"Little Princess, is this your scheme?"
Old Master Qiao followed Xia Wanwan to the Government Office.
The darkness was unusually thick that night. With the night hanging black and heavy beneath a dim moon, the atmosphere felt oppressive.
Yet the Government Office's gates stood wide open, its candles burning brightly.
It seemed to be waiting here especially for him.
Old Master Qiao had a bad feeling. He feared that stepping inside would be like planting one foot through the gates of hell, leaving him no escape from his doom.
"Are you scared?"
Xia Wanwan lifted her little face and scoffed.
Surely only those who had committed too many evil deeds would see the words "Justice and integrity" hanging above the courtroom as a hell of punishment!
"Princess Ximing, yours isn't the soul of a child. You must have heard the saying, 'Old ginger packs the most heat.' I admit you have a trick or two up your sleeve."
"But matters in this world have always been settled through reason and evidence. If you had secretly killed this old man after learning of those things, I could only have admitted that I was no match for you."
"Yet you actually brought me to court to stand trial. Do you realize you have neither reason nor evidence on your side? You're still far too green to get this old man killed."
"Hahaha! It's still uncertain who will bring down the stag in this contest!"
Old Master Qiao suddenly burst into laughter.
He was a deeply calculating man who would stop at nothing for his family's interests.
He had lived for so many years, scheming at every turn and securing his position step by step. Once he had money and power, no one dared utter a word against him.
He had never imagined