Inlaid With Jade - Chapter 93

Chapter 93

Punishment

When he heard Lin Yu’s words, Lin Jing almost suspected something was wrong with his ears. Which man would not try to hide it from his wife and pretend he was safe and sound after being punished or in trouble? Even if he were on the point of a knife, he would still say, “Don’t worry about me.” Is Li Heming mentally disturbed? He told Lin Yu all kinds of nonsense. Did he not know she is sensitive and timid, like a frightened bird? Now that she is so scared, he has to comfort her as a brother.

Hearing Lin Yu crying on his shoulder, Lin Jing wanted to pull Li Heming out of prison, beat him up, and throw him back. He gently stroked Lin Yu’s head and patiently comforted her: “If you are worried about him, I will go and find out about Li Heming’s situation in prison and tell you everything he does in prison, okay?”

Lin Yu said, “Hmm,” in a muffled voice. Lin Jing supported her shoulders and tilted his head to look at her expression. He saw that she frowned, and the tears in her eyes kept falling down, which made his heart ache. He fumbled around his body and wanted to take out a handkerchief to wipe Lin Yu’s tears, but after searching for a long time, he only found the dirty handkerchief that Lin Zhengqing threw at him and asked him to wash.

He sighed and wiped the wet tears from Lin Yu’s cheeks with his sleeves, coaxing a child: “Don’t cry. It will damage your eyes.”

Lin Yu was very well-behaved at the moment. She sat quietly and let Lin Jing rub her face with his sleeves. When she calmed down, she whispered to Lin Jing: “Brother, I want to see him after making clothes.”

The prison was full of lingering bloody smells and wandering ghosts, and it was not a good place to go. Lin Yu looked restless, but Lin Jing could not say a word to dissuade her. He nodded solemnly, “Okay. Brother will help you.”

Because the area along the river suffered from floods and earthquakes in only a few years, Emperor Chong’an ordered the Ministry of Rites to hold a grand Nuo opera in the palace to worship the gods and drive away the evil.

T/N: Nuo opera is one of China’s most famous folk operas. Characterized by its remarkable features, such as ferocious masks, unique dresses and adornments, the strange language used in performance, and mysterious scenes, the Nuo opera is one of the non-material cultural legacies of China. The opera is a religious performance intrinsic to the culture of Nuoism, a  Chinese folk religion. The purpose of Nuo opera is to drive away devils, disease, and evil influences and petition for blessings from the gods. Singing and dancing are included in Nuo opera; performers wear costumes and masks. (Wiki)

When the news spread, the people in the city followed suit, hence, in the past few days, people wearing various painted masks of gods could be seen dancing on the streets. However, although the outside world was lively, this fresh air could not penetrate the lifeless imperial prison of the Northern Office. Lin Jing was right. Once you enter the imperial prison, no matter how severe the crime was, you must lose a layer of old skin and add a new wound. On the day Li Heming was imprisoned, he got whipped, and his skin peeled off. The interrogation lasted for half an hour, but nothing came out of his mouth.

When the Yang family fell into trouble, Yang Jinming was also imprisoned in this cold imperial prison for some time, but he was lucky. Although he stayed for a few days, he did not suffer much. In those days, he saw many traitors being carried in and out by the Imperial Guards, and he had a deep understanding of the torture of the Northern Office. However, when he saw Li Heming in prison today with his prison uniform torn and blood-stained half of his body, he still couldn’t help but frown.

In the prison cell, an Imperial Guard was wiping the rusty and bloody whip in his hand. The red charcoal in the furnace was blazing, burning the red iron, and the iron wall was hung with all kinds of terrifying torture instruments.

Li Heming was tied to the rack with his arms outstretched, his back pressed against the rack, unable to move. His hair was loose, his long hair scattered on his shoulders, and although blood soaked half of his clothes, his eyes were clear, and his face was calm. He looked unusually sober. When he saw Wei Lin and Yang Jinming coming in, he even had the time to greet them in confusion: “Lord Yang?”

Yang Jinming could not show too much enthusiasm, so he only said, “Hmm.”

However, it was not known whether Wei Lin was trying to show off his power or what. As soon as he finished speaking, the guard raised his hand and whipped Li Heming. The flexible whip tail cut through the still air, throwing out a sharp and harsh sound of wind. It ripped open the prison uniform and fell on the flesh with a snap. A long bloody wound immediately appeared on Li Heming’s chest and abdomen, where the scars had not yet healed. He frowned, gritted his teeth uncontrollably, and groaned in pain; sweat suddenly appeared on his face.

Yang Jinming didn’t even have time to answer. Seeing this scene, he suddenly turned and looked at the cruel Wei Lin: “Lord Wei, what are you doing?!”

Wei Lin was flipping through the confession in his hands. Hearing Yang Jinming’s words, he didn’t react at all. He said calmly: “Try the criminal officer. Didn’t Lord Yang ever been in imperial prison? Don’t you understand?”

These days after the court, Lin Jing stopped Yang Jinming and stuffed a lot of vulgar words into his ears. One thing was that Li Heming delivered a letter to Emperor Chong’an to save his mother, and the other was that Lord Qin treated him like his son. Yang Jinming could not bear the disturbance and dared not go to court this morning. He felt that if he could not protect Li Heming from Wei Lin, he would be the most ungrateful person in the world.

At this moment, watching Li Heming being tortured, he wanted to say a few words to him. He said righteously and sternly: “Lord Wei didn’t ask a single question but used severe punishment first. Where does the ‘trial’ come from?”

Seeing Wei Lin was embarrassed by Yang Jinming, the guard hurriedly explained: “Lord Yang didn’t know that the custom of Northern Office that punishment comes before trial, and it was light. This criminal only went to jail for several days. After a few whippings, he only shed half a bowl of blood, which is not a severe punishment.”

He raised his palm and pointed at Li Heming: “If Lord Yang has any doubts, just ask him. He has hundreds of sins in his hands. He should be more familiar with Northern Office’s rules than anyone else.”

The guard’s words were sincere, so Yang Jinming didn’t know what to say for a moment, but Wei Lin said to the guard: “Since Lord Yang has spoken about this, you should be sensible and restrain your strength, lest you hurt the prisoner’s muscles and bones. “

As Li Heming heard their talk, he relieved the severe pain in his body and looked at Wei Lin with red eyes. He had always been the executioner who sat behind the scenes and judged people. It was bizarre for him to be on the rack suddenly. He looked at the cold knife on Wei Lin’s waist and the flamboyant flying fish suit, and for a moment, he seemed to see himself in the eyes of the guilty minister. However, he did not beg for mercy like those guilty ministers or accept Yang Jinming’s kindness. Instead, he said something ambiguous to Wei Lin: “It’s better to be more severe. Lord Wei sacrificed his life, making me worried.”

Yang Jinming didn’t understand what he said, but Wei Lin did. He took a deep look at Li Heming but didn’t reply.

The guard didn’t know whether to continue, so he asked Wei Lin for instructions: “Lord?”

Without thinking, Wei Lin asked Yang Jinming for his opinion: “What do you think, Lord Yang? Should this punishment continue?”

Yang Jinming glanced between Li Heming and Wei Lin, feeling the two were playing a riddle. He was silent momentarily and said: “It would be best if we can stop.”

He thought Wei Lin would at least argue a few words, but he stood up directly and picked up the confession on the table: “In that case, let’s call it a day.”

Hearing this, the guard hurriedly untied the thick rope from Li Heming’s body.

Yang Jinming, who had prepared several drafts of speeches in his mind and was waiting to argue with Wei Lin: “…?”