Chapter 128 Decryption
After a moment, no one spoke. He then said, "In that case, please spread the word, Miss Yu, that we will dismantle the core mechanism of the Heavenly Craftsmanship Lamp in Changming Pavilion in five days."
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The coroner brought Zhao Yan to the crime scene again. "Sir, please look at this half wax seal found in the corner."
Zhao Yan took it and examined it carefully. It was the wax seal used by the Persian merchant group for correspondence. "Have you finished checking Ge Fuying's relationship with other people?"
Wang Zhubu, who was standing by, said, "He was a normal person, and we didn't find any connection between him and the Persians. But his family inexplicably had an extra 10,000 taels of silver buried in the yard. Ge Fuying dug it up this morning after he returned. But this kid said it was his father's inheritance, not dirt. We checked, and it was indeed taken out from the bank."
Zhao Yan said, "Even if he took it out from a bank, it's possible that someone else had left it there beforehand. As long as he goes to take it with the receipt, it can be said to be his. Go check if any Persians have pawned any valuables."
Wang Zhubu understood and said, "Your Excellency reminded me of this. I will check it right away."
Two days later, all the people in the city knew that in three days, Madam Qiaodeng would teach the core skills of Tiangong Lantern in Changming Pavilion.
This is great news for some people who can't figure it out or want to make a living from it. As long as they learn the basics and make some small gadgets, they can earn some money to support their families.
The investigation of the case was imminent. Just when everyone thought that Master Ge was about to protest his innocence and be buried, the government office opened.
All the masters rushed to the government office that day. When Yu Huatang arrived, there was no room to squeeze in. Xu Fu took her to find an open space with great difficulty, and immediately let her sit down while he went to find out the news.
The gavel in the government office rang, and a Persian and Ge Fuying were brought up.
Ge Fuying was so frightened by this that he was speechless, but he still tried to argue, "Sir, my father was killed by a villain." He looked at the people in the hall and shouted, "Sir, it's him, it's him, it's him, it's him I saw that day, he came to my shop wearing our clothes, and said he had something to discuss with my father."
The Persian was surprised. After the other person relayed the story, he continued, "Your Excellency, it's not me. I want their skills, but we want to buy them with money. Your Excellency, please look at this pawn ticket from the pawnshop. Together with the money I brought this time, the total is 10,000 taels."
Wang Zhubu took it and found that it was exactly the same as what he asked in the pawnshop last time. He nodded to Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan said, "I haven't said who is guilty yet, so there's no need to panic."
"Ge Fuying, I want to ask you. When your father was talking to this Persian, were you there? Or were you eavesdropping?" Zhao Yan looked down at him.
Ge Fuying's legs were shaking, but he still argued, "I didn't. I only found out after my father passed away."
"Oh, really? If you were dead, how could you go digging for silver so soon?" Wang Zhubu sneered, "Could it be that your father appeared in your dream?"
"Yes, yes sir, this is what my father told me in a dream."
"Ridiculous!" Wang Zhubu continued to scold him, saying, "I'm afraid you hurriedly moved to prevent your identity from being exposed. Unfortunately, we discovered you."
"Seven days ago, your father negotiated with this Persian. He offered ten thousand taels for the mechanical engineering of your Flying Bird Lantern. Your father initially refused to buy it, but you overheard it that day. It just so happened that you had a gambling debt that you couldn't repay, and you figured that even if the Persian took it, he wouldn't necessarily be able to learn it."
"So that night you called out the Persian in your father's name, changed into your father's clothes, disguised yourself as him, and deliberately traded in the wild." As Wang Zhubu said this, he threw the forged letter and costumes in front of Ge Fuying.
When the neighbors behind saw this, they all kept saying "tsk tsk".
Ge Fuying's face was ashen, but he kept shouting, "No, no..."
Wang Zhubu continued, "After you took the silver home, your father happened to see you. He tried to dissuade you to no avail. So he asked you to bury the silver in the yard while he thought of a way to return it."
"But how could you let the silver fly away? Those mechanical skills are just skills to support your family. You feel that they can't compare to this ten thousand taels of silver, so you have the intention to kill!"
As soon as Wang Zhubu's cold voice fell, the people gathered outside exploded, "Killing your own father, how can you be a human being?"
"Damn it, this is too cruel. He looks so gentle and polite, but he is actually an evil ghost!"
"It's too poisonous, too poisonous..."
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Wang Zhubu ignored Ge Fuying's dying struggles and continued, "Your poor father saw you bury the silver in the yard and knew you wouldn't return it. He immediately wrote a suicide note. It said he had no words to face his ancestors and only wished to die as an apology. That night, he drank the poison."
The crowd erupted again, "He didn't kill her?"
Wang Zhubu's voice became even colder and more sarcastic. "Who knew you were so ruthless and insane? You couldn't wait even a moment and immediately pierced his head with a needle. Your father struggled desperately before dying, and a vase nearby just happened to shatter on his head, killing him instantly. Not only did you not feel any pity, you even thought God was helping you. After taking the needle away, you even lied and said someone broke into your house."
"Actually, before his death, your father wanted to tell you that he had already drunk the poison, so there was no need to kill him. Poor Master Ge, he was so honest that he even reduced the food and lodging for every disciple he accepted. But he never expected to give birth to a conscienceless beast like you. Not only did you sell off your ancestral craft for money, but you also killed people to silence them, and for your own reputation, you lied and reported the crime. You also used the Persian envoy's affairs to spread the news. You deserve to be killed for every one of these things!"
After hearing this, Ge Fuying no longer had the energy to argue. He could only say angrily, "Since you've given me the silver, why can't I sell it? This is my own family's stuff. I can sell it if I want to. It's this old guy who can't think straight and has been deceived by you. These Persians can't learn our skills at all. What's the point of giving it to them?" He spoke crazily, as if he didn't care about the lives of others and was a cruel person who only cared about his own pleasure.
Zhao Yan didn't want to discuss this man further, so he immediately concluded the case, saying, "Ge Fuying is guilty of murder and maliciously selling our dynasty's skills to foreign envoys. The circumstances are egregious, and he refuses to plead guilty. He is hereby detained and sentenced to fifteen years of hard labor! As the money he obtained is suspected to be related to core mechanical techniques, we hereby demand that Persia return it, paying both the money and the goods!"
Everyone outside who heard this shouted, "Okay, okay..."
The Persian envoy had no choice but to return the blueprint. He hadn't understood it since he received it. Before he could take it back to claim credit, he was detained by court officials. He hurriedly memorized some of the drawings, thinking that even if he couldn't understand them, the advisors under Lord Chachar would surely understand them.
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