Jian Zhaoxing

Chapter 180 It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.

As Lin Zhiqing had expected, the Dali Temple officially issued a document early the next morning, ordering Lin Congyan to be executed at Caishikou at noon.

At noon, the sun hangs high in the sky, which is the time of day when the yang energy is at its peak.

The purpose of performing surgery at this moment is to ensure that the prisoner's vengeful spirit vanishes with the instant the surgery begins, leaving him unable to even remain a ghost.

This matter seems a bit rushed on the surface, after all, the imperial edict was only issued yesterday to announce it to the world, and the execution is to be carried out today.

But that's exactly the effect we wanted, so as not to give the Lin family any time to struggle or cause any trouble.

Now that the dust has settled, Liu Mang is undoubtedly the happiest person.

He got up very early today and even ate more breakfast than usual.

However, thinking of Bi Fei, who rushed back to the Liu family last night and kept saying that Lin Zhiqing had other evidence, his happiness faded a bit.

"Someone come here." He said.

A guard immediately bowed respectfully outside the door: "What are your orders, sir?"

"Why isn't anyone here?" Liu Mang took the teacup brought by the maid, his brows relaxing.

The guard said expressionlessly, "It was disposed of last night. The corpse is probably already breakfast for wild beasts."

"Alright, you can go now." Liu Mang's eyes were expressionless. As if he had remembered something, he called the guard back: "Have someone prepare the carriage."

"Sir, do you really believe what Ying said and think Lin Zhiqing has evidence?" the guard couldn't help but ask.

Liu Mang took a soft breath: "How long have you been following me?"

The guard was puzzled: "Sir, counting the year I was in my mother's womb, it has been twenty-two years."

At this point, Liu Mangcai seemed to suddenly remember something and nodded slightly: "That's right, you were born into a family."

Just as the guard was about to speak, with a "clatter," the teacup was mercilessly thrown back onto the tray by Liu Mang.

Some of the hot tea spilled out and landed on the maid's arm.

The maid didn't dare utter a sound and retreated to the side, enduring the pain.

Liu Mang took a deep breath and looked at the guard: "If that's the case, didn't your parents teach you how to serve others?"

The guard's heart sank. Having served Liu Mang for so many years, he certainly knew what Liu Mang meant.

His legs went weak, and he knelt down on the ground: "Reporting to...Reporting to my lord, I shouldn't have asked so many questions, and I shouldn't have questioned your decision."

Liu Mang had lost his appetite for breakfast; he slowly wiped his hands.
"Get up. You've been with me for so long, of course I know you have no ulterior motives, but I don't like gossipy people."

The guard closed his eyes, but still dared not stand up: "I will remember this, and I will not overstep my bounds next time."

Liu Mang nodded slightly: "It's good that you know what's going on."

As he spoke, he frowned slightly and kept groping for the flute at his waist.

If Lin Zhiqing and the others were here, they would definitely be able to tell that this flute is the same one that the white-haired man used earlier.

Liu Mang slightly turned the flute: "Although Lin Zhiqing has some cleverness, she is still a bit naive and still acts like a woman."

"She took her anger out on a dead body yesterday. Her temper is so short-tempered and she's incredibly stupid."

"She thought that by using the corpse as an excuse, she could cover up her investigation of the route from Dali Temple to the vegetable market, but little did she know that we had already seen through her true intentions."

"She might have found that corpse somewhere, most likely to cover up their plan to scout out the execution site beforehand."

In his eyes, Lin Zhiqing's childish tricks were already outdated.

During the limited time Liu Mang had with Lin Zhiqing, his impression of her was merely that she was smarter than the average woman.

However, she also had a common flaw among women: she had a narrow vision, was not good at being presentable, and left her actions too unseen.

Even if she understood some of the secrets within her study, it would still be a waste of her talent.

Upon hearing this, the guard's eyelashes trembled. He tried hard to control his expression, not wanting Liu Mang to notice anything.

But Liu Mang's gaze swept over him once, and he knew what he was thinking:
"You also believe that the person who assassinated Lin Zhiqing was sent by me?" The guard's Adam's apple bobbed. "Whether you did it or not, sir, you have your reasons."

That sounds a bit too official.

However, Liu Mang quite appreciated it.

"At this point, if I were to send someone to attack him, wouldn't that just be drawing the court's attention?"

"Only the lowest of the low would do something that is not worth the effort."

In Liu Mang's eyes, there was only the difference between the upper class and the lower class in this world.

The Lin family members were clearly also considered to be among the lower classes.

Seeing that Liu Mang was in a good mood, the guard spoke again: "Then does Your Excellency also think that Lin Zhiqing still has evidence?"

"That remains to be seen," Liu Mang replied, seemingly casually.

He said that, but he didn't really think so.

Aside from taking advantage of his inattention to steal a piece of evidence, Lin Zhiqing had no other ability to find any other clues.

Liu Mang was convinced of this.

Since there was no other evidence, the only thing left to attract attention was the correspondence between Liu Mang and those important figures.

What he feared was that his correspondence with those important figures would be made public.

Even the slightest whisper of wind was enough to give him a good drink.

Even though this matter would not benefit Lin Zhiqing at all, and could be dismissed with a mere fabrication, Liu Mang was still uneasy.

If the rumors reach the ears of the person mentioned above, even if he manages to smooth things over, he will face many troubles afterward, and it could even endanger his life.

Liu Mang has always been steady and pragmatic. He has worked hard to climb to this position over the years, and naturally he doesn't want to fall back down.

It is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.

Aside from his ability to control others, Liu Mang felt that his greatest strength was his clear vision.

Lin Zhiqing is three parts intelligent, but seven parts impulsive.

When the two clash, all that's left is impulsiveness.

When people act impulsively, they are capable of anything.

Liu Mang was really worried if he didn't go to the scene and see for himself.

With that thought in mind, he decided not to waste any more time and got up to leave.

Only then did the guard dare to stand up and step aside.

Liu Mang had just stepped out the door with his left foot when he seemed to remember something and turned to look back into the house.

Sensing Liu Mang's gaze, the maid who had just served tea trembled and lowered her head even further.

Liu Mang withdrew his gaze and gave a wink to the guard.

The guard understood and cupped his hands in greeting.

The maid inside the room breathed a sigh of relief once she heard Liu Mang's footsteps fade into the distance.

Before she could even look up, the sound of a door closing rang out.

A sense of foreboding rose in her heart. She quickly looked up and saw the guard from before staring at her with a cold expression, as if he were looking at a dead man.

A strong aura of death emanated from the room, and the maidservant abruptly took two steps back: "No...don't kill me, please spare me!"

"You shouldn't be on duty today. The master... is in a very bad mood," the guard said expressionlessly.

A short scream rang out quickly, then silence fell again.