Chapter 79: Self-Clearance
County Magistrate Lu was also an official who was born into a juren family and had some basic appreciation ability. He knew at a glance that this poem was very good. Not only was it neat and rhymed, but it also contained a certain artistic conception.
He couldn't help but read it aloud, and at the end he commented: "It's shame to talk about fat and cream, and don't distinguish between the rich and the poor. Not bad, not bad. Although butchers slaughter livestock, they are also honest people, much better than those criminals. On the contrary, some scholars..."
County Magistrate Lu realized that he had spoken out of turn and immediately stopped talking, glancing at Mu Wei.
Mu Wei was so angry that he fell backwards, but the people around him didn't care about his thoughts. They were all very happy, especially the one in the lead who was a butcher. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to convince everyone to come up with this question.
At this moment, he slapped his arms and shouted at the top of his voice: "Living in a small town, relying on sharp knives, rubbing my fingers with fat and cream is shameful to talk about. Butchers kill full pigs in broad daylight, and there is no need to distinguish between the rich and the poor. Isn't it just like that? We work hard every day to make a living. We are not really cruel people, and we have never done anything that violates the law."
"Su Xiucai is indeed a scholar. His poems are interesting, much better than those scholars who are only good at talking."
Liu Xiong even shouted loudly: "What do you think, Mu Tongsheng? With Brother Su's talent, why does he need someone to write for him?"
"Some people can't write good things themselves, so they think everyone else is bad. I don't know how you got into the county school in the first place. You're just a student, but you act so arrogant every day. Who doesn't know who?
"That's right. Mu Wei always ranks first or second in the monthly exams, but he's always last. And he still has the nerve to criticize others."
Talented people are always admired, not to mention that Su Fengzhang created such obscure poems in a short period of time, and wrote them very well, which shows his ability.
Mu Wei's face was also embarrassed, and he shouted loudly: "Sir, he himself admitted that his poetry talent was poor at the beginning, and it was only after Chang Qing's careful teaching that he made progress. Who knows if there is something fishy going on."
At this moment, Zhang San and Li Si came back. They did not come back alone, but were followed by a long line of people.
Not only Su Zhaoshi and Su Lanzhang were present, but also Su Ershu, Su Arong, the village chief, and other people in the village came along.
Zhang San and Li Si carried a wooden box and reported, "Sir, the drafts have been brought in."
Su Zhaoshi and the others stopped in front of the court, looking at Su Fengzhang inside and almost crying: "Feng'er!"
Su Fengzhang simply glanced back at them, nodded reassuringly, and turned around to bow: "Please verify this, sir."
After saying this, he looked at Mu Wei again and said coldly: "If Mu Tongsheng has any doubts, you can come and see it together."
He even turned to face the crowd and shouted loudly: "Su also invites all classmates to come and look at the certificate and check the draft to prove Su's innocence."
County Magistrate Lu didn't want to shoulder the entire responsibility, so he looked at everyone and said, "Master Sun, if it's just you and me, it's bound to be unfair. Why don't we ask everyone present to judge together?"
Anchor Sun also understood what he meant and naturally would not refuse.
So a group of scholars who came to watch were invited in, and a box of manuscripts was opened. Everyone sighed at the first sight, thinking that Su Fengzhang's talent aside, it must have taken a lot of effort to create such a beautiful handwriting.
Liu Xiong and several people who were familiar with him also said: "Brother Su has been practicing calligraphy for many years, and his good handwriting is often praised by the teacher."
When the manuscripts were unfolded one by one, the first thing they felt was Su Fengzhang's hard work. It was said that these were only drafts from the last three months, but they had accumulated to a full box, which showed how much time he had spent.
Looking more closely at the content, I found that the poems were neat but lacked spirit and were a bit rigid at the beginning, but gradually gained some spirit later on, and the most recent few poems have become quite outstanding.
There were not only Su Fengzhang's notes on it, but also circles and drawings by another person with a red pen, obviously giving him a lot of guidance.
At first, Su Fengzhang's poems were mediocre, but after these red-word revisions, he could always make the plain poems more elegant, which shows his talent.
Liu Xiong even said, "This is indeed Lin Changqing's handwriting. He left behind quite a few manuscripts, so we can confirm it once we check it."
They were all students of the same county school. Lin Changqing always ranked first in previous years. His papers were often posted for everyone to read, so most students were familiar with his handwriting, and the same was true for Su Fengzhang's handwriting.
At the beginning, there were almost the same number of black words and red words. Later, the number of red words gradually decreased. In the end, the red words of the revisions disappeared, and were replaced by praises and comments. It can be seen that Su Fengzhang is indeed making rapid progress.
County Magistrate Lu even found a volume of contemporary essays in it. Unlike the other manuscripts, Lin Changqing's handwriting was black, while Su Fengzhang's was red, which showed that their teacher-student relationship had been reversed.
County Magistrate Lu read the book from beginning to end out of curiosity. After reading it, he was impressed by the two people. Lin Changqing taught without holding back anything, and Su Fengzhang's comments were also sincere and he did not hold anything to himself.
Originally just judging, the group of scholars became fascinated as they watched. One of them, who usually struggled with writing poetry, slapped his head and exclaimed, "So that's why I always feel awkward when writing poetry. It's because I lack a good teacher!"
Liu Xiong shouted loudly: "Everyone, now you can trust my brother Su's talent. It is absolutely impossible for him to be a ghostwriter."
The readers all said, "Indeed, from the manuscript we can see that Su Fengzhang has made rapid progress. He doesn't need a ghostwriter."
"Also, Lin Changqing and Su Fengzhang must have a very good relationship, otherwise why would he teach so attentively?"
"They are indeed close friends, and we were the ones who misunderstood them just now. We are truly guilty."
"Lord Lu, Lord Wang, we all think Su Fengzhang is truly talented and there's no need to lie."
County Magistrate Lu also nodded and said, "Let's not talk about anything else. The last few poems are rare masterpieces. There are also comments from Lin Changqing on them. He can't possibly write comments on his own poems, right? The ghostwriting thing is really nonsense."
When the dust settled, County Magistrate Lu looked at Mu Wei with an unfriendly look and said angrily, "Mu Wei, you falsely accused Scholar Su without any evidence. Do you admit your guilt now?"
But Mu Wei suddenly knelt down again, and the sound of "thump" sounded painful.
Not only did he not confess, but he shouted loudly: "Sir, just because Su Fengzhang can write poetry doesn't mean he won't kill Changqing. Does that mean he can commit such a brutal and cold-blooded murder just because he has talent?"
County Magistrate Lu cursed impatiently, "Just now he said he was jealous of you, and that you were the one who wrote the letter for him. Now that the truth is out, you're accusing him of murder. Do you have any evidence for this?"
"What Mr. Yuan said just now cannot be used as evidence. First, he didn't hear the sound clearly, and second, he didn't see the figure. I will not accept it. Mr. Yuan, tell me again, did you see or hear anything that day?"
Yuan Xiucai quickly said, "Your Excellency, I really didn't hear it clearly and didn't see it."
Mu Wei shouted, "Master Lu, Su Fengzhang was caught red-handed while committing murder. Four people witnessed it at the same time. He still had Changqing's blood on him. No one else had entered the house except him. Who else could it be but him?"
"When Brother Yuan and the others arrived, Su Fengzhang was still holding the murder weapon. Isn't this solid evidence?"
Su Fengzhang smiled coldly and asked, "Mu Tongsheng keeps saying the murder weapon, do you know what the murder weapon is?"
"It's just a broken bowl, Brother Yuan, you saw it with your own eyes, right?" Mu Wei glared at Yuan Xiucai again.
Yuan Xiucai hesitated this time and said hesitantly: "When we went in, we did see Su Xiucai holding a bowl in his hand, but I don't know if it was the murder weapon. I'm not a coroner."
"There's blood on that bowl. What else could it be if not the murder weapon?" Mu Wei shouted. "Besides, Chang Qing was covered in blood. If it wasn't the murder weapon, why would Su Fengzhang be holding a bowl?"
County Magistrate Lu frowned, but Chief Clerk Sun said, "Although there was blood on the bowl, it was stained after it fell to the ground. The coroner has examined it and confirmed that it is not the murder weapon."
"A porcelain bowl is fragile. Even if it were used to hit someone on the back of the head, it would hardly kill them. The coroner suggests that the thing that killed Mr. Lin must have been an extremely hard object, like an inkstone."
"But the inkstone used by Mr. Lin is still in the house, and the inkstones used by the other three people are also there." County Magistrate Lu was also puzzled.
Sun Zhubu said, "It's possible it wasn't the inkstone, but some other hard object. The murder weapon must have been taken away by the killer, or temporarily hidden. However, the detectives searched the entire county school and found nothing resembling a murder weapon."
Mu Wei pressed on, "If it wasn't a murder weapon, and human life was at stake, why did Su Fengzhang hold a bowl?"
This matter was indeed a bit strange, and even County Magistrate Lu frowned.
Su Fengzhang sighed inwardly and could only explain, "When the student entered the room and saw blood all over the floor, he panicked and subconsciously wanted to get a bowl of water for Changqing to drink. Later, when he thought about it, he felt that it was some kind of ghostly move, probably because he was terrified at the time."
Mu Xun sneered, "Your words are far-fetched. Seeing someone lying on the ground covered in blood, you actually have the mood to give him water. Aren't you afraid of being laughed at for saying this?"
"That's the truth." Su Fengzhang really couldn't explain the effect of the spiritual spring water.
Although it is far-fetched, it is understandable that people do ridiculous things when they are panicked. Although County Magistrate Lu felt doubtful, he was sure that the bowl was not a murder weapon and the water was not poisonous, so he naturally would not insist on pursuing a small issue.
Mu Wei, however, pressed the issue, even saying, "Sir, who can be absolutely certain that the bowl wasn't the murder weapon? What if it was? Su Fengzhang brought food, so why did he bring a broken bowl?"
At this moment, Su Fengzhang suddenly shouted, "My Lords, I have already informed the jailer of what happened that day, and I have evidence to prove that I am not the murderer. Please summon the three men."
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The author has something to say: Feeding nutrient solution will result in double drops~~~
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