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Chapter 21.2

Jiang Hongqing asked the servants to serve tea. After everything was arranged, he closed the door and looked at the five people in the room.

Big Long spoke first: “Lord Yao, Mr. Jiang told me what happened. Can you trust what Miss An said?”

Yao Kun nodded: “It is quite credible. Xu Matchmaker died mysteriously. During the oath ceremony, Xie Jin chased Miss An into the woods. Xie Jin’s case is full of suspicions. We wanted to investigate further, but were left with no clues. Although Miss An did not know Xie Jin, he still chased her, which is too much of a coincidence. I think Xie Jin was aware of her existence. Xu Matchmaker used the convenience of marriage negotiations to control some girls and get information out of them. Xie Jin on the other hand opened a restaurant. With people coming and going, it was a good place to camouflage the spying operation. And now these two, surprisingly, are both dead. Miss An revealed their identity, and the South Qin’s side silenced them. It is reasonable.”

“Who silenced them? Did Miss An know?” Big Long asked.

“She said when she evaded Xie Jin’s pursuit, she hid in the bushes. A man wanted to lure her out. When the officers and soldiers entered the forest to search, the man left in a hurry. She did not see the man’s face and did not think much of it at the time. She thought it was one of the soldiers and did not report the matter.”

“The soldiers did enter the forest to search, but they did not find any other suspicious characters other than Xie Jin and Miss An.”

Yao Kun said: “What General Long mentioned, I also asked. Miss An said that if that person was a spy, he must be cunning. Perhaps hiding up in the trees.” Yao Kun paused, “I asked the officers who searched the forest that day. At the time, they and the General’s people did not search the trees.”

Xie Gang frowned. The Governor kept his tone as usual but did not forget to stress that both his staff and the General’s had made the same mistake.

Big Long showed no expression on his face as if he did not understand Yao Kun’s meaning, only saying: “Since we didn’t search the trees, it may be said both that there was no one there or that there was indeed someone up on the tree. The person that Miss An mentioned, besides Miss An herself, is there anyone at all who has actually seen him?”

Yao Kun choked and frowned: ” What good would it be for Miss An to give a false report like that?”

 “I have not concluded that Miss An has reported a false case.” Big Long said, “I only pointed out the suspicious point.”

Yao Kun choked again, calculating in his heart for a moment, said: “Miss An’s words are quite reasonable, consistent with what has happened recently. She is a girl. Suddenly reporting a case in the middle of the night is indeed strange. This is a military matter, so I would like to ask the General to examine this case with me.”

Big Long answered in one breath, agreeing.

 Yao Kun gave a sign to Jiang Hongqing, who went out and brought An Ruochen.

By this time, An Ruochen’s wound has already been re-bandaged and she slightly freshened up. The whole person looked much cleaner and more energetic. She limped in, knelt with difficulty, and saluted the gentlemen.

Big Long looked at her calmly and didn’t say anything. Yao Kun politely asked her to stop saluting and allowed her to sit and answer some questions.

Big Long asked without ceremony. “An Ruochen, you explained that Xu Matchmaker had said many things to you, teaching you to help her spy for information after you enter the Qian family, correct?”

“Yes.” An Ruochen bowed her head and replied respectfully.

“If this happened so long ago, why do you say it only now?”

This question was sharp. Yao Kun also asked it before. To avoid Big Long thinking he was muddleheaded while conducting the interrogation, Yao Kun busily said: “An Ruochen, you have already been asked these questions by this officer earlier, and you can tell what you said to this officer, repeat your answer carefully to General Long.”

An Ruochen answered respectfully and said, ” I am only a daughter of an ordinary family. I have no insight or ambition. I only want to keep myself safe. I dare not deceive the elders about marrying into the Qian House, but I was worried and didn’t know how the future would look like in that house. I was willing to listen carefully to Xu Matchmaker’s advice. She said she could teach me to lead a good life. But then I found out that the situation she was putting me in was improper, and what she wanted me to do was a treasonous crime. At the time, I didn’t dare to go against Xu Matchmaker for fear of getting into trouble. I’ve been talking smartly, trying to keep her steady and see what will happen. Trying not to create difficulties for myself. As for reporting to the authorities, I did not have any evidence. In addition, Xu Matchmaker was clever, well-spoken, and could speak many times better than I do. She had many contacts and a strong backer behind her. I felt I could not fight her, so I dared not report to the authorities.”

An Ruochen paused, then said: “I also did not want to be held by Xu Matchmaker to work for her in the future. I was talking to her once and deliberately mentioned that the crime of treason would be sentenced to death. I was afraid and tried to persuade Xu Matchmaker to plan more and asked her whether she was sure that the people behind her would not kill us. If something happened, the person responsible might be her and those of us who are spying. I told her to be more cautious and keep some physical evidence to protect her life. I intended to make her feel that I was one heart with her, so in the future, based on this friendship, she wouldn’t make things difficult for me. But those words seem to have hit the heart of Xu Matchmaker. She said I was right. She has to keep some eyes on the other side and hold onto each other’s weaknesses.”

“Then what did she do?” Big Long asked.

“I don’t know what she did afterwards. That was the last time I spoke with her. After some time, I heard she had killed herself at home. I was both surprised and happy. I was shocked because I didn’t know what had happened to her and was afraid I would be dragged into it. After her death, no one would entice me to do something against the law and the state. Later, the matchmaker for my marriage changed. Everything went on as usual, and there were no accidents, so I gradually put my mind at ease. Then, the incident with Xie Jin happened. I did not know him. The government finally closed the case, exposing him as a liar and gangster. I thought he had nothing to do with Xu Matchmaker, so I didn’t give it much thought.”

“Since nothing happened, everything is as usual. Why would you risk reporting the matter to the authorities now? Today at dawn, it’s time for you to get on the palanquin. You chose this particular moment to report to the authorities as if you were running for your life. What is your intention?” Big Long coldly asked again.

Zong Zeqing sweated for An Ruochen in his heart. Although he knew General Long must have a reason for acting this way, he tore down Miss An’s stage as if he could not stop himself from asking her. With the Governor watching closely, in case there was a wrong word or two, things would turn for the worse.

An Ruochen indeed showed panic. She flung herself to the ground, with her eyes in tears, choked, and said: “General, Lord, I was forced without a way out. I was afraid. In the past few days, there have been many incidents in the city and at home. I have the best relationship with my fourth sister. My father promised to marry my fourth sister to Master Qian, but my fourth sister was afraid. I coaxed my fourth sister and said I would take her to escape  ……”

Xie Gang frowned. He instructed her not to talk about these things, not to cry and pretend to be pitiful. It will only annoy the Governor. How can she rush like this?

“Father knew about this and taught us a lesson. The injuries on my body are from this.”

Xie Gang glanced at Yao Kun. Indeed, his face was unpleasant. Xie Gang was about to scold An Ruochen, the General and the officer were not here to listen to you talk about this. Quick, talk about the business. He wanted to remind her. 

But An Ruochen turned her words around and said: “I should not talk about these things with the officer. As children, it is right for our parents and elders to educate us. I have only my ignorance to blame. How could I have used something like this to coax my sister?  It was a mistake. I knew I was wrong, and I was punished. But then my fourth sister suddenly disappeared. The whole family searched for her for several days but could not find her. At that time, I was still being punished and was locked in the residence, and the more I thought about it, the more scared I became. The person who controlled Xu Matchmaker still wanted me to help spy for information but with Xu Matchmaker’s death, the previous coaxing words were no longer valid. They would not be able to befriend me and entice me to help, so they must have taken my beloved sister to use her to blackmail me after I marry into the Qian House.”

Yao Kun was shocked: “Is there such a thing?”

An Ruochen kneeled on the ground and sobbed softly: “Sir, I am stupid. I can’t think of any other reason. A good little girl, how could she get out alone? The maid in her room said she was taking a nap. The gatekeeper said he had not seen her go out. She must have been taken away from the residence. I was locked up and guarded, so the person who came couldn’t get to me. They must have turned to my sister. I thought about it, but what else could I do?”

An Ruochen raised her head, tears sliding down her cheeks, pitiful: “Lord, General, please investigate. Because of the words I coaxed my sister with, my father thinks I instigated my sister to run away. If I told him about these presumptions, with him not knowing the previous situation, how could he believe me? I am afraid he will think that I am lying to get away with it. As soon as the day dawns, I’m going to get into the palanquin, into the Qian House. Maybe someone will come to blackmail me, forcing me to do something against my conscience and morality of collaborating with the enemy and betraying the country. In Fu’an County, I will be unfamiliar with the place. How could I report anything to the officials in order to get help without even a friend? If I tell Master Qian and the magistrate, would they think I was lying or crazy? By that time, the other side will have learned about my actions. How could I live then? Once I get onto the palanquin, I will be isolated, helpless, and can only die. I had no choice but to pry the window open and climb out of the woodpile in the backyard to report the case to the Lord. Heaven had eyes to let me see you and the General.”

Xie Gang and Zong Zeqing quietly glanced at each other and read each other’s eyes. This girl is a talent, ah.

An Ruochen kowtowed hard: “Lord, General, everything I said is true. My sister is missing. I do not know whether those spies took her or not. Please Lord and General, investigate this matter. Help me find my sister.”

Xie Gang gave An Ruochen a thumbs up in his heart. Now the matter of finding her sister was rightfully pushed to the General. If the General wants to help her find someone, he can do it openly and honestly. No need to hide, and it will be much easier to act.

Yao Kun nodded and turned his head to Big Long: “General Long, Miss An has overcome all difficulties to get here. In any case, what she said sounds credible. We should properly investigate, to avoid being negligent again. Xu Matchmaker was controlling the girls she introduced. It is a good clue. How about this, since this is a case concerning espionage, it should be the General that is in charge. And the county government office will assist. Miss An should be credited with reporting the case. She will marry into the Qian House as scheduled, waiting for the spy to contact her. I will discuss this with the Qian magistrate. I will put my men in the Qian House to protect Miss An. When the spy appears, we can take them down in one fell swoop. How about this plan?”

What was not easy to investigate, let the General do it. The simple task of waiting for the rabbit and catching people, he would do it himself. Zong Zeqing thought this plan was terrible. The most important thing was Miss An still had to marry into the Qian House. After the espionage case is concluded, who can protect her again?

Zong Zeqing looked at Big Long. The General’s countermeasures, quickly take them  out.

Big Long opened his mouth: “Lord is very reasonable, but the matter of espionage is complex and cannot be cleared solely based on Miss An’s words. She had spoken with Xu Matchmaker many times to get information. Whether Xu Matchmaker killed herself or was murdered, she previously contacted Miss An. In other words, among the scout girls trained by Xu Matchmaker, Miss An was the last one. There must be many subtleties to be investigated. Miss An’s words need to be examined carefully. I need to detain Miss An ……”

 Ah, surprisingly, the countermeasure is really to ask questions for a long time. Zong Zeqing didn’t have time to happily comprehend the General’s intention. He heard the General’s words being interrupted by the Governor.

“General.” Yao Kun said, “Miss An reported the case with merit. Today is her wedding day. Her family is waiting outside the office, wanting to take Miss An back. It is not appropriate for the General to detain her. Moreover, if Miss An is not married as scheduled, those spies will become suspicious, and the plan to lure them out will not work. If you want to ask questions, you can send someone to Fu’an County after she marries into the Qian family.”

Zong Zeqing’s heart thumped. Indeed, indeed so. He looked at Big Long. The General Lord stared at the Governor Lord calmly. The swords were drawn, ah!