The proprietor of Xinglong General Store withdrew the silver for purchasing a thousand catties of tung oil from the bank in advance? This indicated that someone had informed him of the news, and Manager Hong knew the tung oil could be sold, hence his preparation.
This also showed that Commander Chu had long planned to set fire to the Suzhou Prefecture yamen, which completely changed the nature of the case.
As for the merchant Tong Mingyuan who sold the tung oil, Lord Yao, after reading his signed confession, spoke in a deep voice, "Tong Mingyuan, step aside for now. You are not to leave Suzhou Prefecture until this case is concluded."
"Yes, Your Lordship." Tong Mingyuan's suspended heart finally relaxed. As a merchant, he feared getting involved in lawsuits the most, especially since this case involved not only a commander from the Metropolitan Commandery but also a host of officials from the Suzhou Prefecture yamen, and even a disciple of Scholar Gu. Tong Mingyuan wished he could turn back time; it would have been fine even if all this tung oil had been dumped.
"Hong Xing, why don't you confess the truth!" Lord Yao roared, striking the gavel with a bang. His gaze sternly fell upon Manager Hong, who was kneeling below. "If you don't confess, I will resort to torture."
Shivering twice, Manager Hong kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy, and tearfully pleaded, "Your Lordship, you are mistaken. The reason I withdrew the silver from the bank in advance was purely a coincidence."
"It just so happened that Tong Mingyuan came to the shop to sell this batch of defective tung oil. I bought it all to make money. Who knew it would be bought the next day? If I had known the officer buying the tung oil intended to set fire to the yamen, I wouldn't have dared to sell him the tung oil even if I had the courage of a leopard." Manager Hong insisted that it was all a coincidence.
After speaking, Manager Hong looked up, his gaze pleading towards Zhan Feiyu. Tears streamed down his face, making him look nothing like a villain engaged in wicked deeds. "Miss, I have elders and children to care for. Merely for withdrawing silver in advance, I am slandered by you as an accomplice in setting fire to the yamen. I am wronged. I implore you to show mercy and let me go!"
Manager Hong kowtowed again and again with such force that his forehead broke open in moments, blood flowing from the wound, a truly shocking sight.
"Lord Yao, are you going to determine Hong Xing's guilt based solely on Zhan Feiyu's few words?" Commander Xie said leisurely, leaning back in his chair. "A few days ago, I suddenly craved tofu buns, so I sent my servant to buy some. Who would have thought that the bun shop would be robbed the next day? Does that make me the thief who stole the silver? After all, I never eat tofu, but I suddenly changed my taste this time. If I encountered an incompetent official, they might think my eating buns was a pretense, and that I was casing the joint in advance to break into the bun shop that night."
The proprietor of Xinglong General Store withdrew the silver for purchasing a thousand catties of tung oil from the bank in advance? This indicated that someone had informed him of the news, and Manager Hong knew someone would buy tung oil, hence his preparation.
This also showed that Commander Chu had long planned to set fire to the Suzhou Prefecture yamen, which completely changed the nature of the case.
As for the merchant Tong Mingyuan who sold the tung oil, Lord Yao, after reading his signed confession, spoke in a deep voice, "Tong Mingyuan, step aside for now. You are not to leave Suzhou Prefecture until this case is concluded."
"Yes, Your Lordship." Tong Mingyuan's suspended heart finally relaxed. As a merchant, he feared getting involved in lawsuits the most, especially since this case involved not only a commander from the Metropolitan Commandery but also a host of officials from the Suzhou Prefecture yamen, and even a disciple of Scholar Gu. Tong Mingyuan wished he could turn back time; it would have been fine even if all this tung oil had been dumped.
"Hong Xing, why don't you confess the truth!" Lord Yao roared, striking the gavel with a bang. His gaze sternly fell upon Manager Hong, who was kneeling below. "If you don't confess, I will resort to torture."
Shivering twice, Manager Hong kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy, "Your Lordship, you are mistaken. The reason I withdrew the silver from the bank in advance was purely a coincidence."
"It just so happened that Tong Mingyuan sold this batch of defective tung oil. I bought it all to make money. Who knew it would be bought the next day? If I had known the officer buying the tung oil intended to set fire to the yamen, I wouldn't have dared to sell him the tung oil even if I had the courage of a leopard." Manager Hong insisted that it was all a coincidence. After speaking, Manager Hong looked up, his gaze pleading towards Zhan Feiyu. "Miss, I have elders and children to care for. Merely for withdrawing silver in advance, I am slandered by you as an accomplice in setting fire to the yamen. I am wronged. I implore you to show mercy and let me go!"
Manager Hong kowtowed again and again with such force that his forehead broke open in moments, blood flowing from the wound, a truly shocking sight.
"Lord Yao, are you going to determine Hong Xing's guilt based solely on Zhan Feiyu's few words?" Commander Xie said leisurely, leaning back in his chair. "A few days ago, I suddenly craved tofu buns, so I sent my servant to buy some. Who would have thought that the bun shop would be robbed the next day? Does that make me the thief who stole the silver? After all, I never eat tofu, but I suddenly changed my taste this time. If I encountered an incompetent official, they might think my eating buns was a pretense, and that I was casing the joint in advance to break into the bun shop that night."
"Hong Xing, why don't you confess the truth!" Lord Yao roared, striking the gavel with a bang. His gaze sternly fell upon Manager Hong, who was kneeling below. "If you don't confess, I will resort to torture."
Shivering twice, Manager Hong kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy, "Your Lordship, you are mistaken. The reason I withdrew the silver from the bank in advance was purely a coincidence."
"It just so happened that Tong Mingyuan sold this batch of defective tung oil. I bought it all to make money. Who knew it would be bought the next day? If I had known the officer buying the tung oil intended to set fire to the yamen, I wouldn't have dared to sell him the tung oil even if I had the courage of a leopard." Manager Hong insisted that it was all a coincidence. After speaking, Manager Hong looked up, his gaze pleading towards Zhan Feiyu. "Miss, I have elders and children to care for. Merely for withdrawing silver in advance, I am slandered by you as an accomplice in setting fire to the yamen. I am wronged. I implore you to show mercy and let me go!"
Manager Hong kowtowed again and again with such force that his forehead broke open in moments, blood flowing from the wound, a truly shocking sight.
"Lord Yao, are you going to determine Hong Xing's guilt based solely on Zhan Feiyu's few words?" Commander Xie said leisurely, leaning back in his chair. "A few days ago, I suddenly craved tofu buns, so I sent my servant to buy some. Who would have thought that the bun shop would be robbed the next day? Does that make me the thief who stole the silver? After all, I never eat tofu, but I suddenly changed my taste this time. If I encountered an incompetent official, they might think my eating buns was a pretense, and that I was casing the joint in advance to break into the bun shop that night."