The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 151 Revealed! Secrets of the Former Sui Dynasty! A New Clue: Yuan Tiangang of the Imperial Observatory!
Liu Shuyi and his companions quickly arrived at the main hall of the Ministry of Justice, where they saw a tall, robust man in a scarlet official robe with a full beard, dozing off at a table.

Even though Liu Shuyi had met Wang Kun many times, every time he saw Wang Kun's terrifying muscles that seemed to burst his official robes, he felt that Wang Kun had made a mistake in his position. He should have been in the Ministry of War, not the Ministry of Works.

As Liu Shuyi entered the main hall, before he could even wake Wang Kun, Wang Kun, who was dozing off, suddenly opened his eyes.

He wasn't fully awake yet, but those eyes had already swept over him with the sharpness of a falcon, and his muscles tensed up involuntarily. He almost jumped up and grabbed the table leg, ready to throw himself at them.

"Minister Wang!"

Seeing that Wang Kun seemed ready to fight him, Liu Shuyi quickly called out to wake him up.

Wang Kun paused, his hazy eyes clearing instantly. Looking at the table leg he was gripping with his right hand, Wang Kun blushed and quickly released it, standing up and saying, "Did I scare you? I experienced some dangers on the battlefield with His Majesty back then. Although those things happened a long time ago, they still occasionally appear in my dreams..."

"Just now I couldn't tell if it was reality or a nightmare. I thought those Turkic barbarians were coming to ambush me, and I almost did something stupid. I hope Doctor Liu will forgive me."

Post-war psychological syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder?
Liu Shuyi scrutinized Wang Kun. When he had met Wang Kun before, Wang Kun had always been very cheerful and efficient. Liu Shuyi had not sensed any mental problems with him.

Unexpectedly, Wang Kun's problem was so serious.

If he hadn't noticed something was wrong and woken Wang Kun up, Wang Kun might have already acted unconsciously.

Seeing Liu Shuyi staring at him very seriously, Wang Kun felt a little uneasy. He said awkwardly, "I know that I sometimes can't distinguish between nightmares and reality, so I always sleep in a separate room and don't allow anyone to come near me, so as not to hurt them. This time is a special case."

"I've been quite busy these past few days and haven't been sleeping well at night. I only intended to sit for a bit while waiting for you, but I ended up falling asleep."

Seeing Wang Kun's nervousness, Liu Shuyi assumed that he was angry because of Wang Kun's behavior. He shook his head slightly, cupped his hands and said, "Minister Wang is overthinking it. I don't care about what just happened at all. It's just that your situation may be dangerous for you and those around you, so I'm worried about you."

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious psychological and mental health problem. If left untreated, it can lead to irreversible consequences as the psychological problems worsen.

However, Wang Kun has already realized his problem and is actively looking for ways to solve it, which is much better than the average post-war syndrome patient.

Seeing that Liu Shuyi was worried about him rather than afraid of him, and treated him as a monster that could go out of control at any moment, Wang Kun's expression softened.

He smiled and said, "Doctor Liu, there's no need to worry. I've had these symptoms for half a year now, and so far, nothing has gone wrong. I'll be extra careful in the future and will never harm anyone."

Am I worried that you'll hurt others? I'm worried that you'll hurt yourself... After all, most people with post-traumatic stress disorder hurt themselves more than they hurt others.

Liu Shuyi thought for a moment, then looked at Du Ying and said, "Miss Du, given Minister Wang's condition, do you have any methods to treat or alleviate it?"

Du Ying pondered for a moment and said, "My mentor once treated a veteran who participated in the war and lost an arm. He was depressed all day long and had tried to end his life many times."

Being depressed all day long and having contemplated suicide multiple times... these are typical characteristics of post-war psychosis.

"How was the treatment?" Liu Shuyi asked.

Wang Kun also looked at Du Ying with curiosity.

Du Ying said, "My mentor went to great lengths to calm him down with medication, gradually helping him to let go of the past, but..."

She then changed the subject: "This person eventually contracted other illnesses and died from them, so I'm not sure whether my mentor actually cured his illness."

He died from other illnesses, not by suicide, and had begun to let go of the past. The effect was obviously quite good... Sun Simiao truly deserves to be called the legendary physician and medicine king.

Liu Shuyi said, "Do you still remember your mentor's recipe?"

"of course."

"That Vice Minister Wang..."

"Leave it to me." Du Ying understood Liu Shuyi's meaning and nodded without hesitation.

Liu Shuyi then looked at Wang Kun. Wang Kun never expected that there would be a solution to the problem that had been troubling him for half a year. He quickly cupped his hands to Liu Shuyi and Du Ying and said, "If you can cure my nightmare, you will be my benefactors."

Liu Shuyi laughed and said, "Calling me a benefactor is too much of an honor. Vice Minister Wang has helped me a lot, so it is only right and proper for me to help him. Vice Minister Wang, please don't be so polite."

Wang Kun laughed heartily: "From the first moment I met you, I knew that befriending you was absolutely the right thing to do, and look... now I'm reaping the rewards."

Wang Kun was a craftsman by trade, and later trained in the military before finally coming to the Ministry of Works. Throughout his official career, he spent his time with a group of skilled craftsmen and straightforward military men. As a result, he was not as calculating as other officials, and he said whatever came to mind, making him very spontaneous.

If it were anyone else, they would never say that befriending Liu Shuyi was for personal gain, but he would say it, and Liu Shuyi wouldn't feel offended. On the contrary, he would feel that Wang Kun was straightforward and innocent, and therefore more worthy of beingfriended.

With this so-called help, Liu Shuyi believed that his relationship with Wang Kun would deepen further, which could be considered one of his very few connections at the fourth-rank vice minister level.

Liu Shuyi invited Wang Kun to sit down again. Without further delay, he got back to the main topic and asked, "I wonder what brings Vice Minister Wang to the Ministry of Justice to see me so late at night?"

Without beating around the bush, Wang Kun said directly, "Do you remember when you asked me to help you investigate the stone tablet?"

really!

A glint flashed in Liu Shuyi's eyes; he had indeed guessed correctly.

He asked, "Any results?"

"That's it."

Wang Kun said, "We determined the origin of the stone tablet by comparing the stone materials. It came from the Taishan area."

"The Taishan area?"

Liu Shuyi looked thoughtful.

Wang Kun nodded: "Our Ministry of Works has collected stones from various places, and they are basically accurate. After confirming that the source was the Taishan area, I went to find craftsmen near Taishan and asked them if there had been any stone cutting incidents in the Taishan area at some point."

"After recalling for a long time, they told me that during the Sui Dynasty, some government officials had sealed off a mountain, forbidding anyone from approaching it. They had heard a loud sound of stones being struck near that mountain... After the government officials left, some people went to investigate out of curiosity and found that many stones were missing from the mountain."

"However, at that time they thought the government might have discovered some mineral deposits and wanted to mine them, so they collected ore to take back for research. After the turmoil at the end of the Sui Dynasty, they abandoned the mining project. They never imagined that the former Sui court would go to such great lengths just to cut some stones..."

Former Sui Dynasty government offices...

Liu Shuyi narrowed his eyes; this did indeed correspond to the identity of Fushenglou.

Such a large stone tablet is not something that can be obtained easily. Fusheng Tower has always kept it hidden in the shadows and would never dare to arrange for so many people to cut the stone in a high-profile manner...

If it was done by the former Sui government, then this stone would have already appeared before the Tang Dynasty was established, which answers his question.

But what were the former Sui Dynasty government offices doing cutting the stones? And why were they doing it so secretly, forbidding ordinary people from getting close...?

Du Gou seemed to sense Liu Shuyi's doubts and whispered, "Perhaps the local government wants to create auspicious omens, just like the miracles in the Cuihua Mountain Temple, to praise Emperor Yang of Sui and thus gain his favor and rise to prominence."

Liu Shuyi suddenly understood.

He was, after all, a person from later times, and many of his thoughts still retained the habits of that era. Therefore, he was always a little slower to react to the petty and despicable things that people in ancient times did in order to get promoted.

After all, all his experience and knowledge had made him disregard miracles and auspicious omens, unlike Du Gou, who often saw auspicious omens in ancient books and occasionally heard his father, Du Ruhui, muttering in his heart that some local official was treating His Majesty like a fool and wanted to rely on auspicious omens to rise to power.

If it is an auspicious omen, it must be kept secret before it actually arrives, lest the people spread the word and Yang Guang find out that the auspicious omen was man-made. At that time, let alone rising to prominence, it would be a blessing if he didn't lose his head and body.

He asked Wang Kun, "Did any auspicious omens appear at the local government office later?"

Wang Kun shook his head: "Those craftsmen didn't mention this, so it probably didn't happen."

Liu Shuyi nodded. It seemed that before the local government could even bestow auspicious omens, chaos had already ensued. In the end, the auspicious omens they had painstakingly prepared fell into the hands of Fushenglou, and what should have been auspicious omens turned into a calamity or miracle targeting Li Shimin...

So... does the fact that Fushenglou was able to obtain this stone tablet prove that someone inside is connected to the local government?
After all, apart from those people in the government office, no one else would know about the existence of this artificially created auspicious omen.

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered slightly. He pondered for a moment and said, "Minister Wang, I wonder which government office of the former Sui Dynasty was responsible for this?"

"The Prefectural Governor's Office of Lu Commandery, which oversees the area around Mount Tai."

"The Prefectural Governor's Office of Lu Commandery?" Liu Shuyi understood, then asked, "I wonder who the Prefect of Lu Commandery was at that time?"

Wang Kun shrugged: "I don't know about that. If Doctor Liu needs it, I can ask him for you."

Liu Shuyi laughed and said, "I am indeed very curious which clever official would want to create such an auspicious omen."

“Alright, I’ll ask the local craftsmen when I get back.”

"Thank you, Vice Minister Wang."

"It's nothing," Wang Kun waved his hand and continued, "Now that we know the stone tablet came from the Lu County area, we have a direction to find the person who carved it."

"After all, since the Prefect of Lu Commandery chose to present the auspicious omen through a stone tablet, he must have been certain that someone could help him carve the stone tablet. The matter of auspicious omens is no small matter, and he certainly would not trust outsiders. Therefore, the craftsmen who helped him were likely local craftsmen from Lu Commandery, or those from Lu Commandery who had a relationship with the Prefect of Lu Commandery."

"So, while I was questioning the artisans about whether there were any particularly famous craftsmen in the area, I also checked the fragmented records of the Ministry of Works left over from the Sui Dynasty to see if anyone came from Lu County. The result was..."

Wang Kun looked at Liu Shuyi: "I actually found someone!"

The crucial moment had arrived. Even Liu Shuyi instinctively held his breath and asked, "Who is it?"

Wang Kun didn't keep them in suspense and said directly, "Yue Lei, a craftsman from Lu County who later entered the Ministry of Works."

"Yue Lei?" Liu Shuyi had never heard of this person before.

Du Gou and Du Ying also looked like strangers.

Wang Kun said, "Yue Lei is a famous craftsman in the area. He personally participated in the construction of many noble residences in Lu County. Later, when Emperor Wen of Sui ascended the throne, he recruited talents widely, and Yue Lei was recommended by the local government to the Ministry of Works."

Liu Shuyi thought for a moment and asked, "Was the person who recommended him the Prefect of Lu County?"

"do not know."

Wang Kun shook his head: "At that time, Emperor Wen of Sui had just ascended the throne. The prefect of Lu County during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui was definitely not the prefect of Lu County during the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui. However, the only information we can find is that Yue Lei was recommended by the government, but it does not mention who specifically recommended him... If the prefect of Lu County during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui was also a minor official in Lu County at that time, then it is indeed possible."

"However, this matter is no longer possible to investigate, and I cannot be certain."

Liu Shuyi nodded.

He asked, "Is this Yue Lei... still alive?"

He entered the Ministry of Works during the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui, when he was at least in his twenties. Now, almost fifty years have passed.

In other words, this craftsman named Yue Lei is at least seventy years old now.

In ancient times, when lifespans were short, very few people could live to be seventy, let alone someone who had lived through the chaotic period at the end of the Sui Dynasty. Liu Shuyi was very worried about whether he was still alive.

Fortunately, Wang Kun nodded: "Alive."

Liu Shuyi's eyes lit up immediately: "Where is he?"

"It's in Chang'an City."

Wang Kun said, "Yue Lei worked in the Ministry of Works until Emperor Yang of Sui moved the capital to Luoyang. Since he had already settled down in Chang'an and did not want to go to Luoyang, he left the Ministry of Works and stayed in Chang'an."

"Later, when the Tang Dynasty was established, the Ministry of Works recruited many craftsmen. Logically speaking, with Yue Lei's skills, he should have been able to enter the Ministry of Works. However, he was already nearly fifty years old at that time, and his physical strength was not as good as before. In addition, he deliberately hid his skills, so he did not enter the Ministry of Works and became a fish that slipped through the net... Otherwise, I would have found him long ago."

Liu Shuyi didn't care whether Yue Lei was hiding his abilities; he only cared whether Yue Lei was alive and whether he needed to spend a lot of time searching for him. At this moment, knowing that Yue Lei was alive and in Chang'an was already the best news for him.

He stood up abruptly: "Take me to Yue Lei."

…………

Three quarters of an hour later.

South of Chang'an City, Changle Ward.

Liu Shuyi and the others stopped in front of a very ordinary house.

The residence is located in a remote area and is not large in size; it looks like a very ordinary single-entrance courtyard.

The walls were clean and smooth, and the gate was neatly erected, giving the impression that although it was ordinary, it was not dilapidated. "This is it," Wang Kun said to Liu Shuyi.

Liu Shuyi nodded, dismounted, and went to the closed courtyard gate, knocking on it.

dong dong dong.

The knocking sound was like a hammer blow, instantly shattering the frozen silence of the night.

The sound spread rapidly into the courtyard, growing louder as it approached.

A moment later, a wary voice rang out from behind the door: "Who is it?"

Liu Shuyi loudly stated his purpose: "Liu Shuyi, a senior official in the Ministry of Justice, has questions for Yue Lei regarding a case."

"A senior official in the Ministry of Justice?"

The voice from behind the door was clearly filled with astonishment.

After hesitating for a moment, the man finally opened the door a crack and looked out...

Then they saw more than ten people standing outside, leading horses and holding torches, illuminating the area as if it were daytime.

All of these people were wearing official robes, and just by looking at the color of their robes, one could tell they were not minor officials.

Seeing this, the man finally confirmed that the people outside the door were government officials. He dared not delay and quickly opened the door completely.

Upon seeing the young man in the scarlet robe, he immediately associated him with the legendary detective and quickly bowed, saying, "This humble citizen, Yue Feng, greets Physician Liu."

"Yue Feng?"

Liu Shuyi asked, "What is your relationship with Yue Lei?"

That's my father.

Liu Shuyi nodded. Without much pleasantries, he asked directly, "Is Yue Lei at home?"

"Yes, my father is resting."

"Can you wake him up?" Liu Shuyi said, "I have an important question to ask him."

"This……"

Yue Feng hesitated. His father was old and had trouble sleeping. He really didn't want to disturb him, as his father had finally fallen asleep.

But he dared not disobey high-ranking officials like Liu Shuyi...

"Gentlemen, do you wish to see this old man?"

Just as Yue Feng hesitated, an old voice suddenly came from behind him.

Yue Feng was startled and quickly turned around to look, only to see that his father had walked over at some point.

He quickly turned around and helped his elderly father up, asking, "Father, why did you come out?"

"I was feeling a bit restless tonight, tossing and turning and couldn't fall asleep. I had a feeling that something was about to happen... Just then, I heard a knock on the door, so I went out to see what was going on."

As he spoke, he and Yue Feng arrived at the door.

With the help of his partner's light, Liu Shuyi was able to see Yue Lei's situation clearly.

Yue Lei was hunched over and very thin. His hair was completely white, his face was covered with wrinkles and age spots. He was estimated to be at least seventy-five years old.

Liu Shuyi cupped his hands and said, "Old man, I'm very sorry to bother you so late at night. I have a few questions I'd like to know the answers to. I wonder if you could tell me?"

Yue Lei carefully examined Liu Shuyi. Liu Shuyi was very young, but his behavior was very composed. In particular, his black eyes were full of insightful wisdom from having experienced the world. Such eyes should not appear on a young man.

Yue Lei became very interested in Liu Shuyi. What kind of experiences could make a young man's eyes look more insightful and world-weary than his own son who was over forty?
He said in a hoarse voice, "Please speak, Doctor Liu. I will tell you anything I know."

Liu Shuyi didn't stand on ceremony with Yue Lei and went straight to the point: "During the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui, did the Prefect of Lu Commandery cut off a large piece of mountain rock and ask you to help carve it into a stone tablet?"

A look of surprise appeared on Yue Lei's aged face: "Doctor Liu actually knows about this? I thought that with the fall of the Sui Dynasty, the past had vanished like smoke, and no one would ever know about this again."

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered: "So, you did indeed carve a stone tablet?"

"Yes." Yue Lei did not hide anything.

That happened during the Sui Dynasty, and he wasn't worried about being affected by it at this time.

Liu Shuyi then asked, "Do you know why the Prefect of Lu Commandery asked you to do this?"

Yue Lei said, "This auspicious omen from heaven is presented to the Sui Dynasty emperor."

"So you really knew... Then aren't you afraid that Emperor Yang of Sui would find out about this and you would be implicated?"

Yue Lei sighed: "The prefect of Lu County at that time, Zhang Qiu, was an old acquaintance of mine. He had served as a minor official in Lu County and recommended me to the Ministry of Works. He had done me a favor, so I couldn't refuse his request..."

"Moreover, he knows the importance of auspicious omens and will definitely keep the news tightly under wraps, so I'm not too worried about it being exposed."

Liu Shuyi and Wang Kun exchanged a glance. Sure enough, the Prefect of Lu Commandery had shown Yue Lei kindness during the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui...

Liu Shuyi continued, "Why did the auspicious omens not appear later?"

Yue Lei said, “I went through all sorts of hardships to carve the stone tablet for him. All that was left was to carve the words on it, and then the job would be done. But who knew that at that time, Zhai Songbai, Lu Gongxian, and Zhen Zhai’er successively launched rebellions, and the world began to fall into chaos. Prefect Zhang was so busy that he thought Emperor Yang of Sui would not be in the mood to receive auspicious omens for the time being, so he gave up.”

"Do you know who this stone tablet eventually came into the hands of?"

Yue Lei shook his head: "After I was no longer needed to carve, I returned to Chang'an and lost contact with Prefect Zhang. So I don't know the final whereabouts of the stone tablet."

Liu Shuyi stared intently at Yue Lei, who met his gaze calmly, his cloudy eyes showing no sign of flinching.

Liu Shuyi stared at him for a moment, then nodded: "Do you know what happened in Zhangqiu later?"

Yue Lei's tone was somewhat complicated as he sighed, "He was killed during the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty."

During the turbulent times at the end of the Sui Dynasty, local officials were in the most dangerous situation. They either surrendered voluntarily or were killed. Even if they surrendered, they would be suspected of harboring evil intentions, so most local officials did not have a good ending.

Liu Shuyi was not surprised that Zhang Qiu would die.

However, with Zhangqiu's death, the question of who ended up with the stone tablet became a mystery.

If one day we can get some clues, we might be able to uncover the identity of another person from Fusheng Tower!

However, we'll have to figure that out later... Liu Shuyi took a deep breath and focused his attention back on the case at hand.

He fixed his eyes on Yue Lei again and asked, "Did you participate in the construction of the Ministry of Revenue's treasury?"

"The Ministry of Revenue's treasury?"

A look of reminiscence flashed in Yue Lei's eyes. After a moment, he shook his head: "I participated in the construction of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of War, but not the Ministry of Revenue."

Not involved?

Liu Shuyi frowned almost imperceptibly: "Then do you know why the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses were built in the shape of towers and attics? This shouldn't be the normal style of a warehouse, right?"

Yue Lei thought for a moment before saying, "I do have some memory of this matter."

"Oh?" Liu Shuyi stared intently at him. Yue Lei said, "I remember that before constructing each government office, the Ministry of Rites conducted divination and calculations..."

"The Ministry of Rites said that the location of the Ministry of Revenue's office is a place where wealth gathers, but the terrain there has some problems and needs to be repaired in other ways."

"The Ministry of Rites suggested that two special-style buildings be constructed—a tall tower and a pavilion—to repair the feng shui."

Feng Shui repair?

This was something Liu Shuyi hadn't considered.

However, the concept of feng shui remains popular even in later generations, and in ancient times, it was indeed worth going to such great lengths.

But... is that really the case?
Liu Shuyi thought for a moment and said, "During the construction of these two warehouses, I wonder if there were any rumors circulating in the Ministry of Works?"

"Rumors?" Yue Lei asked, puzzled. "I wonder what kind of rumors you mean?"

"For example... during construction, mysterious things like ground subsidence, ground tremors, or inexplicable reductions in building materials are discovered," Liu Shuyi said. "Or, for example, during construction, the craftsmen are not allowed to leave the Ministry of Revenue day and night, and other unrelated people are not allowed to approach, which might cause gossip?"

Yue Lei frowned and thought for a long time before shaking his head and saying, "I haven't heard of it."

There's none?
Liu Shuyi frowned, wondering if he had really guessed wrong.
He pondered for a moment, then said, "When the Ministry of Revenue's warehouse was being built, was there not even a single thing that was different from other buildings of the Ministry of Revenue or other government offices?"

"This……"

After recalling for a moment, Yue Lei said, "There really is something that Doctor Liu mentioned."

"Oh? What is it?" Liu Shuyi quickly looked at him.

Yue Lei said, "Although the Ministry of Rites had already designed a method to repair the feng shui of the tower and pavilion, when the Ministry of Works was about to start construction, the Ministry of Rites said that they had to wait for an auspicious time and could not start construction immediately. So those warehouses were left unused, and since it involved feng shui matters, they could not be interfered with by human intervention, so they fenced off that area... After the other buildings of the Ministry of Revenue were completed and the Ministry of Revenue personnel were about to move in and use them, the Ministry of Rites said that the auspicious time had arrived, and the construction of the tower and pavilion began."

The Ministry of Rites had already provided a method, and the Ministry of Works was about to start construction, but suddenly they changed their wording and told them to wait for an auspicious time... and then they just left it there without doing anything more, and even surrounded it with high walls so that people outside couldn't see what was going on inside.

Liu Shuyi's eyes flickered, as if he had thought of something.

"I wonder how long it took to build this warehouse?"

Yue Lei thought for a moment and said, "At least two or three months."

It will take at least two or three months, which is quite a long time.

If there are enough people, it would be enough to build an underground secret chamber.

Moreover, construction was underway in various parts of the Ministry of Revenue, so even if there were clanging noises, there was no need to worry about arousing suspicion... This was simply the best cover.

"During the construction of the Ministry of Revenue, did a large number of craftsmen from your Ministry of Works go missing?"

"Missing? No, all government offices needed to be built at the time, and our Ministry of Works staff were doing the work of two people. No one went missing."

If no one from the Ministry of Works is missing, then the person who built the secret room was not a craftsman from the Ministry of Works...

It becomes very difficult to get started with the Ministry of Works.

But the Ministry of Rites, which made the request at the time…

Liu Shuyi said, "I wonder which official from the Ministry of Rites gave the divination result that instructed you to build the tower and pavilion? Or was it him who told you to wait for the auspicious time?"

Yue Lei frowned and thought for a long time before saying, "It is indeed the same person... His name is Yuan Shoucheng. He held positions in both the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Historian's Office. He was very skilled in Taoist cultivation, but he died during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui."

died?
Liu Shuyi frowned slightly.

"but……"

Yue Lei changed the subject and looked at Liu Shuyi, saying, "When Emperor Yang of Sui moved the capital, I saw him getting very close to another Taoist. They seemed to be relatives, and the other person is now an official in the court."

"Oh? Who?" Liu Shuyi asked.

"Yuan Tiangang".

(End of this chapter)