44 Chapter 044
◎Fantastic◎
A loud thunder suddenly split the night sky.
Xie Mingzhuo had been sleeping restlessly to begin with, and now she was completely awake. She lay in bed, her eyes closed, resting as the fierce rain pounded against the window lattice outside.
It was not until the end of the Yin hour, when the rain gradually subsided, that she felt sleepy again.
Unexpectedly, there was a noise coming from the next room, and even if he was careful enough, it could not escape Xie Mingzhuo's ears.
Judging from the direction, it was Lin Fan who went out.
The house belonged to Lin Fan, but he gave the main house to the four girls, Xie Mingzhuo, Li Jiuyue, Feng Caiyu and Jiang Qing. He stayed in the east wing, and Yang Yunkai and Luo Qi lived in the west wing.
He didn't go through the gate, but climbed over the wall.
Although Xie Mingzhuo was a little curious, he had no intention of inquiring into other people's living habits, and soon fell asleep again in a daze.
When I woke up again, it was already bright daylight.
Although the rain has stopped, it rained heavily last night and there are many puddles in the yard.
Lin Fan was using wooden boards and discarded tiles to build a temporary path in the yard to prevent mud and water from dirtying his shoes and clothes.
Hearing the noise, he immediately turned around and said with a smile, "Wait a moment, it will be ready soon."
Soon, the last few broken tiles were placed in front of the main house door, and a road from the backyard door to the main house was paved.
"That's all I've found. The path is uneven, so be careful." He demonstrated as he walked through it, then stood at the backyard door and continued, "It's raining, and all our traces from yesterday have been obscured. It'll be even harder for the authorities to find this place."
"Um."
Xie Mingzhuo stepped onto the temporarily paved path, and when she reached the gate of the courtyard, there was not a speck of dirt on the edges of her shoes or the hem of her skirt.
"The road is well paved, thank you."
Lin Fan's eyebrows curved slightly, and he asked with a smile, "Going to have breakfast?"
"good."
The two men came to the main hall in the front yard. Except for Luo Qi, the others were sitting in the corridor with three wooden basins in front of them.
When they saw Xie Mingzhuo coming, they all stood up to greet him.
"Madam, get up. I'll go to the kitchen to serve breakfast." Feng Caiyu was no longer as haggard as she looked yesterday. After just one night, she regained her former spirit.
Jiang Qing: "I'll go too."
"Where did these come from?" Xie Mingzhuo looked at the three wooden basins.
There was a basin filled with lotus roots, and Li Jiuyue was kneading mud from them.
There are three black fish swimming in the basin in the middle. Each of them is full of energy. They playfully flap their tails, splashing water.
Finally, it was the loach. Yang Yunkai was using his hands, which were good at torture, to cut open the loach's belly. His technique was quite skillful and neat.
Li Jiuyue glanced behind her and praised sincerely, "Team Leader Lin brought it back early this morning. He said it was a snack for us today."
So he went out in the rain before the hour of Mao in order to look for food, and also brought back some "road paving materials"?
Xie Mingzhuo couldn't help but turn around.
She has thanked him many times since yesterday. If she were to be so polite again today, it would seem pale and not sincere enough.
"It's time for dinner." Jiang Qing shouted in the house.
Xie Mingzhuo stopped hesitating and nodded before walking into the house.
Compared to the "peaceful days" of the seven people, the government office and the county government office were in a state of panic early in the morning.
Prince Liang is dead? Is Lin Fan the assassin? Does Lin Fan have an accomplice? Is the accomplice a friend of the prince's daughter?
Isn't this too bizarre?!
Tang Song didn't care whether it was strange or not. He only knew that the prince was assassinated in his own jurisdiction, which had a great impact on his career.
He frowned for a long time, sorted out the information reported by his subordinates, and came to the conclusion -
King Liang failed to find a son-in-law and was stabbed to death. Lin Fan killed someone in anger because his love was not accepted.
Wanted! Must be wanted!
Just as he was about to ask someone to draft an arrest warrant, Chen Shi came outside and shouted that he had to see him. He didn't want to see Chen Shi at all. He could guess what this stinky stone was going to say just by moving his toes.
But this guy is difficult to deal with. If I don't see him, there will be no peace every day.
He was impatient in his heart, but his face showed no sign of it. He ordered his attendants, "Call Tuiguan Shen in."
After receiving permission, Chen Shi immediately stepped into the second hall and went straight to the point: "Master Futai, there are still doubts in this case. The prince refused to perform an autopsy on the grounds of his noble status as a prince. Lin Fan had no reason to assassinate Prince Liang. The two carriages and eight bodies left on the official road have not been fully investigated. We cannot jump to conclusions."
"Chen Shi," Tang Song said, sitting at the desk, his face stern. "If they didn't conspire to kill him, who else could it be? Don't delay me from apprehending the murderer."
"Can……"
"I repeat, Prince Liang has been assassinated. If we don't catch the murderer quickly, our official positions will be in jeopardy!" Tang Song didn't give him a chance to continue. He ordered his attendants, "Come here, send arrest warrants to all prefectures and counties, and search for the murderer with all your might!"
Chen Shi: “…”
He sighed inwardly, turned and left the second hall, and when he reached a deserted place, he took out the envelope from his arms.
This was given to him by Lin Fan before the banquet. There were two letters inside, one was a will, and the other was evidence of the evil deeds of Prince Liang's Mansion over the years and Prince Liang's attempt to rebel.
Apart from the case of the missing woman, many of the cases he handled in recent years pointed to the East Suburbs. However, he was unable to search the Prince Liang's Mansion and could not arrest people in the East Suburbs for questioning, so these cases were left unresolved.
Seizing land and houses, bullying men and women, etc. are all common means of profit-making used by the powerful. He is accustomed to such cases, but when he received this letter, he still felt shocked.
Did Lin Fan really assassinate King Liang?
impossible.
Chen Shi firmly believed that Lin Fan would not do such a thing, and this case must not be that simple.
I really want to pull that guy out and ask him clearly, but it's just a thought.
There was a heavy rain last night, and most of the traces near the official road were washed away, making it difficult for him to track down the trail based on the scene.
Besides, Tang Song obviously did not want him to be involved in the case.
Chen Shi was worried in the yamen for a whole day, but when he heard that all the yamen staff and half of the guards in the palace had been mobilized but failed to find the person, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
This kid is quite good at hiding.
After the court was dismissed, he returned home. As soon as he opened the gate, he saw three fist-sized stones in the yard for no reason.
Which rascal threw stones at his house...wait!
He suddenly had an idea, his nostrils flared, and his eyes widened slightly.
At the beginning of the evening hour, Lin Fan hunched over and entered the house. He tore off the white beard on his face and the black and white wig on his head, washed away the wrinkles outlined by the paint by the well, and then walked into the main house.
"I wanted to ask you this this afternoon when you left," Li Jiuyue said as she brought the dishes to the table. "Why do you have these in your circus?"
Lin Fan: "I also sing opera occasionally."
"I see."
"I hired a beggar outside the city with steamed buns and asked him to pass a message to Chen Shi. I need to go out tonight." Lin Fan sat down and said, "Don't worry, I won't expose this place."
Xie Mingzhuo asked, "Will Chen Shi believe it?"
"He won't jump to conclusions without seeing Prince Liang's body and investigating the crime scene," Lin Fan thanked Feng Caiyu for the tea she poured for him and continued, "I didn't know the court had sent you to investigate Prince Liang. Once you've entered Bishan, tell him there are palace soldiers and muskets hidden there. He'll definitely have doubts about the case."
"If you trust him so much, why don't you go to the government office to work?" Xie Mingzhuo was a little curious.
Lin Fan said half-truthfully, "The county government office is more comfortable."
This may be a reason, but it is definitely not the main reason.
Xie Mingzhuo had no intention of continuing to explore other people's secrets and revealed his purpose: "I want to meet Chen Shi."
At the end of the hour of Hai, at the land temple on the outskirts of the city.
Chenshi hunched his shoulders and squatted in a corner outside the temple, his eyes fixed on the movements around him.
He came here at great risk.
If the news of the prosecutor from the government office meeting with the wanted criminal in private gets out, not only will he lose his official hat, but his head as well.
If it weren't for the many suspicious points in the case and his trust in Lin Fan, he wouldn't have accepted the invitation to come here in the middle of the night.
Two years ago, he was arresting a murder gang and was ambushed at the Earth God Temple. At the critical moment, if Lin Fan had not passed by and knocked down the murderer with three stones, there would have been no such person as Chen Shi in the world.
He owed Lin Fan his life.
The life-saving grace cannot be a reason for favoritism, but who made the prince unwilling to let him perform an autopsy and also refused to allow the government to investigate the scene?
Moreover, there were ropes for tying people on both carriages. Among the eight bodies, two were guards of the palace, and the remaining six were unclaimed.
Judging from the calluses on their hands, they seemed to be archers who had been using bows for many years, and the bows and arrows left at the scene also confirmed this.
However, the style of bows and arrows was not that used by hunters authorized by the imperial court, but that used by the military.
Considering what Lin Fan had told him about the rebellion, he had reason to suspect that there was something fishy about King Liang's death.
Chen Shi was sorting out the case in his mind when a hand suddenly reached out from behind and placed on his shoulder.
He was so frightened that he jumped up, turned around and saw that it was Lin Fan, and couldn't help cursing: "It's okay if you walk silently, but you should at least give me a warning!"
Lin Fan coughed lightly and rubbed the tip of his nose with his fingers.
"What? Are you still embarrassed?" Chen Shi snorted coldly, crossing his arms. "You are quite courageous. You even dared to kill the emperor's relatives."
Lin Fan asked back, "You're meeting me privately, aren't you afraid of losing your position?"
"This matter is known to heaven and earth, and you and I know it, unless you go to the government office to file a complaint."
Lin Fan moved aside to let the person behind him pass.
"Mr. Shen, nice to meet you." Xie Mingzhuo stepped forward with a teasing look on his face.
Chen Shi: “…”
"You're so good, Team Leader Lin! You brought people with you to see me. Aren't you really afraid that I'll lose my head?" He pointed at Lin Fan and pretended to be angry. Then he looked at Xie Mingzhuo and immediately greeted him with a smile. "Miss Meng, please, for the sake of our close friendship, just pretend you don't know about this."
Lin Fan said helplessly: "Brother Shen's life may be safe, but if you are demoted in the future, don't blame me."
“…”
Although Chen Shi didn't understand, he didn't come here tonight to argue, so he waved his hand and said, "Go ahead and criticize me, but tell me what's going on."
The three of them entered the land temple and sat on the ground.
The moonlight gently shines on the steps in front of the temple. With this light, the outlines of the temple's furnishings can be vaguely seen.
Lin Fan recounted the scene that day: "When I entered Prince Liang's study, he was sitting behind his desk, completely silent. I knew it was a trap, so I fled the palace."
"Have you seen the cause of King Liang's death?"
"The dagger pierced the left chest, so he must have been killed instantly. There were no signs of a struggle in the study." Lin Fan only took a quick glance and didn't know anything more.
After listening to the entire story, Chen Shi thought for a moment and said, "If your guess is true, and the Prince of Liang was killed by the Crown Prince, then what was the Crown Prince's motive for killing him?"
"Power and suspicion," Xie Mingzhuo said. "We became scapegoats, so he could smoothly become a prince and then plot a rebellion. If he succeeds, he will be the new emperor of the Qi Dynasty."
"Isn't this too unrealistic?" Chen Shi couldn't believe it. With only a few soldiers on the hills, they probably couldn't even conquer Henan, let alone knock on the gate of the capital.
Xie Mingzhuo didn't say anything. According to the plot of the original book, King Liang was about to succeed at this time.
There is a reason why Xie Yi is so arrogant.
If Henan riots, the Henan garrison will be unable to take care of itself and will not be able to stop the Bishan soldiers armed with muskets; if Duke Jingguo still controls the Beijing camp, it is not impossible for them to rush into the capital.
Even though Henan is stable now and even though Duke Jing is dead, Xie Yi is not afraid.
There is also Wang Xin in Henan, and Ma Yongfei of Datong Coach and Horse Trading Company, and this chain of interests also involves high-ranking officials of Henan Governor, Provincial Government and Provincial Court.
The Beijing Army has been in disarray for many years. Even if it is handed over to Lu Ping for training now, how much combat effectiveness can be improved in just three months?
He was not a whimsical person, but he did not expect that the secret he had hidden would be discovered by Xie Yu and used to threaten him. He also did not expect that the Xie family in the capital would see through the conspiracy of Prince Liang's Mansion in advance.
"Tuiguan Shen, I have a request for you." Xie Mingzhuo pulled something out of his sleeve. "This is a secret imperial decree. Please go to Wuchang Prefecture in person and hand it over to Governor Gao Quan."
The governor has the power to supervise military affairs and can mobilize troops from various prefectures, counties and garrisons in the province when necessary.
At this point, it was impossible to do it without sacrificing manpower, but she still wanted to minimize the damage.
"The imperial court's secret decree?" Chen Shi finally reacted, stood up in shock, and took a few steps back. "Who are you?"
Xie Mingzhuo didn't give a clear answer, only saying, "We've been ordered to investigate the source of the firearms and the iron-plated silver."
"So, the court has long known about Prince Liang's intention to rebel?"
Xie Mingzhuo agreed.
"It seems that I am really going to be exiled." Chen Shi covered his chest and cried miserably, not forgetting to steal a glance at Xie Mingzhuo's face.
According to his judgment, since Xie Mingzhuo was ordered to come and investigate King Liang, his identity could only be that of a Jinyiwei.
Although women in this dynasty could not take the imperial examinations to become officials, some special government offices would recruit women to work in order to facilitate their work. There were also women in the Jinyiwei, but most of them were menial servants without any rank.
Like Meng Erniang, she doesn't look like a servant, but more like a senior official in the Jinyiwei.
But he had never heard of any female captains or female assistants in the Jinyiwei.
No matter who she is, if he sees him being partial to his own interests tonight and the news gets reported to the capital, his career as a prosecutor will probably be over.
Xie Mingzhuo saw through his thoughts and promised, "As long as you hand this secret decree to Gao Quan, it will be considered meritorious service."
Chen Shi asked, "How can I, a mere magistrate, meet with Governor Gao?"
Xie Mingzhuo took out another brocade bag and said, "This is a token of trust. Once Gao Quan sees it, he will come to see you."
"Can Shen know what is in the brocade bag?"
Xie Mingzhuo reassured him, "Last year on the Emperor's birthday, Governor Gao presented a gift to His Majesty."
Understood.
"Shen will definitely live up to your trust."
Chen Shi took it carefully and put the secret decree and token safely into his arms.
It seems that things are going to change in Anlu.
After finishing their work, Xie Mingzhuo and Lin Fan were about to return to their residence, but Chen Shi lay down on the ground and said, "The city gates are locked, so I'll borrow the precious land of the land god to rest for one night."
The three of them parted ways.
The next morning, Chen Shi rushed back to the county town, went home to change into his official robe, reported to the government office, and then went to see Tang Song again.
He kindly advised, "Sir, this case is full of doubts and needs further investigation. Please take back the arrest warrant."
Tang Song: “…”
"Chen Shi, I know you're a skilled investigator, but this case involves a prince. Arresting Lin Fan and the others is the best outcome. I've reported this to the Provincial Administration Commissioner, so please don't get involved in this matter anymore. You look haggard, perhaps you haven't had enough rest these days. I'll allow you to go home and rest for a few days."
Chen Shi: Magistrate Tang, since we have worked together for many years, I have already given you a chance.
He pretended to be dissatisfied and left the government office in anger.
The prefect asked him to rest for a few days, but he dared not report for work and took sick leave. For several days, he was not seen in the government office.
Tang Song was a little surprised to discover this, so he called the officer over and asked, "Is Tuiguan Shen fully recovered?"
The officers all shook their heads and said they didn't know.
Chen Shi was a lonely man who seldom interacted with others and had no close friends in the government office.
"Go and have a look."
After a while, the officer came back and reported: "Mr. Shen is not at home. According to the neighbors, he went out to relax."
"Relaxing?" Tang Song snorted in disbelief, "I think he went to investigate the case secretly!"
"Sir, do you want to go look for Tuiguan Shen?"
Tang Song waved his hand: "No need."
If he wants to hit the wall, let him hit it. No matter how kindly we try to persuade him, he will insist on getting involved in this mess. If he gets himself dirty, it would be best if he doesn't bring trouble to the government office.
On the eighth day of the seventh month, King Liang's funeral was held.
According to folklore, July is the Ghost Month and funerals are taboo in this month to avoid evil spirits.
But King Liang was the son and grandson of the dragon, a member of the royal family, and was not afraid of ghosts and gods. After being kept in the coffin for seven days, it was sent to the Bishan Mausoleum in the western suburbs.
The funeral procession, with more than a thousand people, was extremely grand.
Lin Fan and Yang Yunkai disguised themselves as paper-making porters, hid in the long procession, and headed to Bishan.
In the small town in the southern suburbs, the yamen runners who were searching for the murderer finally arrived.
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