Chapter 111: Dumb Woman
Jiang Li walked out of the tavern.

Ye Mingyu squatted on the street for a long time. When he saw Jiang Li coming over, he spit out the grass root he was chewing and asked, "How is it? Are you done?" He didn't ask who Jiang Li met or what they did. If it was Ye Jiaer, he would have asked, but when it came to Jiang Li, sometimes he felt that Jiang Li, as a junior, was more opinionated than his peers, so there was no need to worry. More importantly, Ye Mingyu thought that even if he asked Jiang Li, Jiang Li would not tell him.

Why waste your time? Then just don't ask.

Jiang Li nodded: "That's it, uncle, let's go back."

Jiang Li didn't take the meeting with Ji Heng or even the conversation with Ji Heng too seriously. Although it was rumored that Ji Heng was a moody person, Jiang Li thought that was just his performance. He had his own ideas in everything he did. After several confrontations and her serious thinking, the possibility that Ji Heng would break her plan was really small. Even if she really delayed Ji Heng, it was a trivial matter for Ji Heng. He didn't need to do it himself. The reason why he chased from Xiangyang to Tongxiang was because his actions were too strange and he wanted to be a spectator.

Well, just watch the play. She has never been afraid of being an actor, but she has to control the beginning, development, turning point and ending of this play herself.

Ji Heng was not important. The important thing was that her father would be executed in seven days. If she could not find evidence to overturn her father's case, she had to prepare for the worst and rob the execution ground. However, whether the robbed execution ground would be successful, and even if it was successful, whether it would implicate a wide range of people in the future, was also something that needed to be seriously considered. Therefore, the most comprehensive way was to start with evidence.

Ye Mingyu readily agreed when Jiang Li said she wanted to go back. The homestay they were staying in was also in Qingshi Lane, not far from the sealed Xue family. People who wanted to come to Feng Yutang would pay attention to where they were staying. Choosing Qingshi Lane was too eye-catching. But Jiang Li wanted to make a big fuss, to let Feng Yutang know that she was coming to settle the score.

After returning to the B&B, Ye Mingyu asked someone to get some food and asked about the terrain of the area. Jiang Li stayed in the room by herself. Ye Mingyu gave the Xue family's files to Jiang Li and did not dare to disturb her. He only asked Tong'er and Baixue to wait at the door. If Jiang Li wanted to drink tea or eat something, they could help.

Jiang Li was reading the files carefully.

If possible, she must find the doubts and loopholes in the Xue family case in the file, and hold on to these doubts and loopholes, and investigate step by step. Even if it doesn't work, she can deliberately exaggerate it to confuse people and buy time for Xue Huaiyuan.

The file should have been prepared by Feng Yutang. Perhaps because of Princess Yongning's instructions, Feng Yutang's Xue family file was completely concealed. It described Xue Huaiyuan as a corrupt official who did all kinds of evil. Jiang Li looked at it and gradually wanted to sneer in her heart.

Xue Huaiyuan did not do any of the above things, but the current Tongxiang County Magistrate Feng Yutang did almost everything. But Xue Huaiyuan confessed his crime. Jiang Li could imagine what they did to make Xue Huaiyuan confess his crime. Perhaps it was for this reason that Xue Huaiyuan was tortured to the point of losing his mind.

This file, in some ways, is really flawless. Feng Yutang must have spent a lot of effort to put these crimes on Xue Huaiyuan. But because everyone in Tongxiang knows who Xue Huaiyuan is, these things seem particularly ridiculous.

Jiang Li read the whole thing at a glance.

Some small loopholes can be found in the files. For example, the disaster relief money embezzled by Xue Huaiyuan was dug out in the backyard of the Xue family. But the disaster relief money was clearly distributed to every citizen. The new "silver" was probably added by Yongning himself.

Feng Yutang could add unwarranted crimes to Xue Huaiyuan, but he could not erase Xue Huaiyuan's former kindness and political achievements. Just on this point, Jiang Li could buy a chance for Xue Huaiyuan.

"Not enough." Jiang Li murmured. This was far from enough. The little chance given to Xue Huaiyuan was really not worth mentioning. Once Yongning and the others found out, they would use Feng Yutang's current identity to falsify and exaggerate, and this little evidence would become useless evidence.

Feng Yutang must be made ineffective. Even though he is the county magistrate of Tongxiang, he can no longer interfere in the Xue family case. How can this be done... Jiang Li pondered.

Tong'er came quietly to pour tea for Jiang Li. Jiang Li was just concentrating on it and didn't notice that the tea Tong'er had poured was right next to her. She stretched out her hand to suppress her nausea, and the teacup fell to the ground with a clang, spilling all the scalding hot tea on Jiang Li's arm.

"Oh my God!" Tong'er screamed, and hurriedly took a handkerchief to wipe Jiang Li's wound. While wiping, she said, "Girl, are you okay? Bai Xue, bring me some burn ointment!"

Bai Xue left in a hurry. Ye Mingyu heard the noise and hurried over to see what was going on, asking, "What's going on? What happened?"

Tong'er blamed herself so much that tears were about to fall. She said, "It's my fault. I poured tea and the tea scalded the girl. Please don't leave any marks. What should I do?"

"Ali, are you okay? Does it hurt?" Ye Mingyu turned to look at Jiang Li, only to see Jiang Li sitting there in a daze, staring at the teacup that had shattered into pieces on the ground.

Ye Mingyu thought Jiang Li was going crazy from the pain, so he quickly took a few steps forward and waved his five fingers in front of Jiang Li: "Ali? Ali?"

Jiang Li looked at him blankly, as if she had just realized what was happening. She immediately stood up and said excitedly, "I know, I know!"

"Know what?" Ye Mingyu was puzzled, and Tong'er was also confused.

"According to the laws of Northern Yan, if there is irrefutable evidence, we can file a lawsuit against the local officials at the higher government office. But the higher government office is Tong Zhiyang, and he may not help. After much calculation, I think the situation in Yanjing City is complicated, so I will take the case to Yanjing City and hand it over to the Dali Temple for further investigation. However, the case I want to try is not the Xue family's, but Feng Yutang's. As long as Feng Yutang is involved in the case, he cannot interfere in it. Evidence in Feng Yutang's hands is not counted!"

This was to avoid suspicion. Feng Yutang could naturally "fabricate" evidence without scruples, and Jiang Li could do it himself. Anyway, when it came to the Dali Temple, Feng Yutang's evidence would not count. On the contrary, she had no relationship with the Xue family, but was a true outsider.

Ye Mingyu was not an official, and he did not know much about the official system of Northern Yan. He just said, "But why did the Dali Temple take on the Tongxiang case?"

Is it just a case in Tongxiang?

"So we have to make a big fuss." Jiang Li said.

Tong'er's action of knocking over the teacup reminded her that in order to make everyone pay attention to this cup of hot tea, it was far from enough to just make a splash in Tongxiang. It had to be bigger, bigger, and bigger. If it involved a nobleman in Yanjing City, it would be even better. In this way, with all eyes on it, the Xue family case was no longer just a simple case of corrupt officials. It might be a frame-up, it might be related to an old case, or even a conspiracy to rebel.

She was not afraid at all. She would make the case bigger and bigger. If the Dali Temple did not dare to accept it, she would file a complaint with the emperor. No matter how friendly Emperor Hong Xiao was to Prince Cheng and Princess Ping, if an honest official was framed, people in the world would doubt whether the emperor was destined to be the emperor. Even for the sake of stabilizing people's hearts, Emperor Hong Xiao would not let it go. What's more, Prince Cheng and Emperor Hong Xiao were natural enemies.

Emperor Hong Xiao would not miss any opportunity to make King Cheng suffer.

Ye Mingyu thought about it, but still didn't understand, so he asked, "How do you plan to make a big fuss?" In fact, for Ye Mingyu, the Xue family had nothing to do with him. But because Jiang Li was so concerned about this matter, and Ye Mingyu also felt that Feng Yutang was too disgusting, if Xue Huaiyuan was really wronged, it would be too pitiful. Hating evil and upholding justice is the nature of them, the people of Jianghu. In this case, what's wrong with helping the injustice?

"It's far from enough to just check the evidence in the files. If it's not strong enough, it won't make sense even if we take it to the Dali Temple." Jiang Li said, "We need witnesses."

"Human witnesses?" Ye Mingyu asked, "Are you saying that the people of Tongxiang stood up to vindicate their former county magistrate? How is that possible? Didn't you see that when these people saw the soldiers, they were like mice seeing a cat, avoiding them as much as possible? They were so scared that they didn't even dare to tell the truth. How could they dare to stand up? And did you know that today the guards found out that someone had spoken for Xue Huaiyuan before, and the government had the man's son arrested. By threatening the man's parents and children, even those who really had a sense of justice would not dare to tell the truth, as the disaster would not affect their wives and children!"

Jiang Li said: "That's because Feng Yutang went too far, and Feng Yutang gave people the impression that he could stay in this position of county magistrate for a long time. The people dared to be angry but not to speak out. Once the people thought that Feng Yutang might fall, they would have the courage to point out Feng Yutang's crimes."

"So? Are the people you are looking for the witnesses?" Ye Mingyu asked.

"No." Jiang Li shook her head: "All the people can say is Feng Yutang's evil deeds and Xue County Magistrate's integrity. These words can only be the last straw that breaks the camel's back. If they don't appear now, at another time, the effect will be much better."

Ye Mingyu was even more puzzled: "Then Ah Li, who is the witness you are looking for?"

"It's the officials." Jiang Li looked deeply, "They were Xue Huaiyuan's former subordinates. Now, all the officials in the county government have been replaced by Feng Yutang. Those officials were all strong-willed people. Feng Yutang replaced them with his own people. I don't know whether the original people are dead or alive. I want to see them alive or dead. If they are still alive, they are evidence. If they are dead, those bodies are also evidence. All the officials in the county government died suddenly. I think it is also a strange thing in Beiyan, right?"

Ye Mingyu was stunned after hearing this.

Jiang Li's eyes were calm, but when she said these words, there was a chill in her eyes. Thinking about the scene in Jiang Li's words, Ye Mingyu couldn't help but feel numb on his back. It was rare for a whole family to be killed in the martial arts world, and those were all deep hatreds. Of course, there is also a saying that a new emperor appoints new ministers, but Feng Yutang is just a small county magistrate. Does it mean that so many lives have to be sacrificed to replace a county magistrate?
"Ali, how do you know that these officers were replaced by Feng Yutang? You have never seen them." Ye Mingyu suddenly remembered something and said.

Jiang Li smiled and said, "I know it at a glance. How can a proper official behave like that? They don't even know the basic official etiquette in their words and deeds. I don't know where Feng Yutang found such a mob. They must have been hooligans in the past. How could County Magistrate Xue have such subordinates when he was in office? Unless he wants to destroy his reputation."

Seeing that what she said made sense, Ye Mingyu nodded and said, "That's true. I think those officials are not serious people either."

"Ali, do you want our guards to search for someone in Tongxiang?"

"That's not the case. Although Tongxiang is small, the terrain is complex. I might as well find a map. But the problem is that once Feng Yutang finds out that we are looking for these officials, he will probably hide them."

"Then let's rob that person!" Ye Mingyu said without thinking.

"I want to rob someone, but not now." Jiang Li thought for a while and said, "Uncle, there is a mute woman who sells night incense in the county government office. Can you ask your people to find a way to bring the mute woman out and let me see her, but don't alarm anyone, and don't let Feng Yutang's people find out."

"Alone?" Ye Mingyu patted his chest, "No problem, kidnapping people is something I am good at." Seeing Tong'er and Bai Xue staring at him, he scratched his head, "Didn't I kidnap Tong Zhiyang's mistress and son last time? Until now, Tong Zhiyang hasn't discovered that it was me who did it." He said it with some pride.

"It's not kidnapping. This mute woman may know the whereabouts of the officials." Jiang Li said, "So, you must be careful."

Ye Mingyu stood up and said, "Don't worry. When has your uncle ever messed up something for you?" He walked a few steps, then suddenly turned around and asked, "But this mute woman is called mute woman. Could she be mute? If she is mute, how would you ask her? Can she read?"

"She's not mute." Jiang Li said behind him, "She can speak."

……

Ye Mingyu left. After Ye Mingyu left, Jiang Li asked someone to bring in paper, pen and ink, and began to carefully draw a map for Ye Mingyu. No one knew Tongxiang better than her, and she knew every place in Tongxiang. If there was something she didn't know, it was the newly renovated county government office. Feng Yutang made the county government office "his" county government office, and Jiang Li didn't know how much it had changed.

But she knew Tongxiang and other places like the back of her hand. Ye Mingyu was going to act in Tongxiang, and with this map, he would be even more powerful. No one could do it more detailed than her.

After making the map, she began to look through the files again, noting down the loopholes in the files to see if she could use them to uncover some more evidence in the future.

Unconsciously, time passed quickly. Bai Xue and Tong Er called Jiang Li to eat, but Jiang Li didn't care. It was getting dark, and the oil lamp was lit in the house. Jiang Li was shocked to realize that it was already night. She looked out the window, frowned and asked, "Is my uncle not back yet?"

Bai Xue shook her head.

"Why did you take so long..." Jiang Li murmured. As she was talking, Ah Shun beside Ye Mingyu came to report: "Miss cousin, the third master is back, and he brought the mute woman back with him. Do you want to see him now?"

Jiang Li was overjoyed and said, "Come right up."

When I went to the room, I saw the mute woman, who was wolfing down her food, as if she hadn't had good food for a long time. Ye Mingyu sat on the side, crossed his legs, and ate a steamed bun. When he saw Jiang Li coming, he asked for credit: "Ali, how is it? I brought the person here, and no one found him." He added: "Bah, Feng Yutang is so unlucky that he sent someone to follow me. If I hadn't asked someone to pretend to be me to lure him away, I don't know when I could get rid of this trouble. There is no one watching where the mute woman lives, but just in case, I'll wait until dark before bringing her here."

Jiang Li looked at the mute woman.

The gray-haired old lady swallowed the last mouthful of porridge and then looked at Jiang Li.

The face of the mute woman was full of wrinkles due to old age, her eyelids were drooping, her back was hunched, and her body was thin. She was an old lady in her twilight years. Probably because she was doing the job of pouring night incense, she exuded an unpleasant smell all over her body. People would avoid her as much as possible.

Jiang Li did not show any disgust, but just said calmly: "Dumb woman."

The mute woman looked at Jiang Li for a while, and suddenly asked: "Who are you?"

Ye Mingyu was startled. On the way, since he took the old lady away, the old lady had not said a word. Even the surprise when she was taken away was only a short moment. It is said that people are not surprised when they get old. Ye Mingyu thought that the old lady was slow. Jiang Li said that the dumb woman could speak at first, and Ye Mingyu thought it was a joke. Who knew that the dumb woman really spoke at this moment. Although her voice was hoarse, it was still clear. He muttered, "She can really speak."

"My name is Jiang Li." Jiang Li looked at her and smiled, "Mute, I came to you to find out where County Magistrate Xue's former subordinates are now."

The dumb woman said, "I don't know."

Jiang Li smiled: "How could you not know? Feng Yutang replaced all of Xue Huaiyuan's people, but not you. He probably thought you wouldn't do anything bad, but I know, you know, right?"

The dumb woman said, "I know, but I can't tell you. If I tell you, I'll die."

"Don't you want to avenge County Magistrate Xue?" Jiang Li smiled, "County Magistrate Xue is a good man." There was one more thing she didn't say, Xue Huaiyuan once helped the mute woman.

The mute woman was originally a widow, her husband died at a young age, she had no children, and she did not remarry. Because of her ugly appearance and being single, she was often bullied. When Xue Huaiyuan took them to work, the mute woman had already become an ugly old woman who was bullied.

She often picked up other people's leftovers to eat, but was unwilling to beg on the streets, and often went hungry. Xue Huaiyuan felt sorry for her because of her old age, so he let her work as a night messenger in the county government office. She could earn some money a month, so having enough food and clothes was not a problem.

If it weren't for Xue Huaiyuan, the dumb woman would have frozen to death one winter day. The dumb woman was mute because she was bullied by others for many years and gradually became unwilling to speak, so others thought she couldn't speak. But Jiang Li knew that the dumb woman could speak, because once when Xue Zhao gave the dumb woman the wild fruits he picked, she heard the dumb woman say "thank you" to Xue Zhao.

Feng Yutang replaced all the people in the county government office, but did not replace the Mute Woman. Perhaps it was because he felt that the Mute Woman was just a night incense burner and was useless. Besides, the Mute Woman was a mute, so even if she really saw or heard something, she could not tell anyone about it.

But the moment Jiang Li saw the mute woman still in the county government office today, she knew that her chance had come.

The mute woman looked at Jiang Li blankly, which made her look like a fake coincidence. She said vaguely: "Why should I believe you?"

"This is not about believing in me." Jiang Li said softly, "This is about believing in fairness and justice."

"Is it fair that County Magistrate Xue is imprisoned? Is it just that a person like Feng Yutang can sit as a judge? Putting aside other things, when County Magistrate Xue was here, you should have lived a much better life, mute woman. At least you had enough to eat and clothes to wear, right?" Jiang Li smiled and glanced at the table on the side. There, the food on the table had been swept away by the mute woman, and the winter clothes she was wearing had many holes in them.

The mute woman lowered her head.

What the rich lady said was right. When Xue Huaiyuan was here, she had enough to eat and was well clothed. Xue Huaiyuan's son Xue Zhao and daughter Xue Fangfei often sent her things to help her. Although she was still in the county government office, let alone a month ago, she usually ate the leftovers of the officials.

Life was not easy. The days when Feng Yutang took office were just like the days when she was bullied in her youth. But why is it that good people in this world always die young, while evil people always live for thousands of years?

The mute woman raised her head and looked at Jiang Li again. She asked, "Why do you want to help the Xue family?"

"I have an old friendship with the Xue family," Jiang Li said, "and was entrusted by someone to redress the Xue family's wrongdoings. Please rest assured that I will not tell anyone else. It was you who told us these things, and Feng Yutang will not be able to trace you back. I can guarantee your safety."

The mute woman laughed hoarsely. When she laughed, the wrinkles on her face were squeezed into a ball, but she looked much kinder than before. She said: "What should I be afraid of? I have lived to such an old age, and I have lived enough. I stayed in the county government just to see how long Feng Yutang can be the county magistrate. I hope to avenge the Xue family, but I can't do it. I waited and waited, and finally you came."

Ye Mingyu opened his mouth wide. It was really surprising to hear such a long speech from this old woman who was not good at speaking. But her words were touching.

Jiang Li looked at her quietly for a while, then reached out and held the mute woman's hand: "Thank you."

The young, plump hands and the old, dry hands stacked together seemed to inject new life into the old man. The eyes of the mute woman became bright, and she spoke slowly, but every word was very clear.

"Feng Yutang and his men replaced all the people in the county government. Lord Xue was imprisoned, and his subordinates refused to obey and were locked up. There was a little black man who struggled hard, but he was killed by them. Feng Yutang was afraid that killing too many people would cause trouble, so he sent the rest to the mines in Dongshan to work as miners."

"Dongshan Mine Tunnel?" Jiang Li was surprised. "Isn't that a long-abandoned mine?"

The mute woman glanced at her and said, "It's rare that you know this."

Ye Mingyu interrupted: "What is that mine? Are there mines in Tongxiang?"

The mute woman sighed, "Few people know about the mine. Even the younger generation, let alone outsiders, do not know that there is a mine in Tongxiang. Several decades ago, someone dug up gold in the East Mountain of Tongxiang. Others said it was a gold mine and reported it to the court. The court sent people to explore and mine in the mine, but after a whole year of mining, no gold was found except for a little bit on the surface. The officials in charge of mining at the time were dismissed, and the mine was abandoned."

Jiang Li listened to what the mute woman said, and her expression was not as surprised as Ye Mingyu's. The young people in Tongxiang, and even some of the older ones, didn't know about this, but she knew. Before Xue Huaiyuan took office, he wanted to understand the past of Tongxiang, and he also personally saw the Dongshan Mine.

Jiang Lidao asked, "Since it is an abandoned mine, why did Feng Yutang send them there?"

The dumb woman sneered, "Because Feng Yutang wanted to torture these people. He sent them to the mines and made them work in the mine tunnels from morning to night until they dug out gold. Everyone knows that gold cannot be dug out of Dongshan. Those people will never be able to dig out gold in their lifetime, so they will never be able to get out."

"He is abusing his power. The mining of mines must be reported to the court, but he actually mined gold privately. Even if it is an abandoned mine, it is enough to convict him!" Jiang Li said angrily.

"Miss, you have to know that no one working in the mines is comfortable. Moreover, Feng Yutang intends to torture them, and it will only make things worse. I heard from Feng Yutang's men that the officials were stripped naked, shackled, and forced to work all day long. If they don't do their job well, they will be beaten and kicked. Death and injury are common. A healthy man is living a life worse than a dog. If this continues, I don't know how many of them can hold on, and how many are still alive."

"This is too much!" After hearing what the mute woman said, Ye Mingyu slammed the table, "This is simply insane!"

Jiang Li pursed her lips and said nothing. She could imagine the miserable situation of those people who were originally officials becoming slaves and confessing to being driven. Such torture was not only physical torture, but also a great destruction to their self-esteem.

Feng Yutang really became lawless in Tongxiang.

"That's all I know." The mute woman said, "Miss, if you want to find those missing officials, go to Dongshan. But don't let anyone find you, because Feng Yutang's men are watching there... Do you know where Dongshan is?"

"I know." Jiang Li said, "I know how to find those people."

The mute woman looked at her and said slowly, "My lady, I don't know where you come from, but since you have started investigating the Xue family's case, I hope you will investigate it to the end. I am old and will soon be in the coffin. As long as I can overturn the Xue family's case and let me see that God still has fairness and justice, it is not worth it to sacrifice my life."

"Don't worry." Jiang Li looked at her and swore, "I swear, I will get to the bottom of this matter and won't give up halfway. No matter what troubles I encounter, I will never give up. If I break my oath, I will be struck by lightning."

The mute woman felt relieved.

(End of this chapter)