Since the time we met.
Chen Nan had never seen Guo Yu so panicked.
He couldn't help but feel a bit nervous for a moment.
Guo Yu said anxiously, "Do you still remember the eldest daughter of the Wang family's caravan, Wang Lan?"
Chen Nan replied with a hint of resentment, "We followed the Wang family's caravan into Guangling Prefecture and lived together for over half a month. How could I not remember her?"
Guo Yu said, "When I returned earlier, I encountered people from the Guangling county yamen arresting Wang Lan. They said she deliberately committed murder and was to be executed in three days."
"Wang Lan deliberately murdered someone? What on earth happened?" Chen Nan was greatly shocked.
Although they had only spent over half a month together,
Wang Lan had left a deep impression on him.
She didn't possess the arrogance of other wealthy young ladies.
Instead, she was very low-key.
And very kind.
He couldn't believe Wang Lan would kill someone.
Guo Yu shook his head, "I only heard that Wang Lan deliberately murdered someone, and she has already confessed."
"I know nothing else."
"Brother, you must save Miss Wang!"
"I don't believe she would deliberately commit murder." He said, his face full of anxiety.
Chen Nan tried hard to calm his emotions.
He recalled the time they encountered bandits in Luoyan Mountain.
The bandits had used the members of the Wang family's caravan as leverage to force Wang Lan to go up the mountain and become their madam.
If she could even accept such a situation,
It was imaginable that she would never be one to kill innocent people.
Now that Wang Lan was arrested,
It seemed there had to be a hidden truth.
"Let's go, we'll go to the Guangling county yamen to gather some information!" Chen Nan immediately led Guo Yu to the Guangling county yamen, a place only two streets away from the prefectural yamen.
Upon arriving at the entrance of the Guangling county yamen, Chen Nan directly displayed his token: "Chen Nan, Director of the Demon Suppression Bureau, requests an audience with Magistrate Tuo. Please send word!"
"Lord Chen, please come in!"
The yamen runner dared not refuse Chen Nan and led him to the yamen's resting area.
He then went to summon the county magistrate, Tuo.
A moment later.
A man over sixty, with a cunning appearance and a thin frame, appeared before Chen Nan with a smile. "What wind has blown Lord Chen here?"
Behind him was a familiar face to Chen Nan.
It was Tuo's son,
Tuo Kai.
Seeing Chen Nan and Guo Yu, Tuo Kai made no attempt to hide his inner anger.
If not for these two interfering,
He would have surely obtained first place today.
And that Shape-Shifting Pill.
But today, he only came in fourth place.
This was a great humiliation to him.
Chen Nan ignored Tuo Kai and cupped his hands towards Tuo, a form of greeting, and then said, "Magistrate Tuo, I have come today to inquire about a case."
Before Tuo could speak.
Tuo Kai's voice rang out, "Lord Chen, you are the Director of the Demon Suppression Bureau, in charge of all sorts of bizarre and strange cases."
"My father is merely the magistrate of Guangling County. The cases he handles are probably not related to yours, right?"
Tuo raised his hand to signal his son to stop speaking and asked politely, "May I know which case Lord Chen has come about?"
Chen Nan: "Wang Lan."
Tuo frowned slightly, "Lord Chen speaks of the eldest daughter of the Wang family's caravan?"
"Precisely!" Chen Nan said, "Miss Wang has been kind to me. I heard she is suspected of a murder case, so I specifically came to inquire. Who did she kill?"
Tuo replied, "She killed over a hundred bandits in Luoyan Mountain."
Chen Nan frowned, "Killing bandits should be a meritorious deed for which one should be rewarded by the authorities. Why then was she arrested? It doesn't make sense, either in terms of reason or law."
He knew very well whether Wang Lan had killed the bandits in Luoyan Mountain.
After all, those bandits were killed by his own hands.
Yet they used this as a reason to detain Wang Lan and even sentence her.
This truly made no sense.
Tuo explained, "Lord Chen may not be aware, but the bandits in Luoyan Mountain have already surrendered and pledged allegiance to the authorities. They are more like local militia than bandits."
"Therefore, Wang Lan is guilty of killing the Luoyan Mountain bandits, and it is not a meritorious deed."
"Lord Chen should be able to understand this now, shouldn't he?"
Chen Nan suddenly understood, "So that's how it is!"
"However, there is one point that I find very curious."
"Did the authorities issue any official notice to the common people about the surrender of the people from Luoyan Mountain?"
Tuo replied, "The official notice has been submitted to Prefect Yuan for approval and is still pending. It has not yet been publicly announced."
This explanation seemed reasonable.
Although Tuo was the county magistrate,
Such matters required approval from the prefectural yamen.
And then public announcement.
"Also, Magistrate Tuo, do you know the methods of the group from Luoyan Mountain?" Chen Nan continued, "Although the people from Luoyan Mountain have surrendered, they are still engaging in acts of robbery, preying on the weak and committing all sorts of evil deeds!"
Tuo shook his head slightly, "Luoyan Mountain is thousands of miles away from Guangling Prefecture. I am not aware of what happens there."
"However,"
"Even if they are guilty, it is for the authorities to judge!"
"Not for someone to arbitrarily execute them!"
Chen Nan: "Magistrate Tuo speaks wisely. Even if the people of Luoyan Mountain deserve to be put to death a thousand times, it should be handled by the authorities. Only in this way can the authority of the law be upheld."
"However, I have one point of confusion."
"Among the bandits of Luoyan Mountain, there were not a few cultivators."
"And there were over a hundred of them."
"The eldest daughter of the Wang family's caravan is merely an ordinary person."
"How could she have killed those people from Luoyan Mountain?"
"Doesn't Magistrate Tuo find this matter suspicious?"
Tuo smiled, "This matter is indeed very suspicious."
"However,"
"None of this is important."
"What is important is that Wang Lan has signed and confessed."
"She will be executed at the Caishi Mouth in three days."
A glint flashed in Chen Nan's eyes. "Are you saying that just because Wang Lan signed and confessed, Magistrate Tuo will not investigate the truth and slander an innocent citizen?"
He refused to believe Wang Lan would confess.
Because she had absolutely no involvement in this case.
After all, he was the one who had killed the more than a hundred bandits in Luoyan Mountain.
It was obvious without even thinking.
Tuo had likely resorted to torture to extract a confession.
Otherwise, Wang Lan would not have signed and confessed.
Tuo Kai was enraged. "Chen, does how my father handles cases need you to teach him?"
"Do you really think that just because you've become the Director of the Demon Suppression Bureau, you can look down on our Tuo family?"
"Let me tell you."
"This is the Guangling county yamen, not your Demon Suppression Bureau."
"You can't run amok here!"
"Do not be disrespectful to Lord Chen!" Tuo said with an imposing demeanor, then smiled at Chen Nan. "If Lord Chen is dissatisfied with my handling of the case, you may file a complaint with Prefect Yuan."
Chen Nan's anger flared.
He really wanted to ask Tuo, would filing a complaint be of any use?
Your Tuo family has been hereditary magistrates.
Let alone filing a complaint with Yuan Zun.
Even if you went to Fengdu City and complained to the Great Emperor of Fengdu, it would be useless, wouldn't it?
Troublesome!
This old man is quite troublesome!
He clearly knew there was another side to the story, yet he had made a final judgment, deeming Wang Lan guilty.
This was not easy to deal with!
At this moment.
Tuo suddenly said, "I know Lord Chen repays kindness with gratitude and wishes to repay Wang Lan's kindness. I do have a way to help you achieve your desire."
Chen Nan asked, "What way?"