Merit-based card draws, quickly become a Heavenly Emperor

Fang Zheng opened the lid of the nearest box.

The dark red wine jars were stacked neatly, their mouths sealed with yellow mud, on which were dried bloodstains.

There were also several account books next to it, densely covered with writing.

Guan Tieyi then opened the second box, which contained several tokens engraved with white lotus patterns and a pile of letters wrapped in oiled paper.

The recipient's name on those letters was clearly written as Zhu Tianhua, the ink fresh, indicating it had been written recently.

Lu Qingyun walked over, picked up one of the letters, glanced at it, put it down, and then his gaze fell on Zhu Tianhua.

Zhu Tianhua stood still, his back still straight, but a thin layer of sweat had seeped from his forehead.

The hall was quiet for a moment.

Zhu Hongcai had stopped crying and collapsed to the ground. Butler Cao never looked up.

Cao Jingde sensed something was wrong and his voice became even shriller.

"This was all done by that lackey, it has nothing to do with the Cao family!"

Just then, a beam of light crashed down from the sky, piercing through the roof tiles and landing in the hall.

A scroll of documents slowly unfolded within the beam of light, the characters clear and the seal bright red.

The state government's arrest warrant has arrived, authorizing the arrest of the Cao and Zhu families involved in the case.

Lü Zhengfeng reached out and took the document, unfolded it, glanced at it, closed it, and looked up at Fang Zheng.

"Arrest them."

Fang Zheng turned around, his gaze falling on Zhu Tianhua and Cao Jingde, and pointed, "Someone come here!"

"exist!"

Below, more than a dozen yamen runners and guards, including the officers and guards brought by the investigation team, stepped forward and responded loudly.

"Remove the official seal of Zhu Tianhua, the magistrate of Yongqing County."

Guan Tieyi gripped the hilt of his sword and strode toward Zhu Tianhua.

At that moment, you could hear a pin drop; everyone was on edge.

The person to be arrested now is Zhu Tianhua, a county magistrate of the eighth rank. If Zhu Tianhua refuses to be arrested, it will inevitably lead to a major battle.

However, Zhu Tianhua was no fool.

If he dared to resist arrest, with two seventh-rank officials, Lü Zhengfeng and Lu Qingyun, present, he would most likely be killed on the spot.

Fang Zheng watched as Guan Tieyi walked over step by step, reached out, grabbed the official seal at Zhu Tianhua's waist, and then ripped it off.

Zhu Tianhua did not resist.

After the official seal was removed, Fang Zheng personally used his official magic to lock Zhu Tianhua up with shackles.

Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

We've finally cracked the toughest nut to crack.

On the other hand, Cao Jingde was still struggling when he was held down by the yamen runners, shouting "I'm innocent!"

Fang Zheng raised his pen and with a stroke, sealed his mouth with ink, his entire face turning bright red.

After the Zhu and Cao families were taken away, the courtroom was quiet for a moment.

Lu Zhengfeng stood by the window, watching the boxes of evidence being carried away one after another, and breathed a long sigh of relief.

"The case of Brother Chu's murder has finally reached a preliminary conclusion."

The rest will be handed over to the state government for trial.

He turned to Fang Zheng and said, "Fang Zheng, you've done a lot to get this case to where it is today. Thank you for your hard work."

Fang Zheng didn't reply. He was busy organizing the files on the table and just nodded slightly when he heard this.

Lu Qingyun stopped and turned around: "That's not right."

The case of the He family's massacre is clear, but there is still one major unsolved mystery surrounding the murder of Chu Tiankuo.

Fang Zheng stopped what he was doing.

"The coroner's examination showed that Chu Tiankuo was beheaded, and blood was everywhere."

Lu Qingyun's expression was solemn. "But Du Kang's confession said that he used the Hundred Ghosts Soul Devouring Curse to kill him, and there were no external injuries."

Grandma Gui also denied that she was the one who did it.

"So who exactly cut off Chu Tiankuo's head?"

Fang Zheng remained silent, and just then, a person walked in from outside the hall.

Fang Zheng looked up and his expression changed slightly.

"Brother Guan, what are you doing up here?"

Let's talk outside.

He reached out to pull the person, but the person avoided him.

The person who arrived was Guan Tieyi.

He stood in the hall, looking at Fang Zheng, and suddenly bowed.

This bow was performed with utmost sincerity.

Fang Zheng was taken aback, then realized what was happening, and sighed.

"Brother Guan, why are you doing this to yourself?"

Guan Tieyi smiled and said, "Brother Fang, you are a promising young man and a rare talent in this era."

"If only Lord Chu had met you sooner."

He paused, then said, "I guess you already knew what I did."

I appreciate your kindness.

But what I must do, I must still do; what I must bear, I cannot escape.

Fang Zheng didn't try to persuade him further. He stepped back, making way for him.

Guan Tieyi walked into the hall, stood still, and then said, "Guan Tieyi has broken the law and has come to surrender himself to the authorities."

Lu Qingyun and Lü Zhengfeng exchanged a glance, both seeing doubt in each other's eyes.

Guan Tieyi made a significant contribution to the case and became Fang Zheng's most capable assistant.

He was involved in everything from hunting tigers and arresting criminals to digging tunnels.

If nothing unexpected happens, he will be promoted one rank when it comes time to reward his merits.

"Why did you turn yourself in?" Lu Qingyun asked.

Guan Tieyi did not hesitate: "It was I who cut off Lord Chu's head."

The hall was silent for a moment, then erupted in uproar.

The constables looked at each other, unable to believe their ears.

In their memory, Guan Tieyi was the most upright and incorruptible person among the supervisors, efficient in his work, and never shirked his responsibilities.

How could such a person be the one to desecrate Lord Chu's body?

Guan Tieyi ignored the reactions around him, drew a knife from his waist, and there was still a dark brown mark on the blade.

He picked up the knife with both hands and held it up in front of him: "This knife is the murder weapon that beheaded Lord Chu."

Gentlemen, you may take it for inspection.

Lu Qingyun gestured for the constable to step forward and take the knife. He then activated the blood-testing technique by making a hand seal, examined it carefully for a moment, and handed it to Lü Zhengfeng.

After inspecting the items, the two looked at each other and nodded.

The marks on the knife matched the wounds recorded in the case file, and the blood test confirmed that they were correct.

Without a doubt, this is the same knife that beheaded Chu Tiankuo.

"Take him under control first," Lu Qingyun said.

Without them having to lift a finger, Guan Tieyi took off the official seal himself and handed it to the yamen runner who came forward.

Fang Zheng sighed and stepped forward, saying, "Let me handle the matter of Guan Tieyi."

The officials of the investigation team and the supervisory authority were all dumbfounded, wondering how Fang Zheng knew everything.

What other secrets are hidden in this case? Will this ever end?

At this moment, Lu Qingyun found Fang Zheng more and more pleasing to the eye.

She had even decided that after this incident, she would talk to Lü Zhengfeng and make sure that Fang Zheng was taken away and brought to the state magistrate's mansion no matter what.

Fang Zheng's extraordinary talent for solving cases would be a complete waste if he didn't go to the prefectural governor's office.

Fang Zheng turned to look at Guan Tieyi, "Brother Guan, you are a capable assistant to Lord Chu Tiankuo."

You must have not seen Lord Chu for more than a week since the night he was murdered.

So you secretly entered the Chu residence, wanting to find out if Chu Tiankuo was safe.

Yes and no?

Guan Tieyi said in a muffled voice, "Exactly."

Lord Chu told me before that he was going to investigate a case and would not contact me for a while.

But after so long without any news, I still couldn't rest easy.

So I climbed over the wall and entered the Chu residence.