The Lay Flat Life: My Wife's Cultivation Makes Me Stronger - Chapter 28

After Elder Ye was taken away, a disciple was sent to request another elder to preside over the trial.

Meanwhile, the hall became eerily quiet, almost oppressively so, with a heavy tension lingered in the atmosphere. On one side stood Ye Longyuan, Ye Longzhao, and Ye Yuntang. On the other side were Han Feng, Jiang Surou, and Jiang Huayang.

Jiang Surou glanced over at Ye Longyuan and finally broke the silence.

“Ye Longyuan, what are you even doing here?”

Ye Longyuan smiled widely, his eyes narrowing, clearly pleased. “If I’m not mistaken, this is the first time you’ve ever initiated a conversation with me, isn’t it, Junior Sister Jiang?”

“Ugh.” Jiang Surou rolled her eyes. She had no patience for his sycophantic behavior.

Ye Longyuan, oblivious to her disdain, continued, “This matter doesn’t actually concern me, but I’m here to observe. After all, both Ye Longzhao and Ye Yuntang are my cousins. One is an alchemist, and the other took the pill, so naturally, I came to see how things play out. But what brings you here, Junior Sister? This has nothing to do with you, does it?”

Jiang Surou, being her usual cold self, didn’t even bother responding to Ye Longyuan. She had only spoken to him because she knew he was the one behind Han Feng’s troubles, and it made her dislike him even more.

Seeing Jiang Surou fall silent, Jiang Huayang stepped forward and answered in her stead.

“Han Feng is my sister’s Dao partner. Naturally, she would come to his aid. After all, she carefully selected him as her ideal match. We can’t let some petty villains frame him, can we?”

Hearing the words “ideal match,” both Ye Longyuan and Jiang Surou’s eyes widened in shock.

Jiang Surou was stunned.What? Everyone knows I only chose Han Feng out of necessity. How on earth does my brother think I carefully chose him?

Meanwhile, Ye Longyuan was equally bewildered. Why does Jiang Huayang think so highly of a mere servant disciple, especially one who was a complete waste?

You’re her biological older brother! As her brother, shouldn’t you have a natural dislike for her Dao partner? Shouldn’t you be protective of your sister and suspicious of her choices?

Ye Longyuan took a deep breath, trying to calm himself before speaking again. “Senior Brother Jiang, as a disciple of the Enforcement Hall, you should be careful with your words. Who, exactly, are you calling a villain?”

“Whoever the villain is, they know in their heart,” Jiang Huayang replied coolly. “If someone here isn’t guilty, why would they feel the need to defend themselves? I wasn’t addressing you, Brother Ye, unless you think you’re the one who set this up to frame my sister’s Dao partner?”

Jiang Huayang’s tone dripped with sarcasm as he added, “I mean, seriously, there are those who, instead of competing honorably for a Dao partner, resort to underhanded tricks. After multiple failed attempts to assassinate someone, they turn to schemes and false accusations. Honestly, who raised such characters? Disgraceful.”

Jiang Surou shot up from her seat, her eyes flashing angrily. “Brother! What are you saying? Ye Longyuan tried to have Han Feng assassinated? And more than once?”

Jiang Huayang and Han Feng exchanged a quick glance, both inwardly wincing. Oops, the secret’s out.

Han Feng quickly tried to calm her down. “Haha, Senior Sister, no need to worry. It wasn’t a big deal—just two small attempts. Senior Brother Jiang was there to help me out both times. He’s done me a great favor.”

“Yeah, exactly,” Jiang Huayang chimed in, patting Han Feng on the shoulder. “After all, he’s my brother-in-law. Of course, I’d help him.”

Jiang Surou looked between the two, confused. Since when did these two get along so well?

Meanwhile, Ye Longyuan sneered, “Hmph. Be careful throwing around baseless claims. If you slander someone without proof, they can accuse you of false charges, you know. Let’s focus on the matter at hand. My cousin used the herbs that Han Feng grew to refine pills, and my other cousin took those pills. He got hurt, maybe even poisoned. Now, who should be held responsible for that?”

Han Feng snorted. “Ye Longyuan, your accusation is baseless. The herbs I handed over were perfectly fine, and they were personally inspected by Zhang Xiang, who signed off on their quality. If anything went wrong, it’s probably because your so-called alchemist didn’t know what he was doing and used his cousin as a guinea pig. If that’s the case, who’s really to blame?”

Just then, an elder from the Enforcement Hall walked in, speaking as he entered.

“I am Elder Wang, and I will be the presiding judge for this case. I’ve overheard some of your discussions. Now, present your evidence so I may review it.”

Elder Wang seated himself at the head of the room.

Ye Longzhao immediately stepped forward, placing three documents and a bottle of pills on the table. “Elder, these are the three key pieces of evidence. The first is the receipt showing that Zhang Xiang collected the herbs from Han Feng. It has Han Feng’s signature on it.

“The second is the record from Danxia Peak’s storeroom. It confirms that the herbs were sent by Han Feng.

“The third is the document showing that the herbs were taken from the storeroom by me, with both my signature and the signatures of those in charge of the storeroom.

“The evidence is clear. The herbs came from Han Feng. Five stalks of Four-Leaf Orchid were used to refine five Qi Condensation Pills. Ye Yuntang consumed one, and the remaining four are right here.”

Han Feng glanced at the documents and pills laid out on the table. Quite the perfect chain of evidence, he thought. You’re really going all out to frame me.

Elder Wang looked over the documents and nodded. “Very well. Han Feng, where is your evidence?”

At this point, Han Feng took out the document that Zhang Xiang had signed earlier. Frankly, Han Feng had been holding off on presenting this evidence, wary of the elder’s potential collusion with the Ye family. But now that Jiang Huayang was present, he felt it was safe to play his hand.

Han Feng placed the signed document on the table and said, “Elder, this is the receipt that Senior Brother Zhang Xiang gave me when he collected the herbs. It clearly states that he personally inspected the herbs and confirmed their quality. He signed it and left his fingerprint.”

Elder Wang nodded and turned to Zhang Xiang. “Zhang Xiang, is this your signature?”

Zhang Xiang stood and responded, “Yes, Elder, I did write the receipt, and I did collect the herbs from Han Feng.”

Elder Wang nodded again and commented, “Well then, it seems we can confirm that the herbs Han Feng provided were inspected and deemed to be of good quality—”

“No, that’s not true!” Zhang Xiang interrupted loudly.

Han Feng’s eyes narrowed instantly.