The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 797 - 169: I Did It_3

Chapter 797: Chapter 169: I Did It_3

"Who is slandering whom, I’m afraid everyone is quite clear in their hearts!" A few people disdainfully said before turning away, paying her no further attention.

Old Pei also stopped her, telling her not to make a fuss. They were sure that they were being watched in secret. Two grandsons and a daughter-in-law, all gone in one fell swoop—they didn’t know what was waiting for them next, whose life might be the next to pay. Just this once, Old Pei’s House had already suffered a tremendous loss!

In his heart, he also knew that Pei Wenjie might have been killed by Pei Wensheng in an accidental misstep, but Pei Wensheng and Lady Chen must have had a hand in it! Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a life following another in death. Were they trying to wipe out the Old Pei’s House?! Suddenly, Old Pei felt a surge of anger and hate.

Yet, the one they detested, Pei Qin, was at that moment fixedly staring at Mo Heng.

Her gaze was deep and inscrutable, locked onto him as if she could see through everything. Mo Heng looked back at her with an innocent look, "It was me."

Pei Qin’s face turned slightly dark. It was him, and he still had an innocent look on his face?! To admit it so straightforwardly, and still have the face to look innocent?!

"To kill one to save ten, I am accumulating virtuous deeds," Mo Heng said with a smile.

Pei Qin cursed irritably, "Your smile is so damn pure and innocent! Beast!"

Mo Heng raised an eyebrow slightly and gazed at her with fluid eyes. He leaned in, pressing a kiss on her earlobe that he had bitten the night before.

Pei Qin pushed away his handsome face, "Don’t block my signal!"

Mo Heng chuckled and urged her to get some sleep, "Tomorrow we are heading to the county town."

Pei Qin ignored him and turned to sleep.

Having watched her lie down, Mo Heng tucked her in properly before he went out and entered the study.

The next day, the family of three, along with Pei Qian, had their meal, got ready and headed for the county town.

News quickly spread that they were coming to slander Pei Zongli and Qian Wanxiu.

She was there to slander Pei Zongli and Qian Wanxiu? Pei Qin let out a disdainful laugh upon hearing this.

The remains of Lady Chen and Pei Wenli were soon brought back to Yuanyang County.

Pei Wenli immediately filed a complaint with the authorities—his mother had not committed suicide; she was murdered, someone killed her to silence her.

Following them back, under escort, were two men, the culprits who killed Lady Chen.

Caught in suspicious circumstances and subjected to torture, they confessed to the crime, admitting they were the ones who murdered Lady Chen, and moreover, it was Mo Heng who paid them five hundred taels of silver to do it.

They did not accuse Pei Qin directly; instead, they took a detour to accuse Mo Heng. He was Pei Qin’s husband, naturally, one of her group, possibly even instructed by Pei Qin herself.

And the motive for Mo Heng hiring killers to murder Lady Chen was, of course, to frame Pei Zongli and Qian Wanxiu, to eliminate them in one fell swoop, in revenge for Lady Fang’s suicide. And Lady Fang’s suicide was because she herself had committed incest with her elder brother, giving birth to several children, and, overwhelmed with shame and indignation, she took her own life.

Pei Qian loathed the mention of Lady Fang’s incestuous affairs, using it to attack her and her brothers. Upon hearing this, she exploded in anger, "I want to see, with their sons plotting the murder of their own brother, the parents extinguishing kinship in the name of justice, orchestrating ghosts to kill their offspring, they blame everything on us, how will they slander us this time?!"

Jiang Benxin summoned Mo Heng to the stand.

However, the two killers did not recognize Mo Heng, and upon seeing Feng Wei and Zhang Gengshan, they did not recognize them either.

"How dare you brazen scoundrels! If you don’t recognize the man, how can you claim that Sir Mo hired you to murder Lady Chen!?" Jiang Benxin roared with rage.

The two men hurriedly knocked their heads on the ground and shouted their innocence, "Someone came to us and said it was Mo Heng who paid them to get rid of Lady Chen!"

Qian Changdong stood in the crowd and suddenly had a bad premonition.

As a result, Jiang Benxin asked the two killers to describe the person who commissioned them, and upon their description, it was indeed the butler of the Qian family.

Qian Changdong was furious; Pei Qin actually dared to reach into his affairs!?

Upon seeing the appearances of the two men, Qian Changdong gasped. They were not the ones he had sent to protect Lady Chen, but rather the ones he had employed before. He had clearly told them to flee far away, and yet they had turned around to accuse him!?

Jiang Benxin had someone draw a portrait of Butler Qian based on the descriptions and issued a warrant for his arrest. As for the two murderers, they were thrown into the dungeon.

The two men shouted their innocence, pleading for mercy as they were dragged away.

Mo Heng emerged from the Yamen and glanced at Qian Changdong, who was hiding among the crowd, "We’ve been listening to our own cries of injustice, but have yet to hear Old Master Qian cry out!"

The crowd followed his gaze to look at Qian Changdong. He was well-known in Runing Prefecture, but in Yuanyang County, few recognized him, so they couldn’t help but size him up. After all, if he could raise a daughter as sly and vicious as Qian Wanxiu, Old Master Qian couldn’t be a good person either!

Qian Changdong stared sharply at Mo Heng, "Heaven’s net is wide but lets nothing through; one might evade it for a moment, but can one evade it for a lifetime?"

"That saying couldn’t be more fitting for Old Master Qian," Mo Heng retorted coldly, retracting his gaze and striding away.

After he had gone some distance, there were still people gazing after him, infatuated, "Sir Mo is truly too handsome! With each sighting, he seems even more handsome than before!"

"Yes! Clad in his official robe, he looks even more commanding, his handsomeness earth-shattering! How could such a person be wrongfully accused!?"

"Exactly! Merely based on his unparalleled handsomeness, it’s impossible for him to be the murderer! Those who accuse him are sure to meet a bad end!"

Qian Changdong looked at the group of girls and young wives and felt a surge of indignation. Merely for being handsome, one couldn’t be a killer!?

The warrant was posted; Mo Heng offered a reward, promising between one and ten taels of silver to whoever could provide valid clues and capture Butler Qian.

Without doing much else, merely by seeking information and passing on messages, one could earn a few taels of silver, so many people began to search, especially after the news reached Runing Prefecture.

Butler Qian was captured in a brothel by Runing Prefecture’s government officials and brought back to Yuanyang County.

Upon seeing him, the two assassins immediately admitted his identity, "It’s him! It’s definitely him!"

Butler Qian, looking utterly perplexed, shouted that he was innocent and claimed he did not recognize these two men. He was just visiting a brothel, and since visiting a brothel wasn’t against the law, why was he arrested?

The two assassins quickly produced evidence—a note from Butler Qian summoning them to discuss matters, this time offering more money.

Experts compared the handwriting; it matched Butler Qian’s, yet he still denied knowing the two, despite witnesses from Runing Prefecture having seen them drinking together.

Butler Qian never thought they would have kept such evidence; he insisted he was innocent and being framed.

The two then confessed to the beating of Fang Liuming, disclosing that it was Butler Qian who had bribed them to do it.

This Butler Qian was truly wronged to death—he was accused of hiring hitmen to kill Lady Chen and then framing Mo Heng for the deed, not to mention the assault on Fang Liuming, which should have been done by someone from Old Pei’s House, yet they wrongfully accused him! He cried out his innocence, looking at Qian Changdong, "I am innocent, my lord! I am being wrongfully accused! They are learned men, surely they forged my handwriting to frame me!"

Mo Heng extended his right hand and sneered coldly, "Claiming others have forged your handwriting is somewhat plausible."

Zhang Gengshan berated him, "Our lord saved the lady and hurt his hand in the process. The tendons were severed, leaving him unable to grip a pen. How dare you slander our lord by claiming he forged your handwriting! Before slandering someone, open your dog eyes wide and see clearly before speaking!"

Butler Qian’s face turned pale, "Unable to hold a pen, then how does he serve as an official!?"

"Appointed personally by the Emperor, do you object?" Mo Heng asked indifferently.

Butler Qian was immediately stifled; even with ten heads, he wouldn’t dare to object. It was clear those two wanted to pin the crime on him. If it wasn’t their doings, could it be the young lady? The young lady’s plot was exposed, so now she was looking for a scapegoat?

Seeing his expression, Qian Changdong looked troubled because he realized, if he were to save Butler Qian, Mo Heng’s spearhead would immediately point towards Qian Wanxiu or directly at Pei Wenchen!

Mo Heng’s gaze turned frosty towards Qian Changdong. Between Lady Qian and Butler Qian, he could only choose one to protect.