When Su Qingmo woke up on the second day, Mu Yuanjing had already gotten up.

Su Qingmo sat up in a daze, and asked Mu Yuanjing, who was neatly dressed, "Is the prince's body okay?" ”

Mu Yuanjing soaked the cloth towel and handed it to her, "There are only some internal injuries left that are not serious, and it will be good to recuperate." ”

Su Qingmo nodded, Mu Yuanjing asked about what happened after she came back from Qiao's house last night, and Su Qingmo told him the records in the ancient books and his own speculation.

Mu Yuanjing thought about it in his heart, and after Su Qingmo cleaned up, he said, "Let's go to the lobby for breakfast first, and then we will go to the yamen of Qingshui Town together." ”

Su Qingmo asked, "Does the prince know who the murderer is?" ”

Mu Yuanjing shook his head, "There is still no clue, but if we continue to stalemate like this, it will not be a good thing for us." ”

He wanted to see if he could get clues from the Qiao couple in question.

When the two of them went downstairs, Wei Xu, Pei Lin and Fang Mubei were already waiting on the first floor, and after breakfast, a few people took a carriage to the Yamen of Qingshui Town.

Since the day the Yamen of Qingshui Town found Amu's body, it has been managed by the people of the Hidden Yamen, and because the area occupied by the Yamen of Qingshui Town and the facilities inside are somewhat different from the Hidden Yamen, the hidden guards walking in the Yamen of Qingshui Town have made the entire Yamen a little crowded.

After Kang Sihai got the news earlier, he waited honestly in the yamen, and when he saw someone coming towards him, he hurriedly ran forward and asked Andao: "Xiaguan greets the king of Linchuan, and greets the princess of Linchuan." ”

Mu Yuanjing ignored him, walked past him and walked towards the hall, and Kang Sihai hurriedly followed.

Wei Xu was behind a few people, grabbed Kang Sihai's collar, and said expressionlessly: "The prince is handling the case, and the idle people are not allowed to follow." ”

Kang Sihai had no choice but to leave the yamen unwillingly.

Mu Yuanjing, who was sitting in the hall, asked the hidden guards to disperse the people watching at the entrance of the yamen, and then asked Wei Xu, "Are the Qiao couple awake?" ”

Wei Xu said: "The subordinates asked the hidden guards to escort the people over, and the people were outside." ”

Mu Yuanjing straightened his cuffs, "Take them in." ”

Because they were not trying the case in the hidden world in the capital, Su Qingmo and Pei Lin did not avoid it, and only stood quietly under the hall with Wei Xu and Fang Mubei.

The Qiao couple were brought in by the hidden guards, and after the two looked up and saw Mu Yuanjing, they knelt on the ground with a 'poof'.

Qiao Chunsheng put his hands on the ground and kept kowtowing, "Adults spare their lives, adults spare their lives." ”

Mu Yuanjing patted the shocked wood, "Shut up." ”

Qiao Chunsheng hurriedly stopped his movements, not daring to make any more sounds, on the other hand, Qiao Lin's face, although he had not opened his mouth since entering the hall, his face had already turned pale.

Mu Yuanjing looked at the two of them for a moment, and finally asked out loud: "This king asks you, where are your children now?" ”

The identity of the prince made Qiao Chunsheng even more nervous, and he stumbled and said, "In... At the grass people's eldest brother's house. ”

Mu Yuanjing looked at the person beside Qiao Chunsheng, "Qiao Lin, what your husband said is true?" ”

Qiao Lin's voice said steadily: "Back to the prince, the children were indeed picked up by the eldest brother. ”

"When?"

"It was the afternoon the day before yesterday."

Qiao Lin's glanced to the side at this time, and the moment she saw Su Qingmo, Qiao Lin's eyes were a little surprised, she pointed in the direction where Su Qingmo was and said, "That girl has seen the two children of the people's woman, and also sent them food, and soon after that, the eldest brother and sister-in-law came to the house to pick up Amu and Xiaohua. ”

At this time, Qiao Chunsheng next to him seemed to realize something, and asked, "Lord Wang, is something happening to the grass people's children?" ”

Mu Yuanjing kept his mouth shut and didn't answer, and moved his gaze to Qiao Chunsheng's hands on the ground, "How did the injury on your wrist come from?" ”

Qiao Chunsheng's body stiffened for a moment, forgetting what had not yet waited for Mu Yuanjing's answer, he glanced at Qiao Lin next to him with his spare eyes, and replied in a low voice, "I accidentally injured it." ”

"Who got hurt?"

Qiao Chunsheng didn't speak, but Qiao Lin next to him opened his mouth, "Back to the prince, Chunsheng's injury was caused by a woman." ”

Mu Yuanjing let out an 'oh', "Can you show this king how you hurt him?" ”

Qiao Lin's hands clenched into fists and did not move.

Mu Yuanjing glanced at Fang Mubei, "Go and compare the wounds." ”

Fang Mubei raised Qiao Lin's right hand and put it on Qiao Chunsheng's wrist with scratches, and after confirming it again, he let go of Qiao Lin's hand and complained to Mu Yuanjing: "Back to the prince, the wound on Qiao Chunsheng's hand is narrow, and Qiao Lin's nails can't cause similar scars. ”

"Are you sure?"

Fang Mubei replied: "My subordinates dare to guarantee with their lives. ”

He looked at Qiao Lin and asked in a deep voice, "Why are you lying?" ”

Qiao Lin pursed his lips tightly, looking like he didn't intend to speak.

"It's okay, this king has a way to make you tell the truth."

"Lord, I said... I said..."

Qiao Chunsheng's eager voice sounded, and he ignored Qiao Lin's glare, and told the true origin of the scratch on his wrist.

"The wounds on the grass people's hands were caused by Amu."

"Why did he scratch you?"

Qiao Chunsheng turned his head to look at Qiao Lin's family, gritted his teeth, as if he had finally made up his mind, and said: "She doesn't have a good temper, and when she is angry, she often beats people, most of the time she beats me, and sometimes she also beats children. ”

Everyone in the hall knew who she was in Qiao Chunsheng's words.

I only heard Qiao Chunsheng continue: "The afternoon before yesterday, she led the children back home from outside, because the children received strangers' things, so she said a few words to the children, Amu bumped into her, she started to hit Amu and Xiaohua, and I was accidentally scratched by Amu in the pulling. ”

Mu Yuanjing's eyes carried an indescribable chill, "Is this really the case?" ”

Qiao Chunsheng lowered his head, "The grass people don't dare to lie." ”

Mu Yuanjing looked at the couple in the hall, if the truth was really as Qiao Chunsheng said, then why would Qiao Lin's family stop him desperately.

Qiao Lin's reaction was really abnormal.

Mu Yuanjing didn't ask any further, and asked the guards to send the Qiao couple home safely, of course, the hidden guards who were secretly monitoring were still not withdrawn.

After the Qiao couple left, Mu Yuanjing asked Wei Xu, "Has Qiao Chunsheng's eldest brother been found?" ”

Wei Xu nodded, "Yin Wei passed a message this morning, saying that Qiao Chunsheng's eldest brother and sister-in-law are already on their way, and it is estimated that it will not be long before noon." ”

A light flashed in Mu Yuanjing's eyes, "When they arrive, the truth of the matter will be clear." ”

——

After waiting for half an hour after eating, a hidden guard entered the door to report that Qiao Chunsheng's eldest brother and sister-in-law had been taken to the main hall.

Without delay, several people returned to the main hall.

There was a pair of middle-aged men and women kneeling in the hall, it can be seen from the dressing fabrics that the living conditions at home are acceptable, the woman's unmessed hair bun has two beaded hairpins, the beads on the hair keep shaking, she looked up at Mu Yuanjing who was the head of the head, bit her lower lip, and a trace of uneasiness crossed her eyes.

Mu Yuanjing raised his voice and asked, "Who is in the hall?" ”

The man was the first to speak, "The grass people's name is Qiao Wang, a person from the capital. ”

"Next to him is the grass people's wife, Qiao Tian."

Mu Yuanjing's voice sank, "Qiao Wang, Qiao Tian's clan, did the two of you commit the crime by yourself, or did this king use the method to ask you to recruit you?" ”

Qiao Wang's expression remained unchanged, "The grass people don't know what to recruit. ”

Mu Yuanjing looked at Qiao Wang, who didn't seem to be worried about the situation around him, "This king doesn't want to talk to you more, you just need to tell this king, where are Amu and Xiaohua now?" ”

Qiao Tian's body stiffened, and Qiao Wang remained silent.

Mu Yuanjing's eyes were filled with coldness, "Don't say it? ”

The people in the hall were still silent.

"Come on, reward Qiao Wang's twenty boards, and this king will see how long he can harden his mouth."

The hidden guard in the hall stepped forward with a board, trying to put down Qiao Wang.

"Stop!" Qiao Tian threw himself on Qiao Wang to protect him, "You can't... Can't hit him. ”

Mu Yuanjing waved his hand to withdraw the hidden guard, "Why can't you?" ”

Qiao Tian's mouth kept repeating 'can't', but he didn't say anything else.

Mu Yuanjing asked people to pull her away, but this time she didn't act again, and the board all fell on Qiao Wang.

Qiao Wang gritted his teeth but still couldn't suppress the painful cry that blurted out, and Qiao Tian was crying on the side.

After the twentieth board was played, Qiao Wang was completely paralyzed on the ground, cold sweat soaked through his clothes, and blood seeped out from the lower part of his buttocks.

Mu Yuanjing looked at the two people in the hall, "When did you leave the capital and when did you go back?" ”

Qiao Wang lay on the ground, trembling his pale lips, "Me and... My wife, never... Left, the capital. ”

Mu Yuanjing asked rhetorically: "You mean that Qiao Chunsheng lied and the child was not picked up by you, right?" ”

"Yes..."

"But according to the verification of this king's guards, among the neighbors of Qiao Chunsheng's family, someone saw with their own eyes that you and Qiao Tian picked up the child the afternoon before yesterday, what do you explain?"

Qiao Wang was silent for a long time, and then resisted stiffly: "He's lying." ”

The smile on the corner of Mu Yuanjing's mouth was cool, "I saw more than one person with my own eyes, are they all lying?" ”

Everyone's eyes were on Qiao Wang's body, but Qiao Tian on the side suddenly whimpered and cried, and said vaguely: "... Even if we picked up the child... But how can their deaths have anything to do with us? ”

Mu Yuanjing's gaze turned to Qiao Tian's clan, "This king never said that the child is dead. ”

Qiao Tian's whimpering stopped abruptly, and his face turned pale suddenly, as if he had fainted.

Qiao Wang endured the pain and supported his upper body with one hand, supported Qiao Tian with his body, and protected her stomach with the other hand.

His actions made Mu Yuanjing have a guess in his heart, and he looked at Qiao Wang, who was worried, "If you don't tell the truth, the next board will be entertained to Qiao Tian's body." ”

"I confess, I confess, I killed people."

"Why do you kill?"

Qiao Wang said calmly: "There is no reason. ”

Mu Yuanjing never believed that the person who killed the two children was Qiao Wang, he didn't continue to ask, he was waiting for someone.

Fortunately, the man came quickly.

Acropolis walked in from the outside, bowed to Mu Yuanjing and said, "Lord Wang, the matter you asked your subordinates to investigate has a result." ”

From the moment he noticed the abnormality of Qiao Chunsheng and his wife, Mu Yuanjing transferred the Acropolis from the capital and asked him to investigate in secret.

Mu Yuanjing said coldly: "Say it and tell the two of them." ”

Acropolis straightened up and said, "The afternoon before yesterday, Qiao Wang and his wife did leave Qingshui Town after receiving Amu and Xiaohua. It's just that when he left, Qiao Tian was the only one left in the car with two children."

"Don't ask, I say."

Just when Qiao Wang was still about to shut up, Qiao Tian beside him opened his mouth dejectedly.

"It's true that it wasn't my husband who killed them, it's me, and I accidentally killed them."

Mu Yuanjing said coldly: "You accidentally killed it?" That's the life of two children. ”

Qiao Tianshi shook his lips, tears streaming down his cheeks, "... I really didn't mean to. ”

"That day, my husband and I picked up two children, because Qingshui Town still has some business to deal with, so my husband asked me to take the two children on the road first, he will ride a horse to catch up with us in the evening, on the road, I mentioned the idea of wanting to pass Xiaohua, Amu disagreed, wanted to jump out of the car with Xiaohua, I pulled him back in a hurry, I didn't want him to hit the scissors in the car, scissors inserted from the back of his head, and people couldn't do it at that time."

Mu Yuanjing asked her, "Why did you kill Xiaohua again?" ”

"When the boy saw that his brother had been killed by my wrong hand, he clamored to jump out of the car, but I had no choice but to cover her mouth, and she scratched and scratched at me, and she would never stop, and then I got angry, so I grabbed her by the hair and knocked her against the wall of the carriage again and again, and finally I did not let go until she was out of breath."

Mu Yuanjing glanced at Qiao Wang, whose face was depressed, lightly, "Was there anyone else around at that time?" ”

"There's only one driver who drives..."

"The coachman didn't dare to cause trouble, so I gave him some silver to gag his mouth."

Mu Yuanjing gave Acropolis a look and motioned for him to leave first to find the whereabouts of the coachman.

Only by finding the coachman can we verify whether what Qiao Tian said is true.

Thinking of Amu's death, Mu Yuanjing asked in a deep voice, "Did you cut off the head of the deceased and throw the body into the pig barn?" ”

Qiao Tian didn't answer, and Qiao Wang, who gave up resistance on the side, continued: "It's not her, it's me..."

Without waiting for Mu Yuanjing to ask again, Qiao Wang confessed: "After I finished my errand that day, it didn't take long for me to catch up with the carriage that stopped halfway, and when I arrived, there was a man in black sitting in the carriage, he forced me to cut off Amu's head, and took advantage of the dead of night to take me to throw Amu's body into a pig shed. ”

Qiao Wang explained with some eagerness: "I don't know why he asked me to do that, but under the circumstances, if I didn't listen to him, he would have taken my wife and me immediately." ”

Mu Yuanjing stared at Qiao Wang, and asked in a deep voice, "Where are Amu's head and Xiaohua's body buried?" ”

Qiao Wang said an address, and Mu Yuanjing immediately instructed the hidden guard to look for the place Qiao Wang said.

Mu Yuanjing picked up the shocking wood and was about to slap the table to settle the case, but Qiao Wang's face suddenly said with a smile: "Lord Wang, you can't sentence Qiao Tian's family. ”

Mu Yuanjing stared at him with cold eyes.

Qiao Wang was still smiling, "She's already pregnant with my baby. ”

The criminal law of the Northern Yan Dynasty stipulated that if the perpetrator was pregnant, all punishment would be temporarily waived and placed under house arrest at home, starting with the birth of the fetus in the womb, and the punishment would be imposed after five years.

Qiao Wang's pride didn't last long, and after Qiao Tian's first painful exhalation, he was completely panicked.

Blood continued to flow out of Qiao Tian's lower body, soaking the skirt and staining the ground under her red, she covered her stomach, held back the pain from her mouth, and looked at Qiao Wang in disbelief, "Husband, I have our child?" ”

Qiao Wang kept nodding, "The doctor told me that the month is still shallow and uncertain, but nine times out of ten, it is." ”

After seeing him nod, Qiao Tian laughed happily, but he cried when he laughed, and his voice was a little panting, "Am I... Soon... Lost him? ”

Qiao Wang didn't dare to answer, he ignored the pain in his body, knelt in front of Mu Yuanjing with two steps on his knees, and kept kowtowing, "Please help me get a doctor, please." ”

Mu Yuanjing motioned to Fang Mubei and asked him to step forward to take a look at the situation of the Qiao Tian clan.

Although Fang Mubei is a fool, he also knows a little bit about seeing a doctor, as long as it is not a tricky incurable disease, he can solve it.

He grabbed Qiao Tian's wrist and pondered.

After a moment, Fang Mubei stood up and looked at Mu Yuanjing and shook his head.

Qiao Tian's has been worried too much recently, and his heart knot is difficult to solve, and the fetus in his womb can't be saved, and now he is too frightened, which leads to a slippery tire and a blood collapse at the same time.

Not to mention the fetus, even if you are afraid of life, you can't keep it.

Qiao Wang refused to believe it, his eyes were scarlet, and he grabbed the hem of Fang Mubei's clothes, and his voice was hoarse, "... Please, save the child. ”

He has been looking forward to the child for more than ten years.

Qiao Wang, who kept begging, didn't notice that Qiao Tian behind him had slowly stopped breathing, and after realizing it, he hurriedly turned around and picked up Qiao Tian and cried bitterly.

His head was buried in Qiao Tian's arms, and he cried for a long time before he slowly raised his head.

Qiao Wang looked at Mu Yuanjing in a trance, "Lord Wang, I know a secret about my brother, do you want to listen to it?" ”