Chapter 129 Preview
Outside Chang'an, by the Huangqu River, willow trees that had just sprouted were burnt black, with a half-collapsed pavilion in the middle. Half of the pavilion was blown up, and the remaining half was smoked beyond recognition. Only through the residual heat could one glimpse the originally exquisite and brilliant sun and moon patterns underneath.
A group of people gathered by the water, pointing and talking at the pavilion. The blue-robed yamen runners kept shooing them away: "Get out of the way, don't delay the government's investigation."
A group of young men and women walked freely through the blockade, and the young ones looked out of place among the officers around them. Jiang Ling rummaged around on the ground for a long time and couldn't help asking, "What are we looking for?"
"Anything is fine." Ming Huazhang's voice came from afar. He half-crouched in the ruins, carefully moving the rubble, and said without looking up, "Bring back anything you think shouldn't be here."
The yamen runner saw Ming Huazhang flipping directly at the center of the explosion, and his heart was pounding. He said, "Shao Yin, there may be some remaining gunpowder here. Please come out quickly and leave these to me..."
Ming Huazhang ignored the bailiff. He raised his hand and carefully examined the thing at his fingertips.
This is a piece of unburned cloth scrap, and its original red and yellow square chess pattern can be vaguely seen. But why is there cloth in an ownerless pavilion?
Ming Huazhang was thinking when a familiar girl's voice suddenly came from outside: "Second brother, come and look, what is this?"
Ming Huazhang signaled the guards to put away the evidence, then stood up, took off his gloves and walked quickly towards Ming Huashang: "What's wrong?"
Ming Huashang squatted under the tree, pointed at a black fragment and asked, "Brother, do you think this looks like porcelain?"
Ming Huazhang leaned over, covered Ming Huashang's head, and carefully picked up the thing. Jiang Ling, Ren Yao and others heard the noise and hurried over: "What's wrong?"
Ming Huazhang looked at it for a long time, then waved his hand behind him, "Bring the evidence bag. You are right. This should have been a porcelain bowl. After it was shattered by the fire, one of the pieces splashed here."
"Porcelain cup?" Jiang Ling raised his eyebrows. Although he was ignorant of the sufferings of the world, he knew that porcelain would not be placed in a roadside pavilion. He asked, "Is this left by the murderer?"
"Not sure." Ming Huazhang wiped his hands, pulled Ming Huashang up from the ground, and said, "But what is certain is that there is more than one dead person in the pavilion today. I found unburned cloth scraps in the wreckage of the pavilion, and Shangshang found porcelain cup fragments, which further confirmed my guess. There was a tablecloth on the stone table and a teacup. It is impossible that the dead person happened to go to the pavilion outside the city to relax and happened to run into the explosion? There is only one explanation, that is, he made an appointment with someone to meet here, he was waiting for someone, and he may have even waited for that person."
Ren Yao asked: "Who is he waiting for?"
"It depends on who the deceased is." Ming Huazhang raised his eyes and looked at the young man in green clothes who was walking towards them slowly in the sunlight. "Just when we were looking for him, here he is."
Xie Jichuan rolled up his sleeves and walked at a leisurely pace. Even in the chaotic explosion scene, he was still as graceful as if he was walking at a banquet. Jiang Ling waited for a while, but couldn't bear it anymore: "No one is watching you, can you walk faster?"
Xie Jichuan glanced at Jiang Ling coldly, and felt that one should not talk about ice to a summer insect, nor should one play the lute to a cow. He shook off his sleeves, and walked the remaining steps gracefully, and said leisurely, "What's the matter?"
Ming Huazhang didn't want to waste time, so he asked directly: "Has the coroner's autopsy result come out? Who is the deceased?"
The five of them immediately rushed out of the city after seeing the black smoke, faster than the people in Jingzhao Prefecture. Fortunately, the scene was not damaged too much. Ming Huazhang personally inspected the explosion site, asked Xie Jichuan to supervise the autopsy, and Ming Huachang and the other two searched the perimeter.
Xie Jichuan took out a scented ball and fumigated his sleeves, then said slowly, "You are amazing. You always make me do such immoral things, but you don't even show any concern for me."
Ming Huazhang looked at him silently. Although he didn't say anything, his patience was evident. Xie Jichuan put away the aromatherapy ball and returned to business lightly: "People from Shengde Pharmacy came to identify the body. The deceased was indeed Yan Jingcheng. I asked the passers-by around. This pavilion is in a remote place and is surrounded by trees. They didn't notice anyone coming in or out."
This result was not surprising. The other four people did not show much change in expression, but their faces were much more solemn.
When it rains, it pours; this probably describes their current situation.
The third explosion occurred in Chang'an, and the victim was Yan Jingcheng, whom they had been looking for all morning. The palace was already dissatisfied with the progress of solving the case, and now the incident happened again, they didn't know how to be held accountable.
Even someone as heartless as Jiang Ling lowered his head, somewhat angrily saying, "We have been looking for Yan Jingcheng all morning, and we were so close to finding him. Damn it, he escaped again."
Ren Yao was anxious and angry when he thought about how they had missed the murderer again. He couldn't help but blame himself and said, "If we had found the murderer faster today, if we had gone to find Yan Jingcheng yesterday, would we have caught the murderer by now?"
"Okay, there's no point in thinking about this now, let's solve the problem first." Everyone couldn't help but feel irritated and discouraged, but Ming Huazhang was as calm as ever, and spoke methodically, "Now that the identity of the deceased has been confirmed, the next thing will be much easier. Come with me and reconstruct the explosion."
Ming Huazhang was the first to walk towards the pavilion. At this moment, his calmness, composure and organization were the best shot in the arm, as if no matter how big the problem was, it could be solved. The remaining people calmed down unconsciously and followed Ming Huazhang.
"The steps at the edge of the pavilion are relatively intact, but the deeper you go, the more severe the collapse is, which shows that the explosion occurred in the center of the pavilion. People around here said that there was originally a set of stone tables and stone benches in the pavilion. I just observed the rubble and found that the side with severe damage was not decorated, while the side with carved patterns was relatively flat. It seems that the gunpowder should be placed under the stone table, and the tabletop was covered with cloth to block the bomb inside. The deceased, Yan Jingcheng, came to the pavilion to wait for someone, and sat at the table without knowing it. He died on the spot after the explosives ignited without time to react."
Ming Huazhang gestured at the corresponding positions while speaking, and the scene at that time seemed to really appear in everyone's mind. Ming Huazhang said: "It seems that the tablecloth and the teacup on it were probably prepared by the murderer, the person who invited Yan Jingcheng to come here. The murderer came in first to set up the scene, placed the bomb, laid the tablecloth, and poured tea. After Yan Jingcheng came, he found an excuse to leave, and even the retreat route was selected in advance by him, completely avoiding witnesses."
Ming Huazhang's reasoning was very careful, and the others had no objection, but there was an oversight in the plan. Xie Jichuan asked, "How did the murderer ignite the gunpowder? Yan Jingcheng was a shrewd and snobbish business owner, and someone lifted the tablecloth and set it on fire in front of him, but he didn't react? If the murderer detonated it after leaving the pavilion, it would be even more unreasonable. There are notices everywhere in Chang'an about preventing unknown packages. How could Yan Jingcheng not think twice when he found an extra fuse of unknown purpose in the pavilion?"
Ming Huazhang was silent, he was also thinking about this question, how did the murderer ignite the gunpowder. Ming Huazhang glanced at Ming Huachang, and suddenly an idea came to him: "Oh, right, the teacup. The time and place must have been chosen by the murderer. He could have come early to set up the scene, put the bomb next to Yan Jingcheng's position, and make a fuse, hidden under the tablecloth, extending to his seat. In this way, he could ignite the fuse without anyone noticing while drinking tea, and find an excuse to leave."
Xie Jichuan responded sharply, asking: "How can he be sure that Yan Jingcheng will sit in the seat he expected? What if Yan Jingcheng chooses the seat with the fuse?"
"It still depends on the teacup." Ming Huazhang said, "You are invited to a pavilion, and there are two teacups on the table, one of which is used by the host. Where will you sit?"
Xie Jichuan thought about it and agreed with this explanation.
Ren Yao tried to follow their thoughts and said with his own understanding: "You mean, Yan Jingcheng seemed to be able to choose his seat freely, but in fact, every move he made after entering was controlled by the murderer. In this way, the murderer could ensure that Yan Jingcheng sat in the seat he reserved and ensure the success of the plan?"
Ming Huazhang nodded and immediately confirmed: "That's right."
Jiang Ling was too lazy to find out why. He only paid attention to the most practical things. He looked around at the other people's faces and asked seriously, "Then, who is the person who came here to meet Yan Jingcheng?"
Jiang Ling's words silenced the other three. Xie Jichuan noticed that Ming Huashang looked thoughtful, so he asked curiously, "What are you thinking about?"
Ming Huashang rolled her eyes, came back to her senses, and said slowly, "Oh, I was thinking of something else. Why was Yan Jingcheng the one who died? We didn't look for him because we knew he would be killed by the bomb, but to inquire about black market medicinal materials. How could it be such a coincidence that the person we are looking for is the next victim?"
These words made the four people present serious. They started from the predetermined result and thought that the murderer was cunning and escaped their pursuit again. Ming Huashang proposed a new angle. Why was the person who died exactly the one they were looking for? Was Yan Jingcheng's death an accident or a coincidence?
Xie Jichuan frowned and said, "Could it be that the murderer is deliberately playing tricks on us and will kill whoever we look for?"
This conjecture was chilling. Ming Huashang frowned and thought for a while. She felt something was wrong, but she couldn't tell why. "If that's the case, why is Liu still alive? She is also a key clue for us to solve the case."
Xie Jichuan touched his chin and said, "You reminded me. Could it be that Liu's survival was an accident? The first explosion was during the Lantern Festival. According to common sense, Liu, the mother, would also be standing in front of the 100-year-old lantern. She should have been killed along with Qian Yi. It was just that the child was crying at the time and she was looking after the child, so she escaped."
江陵和任遙點頭，覺得這個說法很有道理。明華章默默聽他們說完，道：“我早有這種感覺，兇手似乎總能領先我們一步。昨日黑虎死，今日嚴精誠死，反倒讓我篤定一點，京兆府內有內應，有人在給兇手通風報信。”
任遙、江陵一副大受驚吓的模樣，連謝濟川都挑了挑眉：“你知道你在說什麽嗎？”
“我知道。”明華章平靜又沉着，有條不紊說，“兇手已連續炮制了三場爆炸，但嚴精誠是被炸死的，黑虎卻是不明不白死在牢裏，時間間隔這麽近，按理兇手不該出現這麽大的變化。這只有兩種可能，一，殺黑虎的是另一個人；二，嚴精誠的死在兇手計劃之中，黑虎的死，才是意外。”
明華裳深以為然點頭：“對，我也覺得是這樣。”
明華章見另外幾人沒有問題，就繼續說道：“無論是情況一還是情況二，都說明昨天我們抓到黑虎後，一定有什麽信息我們沒注意到，但已經威脅到兇手。所以兇手只能先殺了黑虎，今日又将嚴精誠帶到這裏殺之。”
江陵已經完全放棄動腦了，安心當一個工具。任遙越聽越迷惑，詫異問：“黑虎幫嚴精誠銷贓賣藥，除此之外，他什麽都沒說。我們錯過了什麽？”
謝濟川暗暗掂量袖中的賬本，有些慶幸他們提前一步把賬本偷出來了，要不然，現在肯定會被相關利益的人燒掉。謝濟川意味不明掃過人群，問：“是嚴精誠背後的人嗎？”
明華章盯着後方，他身形高挑，目力超群，清晰地看到京兆尹和一群紅衣官員來了。他加快語速，說道：“現在有兩條路，其一，排查京兆府內之人，但我們要找黑虎的事許多人都知道，動靜太大恐怕會打草驚蛇，只能暗着來；其二，查近日嚴精誠見過誰，與何人有約。”
明華章剛說完，京兆尹身邊的随從就過來了。明華章微微擡手，止住對方要說的話：“我知道刑部、察院諸位大人來了，只有一句話的功夫，不會耽誤時間。接下來我可能騰不出時間，沒法和你們一起行動，第一條路我來安排，你們順着第二條路查就好，無論有沒有進展，今日酉時京兆府見。”
說完，明華章拂袖，對着随從颔首示意：“我說完了，請吧。”
随從瞥了明華裳幾人一眼，沉着臉帶明華章走。明華裳有些擔憂地望着他，明華章看到明華裳的表情，笑了笑，沉穩道：“沒事。”
他眸光清明，身姿挺拔，哪怕刑部、大理寺、禦史臺三法司一齊驚動，形勢如此嚴峻，在他面前，不過是一件尋常事。
但凡尋常事，便必有解決之法。他自問行事坦蕩，無愧于心，便不懼審視責難。
明華章跟着傳話的人走了，走出很遠，明華裳都一動不動盯着他的背影。謝濟川在她眼前揮了揮手，說：“回神吧二妹妹。他不會有事的，有這時間，不如想想我們。”
江陵是魚的腦子，任何事都別想在江陵腦子裏留下痕跡。因為不想，所以不知終點還有多遠，所以現在他還能毫無負擔地樂觀道：“走吧，我們去查約嚴精誠出門的人，查快點還能趕上午飯！”
然而事實上，別說午飯，他們連口水都沒時間喝。明華裳四人回到嚴精誠的宅子，這回他們有了名正言順的理由問話，可惜四人問了一圈，沒人知道嚴精誠今日和誰有約。
将嚴精誠的小妾送走後，明華裳注意到謝濟川眉心微擰，細長的手指不動聲色按住腹部。她翻了翻随身錦袋，取出一個紙包，遞給謝濟川。
謝濟川掃了眼油紙包，又看向她，詫異問：“你做什麽？”
“早上我怕餓，給自己打包的糕點。放心，是我親手用手帕墊着，将糕點包好的，絕對幹淨。”
謝濟川盯着她不動，明華裳都以為他不會碰了，正打算找臺階收起來，沒料到謝濟川卻伸手，接過了點心。明華裳喜出望外，忙道：“快吃吧，你早上就沒吃東西，今日忙成這樣，都沒空吃午食，你身體該受不了了。”
“吃午食？”屋外，江陵精準地聽到關鍵詞，興沖沖地探頭，“吃什麽午食？哎，明華裳你竟然吃獨食！”
“滾！”明華裳忍無可忍，推着他的腦袋，強行将他按出去，“幹你的事去！查案怎麽從沒見你這麽積極？”
明華裳拽着江陵到屋外，隔着門，聽不清他們在說什麽。謝濟川低頭掃了眼明顯用了心的油紙包，緩慢拆開系帶。
裏面整整齊齊碼着點心，都是些不怕涼、好消化的。看口味，并非明華裳喜歡的類型。
謝濟川緩緩拈起一塊，放入口中。糕點入口即化，甜意化作一股泉水流入他四肢百骸，絞成一團叫嚣的胃得到滋潤，痛意平息許多。
謝家人丁稀廖，謝濟川更是他們這一房的獨苗。曾經謝濟川覺得這樣很好，他是唯一，家族就只能傾斜所有資源全力供他。但這一刻謝濟川忽然遺憾，為什麽他沒有一個姐姐或妹妹呢？
原來被人惦記、被人注意的感覺，并不累贅。
明華裳好不容易把江陵打發走，她站在屋檐下，盯着初生芽的樹發呆。謝濟川從屋內走出來，問：“在想什麽？”
明華裳盯着樹梢，喃喃自語：“我總覺得，兇手選人一定是有規律的。到底是什麽規律呢？”
謝濟川道：“興許他就是享受貓捉老鼠的感覺，随便選人呢？”
“不。”明華裳搖頭，“個案可能是随機殺人，但連環案一定不會。其實我總覺得嚴精誠的名字很耳熟，但死活想不起哪裏聽過。”
謝濟川瞥了她一眼，說道：“去問問嚴宅其他人吧。說不定哪個人提醒，你就能想起來了。”
明華裳悶悶不樂點頭，為今之計，也只能如此了。謝濟川和明華裳走在嚴宅中，他掃到牆上的俊馬圖，毫不留情地諷道：“胸無點墨，還學人挂神駿圖。老骥伏枥，志在千裏，憑他，也配？”
明華裳倏地停住，眼睛睜大，飛快思索什麽。謝濟川回頭，問：“怎麽了？”
明華裳愣了一會，猛地拍手：“我想到了！”
任遙出來找明華裳和謝濟川，她見兩人站在走廊上，快步走過來：“怎麽了，你們想到什麽了？”
明華裳豁然開朗，只覺得一刻鐘都站不住了，急吼吼對任遙說：“任姐姐，你們三人繼續問話，我出去一趟！”
她說完就風風火火跑了，任遙喚了一聲，詫異地問：“你要去哪裏？”
謝濟川将油紙包遞給任遙，道：“你們繼續問，我去追她。”
謝濟川說完也像陣風一樣走了，徒留任遙一人站在廊上，手裏拿着半包點心，茫然又迷惑。江陵從後面溜溜達達地走出來，自然地從任遙手中拿吃的。他瞧見明華裳撒丫子狂奔的背影，囫囵不清問：“她去做什麽了？是不是去吃飯了？”
任遙咬了咬牙，握緊拳頭，一個爆錘砸在他頭上：“吃，你就知道吃！”
明華裳奔出嚴宅，正在街上跑得氣喘籲籲，忽然身後傳來一陣馬蹄聲。她回頭，看到謝濟川勒馬逼近，朝她伸出一只手：“你該不會打算跑着過去吧？上來，騎馬更快。”
明華裳急着去印證猜想，也不矯情，握住他的手上馬。謝濟川接到明華裳後連句話都沒有，毫無預兆踢了下馬腹，駿馬嘶吼一聲，如離弦的箭般朝前奔去。
明華裳默默抓緊身前的鬃毛，連張開嘴都不敢。她以前也被明華章帶過，明華章騎馬雖然也快，但給人的感覺截然不同。明華章是一種穩定的、可以預料的快，而謝濟川的風格截然相反，喜歡驚險刺激、急轉急停，明華裳被颠得心驚肉跳，只能在心裏不住祈禱，到回春堂的路短一點，再短一點。
謝濟川騎馬穿過大半個長安，目的地總算到了。馬一停明華裳就迫不及待跳下來，提裙往回春堂裏跑。
謝濟川系好馬，不慌不忙跟進去。他原以為明華裳找到了什麽線索，沒想到她卻站在一面牆前，盯着上面的匾額看。
謝濟川掃了眼，字醜的庸俗穩定，木料也無甚特殊，實在看不出有什麽值得注意的。然而，明華裳看起來卻很激動，喃喃道：“大醫精誠，大醫精誠……沒錯，就是這樣！”
謝濟川努力思索了一下，還是無果。這是他罕見地理解不了別人的思路，只好問：“你想到什麽了？”
明華裳轉身，雙眼亮得驚人：“我知道兇手怎麽選下一個動手對象了。第一個死者錢益，在爆炸前幾天收到一個金制長命鎖，上面雕刻着駿馬；第二個死者楚骥，同樣在爆炸前幾天收到一塊匿名贈送的匾額，上書‘大醫精誠’；而第三個死者，就叫嚴精誠！”
Xie Jichuan raised his eyebrows and looked at her thoughtfully: "What you mean is..."
"This is a preview!" Ming Huashang excitedly held Xie Jichuan's hand tightly, and there seemed to be two flames burning in her eyes, blazing and bright, "He will leave the name of the next victim at the scene of the previous murder. Chief Ma's life lock, Chu Ji, the great doctor Jingcheng, Yan Jingcheng. Therefore, the scene of Yan Jingcheng's death must have information about the next person the murderer wants to kill!"