Fan Jin asked Xia Menghai about the details of Zhou Shichen's case, but he didn't hear anything else. According to its description, Lotus and the other three people will be beaten every time they pass through the criminal department, and their skin will not be human, especially when it comes to the royal family, and the punishment is even more severe, even to the point of non-torture.

These three people are not able to be tortured, and every time they are beaten, they are almost killed in the public court several times. However, every time he returned to the cell, he began to cry out for injustice again, and he would inevitably retract his last confession before he was executed. Wang Kui bluntly said that he didn't know anything about Zhou Shichen's murder, and Lu Jin even said that he went to Wang Kui to drink and didn't know anything. Because he was afraid of officials, when he heard that a soldier came to the door, he subconsciously hid under the bed, not because he was a thief.

According to Lotus's description, that night she packed up her bed as usual and prepared to serve Zhou Shichen to rest, when she suddenly heard movement. She was timid, so she hid behind the screen and didn't dare to move, only to see a few robbers rushing in and attacking Zhou Shichen with weapons. The two fought each other until Zhou Shichen died, and the robbers found the silver on the table and took it away. Because she came and went in a hurry, she didn't find that there was a woman hiding there, and a few taels of silver were missing, she picked these taels of silver because she wanted to be used as evidence, and because she was a woman, she didn't dare to go to the yamen to find Wang Kui, just because she wanted her to report to the official, and she didn't want to eat the lawsuit instead.

In the whole case, Lotus's confession was the most valuable clue, but no one cared about it at the time. Weng Dali was anxious to close the case, lest the lion of the Qingyun Hou family open his mouth and ask for too much compensation through this matter. Moreover, he himself hates slaves and bullies his masters the most, and he advocates redoing it.

Zhang Guowei is responsible for maintaining the ground, and if according to the lotus confession, the ground in Beijing is not quiet, resulting in the dignified relatives being killed by robbers, his position will be unstable. But the slave and maid colluded with the master, which has nothing to do with the Five Cities Terracotta Division, starting from his own interests, of course, he also hopes to condemn the sin on the lotus, which is also human nature.

The whole case became an iron case in such an atmosphere of interests, and it can be regarded as an explanation to the Zhou family. Afterwards, Lotus and other three people's families, some people also came out to file lawsuits, and even beat the drum of grievances, and finally it was over.

The case became an iron case, and the people were killed two years ago, considering that the three families were not rich and noble, but they were not asked to pay any money. Since then, the three families have stopped making trouble, but they heard that Wang Kui's mother died of depression shortly after her son was killed. Lotus's mother washed her face with tears all day long, crying and becoming blind. This kind of thing has happened a lot in Jingshi, and no one sympathizes with it, and no one cares.

Fan Jin said: "If Wang Kui was bought to kill people, how could he use an axe to split the door?" Wang Kui himself has the key, and he can use the key to open the door and enter, Zhou Shichen is defenseless and easier to kill. Moreover, Lu Jin was a coward who was so frightened that he hid under the bed when he saw the official, and where did he have the courage to carry a knife to kill the imperial family. Not all butchers are generally powerful. Also, the lotus mentioned silver, didn't Zhou Shichen say that life is average, where did the silver come from? ”

Xia Menghai said: "Before Zhou Shichen was killed, he just got a sum of money, a full one hundred and fifty taels of silver. According to Lotus, the money was intended to be used by him to beg for a lady, so he didn't save it, so he kept it at home. I didn't want to be killed before I could do anything. After the search, only a few taels of broken silver were found, and the whole amount of silver was not seen. ”

"Is there a murder weapon?"

"Butchers, there are knives, and ordinary people have axes. But on the knife and axe, there was no trace of human blood. ”

"So how is this case concluded? Weng Sikou is also a serious old minister, so he can't just be confused, right? When I was in Jiangning, although I had no formal meeting with him, I had heard that he had some means to handle cases. is known as the iron-faced selfless, and the iron case is like a mountain, such a second-iron coward will not arbitrarily judge the case, right? ”

Xia Menghai sneered, "In addition to these two irons, Weng Rushen also has one iron, which is called Tiekou Zhixuan. He said that what it is, it is what it is, and no one should be left to beak. He is old and old, and others don't dare to mess with him, and over time he is what he says, where there is a place for others to talk more. In this case, he bit one, the prisoner has already confessed in the Soldiers and Horses Division, so it must have been done by them, otherwise how could he confess? As for going to the criminal department to shout injustice, it was the criminals who deliberately came to the hall to endure the punishment in order to evade the royal law, which is not credible. The silver can be hidden somewhere, the knife and axe have been thrown away, and the door splitting is to divert attention, so the suspicion is set. At that time, the three principals in the court thought that his judgment was too hasty, but after all, Weng Sikou was the presiding judge, what could the others do? Now that this dossier is taken out, if you bite this one, you can try to retract the confession, but someone must ask, since you said that the person was not killed by the lotus, who killed it? If this pot is dropped, who will take it? ”

He drank the wine in one gulp and threw another piece of duck meat into his mouth. "Fan Chuanyu, Xia sees that you are a good person, and your teacher is even more rare to see a gentleman, so he is kind enough to say a few more words. There are never many smart people in Jingshi, and what you can see, others may not see. But why don't others speak, leaving such a big flaw for you to find? It's nothing more than everyone knows that if a flaw is pulled out, there must be ten flaws waiting for you to close the cracks, and you really can't make it. Lotus is not your wife, Wang Kui and the others have nothing to do with you, and they can't stand up for them. Besides, it was Gao Ge who finally decided this case, he was in a hurry to do something big, so he casually approved it, with his instructions, who would dare to overturn this case? Dali Temple, Ducha Yuan, there are many people who understand it, but the more you understand, the more you can't touch this hot steamed bun. You are a second-class heir, and your future future is in the Hanlin Academy, not in this criminal department. Learn from other Jinshi, draw a mao every day, and then find a place to sit, drink a few cups of tea, read a few files, and pretend to look at it regardless of whether you understand it or not. When you get into the hall selection, it's not very good to enter the Hanlin Academy, so why bother for this little thing? Besides, many people back then are still there, if you miss your future for the sake of irrelevant people, you can't draw it. ”

Fan Jin said with a smile: "What Xia Siku said is the right thing in the world, and Fan is very grateful, but in Fan's opinion, Xia Siku, you haven't put it down yourself, otherwise you wouldn't have told me so much." ”

"My family has worked in the criminal department for several lifetimes, and I have seen countless unjust prisoners and ghosts, and I am used to it." Xia Menghai patted his big belly, "Smile often, laugh at the ridiculous people in the world; The belly can be tolerated, and the world can not tolerate things. If you can't cultivate at my level, how can you stay in the Criminal Department? However, my Taoism really didn't get home, and every time I think of those prisoners shouting injustice in the court, crying wolf howls with burnt skin and rotten flesh burned by a soldering iron, and still shouting injustice, I always feel uncomfortable in my heart. It's not a peace of mind that can be bought back by giving them a few dollars to their family, and when they sleep at night, they will have nightmares. Of course, I hope that someone can clarify this case, give peace to the dead, and justice to the living. But this is too difficult, Fan Chuanyu is not a local, what can I do to check these? With this request, it is difficult for a strong man, such a bastard request, Lao Xia can't speak. Besides, you are a promising jinshi, but you generally have no patience to listen to this kind of murder, and you can't give yourself a reputation or hope, so what does he do? It's rare that you have a good heart, willing to listen and think, just for this, I'll talk to you, but I can't let you get involved. ”

Fan Jin said: "Xia Siku's kindness is a blessing for the prisoner. If everyone in the criminal department can have an unbearable heart and not act recklessly to kill, the common people in the world will be saved. As for this case, Fan wants to try it, and he may be able to find a few available clues. But I don't know that Treasurer Xia has been in the Criminal Department for many years, but he has a reliable friend who can catch fast? ”

Xia Menghai nodded, and shook his head again: "The officials of the Criminal Department are the same as me, they are all ancestors who eat this bowl of rice, and everyone has been friends for several lifetimes, how can you say that you don't know people." But to say that in this matter, I am afraid that there is no one who can be used. Either the means are not helpful, or the people are unreliable. If there was the right person, I would have thought about it a long time ago. Besides, this matter has been investigated and investigated, and I don't know who is involved, such an important matter, do you dare to believe a servant? ”

"Taught." Fan Jin solemnly clenched his fists and saluted Xia Menghai, "Thank you Treasurer Xia for solving a problem in my heart." As for the dossier......"

"Tomorrow I will mix in a few old files and put them on your desk, and when people ask about me, they will only say that I found the wrong one. That's all I can help you, and there's nothing I can do about the rest. By the way, the Zheng family's stew is good, and when I go back and wait for Zheng Dalang's injury to heal, I have to try it. ”

Fan Jin said: "What's the matter, Treasurer Xia also knows about him?" ”

"I'm also eating in the Criminal Department, and I'm not your Uncle Jinshi, I don't have a reputation to support me, and I don't have any real skills, so it's not easy to mix. If you want to keep this fat body, you have to have some ability, and you can only be regarded as a foundation. ”

"Oh? What about the foundation? ”

"Pretending to be deaf and dumb, drunk and dreaming of death." Xia Menghai drank the rest of the wine, then shook his head and said, "I originally thought that I had seen through the scholars in the past few years. Everyone wants to be a Hanlin and a pavilion elder, and at the worst of all, they want to be a Qingliu official in Beijing, no one will think about competing with us small characters, and life is very comfortable. I don't want to be such an outlier as Fan Chuanyu now, I am obviously thinking about grabbing food with our husbands, and I originally wanted to eat wine, so I went to Fangsi to play, but now I have to hurry home and turn Da Ming Law out again. Otherwise, it won't be a few years before there is even a place to stand. Outliers...... Outliers! It's really strange these days, there is a scholar like you, this world is ...... Interesting. ”

When Fan Jin returned to Zhengjiapu, although he was not very clear about the case, he at least had a direction. He was not a criminal investigator in his previous life, and he actually had little ability to solve the case, purely in terms of skills, the ability of those public officials to arrest and solve cases in this era is far beyond Fan Jin's ability.

What he relied on was only the advanced concept of the judicial system in later generations, emphasizing evidence over confessions, and never suspecting criminal criminals, rather than the current Ming Dynasty's emphasis on confessions and light evidence, first treating suspects as criminals, and then asking people to prove their innocence. It will not be like Weng Dali, who preconceived to treat people as criminals, and then made the case into a so-called iron case in a way that was cut to fit his duties.

In his opinion, this case is simply full of holes, and it is easy to overturn it, and with the ability of his mentor Hou Shouyong or Hua Zhengfang, it is enough to kick this case out. The reason why he didn't do this was because of Weng Dali's advanced age, and he wanted him to arrive at the station smoothly and retain his body normally, but also because of how to deal with the aftermath after the kick.

Zhou Shichen's relationship is in Jinyiwei, and it is said that after he was killed, the Jinyi system should intervene in the investigation. However, from the occurrence to the conclusion of the whole case, Jin Yiwei did not participate in the whole process, obviously not wanting to be involved in this kind of thing. Even the Jinyi Ti rode as far as he could hide, and no one in the other yamen was willing to participate. If you want to borrow the hands of the Criminal Department to arrest quickly, most of them can't do it, and you are not familiar with life in Beijing, so the number of people you can use is very limited.

Although Dongchang Fanzi is very powerful, his friendship with Feng Bao has not reached that point, and he is also a soldier of the Son of Heaven in the sense of the principle of Fanzi, how can he be a personal envoy, this road can not be easily chosen. At this time, Fan Jin couldn't help but think of Xue Wu a little, if this wise and brave woman was by his side, he wouldn't be worried that no one was available now.

Guan Qing is a fresh face, doing this kind of thing is easy to arouse suspicion, and besides, he has run through the rivers and lakes and mixed with the docks, but he has no experience in catching thieves, and he is not good at doing this kind of thing. Feng Si knew some martial artists in the capital, but he didn't establish a friendship with those people, and he didn't know the root of each other, and before he determined who was involved in the case and who the murderer was, Fan Jin couldn't believe these martial artists. After thinking about it, the most suitable person was the only one left.

When the night was quieter, Qian Caiyin, who was already paralyzed as mud, prostrate in Fan Jin's arms and asked: "The master doesn't want to take in the little girls of this family, and he doesn't want them to do any benefits, why is he so concerned about such things?" According to the situation of his family, the man was afraid that he had fallen into the house and made the lowest pheasant. If you save it, you are afraid that you will not have the face to live in the world, and most of them will die, so what does it matter if you can't save it? On Qingyunhou's side, it is difficult to say whether he will see the master's affection, and besides, the Zhou family is in great decay right now, even if he is grateful to the master, what can he give in return? ”

"Indeed, the Zheng family can't give anything in return, from the perspective of interests, I should also wait for the pavilion election with peace of mind, as Xia Menghai said, and enter the Jade Hall to be at ease for Hanlin. However, in addition to interests, there is also a fate between people. When you don't have money, you can't afford to pay attention to it, but after you have money and status, you can pay attention to it to some extent. I always feel that I have a relationship with the Zheng family, this feeling is very subtle, I can't say it clearly, but I do feel it, and it is convenient to help them. Moreover, even if you don't consider the Zheng family, you have to consider the attitude of your teacher. He also made it clear that he wanted me to participate in this matter, otherwise he would not be so enthusiastic about pulling the strings. ”

"Why is that?"

"I didn't figure it out, but I can guess the teacher's attitude, and that's what it means. Whether it's for the teacher or the Zheng family, I have to help with this favor. Caiyin, I'm going to ask you to do me a favor this time. ”

"Are you and I still so polite? My whole person is yours, not to mention this little thing, rest assured, the concubine will definitely be done. The concubine will let people go and listen to it tomorrow, most of the people who open the house in the capital are splashing skin and cooperating with those private chang, Mother Shi is very familiar with those people, and it won't be long before she will be able to scan the news. ”

"Be careful yourself, take my film and invite someone to come over, don't run around by yourself, it's very dangerous. Those bastards even dare to kill the Jinyi Guard, you have to be careful. ”

Qian Caiyin smiled, "For the sake of the master, the concubine is not afraid of anything." Besides, the Jingshi is so big, how can they hear the news so easily? Don't worry, Mother Shi is also an old Jianghu, so she won't be so careless. If it weren't for the master, the concubine might have fallen into the house now, just to repay the lord's kindness, and the concubine would be willing to go to the soup! ”