Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 579 - 577

Chapter 579: Chapter 577

The death of Li Mingfang didn’t bother Shangguan Xuanyi. He felt she had it coming. But when he gets blamed for her murder, he has no choice but to investigate the cause of her death.

Upon his return to the mansion, Shangguan Xuanyi orders An Yi to find out the truth.

First thing the following morning, An Yi reports back to him on his findings. And even Mr. Yang couldn’t stand the torment of the interrogation, and he finally confesses everything.

The truth was, Mr. Yang had overheard Li Mingfang discussing a kidnapping and ransom strategy with someone from Bat Village. In need of money to fill in for his own embezzlement, he viewed this as a golden opportunity!

He considered teaming up with Li Mingfang to kidnap the Countess of Rui’an and demanded a ransom of 300,000 taels from Marquis Shengping. In return, he would get 100,000 taels, which would cover his misuse of public funds.

But to his surprise, Li Mingfang flatly refused. She insisted that Marquis Shengping couldn’t afford to pay 300,000 taels! For his aunt’s sake, she promised to give him 10,000 taels upon success.

10,000 taels wouldn’t be enough to cover the deficit. He had no option but to settle for less, requesting 60,000 taels instead.

By contributing 20,000 taels himself he could cover the missing public funds.

But why would Li Mingfang give up 60,000 taels? It would leave her with only 40,000 taels, an idea no person would normally entertain!

Faced with a disagreement on the sharing of spoils and feeling pressured from external parties, Mr. Yang had to settle for borrowing 60,000 taels from Li Mingfang with a promise to repay her. Unfortunately, as Li Mingfang was about to get married and needed 100,000 taels as a dowry, she refused.

This frustrated Mr. Yang but he was powerless. General Li’s rank was above his.

Then the person threatening him suggested that if he killed Li Mingfang and managed to frame it on one of the Sixth Prince’s men, he would help him cover his embezzlement.

Otherwise, if the Emperor found out about his misdeeds, his family would be reduced to slavery, and he would be sentenced to death.

Even though Mr. Yang knew that framing it on the Sixth Prince’s man was the same as framing it on the Sixth Prince himself, he had no choice but to agree due to his desperate situation.

So, he decided to kidnap the son of Li Fu, who worked at the Soldiers and Horses Division, and used him to lure the Sixth Prince’s men into a trap at the mansion.

Li Fu, coming from a servile background, was proud of his son who managed to free himself from slavery after saving Li Mingjun from a fall from a tree. Having his future unfolded before him, he couldn’t bear the thought of his son being in danger. After a night of struggle, he reluctantly agreed.

Li Fu only agreed to lead them to the mansion, he hadn’t expected to find Li Mingfang dead upon arrival. Being a wise man, he realized that with the secret of Li Mingfang’s death leaking, his own life wouldn’t be spared. This led him to commit suicide, hoping that Mr. Yang would then spare his innocent son.

Li Fu’s suicide was unforeseen for Mr. Yang, though it made things easier for him. With no one to link the murder to him, he could conveniently blame it on Feng Yang.

He didn’t expect that the absence of any signs of struggle at the crime scene would become a crucial clue to solve the case.

The findings from An Yi were consistent with Mr. Yang’s confession, except for who was threatening Mr. Yang!

"Who threatened him?" Shangguan Xuanyi asked An Yi.

An Yi shook his head, "The person was very careful, always wearing a mask and left no traces. Mr. Yang also claimed to be clueless as the man always appeared masked and altered his voice."

Shangguan Xuanyi nodded and dismissed An Yi.

To discover who was threatening Mr. Yang, one needed to analyze who gained the most from Li Mingfang’s death.

Instinctively, he felt that the Third Prince was behind it.

But what beneficial could Li Mingfang’s death be to the Third Prince? Shangguan Xuanyi knitted his brows.

Did he kill Li Mingfang just to pit him against the Li family, risking this intricate marriage proposal in the process? Wasn’t it a bit too much?

Could the Third Prince have found a supporter stronger than General Li? Had he accepted that Shangguan Xuanyi could not find evidence to prove he was behind it—that he had taken out a person who was unfaithful to him, and was also suspecting him?

Without evidence, would General Li believe that the Third Prince had murdered Li Mingfang? Even Shangguan Xuanyi, if he were in General Li’s shoes, wouldn’t assume such based on face value.

From General Li’s perspective, he would be more inclined to believe that Shangguan Xuanyi had conspired with Mr. Yang to kill Li Mingfang.

So, the Third Prince thinks he has conducted a cleverly orchestrated drama! What a cunning plan!

Shangguan Xuanyi didn’t think too much about it. Temporary lack of evidence didn’t mean it would be the same in the future. If you give enough chances, you will ultimately encounter a ghost.

No matter if it were the Third Prince or General Li, he was not afraid!

Although the Li family was renowned for its loyalty, the charge of rebellion could outweigh all their services. Having found some leads, more evidence was needed to close the lid on the matter and bring them all to justice!

Shaking his head, clearing his mind of disruptions, he lowers his gaze and resumes his duties on the table.

...

The case was temporarily shelved since Mr. Yang’s intimidator could not be found.

However, the irrefutable evidence of Li Mingfang’s plot to kidnap Xiao’er and demand a ransom of 200,000 taels is established!

Madam Li was sent to jail again.

With regards to the kidnap and ransom incident, the Li family laid all the blame on Li Mingfang who was already dead, claiming they knew nothing about it.

The undercover agents arranged by Feng Yang caught the people in hiding underwater. Despite repeated interrogations, they only claimed that they were following Li Fu’s instructions and knew nothing else about the procedure.

Li Mingfang and Li Fu were already dead, the Emperor, acknowledging the Li family’s longstanding loyalty, chose to punish them lightly. They reduced a portion of General Li’s military power as a warning.

As for Mr. Yang, despite failing to identify the person threatening him, the fact of his embezzlement and framing of the Sixth Prince was undeniable. His execution was inevitable and his family was condemned to slavery.

Mrs. Li’s sister was furious with her. Their entire family was ruined because of her!

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