Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 29 Hidden Killing of Hanlin Lang

At this time, no one paid attention to where Wu Jinrong was. He had just said that when Jia Cong wrote a poem, he would compose one to match it, but Jia Cong wrote such an extraordinary poem about plum blossoms.

Someone as smart and scheming as Wu Jinrong would not make a fool of himself again. Everyone was only thinking about savoring Jia Cong's new work and had long forgotten about this boring man.

The purpose of this literary gathering is to exchange poetry and it is not like an imperial examination where there is a ranking. All the poems written in the literary gathering will be compiled into a book regardless of their quality for people to enjoy.

But in everyone's mind, Jia Cong's poem "Bu Suanzi's Ode to Plum Blossoms" has been ranked as the best of this literary gathering.

Liu Yanxiu and others were just about to call Jia Cong over to chat. Many people gathered around the clerk's desk. Some admired Jia Cong's calligraphy, and some liked his new lyrics.

Some people even introduced themselves and wanted to make the acquaintance of this new literary talent. A maid also came to invite Jia Cong to the stone pavilion to talk, and the scene became quite noisy.

Suddenly, a shrill and panicked voice rang out: "Cousin, what's wrong with you? Quick, quick... someone come, someone is killing someone!"

The clerk's desk was originally bustling with activity, but everyone was startled when they heard the terrifying voice.

Everyone looked for the source of the sound, and saw a person sitting on a seat on the other side of the Qingqu with his head down, motionless like a clay sculpture sealed with wax, which seemed a little weird.

Although the man's face could not be seen clearly because he lowered his head, judging from his attire and slightly plump figure, it was Wu Jinrong who had just written poems to bully Jia Cong.

Not far from him stood a young scholar of medium build, his face pale and terrified, trembling all over as he took several steps back.

This person was Qiu Xuanfu, who had just humiliated Jia Cong in person.

At this moment, everyone noticed that a heart-pounding smell of blood began to fill the air.

The palace guards swarmed in, swords drawn, and in an instant they surrounded the stone pavilion.

In the stone pavilion, there is not only Prince Jiashun, but also the scholar Liu Yanxiu of Emperor Wenzong and Zhang Tianshi of the Zhengyi Sect. They are all the most important figures here, and their safety is naturally of paramount importance.

The scholars who attended the literary gathering were all in a panic. A group of royal guards had surrounded them, one for protection and the other for surveillance to prevent any further accidents.

Even Qiu Xuanfu, who was shaking like a sieve, was controlled by two guards.

Wang Dong took Liu Xiangyong, the commander of the palace guards, to check on Wu Jinrong's body and returned to Shiting soon after.

"Your Highness, the person who was killed was Wu Jinrong, a scholar of the Imperial Academy. He was stabbed in the heart from behind and then quickly pulled out, with blood flowing out of his back.

The blade did not pierce his chest, so there was nothing unusual from the front. The murderer was very skilled, and Wu Jinrong should have died very quickly, without even having time to struggle.

The speaker was Liu Xiangyong, the commander of the palace guards. He was a man of thirty, with a strong build, dressed in armor, with a broadsword hanging from his waist, a short moustache, and a pair of bright eyes.

"Your Highness, Wu Jinrong's body is still warm, and the blood on the ground has not yet coagulated. The murderer must have just committed the crime not long ago, and may not have escaped from the mansion yet. I have asked the guards to conduct a thorough investigation at all four gates."

Prince Jiashun was furious: "What a bold thief, killing people in broad daylight, this is too much.

Liu Xiangyong, the four gates of the villa must be guarded strictly. No one is allowed to enter but not exit. Don't let the thieves escape.

Wang Dong, immediately send someone to Zhen'an Prefecture to report the case and ask them to bring people over to hunt down the murderer.

I want to ask Zhang Shouan how he got the job as the prefect of Zhen'an Prefecture. Even thieves dare to break into my villa and kill people. It's really lawless!"

Jia Cong's heart was pounding. This was the first time in his two lives that he was at a murder scene, and the man who died had just been boasting in front of him. The atmosphere in the entire Shuyun Villa was very solemn and depressing. Time passed slowly, and the old Confucian scholars who were full of literary ideas just now were all wilted and full of panic.

Originally they came to attend the Nanxi Literary Gathering with dignity, but now someone was killed in court. The prince has sealed the four gates, and the murderer is trapped in the villa and cannot escape.

We, the noble scholars, were living in the same villa with that brutal killer. If the killer knew that he could not escape and came out to kill people to vent his anger, wouldn't we lose our lives?

Nearly an hour passed like this, and the guards at the door came to report that the prefect of Zhen'an, Zhang Shouan, had brought his prosecutors, coroners, and a large number of constables and runners to the gate of the villa.

Since the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, great construction has been carried out in the city of Shenjing. The scope of the city has continued to expand, and it has become the largest metropolis in the Eastern Continent.

Merchants from the north and south, and from neighboring and distant countries, all gathered towards the magnificent and prosperous capital as if they were paying homage.

Originally, Shenjing City had only one government office, which could no longer handle the complicated government affairs caused by the expansion of the city. That year, Emperor Hongxuan ordered the establishment of another government office in Shenjing.

This has led to the current situation where the Qinian Prefecture governs the eastern city of Shenjing, and the Zhen'an Prefecture governs the western city of Shenjing.

Zhang Shouan, the prefect of Zhen'an Prefecture, was a forty-year-old official. He was a scholar-official and had experienced ups and downs in the officialdom for half his life. He finally sat on the throne of the prefect of Zhen'an Prefecture when his beard turned white.

This was the pinnacle of his half-life career. Although he was a man of average talent, he was still diligent. He had been the prefect for two years, working diligently and nothing major had happened.

I had wanted to stay in the position of prefect for another one or two years, so that I could get a better position after the next evaluation and transfer, and then I could retire when I was fifty.

Unexpectedly, just after the Chinese New Year, under his rule, thieves openly killed people in Prince Jiashun's villa.

Upon hearing the news, he jumped out of the bed of his new concubine, and rushed to Shuyun Villa like the wind with the capable prosecutors and constables of Zhen'an Prefecture.

Prince Jiashun held several Nanxi Literary Meetings in succession, which not only made him famous in the capital and admired by the literati, but also had a great reputation throughout the Great Zhou.

Now, the famous scholar who participated in the literary gathering was killed in broad daylight. Where was Prince Jiashun's face? Naturally, he did not have a good face when he saw the prefect of Zhen'an who came over.

Zhang Shouan was a little worried when he saw the prince's cold face. Prince Jiashun was very close to the current emperor. If he made a suggestion to the emperor about this matter, his position as prefect would be over.

The only thing we can do now is to find the murderer as soon as possible to make amends.

So he arranged for his coroner to examine the body, and then talked with Wang Dong to find out the whole story.

Soon the coroner reported the results of his autopsy, which were almost identical to what Liu Xiangyong, the commander of the palace guards, had just said.

Then Zhang Shouan arranged for people to question and record all the people who attended the literary meeting. Even Jia Cong was questioned by a yamen runner. It seemed that the whole process was well-organized.

But Jia Cong looked at it with some disapproval. Although he was not familiar with investigating cases, many people had gathered at the clerk's desk just now, and there was no one at the seats near Wu Jinrong.

Being far away, it is not convenient to kill people due to the distance. Now, what use is there in interrogating these scholars who are powerless?

If the murderer is given a chance to catch his breath, he might be able to escape from the villa.

Just when the chaos was in full swing, another guard at the door came to report that Zhou Junxing, who had been demoted to the position of Junior Secretary of the Imperial Household Department and in charge of the Court of Inquisition, wanted to see him.

(End of this chapter)