The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 40 Reasoning, the whole story!
Brush it!
As Liu Shuyi's voice fell, the beggar, who had been struggling violently, suddenly froze!
It's not just him.

Du Gou and Zhao Feng, who were following behind Liu Shuyi, and Cheng Chumo, who was holding the rope behind him, all felt as if they had been hit on the head with a stick the moment they heard Liu Shuyi's voice, and their heads were buzzing.

"Who do you think he is?!"

"Liu Yuanming!?"

"Wasn't Liu Yuanming dead? How could he be Liu Yuanming!?"

Cheng Chumo almost doubted whether he was hallucinating.

Liu Yuanming died such a gruesome death, his face was peeled off and turned into a human skin lantern, how could the murderer be Liu Yuanming?

He quickly went to the beggar, then gently tidied the hair that was falling across the beggar's face, looked at the man's face, and then...

"Huh? Why is your face covered in mud?"

The beggar's face was covered in mud, making it impossible to see his features.

"Water!" Cheng Chumo shouted.

"here has."

The beggar, Mo Xiaofan, deftly lifted the bucket placed at the innermost part of the house. The water in the bucket was not much and was very murky.

Cheng Chumo didn't care. He picked up the bucket and poured water on the face of the tied-up beggar.

Then he reached out and rubbed hard, quickly removing the mud from the beggar's face.

Then he took a closer look...

"This……"

"Is it really you!?"

"Liu Yuanming! How could it be you!"

Cheng Chumo was completely dumbfounded.

He followed Liu Shuyi here simply because Liu Shuyi told him that the murderer was hiding here.

But he had no idea who the murderer was; he was only thinking about avenging Liu Yuanming, who was the most innocent victim.

Who would have thought... that the most innocent victim in this case would actually become the murderer!

"Manager Liu, what exactly happened? Why is Liu Yuanming the murderer?" Cheng Chumo couldn't help but ask Liu Shuyi.

Du Gou and Zhao Feng both looked at him with the same bewilderment and shock.

Of all those present, only Du Ying, with her aloof demeanor, seemed to have anticipated this and managed to remain calm.

Liu Shuyi looked at Liu Yuanming, who was bound hand and foot and whose face was still dripping with water, and said, "Young Master Liu, have you ever thought that we would meet here one day?"

At this moment, Liu Yuanming's hair was wet with water, and the mud on his face had turned into muddy water, which kept dripping down, making him look extremely disheveled.

He stared at Liu Shuyi with icy eyes, his previous serious and dignified demeanor gone, replaced by coldness and indifference.

"I never expected you to find this place. I really underestimated you."

Liu Yuanming's voice was chilling, as if the coldness seeped into his bones, causing the panicked beggars in the house to shiver involuntarily.

Hearing this unfamiliar tone, Cheng Chumo felt as if Liu Yuanming in front of him was a completely different person.

Hong Wenlu, a doctor from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, was even more incredulous. He stared intently at Liu Yuanming's face, seemingly trying to determine through physiognomy whether the person before him was indeed the familiar Liu Shaoqing.

Liu Shuyi's reaction to Liu Yuanming was entirely unsurprising.

He said calmly, "I never expected that the real Liu Shaoqing would look like this. If I didn't have enough evidence, I would really suspect that you just look like Liu Shaoqing and are not him."

Cheng Chumo's curiosity had reached its peak, and he couldn't hold back any longer. He said, "Manager Liu, stop wasting time talking to him and tell us what's going on!"

Zhao Feng nodded repeatedly, like a chick pecking at rice.

Liu Shuyi smiled, not wanting to keep everyone in suspense, and said, "It all started with the death of Wu Sicheng."

"The death of Wu Sicheng?" Du Gou looked thoughtful.

Liu Shuyi nodded, looked at Liu Yuanming with a cold expression, and said, "Actually, I didn't suspect you at first, after all, your usual disguise is really too good."

"You are serious, rigid, earnest, and dignified, giving the impression that everyone else might do bad things, but you alone would never."

"Moreover, after you met me, you neither deliberately approached me to try to find out how many clues I had, nor did you deliberately distance yourself from me to obstruct my investigation. You were just like you usually are, seemingly unapproachable, but when it comes to official business, you are decisive and efficient."

“I would suspect someone who behaves suspiciously or has ulterior motives, but you are neither. Therefore, when we were at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, you were basically someone I could trust.”

Cheng Chumo nodded repeatedly as he listened to Liu Shuyi's words.

This is something he feels most strongly about.

After all, when they asked about the situation during the seven days that the coffin of Prince Xi was kept, Liu Yuanming had questioned it when he said that no one except His Majesty had entered the main hall alone. At that time, Liu Yuanming reprimanded him very severely.

That made him back down immediately.

At that time, Liu Yuanming was exceptionally dignified. His impression was that anyone could lie, but Liu Yuanming would never.

This made him feel ashamed at the time, as if he had let down the upright and dignified Liu Yuanming.

Even now, when he thinks back on it, he still feels a huge sense of disconnect, feeling that the Liu Yuanming in front of him is not the same as the Liu Yuanming he knows.

"When did you start to suspect him? After Wu Sicheng died?" Cheng Chumo asked curiously.

Liu Shuyi said, "The thieves stole the remains of Prince Xi from the Taichang Temple. During the days when Prince Xi's coffin was kept there, there were high monks chanting sutras during the day and the mausoleum guards at night. It can be said that there were people around every hour of the day. The difficulty for the thieves to steal the remains far exceeded that of the temporary tomb where Prince Xi was buried."

"Even so, the fact that the thieves chose to make their move at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices means at least two things."

Cheng Chumo hurriedly asked, "Which two questions?"

"First……"

Liu Shuyi held up one finger: "The thieves are very familiar with the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and believe that it will be easier to succeed if they make a move in the heavily guarded Court of Imperial Sacrifices than in the temporary tomb."

"Second..." He held up a second finger: "The thief had the opportunity to devise a detailed and feasible plan to steal the remains of the Prince of Xi. After all, during the seven days the coffin was kept in the main hall, people were almost always present. Without a well-thought-out plan, the thief would have no chance of succeeding."

"And this means that the thief will know the exact time when the coffin will be placed in the coffin, as well as all the arrangements made during that time. Only in this way can he formulate a perfect plan without any mistakes."

Cheng Chumo thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "Indeed."

Liu Shuyi smiled and said, "And Wu Qi, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, is exactly the person who fits these two conditions best."

"The date of the reburial of the Prince of Xi was the result of his divination."

"He was also in charge of coffining Prince Xi for seven days and the corresponding procedures of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices."

"It can be said that Wu Qi knew better than anyone else when the Prince of Xi would be reburied, and he was also the person most familiar with the arrangements for the temporary placement of the coffin. He also had the opportunity to use his authority as the person in charge to create opportunities and facilitate his actions..."

"That's why..."

Liu Shuyi looked at everyone and said, "That's why I'm paying special attention to Wu Sicheng. Even though he's sick and resting at home, I still want to see him."

"So that's how it is." Zhao Feng said with sudden realization, "No wonder Steward Liu has always been so considerate of others, but this time he insisted on seeing the ailing Wu Sicheng."

Liu Shuyi nodded and continued, "However, although I had some suspicions about him, it was only because, from an execution standpoint, he had more opportunities. It wasn't that I was truly certain he was involved in the case, until..."

His gaze returned to Liu Yuanming, and his tone changed as he said, "Wu Sicheng died tragically!"

Hearing the change in Liu Shuyi's tone, everyone subconsciously tensed up.

They knew they were approaching the crucial point.

"When I began to suspect Wu Sicheng and sent someone to look for him, I learned that Wu Sicheng was dead, and that the time of his death was right after I returned from Gaoyang Plain. This made me realize..."

Liu Shuyi said in a deep voice, "I am not wrong."

"Wu Sicheng was indeed involved in the disappearance of the Prince of Xi's remains."

"So, following this line of thought, I immediately went to the Wu residence to investigate, but the results of the investigation made me doubt what I had originally been certain of."

Du Gou recalled what happened at the Wu residence and said, "You think he shouldn't have committed suicide, but he got both kinds of medicine from the Imperial Medical Bureau himself, so there's a contradiction?"

Liu Shuyi nodded: "That's right. Whether it's logical analysis or the analysis of Wu Sicheng's behavior of pouring out that cup of hot water before his death, he shouldn't have committed suicide." "Therefore, I'm starting to suspect that, like Zhao Chengyi, he was silenced by his master because of the risk of exposure."

"However, after I had this doubt, new questions arose."

Du Gou frowned and asked, "What question?"

"letter!"

"A letter?" Du Gou was taken aback.

Liu Shuyi looked at him and said, "Does Vice Minister Du still remember that piece of paper in the charcoal brazier that was burned down to just a corner?"

Du Gou nodded: "Of course I remember. The words 'Prince Xi' could be vaguely seen on that piece of paper. It was because of this that we were able to determine that Wu Qi was directly related to the case of the loss of Prince Xi's remains."

"Yes, it was because of this letter, which was burned down to just a corner, that we obtained the most important information, but..."

Liu Shuyi suddenly changed the subject, asking, "Should it really exist?"

"What?" Du Gou didn't understand Liu Shuyi's meaning.

Liu Shuyi said, "Du Sicheng should remember that our judgment that Wu Qi was a thief or an accomplice was based on a premise... that he really committed suicide! Because he wanted to protect the secret, he burned his communications with his accomplices before taking his own life..."

"But, according to my deduction, he didn't commit suicide..."

Upon hearing this, Du Gou's pupils suddenly contracted.

He finally understood what Liu Shuyi meant.

He stared wide-eyed at Liu Shuyi, his expression suddenly changing: "That's right, how could I have overlooked such an important thing!"

Cheng Chumo looked at Du Gou's drastically changed expression and scratched his head in confusion. What were these two talking about?

How come he doesn't understand anything?
Cheng Chumo couldn't help but look at the thin Zhao Feng and whispered, "Do you understand what they mean?"

Zhao Feng pondered for a while before saying, "I think what Master Liu means is this: if Wu Qi committed suicide, then it would be normal for him to burn the letters. But he didn't commit suicide; he was murdered. So he has no reason to burn the secret letters in advance. Since he didn't commit suicide, it means he didn't sense the danger or the crisis beforehand. Why would he burn the secret letters at that time for no reason?"

Cheng Chumo blinked. "Is that so?"
"Zhao Feng is absolutely right."

Liu Shuyi nodded to Zhao Feng, agreeing with his words, and continued, "There is another point: what if Wu Qi, like Zhao Chengyi, was silenced by his master because of the danger of being exposed?"

"Since his accomplices had already gone to Wu's residence to kill him, wouldn't it have been better to just take the secret letter away if they didn't want it to be exposed? Why did they have to burn it at Wu's residence? And even if they burned it, couldn't they have waited until the letter was completely burned before leaving? It's just a piece of paper, how long can it burn?"

"But in the end, he left before the secret letter was completely burned, leaving a corner of the letter unburned, and in that unburned corner, the most crucial two characters, 'King of Xi,' were left..."

He looked at everyone and said slowly, "Don't you all think this coincidence is too much?"

"This……"

Cheng Chumo thought for a moment and said, "That's true. Now that you mention it, I feel there's something seriously wrong with the existence of this letter!"

Zhao Feng nodded in agreement: "It's like someone deliberately left it there, and then waited for us to find out."

The other Imperial Guards nodded subconsciously upon hearing this.

Standing next to Liu Yuanming, the beggar Mo Xiaofan stared wide-eyed at Liu Shuyi with astonishment, and couldn't help but say, "Master Liu, you're amazing! Although I didn't go to the Wu residence, just from what you've said, I can sense how ingenious the thieves' setup was. You even noticed such a small anomaly! No wonder Sister Wan'er said you're a brilliant detective; you really are incredible!"

Mo Xiaofan was the helper Wan'er found for him, and Liu Shuyi also had a good impression of him.

He laughed and said, "It's not that impressive. I just discovered a logical contradiction based on some clues and did some divergent analysis."

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Mo Xiaofan felt that he was even more formidable.

He couldn't even understand the logical contradictions or the divergent analysis.

Liu Shuyi gave everyone some time to think before continuing, "Based on these two questions, I began to doubt the origin of this letter that wasn't burned, and at the same time, I started to think..."

He looked at Du Gou and the others and asked, "Is Wu, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, really the thief who stole the remains of the Prince of Xi?"

Du Gou pursed his lips and nodded heavily: "From your analysis, it's clear that the letter did indeed have the suspicion of deliberately misleading us... So, after that, your target of suspicion changed?"

Liu Shuyi nodded and said, "If my thinking is correct, then Wu Qi was most likely framed by the thieves. The thieves deliberately left a letter and deliberately fabricated Wu Sicheng's suicide so that we would believe that Wu Sicheng chose to commit suicide to keep the secret, thus making the case ultimately focus on Wu Sicheng."

"But as soon as I had this idea, reality hit me hard again."

The usually silent and aloof coroner finally spoke: "Medicine dispensing records from the Imperial Medical Bureau?"

Liu Shuyi nodded and looked at Du Ying: "Your autopsy results show that Wu Qi died from a mixture of two herbs, and the Imperial Medical Bureau's records of obtaining the medicines confirm that Wu Qi himself went to get those two medicines."

“Wu Qi is knowledgeable in medicine and skilled in medical techniques. It’s impossible that he didn’t know that these two herbs, when mixed, are highly poisonous. Even if he really had two illnesses at the same time, he should have chosen a medicine with similar effects that wouldn’t produce toxicity…”

"Therefore, I fell into self-doubt once again, wondering if I had made a mistake in my analysis?"

Hearing Liu Shuyi's words, everyone felt a heavy weight in their hearts.

Even just listening to Liu Shuyi recount the situation at the time, they could feel the suffocating oppression.

What people fear most is not losing their way, but finding the right direction and having traveled a long and arduous path, only to be suddenly told that they have taken the wrong path.

This kind of blow, and the feeling of being lost and directionless again after turning back, is the most despairing.

Because Du Ying was a direct participant in this incident, she was able to empathize with Liu Shuyi even more.

"And then?" Mo Xiaofan was so engrossed in listening that he couldn't help but ask nervously.

Upon hearing this, everyone instinctively looked at Liu Shuyi.

"Then, before I could ponder whether I was wrong or if this was also a trick by the thieves..."

Liu Shuyi raised his eyes and looked at Liu Yuanming, who was bound hand and foot and had an indifferent expression, and said, "The news of your death has arrived!"

Upon hearing his name, Liu Yuanming's eyes narrowed instantly.

He looked at Liu Shuyi with icy eyes.

Then Liu Shuyi said, "You may not know, but when I heard the news of your death, it was like a bolt from the blue."

"Because, at the time I was thinking, you were an outsider, yet you died so tragically, your face was peeled off and made into a human skin lantern... All of this was because of me."

“I brought you into this case. You were the one who wanted to help me investigate and retrieve the book Wu Qi gave you, but you were brutally murdered by thieves.”

"If I hadn't asked you for help, you wouldn't be dead!"

"And you, in my heart, are like Doctor Wei, an official who, though strict and serious, is full of righteousness. It is a loss for the Tang Dynasty that an official like you died because he helped me, and it is also because I was not thoughtful enough and never thought that the thief would dare to make a move at such a time."

"So I feel very guilty, but at the time everyone was depressed because of your death, and the spirit of the investigation was about to fall apart. As the chief investigator and the pillar of everyone, if I were like them, then this case would be completely impossible to investigate."

Therefore…

He said in a deep voice, "I can only pull myself together, suppress all the negative emotions, boost everyone's spirits, and give everyone hope."

Hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Cheng Chumo and the others were stunned.

They stared blankly at Liu Shuyi, their expressions incredibly complex at that moment.

Cheng Chumo couldn't help but ask, "Master Liu, so you weren't as relaxed as you appeared at the time?"

Du Gou stared intently at him: "I didn't even notice."

Liu Shuyi said with a smile, "I am also a person of flesh and blood. Not long ago, I was in front of you, working hard with you to investigate the case. In such a short time, I became a corpse, and died so tragically. How could I not be emotional? Moreover, even you know that the clues have gone cold, and I have just experienced great self-doubt, so the pressure is naturally even greater."

As he spoke, he looked at Zhao Feng: "Do you remember what I told you back then? I said regret is the most useless emotion, and it's better to spend that time and energy on thieves..."

Zhao Feng was intelligent, and upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, he immediately understood what Liu Shuyi meant: "So... it wasn't just meant for me?"

Liu Shuyi nodded: "That's right. It's not just for you, but also for myself. When investigating a case, the worst thing is to be emotionally unstable. Only with enough calmness and rationality can we find hope in desperate situations!"

"Therefore, I am also reminding myself what I should do at this time!"

Du Ying looked at Liu Shuyi, who had the same calm smile as before, and gently bit her lower lip. Back then, she had suspected that Liu Shuyi was just putting on a brave face... Now, she knew that her feeling was right.

He always does this, keeping the pressure and pain to himself, so that those who follow him and believe in him feel hope and ease.

"And then?" Mo Xiaofan couldn't help but ask, "Up until this point, you had no idea that the thief was Liu Yuanming. How did you eventually see through his disguise?"

(End of this chapter)