The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 133 The Intelligent Crushing Power of Dimensional Reduction! Kong Xiang's Despair!
Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Kong Xiang felt his liver and gallbladder tremble and his soul was filled with terror!

He stared wide-eyed at Liu Shuyi, his already ashen face turning even more bloodless.

The body, which had been trembling with anger as if it had been wronged, began to tremble violently for real at this moment.

"you you……"

He raised his finger and pointed at Liu Shuyi, as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't utter a second word for a long time.

Rather than saying he didn't know how to defend himself, it would be more accurate to say that he had been driven to despair by Liu Shuyi's insidious and terrifying methods.

He has already admitted everything; how can he still deny it?
He's finished!
Seeing Kong Xiang's desperate and fearful expression, Li Xinchun and the others felt a surge of emotions within them, which remained unsettled for a long time.

Kong Xiang was able to completely deceive them all, and no one ever suspected him. This shows how cunning and intelligent Kong Xiang was, and how deep his scheming was.

Even after Liu Shuyi announced to them that Kong Xiang was the real culprit, they were still deceived by Kong Xiang, still firmly believed in Kong Xiang, and were still willing to put pressure on Liu Shuyi on Kong Xiang's behalf...

Kong Xiangzhen is really good at hiding his true intentions; he's a master of disguise.

Considering Kong Xiang's previous image and then looking at him now, they felt a chill run down their spines. If Kong Xiang were plotting against them, could they escape? The answer is no; they would definitely become the second Ma Qingfeng!

But even such a treacherous, cunning, ruthless, and scheming man as Kong Xiang was uncovered by Liu Shuyi through meticulous investigation, and his true colors were revealed!

Moreover, in order to get Kong Xiang to confess, Liu Shuyi secretly devised a plan against Kong Xiang from the very beginning, deceiving him word by word and leading him into a trap with each sentence...

Liu Shuyi treated Kong Xiang like a puppet, controlling Kong Xiang's behavior and thoughts, making Kong Xiang believe that he was in control of everything, but in reality, he was completely controlled by Liu Shuyi... This is not just a matter of investigation skills, but also a matter of planning and scheming!
This is a skill that Liu Shuyi has never shown before!
Liu Shuyi's amazing investigative skills only prove that he can become a legendary detective in the Tang Dynasty and a pillar in the field of criminal investigation.

If he is good at making decisions and planning, then he has the foundation to become a key minister.

In other words, Liu Shuyi's future will no longer be limited to the field of criminal investigation.

He has a brighter future ahead of him!

There is a chance to compete for the position above the Minister!
An official who can only solve cases won't attract much attention, since there's a limit to his abilities. But an official who can solve cases, understand strategy and planning, and is clearly going to make great contributions to the emperor and gain his favor and praise is a completely different story!

Han Xi's eyes lit up as he looked at Liu Shuyi. His eyeballs darted around, and the shrewd man was already considering how to take advantage of tonight to befriend Liu Shuyi, at least to erase the less-than-ideal first impression he had made.

Even the serious and rigid Pan Keming looked at Liu Shuyi differently than before. He cupped his hands and said, "Now that I have witnessed Master Liu solving a case with my own eyes, I understand why Master Liu is called a divine detective!"

He apologized to Liu Shuyi: "I was misled by the thieves before and treated Liu with prejudice, which almost affected Liu's judgment. I apologize to Liu hereby."

Han Xi never expected that Pan Keming, who looked honest and simple, would be so cunning, finding an opportunity to ease tensions with Liu Shuyi even before Han Xi himself.

He quickly added with a smile, "I must also apologize to Liu Yuanwailang. We were deceived by treacherous people. We thought we were speaking out fairly and justly, but who would have thought that we would become the murderer's weapon against Yuanwailang."

"Although there was a reason for the incident, a mistake is a mistake. I will try to make amends for today's mistake in the future. I hope that you will do me the honor of accepting my offer."

Hearing the fourth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and the fifth-rank Grand Counselor admit their mistakes to Liu Shuyi, Gu Wen couldn't help but swallow hard.

Even a fourth-rank official was so eager to curry favor with Liu Shuyi, while he himself deliberately ignored Liu Shuyi and concealed some information during the investigation, hoping to see Liu Shuyi make a fool of himself... Just thinking about what he had done during the day made Gu Wen's legs go weak and his heart feel cold.

What exactly did I do?

Not only did he voluntarily decline credit, but he also provoked Liu Shuyi twice...

If I could travel through time, I would definitely slap my past self to death!
He was so regretful!
Gu Wen felt even more remorse when he saw County Magistrate Li Xinchun glaring at him with murderous eyes.

No matter how much Gu Wen regretted it, in Li Xinchun's eyes, it was nothing compared to him!
After all, he had first denounced Liu Shuyi in front of His Majesty, and then tonight he had repeatedly verbally provoked and targeted Liu Shuyi...

Others are just following suit.

I'm the one who's charging ahead on the front lines!

In other words, he offended Liu Shuyi the most.

If Gu Wen hadn't told him beforehand that Liu Shuyi had no clues or evidence at all, how could he have targeted Liu Shuyi like this?
Gu Wen really killed him!

Seeing that Pan Keming and Han Xi had both taken the initiative to apologize, Li Xinchun quickly said, "Liu Yuanwailang, I apologize for all the things I said and all the things I did to offend you tonight."

"I have truly lost my mind. I have come to believe that you have ulterior motives based on just a few casual words from others."

"I will personally visit you to apologize for today's mistake. I hope you will not hold this against me."

Seeing one important official after another apologize to Liu Shuyi, Zhao Feng and the others felt their hearts finally settle down, and their previously pent-up emotions were swept away!

They knew it was all over, and it had ended in the most perfect way.

As Du Ruhui watched this scene, his deep eyes were filled with appreciation and satisfaction.

This time, Liu Shuyi not only did not disappoint him, but his performance was even more outstanding than he had expected!

He was once again pleased with his choice of Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi, who was in the center of everyone's attention, showed no arrogance or panic in the face of Li Xinchun and others' apologies. He maintained his calm smile, cupped his hands to everyone, and said with a smile, "There's no need for such formalities, esteemed officials."

“I know how cunning Kong Xiang is, and I know that he will try to incite you all in order to stop me from investigating the case. Therefore, I have always known that you superiors have been deceived by him. The truly despicable person is him, not you.”

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Li Xinchun and the others' eyes lit up.

They had assumed that Liu Shuyi would be somewhat dissatisfied with them, but to their surprise, he was so understanding.

This immediately improved their impression of Liu Shuyi.

Li Xinchun nodded repeatedly and said, "What Liu Yuanwailang said is right. The culprit behind all this is Kong Xiang!"

"To be honest, sir, before I arrived at the Ministry of Justice, I met Kong Xiang. Kong Xiang told me that since His Majesty values ​​you so highly and you are at a crucial moment in the competition for the position of magistrate, you must want to make great contributions as soon as possible so that His Majesty can promote you to magistrate..."

"At the time, I didn't understand why he suddenly brought these things up. Now, looking back, I realize that he planted a seed in my mind beforehand, hoping that when I suspected Liu Yuanwailang's intentions in the case of Ma Langzhong's family massacre, I would think of Liu Yuanwailang's eagerness to make a name for himself, and thus misunderstand him and think that he had ulterior motives!"

As he spoke, he glared angrily at Kong Xiang and said sternly, "Kong Xiang, I thought you were a great scholar with no intention of harming anyone, so I did not guard against you. Who would have thought that your mind was so vicious! You are truly unworthy of being a scholar!"

Pan Keming and Han Xi both nodded in agreement.

Kong Xiang really fooled them terribly!
Liu Shuyi nodded knowingly as he watched this scene. He thought to himself, "Why would Li Xinchun target me so openly from the beginning, making me almost suspect Li Xinchun?"

It turned out that Kong Xiang had given Li Xinchun a psychological suggestion beforehand.

Moreover, reflecting on Kong Xiang's performance tonight, although Kong Xiang did not target him like Li Xinchun did, every time Kong Xiang spoke, he always managed to provoke the anger of others at just the right moment.

For example, when Li Xinchun reprimanded him for being late, Kong Xiang made a special explanation for himself, saying that he might have important matters to attend to... This explanation seemed to be helping him, but in fact it added fuel to the fire, only making others even angrier when they already disliked him.

Kong Xiang is truly adept at hiding his true identity! He always remains behind others.

If An Qingxi hadn't confessed, to be honest, Liu Shuyi wasn't sure he could have found Kong Xiang.

He looked at Kong Xiang, whose face was pale and whose fists were clenched tightly, and said, "Kong Xiang, do you have anything to say now?"

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, everyone quickly looked at Kong Xiang.

Kong Xiang took a deep breath, barely managing to calm himself down.

He glared at Liu Shuyi with venomous eyes and gritted his teeth, saying, "I did underestimate you! But I will lose to you, not because you are so capable, but because I am too kind!"

Liu Shuyi seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world, raising an eyebrow and saying, "You're kind?"

Kong Xiang said coldly, "I didn't kill Qin Xiguang like I did with the others back then. Instead, I let him live comfortably until now, making him my only weakness. Isn't that kind?"

"Ah……"

Liu Shuyi burst out laughing. His dark, deep eyes stared directly into Kong Xiang's eyes, and he said with a half-smile, "Kong Xiang, losing to me is so hard for you to accept. And at a time like this, you're still lying about this kind of thing?"

Kong Xiang frowned unconsciously.

Liu Shuyi said calmly, "Don't try to glorify yourself by talking about kindness."

"Why didn't you kill Qin Xiguang directly? There are two reasons."

"First, although I don't know what reason you had for having Qin Xiguang teach Wei Ji cooking skills, Qin Xiguang probably doesn't even know Wei Ji's true identity, so naturally he's even less aware of your plans."

"As for your trip to the banquet at the Ma residence, no outsiders know about it. You are not worried at all that the investigation will be traced back to the cook. Even if it is traced back to the cook, there are so many cooks, you don't think the investigation will be traced back to Wei Ji."

"So, in your view, it's impossible for anyone to find Qin Xiguang. He knows nothing about everything and poses no threat to you whatsoever. You don't silence him simply because there's no need to!"

"And the second..."

Liu Shuyi stared into Kong Xiang's eyes: "Qin Xiguang is different from Wei Ji, Hu Hebing and others. He is an imperial chef! Although the status of an imperial chef is not high, his status as an imperial chef has earned him a place in the palace."

"If Qin Xiguang died without warning, the Qin family might not suspect anything, but someone from the palace would definitely come to confirm the circumstances of Qin Xiguang's death."

"If the people in the palace discover anything, that will be the greatest danger for you!"

"Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, you would never dare to touch Qin Xiguang!"

"You didn't kill him because you were kind?"

Liu Shuyi chuckled and said, "Don't you feel ashamed saying that?"

"I……"

Kong Xiang's face turned pale and then red. He hadn't expected that Liu Shuyi would know so much about why he hadn't killed Qin Xiguang.

He was still unwilling to let Liu Shuyi look down on him with such a superior attitude. He gritted his teeth and said, "You say you know everything about the case, but do you know why Ma Qingfeng hosted a banquet for me that night? And why no one else knew anything about it?"

Liu Shuyi narrowed his eyes: "You've come to the right place this time. I really didn't find any relevant clues."

Kong Xiang's eyes lit up, and he was about to loudly announce that Liu Shuyi wasn't as powerful as rumored, when he heard Liu Shuyi add, "However, I can guess." Kong Xiang was taken aback: "Guess?"

Liu Shuyi stared intently at him and said, "Back then, your position was Imperial Academy Doctor, responsible for teaching Imperial Academy students. A sixth-rank Imperial Academy Doctor was naturally not worth the flattery of a powerful official in the Ministry of Personnel."

"Therefore, his invitation to you is not a subordinate's attempt to curry favor with a superior."

"At the same time, you have no interaction with him in your daily life, and his invitation to you is not out of friendship."

"When he hosts banquets for other people, he is very high-profile and lets everyone know who he is on good terms with. But when he hosts a banquet for you, he keeps it so secret. This shows that he doesn't want people to know that he hosted you. It also means that the reason he hosted you is probably not something positive that people can know about."

“But given the vast difference in their statuses, what could possibly warrant him lowering himself to host a banquet for you, or even going so far as to have Wei Ji prepare such a special meal to invite you? Considering your status as a Doctor of the Imperial Academy, and the age of Ma Langzhong’s son, I have a guess…”

Liu Shuyi looked at Kong Xiang's slightly changed expression and said calmly, "He wanted to send his child to the Imperial Academy, right? But his child probably doesn't have enough knowledge to meet the standards for admission, so he came to you... Or, all of this was your scheme. You deliberately lured him to you and told him that you had a way to get his offspring into the Imperial Academy."

"For the sake of his offspring's future, Physician Ma will naturally seize this opportunity. And because he needs your help, you have the upper hand and can attend the banquet whenever you want."

"Therefore, while it may seem that Doctor Ma has the opportunity to host the banquet, in reality, just as I have just controlled you, you are the one who truly controls everything!"

As Kong Xiang listened to Liu Shuyi's analysis, his pupils contracted sharply.

He instinctively stepped back, shaking his head involuntarily: "You...you...are you really human?"

Liu Shuyi was able to find Qin Xiguang based on clues, and then find him. Although he was very unwilling to accept this fact, these things were still traceable. Liu Shuyi was just good at finding clues and reasoning.

But now... Liu Shuyi has not obtained any useful clues at all, and based solely on logical deduction, he can recount the events of that year without the slightest error.

This made Kong Xiang feel a chill in his heart.

This means that even if Liu Shuyi doesn't get any crucial clues when he confronts them, he still has the opportunity to determine their purpose entirely based on the analysis of scattered information.

This is undoubtedly a terrifying thing!
It was only at this moment that he realized why Liu Yuanming and An Qingxi had both fallen to Liu Shuyi.

Perhaps it wasn't that they were stupid or arrogant, but rather that they hadn't truly realized how terrifying Liu Shuyi was.

"no!"

He had to inform the landlord of Liu Shuyi's threat; if Liu Shuyi wasn't dealt with quickly, he would become a major threat.

Thinking of this, he turned around and was about to rush outside.

boom!
But he had only taken a couple of steps, and hadn't even touched the gate, when Lu Yangyuan kicked him to the ground.

Keng!
With his sword drawn, Lu Yangyuan stepped on Kong Xiang's shoulder, the tip of the blade pointing directly at Kong Xiang's throat.

"Still want to escape?"

Even if Kong Xiang was cunning, he was still just a scholar and no match for Lu Yangyuan.

After being kicked away by Lu Yangyuan, he felt as if his bones were about to crack, and he was in so much pain that he was covered in sweat and unable to move.

Liu Shuyi walked over and squatted down in front of Kong Xiang. He looked directly into Kong Xiang's eyes and said, "This is the Ministry of Justice. My men are everywhere outside. Do you think you can escape?"

"Or is it that there are accomplices from your organization outside, and you have important information to share with them?"

Kong Xiang's pupils contracted, and he was about to shake his head in rebuttal when Liu Shuyi said, "So you really do have accomplices...tsk, it seems our Ministry of Justice also needs to conduct an internal investigation."

“You…” Kong Xiang realized that Liu Shuyi had noticed his reaction just now.

His face changed drastically, and he glared angrily at Liu Shuyi: "You won't get away with this!"

Liu Shuyi shrugged: "Before you worry about me, you should worry about your own fate."

"Besides, I haven't finished talking about this case yet. If you really run away, we'll miss the most exciting part, wouldn't that be a pity?"

Kong Xiang was taken aback: "Not over yet?"

Liu Shuyi has explained his motives, the details of his crime, and even why he went to the banquet. Isn't that all he has to say?
Seeing Kong Xiang's confusion, Liu Shuyi looked at him with deep eyes and said meaningfully, "I haven't even mentioned the human pyramid you specially built, or the people you want to resurrect through the rituals performed on this human pyramid..."

Kong Xiang trembled violently, exclaiming in disbelief, "You even know this?"

Liu Shuyi calmly said, "Compared to your entire conspiracy, is this matter really worth your surprise?"

Kong Xiang's shock and exhaustion from the sudden turn of events made him completely at Liu Shuyi's mercy, and he subconsciously said, "That's true."

Liu Shuyi's tone deepened, as if hooking at Kong Xiang, and he said, "You went to great lengths to resurrect a person from the former Sui Dynasty, just to find someone to control you. Was it worth it?"

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Kong Xiang felt as if he had heard something that infuriated him. He suddenly struggled violently, his face flushed red: "What do you know! To me, this is more important than my life! Tell me, is it worth it or not?"

"Oh? More important than your life?"

Liu Shuyi stared intently at him: "But why do I feel he doesn't deserve it?"

"Shut up! If it weren't for him, I—"

Just as Kong Xiang was about to retort angrily, a scream suddenly came from the courtyard, followed by some panicked sounds.

Seeing that Kong Xiang had been interrupted, Liu Shuyi frowned and gave Lu Yangyuan a wink.

Before Lu Yangyuan could go out to check, a Jinwu Guard rushed in: "A clerk from the Dali Temple suddenly went mad and tried to rush into the main hall. After we stopped him, he grabbed a knife and tried to kill someone. We had no choice but to execute him on the spot."

"What?" Zhao Feng and the others were all stunned.

But they soon realized who that person was.

Is it...

Zhao Feng asked, "So those are Kong Xiang's accomplices?"

Kong Xiang was stunned for a moment, then seemed to understand something. He looked at Liu Shuyi with a look of fear on his face and exclaimed, "You...you...you're trying to trick me!? You have no idea what I did with that human tower! You're lying to me again!"

Upon hearing Kong Xiang's words, Li Xinchun and the others were also taken aback.

Is Liu Shuyi deceiving Kong Xiang again?

real or fake?

They found absolutely nothing unusual.

Liu Shuyi shook his head and sighed deeply, "What a pity."

"You were just a hair's breadth away from revealing the most crucial information."

“I never imagined that your accomplices would hear your hysterical screams outside, realize what you were doing, and then risk their lives to remind you.”

It turned out to be true!
Li Xinchun and the others couldn't help but show surprise on their faces.

At the same time, I couldn't help but feel a jolt of surprise.

What kind of lunatics are Kong Xiang and his group?
He just wanted to remind Kong Xiang not to reveal the secret, even at the cost of his own life.

Hearing Liu Shuyi's sigh, Kong Xiang stared blankly at him, then suddenly began to struggle even more violently, baring his teeth and clenching his fists: "I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you!"

Lu Yangyuan was having trouble holding Kong Xiang down, so Cheng Chumo quickly came over to help. The two of them worked together, and no matter how crazy Kong Xiang was, he couldn't move an inch.

Looking at Kong Xiang, whose expression was ferocious and whose face was full of hatred, Liu Shuyi calmly said, "You and I are mortal enemies. You are trying to overthrow the Tang Dynasty, and I want to stop you. So I lied to you and tricked you into telling the truth. Isn't that just the right thing to do? What do you have to be angry about?"

"Or is it that your anger isn't because I lied to you, but because you were so incompetent that you almost let it slip, and you hate yourself for it?"

"you--"

Kong Xiang stared at Liu Shuyi, opening his mouth as if to say something, but not knowing how to say it.

Moreover, he was genuinely afraid of Liu Shuyi.

He was not sure at all whether Liu Shuyi's words at this moment were deceiving and enticing him.

So he simply closed his eyes and said coldly, "From now on, I will not say another word to you, and you can forget about getting any response from me!"

After saying that, he pursed his lips tightly, as if he were trying to make himself mute.

Seeing this, Liu Shuyi shook his head. He knew that after Kong Xiang's accomplice used his death to awaken Kong Xiang's vigilance, he would have no more chances to guide Kong Xiang to tell the truth.

However, I did gain something from it.

He was worried that Kong Xiang would guess his purpose, so he asked the question very cleverly. As a result, Kong Xiang's reaction confirmed some of his guesses.

Kong Xiang indeed used the ritual of the human tower to resurrect someone.

Moreover, this person was from the former Sui Dynasty, so his status should not be low, and he should have done Kong Xiang some kind of favor...

With this information, we can investigate this person. Even if we can't find the exact target, we should be able to find a general direction.

Thinking of all this, Liu Shuyi slowly exhaled and stood up.

He glanced around at everyone, then looked at Du Ruhui and cupped his hands, saying, "Lord Du, the truth of this case has now come to light."

"I was fortunate enough to live up to His Majesty's and Lord Du's trust and finally solve the mystery!"

Du Ruhui's face was full of satisfaction. He nodded and said, "You have done a very good job. I believe His Majesty will be very pleased to know about this."

After thinking for a moment, he glanced at the sky outside, which was gradually brightening, and said, "It's almost time for the court assembly. You will come with me to see His Majesty and personally explain the course of this case to him."

(End of this chapter)