I go to the ancient imperial examinations

Chapter 120 The Death Framed
With a slap of the gavel, the prestige of the third class of yamen servants not only made the county yamen hall quiet, but also a group of scholars from aristocratic families watching outside the hall also fell silent.

Prince Yu sat behind the case, and Gu Qingzhou, Liu Jian, Zhang Zhifu and others who were listening sat down in turn on the left side.

"The villain pays homage to the lord!" The four who were brought into the courtroom by the yamen servants knelt on the ground with a plop. The four of them were the most likely murderers who poisoned Wan Yunhao before, so they were taken into prison.

Fortunately, the presiding judge, Prince Yu, was not fond of torture. Although the four people who had been imprisoned for three days looked haggard and terrified, they did not suffer.

"This king has found out that Wan Yunhao was not poisoned because of the cold water in the bamboo tube. The suspicion of the four of you has been ruled out." Prince Yu slapped the gavel again, but the four were released on the spot.

Kneeling on the ground, Chef A, Aunt B, Handyman C, and Handyman D were stunned for a long time before they realized it. After being ecstatically excited, the four kowtowed non-stop, "Thank you, sir, thank you, sir!"

Seeing that the little official was holding the brush and ink pad and was about to be signed by the four of them, Liu Jian frowned, feeling uneasy, "My lord doesn't know how Wan Yunhao was poisoned to death?"

Not only Liu Jian was puzzled, but also the twenty scholars who were selected to listen. If it wasn't for Prince Yu's majesty and majesty, and being a first-rank prince, they would have asked aloud.

Prince Yu glanced at Liu Jian sneeringly, "Lord Liu, be safe and don't be impatient. Since this king is in charge of hearing this case, he will naturally investigate and find out. Master Liu is as eager as ever, and his temper is not as good as these young scholars. "

Liu Jian's old face sank, but he didn't dare to refute Prince Yu. To paraphrase what Prince Yu said before, he can't move the eldest prince for the time being. Could it be that he can't deal with Liu Jian, a second-rank minister!
The twenty scholars who were originally impatient were taken aback by the praise, and then each of them straightened their bodies with pride, and assumed a calm posture without arrogance or impetuosity. .

Many people couldn't sit outside the county government because the weather was too hot, but they hired people to guard here. Seven or eight people ran to the street to spread the news that Chef A and the four were released in court.

When the scholars waiting in the teahouse, restaurant and inn rushed over, Chef A and the others had already walked out of the county government office. When they saw the family members who came to pick them up, they wept with joy, "Your Majesty has found out, and my suspicions have been cleared."

Maybe it was too noisy outside, Prince Yu slapped the gavel again, the servants shouted "mighty", the case had to go on trial.

"I pay homage to the lord!" Chong Guang walked up to the courtroom and saluted Prince Yu, then asked two yamen servants to carry the table to the courtroom, and then took out the contents of the wooden box and placed them on the table.

"What are you doing here?" Outside the courtroom, the young man in brocade robe stretched his neck and took a look, confused.

"Shut up." The companion reminded in a low voice.

Those are the Forbidden Dragon Guards, with high martial arts skills, their voices will be heard no matter how soft they are, and they will lose their words if they speak too much, so it is better to read less and watch more.

And this group of scholars who came in a hurry didn't care about stealing the light of the children of the aristocratic family, and they all stood under the black cloth shed and looked towards the court.

Chong Guang's voice was a bit louder than usual, "My lord, this paper was written by Wan Yunhao during the competition. After being inspected by the Forbidden Dragon Guards, the ink stick Wan Yunhao used that day was tampered with..."

As soon as Chongguang said this, people inside and outside the court finally knew why Prince Yu released the four chefs.

Afterwards, the fast man Liu Tong poured the poison into Wan Yunhao's mouth in the dark, and then poured it into the bamboo tube, creating a false appearance to confuse everyone.

"Mighty!" In Tang Wei's voice, the husband Liu Tong was brought to the court, but Prince Yu was directly punished.

"Ah... I said... I said everything..." Liu Tong was an ordinary person. After his ass was beaten to pieces, he couldn't bear the pain and confessed.

As previously speculated, Liu Tong didn't know who ordered him. In the dark, the other party gave him 200 taels of silver ingots, and then put the porcelain bottle containing the poison on the table.

If he did it, Liu Tong would get 200 taels of silver; yes, his only son would die on the spot.

"My lord, the villain is also forced to help!" Liu Tong knelt on the ground and cried, but if there is a way to survive, how dare he take someone's life, he is still a master.

Prince Yu did not soften his heart. After Liu Tong signed the pledge, he was put in shackles and imprisoned in a prison.

"Bring the seven people who are responsible for guarding the self-examination house of the county school to the court!" Prince Yu said coldly, and the seven people detained by Nan Xuanwei before the trial were brought to the court.

Prince Yu's eyes were so sharp that there was nowhere to hide, and the seven people kneeling on the ground lined up were inexplicably uneasy.

After receiving Prince Yu's approval, Shigemitsu put on the cicada-winged gloves he had brought from Doctor Ji, and then picked up the ink stick on the table.

"The drugged ink stick was taken away by the murderer. This is a replaced ink stick. As long as the fingerprints on it are checked, it can not only prove that Wan Yunhao has never used this ink stick, but also find the ink stick that was stolen. the murderer of the article."

Ho!The people inside and outside the court gasped in shock, Chong Guang explained clearly, everyone glanced at the seven people kneeling down, only they had the opportunity to secretly change the ink stick, the murderer was hiding among them!

Chongguang opened the cosmetic box on the table. The exquisitely crafted box not only has hollow carvings, but also inlaid with a pearl, which is very valuable at first glance.

"That's a powder box for women, right?" The older scholar's eyes widened in surprise. They are all married, so they have seen their daughter-in-law dressing up, but the powder used by their daughter-in-law is far less exquisite and gorgeous than the one in Chongguang's hand .

Ignoring the surprised and curious crowd, Shigemitsu dipped a little white powder with a soft wool brush, shook it slightly, and then applied the powder to the ink stick.

After a while, Chong Guang blew two breaths on the ink stick, and several white fingerprints appeared on the black ink stick, two of which were relatively clear.

"This?" People outside couldn't see it clearly, but the twenty scholars listening in the courtroom exclaimed.

Is this the method of the Forbidden Dragon Guard?Liu Jian, Zhang Zhifu and the others looked at Chongguang in shock and apprehension. If this method was used in the Criminal Ministry or Dali Temple, wouldn't it be easier to investigate the case?
"How to compare fingerprints to find the murderer?" Prince Yu asked bluntly.

Chef A, who was released not long ago, all had their fingerprints, but the fingerprints were not clear and the lines were blurred. It is almost impossible to find the murderer by comparison.

"My lord, please wait for a moment, the next step is to take the fingerprints of these seven people." Chong Guang gently put down the ink stick.

At this moment, the seven people kneeling in the courtroom looked calm. Although the Forbidden Dragon Guards were terrifying, people's faces changed, but after seeing Chongguang's methods, they were not worried anymore. As long as they were innocent Don't be afraid to check.

A few candles were lit on the table, Chong Guang put a flat tile on the candle and baked it slowly. After a while, a layer of black ash had gathered under the white tile.

Chong Guang asked the kneeling arrester to come forward quickly, and when the temperature of the tiles dropped, he said loudly, "Smear the three fingers of your right hand with black smoke."

Although he didn't understand what Shigemitsu was going to do, the policeman followed suit without any hesitation, first with his right thumb, then his index finger and middle finger, "My lord, it's ready."

Chong Guang glanced at it, his fingertips were already black, and the black smoke was evenly smeared, "Wait."

Everyone saw that Chongguang put the white wax for making candles on the fire to melt. After the white wax was baked and softened, Chongguang quickly poured the thick liquid candle oil into the long copper box, and quickly smoothed it with a blade. off the surface.

After waiting for a long time, he confirmed that the candle oil was almost soft. Chong Guang looked at the policeman and said, "Press your fingers up one by one. Remember, just press it lightly. The fingers cannot be moved, otherwise the fingerprints will be blurred."

"Yes." The policeman nodded in understanding, and pressed the three fingers that were smeared with black smoke one by one.

After taking his hand away, three fingerprints with clear lines appeared on the candle oil.

Perhaps it was because the fingertips were smeared with black ash, which was set off by white candle oil. Under the contrast of black and white, the fingerprints were much clearer than those pressed when signing and stamping, and the lines in the middle were even more clearly discernible.

"This can actually extract fingerprints?" People inside and outside the court widened their eyes again in shock. If they hadn't witnessed it with their own eyes, they would never believe it.

Zhongguang asked the guard's subordinates to extract the fingerprints of the second person, while he himself took the ink stick to compare the black fingerprints on the candle oil, and then recorded it.

Although the process was slow, the effect was remarkable. As fingerprints were extracted one after another, only the last two people knelt down.

One of them was Nanxuanwei Xiaoqi Chen Fei, and the other was an ordinary soldier Xiong Dahai.

Zhan Feiyu originally thought that the fingerprints of the first five people did not match, so the murderer who secretly changed the ink sticks must be the burly, dark and stout Xiong Dahai.

But when he glanced casually, he saw Fade Chen's hands trembling slightly by his side, Zhan Feiyu was stunned, how could this be possible?

Whether it is Prince Yu who is sitting behind the case, or Gu Qingzhou, Liu Jian, Zhang Zhifu and others who are listening, as court officials, they know countless people. Zhan Feiyu can find Chen Fei's abnormality. Also noticed.

"Master Chen, this subordinate has no regrets in dying!" A hoarse and tragic voice sounded, and Fade Chen suddenly got up, wanting to hold Xiong Dahai who was kneeling beside him.

court death!Chong Guang's eyes suddenly sank, and the wool brush in his hand shot at Fade Chen's right hand like a hidden weapon, and his figure also flew over in an instant.

"Ah!" The onlookers shouted.

Just when Zhongguang twisted Fade Chen's arm, his body twitched in pain, black blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth, but he bit the poison pill hidden in his mouth and committed suicide.

"My lord..." Fade Chen stretched out his left hand in the direction of County Magistrate Chen, and spit out another mouthful of black blood, but he couldn't see his death in peace, but even if he died, his eyes were still looking at County Magistrate Chen.

"He's dead!" Some timid scholars yelled in panic again. Fade Chen, who died of poisoning, had a hideous face and protruding eyes, which would definitely give them nightmares at night.

"Silence!" Prince Yu slapped the gavel, glaring at the scholars who were yelling, Xiaoyu and even an eight-year-old girl were not afraid, they were still screaming, and lost all the old men face!

Zhan Feiyu came back to his senses, and then looked at Liu Jian, only to see that he still had a gloomy and mean look, neither shocked nor proud after successfully framing County Magistrate Chen, calm and relaxed as if all this had nothing to do with him .

Sensing Zhan Feiyu's emotional changes, Gu Qingzhou patted her on the shoulder reassuringly. After all, Liu Jian is a second-rank official, and he doesn't even have the effort to nourish his spirit. It's really a waste of his age.

Chen Weibin was not flustered, he knelt down and pleaded guilty, "I also ask the prince to be clear, this case has nothing to do with the lower officials."

"Magistrate Chen, is it irrelevant if you say it's irrelevant?" Patriarch Qin angrily reprimanded, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Prince Yu and said, "Your Majesty, please look into it."

Prince Yu ignored the head of the family, and ordered Chongguang in a cold voice: "The person is dead, but the body is still here, take the fingerprints first."

"Your subordinate obeys orders." Chongguang was annoyed. He didn't expect Fade Chen to hide poison in his mouth. Once this person died, the clues would be completely broken. The key point was that he dragged the county magistrate Chen into the water before he died!
Maybe it was because Fade Chen's death was too terrifying, or maybe it was because Prince Yu's anger was too frightening, and there was silence inside and outside the courtroom.

Chongguang personally extracted Fade Chen's fingerprints, and compared them with the fingerprints on the ink stick in detail, "My lord, Fade Chen's fingerprint matches the one on the ink stick, but it does not match the fingerprint on the top of the ink stick. .”

In fact, this is also normal, Fade Chen is the one who secretly changed the ink sticks, so his fingerprints will remain on the ink sticks.

But there are still five or six somewhat fuzzy fingerprints on the ink stick. The fingerprints on the top are very clear. This must be left by the person who grinded the ink stick. .

After Zhongguang finished speaking, Gu Qingzhou looked at Liu Jian with a half-smile.

For the new method of making salt, the Holy Majesty directly issued an oral order to Prince Yu and Liu Jian. They hurried to Shangsi County with only guards and no servants.

After arriving in Shangsi County, the servants Liu Jian summoned were arranged by Tongzhi, so the grinding work could not be done by the guards, let alone the servants of the Tongfu.

Of course, based on Gu Qingzhou's understanding of Liu Jian, Master Liu is full of airs, and it is impossible to do this kind of low-level work, so the most likely person to do this is Liu Jian's staff, who is Liu Jian's confidant and a Literati, there is no more suitable candidate than him.

……

Although Prince Yu suspended the trial, the scholars were not as emotional as before. At least they had found out the truth about Wan Yunhao's poisoning. As for who instigated Xiaoqi Chen Fei, the investigation had to continue.

"What? Fighting for the county magistrate Chen?" In the carriage, Gu Qingzhou smiled and looked at Zhan Feiyu with a chubby face. She was really a kind-hearted little girl.

Looking at the receding street scene outside the window of the carriage, Zhan Feiyu looked like an eggplant beaten by frost, and said listlessly: "I just feel that Mr. Liu's move is too disgusting!"

"Haha, you only know one thing and don't know the other thing. If Liu Jian wants to crucify Chen Weibin, why not shoot himself in the foot." Gu Qingzhou said halfway, and said meaningfully: "Maybe the opportunity for the prince to take revenge has come. "

When she was in the county office, Zhan Feiyu's mood fluctuated a bit. First, she didn't expect Chen Fei to be the murderer, and second, she was worried about the county magistrate.

Now that he was calm, Zhan Feiyu frowned and thought, his eyes lit up, and his voice became a little cheerful, "Teacher, do you mean that Master Liu is going to kill someone to silence him?"

Today, Chongguang extracted the fingerprints in public, and drew a fingerprint on the top of the ink stick for the record. As long as you find the owner of the fingerprints, you will find the person who grinded it, and this person must be Liu Jian's confidant.

　Fingerprint powder: Silver nitrate fingerprint powder is now used to extract fingerprints, but after checking, there is no way to synthesize silver nitrate in ancient times, so it is replaced by cosmetic powder. The more expensive the powder in ancient times, the more delicate it is, and it will be used as fingerprint powder for the time being. , it is a fabrication.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)