A female coroner arrived at the Jingzhao Prefecture.

Chapter 169 The Truth Revealed to the World (55)

Grandma Yang looked at everyone in the hall one by one, her cloudy eyes slowly filling with tears.

She said, "My lord, I am not dead. I have disappointed you!"

Liu Changqing was incredulous. "How could this be? I clearly strangled you to death and threw you into the mountain stream. Given the current's speed, your body would have been swept into the Xiushui River below..."

"It was I who saved Granny Yang!" Madam Liu interrupted him, a hint of pleasure in her eyes. "I saw you strangle Granny Yang! So, I followed you all the way, and after you disposed of the body and left, I rescued Granny Yang and secretly sent her back to her parents' home, where she was properly cared for. Liu Changqing, if we're talking about betrayal, I betrayed you twenty years ago! Are you happy to hear this?"

Liu Changqing was furious and stunned. "You, you bitch!"

Song Shuyu shouted, "No noise is allowed in the courtroom! Xie Da, tell me what you did wrong first. On September 15th, you escorted Madam Li Yunyao to Yuntai Temple to make offerings. Whose orders did you follow behind the scenes, and what were your intentions?"

The moment Xie Da saw Liu Changqing become a prisoner, his faith crumbled. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Reporting to you, sir, I was ordered by you to find an opportunity to kill the First Madam and then make it look like she had committed suicide. But I didn't expect that the First Madam herself had already decided to commit suicide. When I followed her to the outhouse and saw her commit suicide with a knife, I canceled the plan."

Song Shuyu said, "Liu Changqing, do you have anything to say about Xie Da's accusations?"

"Xie Da is right. I instructed Xie Da to take the opportunity to get rid of Li Yunyao," Liu Changqing readily admitted.

Song Shuyu nodded. "Of the other three servants, the short, fat one has already committed suicide by poison, and Shuanzi and Sanhu have both confessed. Coroner Mu, the remaining case of disposing of the body is your responsibility!"

Mu Qingcheng accepted the order and immediately took out the evidence, displaying it one by one. He said, "In the outhouse where Li Yunyao committed suicide, a piece of dark brown cloth was hanging on the wood shavings sticking up at the bottom of the window frame. After examination, it was found to be Shu brocade material, and it came from women's clothing. Coincidentally, when I searched Madam Liu's room, I found a tattered garment belonging to Madam Liu, and the torn part matched that piece of cloth perfectly."

During her night at the Liu family's residence, Mu Qingcheng gained a great deal, but due to time constraints, she didn't have time to report the details to Song Shuyu.

Now, she took out the clothes and scraps of cloth. Madam Liu glanced at them and nodded, saying, "That's right, these are my clothes. I wore these clothes to Yuntai Temple that day. I confess, I was the one who disposed of Li Yunyao's body!"

“Madam Liu, there’s no need to confess so quickly.” Mu Qingcheng smiled and pointed to the golden pearl, saying, “How did Madam Liu’s pearl end up in Granny Yang’s mortuary?”

Madam Liu was taken aback, but quickly replied, "Every spring, I visit Granny Yang at the mortuary. Perhaps it was around that time that I accidentally forgot to visit her."

“That explanation makes sense.” Mu Qingcheng nodded in agreement, but then she changed the subject, “But Liu Xiao, tell me, you and Li Yunyao devised a meticulous plan: she committed suicide, you disposed of the body, so why did you faint at the suicide scene, and why did you wake up at the entrance of the mortuary?”

Liu Xiao was devastated, his mind reeling, his eyes unfocused, and he remained in shock for a long time. Madam Liu, heartbroken for her son, quickly said, "Coroner Mu, it was I who knocked Liu Xiao unconscious and sent him away! I knew about his and Li Yunyao's plan a day in advance. I couldn't let my son commit the crime of abandoning a corpse; he couldn't go to jail, he couldn't have a stain on his record! So, I went to Yuntai Temple half an hour early, seized the opportunity, and took Liu Xiao's place to dispose of the body!"

"You've upgraded your body disposal methods!"

"Yes, after I understood Li Yunyao's good intentions, I wanted to help her, so I hung her picture on the temple gate on the northwest slope, hoping that it would be associated with the pure land of Buddhism and cause a greater sensation, exposing Liu Changqing's crimes to the world!"

"Li Yunyao is four months pregnant and her weight is much greater than normal. You're a woman, and your strength is limited. How did you manage to hang up there? Didn't you have any help?"

"..."

"By the way, you also need to see Liu Xiao off. Are you able to handle it? Liu Xiao is a grown man. Can you carry him? Can you get him onto the carriage by yourself?"

Mu Qingcheng's logical and relentless questioning left Madam Liu speechless, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead. "I, I..."

Seeing this, Granny Yang felt a pang of heartache and slowly said, "Miss Qingcheng, please don't force Madam. Let me explain. The person who disposed of the body wasn't just Madam, but also me. Madam wanted to protect the Second Young Master, and I never refused. So on the fifteenth of September, I drove the carriage up Yuntai Mountain before dawn. Madam is pampered and has never done heavy work, so she's not very strong. But I'm different; I grew up eating hardship, and carrying someone is no problem for me. That day, after I knocked the Second Young Master unconscious, I first carried him to the carriage, then returned to the outhouse and carried Madam to the northwest slope. Only when I was hanging him did I ask Madam for a hand."

Upon hearing this, Madam Liu grasped Granny Yang's hand and choked back tears, saying, "I've already been poisoned and won't live much longer. Wouldn't it be better for me to bear the blame alone? Why drag you into this? You're so foolish. Have you forgotten what I told you? The Liu family will collapse sooner or later. Liu Changqing, Liu Pei, and I—none of us will have a good end. But Liu Xiao is innocent. He can live. You still have to help me take care of Liu Xiao. How can you confess?"

“Madam, ever since I entered the Jingzhao Prefecture prison, I knew that I could not be released without charge. This Qingcheng girl is truly a clever person. Not only clever, but also very conscientious. Because she has entered the officialdom, she has duties to perform, so she will not show favoritism.”

Granny Yang's snot and tears mingled together, smearing her thin and withered face. "The second young master is willful and disobedient. I failed to protect him and taught him to commit kidnapping... Madam, it's all fate. We have no choice but to accept our fate."

Overwhelmed with grief and despair, Madam Liu lamented, "My poor son, how will he live the rest of his life all alone?"

"Mother, don't worry, I won't be alone. I still have you, my brother, and Yiyi. I will stay with you all." Liu Xiao's face was pale, his eyes empty. He murmured to himself, then suddenly laughed, a shrill laugh, his whole body trembling uncontrollably!
Seeing that something was wrong, Mu Qingcheng acted decisively and sealed several of Liu Xiao's major acupoints!

Upon closer inspection, a gold hairpin was found stuck in Liu Xiao's abdomen!
Blood, like a fountain's jet of water, gushed out continuously...

(End of this chapter)