Chapter 174: Thirty Years, Eleven Months, and Twenty-Eight Days
This novel is translated and hosted only on Bcatranslation
Yu Zhi Yi woke feeling well-rested.
The next morning, when she learned that Du Zi Heng had yet to return, she wasn’t surprised. To be precise, it didn’t even cross her mind to dwell on it.
Whether he came back or not, or when he returned, had little to do with her. Regardless of his actions, nothing would sway her resolve.
After completing her morning practice and finishing breakfast, she went to the Ministry of Justice as usual.
Technically, the case in South Cao Village was concluded. She should have been preparing the dossier for submission to the Court of Judicial Review, but with the perpetrator still in You Bing Yue’s custody, she decided to wait a little longer.
Hmm…
If her calculations were right, You Bing Yue should arrive tomorrow.
Before heading to the Ministry of Justice, Yu Zhi Yi prepared a Healing Talisman and donned her official robes to make a brief visit to the palace. At that hour, the emperor was in court. She handed the talisman to Eunuch Hu and promptly left.
…
At the Ministry of Justice, Yu Zhi Yi retrieved a dossier she had dug out days ago. It detailed a case from thirty years ago—a simple matter, by all appearances. The evidence, testimony, and motive were all present, and the accused had even confessed.
The only complication was… the accused had escaped.
The accused was named Li Qing Miao, a scholar. The victims? His entire family of seven.
From a young age, Li Qing Miao showed great intellect. His family, moderately well-off, spared no expense in supporting his education. The Li Family consisted of eight members: his grandmother, Madam Wang of the Li Clan; his mother, Madam Chen of the Li Clan; his father, Li Da Niu; two elder brothers; one younger brother; and one elder sister.
A typical farming household, their lives were rooted in the belief that “more children bring more blessings.” Thanks to generations of diligent ancestors, they had amassed a modest fortune.
One person, however, stood out in this otherwise harmonious family: Madam Chen of the Li Clan. Unlike the rest, she wasn’t from Li Village, having arrived in the town a few years earlier as a refugee. Before her misfortunes, she had been the pampered daughter of a wealthy household, served by a retinue of servants.
But disaster struck. A natural calamity wiped out her family—some perished, others fled. Treacherous servants sought to seize their master’s wealth, murdering Madam Chen’s parents in the process. She survived only because her mother had hidden her away just in time.
By the time she reached the town near Li Village, she was destitute, disheveled, and on the brink of starvation. She fainted by a riverbank, falling into the water, where she was rescued by Li Da Niu.
In this era, physical contact with an unrelated man meant one’s only options were marriage or death. Facing no alternatives and seeing the Li Family’s modest affluence, Madam Chen agreed to marry Li Da Niu.
Yet, though she married into a farming family, her demeanor remained that of a spoiled noblewoman.
When the tragedy unfolded, Madam Chen was the last to die.
Yu Zhi Yi calculated Li Qing Miao’s birth chart, then switched to Madam Chen of the Li Clan’s. After a moment of contemplation, she shook her head with a sigh.
…
In recent days, Li Rou had been shadowing Yu Zhi Yi, picking up some literacy along the way. While she couldn’t write, she had learned to recognize a handful of common characters. Squinting at the dossier, she gasped audibly.
“This Li Qing Miao killed his whole family? Was there some sort of grievance?”
She wasn’t trying to defend a criminal, but the case seemed so unfathomable that she couldn’t help but wonder.
At that moment, the Assistant Official Li also entered. Upon hearing Li Rou’s words, he shook his head. “The criminal confessed in person. There’s no injustice here.”
Li Rou was stunned, her eyes wide with disbelief. The Assistant Official wore an expression of melancholy as he continued, “Little girl, you’re young and weren’t around back then. You have no idea; this case caused quite the stir in its day!”
As Yu Zhi Yi and her servant turned their attention towards him, the Assistant Official looked slightly embarrassed. Yet, gossip was a deeply ingrained human instinct. Besides, at his age, when one had personally witnessed such events, the urge to share was particularly strong.
Moreover, just on Yu Zhi Yi’s second day reporting to duty, the entire Ministry of Justice had prepared congratulatory gifts for her. Though decorum dictated they couldn’t hold a banquet due to gender proprieties, the gifts they sent signified a new relationship of goodwill.
Seeing that Yu Zhi Yi was willing to listen, the Assistant Official readily launched into the tale.
The Assistant Official, now forty-five, was fifteen thirty years ago, during his formative years of study. Among students, discussing current affairs and critiquing social issues was the norm, and this case had been a heated topic within their circles.
“It was said that Li Qing Miao was a refined and gentlemanly man. On the road, he would even help an injured dog. So, when the crime occurred, despite the mountain of evidence against him, the officials refused to believe it. Mind you, he was only eighteen when he passed the Scholar’s Exam, with a promising future ahead!”
“No one believed he would do something so self-destructive—let alone kill his entire family.”
“He was the youngest scholar of his time. With more effort, he could have been the youngest successful candidate in the Imperial Examinations in Ning Prefecture! Such an achievement would have brought great honor to the local officials, who naturally didn’t want to wrong a talent. The county magistrate assumed Li Qing Miao had been coerced into confessing and offered to help clear his name. To everyone’s surprise, Li Qing Miao outright rejected the kindness, even publicly declaring in the streets that he was indeed the murderer of the Li Family Village massacre.”
The Assistant Official shook his head, clicking his tongue. “You wouldn’t know this, but Li Qing Miao had been a role model for all students in our generation. Every schoolteacher would use him as an example when educating their students. After these events, though, those very teachers felt disgraced and avoided public appearances for quite some time.”
Li Rou gaped, her confusion palpable. “Why would he kill his entire family?”
The Assistant Official shook his head again. “No one knows. He never said, and later, there was no chance to interrogate him.”
“He was exceptionally clever. On his way to the magistrate’s office, he used advanced lock-picking skills to free himself from the cage, killed the guards transporting him under the cover of darkness, and successfully escaped. And his escape lasted thirty years.”
Yu Zhi Yi corrected him, “Not thirty years, but thirty years, eleven months, and twenty-eight days.”
The Assistant Official froze mid-sentence.
Li Rou frowned in puzzlement. “Miss, does it matter?”
Thirty years and eleven months, twenty-eight days… Wasn’t that practically thirty-one years?
Yu Zhi Yi spoke calmly. “It matters a great deal. According to the Great Sheng Empire’s Legal Code, cases unresolved after thirty years are deemed expired. Neither the Court of Judicial Review nor the Ministry of Justice has the authority to pursue them further.”
This was precisely why old cases were always reviewed starting from thirty years back.
Technically, it wasn’t even thirty years exactly but thirty years, eleven months, and thirty days. Once that threshold was crossed, prior cases were automatically rendered void, even if the suspect stood before the Court of Judicial Review or the Ministry of Justice. They could no longer be held accountable.
And this was the very reason Yu Zhi Yi had suddenly decided to report for duty at the Ministry of Justice.
Having read the Great Sheng Empire’s Legal Code, she understood this crucial detail. She couldn’t bear the thought of more old cases being permanently buried, or more criminals escaping justice.
Seeking redress for these victims was a great virtue.