The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 142 The Mysterious Disappearance, Movements in All Directions!

"Doctor Liu is looking for Junior Minister Ren?"

Unexpectedly, upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, the guard said, "Then Doctor Liu may have to wait."

"wait?"

Liu Shuyi thought of something and said, "Isn't Ren Shaoqing at the Dali Temple?"

The guard nodded: "After the court assembly today, Ren Shaoqing only came to the yamen to report for duty and then left. He has not returned since."

Ren Xing had left early in the morning...

Liu Shuyi frowned slightly. He had wanted to catch Ren Xing off guard, but he hadn't managed to block the door from the other side.

If they wait for Ren Xing to return leisurely, the news will likely have already spread, making it impossible to catch them off guard.

He pondered for a moment and said, "I wonder where Ren Shaoqing has gone?"

The guard smiled wryly and said, "I'm just a lowly gatekeeper, how dare I ask where Young Master Ren is going?"

Liu Shuyi understood the guard's predicament and did not make things difficult for him. He said, "Please trouble you to find Vice Minister Du for me."

Upon hearing the familiar name, the guard nodded repeatedly. He had said that when Physician Liu came to the Court of Judicial Review, how could he not seek out Vice Minister Du? Look... he still sought out Vice Minister Du.

He was secretly pleased with his own cleverness and said without any hesitation, "Please wait a moment, Physician Liu, I will go find Minister Du right away."

With that, he quickly ran into the yamen (government office).

Not long after, a series of hurried footsteps came from behind.

"Doctor Liu, what brings you here?"

Du Gou had just met Lu Yangyuan, who brought Liu Shuyi's mission, in the morning. He didn't expect that less than two hours later, Liu Shuyi would come in person again.

Liu Shuyi skipped the pleasantries with Du Gou and went straight to the point: "His Majesty has ordered me to reinvestigate the military pay case. I need to see Vice Minister Ren, but he is not at the Court of Judicial Review. I want to know where he went."

Should the case of the military pay be reopened?
Are you looking for Ren Shaoqing?
Liu Shuyi's words were few, but their content was enough to stir up huge waves on the long-calm lake of the Three Departments.

Even with his extensive experience, Du Gou felt somewhat dizzy at this moment. He knew very well what reopening the investigation into the military pay case meant for Liu Shuyi.

He couldn't help but whisper, "Are you really going to reopen the salary case? This is a case that the three judicial departments concluded back then. If you actually find something out, wouldn't you offend them?"

Liu Shuyi glanced at the Dali Temple guards around him, and instead of lowering his voice like Du Gou, he gave a wry smile and said, "I don't want to re-investigate any closed cases. For me, unsolved cases are more challenging."

"But this is His Majesty's order, and I have no choice. I can't disobey the imperial decree, can I?"

His Majesty's decree?

Du Gou was no stranger to Liu Shuyi.

Considering Liu Shuyi's inquiry to Liu Shuzhong that morning, and the fact that the salary case was the catalyst for Liu Shuzhong's promotion... he absolutely refused to believe that Liu Shuyi hadn't done anything in this matter.

However, he was quick-witted and soon understood what Liu Shuyi meant.

He quickly replied, "So it was His Majesty's order. His Majesty's orders cannot be disobeyed. Doctor Liu, you must not slack off and must not betray His Majesty's trust."

Seeing how well Du Gou understood him, Liu Shuyi silently gave Du Gou a thumbs up.

He nodded: "What Minister Du says is true. His Majesty trusts me, and I will do my best."

Liu Shuyi has Li Shimin's support behind him. Although Liu Shuyi's reinvestigation of the military pay case will still displease some people, these people will not focus their dissatisfaction on Liu Shuyi himself. If Liu Shuyi can really find something and make a contribution to His Majesty, and be valued by His Majesty even more, then it will be worthwhile.

Thinking of all this, Du Gou felt relieved.

Without further delay, he said directly, "Minister Ren has gone to the Chang'an County Government Office."

"Chang'an County Government Office?"

Du Gou said, "The Dali Temple needs to go to local government offices to investigate cases every once in a while. Chang'an County Government Office is different from other county government offices. It has a special status, so it is necessary for Vice Minister Ren to go there in person."

The Ministry of Justice would also conduct random checks on local prison conditions, something Liu Shuyi was quite familiar with.

He said, "I wonder when Ren Shaoqing will return?"

"Hard to say."

Du Gou said, "If there are no problems with the Chang'an County government, it should only take one or two hours at most to finish. But if any problems are discovered, or other things delay things, then it may not be so long."

It seems that if we want to find Ren Xing, we can't just wait around; we have to go to the Chang'an County Government Office.

Liu Shuyi looked at Du Gou: "I wonder if Vice Minister Du is busy today?"

Du Gou instantly understood Liu Shuyi's meaning. Without any further ado, he said directly, "Wait for me to fetch the horses."

Watching Du Gou stride into the Dali Temple, Liu Shuyi smiled. With a brother like this, even the most difficult things seemed to become simple.

If the salary case is indeed extremely problematic, then cracking it would certainly be a significant achievement.

We can try to gain some benefits for Du Gou then; we can't let Du Gou help us for nothing.

Moreover, when competing for the position of doctor before, Du Gou voluntarily withdrew from the competition for his own sake. Now that he has become a doctor, it is time for him to help Du Gou advance.

If Du Gou could also be promoted to the fifth rank, it would be a great help to me.

Not long after, Du Gou led his horse out of the Dali Temple.

Without further delay, the group hurried towards the Chang'an County Government Office.

The Dali Temple and other government offices were located in the jurisdiction of Wannian County, which was a bit far from the Chang'an County government office. It took Liu Shuyi and his group half an hour to arrive.

Stepping out of the carriage, and seeing the Chang'an County Government Office, which he had visited more than once, the yamen runner guarding the office proactively asked, "Doctor Liu, are you looking for County Commandant Wang?"

Liu Shuyi: "..."

Why do I keep guessing who I need to see at every government office I'm familiar with?

He shook his head and said, "I want to see Minister Ren."

"Ren Shaoqing?"

The constable instinctively replied, "Minister Ren has already left."

"Left again?"

Before Liu Shuyi could say anything, Mo Xiaofan, who was following behind him, couldn't help but ask, "Where did Ren Shaoqing go again?"

The constable didn't understand why Mo Xiaofan would say "again," so he truthfully replied, "Ren Shaoqing left about an hour ago. As for where he went, he should have gone back to the Dali Temple, right?"

Du Gou frowned: "Since leaving this morning, Ren Shaoqing has not returned to the Dali Temple."

The constable shook his head: "I don't know about that."

Liu Shuyi frowned. He had tried to ambush Ren Xing twice, but missed him both times... Could it be a coincidence?

Ren Xing has finished his official duties at the Chang'an County Government, but he has not returned to the Dali Temple. Where did Ren Xing go?
He thought for a moment and said to the yamen runner, "Please inform County Lieutenant Wang that I have something to discuss with him."

As expected, Physician Liu still wanted to see County Magistrate Wang. I knew I wouldn't be wrong... The yamen runners of Chang'an County, just like the guards of the Court of Judicial Review, all thought they were incredibly clever, and then they scurried into the yamen to deliver the message.

Upon hearing that Liu Shuyi wanted to see him, Wang Gui didn't hesitate and practically ran out of the government office.

Upon seeing Liu Shuyi, he quickly bowed and said, "Doctor Liu, you were looking for me?"

Since Wang Gui was one of their own, Liu Shuyi didn't waste any words with him and went straight to the point: "Do you know where Ren Shaoqing went?"

"Ren Shaoqing?" Although Wang Gui did not understand why Liu Shuyi wanted to find Ren Xing, he did not hesitate at all and said directly, "Return to the Dali Temple."

"Go back to Dali Temple?"

Seeing that Wang Gui answered without hesitation, Liu Shuyi asked, "Are you sure?"

Wang Gui nodded: "Originally, Magistrate Zhuang wanted to invite Ren Shaoqing to lunch, but Ren Shaoqing said that he had some important official business at the Dali Temple that needed to be dealt with as soon as possible and could not be delayed, so he declined Magistrate Zhuang's offer."

“Ren Shaoqing has dined with Magistrate Zhuang at noon on several occasions before. If Ren Shaoqing has nothing else to do, he should not refuse Magistrate Zhuang’s invitation.”

Based on past experience, Wang Gui judged Ren Xing's behavior. Furthermore, since Ren Xing did say he wanted to return to Dali Temple, Wang Gui believed that Ren Xing should indeed return to Dali Temple.

but……

Liu Shuyi and Du Gou exchanged glances, but Ren Xing did not return to Dali Temple at all.

Ren Xing left an hour ago; even if he walked slowly, he should have returned to Dali Temple long ago.

He should have replied, but he didn't...

Liu Shuyi couldn't help but feel a bad premonition.

He asked Wang Gui, "Did Ren Shaoqing come alone, or was he accompanied by someone?"

Wang Gui said, "Ren Shaoqing came by carriage, accompanied by a coachman."

The coachman driving the carriage... should have returned to Dali Temple long ago.

"Did Ren Shaoqing leave after completing his official duties at the Dali Temple, or did someone come looking for him and he suddenly decide to leave?" Liu Shuyi asked again.

Wang Gui said, "I would say that the official duties have been completed normally. Ren Shaoqing has seen everything that needed to be seen, but..."

He then changed the subject, saying, "Before Ren Shaoqing left, someone did come looking for him."

"Who?" Liu Shuyi asked immediately.

Wang Gui shook his head: "I don't know him."

He explained to Liu Shuyi, "After Ren Shaoqing finished reviewing our files, he was chatting with Magistrate Zhuang when a guard came to report that someone from the Dali Temple had something to report to Ren Shaoqing. Magistrate Zhuang then let that person into the county office."

"After meeting Ren Shaoqing, the man whispered something in Ren Shaoqing's ear, and then Ren Shaoqing told the man that he understood and asked him to leave first."

"After that person left, Ren Shaoqing told Magistrate Zhuang that the Court of Judicial Review had urgent official business to attend to and could not stay for lunch with Magistrate Zhuang. Since we had all witnessed the arrival of the person from the Court of Judicial Review, Magistrate Zhuang knew that Ren Shaoqing had official business to attend to, so he did not stop him."

People from the Court of Judicial Review have arrived… Liu Shuyi looked at Du Gou and said, “Minister Du, do you know if anyone from the Court of Judicial Review has left? Or has anything urgent happened?”

Du Gou frowned and thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Everything is normal at the Dali Temple. At least I haven't found anything unusual. As for whether anyone has left... People come and go from the Dali Temple on official business at any time. I can't be sure if they left to look for Ren Shaoqing."

Du Gou was a sixth-rank official in the Court of Judicial Review. Although he was not considered a high-ranking official in the Court of Judicial Review, he was still a key figure in the middle level. In addition, due to Du Ruhui's influence, Du Gou's position in the Court of Judicial Review was close to that of the Chief Justice.

He found nothing unusual, which proved that there should be no unexpected event at the Dali Temple.

However, Ren Xing hurriedly left after the man who claimed to be from the Dali Temple arrived... This means that something very sudden must have happened to Ren Xing.

What could it be?

Liu Shuyi then turned his gaze back to Wang Gui and asked, "Was that person who claimed to be from the Dali Temple wearing the official robes of the Dali Temple? Do you know his name and identity?"

Wang Gui said, "He was wearing the robes of a Dali Temple official, and his identity and name... I remember when the guard announced him, he seemed to be called Han Liu."

“Han Liu?” Du Gou frowned and said, “County Commandant Wang, are you sure you’re not mistaken? There is no official named Han Liu in my Dali Temple.”

"There's no one named Han Liu?"

Wang Gui was also unsure. He glanced at the yamen runners guarding the gate of the Dali Temple, then walked up to one of them and asked, "Do you remember the name of the person who came to see Ren Shaoqing today?"

The yamen runner dared not delay and quickly replied, "Reporting to County Commandant Wang, his name is Han Liu."

Upon hearing this, Wang Gui quickly returned to Du Gou and said, "Minister Du also heard it. If I remember correctly, that person's name is Han Liu."

Du Gou looked puzzled: "But there really isn't a single person named Han Liu in my Dali Temple..."

Liu Shuyi understood everything. He took a deep breath and said, "Du Sicheng, you must immediately return to the Dali Temple and find Xiao Siqing or Sun Shaoqing to inquire whether they have sent anyone to the Chang'an County government office to look for Ren Shaoqing. If not..."

A glint flashed in Liu Shuyi's eyes: "Then tell them that Ren Shaoqing is in trouble!"

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Du Gou and Wang Gui's pupils both contracted sharply, and their expressions changed drastically.

Unlike Du Gou, who knew that Liu Shuyi was reinvestigating the silver treasury case, Wang Gui was completely in the dark. He heard Liu Shuyi say that Ren Xing might be in trouble without warning, and his legs were trembling.

After all, according to Liu Shuyi, Ren Xing's incident occurred after he left their county government office. No... even the person who came to deliver the message, if there was a problem, could be said to have been an accident that happened in their county government office.

At that time, it's hard to say whether they will be held responsible.

"Dr. Liu, what... what exactly is going on?" Wang Gui couldn't help but ask.

Wang Gui is Liu Shuyi's man, and Liu Shuyi may use Wang Gui in the future, so Liu Shuyi did not hide anything from Wang Gui.

He immediately recounted to Li Shimin his request for a reinvestigation of the military pay case.

Wang Gui's eyes widened: "The silver coin case... Doctor Liu actually wants to reopen the biggest case of the Wude era!"

"So you're looking for Wang Shaoqing to investigate the salary embezzlement case?"

Liu Shuyi nodded: "I went to the Dali Temple first, only to be told that Ren Shaoqing had come to the Chang'an County Government. After rushing here, I learned that Ren Shaoqing had left an hour ago. Now I also learned that... the person who came to find Ren Shaoqing was not a clerk from the Dali Temple."

Wang Gui swallowed hard and couldn't help but ask, "Could this... be related to the salary case?"

Du Gou also considered this possibility and stared intently at Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi neither nodded nor shook his head. He said, "There are too few clues. We cannot determine for the time being whether Ren Shaoqing's departure and the reason why he did not return to Dali Temple are related to the silver treasury case."

"I need to determine first whether his sudden departure is related to the Dali Temple!"

Upon hearing this, Du Gou immediately mounted his horse without saying a word and said, "Wait for my news!"

Having said that, he rode off quickly on his horse.

Watching Du Gou's hurried departure and then looking at Liu Shuyi's serious face, Wang Gui couldn't help but swallow. Although it was a warm spring day, he felt a chill run down his spine and goosebumps, as if he were in an ice cave.

Ren Xing's departure would be fine if it were unrelated to the salary case.

If it relates to...

That proves one thing: the salary case really has a big problem!
Some people have already started taking action to obstruct Liu Shuyi's investigation!
Thinking of this, Wang Gui asked tremblingly, "Doctor Liu, is there anything I can do for you?"

Seeing Wang Gui's nervous expression, Liu Shuyi knew what Wang Gui was thinking.

If Wang Gui could think of these things, he could naturally think of them even better. However, unlike Wang Gui's nervousness, Liu Shuyi was instead invigorated.

Originally, his speculation about whether there was a problem with the salary case was based solely on Liu Shuzhong's perspective. Now, Ren Xing's unusual behavior has indirectly confirmed his judgment.

Once you know you're on the right track, the rest is quite simple!

Find out the truth behind the salary fraud case, and at the same time find out what your brother did in the case and what role he played!
Investigating cases... was never a difficult task for him.

"There are indeed two things I need your help with."

Liu Shuyi took out Li Shimin's edict from his bosom and handed it to Wang Gui, saying, "Take this edict to the city gate immediately and tell the guards to look for Ren Shaoqing. If they find that Ren Shaoqing is trying to leave Chang'an, they should take him into custody immediately and send a message to the Ministry of Justice."

Wang Gui took the edict and carefully put it away, looking worried. "If there really is a problem with Ren Shaoqing, he has been gone for an hour. I'm afraid he has already left Chang'an City."

Liu Shuyi understood Wang Gui's meaning. He said, "The reason for Ren Shaoqing's departure is uncertain for the time being. It is also uncertain whether he has any problems in the salary case... We cannot give up what we should do based on subjective speculation."

“Go ahead and do it. At worst, it’ll just be a wasted trip. But what if Ren Shaoqing hadn’t left Chang’an? The outcome would be completely different.”

Wang Gui thought for a moment and nodded, "That's true."

"And the second thing?" he asked again, "What do you need me to do?"

Liu Shuyi looked at him and said, "Use the power of the Chang'an County government to search for Ren Shaoqing within the jurisdiction of Chang'an County! Inquire along the streets to see if anyone has seen Ren Shaoqing and if anyone knows where he went."

Although he sent Du Gou back to the Dali Temple to inquire about the specific situation, Liu Shuyi was not prepared to wait for the results. He was already an hour behind, and now every second counted.

If Ren Xing is innocent, if Ren Xing really left on official business... he was prepared to apologize to Ren Xing and take full responsibility.

However, if Ren Xing has problems, the time wasted now may directly determine the final outcome.

He can't gamble!

As Wang Gui listened to Liu Shuyi's two tasks, his heart pounded like a drum.

Although he had investigated many major cases with Liu Shuyi, none of them had alarmed him as much as this one.

After all, once he takes action, he will be representing Liu Shuyi to directly confront the fourth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review.

Previously, Liu Shuyi would only identify the fourth-rank murderer after finding sufficient evidence, but now, he is taking action without any evidence whatsoever.

If Ren Xing really has a problem, that's fine, but if Ren Xing doesn't... he can't imagine what the consequences would be.

He couldn't help but say, "Doctor Liu, there's no turning back now. Are you really telling me to act like this?"

Liu Shuyi understood that Wang Gui was concerned about him, and he said, "I will take full responsibility for the consequences. You just need to carry out the orders."

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Wang Gui gritted his teeth and immediately said, "This humble official will do it right away!"

As he spoke, he quickly ordered his trusted subordinates to lead the constables to search for Ren Xing's whereabouts.

He himself went to the city gate.

Seeing this, Liu Shuyi didn't linger any longer. He got back into the carriage and said to Mo Xiaofan, "To Wannian County Government Office!"

During the case of Ma Qingfeng's family massacre, Gu Wen, the magistrate of Wannian County, misunderstood him and was obstructed from judging the case by Kong Xiang's scheme. However, he did not hold a grudge against Gu Wen for this, nor did he ever mention Gu Wen's obstruction to Li Shimin. Therefore, Gu Wen owed him a great favor.

Next, Liu Shuyi would use this favor to have Gu Wen search for Ren Xing within the jurisdiction of Wannian County.

As long as Ren Xing does not leave Chang'an City, with the joint search by the Wannian County Government and the Chang'an County Government, there is a chance to find clues about him, or even directly locate his whereabouts.

And so, as Liu Shuyi walked through the Wannian County government office again, the city-wide search for Ren Xing officially began.

The news that Liu Shuyi was reinvestigating the silver treasury case and searching for Ren Xing spread like wildfire.

…………

Sikong Mansion.

Qian Wenqing walked into Pei Ji's study with an excited expression.

"Uncle, great news! Incredible good news!"

As they walked, Qian Wenqing said, "Liu Shuyi is actually going to investigate the military pay case!"

"He's been promoted way too fast, he's gotten too cocky! He dares to investigate any case!"

"Furthermore, he directly ordered the Chang'an County government and the Wannian County government to search for Ren Shaoqing! What is this? This is clearly a warrant for Ren Shaoqing's arrest!"

"He's just a lowly fifth-rank official, yet he dares to issue an arrest warrant for a fourth-rank Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review without any evidence! He's courting death!"

"Uncle, we absolutely cannot miss this opportunity! We must go find those officials from the Three Departments back then, and find the censors, and explain to His Majesty Liu Shuyi's act of insubordination! This time, we must send Liu Shuyi to the eighteen hells! We must ensure he can never rise again!"

Qian Wenqing was spitting everywhere, and he was extremely excited. He had felt hopeless about life this morning because Liu Shuyi had bullied him with his power, and he didn't know when he would be able to turn things around. Who knew that the turning point would come so quickly.

Upon hearing that Liu Shuyi dared to reopen the investigation into the military pay case and even directly target Ren Xing, he immediately realized that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and rushed to the Sikong Mansion.

However, while he was excitedly gesturing wildly, Pei Ji, sitting in the main seat, simply closed his eyes and remained silent, as if he were asleep.

Seeing this, Qian Wenqing couldn't help but ask, "Uncle?"

Pei Ji then opened his eyes, his deep gaze sweeping over Qian Wenqing, and asked, "Do you think this is an opportunity to deal with Liu Shuyi?"

Qian Wenqing nodded repeatedly: "Of course! Liu Shuyi's renewed investigation into the salary case clearly shows his distrust of the officials from the Three Departments who investigated the case back then. If the officials from the Three Departments knew about this, they would definitely be very dissatisfied with him. In addition, he issued an arrest warrant for Ren Xing, who is the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, without any evidence. This is equivalent to handing over a handle to us. When hundreds of us take action together, how can Liu Shuyi have a good ending?"

To everyone's surprise, Pei Ji shook his head upon hearing this and said, "Do you know that Liu Shuyi's reinvestigation of the military pay case is on His Majesty's orders? If you send the Three Departments to cause trouble for Liu Shuyi, do you think His Majesty will think that the Three Departments are dissatisfied with Liu Shuyi, or dissatisfied with His Majesty?"

“This…” Qian Wenqing was stunned. He hurriedly said, “This could not be His Majesty’s order. Why would His Majesty re-investigate the military pay case when he has nothing better to do? I heard that Liu Shuyi went to the case files office. This must be related to Liu Shuyi.”

Pei Ji said calmly, "That's what you say, but the imperial decree was issued by His Majesty, and there wasn't a single word in it mentioning that Liu Shuyi should take the initiative to investigate this case... Do you think those officials in the Three Departments will believe you? Do you think they'd dare to gamble?"

“I…” Qian Wenqing hesitated for a moment.

Pei Ji then asked, "Do you know... that the Court of Judicial Review has already given Liu Shuyi a clear reply?"

"The Dali Temple has replied? What reply?" Qian Wenqing rushed over immediately after hearing the news, without having a chance to receive any other information.

Pei Ji narrowed his eyes, his tone icy: "Ren Xing's departure has nothing to do with the Dali Temple... In other words, Ren Xing's current disappearance may be due to him fleeing to escape punishment!"

"So you're saying... there's a problem with Liu Shuyi having people look for Ren Xing now?"

"Not to mention, Liu Shuyi's reason was that he was afraid Ren Xing would be in danger, so he had the Chang'an County and Wannian County governments search for him instead of issuing a warrant for his arrest. Liu Shuyi had already anticipated that we might use this opportunity to deal with him, and he had already prepared a countermeasure..."

"He's just like his damned father, treacherous, cunning, and full of tricks. How can you cause him trouble?!"

Qian Wenqing stared wide-eyed, his mouth agape as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

He never imagined that what seemed like a godsend opportunity would turn out this way.

He said unwillingly, "Are we just going to give up this opportunity like this?"

"Give up? How could I possibly give up?"

Pei Ji sneered, "If he really overturns the outcome of the salary case and makes a great contribution, he might even be able to challenge for the fourth rank in the future! At that time, he will truly have a chance to threaten me, and how can I allow that?"

Upon hearing this, Qian Wenqing's heart stirred, and he couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, do you already have a plan?"

Pei Ji's eyes were gloomy: "One of my students was involved in the salary fraud case back then. He would contact other people to put pressure on Liu Shuyi... They couldn't openly cause trouble for Liu Shuyi, but they could do a lot more behind the scenes."

"This case is different from all the cases Liu Shuyi has investigated before. It's a case that most people don't want Liu Shuyi to gain anything from, but instead want to use it to gain merit?"

Pei Ji slammed his hand on the table, causing the water glass to jump. He sneered, "I'll make him lose more than he gains and fall from his position as a doctor!"

(End of this chapter)