Black Lotus Concubine's Case-solving Notes

"Sir, she is the daughter of the Prime Minister after all. What she said just now..." The blue-robed lawyer followed the prefect out of the back hall, feeling uneasy all the way: "In a few days, someone from the Xie residence will come. If Xie Lanzhao tells the Prime Minister about what happened today and charges us with knowing the truth but not investigating it, what should we do?"

The prefect stepped into the sedan chair that had been waiting outside the Chen Mansion for a long time, opened the curtain but did not enter, just turned to the lawyer and said: "Master, don't panic, she is just a concubine's daughter. I heard that her mother was a prostitute in the past. She had eight lifetimes of luck to be favored by the prime minister and changed her status into a slave, but it was a pity that she died of dystocia during childbirth. Now her father doesn't love her, her aunt is gone, and she has a notorious stepmother. What is there to be afraid of? Moreover, if Wang Da hadn't been murderous and poisoned the whole family, Xie Lanzhao would have died of old age in this stone city. If she is really smart, she should be grateful!"

The lawyer forced himself to smile, but for some reason his heart was beating so fast, as if he had a premonition that something big was about to happen.

"Just send someone to keep an eye on Xie Lanzhao in the next few days. Once the people from the Xie residence arrive, this matter will be over."

The lawyer could only nod and say yes.

The prefect nodded and was about to enter the sedan chair, but just as he took a step, he suddenly felt something strange, as if a pair of eyes were staring at him in the darkness. He turned around and looked, but there was no one in the darkness.

Was he too sensitive? The prefect frowned and was about to order someone to search the dark place, but he heard the housekeeper of the Chen residence urging him, saying that his master had been waiting for a long time, so he had to give up and leave in the sedan chair of the Chen residence.

The Chen Mansion's sedan chair went all the way west and finally stopped at the largest restaurant in Shicheng - Huamanlou.

The prefect tightened his clothes at the door and raised his hand to straighten his hat. Then he went in with his entourage. A group of people entered one after another, and no one noticed the dark shadow following in from the side door of the restaurant.

Several people were toasting each other in the private room of Hua Man Lou. After three rounds of drinks, the prefect's face turned red and there was a hint of drunkenness in his eyes.

Chen Zixing picked up his wine glass and said with a smile: "The prefect has a good alcohol tolerance!"

"How can this humble official compare to the young marquis!" The prefect held up the wine glass in awe and said, "The young marquis is the young hero of the time, and his drinking capacity makes this humble official feel ashamed. The young marquis was already famous in the capital, and his visit to Shicheng really brought honor to this county. This humble official's admiration for the young marquis is as deep as the Yellow River..."

"Forget it," Chen Zixing was tired of the flattery and said, "I will not beat around the bush. I asked the prefect to come here today because of the murder of the Wang family in Shicheng. I heard that the murderer Wang Da has already pleaded guilty?"

The prefect looked up at Chen Zixing. In the backlight, Chen Zixing's facial features were more three-dimensional and distinct, with a pair of sharp eyes like an eagle. For some reason, the prefect felt a sense of fear when he was stared at by these eyes, as if he was a prey waiting to be slaughtered.

"My Lord, Wang Da has been imprisoned and will be executed in the autumn. The horrific poisoning case has also been closed." The prefect unconsciously raised his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"It would be best if the case is closed, but I heard a rumor these days that someone saw me see this hunter Wang before the crime," Chen Zixing smiled jokingly, as if he didn't care about the inexplicably tense atmosphere in the private room at this time. "That person said it in a serious manner, saying that I made a bet with my friend, betting on whether Wang Da cherished his own life more or the lives of his family more. What's more, he said that I forced Wang Da to kill him if he didn't kill his relatives. Sir, do you think I am wronged?"

This was clearly a way for him to choose. The prefect felt his scalp explode, as if a knife was on his neck. He knelt down and said, "The Marquis also said that this is a rumor! It can't be true! I will go back and investigate this matter. I will find the person who spread the rumor and make sure that the Marquis will never hear this person's nonsense again!"

After a long silence, Chen Zixing smiled slightly and said, "In this case, I will have to trouble you, the prefect. It is a blessing for Shicheng and its people to have a good official like you who can see through everything."

The prefect was sweating profusely: "I dare not, I dare not..."

There was a sound of something heavy falling to the ground. The prefect looked up and saw two square boxes in front of him. The things inside were covered with red silk. He reached out and opened a corner, and was dazzled by the golden color: "This..."

"Please accept it, sir. It is a way to repay Chen for the care you have given me over the years."

If someone wants to overturn Wang Da's case in the future, it will inevitably involve his crimes of corruption and bribery. The so-called favor of taking care of him is nothing more than tying himself with two boxes of gold.

"You should accept it, sir." Seeing the other party's hesitation, Chen Zixing said slowly, "This way, I will feel at ease."

"Then I'd be very sorry to refuse it..." The prefect took it tremblingly and bowed again: "If there is nothing else, I will take my leave first."

After seeing off the prefect, Chen Zixing returned to his true nature, sitting slouched on the rattan chair, and smiled at the screen, "How is General Shen?"

A young man in a white robe walked out from behind the screen. He was only about sixteen or seventeen years old, with long hair tied up tightly and a pair of sword-like eyebrows knitted together. "I never thought there would be such a cruel person in this world. He would poison his entire family just to save his own life, and even spared his pregnant wife. It's really appalling!"

"I think you have stayed in the capital for too long and don't know how treacherous people are. Now that you have come to this stone city, it is worth the trip. It has broadened your horizons, right?"

Shen Jing snorted coldly: "Chen Zixing, this general is willing to admit defeat! What do you want?"

"Then I won't be polite to you, young general. I heard that you recently got a new horse from Dayuan. Three days later, Shicheng will hold the annual polo match. Although I am determined to win this match, if I can get the help of your Ferghana horse, the chances of winning will definitely increase greatly. I wonder if you are willing to give it up?"

"So you were planning to take my good horses!" Shen Jing suddenly felt that he was being tricked.

Chen Zixing did not comment.

"Well," Shen Jing said, "I am unlucky today! I will send someone to deliver the good horse to your house tomorrow, but the horse is fierce and hard to tame, so Young Marquis Chen should be careful, otherwise, not only will you not win the championship at the racecourse, but you will also lose face!"

"You don't have to worry about that, General! No matter if it's a fierce horse or a ferocious beast, I have a way to make it behave itself in my hands!"

"Hmph!" Shen Jing left angrily with his sleeves swung. He paused at the door and turned to examine the people behind him: "I want to know, if Wang Da hadn't killed the whole family that day, would you really have killed him?"

Chen Zixing drank another glass of wine, his expression not caring at all: "What if I kill him? It's just a worthless life anyway."

Shen Jing stood aside for a long time without moving, which reminded him of the case of the suicide of the illegitimate son of the councilor of Tongzhensi in the capital three years ago.

At that time, there were rumors in the capital that the illegitimate son of the council had left a suicide note before committing suicide, saying that he had been persecuted by Chen Zixing, the legitimate son of the Marquis of Loyalty. Chen Zixing instigated him to poison his entire family, and if he did not obey, he would skin him alive and expose his body to the wilderness. The illegitimate son was terrified, with his blood relatives on one hand and his own life on the other. He was torn between the two and was in a state of panic all day long. As the deadline for his final choice approached, he could no longer bear the torture and hanged himself with a white silk thread.

At that time, the case was reported to the Censorate. The counselor of the Tongzhensi was willing to lose his official hat as a fifth-rank official in order to seek justice for his son. Unfortunately, no one in the capital dared to take care of it. Only Feng Jia, the deputy chancellor of the Dali Temple and the first female official in the Dali Dynasty, dared to take it.

Unfortunately, the Feng family was later involved in a corruption case in the capital, and the entire family was executed, and the case was never resolved.

As soon as the evidence of Chen Zixing's crime was found, his family was confiscated and his property was exterminated. There were many different opinions in the capital, all saying that the corruption case was the work of the Loyalty Marquis' Mansion, but unfortunately there was insufficient evidence. After Feng Jia's death, Chen Zixing was forced by public opinion to go to Shicheng to hide three years ago, but he did not expect that he would not only not repent in the past three years, but even worse.

"I made a bet with you that day, and it was you who provoked me. Now I regret it so much," Shen Jing clenched his fists fiercely. "Well, I don't blame you, I just blame myself for being competitive and lacking self-control. But considering that you and I have some relatives in our ancestors, I will give you a tip, Chen Zixing, everyone with a discerning eye can see what you did back then. Although Feng Jia is dead, there is no guarantee that there will be a Wang Jia or Li Jia... If you don't want to hide in this stone city for the rest of your life, I hope you will take care of yourself!"

"You don't need to worry about this, young general!" Chen Zixing was touched in the sore spot and waved his sleeves, "Someone, come! Send the guest away!"

Shen Jing looked at him deeply but said nothing.

The door of the private room was closed again. Chen Zixing threw the wine glass out with force. The glass hit the carved wooden door and immediately broke into pieces. Chen Zixing's handsome face was distorted with anger. He cursed: "Feng Jia! Feng Jia! It's been three years! I have been locked up in this stone city for three years and can't go back to Kyoto because of you! Bitch! Bitch! Your ghost will linger even after you die!"

Chen Zixing was just about to ask someone to clean up the mess when he saw a figure moving slowly outside the willow wood window next to the screen.

"Who?!"

Chen Zixing gave a low shout in alert, and the gatekeepers immediately filed in upon hearing that.

The leader was a man with a dark face and a scar. Chen Zixing gave him a look, and the man immediately understood. He tiptoed towards the willow window, while his hand secretly reached for the dagger at his waist.

The window was opened quickly, but there was nothing in the dark corridor except for a bluegrass plant swaying in the wind on the windowsill.

The window of the private room next door was wide open.

The scarred man quickly climbed across the corridor and looked down toward the window, but he only saw a dark corner of the man disappearing at the end of the alley. He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Chase!"

......

Feng Jia glanced sideways and saw Chen Zixing's minions walking through the downtown area behind him. They would stop and question any suspicious person they saw.

Fortunately, she had learned martial arts in her previous life. Although her body was a little thin in this life and she was not used to using it, it was not so difficult for her to get rid of the tail behind her.

The clothes she used to disguise her identity had long been thrown into the alley. Feng Jia took them for a walk in the troubled area, and then returned to Hua Manlou. She sat down in a noodle shop next to Hua Manlou, ordered a bowl of beef noodle soup, and watched the group of palace soldiers running around like headless flies.

There is nothing darker than the lamp.

After about half an incense stick of time, the beef noodles were finished and Feng Jia drank up the soup. The soldiers came back dejectedly. Feng Jia did not stay any longer and left a few copper coins.

She really didn't expect that the person behind Wang Da was Chen Zixing.

It was Chen Zixing, the son of Marquis Zhongyi, whom she almost sent to Beisi Prison three years ago.

Feng Jia lay on her side in the temporary residence arranged for her by the prefect. Looking at the dark night scene around her, she couldn't help but sigh that enemies often meet on a narrow road.

In this life, she will take back the price she didn't make him pay in the last life, with interest!

Chen Zixing, stay tuned, I, Feng Jiading, will give you a big gift at the polo match in three days!