Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 139 Di Renjie's Snake Catching Plan

The Dali Temple was bustling with activity.

It has been three days since the murder occurred in the Xincheng Princess Mansion, but the case has not been solved yet.

This case was extremely serious. Not only did it happen in the princess's mansion, but the murder was committed in front of Chen Wang Li Zhong and countless young talents in Chang'an City.

Moreover, the murderer had been prepared and committed suicide.

The Dali Temple has been under a lot of pressure these days. Although the saint has not urged it, several prime ministers are very concerned about this matter.

Di Renjie was walking briskly along the long corridor of the Dali Temple when he suddenly saw a man approaching. He bowed and smiled at him, saying, "Di Shaoqing."

Di Renjie bowed and said, "It's Bi Sicheng. What can I do for you?"

Bi Zhengyi is a man in his forties. He is not fat, but his belly looks particularly big because he drinks frequently.

He smiled slightly and said, "I am here on the orders of the Minister of the Temple to ask you if there has been any progress in the case at the Princess's Mansion."

Di Renjie said, "I already have a clue."

Bi Zhengyi said, "I heard that the clues to Wang Lun have been cut off."

Di Renjie said, "Yes, I can't find anything more about Wang Lun, but I found some clues about Liao Ping."

"Oh, what clue?"

Di Renjie said in a deep voice: "I found out the pseudonym Liao Ping used. He is not a famous scholar in Yizhou at all. His real identity is very likely..."

Bi Zhengyi asked hurriedly: "What is it?"

Di Renjie's eyes flickered, and he smiled and said, "I have nothing to say for now. Once I have found out, I will tell Xin Siqing."

Bi Zhengyi smiled and said, "Well, everyone in the temple office is counting on you to solve the case. Otherwise, no one would dare to go out on the streets."

Di Renjie said no more, bowed, strode out of the Dali Temple and headed towards the imperial palace.

Arrive at the imperial city, pass through Chengtian Gate, go around two large halls, and arrive outside Ganlu Hall.

Wang Fusheng was standing outside the hall. When he saw him, he smiled and said, "Di Shaoqing is here. Please wait a moment. I will inform you."

Di Renjie bowed and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Wang."

After a while, Wang Fusheng came out and said, "Everyone, please let you in."

Di Renjie entered the hall and bowed to Li Zhi who was sitting on the throne.

"Your Majesty, Di Renjie, pays homage to His Majesty."

Li Zhi was reading a memorial when he looked up and said, "Mr. Di, I have been waiting for you for a few days. Has there been any progress on the case?"

Di Renjie said, "Your Majesty, I have been investigating from two perspectives. The first is Wang Lun. He is indeed a well-known scholar in Luoyang. A major case occurred in Luoyang a while ago and he is related to him."

Li Zhi said, "What major case?"

Di Renjie said, "Although Wang Lun is talented and learned, his moral character is extremely poor. He has a wife named Chunyu at home, but he has three concubines outside."

"Once, Chunyu discovered that he had a concubine. The concubine was extremely aggressive and scolded Chunyu. After that, she often went to Wang Lun's mansion to harass Chunyu."

"One night, Chunyu took a kitchen knife, went to her mistress's house, and hacked her to death. She was subsequently arrested and imprisoned."

Li Zhi put down the memorial and frowned, "How could such a person without moral integrity be called a famous scholar?"

Di Renjie said, "Wang Lun is very good at scheming and does have some talent. He has visited many officials in Luoyang, so he has gained some fame."

Li Zhi said: "From this perspective, people like Wang Lun should be easily envied."

Di Renjie said, "I thought so too, so I stopped investigating Wang Lun and turned to investigating Liao Ping."

"Is there any harvest?"

Di Renjie said, "I have found out that Liao Ping's pseudonym does not indicate he is a scholar, but is most likely a delinquent."

Li Zhi's eyelids jumped: "Bad guy?"

"Yes, the thief-catching officers in various prefectures and counties would employ some bad guys to help catch thieves. Many of these bad guys were criminals, each with their own skills, and were much more capable than ordinary clerks."

Li Zhi asked, "How do you know he's a bad guy?"

Di Renjie said, "The bad guys have been using thief-catching chains for a long time, so they have a special layer of calluses on their finger joints. That's where I noticed it."

Li Zhi thought for a moment and said, "The bad guys killed a famous scholar in Luoyang. The person behind it is probably someone in the government."

Di Renjie praised: "Your Majesty has hit the nail on the head. As long as we find out which prefecture or county this bad guy belongs to, it will be easy to find the person who ordered him to do so."

Li Zhi warned: "The person behind this case is from the government and may very well take action against you. You must be careful. When you go out to investigate, remember to bring Li Yuanfang with you."

Di Renjie bowed and said, "I'll make a note of this."

……

Huixing Ferry is a ferry near Sanmenxia. Merchants from Guanzhong area heading to Hebei would choose to cross the river to the north here.

Due to the existence of the mountain in the middle of the river, the flow of the Yellow River in Huixingdu area is stable.

The best option to cross the Yellow River is to board a boat at Huixing Ferry, cross the Yellow River, and disembark at Maojin Ferry in the north.

Di Renjie got off the boat at Maojin Ferry. He had passed through Maojin Town and was heading towards Bingzhou.

He planned to go to Bingzhou first, then pass through Jingxing Road and go to Hebei.

There were two people traveling together, one was Li Jin and the other was Bi Zhengyi.

Bi Zhengyi was once a judicial officer in Youzhou, Hebei. He was later transferred to the Dali Temple and was very familiar with the situation in Hebei.

So Di Renjie took him to Hebei to handle the case.

The Hedong area is mountainous and the journey was quite difficult. It was not until midnight that they finally found a village, where the three of them stayed overnight.

The conditions in the countryside were poor and the three of them could only live in one room.

Di Renjie slept on the bed, while Li Jin and Bi Zhengyi had to sleep on the floor.

As Bi Zhengyi took off his clothes, he asked, "Di Shaoqing, where are you going to investigate first?"

Di Renjie took off his shoes and sat cross-legged on the bed.

"Liao Ping uses Shanggu ink and speaks with a Hebei accent. I think even if he's not from Yizhou, he's probably a bad guy near Yizhou."

Bi Zhengyi smiled and said, "The Yizhou Justice Army Officer is an old acquaintance of mine. I'll ask him for help and we should be able to find clues quickly."

Di Renjie said, "Yuan Fang, it seems that it would be useful for us to bring Bi Sicheng with us."

Li Yuanfang said "hmm".

Bi Zhengyi smiled and said, "Sir Di, there's one thing I don't understand. We brought forty soldiers with us this time. Why didn't you let them come with us?"

Di Renjie said: "Our enemies this time are most likely officials in Beijing, and they will definitely be keeping an eye on us. Soldiers are too big a conspicuous sight, so we can let them attract attention and act in secret." Bi Zhengyi gave a thumbs up.

"This is called repairing the plank road in the open while secretly marching through Chencang. It's really a brilliant move."

Di Renjie waved his hand and said, "It's getting late. We have to get up early and travel tomorrow. Go to bed."

Bi Zhengyi said to Li Jin, "Brother Yuan Fang, I might snore at night. Please be patient with me if you sleep next to me."

Li Jin said: "It's okay. When I was in Zhechongfu, Liangzhou, six of the eight soldiers in the same camp snored, but I still slept well."

Bi Zhengyi laughed heartily and said, "So Brother Yuan Fang is from the frontier army. I'm so sorry for the disrespect."

As dusk fell and the moon rose, the room soon fell silent except for bursts of snoring.

There was a sudden roar of thunder, a thunder in May, and it started to rain at night.

The sound of rain mixed with the sound of snoring.

Another loud thunder roared, and Di Renjie suddenly woke up, sat up, and his face changed drastically.

I saw a figure standing at the gate, motionless. In the darkness, I couldn't see his face clearly, like a ghost.

Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and the man's face hidden in the darkness flickered. It was actually Bi Zhengyi.

There was a sound of footsteps, and four men in black wearing straw raincoats walked in from outside the door.

Di Renjie looked out the window and could vaguely see in the moonlight that the house was surrounded by men in black.

"Yuan Fang, wake up." He shouted to Li Jin who was still sleeping on the floor.

Li Jin was still sleeping soundly.

Bi Zhengyi walked up to Li Jin and kicked him.

"Hey, Brother Yuan Fang, it's time to get up."

Li Jin finally woke up, sat up, looked around, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Bi Zhengyi laughed and scolded, "Li Yuanfang, you're too slow. I seriously doubt how you were transferred to Chang'an. Di Renjie, you chose such a loser by your side. You deserve to die here today."

Di Renjie said in a deep voice: "Bi Sicheng, you are the one behind Liao Ping's actions!"

Bi Zhengyi smiled and said, "It's an accurate judgment, but it's a pity that it's a little late."

Di Renjie asked, "Why did you kill Wang Lun?"

Bi Zhengyi snorted, "Do you really need to know this?"

Di Renjie sighed and said, "Just consider it as satisfying the curiosity of a dying man like me."

Bi Zhengyi was silent for a moment, then said, "If you want to blame someone, blame him. He could have stayed in Luoyang without any problems, but he had to come to Chang'an to seek death!"

Di Renjie asked, "Is it related to his wife?"

Bi Zhengyi said coldly: "You have enough problems already. Go ahead and kill them both!"

At this moment, there was a continuous "whoosh" sound outside, followed by bursts of screams.

Bi Zhengyi's face changed drastically. He drew his knife and slashed at Di Renjie.

Although he has a big belly, he moves as nimbly as a cat.

A man stood in front of Di Renjie, raised his sword and blocked Bi Zhengyi's attack. It was Li Yuanfang.

The attacks of the other men in black were also blocked by Li Yuanfang.

Several soldiers rushed in from outside the house and fought with the man in black, while Li Yuanfang fought Bi Zhengyi with a single sword.

In less than ten rounds, Bi Zhengyi screamed, fell to the ground, and rolled over while holding his thighs.

The other men in black were also captured by the soldiers one after another.

Li Jin pointed his sword at the ground, stood straight, and said coldly: "Now tell me, who is the waste?"

Bi Zhengyi gritted his teeth and said, "So you guys were already prepared!"

Di Renjie smiled and said, "Yes, this is a trap we set for you. I suspected you before leaving Chang'an."

Bi Zhengyi's face turned pale and he said, "Impossible. Liao Ping only contacted me. He's already dead, so how did you know about me?"

Di Renjie said, "Liao Ping's official report was a forgery. There aren't many snakeheads in Chang'an who can forge such an excellent report."

Chang'an City has a population of over one million. Even if the government enforces the law strictly, it is impossible to eliminate crime.

Those lawbreakers hid in the gutters of Chang'an City, formed gangs with each other, and formed the dark side of Chang'an.

The bad guys in Jingzhao Prefecture dealt with these people every day. Sometimes they infiltrated gangs and died miserably after their identities were discovered.

The leaders of these gangs are called snakeheads by the government.

Human traffickers are extremely shrewd people. The bad guys know that they are guilty, but they can't find evidence and can't arrest them.

Of course, the snakehead was not smart enough, and the grass on the grave was already several feet high.

Bi Zhengyi and Di Renjie were both judicial officers and had dealt with these human traffickers.

Bi Zhengyi gritted his teeth and said, "Have you looked for them?"

Di Renjie said, "Yuan Fang went looking for them one by one and finally found them. The snakehead who forged the official report said that one of your clerks found him."

Li Jin is a Qianniu Guard on the surface, but an Neiling Guard in secret. Regardless of his identity, he is someone the snakehead cannot afford to offend, so he can only cooperate.

Bi Zhengyi remained silent.

Di Renjie said, "Of course a snakehead can't testify against a thief-catching officer, so I devised this plan to expose you yourself."

Bi Zhengyi suddenly said, "Di Renjie, you told me so much because you want to psychologically attack me and make me confess everything, right?"

Di Renjie frowned and agreed.

Bi Zhengyi smiled and said, "How about I make a bet with you?"

Di Renjie asked, "What are you betting on?"

Bi Zhengyi said word by word, "I bet you can't make me speak even if you torture me with all the tortures in the Dali Temple."

Di Renjie remained silent.

When thief catchers become criminals, they often become the most difficult criminals.

"Take him away and take him to Chang'an."

(End of this chapter)