Wang Zhiyu was preconceived, and like Liu Tingyuan of the Zhejiang Party, he characterized this case as a conspiracy to assassinate the prince in his heart.

Then, it was logical to deduce that the murderer behind the scenes must be Zheng Guifei.

Now that he has reached a conclusion, Wang Zhiyu felt that every performance of the murderer was in line with his inference.

For example, after Lord Wang first saw the murderer named Zhang Cha, he concluded that this guy was definitely not a madman.

He ordered someone to bring the bench, sat on the bench and interrogated the errand, and asked: "From the truth, who instructed you to break into the East Palace and assassinate His Royal Highness the Prince!" ”

"Huh? What assassinated His Royal Highness the Prince? Zhang Cha was stunned, confused.

"If you dare to pretend to be stupid and crazy with this official, you can't think that the legal tools of the Criminal Department are not successful!" Wang Zhihuan snorted angrily.

Seeing that the jailer was about to get the torture instrument, Zhang Cha was frightened, and he also realized something, and shouted: "Wronged, wronged!" How dare the villain assassinate His Royal Highness the Prince! ”

Wang Zhiyu asked: "Didn't you assassinate His Highness, what are you doing in the East Palace with a murder weapon!" ”

Zhang Cha was stunned, and said with a half-sound: "Back to the adult, the villain is lost." ”

"Lost?"

Wang Zhihuan laughed, pointed at Zhang Cha and said coldly: "Are you a fool to be an official?" Lost will you get lost to the palace? How did you get in? Hurry up and recruit from the official, otherwise the pain of flesh and skin will make you suffer so much. ”

"Don't beat me, don't beat me," Zhang Cha was probably really afraid of being punished, his voice weakened, and he muttered, "I'm here to sue." ”

"Whose complaint are you going to sue, and where are you going?" Wang Zhihuan asked, he didn't believe what Zhang Cha said, and his intuition told him that the truth was about to surface.

Zhang Cha didn't say anything, just repeated that he killed someone in the palace, and he couldn't live anyway, so it was better to give him a good time.

This made Wang Zhiyu angry, what he wanted was a confession!

At this time, Zhang Cha's stomach screamed angrily, Wang Zhihuan took it to heart, asked the jailer to bring delicious food and put it in front of Zhang Cha, and said in a harmonious voice: "If you tell the truth, this official will let you eat." If you don't admit it, you won't be able to escape the punishment, but your stomach will make you hungry. ”

Zhang Cha was really hungry, licked his lips, and wanted to eat, but after thinking about it, he still whispered: "I really dare not say it." ”

Wang Zhiyu waved his hand, signaled the jailer to avoid, and then put the food in front of Zhang Cha with his own hands, and coaxed: "Even if you really commit the crime of killing your head, you must always have a full stomach." ”

Zhang Cha glanced at the fragrant food, and finally confessed after hesitating in his heart.

He said that he owed a large amount of money for gambling with others, and the creditors chased him to collect the debt, so he had no choice but to ask a relative of his who was on an errand in the palace to borrow money. I didn't want that relative, but asked him to go to the East Palace to kill a husband, saying that the husband was the most annoying.

"He told me that as long as I killed that stinky husband, give me money to buy a few acres of land, which is enough for me to last a lifetime..."

Speaking of this, Zhang Cha didn't care what the adults in front of him thought, he reached out and grabbed the food and ate it.

Wang Zhihuan was really confused: Isn't it the assassination of the prince?

He asked, "Where is your relative in office and what is his name?" ”

Zhang Cha refused to say.

Wang Zhiyu had no choice but to threaten him with torture again, and after Zhang Cha trembled, he said that his relatives seemed to be on an errand at the concubine's place.

After receiving this confession, Wang Zhihuan was overjoyed, and ordered the jailer to take care of Zhang Chayan, and hurried to the house of the squire Yang Qiming.

Yang Qiming and Wang Zhihuan are both members of the Donglin Party, and his family is naturally one of the gathering places of Donglin officials.

Since the resignation of Ye Xianggao, the leader of the Donglin Party, Fang Congzhe of the Zhejiang Party presided over the cabinet, so the three parties of Zhejiang, Qi and Chu supported each other to deal with the Donglin Party together, which made the situation of the East Forestry Party in the DPRK not very good.

Those who often come to Yang Qiming's house to gather include Miao Changqi of the Hanlin Academy, Zuo Zhongyun Sun Chengzong, Liu Yixian, the official department examiner, Sun Juxiang, Jiang Bingqian, etc.

When Wang Zhiyu walked into the living room of Yang Qiming's house, he saw Miao Changqi saying to Yang Qiming angrily: "A pillar of history uses the word madness to get rid of the rebellious ministers and thieves; Another pillar of history uses the four characters of the first merit and strange goods to obliterate the loyal ministers and righteous people..."

Wang Zhihuan heard that the first pillar history referred to Liu Tingyuan, the imperial history of the Imperial City of the Zhejiang Party, but who was the second one?

He listened carefully and learned that Miao Changqi was talking about Liu Guangfu, the imperial history of the Chu Party who had twice impeached Li Sancai for embezzling the imperial wood.

Liu Guangfu wrote a letter after hearing about the assassination case in the East Palace yesterday, saying that the traitors in the court wanted to regard the thief Zhang Cha as a strange thing, so as to make the first contribution.

Where is the suspect, whose territory is the criminal department, and who is the treacherous little finger, both inside and outside the court.

Therefore, this Liu Guangfu was regarded as a thorn in the side of Miao Changqi, and he was scolded very lightly.

Seeing Wang Zhiyu coming back, Yang Qiming hurriedly asked with concern, "Have you recruited the thief?" Who did it? ”

"Zhang Cha is not crazy or crazy, he has the heart and courage, and this case is all over the world." When he said this, Wang Zhihuan's eyes lit up.

Everyone shouted these words and listened to them one by one.

Wang Zhihuan told the story of the trial process, and when he heard that the eunuch who instructed Zhang Cha was in the palace of Concubine Zheng Guifei, everyone couldn't help but show joy.

"However, although I know the person who instructed Concubine Zheng to deal with her, that Zhang Cha only confessed that he wanted to beat a husband surnamed Wang, not that he wanted to kill His Royal Highness the Prince, I am afraid it will be difficult to contact Concubine Zheng." Miao Changqi was happy and thought of this key point.

Yang Qiming pondered for a moment, and said to Wang Zhiyu: "Tomorrow, seven officials will be summoned to the trial together, and you will also participate, and Hu Shixiang will preside over the trial. ”

"Did you pass the confession of the chaman?" Wang Zhiyu asked.

Yang Qiming said: "I will immediately write a song and send it into the palace, this matter is all over the world, that is, every word must be handed into the palace in detail, so that no one will do anything from it." ”

Miao Changqi also said: "Yes, you have to prevent Concubine Zheng from jumping off the wall in a hurry!" Do you remember last year's demon rebellion? Obviously, the spearhead of the case was Concubine Zheng, but in the end, Dongchang intervened, not only robbed the prisoner from the prison of the Criminal Department, but also suppressed the case, but this time he couldn't give them another chance. ”

Everyone calculated, and the ink was sharpened during the Miao Chang period, and Yang Qiming picked up the pen and thought for a while, then prepared a recital, and sent someone to the General Administration Department to deliver it.

The Secretary of General Affairs had already received a message from the secretary's office, but the notes and inscriptions about the case of the East Palace were all handed to the palace immediately, so Wanli soon saw Yang Qiming handing over this note.

After seeing it, Wanli went to Yikun Palace.

As soon as he saw Concubine Zheng, Wanli asked angrily: "You tell me the truth, did you send someone to assassinate Chang Luo!" ”

Concubine Zheng was already frightened and panicked by this, because no matter what the truth is, the outside world will definitely link this matter with her, the concubine.

Now her husband came to question her in person, which made her a little frightened, and explained again and again that this matter had nothing to do with her.

"See for yourself!"

Wan Li angrily threw the performance of the criminal department on the body of the concubine Niangniang.

When the concubine picked it up and looked at it, her face suddenly turned pale.

"What else do you have to say! I never thought that you would still have such a heart! How could you do this to my son! ”

Wanli was furious, and the palace people and attendants outside the hall were terrified.

"The concubine has said it many times, this matter is definitely not done by the concubine, and the concubine has no such intention, why doesn't Your Majesty believe the concubine!"

Concubine Zheng Guifei hugged her infant son Pear Blossom with rain, looking very pitiful.

"Not you, or who?"

Wanli trembled angrily, "I remembered, why did you mention the matter of Yu'er becoming a vassal a few days ago, but it turned out that you had this thought!" ”

"Your Majesty, do you really think that it is the concubine who wants to harm the prince?" Concubine Zheng didn't expect her husband to think of herself so much, and she was also heartbroken.

Wanli snorted: "The thief has been handed over to the legal department for strict trial, if anything comes out, I will never tolerate you!" ”

After speaking, he brushed his sleeves and left, leaving only the concubine Niangniang who was alone in a daze.

After a long time, the concubine moved to the bedside, put her young son down, stroked his face and sobbed: "Son, someone wants to harm my mother and son, but now, only your father can save us." ”

After speaking, he covered Chang Yu with a quilt, silently walked to the small hall of the side hall, and handed over a token to the purple girl who had been staying in it.

"Go quickly, let him try to rescue Bengong no matter what, otherwise Bengong's life will not be guaranteed." After the concubine finished speaking, she stuffed a small note into Zheng Zi's hand.

Zheng Zi put the note close to his chest without saying a word, and quietly flashed out of the small hall.