Wang Siniang thought Cui Tao was going to use the same trick again, and mentally prepared herself to fight her. However, after Cui Tao finished speaking, she turned around and left, returning to her corner to continue meditating.

Wang Siniang looked at Cui Tao suspiciously, and their eyes met. Cui Tao stared at her with bright eyes and suddenly revealed a strange smile.

Wang Siniang was instantly terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat. She realized that she was actually quite afraid of this vile woman, probably because she was currently injured and at a disadvantage.

Speaking of which, why is that bitch suddenly so ruthless today? Ever since she went to jail, she’s been lifeless, letting everyone do whatever they want without uttering a sound. But today, she’s suddenly become wicked, insidious, and vicious, even worse than before.

If it were the Cui Tao of the past, Wang Siniang wouldn’t have believed that Cui Tao was a murderer, even though Cui Tao had confessed to the crime. But now, seeing Cui Tao in this state, Wang Siniang truly believed that she would kill someone, yet now she has recanted her confession and refuses to admit guilt.

Wang Siniang grew sleepy as she thought about it, yawned, and glanced at Cui Tao again, only to find her staring at her! Wang Siniang was terrified, feeling that Cui Tao would strangle her while she slept. That vile woman had become too cunning; she couldn’t predict her moves at all.

Wang Siniang was so tired all night that she kept nodding her head, but she dared not sleep. Finally, she struggled to stay awake until dawn. Only when the yamen runners escorted Cui Tao to court did she breathe a sigh of relief and finally fall asleep peacefully.

From the moment Cui Tao was taken out of the prison, she felt unsteady on her feet, her body swayed, and she often covered her head with her hand.

The constable Li Yuan glanced at Cui Tao and felt that she was a bit strange.

In the public hall, after Cui Tao knelt and bowed to Han Qi, she stared blankly at the ground in front of her, somewhat dazed.

Han Qi struck the gavel, ordering Cui Tao to confess everything about the real culprit.

“He…he…” Cui Tao struggled to finish her sentence, seemingly wanting to say something but unable to, frantically scratching her head, “I can’t remember…why can’t I remember…”

Han Qi stared intently at Cui Tao’s performance, remaining silent for the time being, seemingly observing for any flaws in Cui Tao’s demeanor. After a while, seeing Cui Tao scratching her head fiercely, pulling out a lot of hair, and her face turning red, Han Qi finally gave a signal to Midwife Zhang.

Seeing Cui Tao’s condition, Midwife Zhang had already guessed what was going on. After examining Cui Tao’s condition, she reported to Han Qi: “It seems that she suffered a violent blow to the head, causing brain concussion and disordered Qi, resulting in dizziness and memory loss.”

Midwife Zhang then told Han Qi what had happened in the cell the previous night, “At that time, she had a headache.”

What a coincidence! I was dizzy yesterday, and now I have amnesia?

Han Qi examined Cui Tao again and asked Midwife Zhang, “Since there was nothing seriously wrong at the time, why is there something unusual this morning?”

After a moment of contemplation, Midwife Zhang was still unable to give Han Qi a definite answer.

At this moment, the yamen constable Li Yuan stepped forward and reported to Han Qi: “My brother Li Cai was on duty in the women’s prison last night. This morning, I heard him mention that Miss Cui was humiliated twice by Wang Siniang, a fellow inmate, last night.”

“Another time?” Midwife Zhang exclaimed in surprise, and immediately explained to Han Qi, “Miss Cui was already injured in the head, and the injury was compounded, so it was bound to be more serious. It’s not surprising that she is in this state now.”

Upon hearing Midwife Zhang’s words, Cui Tao knew she had successfully navigated the situation and relaxed completely. Classic problems require classic solutions; nothing resolves the “I know nothing” scenario more perfectly than feigning amnesia.

Han Qi’s gaze suddenly shot towards Cui Tao.

Cui Tao was taken aback, realizing that Han Qi had caught her in her relaxed state. Moreover, they made eye contact, and Han Qi seemed to have caught something in her eyes as well.

While eating breakfast this morning, Cui Tao overheard the female prisoners next door chatting and learned that the newly arrived Judicial Officer Han in Kaifeng Prefecture was none other than Han Qi, the famous prime minister of the Northern Song Dynasty who served three emperors and established two dynasties. He was a well-known handsome man, not only good-looking but also incredibly intelligent.

Cui Tao dared not underestimate this Judicial Officer Han, fearing that the other party would see through her, so she had no choice but to use her trump card.

Everyone, I’m so sorry!

Cui Tao covered her stomach with both hands, hunched over, leaned forward, and took the opportunity to press her fingers on the acupoints on her abdomen.

vomit–

Cui Tao vomited.

She vomited up half of the bowl of fragrant mutton porridge she had just drunk that morning.

An unpleasant smell immediately filled the courtroom.

Han Qi frowned.

Everyone was stunned.

Then, the bailiffs angrily rebuked Cui Tao for disrespecting the court.

“This condition is very likely to cause vomiting due to dizziness.” Midwife Zhang was in charge of examining female corpses and female prisoners in Kaifeng Prefecture, so she didn’t react as strongly to vomit as everyone else, and hurriedly explained to Han Qi.

Han Qi immediately adjourned the court and ordered Midwife Zhang to examine Cui Tao’s amnesia.

After he left the courtroom, he didn’t rush to leave. Instead, he stood with his hands behind his back in the corridor, quietly watching Cui Tao’s retreating figure as she was led away by Midwife Zhang.

Cui Tao felt Han Qi’s gaze, so she pretended to faint and swayed her body a few times to let him see her.

“Judicial Officer Han, the situation in the prison last night is true.” The yamen runner Wang Zhao reported to Han Qi the situation he had verified in the prison.

“Wang Siniang assaulted someone and caused injury; fifty strokes of the cane, plus three years of imprisonment.” Han Qi’s gaze was still in the direction where Cui Tao’s figure had disappeared. His voice was indifferent, and his words seemed to have not even crossed his mind, yet they easily determined a person’s fate.

“Prefect Bao is back,” Wang Zhao continued.

When Han Qi came to Kaifeng Prefecture to take up his post, Bao Zheng was on an imperial inspection tour, so Han Qi has not yet formally paid his respects to Bao Zheng.

When Bao Zheng saw Han Qi, he happily invited him to sit down next to him.

Han Qi possessed exceptional talent and charisma. He achieved the second-highest rank in the imperial examinations at a young age, truly a prodigy. Bao Zheng had always held this promising young man in high regard, which is why he specifically requested him from the emperor.

“How is Zhigui adapting?” Bao Zheng asked.

Han Qi politely replied that everything was fine.

“There is only one case I would like to ask Prefect Bao for his instructions.”

After hearing Han Qi’s account of the Cui Tao case, Bao Zheng first reviewed the entire case file before saying to Han Qi, “It’s better to postpone the execution than to make a wrong move. Confirm the details before taking any action. You handled it very well.”

Han Qi initially wanted to tell Bao Zheng that he felt Miss Cui was acting strange. However, he reconsidered, realizing he lacked concrete evidence and that speaking rashly would only make him appear arbitrary. So he decided to leave it at that for now, waiting until Bao Zheng had thoroughly investigated Miss Cui’s situation.

After noon, Han Qi went to the prison to see Cui Tao in person. Before going in, he made sure not to have anyone announce his arrival.

Cui Tao was sitting in the corner with her legs drawn up, sighing and worrying over the yellowish-green official lunch.

She really thought the free meal was spoiled!

Let me tell you, what exactly is this bowl of rubbish? Stir it up a bit, and you’ll not only see the expected rotten vegetable leaves and moldy rice grains, but you’ll also be surprised to find chicken feathers, fish scales, and a piece of wood. It’s no exaggeration to say that even an old beggar’s foot-washing water is purer than this stuff.

Cui Tao clutched her rumbling stomach, overwhelmed with grief, tears welling in her eyes, her heart filled with regret. She should have vomited less of the mutton porridge this morning in court; at least she could have held on a little longer.

When Han Qi walked to the cell where Cui Tao was, he saw Cui Tao’s pitiful state.

“Ouch, ouch, umm…” Wang Siniang had just received fifty strokes of the cane, and her buttocks felt like they had been ripped open, causing her excruciating pain. At this moment, she lay pitifully on the straw, wailing and howling in agony.

Wang Siniang finally understood what Cui Tao meant when she specifically told her to “apologize in advance” last night. It turned out that she had already anticipated that she would be beaten again today and that her sentence would be extended by three years!

She was already sentenced to seven years for seriously injuring someone in an assault. Adding three more years would make it ten, and she might even die in prison. And what was that little slut’s reaction when she heard about the extra sentence? Her eyes were full of amusement; she actually congratulated her on “rounding up” her sentence. To hell with rounding up!

“Cough.” Cui Tao was a little annoyed by Wang Siniang’s shouts and coughed lightly in displeasure.

Wang Siniang immediately shut her mouth, glanced at Cui Tao in horror, bit her lip, and dared not utter another sound.

Upon seeing this scene, Han Qi’s expression darkened.

In the afternoon, the prisoners in the cell had nothing to do, so they could only try to make the best of a bad situation by lying down and taking a nap. Lady Liu, who was still awake in the cell next door, turned over, opened her eyes, and suddenly saw Han Qi. Her eyes widened immediately.

Lady Liu’s case was judged by Han Qi just two days ago, so Lady Liu knew Han Qi.

Although Lady Liu was not happy about being sentenced to three years in prison for theft, she was instantly filled with excitement when she saw the handsome and elegant Judicial Officer Han appear in the women’s prison. She felt that the dark, damp, rotten, and musty prison had been brightened up and that everything had become beautiful.

“Greetings, Judicial Officer Han! Judicial Officer Han, you are of such high status, why have you come to the prison in person?”

Lady Liu immediately stood up excitedly and bowed to Han Qi, her words revealing her boundless admiration and respect for him.

Cui Tao was startled when she heard “Judicial Officer Han” and turned around to see Han Qi standing in the passageway not far away.

After Lady Liu’s commotion, the female prisoners woke up. When they saw an official standing in the cell, who was so handsome, they were all amazed. They stared at Han Qi like hungry wolves, and some even secretly whistled.

Head Jailer Sun immediately berated the female prisoners to behave themselves, or they would all be charged with a serious offense of disrespect. The female prisoners quieted down a bit, but their eyes still couldn’t help glancing at Han Qi’s face.

Han Qi was used to people paying attention to his appearance, so he didn’t care and just looked at Cui Tao.

Sensing Han Qi’s special attention, Cui Tao quickly went to the fence and called out “My Lord” to him. Afterward, realizing she had mispronounced the name, she immediately apologized.

“You have quite the memory,” Han Qi said coldly.

Cui Tao knew he was mocking her, so she lowered her head and remained silent.

“You really don’t remember anything about the murderer?” Han Qi asked again.

Cui Tao nodded, then suddenly looked up at Han Qi and said, “I do remember he had a black mole on his right index finger, right here.”

Cui Tao pointed to the left side of her index finger, near the nail.

Han Qi narrowed his eyes and stared coldly at Cui Tao.

Cui Tao compared the measurements again, but seeing that Han Qi didn’t react, she was a little confused about his meaning. Moreover, his decision to personally come to the prison to interrogate her was also strange.

“You mean this?” Han Qi suddenly raised his right hand, which was behind his back, and deliberately showed Cui Tao his right index finger.

On the left side of Han Qi’s right index finger, exactly where Cui Tao had mentioned, there was a black mole.