wasn’t much of an issue.
"Audacious Kuai Wen! Who instigated you to collude with the enemy and commit treason? Do you not know that is a crime punishable by the execution of your entire clan? Confess at once, lest your whole family suffers!" Kuai Minglang said with a bang of the Courtroom Wooden block, shouting loudly.
The loud sound broke Kuai Wen’s last thread of nerve as he knelt on the ground weeping, crying out, "Your Honor, I was coerced! I certainly did not collude or betray the country. I don’t even know people from the Turkic Country. It was Prince Duan who ordered me to deliver a batch of toothpaste to the Turkic people, and he said that when the event was discovered, I must claim it was all arranged by Bai Ruozhu."