Chapter 49: The Path to Truth, Dawn Breaks

Chapter 49: The Road to Truth, Dawn Breaks

The golden afterglow gradually faded as night fell, casting the imperial city in a tranquil hush. Lin Shiya and Murong Fu’s figures were slowly swallowed by the darkness, the only sound between them the echo of each other’s breathing.

“I must find new evidence as soon as possible, only then can I clear the Lin family’s name once and for all,” Lin Shiya broke the silence, her tone resolute.

Murong Fu gently took her hand, offering silent support.

The next day, Lin Shiya returned once more to the Ministry of Justice’s prison, determined to question Lin Da herself, hoping to glean more clues from her brother’s account.

Within the dim cell, Lin Da appeared gaunt and haggard, yet his gaze remained unwavering. The siblings’ reunion was fraught with emotion; Lin Shiya forced back tears as she inquired about the events of that year.

Lin Da recalled the scene with a pained expression, closing his eyes as he haltingly recounted what transpired.

Meanwhile, in the residence of Vice Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Justice, two mysterious figures were plotting.

“Lin Shiya has already begun her investigation. We must act quickly,” said the first, his tone cold as ice.

“I’ve already instructed people to spread rumors that Lin Shiya’s evidence is fabricated. People in the city have started to doubt her,” the second replied, a sinister smile on his lips.

Sure enough, as Lin Shiya emerged from the prison, she found the townsfolk whispering and pointing at her.

“They say there’s more to the Lin family’s case, that Lin Shiya’s evidence is fake…”

“How could a mere woman overturn a verdict? She must have used some underhanded means…”

Hearing these slanders, Lin Shiya’s fury burned. Her sharp gaze swept over the crowd, searching for anyone suspicious.

Suddenly, her eyes locked onto a furtive figure. Sensing her attention, the man melted away into the throng.

“Trying to run?” Lin Shiya snorted coldly, striding after him.

She moved with the swiftness of a hunting leopard, weaving through the bustling crowd, and soon cornered the suspicious man in a deserted alley.

Realizing escape was futile, he stopped and turned, revealing the roguish face of a street tough clearly in the pay of the second mysterious figure.

“Hey, girl, why are you chasing me?” he sneered, flashing yellowed teeth, his tone lewd.

Lin Shiya replied with a cold smile, her gaze like a blade, pinning him in place.

“You spread rumors, slandering my family. Are you aware of your crime?”

“What rumors? I don’t know anything,” the man feigned innocence, but his eyes darted uneasily.

Lin Shiya did not rush to expose him. Instead, she smiled faintly, a sly glint in her eyes.

“If you know nothing, why did you run?”

Caught off guard, the man stammered, sweat beading on his brow.

Seizing the advantage, Lin Shiya pressed closer.

“Let me ask again: where did you hear these rumors? Who told you to do this?”

Sensing danger, he quickly tried to explain, “I… I just heard it from others. Everyone’s saying it…”

“Oh? Everyone?” Lin Shiya’s eyebrow arched with a hint of amusement. “If so, why not gather all the rumor-mongers together and compare accounts?”

At this, the man turned white as a sheet, sweat pouring down his face.

After much hemming and hawing, he finally confessed to being bribed by the second mysterious figure to deliberately spread rumors.

Lin Shiya’s lips curled in a cold smile; she had anticipated the shadowy mastermind would not let her off easily.

She dragged the scoundrel to the marketplace and publicly exposed the plot.

When the townsfolk heard the truth, an uproar erupted. They condemned the rogue and the hidden hand behind him. The voices that had doubted Lin Shiya now turned to support and praise her.

Her name, once besmirched, was not only restored but shone brighter than ever.

Meanwhile, in the dank confines of the prison, Lin Da heard how his sister had toiled to redress their family’s injustice, even suffering humiliation for it. His heart ached.

Through the cold iron bars, he gripped Lin Shiya’s hand tightly, feeling the warmth in her palm.

Their gazes met, and without words, they drew strength and hope from one another.

Lin Shiya knew she could not let her brother down. She must strive even harder to uncover the truth and bring the real culprit to justice.

She stepped out of the Ministry of Justice’s prison, her emotions in turmoil. Night had fully fallen.

In the distance, lights still burned in the ministry’s main hall, casting a sinister shadow of Vice Minister Zhang on the windowpane.

Lin Shiya’s gaze darkened. She looked thoughtfully into the inky night.

Within Zhang’s study, sandalwood smoke curled in the air, shrouding his brooding face in gloom.

He hurled his teacup to the floor, shattering it with a sharp crack.

“Useless! All of them are useless!” he roared, veins bulging in anger at today’s defeat.

He paced the room like a caged beast, eyes glinting with malice and calculation.

He would not allow Lin Shiya to investigate further. He intended to strangle all threats in their cradle.

He had already cast a tight net within the ministry, waiting for Lin Shiya to walk into the trap.

He wrote out order after secret order, and a heavy tension settled over the entire Ministry of Justice. All sensed a storm brewing.

Lin Shiya had barely returned home and settled in when urgent knocking sounded at her door.

She opened it to find Coroner Wang, breathless and sweating, standing anxiously on her threshold.

“Lady Lin, I’ve discovered… there’s something amiss with the ministry’s case files!” he whispered, lowering his voice.

Lin Shiya ushered him inside and questioned him closely.

Wang produced a tattered ledger, pointing out several places with a grave expression.

“These records have been altered, and so skillfully that if I hadn’t looked closely, I would never have noticed,” he said.

Lin Shiya took the ledger, studying it intently, her brows knitted as she analyzed the discrepancies Wang had found.

Her fingers traced the rough, timeworn pages, but her gaze grew only more resolute.

Relying on her keen intelligence and sharp eye, she quickly unraveled the traces of tampering.

“As I suspected!” she murmured. The falsified records pointed to a key figure she had previously overlooked.

A tremendous sense of accomplishment washed over her, as if she had parted the shrouds of mist to glimpse the light of truth.

A confident smile played at her lips. She knew she was one step closer to the truth.

She strode out to the courtyard. Above, the night sky was deep as ink and spattered with stars. She looked up, eyes piercing as if to cut through the darkness.

“Next, it’s time to pay a visit to that rat skulking in the shadows,” she whispered, her tone firm and decisive.

In a flash, she vanished into the night.

She would confront that person, drag the conspiracy hidden in darkness into the light.

She longed to witness the panic of the mastermind when the truth was finally revealed.

With steady steps, she marched toward the abyss of darkness, a fearless warrior poised to unleash a tempest.

Following the clues provided by Coroner Wang, Lin Shiya traced the trail to the hiding place of the second mysterious figure—an abandoned courtyard on the outskirts of the city.

Under cover of night, the courtyard appeared especially grim, like a beast lying in wait to devour intruders.

Undaunted, Lin Shiya pushed open the creaking gate and entered.

“Who’s there?!” a startled cry shattered the silence.

The second mysterious figure burst from the house, dagger in hand, terror in his eyes as he glared at Lin Shiya.

“I’ve been looking for you,” Lin Shiya’s tone was icy, her gaze burning straight through him.

She advanced, her presence so formidable he could hardly breathe.

“W-what do you want?” His voice trembled, the hand holding the dagger shaking uncontrollably.

He stared at her in terror, as if beholding a demon from hell.

Lin Shiya gave a cold laugh, ignored his question, and tossed out a single name: “Vice Minister Zhang.”

At the sound, his face drained of color. The dagger clattered from his hand.

His lips quivered but no words came, his eyes darted in panic—she had struck home.

Neighbors, drawn by the commotion, gathered to peer curiously into the courtyard.

Under so many eyes, the man’s defenses crumbled.

He began to babble incoherently, sweat streaming down his face, all signs that he was about to spill the secret long kept.

Just then, a sharp arrow whistled through the night and struck him in the chest.

He groaned and collapsed, blood pooling beneath him.

It happened so swiftly that the onlookers barely reacted before he was at death’s door.

Lin Shiya whipped around, her gaze slicing through the shadows, but saw only a fleeting silhouette.

A sense of dread seized her. She rushed to check the dying man’s wound.

“Who was it? Who?!” Her voice was laced with fury and frustration.

With the last ounce of his strength, he raised a trembling hand and pointed. His lips moved, as if to speak.

Lin Shiya hurriedly bent close to catch his final words.

“It was…”