The First Criminal Judge of the Zhenguan Era

Chapter 16 Take This!

Cheng Chumo's screams almost pierced Liu Shuyi's ears.

Ignoring the stinging pain in his eardrums, Liu Shuyi stared intently at the head in Cheng Chumo's arms, a head he couldn't quite put down or hold.

This is the head of a beautiful woman.

She is around thirty years old and has fair skin.

At this moment, her eyes were wide open, the whites of her eyes rolled back, her gaze was fixed on him, her expression was ferocious and twisted, filled with anger, helplessness and despair.

The bloodstains on his neck froze into ice crystals, which continued to fall as Cheng Chumo trembled.

Thanks to the freezing weather, her expression at the moment of her death was perfectly preserved.

Liu Shuyi felt as if... she had just died in front of him, angry, powerless, and desperate.

Her eyes, which refused to close, seemed to be pleading for someone to save her. Unfortunately, her husband may have already died before her, and no one would come to save her.

"Is she really Zhao Chengyi's wife? You're not mistaken?" Liu Shuyi spoke up directly, interrupting Cheng Chumo's screams that nearly scared him to death.

“I’ve seen her before! I can’t be mistaken,” Cheng Chumo said quickly.

Liu Shuyi's brows furrowed deeply, and his heart sank once again.

Zhao Chengyi was murdered, and his wife's head was also chopped off.

And his son...

Liu Shuyi suddenly raised his head and looked at another eagle in the sky.

Seeing the eagle continue flying forward, he immediately said, "Catch up with it!"

Cheng Chumo listened to Liu Shuyi's words and finally realized what was going on.

"Go! Chase them quickly!"

With that, he gritted his teeth, grabbed the head that was still staring blankly into the night, and led his men after it.

"Young Master, your clothes have been chosen, look..."

At this moment, Wan'er walked out of the clothing store in high spirits.

Liu Shuyi said directly, "Wan'er, I've run into some things that I need to deal with immediately, so I won't be able to stay with you."

"Pick any clothes you like, and buy them if you like them. I'll leave you your purse. After you're done shopping, head home early, don't wait until it gets dark, it's not safe then."

As he spoke, Liu Shuyi took Wan'er's soft little hand, pulled off the money pouch from his waist, and placed it in Wan'er's palm.

He looked at Wan'er, who was completely bewildered and didn't understand what had happened, and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I'll spend more time with you next time."

After saying that, he ran off with the Jinwu Guards and the others.

Watching Liu Shuyi's rapidly disappearing figure, Wan'er finally realized what was happening.

However, she did not show any displeasure.

He simply lowered his head, looked at the hand that Liu Shuyi had just taken, and suddenly smiled, as if he had thought of something.

Then, she raised her head and looked at the eagle flying further and further away in the sky, her bright eyes narrowing slightly.

"Turkic...falcon?"

…………

"It's over!"

Cheng Chumo watched as the eagle released its claws and the equally round creature fell to the ground, his face even paler than before.

Not only him, but even Liu Shuyi's expression changed slightly.

Because they discovered that the eagle's target was... the royal palace.

The item fell inside the palace gate.

Hearing the exclamations coming from inside the palace gates, Cheng Chumo swallowed hard, his expression turning to Liu Shuyi as if he were about to cry: "Master Liu, will His Majesty behead me?"

If the other eagle really did drop Zhao Chengyi's son's head, then needless to say, Cheng Chumo would definitely have to take the blame.

This is no longer as simple as failing to find Zhao Chengyi's wife and children and the mission going awry.

I thought Cheng Chumo was very unlucky.

Now I realize they were too optimistic; it was like bad luck had come crashing down on them.

Liu Shuyi looked at Cheng Chumo with pity and said, "Why don't you quickly find someone to send a message to your father, asking him to hurry up and... have another one?" Cheng Chumo swayed and almost collapsed to the ground.

His face was filled with despair: "Is there really no hope?"

Seeing that Cheng Chumo was about to cry, Liu Shuyi raised an eyebrow and suddenly changed his tune: "That's not necessarily true."

"How can you save me?" Upon hearing this, Cheng Chumo looked at Liu Shuyi with hopeful eyes.

Liu Shuyi said, "You can make up for it."

"How to make up for it?"

"Zhao Chengyi's wife and children first disappeared, then were murdered, and finally his head was thrown into the palace by an eagle... It's normal for His Majesty to be angry, but His Majesty is angry at the audacious murderer who committed all these crimes, not you!"

"so……"

He looked at Cheng Chumo and said in a deep voice, "As long as we can find the murderer, His Majesty will be overjoyed. At that time, you will not only not be punished, but may even be rewarded by His Majesty."

Upon hearing Liu Shuyi's words, Cheng Chumo's eyes lit up immediately: "That's right, how could I have forgotten about that!"

As he spoke, Cheng Chumo stared intently at Liu Shuyi. If it weren't so embarrassing, he would have wanted to rush over and lie down on the ground to hug Liu Shuyi's leg.

"Manager Liu, help! Your investigative skills are so amazing, only you can save me!"

Looking at Cheng Chumo, who was pleading pitifully with him, Liu Shuyi hesitated and said, "General Cheng, it's not that I don't want to help you, it's just that I'm only a minor official in the Ministry of Justice. Such a big case is not something I can decide to investigate on my own..."

"It's alright! I'll take care of it!"

Cheng Chumo quickly said, "I will beg my father to risk his reputation and persuade His Majesty to allow you to investigate the case!"

"If you're willing to help me, I can definitely find out!"

Seeing Cheng Chumo's words, Liu Shuyi thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Alright! I've hit it off with General Cheng at first sight, and I can't just stand by and watch him get into trouble! Since General Cheng trusts me, I will do my utmost to find the real culprit!"

Hearing Liu Shuyi's righteous words, Cheng Chumo was deeply moved. He patted his chest and said, "Whether or not the murderer is found, I appreciate your kindness! From now on, you are my half-brother, Cheng Chumo! If anyone dares to bully you again, I will fight them to the death!"

After saying that, Cheng Chumo didn't delay any longer: "I'll have someone send a message to my father first, and then I'll go to the palace to see His Majesty immediately. Wait for my news."

Watching Cheng Chumo's hurried departure, Liu Shuyi's dark eyes grew even more profound.

Guiding Cheng Chumo's thoughts and getting him to hand over the case to him for investigation was not simply about wanting to befriend Cheng Chumo; more importantly, he felt that only he could put Cheng Chumo's mind at ease investigating the case.

Although Zhao Chengyi's wife's head ended up in Cheng Chumo's arms.

But Liu Shuyi knew that the eagle's target was him.

Cheng Chumo is just a complete jinx.

After all, Zhao Chengyi's exposure was entirely due to himself, and had virtually nothing to do with Cheng Chumo.

The person behind the scenes should only seek revenge against themselves.

That's right... Liu Shuyi can basically conclude that the murderer who killed Zhao Chengyi's wife and children, even if he is not Zhao Chengyi's master, is still closely related to him.

Zhao Chengyi secretly sent his wife and children away because he was afraid of being discovered.

The only people who can take in his wife and children without worrying that his secrets will be exposed are his master or other members of the same faction.

Later, he was indeed exposed and imprisoned. Not long after, he was silenced by the guards in the prison. Not long after that, the heads of his wife and children, whom he had entrusted to his master or accomplices, were cut off...

It was obvious that the mastermind behind it all, seeing that Zhao Chengyi was no longer useful, also killed Zhao Chengyi's wife and children to prevent them from revealing the secret one day.

He silenced them, which was one thing.

And yet, the eagle brought its head right in front of it.

what is this?
What a provocation!
He was clearly telling himself: "So what if you find Zhao Chengyi? So what if you know that I instructed Zhao Chengyi to frame you? I can silence them all the moment you find him, making you go through all sorts of trouble and still not find me..."

"And I'm not only going to silence you, I'm going to deliver your head to your doorstep so you know I've already silenced you! So you know all your efforts have been in vain..."

Is it awful?
hateful!

Angry?

Of course I'm angry!
The other person has already put their middle finger up in front of me.

Moreover, with the deaths of Zhao Chengyi and his wife, this is the only way to uncover the secrets of the person behind it all.

Therefore, he chose to accept the challenge!

(End of this chapter)