"Alright, you can come in. ”

Hearing the sound of Lilushuang, Zheng Hao couldn't wait to push the door in.

looked at the autumn cicadas with blue and purple faces. Zheng Hao, who had spoken to his mouth, swallowed it back into his stomach again.

"Autumn cicada girl, how do you feel. If you feel unwell, you must tell the girl. Zheng Hao said with a smile.

Qiu Chan's face was full of gratitude, Ying Ying knelt down, lowered her head and said, "Thank you Gongzi for saving me, the slave's body is fine." ”

Looking at the autumn cicada kneeling in front of him, Zheng Hao frowned and helped the other party up.

In this era, people are accustomed to the ritual of prostration. Whenever it happened in front of Zheng Hao's eyes, he always felt a little uncomfortable with the noble sentiment that everyone was equal and noble. But in this kind of situation where everyone is drunk and I am sober, he can only choose to go with the flow helplessly.

"Autumn cicada girl, although it is a little out of place now. But I really have some questions that I want to ask you......" After weighing it again, Zheng Hao still decided not to let go of this rare opportunity.

"Childe, please ask, the slave must know everything. Qiu Cicada replied politely.

Zheng Hao scratched his head and asked, "Here's the thing." After my investigation, I found that Master Shang's death is actually strange, so I have some questions I want to find answers to here. ”

After listening to Zheng Hao's words, Qiu Chan seemed to remember some terrible pictures, and there was a hint of horror in her eyes.

But looking at the stranger in front of her, she felt warm for the first time in her life. Qiu Cicada bit her lower lip, let go of her tense shoulders, and said firmly: "It's okay, Childe, please say." ”

"Last night, were you the first to find out that Master Shang was dead?"

"Yes, the young lady was worried about the master's body, so she cooked it herself, cooked soup and asked the slave maid to send it...... But who knows, when I entered the study. But I found that the old man was already lying motionless on the ground......"

"Think about it, was there anything unusual in the room at that time?"

Qiu Cicada covered her face with her hands, and after thinking about it for a while, she shook her head gently.

"Did anyone enter the study before the yamen came?"

"After the incident, the young lady and the lady monk were the first to enter the house. When the young lady saw the old man, she cried into tears. After that, the people present were also in a mess. Fortunately, Mrs. Shang was in charge, so there was no chaos. ”

Looking at the look of admiration on Qiu Cicada's face. Zheng Hao nodded and continued to ask: "Then in your drive, how do this old man and the two ladies usually get along, and have there been any disputes?" ”

Qiu Chan shook his head and said with some envy: "The lord and the two ladies are very affectionate. In the impression of the slave maid, the lord only had a big dispute with the monk and his wife. ”

"Remember why?"

"Listening to the other subordinates, it seems that the lord was preparing to take the young lady as a concubine at that time. Mrs. Shang didn't allow it, so the two had a big quarrel over it......"

After hesitating for a moment, Qiu Cicada continued: "Mrs. Shang and Master have been together for more than ten years. But it's a pity that Mrs. Shang didn't give birth to a son and a half daughter for the master. The old man wanted to renew the incense for the Shang family, so he moved the idea of taking a concubine. ”

"Of course, the young lady is also the daughter of a big family. After coming to the Shang family, he did things exquisitely, and the monk and his wife also got along very well......"

"Does Master Shang usually go to the study?"

"No, it won't. Because the expenses of the family are generally controlled by the eldest lady, the lord is very relieved. It was only because the eldest lady was bedridden recently that the old man personally managed the accounts. ”

Zheng Hao frowned slightly, and continued to ask: "I heard Mrs. Shang say that the cause of her illness before was caused by a plant. Do you know where it is now?"

Qiu Cicada raised her head and thought for a moment, and said seriously: "I have also heard about this matter, Mrs. Shang has arranged for someone to plant that pot of flowers in the garden." ”

"Do you know what kind of flower it is?"

"I don't know it, but its flowers are yellow trumpet-shaped, and it's so beautiful......"

After the inquiry, Qiu Cicada got up and retired with interest.

Listen to the footsteps of the autumn cicadas gradually moving away. Lilushuang, who had not spoken for a long time, suddenly said softly: "You can save her for a while, but you can't save her for a lifetime." ”

Looking at the weak back of the autumn cicada, Zheng Hao returned with a wry smile: "It is better to be able to save it for a while, than to sit idly by." ”

............

In the middle of the night, Zheng Hao and Han Zhong, who were dressed in black, pulled Sun Simiao, who was sweating profusely, back to their residence.

"Master, can you stop pulling me in this kind of thing in the future. Sun Simiao pleaded helplessly.

"I'm here to train you, don't know what's wrong...... Say, what did you find after examining Shang Zuan's body. Zheng Hao said righteously.

Sun Simiao smiled bitterly, and he didn't know if what Zheng Hao said was true or false. He sighed and said solemnly: "The master is not bad, Master Shang does not have any obvious external injuries all over his body. Only at the tip of the index finger, there are tiny wounds. And the wound is black, and there are signs of poisoning."

"Do you know what kind of poison it is?" Zheng Hao also changed his usual playful appearance and asked with a serious face.

"If what I expected is correct, it must be a poison called 'Seeing Blood and Sealing the Throat'. But most of these poisonous trees grow in the south, so it's not very common here. Sun Simiao thought about it as he spoke......

............

In the early morning of the next day, Zheng Hao took Sun Simiao and Han Zhong to visit the Shang family again. But as soon as the three of them came to the door of Shang's house, they saw the official detaining Shang Zu'an's concubine and leaving Shang's house.

Zheng Hao, who didn't know why, grabbed the "old acquaintance" who happened to pass by.

Looking at the other party's somewhat frightened face, Zheng Hao smiled and said, "So coincidentally, we met again." It's so busy early in the morning, what's going on?"

After being dealt with by the family law yesterday, the injuries on the aunt's body are still faintly painful. As soon as I went out today, I met Zheng Hao, the plague god, again.

Although I have great resentment towards this guy in front of me. But the aunt still replied "respectfully": "Back to the son, when a servant was cleaning today, he found a suspicious item in the young lady's room. It was confirmed that it was a poison containing a highly toxic substance. Therefore, the county magistrate ordered the arrest of the young lady and prepared to ascend to the court to try the case. ”

After listening to his aunt's explanation, Zheng Hao whispered a few words to Han Zhong. He took Sun Simiao with him and followed the crowd towards the mansion......

............

"Wei ...... Wu ......" kept tapping the ground with the staff of the officials. The whispering melon-eating crowd gradually quieted down. Only Mrs. Shang was left sobbing, and the sound was endless.

"Smack"

The county commander slapped the startled wood hard, and pointed at the young lady kneeling in the hall with angry eyes. Said majestically: "Bold poisonous woman, do you know the guilt?"

The young lady said with a face full of grievances: "The grass people don't know, the slave family has always obeyed the law. Today, he was supposed to hold a funeral for his deceased husband, but he was arrested for no reason and asked for his guilt. Please also ask the adults to be aware of everything and return the concubine's innocence. ”

"What a sharp-toothed woman. Come and present the evidence to the court. The prefectural order said.

After a while, a delicate cloth bag was presented on the desk. The prefectural magistrate opened the cloth bag and took out a porcelain vase from it. He questioned the young lady, "Do you recognize this?"

The young lady shook her head and said, "The slave family has never seen this thing. ”

"Smack"

The county order sounded the alarm again, and said loudly: "Do you dare to quibble, then why is this thing found in your room...... It doesn't matter if you don't know, the official will tell you. ”

"After examination, it was found that this was 'blood sealing the throat'. And it is the same as the poison in Shang Zuan's body. ”

The county commander asked in a loud voice to the trembling autumn cicada who was kneeling on the side: "On the day of Shang Zuan's death, did this poisonous woman let you serve food and give it to the deceased?"

Qiu Cicada was frightened and didn't dare to come out, but nodded slightly.

"Hmph, fortunately, Mrs. Shang kept a little more eye and didn't throw away the pieces of chopsticks that day. After examination, the same poison was found in the dishes and chopsticks. Now there are human witnesses and physical evidence. You don't want to be quick to get it. ”

"My lord, when the slave maid entered the study that day. Master Shang had already fallen to the ground, so he didn't eat the food I sent. Although she was extremely frightened, Qiu Cicada gritted her teeth and told the truth she saw.

The young lady nodded gratefully at the autumn cicada. Then, he asked the county magistrate: "Dare to ask your lordship, it was after the crime that day." Have you inspected the scene, and are there any traces of poisoning in the dishes and chopsticks at that time?"

The county order was stunned, and the work had indeed been tested that day, but no problems were detected, so the case was positioned as an unsolved case.

At this moment, the master on the side suddenly spoke: "My lord, if this 'seeing blood and sealing the throat' is used in ordinary detection methods, it cannot be detected. The reason why we were able to detect this time was that the poison residue on the dishes and chopsticks was detected. It was also discovered by a special detection method when it was known what kind of poison it was. ”

"Exactly! Exactly! It seems that you are a wretch, and you have accomplices. Someone comes, and the punishment is waiting. "Look at the thief woman in front of me who has embarrassed herself. The county commander was angry, picked up the token in the holder, and threw it to the ground.

Just when the token is about to land. A figure suddenly burst out from the crowd of onlookers. A handful caught a token that was only 0.01 cm above the ground.

Seeing Zheng Hao in front of him, the three people kneeling on the ground had different expressions. Qiu Cicada's face was full of joy, the young lady's face was full of doubts, and Mrs. Shang's face was gloomy.

"Boldly disrupt the people, and dare to trespass on the court. Someone ...... coming."

"Your Excellency forgives you, the grass people are not trespassing. It's really for the sake of the name of the adults, so I had no choice but to make this decision. With that, Zheng Hao respectfully put the token back into the holder.

The county commander stretched out his hand to stop the master who was about to give an order, frowned and asked, "Who are you? What did you mean by what you said just now?"

Zheng Hao was overjoyed in his heart, and said in a straight voice: "I am Sun Simiao, the apprentice of Sun Shenyi." During this time, I happened to have a consultation at Shang's house. The master couldn't bear to die in vain, so he ordered the contemptible people to secretly investigate the matter. Of course, I was fortunate enough to live up to my life and found some eyebrows in this case. ”

The county commander stared at the stinky kid in front of him. The reason why he didn't blast Zheng Hao out immediately was because of the other party's sentence 'for the sake of fame'.

As an order of a county, he holds his own sleeves and has clear rewards and punishments. Although he is not treated by other officials, he is a parent official in the eyes of the people. In his eyes, his own reputation is definitely more important than anything.

Seeing Zheng Hao's confident appearance, the county commander said in a deep voice: "Huangkou Xiaoer, since you have discovered something, then the official will give you this opportunity." But if you are unscrupulous, this official will not tolerate it. ”

"Your Excellency!" Zheng Hao bowed and said respectfully.

Then, he cleared his throat and said loudly: "Master Shang did die from the poison of 'seeing blood and sealing his throat'. However, the way of poisoning is not oral, but trauma. ”

As soon as these words came out, there was an uproar in the hall.

"Bang Bang Bang"

The county magistrate kept patting the startled wood, and shouted loudly: "Quiet, quiet!"

After everyone quieted down, the county magistrate asked suspiciously: "This official has read the autopsy report made by the deceased, but there is no record on it, there are traces of external injuries on the deceased's body?"

"This is indeed no wonder because the wound is extremely hidden. Saying that, Zheng Hao stretched out his index finger and continued: "The wound is a small hole in the index finger with a needle. ”

The county magistrate glanced at the master on the side, and the master immediately left with understanding.

After a long time, the master came back in a hurry and whispered softly beside the county commander.

"Is that really the case?" After hearing this, the county order looked at the master with wide eyes.

The master nodded lightly and said a few more words. He stepped aside.

At this time, the county commander secretly rejoiced that he was fortunate that he did not act alone. He thought for a moment and continued to ask, "After verification, it is indeed as you said. And what kind of modus operandi did the culprit use?"

Han Zhong in the crowd walked out at this time. handed an abacus and an account book to Zheng Hao.

Zheng Hao took the abacus and walked in front of Qiu Cicada. He asked softly, "Can you recognize where this abacus came from?"

Qiu Cicada took the abacus and carefully identified it for a while. said categorically: "The slave knows, this is the abacus in the master's study." ”

Zheng Hao took back the abacus, handed it to the county order, and said triumphantly: "This is the murderer's murder weapon." ”

Just when the county commander was carefully examining the abacus, the master on the side suddenly spoke: "You are Tianjiao, why don't you go to Jiutian?

Zheng Hao tilted his head and thought for a while, he always felt that this master seemed to be scolding. But because the royal translator Yuwen Yan was not around, he had to pretend to be deaf and dumb.

Zheng Hao opened the account book and handed it to the master. Then he said: "Lord Lao, use this abacus to check the amount on the ledger. ”

The master took the abacus and the account book and reluctantly calculated it......

The time for a cup of tea has passed, and the abacus is still crackling in the master's hand. At this time, there was already a trace of boredom on the master's face. Just when he wanted to scold Zheng Hao angrily and leave. Suddenly, I felt a tingling pain in my fingers.

He screamed, clenching his index finger tightly.

"You, you dare to assassinate court officials in public. Someone ...... coming," the master roared angrily.

"Don't worry, my lord, this is just an ordinary embroidery needle, and you are not in any danger to your life. Zheng Hao picked up the abacus in front of the master, picked out one of the abacus beads with a needle, and continued: "This is the criminal's modus operandi. ”

The county order, which saw everything in his eyes, took the abacus curiously. Upon closer inspection, I saw an imperceptible needle tip appearing on the abacus.

"It's wonderful, it's so well designed, it's really amazing...... Do you know who the murderer is?"

Hearing the county order's question, Zheng Hao smiled slightly, turned around, pointed to Mrs. Shang with dark clouds on her face and said, "The murderer is her." ”

Mrs. Shang seemed to have expected it, and said calmly: "Hehe, this is just your whim." How can you conclude that it must have been done by the slaves? Moreover, evidence had been found in my sister's room before, and poison residues had been found in the bowl containing food. No matter how bad it is, it should be that she is more suspicious. ”

Zheng Hao shook his head and continued to explain: "Indeed, you are right. But I believe that what Qiu Chan said is not a lie. Therefore, as long as the corpse of Master Shang is dissected and checked for the residue of poisonous food in his abdomen, the truth can be known. In addition, the evidence of what you say is innumerable. With your right to speak now in the Shang family, if you want to plant the blame, it is not a matter of being caught. ”

"Even if the facts are as you say, you can't conclude that the person who killed the master is a slave. ”

"On the contrary, the person who can put Master Shang to death in this way, only Mrs. Shang can do it. ”

Zheng Hao picked up the account book, pointed to the amount on it and said, "Judging from the content recorded in the account book, the silver deposit in the Shang family's treasury is one hundred and three thousand six hundred taels. And the people who know this number, except for Master Shang. Only Mrs. Shang, who is in charge of the family's expenses, knows best. ”

Then Zheng Hao picked up the abacus on the side again, pointed to the abacus that had been manipulated and said, "The location of this abacus is precisely the abacus that will be allocated in one hundred thousand three thousand six hundred taels." Therefore, apart from you, there will definitely be no one else who can grasp the murderer's hidden killing moves so accurately. ”

"Of course, I'm guessing you've been planning for your actions for a long time. The reason why your illness will get better and worse is also caused by your own deliberate exposure to allergens. And your purpose is to let Master Shang personally manage the accounts when he is forced to do so. ”

"In addition, you also tried your best to disguise Master Shang's death as a secret room unsolved case. That's why you deliberately set the abacus that you have done with your hands and feet in such a high place......"

After listening to Zheng Hao's words, Mrs. Shang's clenched hands slowly let go. The originally gloomy face had a relieved expression.

She chuckled lightly and said calmly: "You're right, I really killed the person." But, he deserves ...... damn it."

............