On her wedding night, she went into exile with her pharmacy arsenal

Chapter 2155 Dog bites dog 1 tuft of hair

Governor Ding's gaze was fixed on the white cloths, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

His Adam's apple bobbed uncontrollably a few times. His previous stubbornness in denying the truth deflated instantly in the face of these dozen or so corpses, like a paper lantern that had been punctured.

Yan Ruyu lowered her eyes and swept them over the corpses scattered on the ground. The coldness in her eyes was almost freezing. Her tone was oppressive: "Prefect Ding, what explanation do you have for these corpses?"

"And don't tell me you didn't know."

“These people were all dug out from the backyard of your governor’s mansion. Since you claim to be the governor of Rongzhou and the master of this mansion, how can you tell me that more than a dozen lives were buried in your mansion without your knowledge?”

Prefect Ding's eyes widened in panic, his pupils darting around in their sockets, and he blurted out, "It's the steward! It's the steward of the manor, Li Fu!"

“These must all be servants in the mansion. There are many people and eyes in the governor’s mansion. The steward has always been in charge of the trivial matters in the mansion. As an official of the court, I am busy with many affairs every day. How could I possibly know all the servants in the mansion?”

"The burial was definitely decided by Li Fu on his own; I truly knew nothing about it!"

"Too busy with affairs of state? Didn't know anything?" Upon hearing this, Su Zhenhai was furious and laughed. He stepped forward, his hand gripping the torch so tightly that it cracked, and sparks flew out. "You think you can just brush off the deaths of more than a dozen people with a single sentence of 'didn't know anything'?"

His voice suddenly rose, making the torches in the courtyard flicker, and his flushed face was full of anger: "You, as governor, are living a far too carefree life!"

Governor Ding put on a wronged expression and stubbornly protested, "Envoy Su, I really didn't lie to you!"

There are many servants in the manor, and Li Fu is an old hand in the household. I have always trusted him, and he has handled all the personnel affairs in the manor. I truly did not know that he would have such audacity!

He paused, then lowered his tone, speaking with a hint of caution: "If you say I was negligent, I admit the blame. After all, such a thing happened in the manor, and I cannot shirk my responsibility."

"A mistake is a mistake, and murder is murder; the two are worlds apart. It's not my fault, and I absolutely cannot bear the responsibility!"

"You!" Su Zhenhai was so angry at his twisted logic that he jumped up and down, pointing his finger at his nose, unable to utter a complete sentence for a long time.

Huo Changhe maintained a cold expression and ordered, "Bring the steward Li Fu up."

Not long after he finished speaking, a series of chaotic footsteps came from outside the courtyard, and two yamen runners carried Li Fu in.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, his eyes swept over the corpses scattered on the ground, and his legs went weak, causing him to kneel down with a thud.

He kept his head bowed low, not daring to look at the white cloths. His body trembled like a leaf. Before Yan Ruyu and the others could ask any questions, he cried out, "My lord, spare my life! I confess! I confess!"

His voice trembled, choked with sobs, and he spoke so quickly as if he feared he would lose his life if he was even a step too late: "It was all his fault! It was all Governor Ding who made me bury him!"

These people offended the Prefect, displeasing him and prompting him to order their punishment. That's why I was allowed to secretly bury them in the backyard! I was merely following orders; I dared not disobey!

"You're talking nonsense!" Upon hearing this, Prefect Ding flew into a rage, abandoning his previous pretense, and pointed at Li Fu's nose, cursing loudly.

"You dog of a lackey! When did I ever ask you to bury these people? You're the one who's been dishonest and killed people, and now you're trying to smear me! You're tired of living!"

He was so angry that he trembled all over, wishing he could rush up and tear Li Fu's mouth apart, but he was stopped by the yamen runners beside him.

Li Fuben was terrified. Seeing that Prefect Ding wanted to pin all the blame on him, he was completely desperate. He suddenly raised his head, his face contorted with a ferocious look: "I'm talking nonsense? Ding Hengshou, how dare you say that?"

He crawled forward two steps: "Three years ago, Chef Zhang in the kitchen just spilled your ginseng soup, and you ordered his legs to be broken. Later, he died. Who told me to bury him under the cover of night?"

And the year before last, you took a fancy to the land owned by the Wang family in the east of the city, but the Wang family refused to sell. So you had someone tie up the Wang family's steward and bring him to the mansion. In the end, he died. Who sent me to handle that then?

Li Fu became increasingly agitated as he spoke, his voice growing louder and louder as he recounted one past event after another: "You ordered all of these things! Now that the truth has come out, you want to push me out to take the blame? No way! We'll die together!"

"You're spouting nonsense! You're slandering me!" Governor Ding's eyes were bloodshot, and his hand trembled as he pointed at Li Fu. The two of them argued back and forth in front of the corpses scattered on the ground, a truly ugly scene of dogs fighting each other.

Governor Ding angrily cursed, "You wicked servant! Not only did you kill someone, but you also buried them in my family's flower garden! You are utterly depraved!"

"Now you still want to pin this crime on me and frame me? You deserve to die!"

Governor Ding looked at Su Zhenhai: "Envoy Su, arrest him and beat him to death with sticks."

Li Fu was so angry that he trembled and pointed at him, repeatedly saying "you" for a long time.

Yan Ruyu smiled enigmatically, looking at Governor Ding: "Who told you that these corpses were dug up from the flowerbed?"

Governor Ding was taken aback.

"It wasn't you who said..."

“We didn’t say that. I’ve always been talking about the backyard,” Yan Ruyu raised an eyebrow slightly, “but I’ve never mentioned the flowerbed.”

"The governor's mansion is quite large, with a lake, bamboo grove, and garden in the backyard. How do you know it's just a flower nursery?"

Li Fu's eyes lit up: "That's right, you said you didn't instruct me, how did you know? I didn't say that!"

Governor Ding's forehead was beaded with sweat: "It's that damned servant! He often beats and berates his servants, and he often threatens to kill them and use them as fertilizer! I was just... I was just guessing, but I didn't expect that I would be right."

Su Zhenhai was so angry that the veins on his forehead throbbed: "Damn it... why does this bastard only have a mouth!"

The crackling of torches in the courtyard, mixed with shouts and curses, made one feel suffocated.

The shamelessness of Prefect Ding only fueled people's anger.

Just then, a series of light footsteps came from the courtyard gate. Yin Ding walked in quickly from outside. He walked very lightly and went straight to Yan Ruyu's side. He bent down and whispered a few words in her ear.

After listening, Yan Ruyu's eyes flashed with understanding. She turned her head to look in Madam Ding's direction and slowly nodded at the silver ingot.

Yin Ding understood, immediately turned around and went out of the courtyard again. Not long after, he came back with several strong men, carefully carrying a person in.

The person lay on a makeshift stretcher, his face obscured, his black hair disheveled, his skin pale, and his breathing extremely weak; it was unclear whether he was dead or alive.

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to it.

Upon seeing this, Madam Ding's eyes widened suddenly, and large tears welled up again in her still-wet eyes.