Chapter 33: A Banknote

A single stone stirred up a thousand waves.

After a brief, deathly silence, the crowd erupted into a massive uproar!

"What did he say?! The one who ordered him to kill Cao Chengwu was actually Cao Chengwen!?"

"How is that possible? They are biological brothers!"

"You say biological brothers, but those two weren't born from the same womb. Didn't Liu Si's wife expose this in public before, only for it to be dropped in the end? I didn't expect Liu Si to jump out and bite him now. This matter—it's hard to say!"

"Yeah! I remember Cao Chengwen was taken to the yamen for questioning back then, but he was eventually released without guilt. Now, this..."

The crowd discussed fervently, and the executioner's blade hung suspended in mid-air, hesitant to fall, looking back at Yang Zhen with indecision.

At this moment, Yang Zhen was also stunned. He never imagined that Liu Si would recant his testimony at the execution grounds!

What was to be done?

Under the watchful eyes of the public, Liu Si was crying injustice. If he proceeded with the execution, he would inevitably face public criticism.

If this news reached the higher-ups, it would damage his official reputation!

Therefore, no matter how much he wanted to settle this case immediately, it could no longer end smoothly!

His expression turned solemn, and he asked in a deep voice

"Liu Si, what do you mean by this!"

At the same moment, the Cao father and son from the Cao Family Restaurant were also caught off guard by Liu Si's outburst.

Cao Deping nearly leaped from his chair immediately, filled with shock and rage: "What madness is he possessed by!"

Cao Chengwen's heart also raced wildly, his panic palpable.

"Father! He... he is slandering me! You have to help me, Father!"

A surge of indignation blocked Cao Deping's chest, making it hard to breathe, his face turning ashen.

He naturally knew the truth behind this matter, but he could never allow Liu Si to expose it!

Otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to protect his one remaining son!

Cao Deping gritted his teeth and said, "Let him scream all he wants. As long as he has no evidence, it is all slander! Didn't they fail to do anything to you last time? This is nothing more than his futile struggle before death!"

Hearing this, Cao Chengwen finally felt a slight sense of relief, but for some reason, looking at Liu Si's crazed expression, he felt a sense of unease.

He calculated inwardly, "It won't happen, nothing will happen. I already made an agreement with him—as long as he stays obedient, I guarantee his wife and children will be safe and—wait!"

Cao Chengwen suddenly remembered something. His eyes widened abruptly as he searched through the crowd.

However, after looking back and forth several times, he still could not find any sign of Lady Zhou.

"Lady Zhou didn't even come to the execution grounds to see him off!?"

Cao Chengwen murmured in disbelief.

This was meant to be their last meeting. By all rights, Lady Zhou should have definitely come, but now—

At which link in the chain did things go wrong!?

...

At the execution grounds, Yang Zhen questioned, "Liu Si! You claim Cao Chengwen ordered you to murder Cao Chengwu. Do you have evidence!?"

Hearing this, everyone pricked up their ears, jostling forward to hear more clearly.

Ye Chutang stood behind the crowd, watching this scene quietly, her expression calm and indifferent.

In the next moment, Liu Si shouted through gritted teeth, "I do! I have evidence!"

The crowd broke into an uproar.

—Liu Si actually had evidence!?

Yang Zhen was also secretly startled, his eyelid twitching.

During the last interrogation, Liu Si had clearly stated that everything was his own doing. But now, not only had he recanted, he even claimed to have evidence!

Given the situation, Yang Zhen had no choice but to steel himself and continue asking, "What evidence?"

Liu Si spat out a mouthful of blood and said with hatred, "Cao Chengwen has long envied Cao Chengwu. Upon hearing that the Master intended to hand the restaurant over to Cao Chengwu, he decided to act. Because Cao Chengwu is allergic to river shrimp, he specifically called me that day and told me to catch shrimp in the lake, mince the meat into a paste, and mix it into the porridge before delivering it to Cao Chengwu."

He took a deep breath and continued, "At first, I was afraid, but he promised me a very generous reward. He even said that once the children were older, he would send them to an academy to study. To ensure my absolute loyalty, he gave me two hundred taels in banknotes and one of his jade thumb rings. That jade ring is buried under the third blue stone slab at the corner of the street in the west of the city! If the official does not believe me, he can send someone to find it right now!"

Yang Zhen frowned and asked, "A jade thumb ring? What kind of jade thumb ring?"

Liu Si sneered, "A green jade ring. His father gave it to him a few years ago, and he has always cherished it."

Hearing this, Cao Chengwen's legs went weak.

To ensure Liu Si's obedience, he had indeed intentionally given him the ring as a token. But things had moved too quickly; before he could find an opportunity to retrieve the ring, Liu Si had been arrested.

Later, when he was taken to the yamen for questioning, he had specifically asked Liu Si about it. Liu Si had claimed he lost it while in the lake and could not find it.

Although Cao Chengwen was frustrated, he had no other choice but to let it go.

Furthermore, since he had used Lady Zhou and her child to threaten him at the time, he was certain that Liu Si would not dare to speak recklessly.

Who would have thought—

Cao Deping kicked Cao Chengwen and shouted angrily, "What are you standing there for! Go down and explain yourself!"

...

By the time Cao Chengwen reached the execution grounds, Yang Zhen was already preparing to send men to search for the jade ring.

He originally wanted to stop them, but in the end, he held back, only rushing to the front and shouting, "Official! Injustice! It is an injustice!"

The crowd turned around. Seeing it was him, they exchanged glances and quickly cleared a path through the middle.

Cao Chengwen panted heavily, "Official! My jade ring was lost a long time ago. I never expected it was stolen by Liu Si! He is slandering me! He is slandering me!"

This excuse didn't sound entirely impossible; after all, a thumb ring could not be considered ironclad proof.

Yang Zhen's frown deepened.

Unexpectedly, at that moment, Liu Si spoke up again.

"Official, I have one more piece of evidence! When Cao Chengwen instructed me to do these things, the banknotes he gave me were freshly withdrawn from the money exchange. At the time, he was looking at the restaurant's ledgers, and his hands were stained with ink. Coincidentally, half of his fingerprint was left on those banknotes. The banknotes are hidden in my house; the official can have someone retrieve them for an on-site comparison!"

Cao Chengwen could hardly believe what he was hearing.

He pointed at Liu Si and cursed, "You are talking nonsense! When did I ever give you banknotes!"

But Liu Si closed his eyes, refusing to look at him again.

Yang Zhen knit his brows, "Go, retrieve those banknotes as well!"

Since the matter was of great importance, the subordinates moved quickly and returned in a short while.

"Official! The jade ring and the banknotes are here!"

Yang Zhen looked at Cao Chengwen, "Come and compare. Is this your fingerprint?"

Before Cao Chengwen could speak, Wu Xu and another officer stepped forward, grabbed his hand, and pressed his print onto paper before presenting it.

"Official, please examine it."

Yang Zhen picked up the banknote and compared it with the freshly printed fingerprint in his hand.

Immediately, he let out a cold snort.

"The fingerprint on this is identical to the pattern of your left index finger!"

Without thinking, Cao Chengwen blurted out, "Impossible! What I gave him that day was silver ingots. There is something wrong with this banknote!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the surroundings instantly fell into a deathly silence.

Cao Chengwen's mind suddenly went blank, and a bone-chilling coldness rose from the soles of his feet.

What... did he just say?

On the other side, at the Ye Family Clinic.

Xiao Wu squeezed her purse and sighed while resting her chin on her hand.

*Sigh.*

—Those banknotes she worked so hard to save, gone just like that!

(End of Chapter)