Chapter 14 Corn
The weather changed after a good night's sleep.
It was still dark in the early morning when Shen Zijie was called away by the servant of the yamen. He tried to speak as softly as possible, but Wen Youqing still heard him.
Wen Youqing turned over in confusion and subconsciously asked: "What's wrong?"
"Several families have frozen to death, and they are making a scene at the government office."
"Be careful." This matter is not as important as sleeping. Wen Youqing covered her head with the quilt and continued to sleep.
This kind of thing happened in winter, but it wasn't such a big deal. When Shen Zijie arrived at the government office and saw the bodies displayed on the ground, he finally understood what was going on.
The person who died was none other than Mr. Wu, a well-known local teacher. Many officials in the government office were taught by him.
"Has the coroner examined it?" Shen Zijie reached out, took the document, and flipped through it. "Stomach cramps, forgot to close the window? What kind of excuse is that?"
"He was probably enjoying the snow and drinking some wine, which led to stomach cramps. When he was found, he had already frozen to death." The constable connected what he found at the scene with what the coroner found.
"Appreciating the snow on this day?" Shen Zijie frowned, but he knew that the elegance of the upper class had been learned by the lower class, and it was probably just this kind of funny weirdness. He suddenly met Cui Junji's gaze and asked, "What do you think, Master Cui?"
Cui Junji pondered for a moment and said, "Is there something wrong with the wine? Why did I suddenly have stomach cramps?"
The constable then remembered this and hurriedly collected all the food and drinks that the man had eaten in the past two days.
Cui Junji looked at the corn in the bag, frowned, rubbed it on his fingers, and asked, "Is this the color of the rice?"
Everyone's faces changed as they took one look. The reddish color, entwined within the golden corn, naturally made Shen Zijie know what it was: the renowned Aspergillus flavus. But he didn't understand what the people here were calling it, so he waited for someone else to speak.
The constable immediately said, "This is corn dregs. It can't be eaten. It will poison you to death."
Mr. Wu's family cried bitterly, "This is new corn. We bought three bags, and we only ate this little bit from this one. We all eat old rice, so how could something go wrong with this new rice?"
How did the problem arise? Everyone knew it, but Mr. Wu was backed by many officials and future officials, so no one dared to neglect him.
So when Wang Shouren was pulled out, no one was surprised. Even Wang Shouren himself was very calm and went into the dungeon obediently.
There were only a group of students outside, shouting and making a fuss, waiting for "justice."
The matter involved unclear matters, and only Shen Zijie and Cui Junji were busy with it.
As Shen Zijie squatted in the alley behind the Wu Clan Ancestral Hall, he smelled the scent of bitter almonds mixed with the tang of goat. He ran his fingertips along the inside of the rice bin, scraping off the whitish rice residue. But every bag of rice in the bin was moldy.
Cui Junji's clear voice came from the side: "Mr. Wu's students are all over the border. I will investigate this case thoroughly."
"A thorough investigation?" Shen Zijie sneered inwardly. This eldest son of the Cui family had attended a banquet at the Wang family's house last night, during which Wang Shouren flatteringly presented him with a Hetian jade paperweight. Now he was following him to investigate the case, what was his intention?
Cui Junji wrapped his fingers with a silk handkerchief and wiped the table. "The murderer actually poisoned the granary where Mr. Wu often distributed porridge. He is worse than an animal."
Shen Zijie stood up and smiled gently: "It is said that Zihe does not engage in farming or cooking, and does not know these trivial matters. This is not poisonous, but moldy rice. Moldy rice is too poisonous. Eating too much can also kill people."
Shen Zijie had the rice boxes and the rice taken away. He gestured for permission and slowly walked out of the Wu family's house. After the two of them got into the carriage, he said, "Zihe, Mr. Wu, I think someone has set you up."
"Oh? What do you think, sir?"
"Let's not talk about the drought in Xunyang, so it's hard for rice to mold. Even if it did mold, the rice is like that, but the inside of the rice box is intact. How is that possible? Even if ordinary cakes are moldy and hairy, the plate containing them will not be spared." Shen Zijie wiped his hands calmly, "The rice was put in there by someone behind the scenes."
"What you mean, sir, is that the rice was swapped and Lord Wang is not guilty?" Although Cui Junji admired Shen Zijie's intelligence, he also tried to test it.
"No," Shen Zijie shook his head slightly. "Wang Shouren might not have been the one who poisoned the food, but it's hard to say whether he was involved in corruption in the procurement of supplies. We need to go to another place to check."
The rice had been stored for some time. Shen Zijie split open the moldy grain bag. The moldy rice oozed out like pus and blood, its yellowish color frightening the grain guard to the point of trembling on his knees. "Lord Wang said...that even if you mix 30% moldy rice in, it won't kill you..."
Before he could finish his words, a poisoned crossbow arrow had already pierced his throat.
Shen Zijie dodged quickly and looked in the direction of the crossbow arrow, but saw nothing. He could only wave his hand and ask someone to go find it and try his luck.
Seeing that it was already dawn, Cui Junji could no longer bear it. He covered his face and yawned loudly, bowing and apologizing: "Brother Chen, I will go back to rest first. If you need anything, please send someone to call me at any time."
Shen Zijie hurriedly said, "The government office is full of scoundrels. Since you and I are willing to come with me to investigate the case, I shouldn't bother you. Go back and rest."
After exchanging pleasantries, the two men parted ways. As soon as Cui Junji got into the carriage, his attendant whispered, "Sir, you have a good plan. This time Wang Shouren won't be able to escape."
Cui Junji didn't care about this little thing. He had arranged all the things and people, so it was easy for him to frame the person. The main thing was, "Have you found out who's behind this?"
"I found out, it's the Wang family."
What a great surprise attack! They used the Wang family to make profits on the border in a fair and legitimate way, and even fooled him.
"So the Wang family also knows about that matter."
"I think they know, but I'm not sure how much they know." The attendant couldn't find any more details and bowed his head to the ground, "Please give me a little more time..."
"No need." Cui Junji interrupted his subordinate and fanned the scent of the silver incense ball with his folding fan to wash away the musty warehouse odor from his nose. If the Wang family knew about this, they would definitely take action.
But if Wang Rong is patient enough, he would be a real character.
Thinking of this, Cui Junji clenched his fists and whispered a few instructions.
—
When Chen Zijie went back to rest, he happened to run into Wen Youqing going out. Chen Zijie was too tired and didn't notice the excitement in Wen Youqing's eyes.
Wen Youqing went to see Madam Wang in a swagger. It was still the same magnificent mansion, and it was still the same somewhat crazy lady, fiddling with her tributes to Empress Hehe in the courtyard.
This time, Wen Youqing wasn't afraid. There weren't so many maids around, so those who should have run away had probably already. Wen Youqing lifted her robe and squatted down, picking out a bone from among the many tributes. She smiled and asked, "Madam, you have so many things, why don't you give me one? I'll go and pay my respects too."
"Okay." Without any hesitation, Mrs. Wang's hair was a little messy. It seemed that among those who ran away was one of her personal maids.
Wen Youqing walked over to tidy up her hair and asked calmly, "Why do we worship this Goddess of Harmony?"
"Keep it safe, keep it safe. Dad is safe, mom is safe, and sister is safe too." Mrs. Wang was still fiddling with the tributes, looking at them carefully in her hands.
"Where are my parents and sister?" Wen Youqing asked.
"It fell to the ground and turned into sand." Mrs. Wang made a chopping motion and then fell into the tribute.
The bone in her sleeve felt cold, so cold that Wen Youqing retracted her hand that was about to support her. Wen Youqing placed the bone in front of Madam Wang and said, "What about this one? It also fell to the ground. Has it turned into sand?"
"No, this is in a big jar and it's very hot." Mrs. Wang covered her face with a cloth and did not answer no matter how Wen Youqing talked to her.
Before leaving the palace, Wen Youqing glanced back at Madam Wang. She must have seen human sacrifices before. Going crazy was fine; at least it was better than being thrown into a jar.
But she was still unwilling to give in, and had no way to vent her anger.
On the day Wang Shouren's sentencing was announced, Cui Junji played the qin on the city wall. Amidst the music, Wen Youqing distributed millet buns to the victims who had bought moldy rice. The palace had only found less than a hundred taels of silver, but where the money went was unknown. Nor was there a clue as to who had ordered it.
When the gavel fell, the price of exile a hundred miles away did not wake up the people in the city. They were still busy with their own affairs.
Cui Junji was interfering, so of course he wouldn't die. The zither strings suddenly snapped. As Cui Junji stood up, he caught a glimpse of Shen Zijie walking alone into the desert, his dark cloak stirring up dust like funeral paper money. He muttered to himself, "Foolish and righteous."
As dusk engulfed the beacon tower, Wang Shouren was allowed to return home to pack his bags and bring his family with him.
When Wen Youqing, wearing a nightgown, climbed in, Wang Shouren was sitting quietly on the couch. He was not surprised to see her coming and let her put the dagger to his throat.
There were people guarding outside, so Wen Youqing didn't dare to speak loudly. She whispered, "A-Lu, you had someone kidnap him and kill him, didn't you?"
"It's me, this is my token of allegiance. Madam, you only care about one person's life or death, how can that be enough?" A corrupt official was still preaching here. Wen Youqing felt sick and it was difficult to breathe when she was close to him. She raised her knife, lifted Wang Shouren's prison uniform to cover his face, and pushed the dagger in.
The sharp dagger cut through Wang Shouren's throat, the sound as crisp as cutting fish bones on a board. But she was not afraid, and she thrust it all the way in, piercing the back of Wang Shouren's neck.
The muffled sound was soft, like a piece of damp, rotten wood snapping. Warm blood splattered on the back of Wen Youqing's hand, a speck of crimson that spread quickly before cooling and congealing into a glaring, sticky stain. Her grip on the dagger was surprisingly steady; she could even clearly feel the subtle lag as the blade severed her neck.
Wang Shouren's body went limp, his cloudy eyes still holding a trace of astonishment and a hint of relief that she didn't want to delve into. He collapsed into his study, which smelled of old wood and cheap incense, like a discarded bag of rice, hitting the floor with a dull thud.
"So much nonsense!" Wen Youqing retracted the dagger. Her voice was low, yet strangely penetrating, echoing through the blood-filled room. She watched the dark liquid rapidly spreading across the floor, and a flicker of pleasure passed through her heart, like a brief, cool breeze after a summer thunderstorm.
Suppressed sobs and chaotic footsteps could be heard outside the study. It was the guards outside. It was time for her to leave.
Just as she wiped the blood clean, she heard a small "click" sound outside the window. She immediately hid behind the window, waiting for the man to break in.
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