Chapter 10: Why Make Things Difficult for Her

When Ye Chutang arrived at the yamen entrance, it was already surrounded by several layers of people, each craning their necks to get a look inside.

The sorrowful wailing of a woman drifted out from within.

"Officer! Please, just let me see him! I beg you!"

The voice sounded somewhat familiar.

Ye Chutang walked forward, and when people noticed her, they quickly cleared a path.

"Dr. Ye is here! Make way, quickly!"

Ye Chutang had lived in Jiangling for three years; she was gentle, well-mannered, and possessed excellent medical skills, so everyone held her in high regard.

The commotion caused by the Cao family yesterday had made many people suspicious, but fortunately, the yamen had found the true culprit today, naturally clearing the name of the Ye family’s fourth son.

Seeing Ye Chutang again now, and recalling the courage she showed by opening the coffin for an autopsy in public yesterday, the crowd felt both respect and awe.

A path opened up in the center, and Ye Chutang finally saw the scene inside.

Mrs. Zhou was crying so hard that her face was a mess of tears and snot, begging the yamen officers to let her see Liu Si one last time.

The officer said impatiently, "It’s useless no matter how long you kneel! That Liu Si is a murderer and a death-row prisoner! Do you think you can just see him whenever you want?"

Mrs. Zhou’s eyes were red and swollen; she looked as if she had been crying all night.

"He was framed... he was framed!"

The officer acted as if he had heard a joke. "Framed? He confessed to it himself! How could that be fake?!"

He waved his hand. "Alright, alright, hurry back! Do you expect us to personally escort you out?"

It was still raining, and Mrs. Zhou was soaked to the bone, her hair disheveled, looking utterly wretched.

She was listless, despair surfacing in her eyes: "So, does that mean... does that mean he will definitely be beheaded?"

"What else?" The officer gave her a shove. "The Cao family is magnanimous; it’s a blessing they haven't taken their anger out on you and your child! Get lost!"

In this small Jiangling, such a murder case was considered heinous. Since Liu Si had killed someone, his family had no face left to continue living here.

Not to mention that the person he killed was the second young master of the Cao family.

Mrs. Zhou lost her footing and fell into a puddle, a few drops of dirty water splashing onto the hem of Ye Chutang’s skirt.

Ye Chutang leaned down and supported Mrs. Zhou’s arm.

Mrs. Zhou looked up blankly, gazing into a pair of dark, gentle almond eyes.

Ye Chutang said softly, "Be strong. Your child is still at home waiting for you."

This sentence seemed to finally pull Mrs. Zhou back to her senses.

That’s right!

Her six-year-old child was still locked up all alone at home!

If something happened to her, then—

Mrs. Zhou hurriedly wiped her face, only to find that her tears had already mixed with the rain, making them indistinguishable.

Ye Chutang caught a glimpse of the cloth bandage on her left hand, which had fallen off at some point, revealing a fresh scratch.

Soaked by the rain, the wound looked a bit pale, but it was clear it wasn't deep.

It didn't even require golden sore medicine.

Ye Chutang thought to herself, *as expected.*

In truth, she had only been guessing at first. She hadn't expected Wu Xu to act so quickly, nor had she expected Liu Si to be so cowardly that he confessed everything after only half a night of interrogation.

Oh no, not everything.

At this moment, several people suddenly walked out of the yamen.

The crowd went quiet for a moment.

Ye Chutang seemed to sense something and looked up.

It was Cao Chengwen.

His face was haggard, and he looked as if he hadn't slept well all night.

Coming out with him were his personal servant and the yamen officers.

Standing on the steps, he bowed solemnly to Wu Xu and the others. "Officer, thank you so much! You found the culprit so quickly! If it weren't for you, my brother would have died in vain!"

Wu Xu waved his hand. "This is what we should do. Young Master Cao, please grieve in moderation and go back to comfort Boss Cao and Madam Cao."

Cao Chengwen nodded heavily, then gritted his teeth and said, "To think that just because my brother scolded him a few times, that Liu Si would harbor such hatred and kill him with such vicious means! I beg you officers to behead him and display his head to the public as soon as possible! Otherwise, we truly cannot swallow this anger!"

Wu Xu didn't answer him immediately, only saying politely, "We understand your feelings, but the necessary procedures must be followed. Don't be anxious, Young Master Cao. Now that the evidence is conclusive, even if that Liu Si wants to quibble or appeal, it will be impossible."

Cao Chengwen clenched his fists, wanting to urge them further, but he understood that Wu Xu was right.

No matter how smoothly the case was investigated, it still required a certain amount of time to be fully resolved; it was impossible to close the case today and execute him tomorrow.

Although he was worried about complications, there was no other way...

And now that all the evidence was laid out clearly, there shouldn't be any further trouble.

Cao Chengwen cupped his hands, thanked them again, and turned to leave.

He didn't expect to have his path blocked after only a few steps.

"Young Master Cao!"

Accompanied by sorrowful wailing, a figure lunged toward him.

Cao Chengwen was startled and quickly stepped back, but he still got splashed with dirty water.

He looked at the person with disgust, only to find it was a woman in her twenties who looked somewhat familiar.

"Who is it!" he scolded, frowning.

"Young Master Cao! It’s me! Liu Si’s wife!" Mrs. Zhou knelt in the water, kowtowing repeatedly as if she had seen a lifeline. "Please, save him! Save him! Our child is only six years old; he cannot grow up without a father!"

Cao Chengwen’s brow furrowed even tighter, and he cursed coldly, "You dare to come and plead for mercy! Your husband killed my brother; we haven't even settled that account with you yet!"

Mrs. Zhou’s expression was desolate.

If she had looked closely, she would have seen the deep warning in Cao Chengwen’s eyes, but she was so flustered that she couldn't care about that now.

Her mind was filled only with Ye Chutang’s words from earlier—the child is still waiting at home.

The child... the child!

Seeing that Cao Chengwen was about to leave, Mrs. Zhou ignored everything else, lunged forward, and grabbed his leg tightly, begging bitterly.

"Young Master! Young Master, please help! Liu Si is so timid, how could he dare to do such a thing! He... he has always listened to you, doing this was all for—"

Cao Chengwen, both angry and anxious, kicked her hard in the chest!

"What nonsense are you spouting!"

He used his full strength, kicking Mrs. Zhou so hard she spat blood.

Her head swam, and the thick, metallic scent of blood in her mouth made her chest heave.

The cold rain fell on her, chilling her to the bone.

Cao Chengwen shouted angrily, "What are you standing there for! Drag her away! She’s making a scene and embarrassing us!"

"Yes!"

Several servants rushed over, looking fierce and menacing.

At this moment, a gentle and clear voice suddenly drifted over.

"Young Master Cao, she is just a woman with a young child, already pitiful enough. Why make things so difficult for her?"

Mrs. Zhou looked up and saw that amidst the curtain of rain and the crowd, everyone was watching coldly, yet the only one who stood up to speak for her was Ye Chutang.

Cao Chengwen sneered, "How am I making it difficult for her!? It is clearly her husband who committed the evil! A cheap life like his isn't enough to compensate for my brother’s! If she makes any more trouble, neither she nor her son will have an easy time!"

This sentence completely shattered Mrs. Zhou’s last shred of sanity.

She looked up abruptly, her eyes bloodshot as she stared fixedly at Cao Chengwen, screaming at the top of her lungs

"It was all you! If it weren't for you instigating it from behind the scenes, how could Liu Si have been so ruthless toward the second young master!"