The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 139 The First Major Case of Wude Emerges! A Shocking Discovery! Is He Good or Evil?

Liu Shuyi, accompanied by Zhao Wenzhong, quickly arrived at the files room.

When the official in charge of the records department saw Liu Shuyi arrive, he hurriedly went to greet him, his tone respectful to the point of being obsequious: "This humble official greets Physician Liu. If Physician Liu needs any records, just send someone to deliver them. This humble official will send the records to Physician Liu himself. There is no need for Physician Liu to come in person."

Liu Shuyi glanced at the sensible official and nodded, saying, "I need to find some case files. Next, you will cooperate with Judge Zhao of the Court of Judicial Review to find those case files."

The official hurriedly replied, "This humble official understands."

As he spoke, he looked at Zhao Wenzhong behind Liu Shuyi and said, "Judge Zhao, please."

Zhao Wenzhong dared not linger in front of Liu Shuyi and quickly followed.

Seeing the two begin searching, Liu Shuyi went to the table and sat down.

Lu Yangyuan picked up the kettle and poured a glass of water for Liu Shuyi. Liu Shuyi nodded slightly. As he picked up the glass, he said, "When you heard about what I asked you to do, did you give me any instructions?"

Lu Yangyuan said, "Du, the Vice Minister of Justice, said that when he was transferred to the Dali Temple, Liu's elder brother had already disappeared. He had never worked with Liu's elder brother and did not know much about his brother's affairs."

"Therefore, I am unable to help Physician Liu, and I would like to ask you to convey my apologies to Physician Liu on my behalf."

Liu Shuyi was not surprised by this.

Du Gou entered the Dali Temple after Li Shimin ascended the throne following the Xuanwu Gate Incident and when he was rewarding meritorious officials, due to his connection with Du Ruhui.

At that time, his older brother had been missing for several months.

The two had no connection whatsoever, so it was perfectly normal that he couldn't help him. He just hadn't expected that Du Gou would specifically ask Lu Yangyuan to convey his apology to him... He truly deserved the title of a gentleman; his kindness made Liu Shuyi feel ashamed.

"but……"

Lu Yangyuan then added, "When we asked who had the best relationship with Liu Pingshi and was most familiar with him, we heard some comments about Liu Pingshi."

"evaluate?"

Liu Shuyi raised his eyebrows and looked at Lu Yangyuan.

Lu Yangyuan said, "The people of Dali Temple all agree on the evaluation of Judge Liu. They all say that Judge Liu is calm, serious, gentle, and always smiling at everyone, but he is not overly close to anyone."

"Therefore, Du Sicheng searched around but could not find the person who was closest to Liu Pingshi. In the end, he had no choice but to bring over Zhao Pingshi, who sat in the same office as Liu Pingshi and often handled official business together."

Liu Shuyi seemed to be deep in thought.

Liu Shuzhong always had a smile on his face... He knew this very well.

In the original owner's memories, Liu Shuzhong was originally a serious and unsmiling person. Later, in order to support the declining Liu family, he began to travel around. He was slowly tormented and shaped by reality, and changed from a serious and unsmiling person into a smooth and mercenary one. No matter who he was dealing with, even those he disliked, he always maintained a smile on his face.

But Liu Shuzhong wasn't close to anyone...

This puzzled Liu Shuyi.

Normally, working in a complex government office like the Dali Temple, forming alliances with others would greatly enhance Liu Shuzhong's ability to withstand risks, and would be of great help in completing tasks and getting promoted.

Liu Shuzhong should not keep his distance from others.

Not to mention that Liu Shuzhong has always aimed to restore the glory of the Liu family. With no one supporting them, they can only find ways to climb up the ranks step by step. Under such circumstances, building connections and developing power are essential.

Why would Liu Shuzhong deliberately avoid getting close to people, having no close friends in the vast Dali Temple?

"That's a bit strange..."

Liu Shuyi gently stroked the water glass in his hand, his mind racing.

Liu Shuzhong clearly needs to make friends, yet he doesn't get close to any of them. The reason for this contradiction is...

Liu Shuyi came up with three ideas.

First, Liu Shuzhong believed that none of the people in the Dali Temple were trustworthy; they were all opportunists and unreliable, and might even be harmful to him in the future.

Secondly, Liu Shuzhong had offended a powerful enemy and dared not associate with them for fear of harming them.

Third, Liu Shuzhong was threatened or controlled, and was not allowed to associate with others to expand his network or influence.

Of these three possibilities, the first one is the least likely.

With so many people in the Dali Temple, it's impossible for everyone to be a fence-sitter. There will always be people who adhere to principles and maintain their bottom line... Moreover, Liu Shuzhong's networking was just about using them to climb the social ladder. As long as that goal was achieved, whether they were good-natured or trustworthy was not important.

The second and third types...

Considering Liu Shuzhong's sudden and silent disappearance, and the despair and helplessness he displayed before his disappearance...

It's possible that we've incurred the wrath of a powerful enemy, or that we've been controlled and threatened by someone all along. Both possibilities exist.

As for which one it will be, or some possibility I haven't even considered...

Liu Shuyi looked up at Zhao Wenzhong's busy figure, his gaze deep... Perhaps finding the case that made his brother regret it would reveal the answer.

"Doctor Liu, I'm back!"

At that moment, the door to the case file room was suddenly pushed open, and Zhao Feng, dressed in a blue official robe, rushed in.

He strode up to Liu Shuyi and, before Liu Shuyi could speak, said directly, "I have already found out that, according to the girl from Miaoyinfang, there was indeed such a strange person who visited Miaoyinfang two years ago."

Liu Shuyi's eyes flashed, and he immediately straightened his back, saying, "Explain in detail."

Zhao Feng said, "The girls said that men who come to Miaoyin Pavilion usually come to seek pleasure, so it is very rare for them to arrive at Miaoyin Pavilion and not look for girls, but just drink alone in their loneliness."

"And to receive special treatment from the madam is even rarer."

"Therefore, they have a very deep memory of this person."

Liu Shuyi astutely grasped a key point: "The madam's special treatment?"

Zhao Feng nodded: "When a guest enters Miaoyinfang, normally the girls would take the initiative to seduce him. But with that person, the madam stopped the girls from getting close to him, saying that this person was different from the others and did not need to be served."

"That's why he could drink alone in silence; otherwise, he would have had girls with him, trying to empty his pockets."

Miaoyin'er stopped the other girls from getting close to Liu Shuzhong...

Liu Shuyi narrowed his eyes, recalling Han Xi's mention of Miaoyin'er giving Liu Shuzhong a money pouch.

After a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Do these girls remember what day it was?"

Zhao Feng shook his head: "It's been too long. They can only vaguely remember that it was before the middle of the year, but they can't be sure of the exact day."

Using the middle of the year as a memory node suggests that the time remaining until the middle of the year should not be too far away.

Liu Shuzhong disappeared on the fourth day of the fifth lunar month, less than a month before the middle of the year in June, which does match up.

"Do they still remember what that person looked like?" Liu Shuyi asked again.

Zhao Feng still shook his head: "They were stopped by Miaoyin'er and did not get close to that person, so they did not see what he looked like."

Liu Shuyi asked, "Has this person been to Miaoyin Pavilion before, and has he been there since?"

Zhao Feng thought for a moment and said, "They're not sure."

"Uncertain?" Liu Shuyi was puzzled. If you've been there, you've been there; if you haven't been there, you haven't been there. How can you be unsure?

Zhao Feng explained, "That's what I asked too. They said that during the day before that, the madam met with a man twice. That man was similar in build to the man who was drinking alone that night, but they couldn't be sure if it was the same person because they hadn't seen what the two men looked like."

daytime?

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered slightly.

In the original owner's memories, Liu Shuzhong had never socialized with anyone at night, so when he first heard that Liu Shuzhong knew Miaoyin'er and that their relationship was unusual, he was extremely suspicious, as this did not conform to the original owner's memories.

But if Liu Shuzhong and Miaoyin'er had met during the day, that would have been a different story...

As a judge of the Dali Temple, Liu Shuzhong often had to go out to investigate cases. In the gaps between investigations, he would have many opportunities to secretly meet with Miaoyin'er.

Liu Shuyi ran his fingertips over the cup, his brows furrowing slightly. The information he now possessed seemed to increasingly prove that Miaoyin'er and Liu Shuzhong had an extraordinary relationship. Could it be that Miaoyin'er really wasn't deceiving him?

The two met secretly for other reasons, not because of the feelings Miao Yin'er claimed.

"There's too little information. To find out the specifics... it seems I still need to see Miaoyin'er."

However, before meeting Miaoyin'er, we still need to find out what Liu Shuzhong regrets and get more information... Only by getting information that is beyond Miaoyin'er's expectations can we verify the truth or falsehood of Miaoyin'er's words. Otherwise, with Miaoyin'er's enchanting nature, it would be pointless to meet her.

With the testimonies of the other women in Miaoyinfang, Liu Shuyi was able to initially verify Han Xi's words.

Therefore, Liu Shuzhong's so-called wish to "turn back time" is even more likely to be true.

Now we'll see... whether he can find the regrets that Liu Shuzhong, in his despair, hoped to make up for.

"Dr. Liu..."

At this moment, Zhao Wenzhong walked over quickly, carrying a stack of case files.

He placed the files on the table in front of Liu Shuyi and said, "These files were either investigated by Judge Liu alone or by Judge Liu with his participation. They cover the period from when Judge Liu was promoted to judge in the seventh year of the Wude era to when he disappeared in the ninth year of the Wude era. All the files are here."

Liu Shuyi roughly counted that there were more than thirty files in total.

In two years, Liu Shuzhong either led or participated in the investigation of more than 30 cases, which is not a low frequency.

After all, not everyone is like me, handling a case every few days.

Not to mention that there weren't many cases that required the Dali Temple to send people to investigate. Those cases also had to be allocated. Liu Shuzhong's rank was not high, so he could only be assigned by his superiors and could not choose whether to participate in the cases. Therefore, more than 30 cases in two years was still considered normal to slightly more than normal.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Liu Shuyi nodded to Zhao Wenzhong and said, "Zhao Ping, please sit down and have a glass of water first. We can talk again after I have reviewed it."

Zhao Wenzhong waved his hand and said, "I didn't do anything. Please do as you please, Doctor Liu. I'll just stand here and wait."

Seeing this, Liu Shuyi knew that Zhao Wenzhong was somewhat in awe of him and dared not sit with him. He did not force him and directly picked up the case file to examine it.

Liu Shuzhong was only an eighth-rank judge of the Court of Judicial Review, so he could not completely control many cases, and these cases were not considered major cases.

The reason why a case could be sent to the Dali Temple by the local government for assistance was mostly because there were government officials involved in the case, making the case quite sensitive and the local government hesitant to make a decision.

The local government had already done a pretty good job investigating these cases, and only the final results were pending. So Liu Shuzhong's investigation was basically just a formality.

Liu Shuyi carefully reviewed the cases, found no problems, and then set them aside.

He then picked up the case files of the cases Liu Shuzhong had investigated. The main investigators in these cases were, at most, fifth-rank officials, including the Dali Temple Chief Justice and at least sixth-rank officials, such as the Dali Temple Assistant or Dali Temple Supervisor. Therefore, Liu Shuzhong, an eighth-rank official, was merely a minor figure who followed orders and did whatever he was told. In these cases, Liu Shuzhong's role was at most to follow his superiors' instructions to question people or search for clues; he had no room to maneuver and thus had very limited influence on the outcome of the cases.

Just like the case of Bai Jinghong's parents, Liu Shuzhong had clearly discovered the problems in the case and reported it to Qin Wuyang, hoping that a reinvestigation could be conducted before a final judgment was made.

Qin Wuyang completely ignored Liu Shuzhong and even turned around to suppress and blame him.

So although the outcome of these cases may not be what Liu Shuzhong wanted, the real responsibility does not lie with him, and he has already done his best... Under such circumstances, Liu Shuzhong should not feel this much regret.

What Liu Shuzhong truly regrets is that he directly influenced the final outcome, and that outcome was highly problematic...

But these cases...

Liu Shuyi quickly flipped through the remaining files one by one, his brows furrowing deeply.

He did find that the evidence chains in a few of these cases were not complete, but apart from a few cases such as the case of Bai Jinghong's parents, the results of the other cases should be fine.

Even in these few cases, his elder brother did not have any important role and had no influence on the outcome.

None of these cases met his criteria.

"Why is this happening?"

Liu Shuyi looked at the files on the table, his brows furrowed.

Could it be that I made a mistake in my judgment?
What Liu Shuzhong regrets isn't the case, but something else?

Or did Han Xi deceive herself?

Or... is Liu Shuzhong involved in other cases?
Liu Shuyi looked at Zhao Wenzhong and said, "Judge Zhao, before my elder brother was promoted to Judge of the Court of Judicial Review, he also participated in the investigation of some cases, right? Do you remember which cases they were?"

"This……"

Zhao Wenzhong hesitated for a moment: "Before Zhao was promoted to judge, he was just an outside official in the Court of Judicial Review. The Court of Judicial Review is under the jurisdiction of judges, but the judge in charge of him is not me. So I am not very clear about which cases Zhao participated in when he was in charge."

"Moreover, because his rank is too low, even if he participates in a case, his name will not be recorded in the case file, so it is very difficult to find him."

Officials outside the official ranks were those who had not yet entered the ninth rank or above. After passing the examination, they could be promoted to the ninth rank and officially become officials in the Tang Dynasty.

Similar to Zhao Feng before, but Zhao Feng met me and was able to get a formal promotion quickly, but Liu Shuzhong... in the original owner's memories, it took him three whole years to find an opportunity to get promoted.

For many officials outside the official ranks, a promotion within three years is already a miraculous speed. Officials outside the official ranks also have nine ranks, and they need to rise one rank at a time until they reach the highest honorary rank before they can apply for the "entry into the official ranks" procedure.

Liu Shuyi recalled that Liu Shuzhong's position as a judge in the Dali Temple should have been a third-rank official outside the official ranks, but he was suddenly promoted to an eighth-rank Dali Temple judge without even participating in the "entry into the official ranks" assessment.

Such special promotions are often due to making great contributions, coupled with the support of a benefactor... Just like Zhao Feng, Zhao Feng was able to become the person in charge because, on the one hand, he helped me solve many major cases that could shake the foundation of the Tang Dynasty and accumulated a lot of merits, and on the other hand, he was able to bypass the assessment and be promoted directly by both me and Du Ruhui.

How did Liu Shuzhong manage to get promoted despite failing the assessment?
The original owner had very few memories of this matter, or rather, Liu Shuzhong did not mention much official business to the original owner. At that time, the original owner was not a court official, but a scholar who was well protected by his elder brother and only knew how to bury himself in his books and was powerless. The original owner's only memory of this matter was that his elder brother seemed to have made a great contribution in a case and was thus promoted.

The original owner of this body also suddenly obtained the qualification for an assessment after her brother was promoted. After passing the assessment, she filled the vacancy of the head of the Ministry of Justice.

Liu Shuyi had never thought about the fact that his original self was an official before, but now, recalling it, he suddenly felt something was strange.

The original owner did not participate in the imperial examination, nor did he accumulate merits in the position of a clerk. Why was he directly qualified to participate in the assessment?

Even if Liu Shuzhong was involved, he would only be an eighth-rank Dali Temple Judge after being promoted. How could he have such great power?

Moreover, the time when the original owner participated in the assessment was only about a month different from the time Liu Shuzhong was promoted...

"Could there be some kind of connection between these two things?"

"Liu Shuzhong was promoted as an exception, and the original owner of this body was also exceptionally allowed to participate in the assessment..."

"Two exceptions..."

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered.

He looked at Zhao Wenzhong and asked, "I wonder who was the judge in charge of my brother when he served as a judge?"

Zhao Wenzhong said, "It was Judge Wang, but he died in an accident. Judge Liu filled the vacancy left by Judge Wang."

"Accidental death?"

A glint of light flashed in Liu Shuyi's eyes: "I wonder what kind of accident it was?"

Zhao Wenzhong said, "When I went out to investigate a case, I passed by Cuihua Mountain on my way back and accidentally fell off a cliff."

"Fell off a cliff?"

Liu Shuyi had recently investigated a case at Cuihua Mountain and knew about the situation there. Indeed, there was a section of mountain path on Cuihua Mountain that was adjacent to a cliff, and if one was not careful, there was a risk of falling.

But anyone who knows how to hike Cuihua Mountain knows how dangerous it is, so how could they not be careful?

Liu Shuyi asked, "When Judge Wang had his accident, were there any witnesses nearby?"

"Have."

Zhao Wenzhong said, "Wang Pingshi was not feeling well that day and was returning by carriage, accompanied by more than a dozen officials from the Dali Temple. Because the carriage was going too fast, the wheels ran over a protruding stone, causing the carriage to overturn and the horses and the carriage to fall off."

When the officials arrived at the foot of the mountain to search, the carriage had already shattered, and Judge Wang had already stopped breathing.

The corresponding image automatically appeared in Liu Shuyi's mind.

According to Zhao Wenzhong, such an accident is indeed possible.

But isn't it a bit of a coincidence?
Just then, Judge Wang was feeling unwell and couldn't ride his own horse, so he was unable to control the vehicle. As a result, the wheels, traveling at extremely high speed, ran over a protruding stone...

Knowing that there was a cliff on one side of the road, they still drove so fast.

Moreover, Judge Wang was the judge in charge of his own elder brother, and as soon as he died, his brother was directly promoted to fill the vacancy...

The transition between these events was remarkably smooth, and with the death of Judge Wang, it became impossible to know what his elder brother had been involved in or how he had behaved in those events.

It was as if a knife had sliced ​​away everything about my elder brother's role as a judge.

From then on, everyone only remembered the elder brother of the judge of the Dali Temple, but did not know Liu Shuzhong who asked the case!

Liu Shuyi let out a soft breath; he felt he had found the key to his brother's regret...

He continued to ask Zhao Wenzhong, "When Wang Pingshi had his accident, what happened to the groom who drove his horse? Did he also fall off the cliff?"

After thinking for a long time, Zhao Wenzhong said, "It seems not. It appears that the coachman was thrown off when the carriage tipped over and survived by chance."

really……

Liu Shuyi narrowed his eyes, increasingly feeling that there was something fishy about Wang Pingshi's death.

"When Judge Wang got into trouble, I wonder if my elder brother was with him?"

"No."

Zhao Wenzhong answered quickly this time, saying, "At that time, Judge Liu, or rather most of the judges, were seconded away to investigate a major case."

"A major case?"

Liu Shuyi's eyes flashed, and he said, "What major case? Was my brother promoted because of this case?"

Zhao Wenzhong nodded: "Yes, Judge Liu made a great contribution to this case. And because Judge Wang had an accident, a vacancy was created. Therefore, based on Judge Liu's merits, after review by the Ministry of Personnel, Judge Liu was promoted from Inquiry Officer to Judge."

His elder brother had just made a meritorious contribution in a major case, and then Wang Pingshi had an accident, and then Liu Shuzhong was promoted... No matter how you look at it, it seems like they were deliberately making way for Liu Shuzhong.

Was it Liu Shuzhong who targeted Judge Wang in order to get promoted as quickly as possible?

Or will someone else step in to clear the obstacles for Liu Shuzhong?

If it's the latter, what is the purpose?
To gain Liu Shuzhong's loyalty? To control Liu Shuzhong?

Liu Shuyi recalled his third hypothesis.

—Someone is controlling Liu Shuzhong and does not allow him to associate with others or develop his own power.

Could this be the reason for my elder brother's unusual behavior at Dali Temple?
Will the death of Judge Wang be something that will make his elder brother regret?

Liu Shuyi suddenly felt that the image of Liu Shuzhong in the original owner's memories had become blurred.

My previous impression of Liu Shuzhong was that he was a strong, brave, and protective older brother who would do anything to restore the Liu family's glory.

But now...

The death of Judge Wang made him somewhat uncertain.

Ultimately, he had never personally met Liu Shuzhong, and the original owner of this body... in the end, was too naive; those simple memories and perceptions could not provide him with any useful help.

Liu Shuyi let out a soft breath, suppressing the jumbled thoughts in his mind.

The death of Judge Wang is ultimately just speculation. No matter how coincidental it may be, without concrete evidence, it cannot be regarded as a fact.

Therefore, we should focus on Liu Shuzhong's regrets.

What is clear at present is that Liu Shuzhong's turning point in life was in this so-called major case, in which he made great contributions, played an important role, and even influenced the final outcome... which perfectly fits my conditions for Liu Shuzhong to regret the case.

therefore……

Liu Shuyi raised his head and looked directly at Zhao Wenzhong, saying, "Judge Zhao, could you please find the case file for this major case for me?"

Zhao Wenzhong dared not delay and quickly explained to the official in the file room which file it was. The official then rushed up to the second floor.

Not long after, the sound of heavy footsteps could be heard coming from the stairs.

"Dr. Liu, here is the file you requested."

The officials in the case file office handed the case file to Liu Shuyi with both hands, as if presenting a treasure.

"Thank you."

Without any unnecessary words, Liu Shuyi took the file and quickly opened it.

Then he saw the first few lines of text on the file.

"In August of the seventh year of the Wude era, the two Turkic Khans, Jieli and Tuli, led their armies to invade the Central Plains. The Prince of Qin led his troops to resist. During this time, the court mobilized the resources of various prefectures to gather military funds and send them to the army camp. However, upon arrival at the camp, all the copper coins turned to stone, and 200,000 strings of cash in military funds vanished without a trace. The whole country was shocked; this was known as..."
—The biggest case of the Wude era: the military pay scandal!

(End of this chapter)