Qingyu Case: Female Minister of Dali Temple

After correcting Xu Guang's mistake, Chen Shao replied, "Hasn't General Li heard the saying 'If you don't have the skills, don't take on the job'? Since I've accepted the job of the Supreme Court Justice, I can't be unprepared."

Li Tianliu's chest suddenly felt tight. When he led his troops to charge, he was besieged by the enemy in the valley. His second brother had said this to him after he came to rescue them. He was not yet nineteen at that time, and he was young and energetic, so he naturally refused to admit defeat. Later, when he met the besieged enemy again, he chased them again without regard for the consequences. As expected, he was besieged again.

Her second brother saved him again.

However, this time her second brother did not scold him. Instead, just as she had taught Xu Guang, he personally demonstrated to him what a pursuit and suppression was.

Unfortunately, three months after the exercise, her second brother died on the battlefield.

He used the tactics taught by her second brother, and after a month of careful planning, he finally wiped out the 8,000 elite enemy soldiers who killed him, leaving no one alive.

After that, he personally carried her second brother's coffin back to the capital.

Her second brother is Chen Yi.

After not seeing him reply for a long time, Chen Shao took the time to look at him, looking at his gloomy face, and jokingly said: "Seeing that I am so well prepared, you know that the chances of persuading me to return to Beijing are even slimmer. Are you angry?"

Li Tianliu snorted coldly: "You should put this heart into the battle..."

"Wait a moment." After Chen Shao stopped him, he pointed out another mistake Xu Guang made. After he had made the switch, he turned back and motioned to him, "Go on."

Li Tianliu turned around, picked up the hoe that was placed by the wall yesterday and went to dig bones.

Chen Shao raised the corner of his mouth slightly and ordered the Yulin Army beside him: "Go and see who lives around here and borrow some straw mats from them."

Since the people living in this area are either rich or noble, they must be the gentry. I asked them to buy the coffins and borrow some straw mats, so it shouldn't be a big deal.

The Yulin Army didn't even ask what it was for, they just turned around and left.

Xu Guang stood up and looked at the nearby green tiles and red eaves, then said, "This area should be the Wen family's and Ren family's villas. They don't usually live here, and only come here when they have a banquet."

Chen Shao squatted beside him and asked as he pieced the bones together, "You seem to know a lot about these noble families and gentry?"

"I don't know." Xu Guang rejected it outright. "I just heard people mention it occasionally and know a few words about it."

Chen Shao laughed twice, "You don't have to be so suspicious, I was just asking casually."

Xu Guang said awkwardly: "Please forgive me, my Lord. Luoyanju is in such a position that it is really hard not to think too much."

Chen Shao asked nonchalantly, "What are you thinking about?"

Xu Guang unconsciously lowered his voice: "To have dared to commit such a shocking crime during the investigation, the murderer may not just be a certain... family."

Capable, insightful, and smart, although the timing was a bit wrong, Chen Shao still asked: "Have you ever thought about working in a different place?"

The bones that Xu Guang had just put together were suddenly out of place.

Chen Shao looked over when he heard the sound. After Xu Guang quickly put the bones back in place, he tried his best to stay calm, but his trembling hands still betrayed him: "Everything is up to you, sir!"

"Your family should all live in the county town, right?" Chen Shao asked, "Why don't you discuss this with them?"

Xu Guang stood up, took two deep breaths, squatted down again, and said slowly: "Only water flows to the lower places."

"That makes sense." Chen Shao said, "But if you follow me, you will have to travel a lot for at least three years. Have you thought about it?"

Xu Guang said confidently: "Don't worry, sir. Now that I have made my choice, I will never regret it."

"According to the current situation, I will have to stay in Hongyuan County for a few months," Chen Shao said quickly when he saw Fu Jiu had brought the 21 people over. "Just keep this in mind and don't make it public for now, so as not to implicate your family."

Xu Guang responded in a low voice.

The twenty-one people who followed Fu Jiu were originally chatting and laughing, but once they entered the gate of Luoyan Residence and saw the piles of bones, they fell silent in an instant.

Although Chen Shao told them that there would be a large number, no one expected there would be so many.

Chen Shao stood up and waited for them to come closer. He did not try to comfort them, but only told Fu Jiu, "You dug these out, you should be very experienced, and arrange for them to dig separately."

After Fu Jiu arranged everyone, Chen Shao reminded: "Some of them have been buried in the ground for many years. Be careful when digging, don't dig them up."

Everyone responded in a low voice, as if afraid of scaring the owners of these bones.

The sun was getting bigger and bigger, but no one complained of being tired, and no one stopped to rest. Even the summer-cooling soup that Chen Shao asked Fu Jiu to bring from Juxian Building was rarely drunk by anyone.

It was Chen Shao who forced them to stop and rest for 25 minutes before they had no choice but to stop and hide under the shade of the trees. After Fu Jiu and the Yulin Army served them the summer heat soup, they quietly moved to Chen Shao's side and whispered, "Their eyes are all red."

Chen Shao sighed in his heart, "Don't prepare big fish and meat for lunch, keep it simple and light. Also, force them to rest once every half an hour, and prepare enough summer heat soup."

Fu Jiu nodded.

Xu Guang was a novice, and he had only put together a skeleton in the morning. After lunch, he took a short break. Before he was about to put together the second skeleton, Chen Shao asked him, "Can you tell whether the skeleton you put together this morning is a boy or a girl?"

Xu Guang had distinguished male and female bones from buried pig and dog bones before, but human bones were different after all. After only a moment of distinguishing, he gave up and said, "Please give me some advice, sir."

Chen Shao asked: "Look at the skeleton you put together and the one I put together. What are the differences besides the size?"

After a brief observation, Xu Guang pointed out the differences between the pelvises of the two skeletons.

"Yes." Chen Shao picked up the two pelvises and put them together, pointing at one of them and said, "Look at this pelvis. It's thick, high and narrow. The pubic symphysis... is also relatively high, and the subpubic angle... is also relatively narrow. Generally speaking, this is a male pelvis. On the contrary, a shallow and wide pelvis with a delicate bone surface, a relatively low pubic symphysis, and a large subpubic angle is basically a female's."

Chen Shao assembled three skeletons in the morning.

Based on her explanation, Xu Guang observed the other two skeletons and said, "Are these two both female?"

Chen Shao nodded, picked up the skulls of the two skeletons, and explained: "In addition to the pelvis, the skull is also an important criterion for determining gender. Take it in your hand and feel it. Is the male skull slightly heavier than the female skull? This is because the male skull is thicker than the female skull, and the cheekbones are also thicker and more prominent. Also, look here, the male forehead is more inclined and the brow ridge is more prominent, while the female forehead is steeper and the brow ridge is not prominent..."

Listening to her explanation, Li Tianliu and Fu Jiu came over without knowing when.

The twenty-one people who were digging bones gradually stood up.