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墨書 Inktalez
Enduring their scolding, Ye Xiaohan could understand their feelings.
For a woman, even if she does not pay much attention to her appearance, a single scar on her face would cause immense heartache, let alone a completely ruined face.
This debt must be counted against Liu Yuan!
Liu Yun waved his hand, instructing someone to properly put the veil back on, then said, "Ye Xiaohan, with both witnesses and evidence present, everyone has seen how badly you have harmed these women. What else do you have to say?"
Ye Xiaohan shouted, "My lord, I am being wronged! I opened my door to do business; it is only logical to ensure the quality of my goods and sell as much as possible. How could I possibly cut off my own means of livelihood? What benefit would I gain from poisoning them?"
With so many doubts surrounding this case, was Liu Yun truly incompetent or knowingly committing an injustice? With Liu Yuan in front of her, Ye Xiaohan had grown to detest the entire Liu family to the utmost.
"You are clearly arguing in bad faith!" Liu Yun retorted. "If you did not do it intentionally, then it means the quality of the goods you sold was poor, leading to such a fate for these people!"
Ye Xiaohan replied loudly, "Since the opening of my shop, I have specialized in cosmetics and have always maintained high quality, which has won me many customers' favor. All products are personally developed and made by me; there have been no issues before this. Someone must be framing me! I ask the lord to allow me to see those harmful blushes."
"This..." Liu Yun hesitated for a moment and stole a glance at Deputy General Tian. Seeing Deputy General Tian's serious expression and lack of opposition, he could only agree. "Alright, bring the items up!"
The Yard Officer quickly brought several boxes of blush forward. Ye Xiaohan opened them all for inspection. These were indeed products from her Peach Blossom Studio; she knew her own creations well and confirmed they were not counterfeit.
Ye Xiaohan took a stick and scooped out some of the powder inside for a closer look, noticing slight differences in color.
There was a problem!
She emptied an entire box onto the table and ground it into powder, holding her breath as she examined it thoroughly. Then she treated the other boxes in the same manner; they all exhibited the same issue.
This action took quite some time, and Liu Yun grew impatient. Just as he was about to stop her, Deputy General Tian spoke first: "The evidence presented is crucial; it must be examined carefully. Lord Liu, have you had these items checked by anyone? What findings do you have?"
Cold sweat broke out on Liu Yun's forehead. Ye Xiaohan's case had been sentenced without interrogation; this was his first encounter with such a minor piece of evidence.
Liu Yun wiped the sweat from his brow and hurriedly explained, but Deputy General Tian neither accepted nor punished him; he simply listened.
This time was enough for Ye Xiaohan to thoroughly inspect everything, and she discovered something amiss.
"My lord, after my examination, I found that these toxic blushes have been mixed with a poisonous substance, which has caused such consequences."
She set aside the brightly colored powder and said, "This substance is a type of insect called Cochineal. After being dried and crushed, it is mixed into the blush, making it nearly indistinguishable."
It seemed that what Liu Yuan had given Yang Hua was indeed this.
"Cochineal is highly toxic; once it comes into contact with human skin, it can cause ulcers, just like on the faces of these guests." Ye Xiaohan handed the blush to the Yard Officer for him to present.
Upon hearing Ye Xiaohan's words, Liu Yun dared not touch the evidence any longer; he merely glanced at it before instructing someone to move it aside.
"What does that prove? These items were sold from your shop. How can you prove that the Cochineal inside was planted by someone else to frame you, rather than accidentally falling in from your own negligence?"
Liu Yun was no fool; he quickly grasped the crux of the matter.
This was indeed a shortcoming for Ye Xiaohan. The blush had been sold by Peach Blossom Studio, an undeniable fact that she could not refute no matter how hard she tried.
As long as she could not prove her innocence regarding the poisoning, she remained the prime suspect.
To clear herself of suspicion, she would need the poisoner to confess personally to prove Ye Xiaohan's innocence. However, since Liu Yuan had colluded with Liu Wen to carry out this scheme, they were intent on harming her and were not insane enough to come forward and admit it.
Liu Yuan's bold words stemmed from knowing that even if Ye Xiaohan's case were reopened, it would be nearly impossible for her to overturn the verdict. That was why he felt emboldened to speak so freely.
Ye Xiaohan truly had no way out; after the incident occurred, she had been imprisoned by Liu Yuan and received no information inside. It was even more impossible for her to gather sufficient evidence to identify the poisoner.
The clues within the case were all deduced by her own reasoning, and there was no way to seek external evidence. At this moment, when asked to prove her innocence, she had nothing to offer.
Liu Yun sneered, "Bold criminal, having committed such a heinous act, you still dare to cry injustice? Truly shameless! What more do you have to say? The evidence is overwhelming; it was your goods from Peach Blossom Studio that caused this tragedy. Do you plead guilty?"
Deputy General Tian furrowed his brow. He could help Ye Xiaohan buy some time and maintain order in the courtroom, preventing Liu Yun from acting recklessly, but he couldn't assist with the decisive evidence.
He had received orders from the general and rushed over, but his understanding of the situation was still incomplete. If he were to suppress the matter solely based on his rank, it might backfire and be exploited by those with ulterior motives, leading to an even more passive situation.
Just as he was feeling troubled, Ye Xiaohan, who was kneeling in the hall, suddenly swayed unsteadily and fell sideways.
"What’s happening?" Liu Yun stood up nervously. This criminal had attracted the attention of the Flying Dragon General himself; if something happened before the interrogation was complete, his own position would be at risk.
Soon, a Yard Officer approached to check on her and reported, "Sir, the criminal fainted due to weakness after kneeling for so long and is unable to continue."
Liu Yun glanced at Deputy General Tian. He dared not voice the suggestion of splashing cold water on her to wake her up. "Since the criminal has fainted, we cannot continue the interrogation. Take her away for now and postpone until another day."
He then leaned closer to Deputy General Tian, bowing slightly with a smile on his face. "Deputy General Tian, does this seem acceptable?"
Deputy General Tian nodded slightly. "Lord Liu's actions are appropriate; I have no objections."
Hearing this response, Liu Yun knew exactly what to do next. He quickly ordered Ye Xiaohan to be taken away and invited Deputy General Tian into the inner hall.
Ye Xiaohan was returned to her cell. With her eyes closed and motionless, she appeared to be in a deep unconscious state.
In reality, she was not weak at all. Despite the hardships she had endured in recent days, she had managed to maintain her strength deliberately so as not to falter at a critical moment.
Her current appearance was actually a result of her secretly pressing on an acupoint with the other end of a stick to feign weakness and collapse. This was all part of her plan to buy herself some time.
Because she had already thought of a plan while in the courtroom, time was now her greatest enemy. Every second counted; a moment too late or too early could determine her fate.
This was the only option available to her. The Yard Officers were seasoned veterans; they could easily tell if someone was pretending. Ye Xiaohan had no choice but to be ruthless with herself, ensuring she could successfully deceive them.
Though her body was in a state of unconsciousness, she kept her mind as alert as possible, listening intently to the commotion around her. When she realized that the trial had been temporarily suspended, she let out a sigh of relief.
Lying on the cold stone floor, Ye Xiaohan's mind raced.
She dared to resort to such desperate measures because she was certain someone would come to check on her.
From the proceedings in court, it was clear that the Deputy General Tian sent by the Flying Dragon General was leaning in her favor. Regardless of whether this person was an ally found by the Sixth Division, at least they wouldn’t harm her.
At least not for now.
Now trapped in a dire situation with no other options, even if more problems arose later, she had to focus on pushing the shadow of death away for the moment.
Ye Xiaohan lay there for a while until her body gradually began to recover. She pushed herself up from the floor and leaned against the moss-covered wall behind her.
Her clothes were filthy, but there was no time to worry about that now; staying alive was more important. She could change once she got out of prison.
Ye Xiaohan waited, confident that someone would come for her.
Since the Flying Dragon General had sent someone to help her, they wouldn’t just leave her to fend for herself; they would do their best to provide her with a chance at survival.
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