Young widow in her boudoir

In the sweltering heat of June, the midday sun hung blindingly over the capital.

Suddenly, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from the street corner, growing louder as it approached, startling several roadside vendors who turned their heads to look.

The horse galloped through the bustling city. When it reached the gate of the Dali Temple, Pei Zhiheng tightened the reins, and the horse spun around on the bluestone slabs, exhaling a puff of white breath.

Pei Zhiheng dismounted, his robes covered in dust, and his face was cold and resolute, suggesting he hadn't slept for several nights.

The clerk at the gate had already stepped forward to greet him, happily taking the riding whip. "My lord is back."

Pei Zhiheng grunted in acknowledgment and strode into the yamen in his black boots.

Upon entering the mansion, the officials on both sides lowered their eyes and hands upon hearing the sound.

"Welcome back to the residence, Minister Pei."

Pei Zhiheng's figure quickly disappeared into the depths of the duty room, followed by two officials holding case files.

As he stepped into the hall and unfastened his gold and jade dagger, the steward whispered, "Sir, Madam Shen has been taken into the interrogation room."

Pei Zhiheng did not reply, but instead opened the files on the table.

At this moment, the Temple Attendant Yan Wenzhao walked in. "The case of the murder committed by the son of the Marquis of Wen'an has finally been closed. It has been found that he did indeed first abduct a woman, then rape and then kill her, and even dared to bribe the coroner. I have carefully reviewed the case files submitted by the Ministry of Justice and the Jingzhao Prefecture. All the links match up, so there should be no problem."

Pei Zhiheng flipped through a few pages, pressing his fingertip against the cover. "This case has dragged on for so long, the people have been watching, and the Ministry of Justice is waiting to close it. Now that the chain of evidence is complete, it's time to wrap things up."

Yan Wenzhao's expression slightly changed. "Yes."

After saying that, he went out to take care of it.

Registrar Sun poured tea for Pei Zhiheng, then hesitated for a moment.

I was thinking to myself, the case of Madam Shen and Madam Zhang is ultimately just a civil lawsuit, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the Court of Judicial Review...

After all, no one expected that Lord Pei would bring back a woman. Everyone was saying that the old iron tree had blossomed, but who would have thought that the woman was actually Pei Zhiheng's widowed sister-in-law.

The Court of Judicial Review is in charge of reviewing criminal cases throughout the country. On a daily basis, it handles serious death penalty cases and important cases designated by the emperor, which are reported from local authorities.

But the official ordered the Jingzhao Prefecture to send the file over intact, without even asking for any annotations. He only glanced at it once and then put it aside.

Thinking about the complicated relationship between the Shen family and the Pei family, it was like that of relatives.

Pei Zhiheng's behavior today is unusual, so this Madam Shen must be someone special to him.

Registrar Sun laughed and said, "She is indeed a young widow. It is her first time entering the gates of the Dali Temple. When she came in, her face was pale and she kept her head down, not daring to look around."

When the bailiff invited her into the Dali Temple, he said, "Madam, we are just following the rules."

Not mentioning it was their master's order.

Pei Zhiheng remained silent, and rubbed his temples.

She was a beautiful widow who had never been to the Dali Temple in Beijing before. How could she stand such a place where men gathered and the air was thick with the smell of sweat?

Pei Zhiheng leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, recalling her beautiful eyes, brimming with tears, pleading with him to save her brother on their way back to the capital, silently tugging at his heartstrings.

Little did she know that in this world, some things need to be exchanged for something of equal value.

And what does she have?

He was not a good person; he was stern, cold, and had ulterior motives, and she was a widow.

Pei Zhiheng's pale, distinct fingers tapped silently on the table.

After all, she was a woman from the Shen family, and her relationship with the Pei family was not ordinary, so Registrar Sun dared not neglect her and served her tea and other refreshments.

Registrar Sun said, "Ever since Madam Shen entered the Dali Temple, she has been terrified and uneasy. She huddled in the corner, trembling incessantly, her shoulders shaking slightly, and she cried so softly. I, as an official, watched from the side and could not bear to see her like this."

Pei Zhiheng tapped the files on the table lightly with his fingertips, his dark eyes showing no trace of gentleness. "It's not surprising that a woman is timid and fearful of prison instruments of torture."

He paused for a moment.

After a moment, he finally spoke: "Is the interrogation transcript ready?"

Registrar Sun said, "It's ready."

Pei Zhiheng then turned around and walked towards the interrogation room.

……

A sliver of light shone through the crack in the door.

Xie Rutang had been sitting alone in her cell for half an hour, on the verge of collapse. Seeing his tall figure by the door was like seeing a lifeline.

"Second Master!"

Her voice seemed even more alluring after crying.

Pei Zhiheng had just stepped into the interrogation room.

A pleasant fragrance filled the room.

They were completely out of place in the oppressive and cold prison.

In places where men congregate, people are seen leaving every day bleeding profusely.

The prison is filled with men from all walks of life, from peasants to scoundrels. When she arrived at the damp dungeon, she had been stared at by countless men as she passed by that row of cells.

Even though she was wearing a veiled hat and a plain dress.

But people from impoverished and remote areas can look at her with eyes that seem to devour her whole.

Just now, the room was closed, and it was as cold and damp as a water dungeon, with only a small window on the wall letting in a faint light.

Xie Rutang suffers from night blindness, and this unknown darkness causes her even more pain.

Therefore, upon seeing the austere figure at the door, the man had a gilded xiezhi waist tag hanging from his waist, followed by two clerks holding record books.

When the second master arrived, she was pleasantly surprised and wanted to ask him to take good care of her.

Xie Rutang felt that her mood was almost pathological.

No wonder so many people who enter the Dali Temple come out completely different from before.

Some of them were originally plump and fair-skinned, but in just half a month, they became so thin that their cheekbones were high and their eye sockets were sunken, as if their whole body had been hollowed out.

When people mention Pei Zhiheng, they all turn pale with fear.

She had only suffered some mental torture and abuse, and she couldn't even imagine being subjected to physical torture.

Will Pei Zhiheng torture her?

She didn't know that she had never truly understood Pei Zhiheng's heart.

"...Second Master."

Pei Zhiheng raised his eyes, his pupils dark and unfathomable. "This is the Dali Temple. You should address me as Your Excellency. Who allowed you to bring up personal relationships? Even my own uncle would have to follow the rules and await trial here."

As soon as she finished speaking, Xie Rutang bit her red lips shyly.

Who was the man who told her at the gate of the Shen residence last time that if she wanted children, she should behave well?

How could Pei Zhiheng turn his back on everyone so quickly, showing no regard for even his closest relatives?

Xie Rutang suddenly had the illusion that she had been betrayed by a scumbag.

It was clearly the same man who flirted with her at the Shen residence last time; he was the second master of that household.

Under his cold scrutiny.

Xie Rutang trembled slightly, her lips seemed to exude a faint fragrance. She no longer tried to get close to him, but instead called out softly and timidly, just like in his dream.

"...Yes, sir."

A sir.

This made Pei Zhiheng's heart tighten.

A strange, tingling sensation spread rapidly from his heart to his limbs, making him feel as if he were falling into an endless sea.

Pei Zhiheng's eyes darkened.

His gaze turned coldly to the woman's face. Her lips, smaller than two of his fingers, had addressed him as Second Master or Lord Pei, and each time she gave him a different feeling.

The cell was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. A clerk ran to his superior and brought him a chair. Pei Zhiheng lifted his robe and sat down, his sharp features concealing a coldness honed by years of solving cases. "Madam Shen, take a statement."

"According to the report of a woman named Zhang Huanghua, on June 2nd, your brother and sister-in-law, Lin, met Zhang Qingci, a fellow townsman from Yangzhou. In the following days, Zhang Qingci visited your home repeatedly. You took the opportunity to ask him for a favor, and Zhang Qingci used this as a pretext to get close to you, a widow. He was overcome with lust and abducted you to the outskirts of the capital, intending to commit adultery with you. Fortunately, I happened to be passing by on my way out of the city that day and shot Zhang Qingci dead, thus saving you from danger."

"but."

His tone suddenly shifted, and he withdrew his voice.

"Zhang accused you of scraping together four hundred taels of silver from various sources to bribe officials through Zhang Qingci in an attempt to get your criminal brother released from prison. Is this true?"

Sunlight streamed through the iron bars, chilling Xie Rutang to the bone.

"I intended to use that money to bribe legitimate lawyers and cover their fees, not for bribery..."

Pei Zhiheng's brows suddenly darkened. "Madam Shen, this is the Dali Temple's criminal justice system. You know exactly what crime it is to deceive me. You claim that four hundred taels were used entirely as a writing fee? Do you think I'll believe that?"

Xie Rutang clutched her skirt tightly, "I didn't..."

"A habitual liar!"

Pei Zhiheng frowned and said coldly to Registrar Sun and the others.

"Get out, everyone."

Soon, only she and Pei Zhiheng remained in the room.