There stood a guqin made of ancient paulownia wood. The wood had a delicate and rustic texture and a warm luster. Upon closer inspection, the texture seemed to flow like water, as if it had come alive.
A dragon is carved from the head to the tail of the instrument, with its scales clearly visible and lifelike. Although it is not a real dragon, it still captures the aura of a real dragon, as if it might take flight from the instrument at any moment.
However, the end of the harp looked as if it had been burned, and was somewhat charred.
"This is the Dragon's Roar of the Dead Wood. Legend has it that it was made by the master guqin maker Xianyin of the previous dynasty. It is worth three thousand taels of silver and was given to me by Tong Mingshan."
Buying a guqin (a seven-stringed zither) for three thousand taels of silver as a gift is a grand gesture, something only high-ranking officials and nobles could afford.
How could Tong Mingshan, a prefect, afford to buy it with just his salary?
“I have been to Tong Mingshan’s Guanhelou by Yunhu Lake, and every item displayed there is not ordinary.”
General Su, if Tong Mingshan hadn't been secretly selling iron ore and weapons, where did he get so much money?
Some say he's a distant relative of the Empress Dowager. Ha! I just don't believe the Empress Dowager would treat a distant relative she has absolutely no connection with so well.
Su Wenzhou had to admit that Liu Mengru's analysis made a lot of sense.
"Then why have large quantities of iron ore and weapons been transported to Bei Li recently?" His maid, Shi Lan, had mentioned this to him before.
If Liu Mengru said she didn't find any evidence, then how did she know this?
"Because this time of year is when iron ore is intensively smelted and chained to produce weapons."
Iron ore mining takes time, and smelting and forging weapons requires waiting for a period of time after the iron ore has been mined.
With a larger quantity, naturally more can be smuggled out.
Liu Mengru is Qin Wenqing's daughter. Her father is usually busier around this time of year, and she knows this pattern.
“General Su, Magistrate Huang is Tong Mingshan’s confidant. He and Caixia from Yuanmeng Tower are old lovers. Once, when Magistrate Huang was drunk, he told Caixia that he had a special skill that could imitate anyone’s handwriting. He also told Caixia that as long as she followed him, he would make sure she lived a life of luxury.”
Imitating anyone's handwriting?
Upon hearing Liu Meng's words, Su Wenzhou stood up.
The main evidence against the Su family for treason was those three letters. If they were all forged, wouldn't that prove that the Su family was innocent?
wrong!
wrong!
Su Wenzhou thought for a moment and then slowly sat down again.
Yulin is not exactly a thousand miles from the capital, but it's not exactly close either. Not to mention Judge Huang, even Tong Mingshan has never met the Su family. Why would he do this?
Could it be that Empress Dowager Wei is behind Tong Mingshan?
If that's the case, it makes sense that Empress Dowager Wei gave Tong Mingshan some benefits to win people's hearts and support his extravagant lifestyle.
Selling iron ore and weapons to Bei Li would only cause trouble for Xiao Chenyi, wouldn't it?
It is unlikely that a monarch and empress dowager would do something so foolish as to dig their own grave.
What is the connection between these two things?
Moreover, Huang Tongpan wasn't the only one in the world who could imitate other people's handwriting.
"So, Miss Liu means that you suspect Huang Tongpan was instructed to imitate the handwriting of the Su family and forge letters in which the Su family colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country?"
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