Da Li Temple - Chapter 5

Chapter 5
Mistakes

Although the Empress Dowager’s words were a question, Su Moyi knew she didn’t ask. The birthday banquet was full of civil and military royal relatives watching, so he couldn’t run. Hence, he could only restrain his back and weakly answered yes.
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The Empress Dowager got his nod and then winked toward the Empress at the side. This so-called Shu cousin was the Empress Chen’s youngest daughter, the Empress Dowager’s granddaughter. She was considered Su Moyi’s childhood friend. Because she was weak when she was young, often suffering from wind chills, the doctor suggested sending her to Jiangnan, which was a bit warmer than Sheng City, to raise her.
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Time flies more than ten years. The little girl has grown into a beautiful girl. Last month, the doctor diagnosed that her body had been well and could return to the capital. The Empress Chen then sent someone to bring her back. When the Empress Dowager heard that the Emperor trusted Su Moyi with a tricky case, sighing and lamenting that the Emperor only thinks of their countryside, not concerned about his nephew, Princess Jiading asked about her cousin Su’s situation.
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The Empress Dowager and the Empress are both women who have lived in the deep palace for a long time and have always been sensitive to these children’s minds, so they asked about her thoughts. When they saw her bowing her head and restraining her eyes with her blushing pretty face, they felt it would be good for them to be close to each other. Thus, there was the scene just now. The Empress Dowager tightly grasped Su Moyi’s wide sleeve for fear that he would run away, creating a ball of wrinkles on his moon-white satin robe.

The pulling made Su Moyi uncomfortable. He felt like an escorted prisoner. While pondering, a burst of gentle footsteps accompanied by pleasant and crisp jade beads and a delicate female voice resounded in his ears.
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Wei Shu ambled toward Su Moyi, lowered her head, and shyly said, “Greetings, cousin.”
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The woman in front wore an ordinary lotus-pink palace dress. However, her fair skin and the pink jade pins on her hair bun set her whole person off like a peach blossom on a branch in April, burning and swaying with the wind. She was considered decent and easy on the eyes. But there was a gap between this overly delicate tone and body with that arrogant and capricious little cousin in his memory.
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Su Moyi frowned and carelessly made an ‘oh’ sound. His already wrinkled sleeve because of the Empress Dowager’s tugging, becoming more deformed. He stabilized his mind and smiled stiffly.
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“Greetings Princess Jiading.” The voice was plain, like interrogating a suspect.
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“Hey!” The Empress Dowager held Wei Shu’s hand and joked, “You two have known each other since childhood. Why are you so different now? Grandmother remembers when you were little, you followed your cousin Su all day long, like a tail.”
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The young girl lowered her head and mumbled with a red face, “Grandmother, don’t make a joke at Shu’er.” Soft and dainty voice. Any man would lose his heart and soul if he heard it.
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But Su Moyi’s eyebrows tend to knit tighter, almost becoming a ‘? ‘ character …….
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But this was not his fault. Since he joined the Da Li Temple, almost every female prisoner who committed murder and adultery he had seen had this beautiful, soft, and harmless look. Because such a woman knew how to utilize her advantages to obtain a man’s money, love, mercy, and life —
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Another tug on his sleeve. He looked back and found the Empress Dowager’s sinking face, an ‘if you dare not answer, just you wait’ expression.
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Helpless, he held his forehead and returned a polite smile. Only then did the Empress Dowager let go of his hand and pushed him towards Wei Shu, saying, “Don’t look at your cousin Shu’er’s gentle and agreeable. She privately studied some criminal and prison oddities when she was in Jiangnan. A few days ago, she looked for a collection of medical examinations and injuries to discuss with me.”
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Su Moyi nodded faintly and did not open his mouth.
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Wei Shu followed Empress Dowager’s words to seize the opportunity, “Yes, the book said one can use the bone-dripping method to examine relatives, which is unheard of and unseen ……”
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“Because that is unreal.” Su Moyi interrupted Wei Shu’s words coldly, not giving a face at all.
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Wei Shu was momentarily speechless and could only force a smile, “But …… I read in the book that ……”
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“The reason the liquid will soak into the bones is because of the tiny gaps in it. It has nothing to do with whether or not there is a blood relationship.” Su Moyi gazed flatly, casually stroking the wrinkled sleeve caused by the Empress Dowager, and said in a deep voice: “If you like criminal affairs, read more medical books instead. It’s better than gullibly believing in those rumors circulating in the community.”
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Everyone was dumbfounded.
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Even if Wei Shu was benevolent, she could no longer maintain her already stiff face in place. The young girl had only returned to the palace a short time ago. She was still timid towards her biological mother. Because of Su Moyi’s words, her cheeks to the root of her neck turned red. Her ten pale fingers helplessly stirred the silk handkerchief. Her lower lip was about to dripping blood.
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“You come over here!” The Empress Dowager could no longer hold on, once again tugging on Su Moyi’s sleeve, pulling him to a stumbling halt.

The Empress couldn’t get involved, so she led Wei Shu, whose eyes glistened with tears from the humiliation, to avoid farther away.
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“What the hell is wrong with this mouth of yours?!” The Empress Dowager gasped for breath. Afraid of being heard and embarrassing Wei Shu, she pressed her voice and asked: “Why don’t you just go along with her words and take it easy?”
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Su Moyi had a solemn expression: “I am the officer of the Da Li Temple. Wrong is wrong. How can I go along with it?”
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“You …… cough ……” the Empress Dowager was speechless and did not know what to say for a moment. She could only caress her chest while coughing, looking at Su Moyi painfully, and said: “Before, you said the Yue An County Princess’s teeth are not neat. After she found a dentist to handle it, you think her tear mole was asymmetrical. Now, this Cousin Shu, what do you dislike about her?”
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Su Moyi thought about it and said flatly, “Her walking is wobbly, and she has asymmetrical eyebrows.”
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The Empress Dowager almost spat out a mouthful of blood when she heard this. The palace maids and grannies hurriedly served tea.

Su Moyi took the opportunity to retreat a little farther.
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The Empress Dowager calmed down for a while, then complained, “I shouldn’t have cared about this matter of yours. If I had known that this is the result, I might as well have saved some time to read a few more pages of books.”
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“Grandmother is right.”
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“You ……” The Empress Dowager choked again, catching the tea handed by the palace maid, and drank another mouthful, waving her hand in annoyance, “Go away! I don’t want to see you again in the short term.”
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It seemed that she wouldn’t force him to get married momentarily. Su Moyi agreed and felt relief. Then, he returned to his obedient behavior and prepared to pay his respects to the Empress Dowager. He inadvertently glanced at the empty position at the bottom of the steps–Song Zhengxing.
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Perhaps, due to winds shaking the lamps in the banquet hall, Su Moyi had a momentary lapse of concentration.
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Right.
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If they knew the outcome, why would they still take the risk?
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The Empress Dowager was unwilling because this matter concerned her children and grandchildren, so what about them? Once his thoughts entangled, he could no longer control his mind.
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Song Zhengxing has been an official for decades. Why would he be so stupid as to ask Wang Hu to take the blame for a serious yet easily cracked crime? Even if Wang Hu received a capital offense punishment, it would have to go through a long process. It could only be submitted to the Emperor for approval after the Ministry of Criminal Affairs reviewed the case.
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In this process, if the real murderer of the rape and murder case committed the crime again, Wang Hu’s case would be revoked. As a previous Minister of Criminal Affairs, Song Zhengxing surely thought of this matter.
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Then, there was only one possibility —
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Breathing sluggishly, Su Moyi was shocked by the thoughts that flashed through his mind and felt a chill on his back. He froze in a bowing posture.
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“Imperial Grandmother, I still have important matters to attend to, so I won’t be able to accompany you for dinner.”
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After his words fell, Su Moyi didn’t wait for the Empress Dowager’s reply and jogged out of the imperial garden from the back hall.
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When he arrived at the palace entrance, he raised the train of his robe, mounted on his horse, and instructed Ye Qing, “Quick! Go to the Da Li Temple and call for help! Follow me to the Capital Prison!”
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