Tang riddles

At about the third quarter of Shenchu, Murong Fu and his party came to the Jingzhaoyin Mansion Office located in Guangde Square, Chang'an.Jinchangfang, where the Daci'en Temple is located, is located in the southeast of Chang'an City, while Guangdefang is located in the west-central part. The group of people traveled half of Chang'an City to arrive, and it took nearly three quarters of an hour to travel all the way. .

Along the way, Shen Sui fell into deep thought while riding on a horse. Du Yan and Wei Han who were on the side wanted to talk to her, but seeing that she was absent-minded, they didn't speak.Du Yan started talking with Wei Han in a low voice, and the object of discussion was Shen Sui.

"In my opinion, Captain Shen is truly extraordinary, no wonder he was recommended by so many people." Wei Han said.

Although Du Yan is a rough man, his character is not arrogant, and he also likes to make friends with heroic people.Shen Sui's performance today aroused his great interest, although Shen Sui caused him a lot of trouble to some extent, he didn't take it seriously.Hearing what Wei Han said, he couldn't help immediately echoing:

"His lightness kung fu is really unprecedented. He is so handsome that he seems to have the style of Taoism. When I traveled to the south of the Yangtze River in the early years, I met a Taoist priest surnamed Tao in Runzhou. He is really a fairy. Captain Shen's kung fu It's really similar to that Daoist's kung fu."

"Oh? Are you talking about Tao Tongming's descendants?" Wei Han said immediately.

"Who is Tao Tongming?" Du Yan was confused.

Wei Han rolled his eyes, knowing that Du Yan didn't like reading, and he didn't have much ink in his stomach, so he patiently explained:

"It's Mr. Tao Hongjing Tongming, the master of the Qing Taoist sect in Maoshan. In the Southern Liang Dynasty, he was known as the prime minister of the mountain, and he was a master of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism." [Note 1]

"Oh! It's really possible." Du Yan clapped his palms suddenly, "The Taoist priest I know is Maoshan Taoist priest."

Wei Han rolled his eyes and thought, "I heard that Shen Bozhao is from Runzhou. Could it be that he really studied under the Shangqing School?"That's a big deal.The two Taoist national masters around today's saints are Tianshi He from the Zhongnan Shaoyang School, and Tianshi Sima from the Maoshan Shangqing School.Among them, the name of "Shaoyang Golden Pill, Shangqing Fuzhuan" is well known to the people in the Gyeonggi area.The work of the Shangqing school's talisman to exorcise evil spirits can be described as supernatural power, which is extremely profound.Ordinary people have learned [-]% to [-]% of the superficial boxing and kicking kung fu, and they can beat the martial arts.

Thinking about it again, Captain Shen is a clever mind. Under the heavy pressure of solving the case, he doesn't show any panic, and he is able to handle tasks with ease. He really has an extraordinary bearing.These characters are by no means ordinary, but they must be friends with each other.

At the moment, Shen Sui was listed as a key partner in his heart.

Shen Sui didn't care what the two of them were thinking, she was thinking about something more important to her.As for the Ci'en case, she already had a rough guess in her mind, but there was still a lack of evidence to support it, so she didn't think about it for the time being.What made her even more troubled was Zhang Ruohan.Today's encounter is not accidental, nor is it inevitable.Shen Sui knew in advance that Zhang Ruohan was probably in Ci'en Temple, but she didn't know that Zhang Ruohan lived in the west of the abbot's courtyard.So today, they did meet by chance.

This was not within Shen Sui's plan, and her identity might have aroused Zhang Ruohan's suspicion, which made her a little unexpected, and she couldn't help thinking about countermeasures.When she returned to Chang'an, it was indeed within the plan to find Zhang Ruohan, but it was not so early.She originally planned to find her after gaining a firm foothold in Chang'an, but now the matter is too early.And as she expected, with Zhang Ruohan's sensitivity, she noticed something was wrong almost instantly.

Shen Sui did not completely hide her identity, she gave Zhang Ruohan some hints.However, now is definitely not the time to reveal his identity and recognize her.So she deliberately released a lot of smoke/popping out, trying to confuse Zhang Ruohan.Now it depends on her urgent response, whether she can really fool Zhang Ruohan.Shen Sui had no idea, she felt that with Zhang Ruohan's ingenuity, she might be able to clear the fog and point to the vital point after a few careful considerations.At that time, I am afraid that the plan will be changed.

Thinking of this, I couldn't help but sigh wryly, the plan really couldn't keep up with the changes.Since she was a child, she was overwhelmed by the lotus maid sister, and until now, she still has no progress, and there is really no way to cheat in front of her.

Thinking of Zhang Ruohan who was dressed in white, as clear as snow and as pure as lotus, Shen Sui's eyes became tender and tender.I haven't seen Sister Lian Mai for many years. Even though her intelligence network has sent news about her every ten days, it is still not worth seeing her in person.The backlog of thoughts and memories of the past, when seeing her familiar figure, gushed out like a spring, and she almost couldn't hold it back.

In the past, she was not as tall as her, and they were close childhood playmates; today they meet each other, but he is already much taller than her.However, Sister Lotus Maid is still the same as she remembers, as if she has never changed.She knew very well what kind of pain Sister Lian Mai had experienced in these years, and her life was no easier than her own, so that her life's happiness was delayed.So he desperately tried to get back to her, at all costs.

She once swore to protect Sister Lianbi for the rest of her life, and she would never leave her. She didn't want to break her promise.

Seeing that the Jingzhao government office was just around the corner, Qin Zhen lifted the curtain of the carriage, intending to say hello to Shen Sui.But when he saw Shen Sui who was driving beside his car, the sadness and pain in his lowered eyes could not be concealed.Qin Zhen couldn't help but choked his throat, unable to utter a single word he wanted to say, and finally put down the curtain of the car, but his eyes under his brows were full of doubts.

The horses and chariots stopped in front of the government office, Shen Sui calmed down and dismounted.After handing over the reins and whips to the horse slaves in Jingzhao Mansion, a group of people marched into Jingzhao Mansion.The impatient Murong Fu took Qin Zhen and Shen Sui directly to the dungeon, Wei Han and Du Yan were still by his side, and at the same time, they had already called a servant, and hurried to meet Wu Zuo, who was in charge of the Ci'en case, in the dungeon.

The Fuzuo of Jingzhao Mansion are specially raised, there are about five or six people, all of whom are official slaves, two veteran Fuzuo, and the rest are their apprentices.Most of these people have no father or mother, and have no family for a long time.After being dispatched as an official slave, he was assigned to Jingzhao Mansion as a slave. He studied with his former master as a master since he was a child, and made a living.Although the status is low and humble, Jingzhao Mansion cannot do without these people in the investigation.However, the identity of the author is still something that people can't avoid.The officials of the Jingzhao Mansion and the soldiers of the prison government generally would not interact with him unless they had to do business as a last resort.

When Shen Sui and his party arrived at the door of the dungeon morgue, the assistant had already arrived ahead of time, out of breath.Seeing Murong Fu, the immediate superior official, he immediately accepted his head and bowed.This foreman is a small man, surnamed Zhao, six-year-old, in his forties, dark skin, thin body, a little stooped back, his face looks very wretched, and his obsequiousness is very inconspicuous.However, Shen Sui noticed that his hands were not the calloused hands of a rough worker, but very delicate, and his skin was strangely pale.Shen Sui couldn't help but bend the corners of his lips, and said in his heart: As expected of Jingzhao Mansion, it should be able to raise a man who is not just a waste of food.

"Zhao Liu, stop saluting, and open the door quickly." Murong Fu frowned and said impatiently.The dirty air and dirty environment in the dungeon made the pampered official Jingzhao very uncomfortable.If it hadn't been for a big case like the Charity case happened on his grounds, he would basically never come to the dungeon.

"Here." Zuo Zhao Liu hastily took out the key from his waist and opened the door of the mortuary.

The door opened, Zhao Liu bowed his waist and stood aside with his hands down, but Murong Fu didn't go in, and said to Shen Sui:

"Brother Bozhao, please."

Shen Sui sneered in his heart, but smiled kindly on his face:

"Your Majesty and Lord Qin, please stay put, Sui will finish the inspection soon."

After finishing speaking, he stepped into the morgue in one step.Originally, this dungeon was very gloomy and cold, but now that I entered, I felt that the temperature had dropped again, which was extremely bone-chilling.There was an unpleasant smell in the damp and cold air. There were three mortuary beds lined up in the small room, two of which had people lying on them. They were covered from head to toe with white cloths. It seemed ghostly in the darkness. It makes people goosebumps.In this environment, it's no wonder Murong Fu didn't want to come in.

Shen Sui didn't even blink his eyes, and with a familiar swipe of his right hand around his waist, the white folded cloth glove hanging on the belt was taken off, and he put it on his hand.Then she said to Zhao Liu:

"Mr. Zhao, please light some candles. There is not enough light in this room, so I can't see clearly. I'm afraid I missed something."

Outside the morgue, Murong Fu and the others raised their eyebrows when they heard that, Shen Sui actually called Zhao Liu "Gong Zhao", which is an amazing title.Generally, the word "work" is added after a person's surname, which means that the person's occupation is a craftsman's occupation.Scholars, peasants, businessmen and slaves are cheap, and Shen Sui directly promoted Zhao Liu, who was in the "low" class, to the "worker" class. Even if it was a polite word, it greatly promoted Zhao Liu.

Zhao Liu was terrified and froze in place.Until Shen Sui called again:

"Gong Zhao?"

Only then did he realize that he stopped lighting candles, and hastily removed the turpentine oil lamp on the wall of the cell not far away, and carried it into the morgue.Shen Sui waited for him to approach, then said:

"Just stand by and hold the lamp for me."

"Here." Zhao Liu bowed and nodded, showing a little more respect to Shen Sui in his expression and tone.

Shen Sui removed the white cloth from the first corpse, and saw the body of an old monk.This person is Abbot Miaopu, who is lying quietly in front of Shen Sui at this moment, with a serene face, slightly frowsed brows, a sickly ruddy complexion, and the overall appearance of death is quite peaceful.

After uncovering the white cloth, Shen Sui formed an Amitabha seal with both hands, opened his lips and whispered "Namo Amitabha Ye Sua Poha" [Note 2], praying for the soul of the deceased to return to the west, and then began to examine the body.Wearing gloves, she carefully looked at the corpse inch by inch, starting from the head, not missing any detail.

After the autopsy, out of respect for the deceased, his clothes will be put back on.Shen Sui once again took off the snow-white clothes covering the corpse.After checking the front, turn the body over and check the back.After doing this again, she straightened the body upright, put on her clothes, and covered it with a white cloth.The only thing worth noting is that the thumb and index finger of the abbot's right hand were stained with a little golden powder.This powder had a strange fragrance, which Shen Sui had seen in the charcoal of the brazier in the abbot's meditation room.

Then she uncovered the white cloth on the second mortuary bed again, and saw Shan Yin.The middle-aged monk has a simple face, firm lines, tall, beardless, and pale.Due to the long time of death, the muscles were atrophied, and the expression on his face had already become distorted, losing his true appearance.But the strangle marks on the neck are very conspicuous.Shen Sui first checked the strangulation marks, the traces of a whole thick hemp rope were very clear, and the Adam's apple neck bone had been shattered and broken, as if he was hanged instantly with great strength.And his pair of arms were extremely strong, which caught Shen Sui's attention.

Shen Sui measured the length of Shanyin's arm by hand measuring the cloth ruler [Note 3], and raised his eyebrows after the measurement.Then she took a closer look at Shan Yin's hand. The fingers were thick and short, the palm was broad and long, and the center of the three-joint pulp of each finger, as well as the palm mound between the fingers and the palm, were covered with thick calluses.There is no callus in the tiger's mouth, and the thumb position is slightly lower, which looks very unusual.

Shen Sui didn't change his expression, put on his uniform again for Shanyin, and covered it with white cloth.Then he said to Zhao Liu:

"Gong Zhao, where are the clothes of the two deceased?"

"Yes, yes." Zhao Liu hurriedly took out a package from an open door cabinet not far away, inside which were neatly stacked two sets of monk robes, which were the clothes Miaopu and Shanyin were wearing at that time.

Shen Sui opened the two sets of monk robes and examined them carefully.There was a charred smell on the abbot's monk robe, but after a long time, the smell dissipated a lot, and a little bit of gold powder could be vaguely discerned from it.Other than that, nothing special.

Shanyin's monk's robe seemed to have been wet once, and then dried in the shade.Thinking about it is also true, hanging on the Big Wild Goose Pagoda in a snowy day, the body is covered with snow, and the clothes are naturally wet after the snow melts.The clothes are a little wrinkled, but there's not much doorway to be seen.However, on Shanyin's monk's trousers, there were a few faint white marks on the knees and calves, and some unknown white particles condensed on them.Shen Sui raised his eyebrows, knowing it well.

Then she took a closer look at Shan Yin's shoes.When the abbot died, he was indoors without shoes, so he only had Shanyin's monk's shoes.The monk's shoes are wet, although they have been hidden in this dark and cold room for many days, so they are still not dry.Part of the sand was left on the bottom and sides of the monk's shoes, with white particles mixed in between.This situation was also beyond Shen Sui's expectation.

After checking all these, Shen Sui left the morgue first, and Zhao Liu cleaned up behind.Murong Fuben outside looked curiously, seeing Shen Sui coming out, he straightened his face and pretended to straighten his robes.Du Yan and Wei Han looked weird behind them, wanting to laugh but not daring.Qin Zhen didn't have any scruples, shook his head amusedly, and thought: Murong Fu is a person who is sometimes hateful, but he is also an interesting person.

"I heard that someone saw the palm print of a strange ape appearing on the snow of the Wild Goose Pagoda. I don't know if this is true or not?" Shen Sui asked the first sentence after he came out.

"It's true, a certain family saw it with their own eyes." Du Yan replied.

"What records can be left?" Shen Sui asked again.

When Du Yan heard it, he immediately laughed, and cheerfully took out a carefully folded piece of paper from his bosom, handed it to Shen Sui as if offering a treasure, and said:

"A certain family drew the palm print at that time, please Shen Yihui to have a look."

Shen Sui let out a light sigh, she had given up hope at first, but she didn't expect that a rough guy like Du Yan would know to draw his palm prints, it was indeed beyond her expectation.

After receiving the paper, Shen Sui opened it and frowned.

What is this painting about?A few lines were crudely sketched on the paper, which looked like a mess, and it could not be seen that it was a palm print at all.

Sighing, Shen Sui folded the paper, put it in his sleeve pocket, cupped his hands and said:

"All superiors and colleagues, the first round of investigation is over. I have some conjectures, but they haven't formed a system yet. It's not early today. Let me go back and think carefully about it. Let's talk about it tomorrow, how about it?"

Murong Fu and Qin Zhen looked at each other, and they also felt that this matter should not be rushed. If you are tired today, haste makes waste.So he nodded in agreement.In this way, a group of people made an appointment to meet at the meeting hall of Jingzhao Mansion before tomorrow, and they left one after another.

Shen Sui and Qin Zhen left the gate of Jingzhao Mansion together, and Qin Zhen asked her:

"Do you have a clue?"

Shen Sui said with a smile: "There are still a lot of nerve-wracking things. But this case may not be as complicated as we imagined."

Qin Zhen nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

On the cobblestone road in the residual snow under the setting sun, Shen Sui got on his horse, and together with Qin Zhen's chariot and horse, they went back to the house accompanied by the sound of evening drums.

The author has something to say: There are many notes in this chapter.

【Note 1】Tao Hongjing, courtesy name Tongming, is a native of Nanjing, Jiangsu today.A famous medical scientist, alchemist, and writer in the Nanliang period.He is one of the founders of the Maoshan Taoist school, who is the author of the famous "Notes on Materia Medica" and "Ji Jin Dan Huang Bai Fang".He once served as an official in the imperial court, but later avoided the world and went to Jurong Maoshan Road. Because Emperor Wu of the Southern Liang Dynasty worshiped Buddhism, he had to become a monk.Masters of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, all-round talents.

【Note 2】Namo Amitabha Ye Sua Poha is a simplified version of the first and last sentence of "The Curse of Rebirth". "Namo Amitabha Ye" means returning to the Buddha of Immeasurable Light, and "Suo Po He" means achieving perfection.There is a section in the middle, not long, if you are interested, you can check it out.

【Note 3】The cloth ruler is measured by hand, which is to measure the length of the thumb and middle finger or the length of the thumb and little finger after opening. This unit is generally used to cut cloth and make clothes.In ancient times, at first, the length of the thumb and middle finger of a man was used as the ruler, and later it was changed to a woman, called it.Right hand is slightly smaller than chi.So close to the horizon, that's where it came from.

Also, let me emphasize that the "sister lotus maid" in the article refers to Zhang Ruohan.Her small character is Lotus Maid, this name is usually called by people with very close relationships.