The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 129 Du Ruhui's Reminder, Liu Shuyi's Desperate Gamble

"how?"

Seeing that Liu Shuyi had been staring at the papers on the table in silence for a long time, Du Gou couldn't help but ask.

Liu Shuyi looked at Du Gou: "They should be among these people, but I don't know them very well. Vice Minister Du, could you take a look and see if there are any familiar faces among them?"

Upon hearing this, Du Gou quickly came to Liu Shuyi's side and then looked down.

then……

"This……"

His expression changed slightly, and he raised his head to ask Qin Mingfeng, "Are you sure these four people are all your father's benefactors, and that you haven't written too much or made a mistake?"

Qin Mingfeng's eyes were red, his face filled with the pain of his father's murder. Upon hearing this, he choked up and shook his head: "It concerns the real culprit who killed my father. How could I, a commoner, write such things carelessly?"

He looked at his father lying in a pool of blood and said, "These people either gave my father a meal when he was at his poorest, allowing him to survive, or gave him the opportunity to learn cooking, or mentioned my father's name when the Emperor Emeritus was dining, so that the Emperor Emeritus would remember him and thus allow me to become the imperial chef..."

“Before Father entered the palace, he would take me to visit him every year. After Father entered the palace, he could not leave the palace at will, so I would visit him during festivals. Because I visit him every year, the gatekeepers in the residences of these benefactors all know me. If the officials suspect me, they can send someone to inquire and find out the truth.”

Du Gou shook his head and said, "I don't doubt you, but the people you wrote about... their identities are all quite extraordinary, so I have to be cautious."

Hearing Du Gou's words, Lu Yangyuan and Gu Wen were immediately filled with curiosity, like cats scratching at their hearts.

They instinctively craned their necks, trying to see whose names were written on the papers, but they were too far away to see a single word.

Seeing Du Gou's unusual reaction, Liu Shuyi said, "Does Vice Minister Du know them all well?"

Du Gou took a deep breath and said, "Let's talk in private."

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered slightly. For Du Gou to react like this, it seemed that the identities of these four people were not simple.

He thought for a moment and said, "Let's return to Chang'an immediately and talk as we go."

Yao Guang was shocked by his discovery of the imperial chef's affairs and worried that Qin Xiguang would betray him, so he decided to silence him on the spot. Therefore, his silencing operation would not be as meticulous and thorough as his silencing of Wei Ji and Hu Hebing. In other words, he was likely to leave a loophole.

Next, Yao Guang will definitely try to patch up the flaws. The more time Yao Guang has, the more things he can do.

Therefore, Liu Shuyi decided to return to Chang'an immediately and ordered that all four of them be summoned to the Ministry of Justice as soon as possible. The faster he moved, the less time he would give Yao Guang, and the less chance Yao Guang would have to fill in the gaps.

Now, his battle with Yaoguang is no longer separated by a two-year gap.

Instead, they are already face to face with Yao Guang, playing chess on the same timeline!

For the first time, time was fair to both of them!
Du Gou reacted quickly. As soon as he heard Liu Shuyi's words, he understood what Liu Shuyi meant and immediately nodded: "Okay."

With that, the group quickly walked towards the door.

Liu Shuyi paused for a moment as he passed Qin Xiguang's corpse.

He looked at Qin Mingfeng, who was holding his father's body and silently weeping, and sighed in his heart.

"I will have someone inform your family about what's happening here. You should stay here and take care of your father's funeral arrangements."

Qin Mingfeng gripped his father's clothes tightly with both hands, veins bulging on the back of his hands. He gritted his teeth and said, "Can the magistrate catch the real culprit and avenge my father?"

Liu Shuyi nodded: "Of course, that's exactly why I came here."

“Even if the murderer is of a very high status, much higher than my Qin family, would the Minister be willing to arrest him for Father’s sake?”

Liu Shuyi understood Qin Mingfeng's concerns.

After all, Qin Xiguang was just an ordinary imperial chef, while the other four, though he didn't know their identities, could be guessed from Du Gou's reaction that their rank, status, and power were probably beyond his reach.

In this situation, most people probably wouldn't risk offending a powerful figure they can't compare to for the sake of a minor, deceased person.

It's normal for Qin Mingfeng to worry that he's one of the majority.

But Qin Mingfeng didn't know what this case meant to him. He also didn't know that behind him stood Li Shimin. No matter how powerful those so-called big shots were, what did they amount to compared to Li Shimin?
He calmly said, "Even if the murderer is of a very high status, so high that I have to look up to him... I will still catch him!"

Qin Mingfeng's clenched fist suddenly loosened. He slowly closed his eyes, then took a deep breath and suddenly knelt down before Liu Shuyi, kowtowing heavily: "I beg you, sir, you must, you must bring the murderer to justice! You must, you must avenge my father! My father shouldn't have done this, he was a good man, he shouldn't have been murdered like this..."

His voice choked with emotion, as if each word was uttered with blood.

Liu Shuyi patted Qin Mingfeng on the shoulder and said softly, "Take good care of your father's funeral arrangements. As for the murderer... wait for my news."

After saying that, he took one last look at the small wooden house, then at Qin Xiguang, whose eyes were still open and who died with his eyes wide open, and without further delay, he turned and left.

…………

"Minister Du, please tell me about these four people."

On the way back, Liu Shuyi and Du Gou walked ahead of the group. Seeing that they had fallen behind the others, he spoke up.

Du Gou did not hesitate any longer and said, "I have met all four of them and I know them quite well."

"Oh? You've been in contact with them all?"

Liu Shuyi raised an eyebrow. No wonder Du Gou reacted that way just now; these people were all acquaintances of Du Gou.

Du Gou said: "The first person is Kong Xiang, who holds the official rank of fifth grade and is a doctor of the Imperial Academy. He is a learned scholar, well-versed in poetry and books, and is one of the great Confucian scholars. He teaches the classics at the Imperial Academy and has students all over the world. Currently, many officials in the court have been taught by him."

"Even I have attended his classes, so I can be considered his half-student."

Liu Shuyi nodded. Although the Imperial Academy Doctor did not have much power, the connections he had were extremely formidable.

Moreover, Kong Xiang himself was a recognized great Confucian scholar, holding an extremely high position in the hearts of scholars.

If you offend Kong Xiang, not to mention what the officials in the court will do, the scholars alone could drown you in their spittle.

If he were Yao Guang...

Liu Shuyi frowned. He couldn't help but think how many talents Fushenglou had secretly cultivated. This was definitely a more troublesome enemy than An Qingxi and Liu Yuanming!
"The second person..."

Du Gou's voice continued: "Pan Keming, a fifth-rank official in the Imperial Secretariat, once visited my father at his residence, which is how I became acquainted with him."

"This person's personality is similar to that of Doctor Wei. He is meticulous in everything he does. He will carefully review all imperial edicts or memorials that pass through his hands. If they do not meet the requirements, he will reject them no matter who it is."

Liu Shuyi nodded again.

The Grand Counselor... Wei Zheng had held this position before. Although it was only a fifth-rank official, his status was much higher than that of a normal fifth-rank official because he was close to Li Shimin.

Moreover, they often have access to core political matters.

If he is Yao Guang, the harm he causes will be considerable.

"The third person..."

Seeing Liu Shuyi nod, Du Gou said, "Han Xi is the fourth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Stud, in charge of the royal procession and the national horse administration. Last year, I went to the Court of Imperial Stud to investigate a case related to warhorses and got to know him."

"This person is tactful and eloquent, but also meticulous in his work and has never made a mistake, which is why he is highly trusted by His Majesty."

The Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Stud... has already reached the fourth rank.

This is consistent with the rank of Liu Yuanming and An Qingxi.

Judging from the ranks of Liu Yuanming and An Qingxi, the ranks of the other five stars should not differ too much.

Therefore, Han Xi, who was also a fourth-rank official and the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Stud, was highly suspicious.

However, although Kong Xiang and Pan Keming were not of the fourth rank, the special nature of their official positions made their actual influence comparable to that of a fourth-rank official.

Liu Shuyi frowned; it seemed that preliminary screening based on rank was no longer an option.

"And the last one?" Liu Shuyi continued to ask.

"The last one..."

Du Gou glanced back at Gu Wen, the county magistrate of Wannian County, who was standing beside Lu Yangyuan, and said with a meaningful tone, "Gu Wen understands best."

Gu Wen knows best...

Liu Shuyi's eyes flashed, and he said, "Is this person also in the Wannian County Government Office?"

Du Gou nodded: "The last person is Li Xinchun, the magistrate of Wannian County."

Magistrate of Wannian County?
Liu Shuyi paused for a moment before recalling from the original owner's memories that the magistrate of Wannian County was indeed named Li Xinchun.

The original owner of this body had a very low status in the past, and with Qian Wenqing's deliberate suppression, she had no chance to get to know people outside the Ministry of Justice.

Therefore, they only had a vague memory of the name of the magistrate of Wannian County, without any more specific knowledge of him.

In Liu Shuyi's case, the only thing he could vaguely remember was the name Li Xinchun. If Du Gou hadn't mentioned it, he wouldn't have known who Li Xinchun was at all.

The magistrate of Wannian County, unlike magistrates in ordinary areas, was also a fifth-rank official.

Although his official rank was lower than that of a fourth-rank official, his actual power was far beyond that of an ordinary fourth-rank official. He was a Doctor of the Imperial Academy with countless students, a Grand Counselor who was very close to Li Shimin, a fourth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and the Magistrate of Wannian County who held real power... No wonder Du Gou, with his status, treated him with such caution.

What kind of luck did Qin Xiguang have to get involved with these people, or was he the one being helped by them?

It's important to know that Qin Xiguang wasn't even an imperial chef when he received these favors.

An ordinary citizen, someone who struggles even to afford food, unexpectedly received help from so many important figures...

Even if these people weren't at their current rank and status when they helped Qin Xiguang, they should at least be officials. An official helping an ordinary person might be due to kindness, but for four officials to help a commoner in this way cannot be explained by simple kindness.

However, Qin Mingfeng stayed at the wooden house and did not come along, so he could not ask further questions.

Liu Shuyi took a deep breath, suppressing his doubts for the time being, and decided to confirm them properly when he had the chance later.

"These four people all have very special identities..."

Du Gou looked at Liu Shuyi and said in a deep voice, "If we cannot confirm who Yao Guang is as quickly as possible, and let them know that we suspect them of being the murderers in the Ma Qingfeng family massacre, they may feel offended and thus displease them."

“They are all people of high rank and great power. If I really displease them, I'll be fine. Because of Father, they won't dare to do anything to me. But you…”

Du Gou didn't continue, but Liu Shuyi understood Du Gou's meaning perfectly.

Two years have passed since this case was filed, and everyone believes that Li Shimin is the mastermind behind it. Now that I have summoned Kong Xiang and the other three, and suspect that the murderer is among them, what will they think? Will they think that I am trying to gain favor with Li Shimin and frame them, making them Li Shimin's scapegoats?

If one can immediately identify Yao Guang and provide sufficient evidence, that would be fine.

However, if they cannot be certain for a long time, they will increasingly believe that they are trying to deal with them and gain merit by taking advantage of them. At that point, let alone disliking them, they will probably want to kill them.

If Yao Guang were to seize the opportunity to stir up trouble again, one can imagine the immense pressure and dire situation he would face.

Therefore, you not only need to find the Yao Guang (摇光) light, but you also need to find it as quickly as possible in the shortest amount of time.

I still have to race against time.

And whether or not Yao Guang can be found quickly...

Liu Shuyi narrowed his eyes, his mind flashing back to the clues he had already found and those still under investigation.

After a moment, Liu Shuyi slowly exhaled.

"Then let's give it a try," he murmured to himself.

…………

An hour later.

As darkness fell, lanterns were hung, bathing the entire city of Chang'an in their warm glow.

The lanterns of the Ministry of Justice swayed gently in the wind.

Suddenly, a carriage stopped in front of the yamen (government office).

With Du Gou's help, Du Ruhui stepped down from the carriage.

As he walked, he said, "You guys are really bold. You didn't even ask for my opinion before provoking all four of them at once. Even I sometimes get a headache from Kong Xiang and Pan Keming."

Du Gou smiled wryly: "I also reminded Liu Yuanwailang, but he said that Yao Guang might have left a loophole in his haste to silence Qin Xiguang. If Yao Guang is given enough time to deal with the loophole, the evidence that points directly to Yao Guang might be destroyed. So now we have called Yao Guang here. If there is really evidence, we can ensure that the evidence is still there to the greatest extent possible."

Upon hearing this, Du Ruhui pondered for a moment, then sighed and said, "Forget it, we've already sent people to call them. They should be here soon, so there's no point in saying anything more."

"Let's go see Liu Shuyi first and see what he does next."

The two men easily found their way to the Ministry of Justice compound, and finally arrived at Liu Shuyi's office.

Du Gou knocked gently on the door, and soon Liu Shuyi opened it.

Upon seeing Du Ruhui outside the door, Liu Shuyi bowed and said, "Master Du."

Du Gou waved his hand, skipping the pleasantries with Liu Shuyi, and went straight to the point: "How confident are you?"

Du Gou also looked at Liu Shuyi with curiosity.

After he and Liu Shuyi entered Chang'an, Liu Shuyi asked Lu Yangyuan to invite Kong Xiang and the other three to the Ministry of Justice, and also asked him to go find his father.

Therefore, he was unsure how confident Liu Shuyi was in uncovering Yao Guang's involvement.

Then they saw Liu Shuyi shake his head and say, "It's hard to say."

"Hard to say?" Du Ruhui looked intently at Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi said, "After all, I haven't questioned them yet. I don't know if I can get more clues through questioning."

"Then do you know how unfavorable the situation will be for you if you can't find Yao Guang as quickly as possible?" Du Ruhui asked again.

Liu Shuyi nodded: "I understand, which is why I specifically asked Vice Minister Du to invite Lord Du over to oversee the Ministry of Justice for me."

Du Ruhui stared intently at Liu Shuyi with his deep eyes: "You summoned me here to suppress Kong Xiang and the other three? You already had a premonition that the case couldn't be solved quickly?"

Upon hearing this, Du Gou felt a pang of anxiety.

To everyone's surprise, Liu Shuyi smiled and said, "That depends on how fast it is. If it's an hour, then I really can't do it, but if it's a whole night..."

He looked directly into Du Ruhui's deep eyes and said, "This humble official may give it a try."

Du Ruhui squinted. On the way here, he had already heard Du Gou talk about the clues that Liu Shuyi currently had, so he knew very well that Liu Shuyi did not have any definite clues pointing to Yao Guang.

This is why he felt that Liu Shuyi should secretly meet with Kong Xiang and the other three, inquire about their situation without alerting anyone, gather clues, and then consider the next steps, instead of summoning all four to the Ministry of Justice, which would put Liu Shuyi in direct opposition to them, making it impossible to keep the news a secret and leaving no chance for reconciliation.

However, now that things have already happened, he will not strike back at Liu Shuyi.

Du Ruhui said, “Alright, I will stand guard for you. You can question them as you see fit. I guarantee that no one will dare to oppose you in front of me. But I can’t stand guard for you forever. We will all go to the palace for court at dawn. During the court meeting, if nothing unexpected happens, they will join together to denounce you to His Majesty, saying that you deliberately framed them and that you wanted to make them scapegoats.”

"His Majesty will surely summon you to the palace and ask you to produce evidence to prove that the murderer is among them. Although you have a complete deduction now, a deduction is still just a deduction. Without concrete evidence, they will not accept it. Instead, they will find fault with you, saying that you did not even have any concrete clues and yet you arbitrarily interrogated a high-ranking official as a criminal. At that time, even His Majesty will not be able to protect you."

"So, you need to be prepared, your time is only tonight!"

"Even if we can't find out who Yao Guang really is tonight, we must find evidence to prove your deduction, otherwise... the outcome is unpredictable."

Listening to his father's words, Du Gou looked at Liu Shuyi with concern. He had handled many cases, big and small, but this was the first time he had felt so nervous about a case.

I thought that by peeling back the layers and finding the range of the Yao Guang, we were close to the truth and about to achieve final victory.

But little did they know, the closer they got to the truth, the greater the danger became.

If you are not careful, you may lose everything.

Liu Shuyi was no novice in officialdom, so how could he not have thought of what Du Ruhui was saying? But in reality, he had no choice.

Yao Guang was too cautious; no one knew of his existence throughout the entire Ma Qingfeng family massacre case.

In addition, the two years that followed the murder of Ma Qingfeng's family dealt a devastating blow to the investigation.

It would be difficult for him to convict Yao Guang based on the evidence from the Ma Qingfeng family murder case.

Therefore, the Qin Xiguang silencing case is the most promising opportunity he can see right now, an opportunity to kill him in one blow!

If he misses this opportunity, even if he eventually finds out who Yao Guang is, he may not be able to provide irrefutable evidence to prove the other party's guilt.

Even if Li Shimin trusted him and captured that person, it still left a loophole for him, which might be used by an opponent to attack him in the future.

Therefore, even though he knew that doing so would have countless disadvantages, he still had to seize this one and only opportunity.

Liu Shuyi bowed deeply to Du Ruhui: "Thank you for your reminder, Lord Du. I will do everything in my power to find Yaoguang!"

Du Ruhui looked at Liu Shuyi, who was bowing deeply to him, remained silent for a moment, and finally sighed in his heart.

"That's all..."

If Liu Shuyi really fails, then at tomorrow's court assembly, I will risk everything to find a way to protect Liu Shuyi.

How can you really stand idly by and watch your own son-in-law become the one you chose?

"Minister Du, Assistant Minister Liu..."

At this moment, a clerk suddenly strode over, bowed to the group, and quickly announced, "Dr. Kong, Physician Pan, Junior Minister Han, and Magistrate Li have arrived..."

Upon hearing the official's words, Du Gou and Du Ruhui instinctively looked at Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi took a deep breath, straightened his back, and said directly, "Please, esteemed officials, enter the courtroom!"

　I was almost finished writing this case, but then I got writer's block. I can't even write a thousand words an hour. I really wanted to make the ending exciting, but instead, I can't write anything at all... I'll end this chapter here as a prelude. I'll try my best to finish the case tomorrow or the day after.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)