Chapter 329 - 315: How is this possible?
The expression on Li Hanlin's face froze instantly!
'What is happening?! He... How could he know?!'
'No!'
Li Hanlin's pupils contracted sharply, his mind racing in terror.
'He was just staring blankly a moment ago. How could he snap out of it and suddenly ask something like that? What the hell happened just now?!'
'It's impossible! If they really had evidence, why didn't they just arrest me for the grave crime of patricide when they broke in? That's far more serious than this nonsense about wanton disregard for human life!'
'Why would they beat around the bush and start by challenging me over something as legal and proper as human sacrifice?'
'Could it be... he's bluffing! Yes! That must be it! These brutes must have realized they couldn't take me down on the charge of human sacrifice, so they resorted to this cheap trick to try and scare a confession out of me!'
'Crude! The utterly crude tactics of a common street thug!'
At this thought, Li Hanlin forcibly calmed the heart that was about to leap from his chest. He wiped all traces of terror from his face, replacing it with an expression of indignation at being baselessly offended.
He flicked his sleeve forcefully and reprimanded them in a harsh voice, "Absurd! This is utterly absurd!"
"I, Li Hanlin, have been immersed in the books of sages since childhood. I served my father day and night, never daring to slacken in the slightest—a fact well-known throughout the city! How dare you utter such slander? You must be out of your minds!"
"Let me tell you! Even if a goddess herself were to arrive, I would never yield to your tyrannical pressure! Justice lies in the hearts of the people! The Li Family has been established in Anhe City for many years. Do you think our name can be tarnished by a few words from country bumpkins like you?!"
His speech was so powerful that it almost convinced even Mr. Zhao, who stood to the side. However, when [Yi Jian Ding Qian Kun] heard it, he just laughed in exasperation.
"Heh, still going on about how 'justice lies in the hearts of the people'?" He cut the crap, looked directly at the interrogation record transmitted through the chat channel, and began to read. "Fine. Since you want justice, let's go through this 'justice' of yours, one piece at a time."
"Half a month ago, your father caught a common cold, but you dismissed the city's renowned physicians. Afterward, you went to the local bank and then hired a so-called 'wandering doctor' through a local ruffian. But this doctor's main line of work wasn't treating the sick, but surveying burial plots, correct?"
Li Hanlin's face stiffened. He forced himself to remain calm and said, "Nonsense! I was just desperate and willing to try anything. I mistakenly trusted a scoundrel. How can you call that murder?!"
"Is that so?" [Yi Jian Ding Qian Kun] smiled. "Then let's talk about the second matter. Three days ago, your father was critically ill, on the verge of death. You sent someone to run an errand: to go to Ghost Hand Mr. Zhang in the west of the city and retrieve a custom-made ink-paste box."
"They say people in that circle call it the Yin-Yang Seal. It's specifically used on people who are dying or have just died. The handprints it makes are rosy, full, and lifelike. Tell me, Mr. Li, did you get this to make a keepsake print of your father's hand?"
"You... You're spouting malicious slander!" Li Hanlin's pupils shrank abruptly! 'How could they possibly...'
[Yi Jian Ding Qian Kun] gave him no chance to argue, taking another step closer. "You also mortgaged several acres of paddy fields north of the city near the Jade Belt River to the bank. The deed transfer required both your and your father's signatures. So tell me, how did an old man, already bedridden, go with you to the bank to sign it?"
That last sentence struck Li Hanlin like a bolt of lightning.
"You..." Utterly horrified, he stumbled backward and fell into a chair in the rear hall. He felt as if all his pretenses were being ruthlessly peeled away, layer by layer, exposing the filthiest core within.
'How could he know?! How could they have seemed like clueless fools who didn't even understand the law just a moment ago, only to now know everything in such excruciating detail?! This... How is this possible?!'
[Yi Jian Ding Qian Kun] looked at his pathetic state, and a malicious grin spread across his face. "Justice? This is the justice you wanted!"
Li Hanlin slumped in the chair, his mind a complete blank. Then, a million thoughts began to sprout wildly in his head.
'Why... He recalled their dazed, wooden expressions after they'd burst in. So... they weren't stunned by me at all! They were deliberately toying with me?!'
In an instant, Li Hanlin understood everything. A bone-deep chill completely submerged him.
'He got it now. They had all the evidence against me from the very beginning! The reason they started by challenging me with that flimsy accusation about human sacrifice wasn't because they were ignorant of the law and proper rites!'
'They were toying with me! Like a cat playing with a mouse, they deliberately gave me a sliver of hope, letting me think I could use the authority of Daqian's rites and the Daqian Law as my shield to argue my case, maybe even turn the tables on them.'
'They just watched my performance quietly, watched me put on that clownish act of an unyielding man of integrity who feared no power, watched me walk step-by-step toward the peak of victory... and then, with the evidence they had all along, they shattered all my hopes and dignity in an instant!'
'That bastard... He even claimed he didn't hear me clearly earlier! Bullshit! He heard every word. He was just waiting! He wanted to toy with me, to watch my clownish antics and wait until I had finished my most arrogant speech before delivering the fatal blow!'
'Terrifying... These people are absolutely terrifying!!'
However, his survival instincts still drove him to make a desperate struggle.
Li Hanlin shot up from the chair, stumbling backward while roaring, "You're framing an innocent man! This is malicious slander! It's defamation! I'm going to report you to the authorities! I'll sue you at the prefectural yamen! This is all nonsense!"
But now, he had lost every last shred of the calm, composed demeanor of the gentry he'd had moments before.
Seeing his state, [Yi Jian Ding Qian Kun] curled his lip in disdain. Cracking his knuckles, he slowly advanced on him. "Where'd all that arrogance from before go? Keep shouting at me. Go on, keep it up. Why are you in such a hurry to stand up? Afraid you'll throw out your old back? Or are you wondering how much longer your head will stay on your neck?"
"Mr. Li, have a seat!"
Meanwhile, Mr. Zhao, who was standing nearby, was completely dumbfounded, utterly stunned.
'Good heavens! I just thought these city guards were trying to frame the Li Family over the trivial and, in my view, perfectly reasonable matter of human sacrifice. But it turns out... you guys were holding a bombshell this whole time!'
'If you had this kind of dirt, you should have told me sooner! Why did I have to be on pins and needles this whole time?! Patricide, forging documents, seizing family assets... Every single one of these is a capital crime worthy of beheading!'