"I'm not young anymore, and the family estate needs an heir. I knew that wretched wife of mine had been unfaithful long ago, so I simply turned a blind eye and acknowledged the bastard in her womb... But ever since that bastard was born, whenever I see him, I'm reminded of being brutally beaten by those lackeys on the street... The young master from that official family has already died of illness, but there will always be such people in the Imperial Examination Hall—I just can't swallow this resentment... Then I happened to see Li Rusheng doing masonry work at the residence, and he had a black birthmark on his lower back just like mine. I thought, why not kill two birds with one stone..."
"I knew Li Rusheng had once taken the imperial exam in the same year as me and was expelled for exposing cheating. He failed repeatedly afterward, nursing this grudge deep inside... I originally intended to use him as a cat's-paw, but unexpectedly, Li Rusheng developed madness from his pent-up frustrations. He'd have episodes every night, completely useless for the task... But there was no time to find another candidate, so I decided to use him as a decoy while I carried out the plan myself. If anything went wrong, I could pin it on him—he's timid, inarticulate, and indebted to me, so surely it wouldn't trace back to me..."
Gongsun Yan grew more exhilarated as he spoke, his cheeks flushed and eyes gleaming. "First, I bought a mute girl selling herself to bury her mother on the street and sent her into the Imperial Examination Hall—inconspicuous and unable to talk, just in case. I pulled strings everywhere and finally became a supervising official. As soon as I entered the examination hall, I sought out that treacherous woman. Thirty years had passed, and her eyesight had dimmed—she didn't recognize me at all. I pretended to sympathize with her, promising to use my position to help find her son, but she had to agree to follow my orders without letting that old scoundrel know. And she actually agreed..."
"During the first water delivery after the exam began, I had the treacherous woman secretly pass the official robe to Li Rusheng... Supervising officials only work the first half of the night. As soon as my shift ended, I waited near that room. Once the treacherous woman lured the guards away, I used my status to lightly tap on one room's window, tricking the occupant into thinking I'd sneak him out. While he was off guard, I strangled him unconscious with a strip torn from Li Rusheng's clothing. Then I went to the other two rooms, did the same to them, hung them each from the beams, took their outer garments, and had the treacherous woman deliver them to Li Rusheng."
"I planned to do the same the second night, but unexpectedly, that dark-skinned fellow stripped the cheating candidate naked. I had no choice but to gag him, bash his head against the wall until he died, and then remove the gag... While climbing out the window, I accidentally cut my hand on a wood splinter from the frame. Worried it might leave evidence, I sneaked over that night and cut Li Rusheng's hand—after all, he'd been crying and causing a scene the previous night, and the nearby examinees no longer paid any attention."Gongsun Yan looked smugly at Xiao Jin Yu, "I had Li Rusheng spread the news about the murdered cheating candidates, which indeed caused a great uproar. In his panic, Prince An followed the clues I left step by step and uncovered Li Rusheng. It happened to be at night, and Li Rusheng, in the midst of a fit of madness, was easily provoked and nearly strangled Prince An on the spot... Although I’m grateful to that brainless Blackie, his luck was truly poor. When he was drunk and fuming, he happened to see me releasing that old thief. Though I managed to brush it off, I was afraid he might remember something after sobering up. So, I made use of that mute girl. Who would have thought she was so unfortunate, ending up violated and killed by that Blackie... Well, it saved me some trouble."
"My steward, upon receiving my message, informed this mother and son about Li Rusheng’s death. As expected, they came to make a scene. The old thief I had released also sought them out. When my steward suggested filing a complaint with the emperor, the three of them went..." Gongsun Yan curled his lips, "To have eliminated that thieving couple, gotten rid of four cheating troublemakers, and even sent the renowned Prince An to the Heavenly Prison for a few days—I can die without regrets."
Yun Gu was crying too hard to speak, while Li Cheng knelt beside her, biting his lip and supporting her, glaring fiercely at the smug Gongsun Yan.
Xiao Jin Yu coughed lightly twice and spoke slowly, "I did indeed overlook things momentarily, allowing you to exploit the situation. A few days in prison were well-deserved... However, I must inform you that although you meticulously planned every step in this case, there is one matter in which you were outmaneuvered..."
Gongsun Yan looked suspiciously at Jing Yi.
"No need to look at him..." Xiao Jin Yu’s voice deepened, "Though he may lack virtue, he is not that lacking..."
Wu Jiang contentedly noted down this remark.
Xiao Jin Yu coughed twice more, his tone turning colder, "Your biological father, Gongsun Jun, claimed you were stolen by the elderly Qin couple. Now that your father has long passed away and the Qin elders are also deceased, there is no way to confront them face to face... But according to my investigation, thirty years ago, when Gongsun Jun served as the Prefect of Tanzhou, he had an affair with a maid in his household, resulting in a secret pregnancy. Shortly after the child was born, Gongsun Jun’s jealous wife discovered it, ordered the child to be abandoned, and had all the household servants gang-rape the maid. After the maid died, her body was left exposed in the servants’ courtyard for ten days, making it known to everyone... It is said that Gongsun Jun remained silent throughout and even knelt on a washboard at home for three days."
Jing Yi felt a chill run down his spine.
Xiao Jin Yu gazed calmly at the stunned Gongsun Yan, "Your luck is quite remarkable, Lord Gongsun. When your father encountered you in the capital, his wife had been deceased for many years. Otherwise, you would surely have been left dead on the streets..."
Gongsun Yan felt his entire body turn cold, "Then... what about the Qin family..."
"If you don’t believe it, Lord Gongsun, you are welcome to ask Lord Jing for your father’s case files. Your father served as an official for decades, with many ups and downs. The events recorded in his files are far more extensive than yours."
Gongsun Yan remained dazed for a long while before suddenly lifting his head to look at Jing Yi, "Lord Jing... I confessed everything on my own, entirely on my own... You said you would spare my life!"
"Hmm?" Jing Yi blinked innocently, "Did I say that?"
"You did... You did!"Jing Yi looked seriously at Wu Jiang. "General Wu, please check if I ever said anything like that."
Without even glancing, Wu Jiang replied, "I remember perfectly clearly... not a single word was said."
Jing Yi spread his hands and shrugged. "Well then, my apologies... I'll have to trouble you temporary officers once more. Please find a place to hang this scoundrel who confessed everything himself, preferably somewhere the exam candidates can see as soon as they leave the examination hall... The task of explaining this case to the candidates is also entrusted to you all. Much obliged, we'll gather again another time..."
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