Chapter 23: Beauty Trap He was also standing in the fog.
At the northernmost end of the Imperial Examination Hall was a row of side rooms, which were used as living quarters for officials during periods of lockdown.
Xie Xuanlan asked as he walked, "If you're a transcriptionist, why aren't you waiting in the transcription room? Why are you running back to the wing room in broad daylight?"
The supervisor of the transcription office followed closely and replied, "He said he had to go to the bathroom urgently, but who would have thought that he never came back."
"When did it happen?"
The Inspector recalled, "It's been two hours, not long after the Minister left."
Running away after the incident simply tells others that there is something wrong with him.
Xie Xuanlan walked into the duty room where the transcriber hanged himself, and Cong Ying followed him in. The inspector was about to say something was wrong, but Xie Xuanlan gave him a cold look and he shut up awkwardly.
The hanged scribe lay on the ground, his body stiff and his face swollen and purple.
The inspector said, "This man is Lu Mu, a scholar-official in the Hanlin Academy. He is twenty-six years old and was admitted to the Hanlin Academy two years ago."
Xie Xuanlan asked, "Is this person from a humble family?"
"Ah... yes, his ancestral home is Bingzhou. It seems his family is a poor scholar who runs a private school."
Xie Xuanlan turned to Cong Ying, who had remained silent, and asked, "What do you think?"
Cong Ying, unacquainted with the art of a coroner, didn't examine the deceased. Instead, she walked around the room. She approached the small desk by the lattice-patterned window and saw a complete set of brushes, inkstones, and paper. She reached out and swished ink across her knuckles, finding it still moist when she rubbed it with her fingertips.
Cong Ying said, "Look, Third Young Master, this ink is about an hour old. He must have died not long ago. It seems he wrote something."
Not finding it in the house, Xie Xuanlan drew out his Yanzhi knife, probed the sharp blade into the dead man's arms, and pulled out a folded note from his lapel.
The note contained only one sentence: "I regret my actions of violating moral principles and aiding the tyrant in his cruelty."
Cong Ying took the note and examined it carefully, recalling the handwriting he had seen in the transcription room earlier. He nodded, "It's very likely written by the deceased himself."
Judging from the meaning of this sentence, it seems that he has done something wrong and is therefore feeling regretful.
The inspector wiped his sweat in the cold weather and said, "It sounds like he committed suicide out of fear of punishment, but what crime did Lu Mu commit?"
Cong Ying and Xie Xuanlan looked at each other and felt something strange.
The Minister of Rites had just taken Jiang Congjing's examination paper to see the emperor. Until they broke into the transcription room and found traces that the examination paper might have been replaced by the transcriptionist, no one had suspected Lu Mu at all. Even if he wanted to commit suicide out of fear of punishment, wasn't it too early? With that much time, why didn't he try to destroy the physical evidence?
Cong Ying was concentrating on thinking and accidentally tripped over the leg of a stool. Xie Xuanlan was quick to help her steady herself.
This action preceded his thought, as if his gaze had been fixed on her, which led to such a quick reaction. Through the thin clothing, Xie Xuanlan felt the cool skin of her forearm, so slender and soft, like a stream of water, which he could easily grasp with a slight squeeze of his palm.
So he subconsciously squeezed hard, then suddenly let go as if he was burned. He didn't dare to look at Cong Ying's expression. He turned to the guards outside and ordered, "Go get my cloak."
Then he stood at the threshold and took a few slow breaths until the slightly hot, yet piercing, current in his heart subsided. Only then did he calmly turn around and say to Cong Ying, "I was rude just now—"
But Cong Ying was completely unconscious. She just looked up at the beam with the white silk hanging on it. She turned around when she heard the sound: "What?"
Xie Xuanlan: "...I say, why don't you watch your feet?"
Cong Ying pursed her lips, seeming a little embarrassed: "Could you please do me a favor, Third Young Master?"
"you say."
Cong Ying pointed at the white silk hanging from the beam and said, "Help hang the deceased Lu Mu back up there."
Xie Xuanlan: "...Do I look like a corpse-carrying minion to you?"
After half an incense stick.
Xie Xuanlan jumped down from the stool, looked at the corpse dangling in the air, took the handkerchief handed to him by Ying, wiped his hands, and looked at her with a very noble look: "What on earth do you want to show me?"
"Actually, I'm not too sure, I'm just trying."
When the corpse hanging under the beam gradually stopped swinging, Cong Ying moved the stool that had just tripped her and was used by Xie Xuanlan to hang the corpse, and placed it at the feet of the corpse.
Her eyes widened slightly, and Xie Xuanlan also frowned - the corpse's feet were actually some distance away from the stool.
"So Lu Mu couldn't have hanged himself by stepping on a stool and then kicked it over. Third Young Master, you can ask the coroner to perform an autopsy. Lu Mu was murdered!"
At the moment when she came to the conclusion with certainty, Zong Ying's eyes, which were usually downcast and reserved, burst into a bright light. Although it was only for a moment, it was like a pearl breaking out of a box, or a golden star in the smoke, which was so stunning that you couldn't take your eyes off it after just one glance.
Xie Xuanlan stared at her, speechless for a moment.
"Third Young Master?" Cong Ying called him doubtfully.
Xie Xuanlan suddenly lowered his head and smiled, pretending to be natural to cover up his gaffe. "I didn't expect that Fourth Lady also had the divine judgment of Xiezhi. How about I recommend you to the Ministry of Justice?"
Upon hearing this, Congying lowered her eyebrows again, and her cheeks seemed to be slightly flushed.
She said, "Third Master, you are too kind. I don't know how to judge cases. I just speculate on the details. I can't really be considered a genius... The cases in the Ministry of Justice are too bloody. If it's the Dali Temple, I might consider it."
Xie Xuanlan said, "The Dali Temple is not an option."
"Um?"
"My cousin's wife works at the Ministry of Justice, and she's not on good terms with the Dali Temple. If you go to the Dali Temple, don't even think about asking me to carry a corpse for you."
This remark was quite joking and even seemed somewhat intimate. Xie Xuanlan regretted it the moment he opened his mouth.
At this moment, the palace guard came with a cloak. When Xie Xuanlan took it, he glanced at the palace guard, his eyes lingering on his waist. He chatted with the palace guard casually for a few words:
"Where is your commander?"
The Imperial Guard replied, "Commander Zhang and Lord Di from the Ministry of Justice have gone to the palace, apparently to argue with Inspector Xue about the siege of the Imperial Court."
The Lady Di he mentioned was Xie Xuanlan's cousin-in-law, who served as the Right Vice Minister in the Ministry of Justice.
Xie Xuanlan asked, "You are his groom, why don't you go and lead the horse?"
The palace guard said, "The commander said he would be back in the afternoon, so he asked me to stay here with the brothers to prevent the imperial guards from doing anything behind my back."
Xie Xuanlan nodded, seeming very satisfied with his answer: "You are quite clever. What's your name?"
"I am Du Ming, a humble man who understands."
Xie Xuanlan: "Wait a minute, you will lead the horse back to Xie Mansion for me."
Du Ming was stunned for a moment, then nodded in obedience.
While Xie Xuanlan was talking to the palace guards, Cong Ying was carefully looking at the note left by Lu Mu. Suddenly, she felt a sinking sensation on her shoulders. It was Xie Xuanlan who put his cloak on her.
The cloak was soft and warm, and the velvety warmth extended along her back and slowly climbed up her frozen arms.
Xie Xuanlan suddenly lowered his head and moved closer. The crisp scent of sweet pine on his body complemented the aroma of acerola on his cloak. Cong Ying subconsciously held her breath, raised her eyes in surprise, and met a pair of eyes as clear as cold stars.
He was beautifully formed, with prominent brow bones, deep-set eyes, and inky pupils that held a luminous glow like warm water. Such beautiful features, combined with a straight nose and a distinct jawline, were as clean and precise as a blade chiseled from deep ice, every inch of them seamlessly formed.
When his face is expressionless, he has a kind of arrogant and aloof air, but at this moment, with a half-smile on his face, his youthful and energetic demeanor is so attractive that one cannot take their eyes off him.
"What are you looking at?" he asked as he tied his cloak, his lowered voice sounding unusually gentle.
It is very easy to give people the illusion of ambiguity.
Fortunately, Cong Ying was still calm and didn't fall into his double entendre trap. He lowered his eyes and said, "I'm reading Lu Mu's posthumous writings."
"You're so fascinated by it, have you discovered anything new, Master Shenduan?"
If she had only imagined it was just Cong Ying's wishful thinking, this teasing made her confirm that Xie Xuanlan had done it on purpose.
She pondered for a moment and shook her head gently: "No."
"It's okay. The Ministry of Justice will send a coroner later. Leave this to them."
Xie Xuanlan spoke to her in a low voice, his cool breath gently falling on her ear: "You are wearing the official uniform of a clerk from the Ministry of Justice. If you stay any longer, it will be exposed. Besides, it's so thin, be careful not to catch a cold. Will you come with me?"
Cong Ying looked at him and nodded hesitantly.
He curled his lips into a smile, put his arm around Cong Ying's shoulders, and when he was about to step out of the door, Cong Ying looked back at Lu Mu's body, then lowered her eyes, not knowing what she was thinking.
"Don't worry," Xie Xuanlan said, "I will clear Jiang Congjing's name."
Congying didn't say a word until Xie Xuanlan arranged her on the carriage to take her to find Ji Caibing, when she suddenly called him.
"Third Young Master."
Cong Ying was holding the felt curtain of the carriage, and Xie Xuanlan was standing under the horse, the two of them looking at each other, one taller than the other.
Cong Ying met his gaze. "I have a theory I'd like to share with you... Lu Mu comes from a humble background. Although he prides himself on his talent, he's consistently outshined by the children of more aristocratic families within the Imperial Academy. To further his career, he agreed to do something for your Majesty. While working as a transcriber, he replaced my cousin's exam paper, thereby accusing my Jiang family of high treason for eavesdropping on the emperor's words."
Xie Xuanlan stared at her: "Why do you doubt your master?"
Cong Ying said, "Because your master holds a grudge against my family, she's in charge of this imperial examination, so it would be easy for her to tamper with it. Furthermore, Lu Mu's posthumous writings also mention that these words, 'turning the evil into evil' and 'aiding and abetting evil'... were used to describe your master. Third Young Master, what do you think?"
Xie Xuanlan said: "Jiang Congjing was indeed framed, I will get the Jiang family out of this."
Cong Ying asked again: "Do you think my analysis makes sense?"
Although her voice was gentle and modest, it contained a hint of aggression, as if she had to hear a firm answer from him.
Xie Xuanlan didn't say anything for a long time.
At this moment, the sun was setting in the west. Half of his face was bathed in bright golden sunlight, as if it was coated with a layer of gorgeous gold. The other half of his face was covered in shadow, and his expression was blurred and difficult to discern.
Finally, he nodded and said to Congying, "What you said makes sense."
Cong Ying twitched the corner of her mouth and said, "Now that I understand the truth, I can rest assured."
She let go and lowered the felt curtain. The carriage slowly drove away from the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall. When it passed by Xie Xuanlan, the wind blew up a corner of the window curtain. Cong Ying glimpsed that Xie Xuanlan's brows were furrowed and he clenched the Yanzhi knife in his hand.
She slowly turned her eyes away, untied her cloak and threw it aside, feeling a chill seeping into her skin from the outside in and into her heart.
Different from what she had just said to Xie Xuanlan, she had another truth in her mind.
——In fact, Jiang Congjing’s test paper was not replaced by Lu Mu, and Lu Mu did not die at the hands of your lord.
The disordered sequence of Jiang Congjing's original paper, the darker ink interlineation seals, and the different feel of the gold-sprinkled paper for the Beijing list are too obvious. Anyone who knows the ins and outs can see that there is something wrong, and it would be natural for people to think that Jiang Congjing's test paper was replaced during the transcription process.
What is the reality?
Cong Ying thought of the stack of test papers whose binding holes and saddle marks could not be aligned at the same time.
During the sealing process of the test papers, the normal procedure is to bind them with the names on them, number them, and add saddle stamps. In this way, the gaps and saddle stamps in a stack of test papers will never be unable to align at the same time.
Unless they first numbered and stamped the test paper, then took out Jiang Congjing's original paper and replaced it with the treasonous fake one, and finally bound it with hemp thread. When adding the saddle stamp, if the test paper accidentally shifted up and down, the holes in the hemp thread and the saddle stamp would not be aligned at the same time after binding.
This was the mark left by the true mastermind. If she hadn't had a flash of inspiration, she might not have noticed it at all. Instead, the mark she saw at first glance was a deliberate attempt to draw attention to the transcription process.
There is also the note left by Lu Mu.
When Xie Xuanlan asked her if she had found any new clues in the note, she lied to him by saying "no".
She originally wanted to tell him that a person's suicide note would not be written in such a neat and peaceful manner, and this note must have been prepared by the murderer in advance.
But when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back.
Cong Ying closed her eyes and recalled Xie Xuanlan's intimate attitude at that time. He put on the cloak for her and tied it up personally. His gentle and witty words could easily make people lose their minds. The face that seemed like a work of art by nature was still lingering in her mind.
… Turns out it was a honey trap to persuade her to leave.
From Ying's heart, there were mixed feelings of cold and hot, which was very unpleasant.
The carriage stopped at the side gate of Ji Caibing's house, and Ji Caibing hurried out to greet them. "I heard early this morning that the Jiang family was locked up again. It's your eldest cousin who got into trouble. I wanted to go in and find you, but no matter how much money I gave him, it was useless. That Xie San is a dog. He even sent people to guard your house to see if there is a dog hole!"
While chattering, he held Ying's shoulders and looked her up and down: "Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?"
Cong Ying shook her head slightly and forced a smile: "Don't worry, sister, I'm fine, and the Jiang family will be fine for a while."
"I'm glad you're okay. Come in with me. I'll have someone boil some water for you to bathe and change your clothes. What are you wearing..."
Cong Ying said, "I just came to report that I'm safe. I won't go in."
Ji Caibing: "Where are you going?"
He glanced in the direction from which Ying had come and gone and said, "I want to go back to the Imperial Examination Hall."
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