Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 101 Li Zhi's Responsibility

"Tuk Tuk Tuk!"

Inside Sun's house, Li Zhi was asking Sun Simiao about how to keep fit when there was another knock on the door.

Fei Shisan hurriedly said, "I'll go open the door." and quickly left the lobby.

After a while, Fei Shisan returned to the lobby with a man in black official uniform.

"Master, Your Majesty..."

Wang Fusheng suddenly coughed, interrupting Fei Shisan's words.

Fei Shisan was startled and thought to himself, "Your Majesty is going on an incognito tour, so naturally he can't let too many people know his identity."

Fei Shisan changed his tone and said, "Master, Mr. Li, this is the superior from the Dali Temple. He said he wants to see you."

The man in black bowed to Sun Simiao and asked, "Excuse me, are you Divine Doctor Sun?"

Sun Simiao said, "I am Sun Simiao. I wonder what you want from me?"

The man in black said, "My surname is Huang, and I'm a recorder at the Dali Temple. I'm here on the orders of my Shaoqing to ask Dr. Sun to come over."

Li Zhi interrupted, "Could it be that your Shaoqing is Di Renjie?"

Huang Lushi glanced at Li Zhi and saw that he was sitting at the head of the table with an extraordinary demeanor. He did not dare to neglect him and bowed, saying, "My Shaoqing is Di Shaoqing of the Dali Temple. Are you acquainted with my Shaoqing?"

Li Zhi smiled and said, "I think he and I are friends. I wonder why he asked Dr. Sun to come over?"

Huang Lushi said solemnly, "A strange murder occurred at the Sitongdi Inn in Pingkangfang. My Shaoqing suspects the deceased was poisoned, so I asked Dr. Sun to take a look."

Li Zhi was surprised and said, "If it's poisoning, just let the coroner do an autopsy. Why do you need to find Dr. Sun?"

Huang Lushi said in a deep voice, "To be honest, the coroner couldn't find any signs of poisoning after the autopsy. We then consulted several doctors, but they couldn't find any signs of poisoning either."

Li Zhi said: "If that's the case, then he didn't die of poisoning."

Huang Lushi's face turned pale. He said, "My Shaoqing has ruled out all possibilities. If it's not poisoning, then... it can only be a ghost or a spirit that killed him!"

Li Zhi's eyes flashed, and he said, "Please ask Mr. Huang to sit down and talk to us. Tell us about the case."

Huang Lushi also knew that if he didn't explain clearly, it would be difficult to invite a big shot like Sun Simiao to come over, so he had no choice but to sit down and slowly said, "The deceased was a recent resigned official from the Ministry of Revenue..."

Just this one sentence made Li Zhi quite surprised.

Lingshi was not a regular official, but an extra-official, that is, a civil servant.

Among all the civil servants, Lingshi is the highest-ranking official.

There are six ranks of non-official officials. Lingshi is the first rank. After a few more years, he will have the opportunity to be promoted to the ninth rank.

Officials who were promoted from clerks were often promoted to the position of director of the Secretariat, or sent to prefectures and counties to serve as local chief officials, thus achieving a direct class leap.

It was a strange thing that the official, who had worked hard for many years, suddenly resigned at this last step.

Huang Lushi continued, "The clerk has already sent his family out of Chang'an, and he himself remains in the city, living in a mansion and selling houses."

Li Zhi said: "It sounds like he is trying to avoid disaster."

Huang Lushi said, "That's right. My Shaoqing said the same thing. The deceased may have sensed some danger before his death, so he wanted to escape Chang'an, but he was still a step too late."

Li Zhi said, "Go on."

Huang Lushi sighed and said, "Just now I said that the deceased could only have been poisoned. The reason is very simple. The deceased died in a secret room with the doors and windows locked. It is impossible for an outsider to sneak in."

Fei Shisan said, "That's not necessarily true. It's also possible that the murderer set up a trap in advance and killed people outside the house."

Huang Lushi glanced at him and snorted, "Didn't we think of that? We've already checked the house thoroughly, and there's no trap or secret door."

Li Zhi asked, "Are there any wounds on the deceased's body?"

Huang Lushi said, "There are no wounds anywhere else, only handprints and bruises on the throat."

Fei Shisan laughed and said, "That's simple, isn't it? The deceased was strangled to death!"

Meng Shiyi whispered, "Brother, don't talk nonsense. Didn't the officer tell you that the doors and windows were all locked? How could the murderer escape after killing someone?"

Fei Shisan laughed and said, "I must have used some special method. They didn't notice it."

Sun Simiao shouted, "Thirteen, shut up."

Huang Lushi glanced at Fei Shisan and said, "The deceased did have bruises on his neck, but after verification, it was confirmed that he had caused them himself."

"The deceased was found beside the bed, his limbs curled up together, and before dying, he had his hands tightly grasping his throat."

Fei Shisan's expression changed slightly.

Li Zhi was surprised and asked, "Are there no other wounds on the body?"

Huang Lushi shook his head and said, "There are no wounds. That's why my Shaoqing suspects that the deceased died of poisoning. In addition..."

Having said this, his expression suddenly became extremely ugly.

Li Zhi said: "What else?"

Huang Lushi took a deep breath and said, "When the coroner performed the autopsy, several strange white winged insects crawled out of the deceased's mouth..."

As soon as these words came out, everyone's expressions changed.

Li Zhi asked, "Could it be those white bugs that killed the deceased?"

Huang Lushi shook his head and said, "Di Shaoqing asked several doctors, and they said the insect is not poisonous. It is only the size of a thumb, and its bite is painless. Even if swallowed by mistake, it will not kill you!"

Li Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Could it be that the white bugs sucked the toxins out of the deceased's body, so no toxins were detected?"

Huang Lu Shi was stunned. He had never thought of this possibility.

Sun Simiao smiled and said, "This possibility is extremely small. If the deceased really died of poisoning, the toxin should be spread throughout the body. These white worms are so small that it is difficult for them to absorb all the toxins in a short period of time." Li Zhi nodded.

Sun Simiao asked, "Mr. Huang, was the deceased ill before his death?"

Huang Lushi frowned and asked, "Do you suspect the deceased died of a sudden illness?"

Sun Simiao smiled and said, "There are many medicines in this world that can induce the recurrence of old diseases in the human body. In this case, the deceased may experience the condition you just described."

Huang Lushi said, "Di Shaoqing has already interviewed the deceased's friends, and according to their testimony, the deceased was in good health and had no hidden illness."

Sun Simiao stroked his beard and frowned, "That's strange."

Huang Lushi bowed and said, "I hope the genius doctor will take the trouble to go with me to the scene to take a look. Perhaps we can find something."

Sun Simiao turned to look at Li Zhi, who smiled and said, "Dr. Sun, let's go together. I'm also a little curious about this case."

Sun Simiao then nodded and agreed to Huang Lushi's request.

Di Renjie respected Sun Simiao very much and had already prepared a carriage outside.

Just as Li Zhi was about to follow Sun Simiao in his death, a eunuch came from a distance and whispered a few words to Wang Fusheng.

Wang Fusheng came to Li Zhi and whispered, "Your Majesty, Prime Minister Li wants to see you. It seems there is something urgent."

Li Zhi nodded, said goodbye to Sun Simiao and returned to the palace.

When they arrived at the palace gate, Li Ji took his leave and returned home.

When Li Zhi arrived at Ganlu Palace, Li Yifu had been waiting for him for a long time.

"Your Majesty, the Censor-in-Chief has just reported that a group of refugees from Hebei have crossed the Yellow River and are approaching Chang'an City."

Li Zhi's face changed and he asked, "Why did refugees suddenly appear?"

Li Yifu said, "I have investigated and found that these refugees all come from the five prefectures of Hebei. At the end of April this year, the imperial court levied a tax on these five prefectures, which led to the refugees."

Li Zhi asked solemnly, "Why the sudden taxation?"

Li Yifu said, "Your Majesty, have you forgotten? In May of this year, the imperial court launched a war against Goguryeo. Due to the urgency of the war, a head tax was levied in Hebei."

Li Zhi was stunned and remained silent.

This was indeed a common practice in the Tang Dynasty. Whenever a war was fought in Liaodong, the people of Hebei would provide military supplies and manpower.

He pondered for a moment and said, "Issue an order to reduce or exempt the five states from taxation for three years. The Council of State shall draw up a plan to provide relief to the refugees. I want to see it as soon as possible."

Li Yifu took the order and left.

Li Zhi leaned back on the dragon throne, closed his eyes and sighed.

During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, the people in other parts of the Tang Dynasty may have lived a good life, but Hebei was an exception.

The reasons behind this are very complicated, and are related to both Dou Jiande and Goguryeo.

In any case, during his administration, he must improve the livelihood of the people in Hebei and resolve the resentment of the people of Hebei towards the court.

This is the responsibility he must fulfill as a person who knows the course of history.

Li Zhi closed his eyes and pondered for an unknown amount of time. Suddenly, Wang Fusheng said, "Your Majesty, should we send someone to the Sifang Di Inn to inquire? Perhaps the case has already been solved."

Li Zhi opened his eyes and said suddenly, "I almost forgot. Send someone to investigate. If the case is solved, summon Di Renjie to see the emperor."

Di Renjie had indeed solved the case.

Half an hour later, he followed the eunuch sent by Wang Fusheng to the Ganlu Palace for an audience.

"Your Majesty, Di Renjie, pays homage to His Majesty!"

Li Zhi raised his hand and said, "No need to be so polite. Mr. Di, have you investigated the case of the Sifang Inn?"

Di Renjie bowed and said, "Your Majesty, everything has been investigated."

Li Zhi said, "Did the deceased really die of poisoning?"

Di Renjie said, "He didn't die of poisoning. He died of suffocation due to an object stuck in his throat."

Li Zhi asked curiously, "Stuck in the throat?"

Di Renjie said, "Yes, the murderer was one Xie Man. He placed a poisonous insect called a 'blood sac insect' in the victim's food. The blood sac insect entered the victim's body, crawled into the airway, sucked blood, and swelled up, blocking the victim's airway, causing the victim to suffocate to death."

Xie Man was a branch of the Southern Barbarians, which later became the Miaojiang branch.

When Li Zhi heard this, he nodded secretly.

If the throat was blocked by a foreign object, it would be no wonder that the deceased strangled himself before death.

Li Zhi thought for a moment and asked, "What about the white bugs?"

Di Renjie said, "That was left behind by the murderer to eat the blood sac parasite. That way, even if they cut the throat during the autopsy, they wouldn't find any."

"That's right," Li Zhi said. "I only have one last question now. Lord Di, as the Junior Minister of the Dali Temple, why are you suddenly investigating the Wannian County case?"

Di Renjie said, "Your Majesty, it was Prime Minister Liu who sent someone to find me and asked me to solve this case."

Li Zhi's heart moved.

Under his instructions, Liu Rengui has been rectifying the administration of officials, with the Ministry of Revenue being the focus of his investigation.

Now a clerk of the Ministry of Revenue has been killed, and Liu Rengui has named Di Renjie to investigate. There must be some connection between the two.

It is very likely that Ling Shi knew some secret, so he was killed to silence him.

From this we can see that the Ministry of Revenue has very serious problems.

(End of this chapter)