When they arrived at the prison of the Criminal Department, the time had passed, and Su Huangzhe, Dai Chang and Guo Langzhong were sitting in the interrogation room on one side of the prison, and it was Zheng Ping who was escorted to Zheng Ping who knelt down. It was Guo Langzhong who asked.

"Zheng Ping, let me ask you, where did the mold for making tea cakes come from?"

Zheng Ping was eating noodles in the five-zhang building, drinking the new osmanthus wine, and hugging the first-faced girl in the Cuihualou, when he was suddenly escorted to this prison by a group of people from the government, and the good lake-blue silk robe was full of pleats, especially in front of the first-faced girl, who lost face, and there was a fire in his heart that rushed up. But in the end, it is also the business bank that has been running for many years, Zheng Ping knelt straight and said coldly: "Where is this official?" Forgive my clumsiness. ”

"Then you always know me, right?" Dai Chang said: "Answer honestly if you ask anything. ”

"Yo, Master Dai, how can I not know you. It's just that I don't even know what is going on, I don't even know what I'm going to answer? ”

"Where did you get this tea cake mold from?" Dai Chang asked patiently.

"Oh, Master Dai doesn't know yet. Last time, the transfer envoy called a few of us to interrogate, but Deputy Yin said that we were not allowed to talk about these things related to the tea cake case, and everything had to go through his hands. This is a big case, and we witnesses can't talk nonsense, right? As he spoke, he glanced at Su Huangzhe, who was sitting on the side and had not made a sound.

"You Diao Min, do you have to put on a few boards before you can say it?" Dai Chang heard that Zheng Ping's provocation, and he was angry.

When Zheng Ping was dragged out of the Wuzhang Building, he asked the little guy around him to go to Deputy Yin's transfer envoy to communicate there. He came from Huzhou and inquired clearly a long time ago that Deputy Yin's transfer envoy had always been at odds with the Criminal Department, and the transfer envoy should have been responsible for the Gongcha case. He thought that if he dragged it out any longer, the deputy transfer envoy Yin would inevitably stop Dai Chang from investigating the case, so he was a little unimpressed in front of him, but at this moment, he suddenly heard the board, and suddenly felt that something was wrong, so he couldn't help but look at the door with a weak heart.

"Don't look at it. Deputy Yin transshipment makes this unable to come. Su Huangzhe leaned back in his chair, nodded the table with one hand and said, "But you can see him tomorrow." ”

Zheng Ping was stunned for a moment, and didn't know what he meant, so he heard Su Huangzhe say again: "Tonight, Deputy Yin's transfer envoy is at the right attendant Lord Chen, and it is estimated that he will be able to ask clearly tomorrow, if you want to meet him, you can do it." ”

"Chen Dong, Lord Chen?" Zheng Ping's brain slowly reacted and asked slowly.

"Of course. Xiao Yi, do you ask Lord Chen to say hello, our Master Zheng here has to meet Deputy Yin's transfer envoy before he is willing to reply. ”

"No, no, no, I said, I just had some drink and my brain is confused. Just ask. Zheng Ping's face turned pale with fright, that Chen Dong is a well-known king of Hades, and he is a saint's henchman, this time he hit the muzzle of the gun, usually the left and right waiters will not do the same case, it seems that this tribute tea case is not trivial.

"What? Do you want me to repeat this question, you drink a lot? Dai Chang raised his eyebrows and said slightly mockingly, but he thought in his heart that now the status of merchants is rising, and they are so rude in front of officials, which is really in the world.

"No, no. I said, I bought the mold from Mindi Xingcun Town. Zheng Ping wiped a handful of sweat and continued, "Look at my mouth, I can't say it's good." ”

After Dai Chang glanced at Guo Langzhong, Guo Langzhong took over the interrogation, "How much did you buy?" The molds you gave to those three families were all bought by you from Mindi? ”

"There are four kinds of molds of various colors, small phoenix group, large phoenix group, copper coin and plum blossom. The price of this thing is not cheap, the style of the small phoenix group is particularly fine, ten molds cost two taels of silver, and other not very fine ones cost one or two silver. So I didn't buy much, and I thought I'd get a carpenter to make a few more of them. ”

"Then why didn't you use that little phoenix mold, but let Shen Lizhi and a few people use it. Such an expensive mold was brought by yourself from Mindi. Are you so kind? Guo Langzhong asked.

"I think so, too. I originally planned to use it myself, and then let the carpenter re-imitate some, the others are particularly easy to do, only the small phoenix group can not be done, tried a few times, the patterns on the printed tea cake noodles are spent, it is really not easy to carve. Later, Lord Zhizhou held a tea shop meeting, and Lord Zhizhou knew that I had a new mold, because I tried to make a few days and gave it to Lord Zhizhou, so Lord Zhizhou asked me to take out the new mold and the new mold made later to the registered tea households, after all, this tribute tea represents the face of Huzhou, and I am the manager of Huzhou Tea Shop, which has to be measured. ”

"You're really measured. Hehe. Dai Chang sneered a few times, obviously not believing Zheng Ping's words.

"Listen to me, my lord. I didn't plan to bring the mold of the little phoenix ball, so I asked people to put it away, and I brought the other three things, as well as the mold made by the carpenter, for the tea farmers to pick. Who knew that my shopkeeper had a business trip that day, and mixed the thirty molds of Xiaofengtuan into it. Shen Lizhi and the others picked me up, only to find out that I can't find anyone to come back. Zheng Ping lamented, "Besides, I have told Deputy Yin Deputy Transit Envoy about these things, the weight of Xiaofeng Tuan is lighter, but the workmanship is fine, and the official family can't be too nitpicky, right, how can we make our merchants live." ”

"Call the shopkeeper." Su Huangzhe said softly, and then turned back to ask Xiao Yi: "The molds can be obtained." ”

Xiao Yi replied: "The molds of the Shen family and the Chu family have been obtained. I also brought back the big shopkeeper of Quan Xiang Ji and several tea masters. ”

"You let the Prison Temple test these two molds. Then bring the shopkeeper to the trial for trial. ”

It didn't take long for Zheng Ping's shopkeeper to be arrested. The shopkeeper's surname is Niu, and he looks quite bookish, and he is not scared into a mess when he kneels under the hall.

Guo Langzhong asked: "Shopkeeper Niu, on the day of the tea shop meeting, your master arranged for you to distribute tea cake molds?" ”

"Yes. I have always been in charge of the tea cake mold, and my master and I bought it from Mindi. ”

"Oh, you went to Mindi too? Let's talk about buying molds first. Guo Langzhong said.

"We have to go to Mindi once a year, and we all go to Xingcun Town at the foot of Wuyi Mountain. The molds were bought at the Wong Kee wood shop in town. The tea cakes in Mindi have always been the best in Quanqi, we go to buy some good tea cakes and tea bowls, and take them to Huzhou to sell, and we will also deliberately see how tea is made there. In recent years, the tea has been made in Mindi, and finally pressed with a special mold, so that the tea cakes look good, and we also follow the example, and the picture is fresh. ”

"After you bought it, you used that mold to make tea, and gave it to Zhizhou?"

"Yes, yes, yes. On the second day after I returned to Huzhou, the master let us try it. Because of the high price of the mold, we didn't buy much, and we wanted the carpenter to make some more uses, so we tried it ourselves. ”

"Can you be a little phoenix?"

"It's done, it's done. I remember making four of them, all kinds of molds. The texture of the small phoenix group is particularly fine, and it was given to the Lord Zhizhou for appreciation when it was done. Lord Zhizhou also praised the fine appearance of the little phoenix picture, a cake is only the size of a palm, but it has such clear lines. ”

"Has Zhizhou ever eaten that tea cake?"

"The little one doesn't know. I just put the tea cake in the box, and my lord sent it. ”

"Then let's talk about the tea meeting that day."

The shopkeeper wiped the sweat on his head and continued: "The day before the tea shop conference, the master told me to sort out all the molds, and that day would be used by the tea households, saying that it was arranged by Lord Zhizhou. Then the old man specially said, don't take the mold of the small phoenix group, because the carpenter can't do the little phoenix group well, and the lines of the tea cake pressed out are spent, so you can only use the Fujian land, and this has to be kept for your own use. I remember that I bought a total of thirty of the small phoenix group molds, and I put them in bundles of ten in the workshop of the tea shop, and deliberately separated. Who knew that early that morning, I asked people to transport three boxes with molds, and one of the boxes was opened and the thirty small phoenix groups were put on the surface, I was stunned, thinking that this time I was in trouble, and my lord's face was not good. Later, the master of the Shen family first picked Xiaofengtuan and took ten yuan, and then the master of the An family took ten yuan, and finally Boss Chu of Quan Xiangji picked ten yuan. We don't have a single piece left in the store. ”

By the time the shopkeeper of Quan Xiangji was finished, the sky was already bright.

When the three of them went to the wing room to rest, An Ying had already asked Ya Yu to make wontons and wheat cakes.

"What does Miss An think?" Su Huangzhe asked first, Guo Langzhong and Dai Chang ate in a hurry, and the overnight judge was indeed hungry and tired.

An Ying was arranged at the back of the dark room, and after listening to the interrogation of the shopkeeper of Quan Xiangji, he was taken to the side room, so he asked Ya Yu, who hurried to the mansion later, to borrow the back kitchen to make some stomach filling.

An Ying pressed his head and said: "Because the little phoenix group there is too delicate, Lord Zhizhou is not willing to drink it. After testing, there is no toxicity at all. The two molds have been repeatedly tested, and they are indeed the source of the poison. Now it seems that the mold was poisoned by Master Zheng. But why was Master Zheng poisoned? There's really no reason for that. There has to be a motive for committing a crime. ”

"You have to have a motive for committing a crime? This sentence is good," Su Huangzhe nodded, "Miss An is not very old, and she has a good mind. ”

"Your Excellency praised it. Now that the facts of this case are clear, do you know how long my father will stay in prison again? An Ying carefully pushed the wonton in front of Su Huangzhe, and also thoughtfully sandwiched a piece of wheat cake.

Guo Langzhong had already finished eating the whole bowl of wontons, sighed, and began to eat wheat cakes with wonton soup, and said when he heard this: "The filial piety of the An family girl is commendable, but this case must be closed before she can be released." The trial has only been completed now, and as for the inside story of the case, it still needs to be carefully scrutinized, and there is no urgency. But it seems that your father has also been innocently harmed now, so just endure it for a few more days. ”

Su Huangzhe ate very elegantly, and his speed was not slow, he stopped eating after eating the wontons, pushed the wheat cake to Guo Langzhong, and said after cleaning his hands: "I asked Zheng Ping's shop and tea shop to be sealed, and we will go there to have a look later." ”

"Shouldn't Zheng Ping be retried for the first trial? And he must know something about the poison that comes out of him. Dai Chang said.

"This Zheng Ping is innocent, and he has been making tea for generations, and there will not be much breakthrough in the retrial. But what his shopkeeper said, I think it's strange that the mold is confused. ”

An Ying said: "I have been to Zheng Ping's tea shop, and I have also seen Zheng Ping's lady, and I saw his lady drinking a small phoenix ball that day. I also wonder why his family also made a small phoenix group but didn't pay tribute. ”

Su Huangzhe glanced at it, and then said to An Ying: "You go and change your clothes, and come with me to Zheng Yishun's tea shop." He also said to Guo Langzhong and Dai Chang: "Brother Mingda, Brother Ying Shao, you should keep an eye on the affairs of this mansion first, Chen Dong has already taken over the military defense of Huzhou, and the deputy transport envoy Zhao is estimated to be coming soon, Zheng Ping and others must be optimistic." ”

Dai Chang and Guo Langzhong got up to respond, and Su Huangzhe took An Ying to Gaosheng Street.