The mind-reading coroner drove the court crazy

Just as they were about to return to the Dali Temple, the captain suddenly whispered something in Liang Hongkai's ear. He quickly came to Qin Miaoxi and said, "Xiao Qin! Ask here!"

Qin Miaoxi nodded, "Then interrogate them separately."

Soon the people were separated and controlled. In the interrogation room, Liu Ruyan sat quietly on the chair with a calm expression, as if she didn't care about the tense atmosphere around her.

Qin Miaoxi and Liang Hongkai sat opposite her, staring at her sharply.

"Miss Liu, I forgot to ask you just now. Are you sure you didn't use the carriage at night those few days?" Qin Miaoxi asked again, with a hint of doubt in her tone.

Liu Ruyan nodded gently, her voice soft but firm: "Sir, Ruyan really did not use the carriage. I stayed in the building those nights and never went out."

The words were the same, but this time she found the madam and got the guest list, which recorded the days and times of the guests' arrival, which could fully prove her words.

Liang Hongkai quickly flipped through it and found that it was just as she said.

Qin Miaoxi raised her eyebrows and clapped her hands. A yamen runner came over with a thin middle-aged man. "Sir Liang, the brothel's driver is here."

Liang Hongkai nodded and motioned for the driver to come in.

The man had a look of fear on his face as he saluted cautiously, "Greetings...Greetings, Your Excellency!"

"Are you the brothel's coachman?" Qin Miaoxi asked coldly.

The driver nodded quickly, his voice trembling: "Yes... yes, I am a villain."

"Have you driven out in a carriage at night these days?" Qin Miaoxi asked directly.

The driver was stunned for a moment, then shook his head: "No... no. I have been staying in the building at night these past few days and have not gone out."

Qin Miaoxi narrowed her eyes, her tone oppressive: "Then do you know that someone has used your carriage?"

The driver's face changed, and he stammered, "This... I'm not sure."

"Don't know?" Qin Miaoxi sneered, "You're the coachman, how could you not know whether the carriage has been used or not?"

The driver was frightened by her aura and shuddered, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.

He hesitated for a moment, and finally whispered, "I...I've been drunk these days, so...so I'm not very clear."

"Drunk?"

Qin Miaoxi raised her eyebrows, and said with a hint of sarcasm, "The brothel is open for business at night. How can you, as a coachman, get drunk?"

The driver smiled awkwardly and explained in a low voice: "I...I got some good wine these days, and I couldn't help myself, so I drank a few more glasses. As a result...I ended up drunk."

Qin Miaoxi looked at him coldly, with a hint of disdain in her tone: "Good wine? Where can you get good wine from as a coachman?"

The driver's expression changed, and he looked at Liu Ruyan with a veiled gaze. He stammered, "This... this was given to me by the girl in the building."

Qin Miaoxi narrowed her eyes, turned to look at Liang Hongkai, and whispered, "Sir Liang, don't trust everything the driver says. I suspect he's hiding something."

Liang Hongkai nodded and said in a deep voice, "Indeed, it's strange for a driver to get drunk while on duty. Moreover, he has a 'good drink'. It seems that torture will be necessary to make him tell the truth."

After he finished speaking, two yamen runners approached step by step at Liang Hongkai's signal. The driver was so frightened that his face turned pale. Finally, he collapsed and knelt on the ground and said, "Sir, spare my life! I said that it was Miss Liu who gave me the wine."

Qin Miaoxi and the others immediately looked at the woman sitting quietly beside them, "Liu Ruyan?"

"Yes, yes, it's Miss Liu."

Qin Miaoxi sneered: "You are lying, Miss Liu is the most beautiful woman in the building, why would she send wine to you, a coachman?"

The driver shook his head repeatedly, "No, I'm not lying. It really was Miss Liu. One day, I was traveling with Miss Liu when a stray dog ​​suddenly rushed out on the road, startling the horses and causing the carriage to flip over. I saved Miss Liu, and she gave me some wine out of gratitude. She also specifically told me to rest and recover from my injuries."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the interrogation room suddenly became tense.

Liang Hongkai looked at Liu Ruyan with a sharp glint in his eyes, and said in a deep voice: "Shouldn't Miss Liu explain?"

Liu Ruyan remained calm as she said calmly, "Sir, I did give him a few glasses of wine, but they were just ordinary wine. I don't drink on a normal day. I gave them to the driver after I knew he liked wine. I also gave him a hundred taels of silver as a thank you for saving my life."

"Yes, yes, there is still one hundred taels of silver." The driver responded hurriedly.

Qin Miaoxi looked at her coldly: "Miss Liu, since you know that he saved you and specifically told him to rest more and recover from his injuries, why did you reward him with wine? Don't you know that you can't drink when you are injured?"

Liu Ruyan smiled faintly, her tone filled with helplessness: "Sir, Ruyan just wanted to please him. I didn't expect him to drink despite his injuries, let alone that he was drunk every night."

Qin Miaoxi narrowed her eyes. She was about to ask again when she suddenly heard a noise coming from outside the door.

"Oh no! Liu Ruyan's room is on fire!"

Qin Miaoxi was startled and quickly stood up and rushed out. Liang Hongkai followed closely behind, leaving only Liu Ruyan and the driver in the interrogation room.

The fire spread rapidly and thick smoke billowed from the backyard of the brothel.

When Qin Miaoxi arrived, she saw that Liu Ruyan's room had been engulfed in flames.

"Put out the fire!" Liang Hongkai shouted, and the yamen runners took action.

Qin Miaoxi stood outside the fire scene, watching everyone pour bucket after bucket of water into the fire, and the raging fire was gradually brought under control.

Liang Hongkai asked sharply, "How did it catch fire?"

The yamen runners investigated inside the house and quickly found out the cause of the fire. "Your Excellency, it was the incense burner inside that accidentally ignited the gauze curtain, which caused the fire."

"incense burner?"

"Yes, the windows in the house were open. The wind must have blown away the lingering incense ashes."

Liang Hongkai couldn't help but recall that they had indeed smelled the scent of burning incense when they first entered Liu Ruyan's boudoir. After a moment's hesitation, he gave the order, "Come here, seal off the area immediately and search Liu Ruyan's room thoroughly to see if there's anything suspicious!"

The yamen runners responded immediately and quickly began to search.

Qin Miaoxi turned around and returned to the interrogation room, and found Liu Ruyan still sitting there calmly, as if she didn't care about the fire outside.

"Miss Liu, your room is on fire, did you know?" Qin Miaoxi asked coldly.

Liu Ruyan nodded gently, her tone calm, "I just heard from the officials. Ruyan was also surprised and didn't know why the fire started."

Qin Miaoxi narrowed her eyes and asked tentatively, "Miss Liu, is there anything important in your room? Could someone have deliberately set the fire to destroy something?"

Liu Ruyan smiled faintly, her tone calm, "You are joking, sir. Ruyan's room only contains some ordinary clothes and jewelry, nothing important. As for arson, Ruyan doesn't even know where to start."

Qin Miaoxi stared into her eyes, trying to see something from her expression, but Liu Ruyan's face remained calm, without any flaws, not even her inner voice.

At this moment, Liang Hongkai hurried in and whispered to Qin Miaoxi, "Xiao Qin, we found some burnt papers in Liu Ruyan's room. Although most of them have been burned, some words can still be vaguely seen."

"What's the content?" Qin Miaoxi asked immediately with a gleam in her eyes, but her gaze was fixed on Liu Ruyan.

Liang Hongkai shook his head imperceptibly and whispered, "It's still unclear at the moment, but we've had it taken away for a thorough inspection. Perhaps we can find a clue."

Qin Miaoxi showed a surprised look, turned to look at Liu Ruyan, and said in a cold tone: "Miss Liu, it seems that your room is not as 'ordinary' as you said."

However, Liu Ruyan remained calm. "Sir, there are indeed only some ordinary things in Ruyan's room. As for those papers, they might be some poems that Ruyan wrote every day. Burning them is not a big deal."

Qin Miaoxi sneered: "Really? Then let's wait and see what secrets are hidden in these 'poems'."

Liu Ruyan smiled slightly and said no more.

Just then, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door. A yamen runner hurried in, his face solemn. "Master Liang, Coroner Qin, we found something in the driver's quarters. You'd better go and take a look."

Qin Miaoxi and Liang Hongkai looked at each other, then immediately stood up and followed the bailiff out.

Liu Ruyan looked at their backs, a complicated look flashed across her eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.

The driver's residence was a simple hut in the backyard of the brothel.

When Qin Miaoxi and Liang Hongkai arrived, they saw that the house was in a mess, with clothes and other miscellaneous items scattered on the floor.

"What did you find?" Liang Hongkai asked in a deep voice.

The yamen runner pointed to a secret compartment in the corner and whispered, "Sir, look here."

Qin Miaoxi walked forward and carefully examined the secret compartment, and found a package hidden inside.

She opened the package and found a stack of banknotes and some letters inside.