The scapegoat

Upon hearing Emperor Wu'an's words, Xiao Jinyi immediately turned and left, taking several men straight to the Princess's Residence.

Princess Kangning was delighted to see him. "Jin Yi, what brings you here? Come, sit inside with your aunt. I'll have the kitchen make your favorite lamb hot pot. Don't leave today—stay the night!"

Princess Kangning was Emperor Wu'an's younger sister, and she had done a great deal to help him ascend the throne.

She treated all of Emperor Wu'an's sons and daughters well, especially Xiao Jinyi, whom she doted on as though he were her own son. Both the crown prince and Xiao Jinyi therefore held their aunt in great respect.

"Aunt, I'm afraid I can't stay today. I've come to find Jiang Bin. I've been investigating a case these past two days, and we finally got results today. He's the culprit. I'm here to take him away."

Princess Kangning stumbled at his words. Xiao Jinyi quickly reached out to steady her. "Careful, Aunt."

Princess Kangning clutched his arm and asked again in disbelief, "Could your investigation be mistaken? How could Bin have anything to do with your case? He has a few bad habits, but he'd never dare hurt anyone!"

Princess Kangning knew that any case Xiao Jinyi was willing to take charge of was far from ordinary. At the very least, it would involve a death.

Xiao Jinyi had not believed Jiang Bin could have done it either. However much of a scoundrel the boy was, he would never dare kill anyone. At most, he abducted common women, beat people half to death, and picked fights with other wastrels.

But all the evidence ultimately pointed to Jiang Bin. The house belonged to him, the people Xiao Jinyi had arrested had named him in their statements, and the women who had been victimized all said they had seen him.

"Aunt, whatever the truth is, call my cousin home first. I'll question him again and see whether someone has framed him."

Xiao Jinyi was beginning to suspect that someone had arranged this outcome in advance. Whether that was true or not, he had to see Jiang Bin first.

Princess Kangning hurriedly sent someone to summon Jiang Bin. He was out drinking and enjoying himself aboard a pleasure boat with his disreputable friends. When he heard that Princess Kangning was insisting he come home at once, he returned reluctantly.

He started shouting as soon as he entered the door. "Mother, why did you call me home now? I was having fun with my friends!"

Only when Jiang Bin came closer did he notice his cold-faced cousin. What was he doing here all of a sudden? The moment he saw Xiao Jinyi, the impatience vanished from his face, and he shrank into himself like a frightened quail.

"C-cousin, you're here too!"

Xiao Jinyi skipped the pleasantries and questioned him bluntly. "We found a group of young women being held captive in Qiuyuan Alley. According to their statements and those of the men guarding them, you abducted the women, locked them up there, and posted guards to run an illicit brothel!"

Jiang Bin felt a little guilty when he heard Qiuyuan Alley mentioned. He had secretly bought a house there to keep a mistress. Later, he had grown tired of her and paid her off, and the house had stood empty ever since.

But the rest of Xiao Jinyi's words left him stunned. In a panic, he grabbed Xiao Jinyi's hand, too frightened by the accusation to be afraid of his cousin now. His face filled with horror as he said, "I didn't, Cousin! I really didn't do anything like that. I do have a house in Qiuyuan Alley, but I bought it to keep a mistress.

"That was a year ago. Later, I got tired of her and sent her away. I haven't been back since."

The fear and panic on his face did not look feigned to Xiao Jinyi. Could all the evidence they had uncovered have been planted to frame him?

If that was truly the case, the real culprit was probably someone close to Jiang Bin. His disreputable friends would be the first suspects.

Jiang Bin would never have dared let his family know he was keeping a mistress, but with his temperament, he would certainly have bragged about it to his friends.

"I believe you've been framed, but you need to cooperate with my investigation. Tell me, who knew you bought a house in Qiuyuan Alley? Don't try to hide anything. Your priority now is to clear yourself of suspicion."

Jiang Bin no longer dared conceal anything. If his cold-faced cousin had come looking for him, this was surely a major case. One wrong move could cost him his life.

Those disreputable friends were only good for eating, drinking, and having fun together. When trouble struck, they were quicker than anyone to shift the blame.

Following Jiang Bin's account, Xiao Jinyi sent men to investigate them one by one. Even their servants and the courtesans and celebrated beauties who had been attending them when they made those remarks were questioned, but nothing suspicious turned up.

After hearing his men's reports, Xiao Jinyi looked at Jiang Bin with disappointment in his eyes. "I thought someone might have framed you. Now it seems you've just been playing games with me."

Jiang Bin understood what he meant: he still believed Jiang Bin was the mastermind. Jiang Bin immediately flew into a rage. "It wasn't me! It really wasn't me! I swear to Heaven, if I ever forced anyone into prostitution, may lightning strike me down and may I die a miserable death!"

"Cousin, I—I want to confront them face-to-face. Let's see which bastard had the nerve to slander me!"

Seeing that he still refused to give up, Xiao Jinyi took him to the Court of Judicial Review's prison to confront the arrested thugs.

The confrontation immediately revealed something wrong: neither side recognized the other.

Xiao Jinyi seized one of the men by the collar and dragged him in front of Jiang Bin, his voice icy. "When you gave your statements, didn't you say the man who hired you was Jiang Bin, the Eldest Princess's son? Now that I've brought him here, you say you don't know him?"

"Have the jailers been too kind to you? Do you want me to attend to you personally?"

The man in Xiao Jinyi's grip could not bear the thought of enduring those tortures again. He sobbed and cried, "It's true! Everything we said is true! The man who approached us said he was the Eldest Princess's son."

"We'd never seen the Eldest Princess's son before. He looked so wealthy and distinguished that we naturally believed him!"

Xiao Jinyi did not think he looked as though he was lying, nor did he believe the man would dare lie to his face. But now they were back at square one.

If Jiang Bin had nothing to do with this, who was the real mastermind?

With Jiang Bin cleared of suspicion, Xiao Jinyi sent him home and continued going over the case, yet he could not find anything amiss.

If Jiang Bin had not stubbornly refused to confess and demanded to confront the prisoners, Xiao Jinyi would never have thought to bring him here to face them. Wouldn't he have fallen right into the mastermind's trap and made Jiang Bin a scapegoat?