Chapter 20 Twenty, slush claws
It was getting late, and the twilight had enveloped the entire Chengdu Mansion.However, after King Kui gave an order, all the relevant people came here before lighting the lamps.
Although it is not known what happened, even Fan Yingxi, the envoy of Xichuan Jiedu, hurried to the envoy's mansion with his son.
Wang Yun came with them. He was wearing a snow-blue silk coat. When he saw Huang Zixia, although he still had his usual gentle smile on his face, he looked not very good after all.
The envoy, Zhou Xiang, had already set up a seat on the pier of his own waterside pavilion, and asked his daughter to enter the green gauze cabinet with a fan behind her face.
Gongsun Yuan and Yin Luyi came at the same time, and seeing that all the people present when Qi Teng died that day had arrived, she nodded to Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin, and they both sat down in the water pavilion.
Yu Xuan also arrived shortly thereafter. He was wearing a sky-blue blouse and sat down quietly by the waterside pavilion, as he always kept a low profile.
What puzzled everyone was that Master Mushan of Guangdu Temple, who was not here at all that day, was invited over and set up a futon for him outside the waterside pavilion.
All the musicians present at the Chengdu Mansion, the servants of the envoy's mansion, Zhou Ziyan's maid, and even Tang Zhuniang's second-rate nephew Tang Sheng were all found and summoned.
After everyone sat down or stood up, Li Shubai looked at Huang Zixia and nodded to her.Huang Zixia stood up and said to the crowd: "I invite you to come here today because of a murder case that happened in the envoy's mansion a few days ago, that is, the murder of Qi Teng, the judge of the Jiedu envoy's mansion."
As soon as he said a word, everyone below was silent.Fan Yingxi twisted his beard and remained silent, Zhou Xiang frowned and murmured, Gongsun Yuan gently hugged Yin Luyi's shoulders to express comfort, but Fan Yuanlong had already shouted: "What? The Qi Teng case? Eunuch Yang already has a clue?"
"I already know who the perpetrator is, and how the murderer killed Judge Qi in full view, and where he hid the murder weapon."
Fan Yingxi looked at Li Shubai and saw that he was sitting behind Huang Zixia but didn't speak, so he knew that he knew about it.So he immediately echoed: "Eunuch Yang, this matter is no small matter! The people who deal with the judges in my house may have enmity with me, or they may be dissatisfied with the envoy, the prince, or the court, and they must be taught a lesson! "
"General Fan has a heart for the court and worries about the prince. This is a good thing, but the cause of this matter has nothing to do with any major family and country affairs. The only cause is just a word 'love'." Huang Zixia said lightly.
Fan Yingxi was shocked when he heard this, but Li Shubai saw that the tension in his eyes was slightly relaxed.After all, if it had nothing to do with the court and King Kui, he would not need to be responsible as a Jiedushi. As for the death of his subordinate judge, he didn't particularly care about it.
"When Judge Qi died, everyone was here except Master Mu Shan." Huang Zixia's eyes swept over everyone's faces one by one, and saw some people were nervous, some were focused, some were shocked, and some were puzzled.Regardless of anyone's reaction, she only slowly pointed at the water pavilion and continued, "In this case, there are two things that are the key to preventing us from solving the mystery and catching the murderer—the first is time."
Everyone nodded involuntarily, obviously deeply agreeing.
"The murderer killed Judge Qi, of course, within a short period of time during that dance. Because before the dance, we sat in a row, and Judge Qi was still moving a round stool to the side of the green gauze cabinet, and the girl from the Zhou family Talking. Even after the opening scene, he was talking to the Zhou family girl, and he didn't stop talking until Mr. Fan vomited by the bushes, and he couldn't speak anymore. "
Zhou Ziqin nodded and said, "So, the time of his death was when Mr. Fan vomited or after, that is, after the petals were flying, Mrs. Gongsun entered the gauze curtain and released the butterflies."
"However, at that time, everyone had evidence that it was impossible to kill someone, because almost everyone was under the gaze of others. King Kui, Fan Jiedu, Zhou Shijun...even the maids and servants in the mansion were not It is possible to leave quietly and go to the back to kill people. And the evidence at the scene shows that there is no sign of outsiders sneaking in, that is to say, the murderer was on the waterside pier at that time, that is, someone among us."
Fan Yuanlong must take revenge, and said coldly at this time: "I thought it was Yuxuan before, but now I think it's possible for the girl from the Zhou family. After all, the two of them were alone behind the crowd at that time, and the only one who had the means to commit the crime without being caught It's her that people see."
Zhou Xiang's face turned livid immediately, and he glared at Fan Yuanlong, but it was hard to get angry in front of King Kui and Fan Yingxi, and his face turned purple.
Zhou Ziqin didn't care about anything else, and went up and sprayed back: "Do you think we will not think of this kind of mentally retarded speculation? Unfortunately, this assumption has long been overturned by actual evidence! At that time, the murderer covered Judge Qi's mouth and nose with one hand, and used the murder weapon with the other. Stabbing into his chest, at that time, Judge Qi left nail marks on his face, and judging from the marks, if my sister wants to do that, she will definitely fall out of the green gauze cabinet, it is impossible to maintain her balance !"
"But your sister can also get out of the Bisha closet and walk behind him before killing someone!"
"Yes, she can do this, but if this is the case, first, it is impossible for Judge Qi to sit still when his fiancée walks behind; Here, just in case she has anything to do. Therefore, as long as she has a little bit of brains, she won't come out of the Bisha closet and go around behind Judge Qi to kill someone."
Fan Yuanlong snorted resentfully, and in exchange for Zhou Ziqin's white eyes and Fan Yingxi's loud scolding, it was boring, so he had to huddle in his position and remain motionless.
Li Shubai saw that everyone was either thinking or frightened, but no one made a sound for a while, so he asked: "So, in your opinion, who can find a way at such a moment when there is absolutely no chance of killing someone?" How about killing people right under the noses of others, without being noticed at all?"
Huang Zixia nodded to him, and said: "Yes, everyone is in a place where others can't see, and all the people present at that time should have a consensus that among all the people, the least suspicious and least likely to kill, It should be Aunt Gongsun who performed the dance in the water pavilion at that time, right?"
Everyone nodded.And Fan Yuanlong couldn't wait to urge: "Just skip her, tell me how the people below us found the opportunity?"
"No, I can't jump over Aunt Gongsun." Huang Zixia calmly cast her eyes on Gongsun Yuan who was sitting on the railing of the waterside pavilion, "I wonder if you have heard a word called 'dark under the lamp'?"
Everyone in a group was in an uproar, and everyone looked at Huang Zixia with disbelieving eyes, and then looked at Gongsun Yuan.
Gongsun Yuan didn't speak, but stood up slowly.
Huang Zixia said in a low voice: "In this case, the one who is least likely to kill someone can set up a perfect opportunity. As long as you seize that moment, then, even when everyone's eyes are on this, you can calmly and calmly commit suicide." Kill from the front to the back, and get away easily at the end."
Amidst the uproar, Gongsun Yuan stood under the lights of the waterside pavilion, and the light from dozens of lanterns around her made her whole body bright. The warm orange lights cast a hazy brilliance on her whole body, and her slender figure , it is like the shadow of flowers under the lamp, curling and trembling, too graceful, but I feel that I can't see clearly.
She looked at the people in front of her, with a sad expression on her face, but her eyes were clear and clean. She faced Huang Zixia with an almost innocent expression, and her voice was extremely low, but it was enough for everyone who was quiet at this time to hear: "Eunuch Yang, From your point of view, it seems that I am suspected?"
"No, it's not a suspicion. I mean, Aunt Gongsun, you killed Qi Teng," Huang Zixia said slowly, with a dignified tone, but absolutely clear, "The evidence is conclusive and irrefutable."
Gongsun Yuan lowered her eyes, before saying anything, Yin Luyi first stood up behind her, and said anxiously: "Eunuch Yang, you also know us, and you promised to help us investigate A Ruan's death before." , but now...how can we put everything on our heads just because Judge Qi's death can't find the murderer?"
"Exactly. I would like to know, what is the so-called conclusive evidence? How can the so-called irrefutable be indefensible?" Gongsun Yuan also looked at her with firm and bright eyes, her voice was steady , never wavered in the slightest, "Since Eunuch Yang said that Judge Qi died while I was dancing, then I was in the water pavilion at that time, in full view of everyone, and never took an inch away. Judge Qi?"
Zhou Ziqin has always been most concerned about beautiful women, so even though he always listened to Huang Zixia's words, he couldn't help but quietly asked at the side: "No way, Chonggu... I was staring at the stage at the time, I can guarantee , Aunt Gongsun and her sister have never left for a moment!"
"Yes, it seems that she has never left, but for a period of time, she only left a vague back view, didn't she?" Huang Zixia asked.
Everyone understood immediately, and Fan Yuanlong called out first: "Could it be that the father-in-law is referring to the moment when she let the butterflies fly after she hid in the veil?"
Seeing Huang Zixia nodding her head, and seeing that King Kui beside her was just sitting quietly drinking tea without expressing any opinions, Zhou Xiang finally couldn't help it, and asked tentatively, "Elder-in-law, didn't you see the picture she threw on the gauze curtain at that time?" A shadow? Although the gauze curtain is gorgeous in color and embroidered with countless flower branches, its texture is light and thin, and all of us can see the figure coming through it, and it has never left."
Zhou Ziqin also nodded and agreed: "Absolutely! At that time, Si Niang was entangled with Mr. Fan outside the water pavilion, and there was no one in the water pavilion who could replace Aunt Gongsun. I can guarantee that she will always be outside the water pavilion!"
"No, this is the first golden cicada's plan to escape its shell in this case. Si Niang is a master of tricks, so she naturally knows how to let people escape in an instant—and the props used are nothing more than a gauze curtain and a brocade coat , that's all."
Having said this, Huang Zixia turned to look at Zhou Ziqin: "I don't know if Aunt Gongsun and Yin Siniang have brought all the things of the day as we requested?"
Yin Luyi secretly glanced at Gongsun Yuan, but she nodded calmly, got up and opened the cage she brought, took out the double swords, gauze curtain, and dance clothes inside, and said, "Please look at it, Eunuch."
When the murder happened, all the tables and chairs here were removed for Gongsun Yuan to dance.Zhou Ziqin hurriedly asked someone to bring over a sheet of high school books, and put everything on it.
Huang Zixia signaled Zhou Ziqin to pull the gauze curtain and let it go.Seen under the light, the flower tree with swaying branches is embroidered on the half-lit and half-hidden gauze. The main trunk of the flower tree is like a vine, bending upwards, with two branches stretching out relative to each other every half a foot, slightly bending and drooping. Full of flowers, very soft.
Huang Zixia signaled Zhou Ziqin to let the gauze curtain hang down naturally, and then gestured at the position of his shoulders.She was slender, about the same size as Gongsun Yuan, and on the embroidery there, I just found two embroidered branches, which were at the same level as her shoulders.
She searched carefully around the branch, and she found what she expected - three needle holes in the left, middle and right, which were aligned with each other. It was obvious that something had been sewn here. The traces have not disappeared.
Huang Zixia asked Zhou Ziqin to show it to everyone, and said: "According to this trace, here, there should be a long strip of something sewn on the embroidered branch, which can just be covered - I guess it should be a, Something to hang your clothes on."
Zhou Ziqin immediately asked: "You mean, after Madam Gongsun turned into the gauze curtain, she unknowingly took off her outer brocade clothes and hung them on the gauze curtain, making it look like she was still behind, while I... have already sneaked along the bushes next to the waterside pavilion, sneaked to the back, and killed Judge Qi?"
Amidst the suspicious voices of the crowd, Gongsun Yuan just stood silently without saying a word.
Huang Zixia pointed to the things on the table and said, "To use this method, three conditions are required. First, a thick piece of clothing that cannot be penetrated by light."
She put her hand on the heavy brocade dress worn by Gongsun Yuan at the beginning, and said slowly: "We had discussed in private at that time that this dress is really not as good as the light and transparent dance dress at the back. , and obviously, it will hinder the movement, even some subtle movements, and cover some delicate details, but why, Aunt Gongsun chose to wear this dance dress at the beginning of the scene until she released After the butterfly, how about taking off this dress?"
Yin Luyi's face gradually turned pale, her hand slowly took Gongsun Yuan's arm, and Gongsun Yuan felt the coldness of her palm, but only gently put his hand on the back of her hand, standing there Looking at Huang Zixia, she remained motionless.
Huang Zixia's hand covered the collar of Jinyi again, and said: "The second condition is to draw a black cloth that is exactly the same as the silhouette of Aunt Gongsun's head from the clothes. This should have been taken out of the collar by you. It has been dismantled, but there are clues, maybe we will search carefully later, and we can still find them.”
She put down her clothes and said, "As for the third condition, the light suddenly dimmed after Aunt Gongsun entered the embroidered curtain. The person in charge of the light is Yin Siniang. She will provide this opportunity for Aunt Gongsun to control The moment she undressed, hung up her avatar, and left immediately. And in order to distract others when the figure of Mrs. Gongsun was motionless, she immediately dropped the petals in the cage at this moment, so that everyone's eyes They all gathered in the water pavilion, and no longer cared about the slight movements that might come from behind the bushes—and at this time, Mr. Fan helped them again. At this time, he saw Yin Siniang among the petals, Then Jiu Jin stepped forward to tease everyone, causing everyone's attention to be distracted by the chaos, and Aunt Gongsun is completely safe."
A slight smile appeared on the corner of Gongsun Yuan's lips, which seemed to be mocking: "Eunuch Yang, if it is true that I walked back and forth along the bushes at that time as you said, then I want to ask you, after I entered the embroidered curtain, , How long did you maintain the motionless posture? In short, it’s just the time for a few cages of petals to fall to the ground. Is this enough time for me to walk back and forth, and even reach Judge Qi’s side and kill him?”
"Yeah, after that, even if she used to run, it probably wouldn't be enough to go back and forth..." Fan Yuanlong asked first.
"Yes, after the petals fell, Aunt Gongsun continued to perform, releasing the butterflies hidden in her sleeves one by one, and the butterflies flew faster and faster, until they all flew out at last - if she had If they weren't there, the butterflies would scatter in a rush, it's impossible to control them so well and fly so slowly, right?" Zhou Ziqin began to wonder again: "Could it be that Mrs. Gongsun has some way to fly back and forth before the petals fall? ? Is it the method of shrinking the ground, or one step at a time?"
"Of course not. The method of shrinking the ground and one step at ten feet are just legends. But why don't you change your thinking? In fact, Aunt Gongsun doesn't go back and forth too fast. When the butterfly flies out, she doesn't have to rush back at all, but there is a time. Something that can help her control the speed at which the butterflies fly out, so that they can't scatter away, they can only fly out slowly, but gradually faster and faster, and more and more..."
Zhou Ziqin blinked a pair of puzzled eyes, and looked at her watery: "Could it be... a mechanism that can be activated after a delay after being controlled? So it will be opened slowly after she leaves?"
"No, how could such a mechanism be placed on a gauze curtain and a brocade dress at that time, and why was it so troublesome? And the things she used at that time, you helped remove some traces."
Huang Zixia's words made Zhou Ziqin's mouth open into a circle: "Really...really? Impossible, when did I help her... I don't have much contact with Aunt Gongsun, and I haven't done anything!"
"Because you ignored it from the beginning to the end, and didn't think of it at all." Huang Zixia said, taking out a small bag of caramel from his side, and showing it to everyone, "As far as I know, because Yin Siniang's blood is weak, so she She always carries a bag of candy with her. What she chooses is not hard candy like ginger candy or snowflake candy, but soft caramel candy.”
Yin Luyi couldn't help interrupting her, her voice was timid, but there was a sense of hidden needles: "Eunuch Yang, I like caramel, could it be... is this also a fault?"
"Of course not. Some people like hard candies and some like soft candies. It's a personal choice. However, I have never seen someone like you who wants a whole plate of caramel candies." Huang Zixia handed out the caramel candies to everyone one by one. Said, "Besides, after you bought a whole board of caramel, you didn't cut it open, and used it to carve small animals for fun. We can't say anything. But I want to ask Si Niang one thing-then On the upper and lower sides of the whole board of caramel, where did the boss put the entire piece of glutinous rice paper to prevent the caramel from melting or sticking?"
The piece of caramel in everyone's hands was covered with a small piece of glutinous rice paper, a translucent soft sheet made of glutinous rice, used to prevent the candy from sticking together. But it is an indispensable wrapping for every caramel.
The complexions of Gongsun Yuan and Yin Siniang finally changed, and Gongsun Yuan's clear and firm eyes finally began to sparkle.
Huang Zixia looked away from her body, and said softly: "The butterfly cage that has been prepared earlier, opened it, pasted it with glutinous rice paper, and put it behind the gauze curtain. When you take off your coat, you only need to dip your fingers in the drool." A stroke on the glutinous rice paper, the glutinous rice paper will gradually melt when it sees water, and finally a big hole will be formed. The butterflies inside will fly out one by one. No matter where you are, the hole in the glutinous rice paper They will only get bigger and bigger, and the butterflies will fly faster and faster—”
When she said this, she raised her hand and gestured for the distance from the waterside pavilion to the pier, and asked, "Is the time from the cages of petals to the time when the butterfly finishes flying, enough time for you to go back and forth and kill one person?"
Such an unimaginable technique, such a precise timing, made everyone who heard it stunned on the spot, and there was silence beside the waterside pavilion for a while, and no one could make a sound.
In the silence, Gongsun Yuan's voice came slowly, but she was still calm and calm: "Eunuch Yang, the killing methods you made up for me are neither ingenious nor painstaking. I didn't expect that, I You can also think of so many things about the fourth sister who lacks energy and blood and eat some caramel; I prepared a heavy point dance dress, which became a modus operandi; It is said that he took the opportunity to go out and kill people..."
When she said this, there was even a smile on the corner of her lips, bright and vivid, very touching: "Then, Eunuch Yang, where is the evidence? Just because I have time to kill, it must be me who kills? There is no motive and no murder weapon. Your upper and lower lips If I touch it, I will kill you?"
"First, among all the people present, you are the only one who has the time to commit the crime, and none of the others," Huang Zixia ignored her smile, with a calmer expression than her, "Second, the murder weapon, of course I can Find, and, moreover, prove, that it is yours."
Gongsun Yuan raised her chin slightly, stood in front of her silently, and said nothing, wanting to see her show off.
"The first mystery of this case is the time when the crime was committed. Now, we have solved it. The second mystery is the missing murder weapon. A blood hole appeared in Judge Qi's chest, indicating that it was stabbed by the murder weapon. But at that time, we immediately searched almost everyone at the scene, but found no matching murder weapon. Moreover, it was not salvaged in the water, and nothing was found at the scene. This shows that the murder weapon must still be at the scene. Well hidden."
Zhou Ziqin couldn't wait again, and hurriedly said: "But Chonggu, many police officers from the Yamen have searched here for several days, and found nothing! Where is the murder weapon hidden?"
"This, I still need your help." As she said, she whispered something in his ear, Zhou Ziqin jumped up, patted his head and shouted: "Why didn't I think of that? Sure enough, I am a big fool!"
He didn't say anything, he just turned around and ran in a hurry, looking in the direction of the yamen.
Zhou Xiang had no choice but to confess to Li Shubai in embarrassment: "The dog has no shape, and the people who come and go don't even say hello..."
Li Shubai put down the teacup, with a rare smile on his face, he said: "Zi Qin is so innocent and unconstrained, this king admires him the most."
Zhou Xiang hurriedly pretended to be terrified, and muttered "Where is there" and "How dare you?"
Fan Yingxi looked at his son, although his face was expressionless, he clearly turned his face half an inch to prevent him from appearing in the corner of his eyes.
When Zhou Ziqin came back, everyone found that he was holding a thin and ugly dog in his hand, and there was a piece of clothing in his arms. It was the same piece of clothing that Fan Yuanlong wore that day. It was stained with alcohol, and Fan Yuanlong had already taken it off and threw it away on the spot, but it was still kept by the yamen.
Zhou Ziqin squatted down, brought the scraped blood to the dog's nose, stroked its head and said, "Fugui, smell the blood on it, and go find it quickly! I found a bone for you to eat!" "
The dog sniffed and sniffed, but didn't understand Zhou Ziqin's meaning at all. He thought it was for him to eat, opened his mouth wide, bit the cloth head in his mouth, and chewed it twice.
"Hey, you stupid dog..." Zhou Ziqin quickly pulled the clothes back from its mouth, looked at the two tooth holes on it, and suddenly felt depressed.
"I'll do it." Huang Zixia said helplessly, took the dog in his hand, rubbed the dog's head, and led it along the bushes to the place where the green yarn cabinet was originally placed.
Just when she got between two bluestone slabs, she stopped, and Fugui walked around her feet a few times, seeing that she didn't move, she kept sniffing and rubbing against the ground. After a while, he suddenly regained his energy and barked loudly towards a crack in the stone.
Huang Zixia tried her best to restrain it, turned her head and said to everyone: "Pry up this stone slab."
Zhou Ziqin was stunned for a moment: "Chonggu, you are so imaginative! This stone slab weighs several hundred catties. How could the murderer have time to pry it up to press the murder weapon after killing someone? Besides, the murderer didn't have such great strength!"
Huang Zixia shook his head and said, "No, the murder weapon is not under the bluestone slab."
"Then why are we prying the bluestone?"
"Because, if the bluestone is still there, we will not be able to touch the place where the murder weapon is hidden."
Zhou Ziqin didn't talk nonsense, and immediately asked the two arresters to quickly find a crowbar and a wooden bar, and then squatted on the ground and asked her, "Which one is better to pry?"
"Whatever, the small one." Huang Zixia said.
"Whatever?..." The corner of Zhou Ziqin's mouth twitched, but then he gestured for them to do something.
I'm doing it here, and a group of people are watching.
Gongsun Yuan and Yin Luyi's faces were ashen, and they sat there motionless, but the atmosphere around Li Shubai was not suppressed at all. Fan Yingxi was pulling Master Mu Shan over to talk to Li Shubai.Li Shubai had put on makeup when he passed by last time, so it was the first time the two met.Fan Yingxi praised Master Mu Shan as a virtuous and eminent monk, and Li Shubai only said that he had heard his name in Beijing. He didn't need the Master to be present today, but he heard that he would go out on a Zen walk tomorrow, and he was afraid that he would not be able to meet him in time. That's why I took advantage of the mage's friendship with Judge Qi, and invited him to come over and see that the treasure is really dignified, which is extraordinary.
Both Fan Yingxi and Master Mu Shan were very happy, a big stone fell from their hearts, and the atmosphere was extremely harmonious.
Zhou Xiang asked Wang Yun about the past in Beijing, and also asked about the current situation of Wang Yun's uncles, uncles, cousins, and cousins he knew. There were more than ten people, enough for him to care about for an hour or two.
Fan Yuanlong slipped to Zhou Ziqin's side, watched them prying the bluestone slabs, and lamented to Zhou Ziqin, it would be a pity if those two beauties were really murderers, and they had to find a chance to do it in prison. ——Naturally, Zhou Ziqin gave him back with two big white eyes.Although Zhou Ziqin looked up to and worshiped beautiful women, he despised this kind of pervert the most.Moreover, he is also a child of an absurd and unscrupulous official family. What he likes are corpses. He is very different from someone like Fan Yuanlong, so it would be strange if he would care about him.
The small stone slabs really saved time and effort. A few people lifted the stones in a short time, and an empty hollow was revealed. There was only a little mud between the stone slabs, and nothing else.
Zhou Ziqin invited Huang Zixia over, pointed to the soil under the stone slab and asked, "Do you want to dig down here?"
"No need." She said, borrowed Zhou Ziqin's gloves, squatted down and felt in the soil around the stone slab, and then took out an object with incomparable accuracy, and took Fan Yuanlong's clothes next to her, and dipped it Wipe away dirt.
As soon as the contents inside were revealed, Zhou Ziqin immediately called out: "The murder weapon!"
One inch wide and four inches long, it looks like a long and narrow piece of iron, but the cutting edge is as thin as paper, so it can be inserted into the narrow gap between the two stone plates without hindrance.This piece of iron is extremely sharp, and the light is reflected on it, and the light that flickers out almost blinds the eyes.
Huang Zixia compared the murder weapon with the two bloodstains on Fan Yuanlong's body, and the size fit perfectly.
She put it on her gloved hand, presented it in front of everyone, and said: "In the past, Emperor Taizong gave three utensils to the warriors to tame the lion Cong, an iron whip, an iron hammer and a dagger. The dagger was originally from Taizong. The personal belongings were cold iron sent from overseas at that time. Twenty-four pieces were cast, and only one was particularly outstanding. The blade is as sharp as ever, so don't stare at it."
After everyone looked at it one by one, she put the iron piece back on the desk in the water pavilion, and said lightly: "Later, this dagger became the property of Aunt Gongsun during the Kaiyuan period. She was dancing at that time, holding a long and a long There are two short swords, the long sword is 'Chengying', which has been lost, and the short sword is the cold iron dagger. However, there is another legend about Chengying, do you remember?"
She turned her eyes to Li Shubai, Li Shubai is well-read and knowledgeable, and has a vivid memory of all the classics, so he said naturally: "There are clouds in "Liezi·Tang Wen", and Kong Zhou has three swords. I don’t know it exists. What it touches is boundless, passing through objects without being aware of them. The second is called Chengying, when the ambiguity is clear, when the sun is dark, when the sun is dark, when you observe it from the north, if there is something there, you can’t recognize it. Its shape, what it touches, there is a whisper, and the object is not sick when it passes through the object—but there is another legend later, saying that Hanguang and Chengying are originally twins, and Hanguang is in Chengying, which is an invisible and shadowless sword , Chengying is just its outer sheath."
Huang Zixia nodded and said, "I have been thinking about it for a long time. Aunt Gongsun is a woman who is in danger everywhere, so she only uses a wooden sword to protect her body? After the sword dance was over that day, because Mr. Fan blamed it, the king Prince Yun once smelled the handle of that wooden sword, and it is said that it smells like earth."
When Wang Yun saw her looking at him, he leaned on the chair and smiled at her first, then nodded, and said, "That's true."
"I also checked the hilt of the sword. There is a little dirt on the side facing the body of the sword. If you just throw the sword on the ground as Aunt Gongsun said, it will only get dirt on the side of the handle. So what? Can it touch the sword body? What's more, the ground of the waterside pavilion was so clean at that time, and you were lying on the ground in the last movement and your clothes were very clean, so why is there dirt on the hilt?" Huang Zixia said, picking up the sharp blade again , pointed the sharp blade down, pointed to the cross-section above and said, "Look, everyone, the blade body is designed with a groove here, and there is a small hole for the slot. I think this dagger should be the same as my hairpin, with heaven and earth inside. "
As she spoke, she held down the hairpin on her head, pinched the head of the curly grass hairpin, and took out the thinner jade hairpin inside, leaving only the outer silver hairpin in her hair for everyone to see clearly. Insert the jade hairpin inside back, and then take the long wooden sword brought by Aunt Gongsun on the table, observe carefully for a moment, then press a smoother pattern on it, and twist it down, sure enough, With a slight snap, the sword body and hilt have been separated, but the inside is not solid, there is a thin space.There was a hook on the hilt of the sword. Huang Zixia aligned the sharp blade in his hand with the buckle, aligned the holes, turned it left and right, and finally fixed it.
Aunt Gongsun's complexion finally turned completely pale.She leaned against Yin Siniang, even her body began to weaken, the two of them could only slowly lean on the railing, their lips were blue and trembling, but they couldn't say anything.
"I don't know...have you ever killed someone before? You are very courageous and smart enough. You chose the most chaotic and safest time, and made full use of dancing and crime tools—of course, a person who is good at tricks My dear Si Niang, I can arrange all the details for you—however, under the eyes of so many people at the scene, knowing that as long as someone turns around, they will find you in the dark, you are still willing to give it a go. And, accurate, ruthless Spicy, in such a short time, you were able to stab Judge Qi's heart with one knife, without making any sound from him, and without getting stuck in his ribs. Even, while stabbing your heart, you turned the dagger and stirred it a few times His heart caused him no reaction, and he died immediately. Even the Zhou family girl in the green gauze closet, who was close at hand, didn't notice any sound." Huang Zixia's voice was calm and gentle, without any emotion, even a little bit Indifferently, "Of course your luck is also very good. At the beginning, Judge Qi was sitting in the front, and you had no chance to get close at that time, but after you said at the time that this beautiful dance can be rewarded with your sweetheart, Judge Qi was trying to curry favor with Zhou. So I really moved my chair and went to the last green yarn cabinet. When you killed, Mr. Fan was vomiting, and the stench was blown by the wind, covering up the smell of blood and making the The girl from the Zhou family happened to cover her nose and turned around, her eyes just avoided you."
Gongsun Yuan stood under the lamp, and the lamp shone on her body, like a cold orchid in the wind, extremely slender and bleak.
"After you killed someone, you should have brought the dagger back to the wooden sword immediately. However, it takes some time to put the blade back on. It's not as easy as taking it off, and it's definitely difficult to align the button in the dark. It is easy to reveal the fact that there is blood in it, so you have to give up this dagger. And if you just insert it into the crack of the stone, there will be blood stained on the stone slab or seeped out of the soil, and it will be discovered by others, and it happens that Fan The young master threw up drunk and fell to the ground. Naturally, you resented him for being frivolous, so you simply wiped off the blood with his clothes, then inserted it into a crevice in the stone, and finally took the hilt of the sword and put it on, seamlessly... no ?"
Amidst the silence of the crowd, Gongsun Yuan bit her lower lip tightly, and forced her lips to tremble. After a long time, she forced herself to ask in a hoarse voice: "Then... Judge Qi has no grievances or enmity with me, I... ...Is there any reason to kill him?"
"No injustice or enmity?" Huang Zixia said, putting away all the belongings of Aunt Gongsun in her hands, and then nodded to Zhou Ziqin.
Zhou Ziqin understood, and immediately went to the side to take out some things and put them on the table in the water pavilion.
The things he put on the table were all kinds of messes——
A dark blue purse, an album page written by Zhong Hui, a picture scroll of green pine playing the piano, a stack of gaudy poems in various shapes...
Under everyone's puzzled gazes, Huang Zixia showed these things to everyone one by one, and said, "This is something I found in Judge Qi's house, and I found it strange - first, this stack of poems. These poems and papers all come from Wutong Street in Chengdu, almost all from the hands of prostitutes, and they use the name Wen Yang."
Fan Yuanlong asked in astonishment: "Wen Yang? Isn't he the one who died in love with Fu Xinruan? How could the poem note he received be in Judge Qi's home?"
"Yes, and, afterward, we visited Wutong Street and found the person who sent these love poems in various brothels. They all confirmed that there was indeed a customer named Wen Yang, who was considerate, gentle, and loved to laugh. Obscene words and pornographic songs—almost completely different from Wen Yang, who has a cold personality."
"Could it be that..." Everyone had a thought in their hearts, and they fell silent for a while, unable to speak out.
"More than that. Please look at this painting of green pine playing the piano. From the perspective of paper texture, painting technique and artistic conception, it is completely different from the one in Qi Judge's house. As far as we know, the one that Wen Yang originally hung in the study is not the same. It is indeed such a picture, but it disappeared before and after Wen Yang died in love."
黄梓瑕又将另一幅画拿出来，说：“而这幅绣球蝴蝶，则是我们从温阳的房间内拿到的。他的家仆说，原先挂在家中的一幅青松图，不知什么时候换成了这幅，而我们在他的家中，却未曾搜到所谓的青松图。”
“而齐判官家中，原先悬挂的，正是一幅绣球蝴蝶！”周子秦点头，说道：“所以我们有十足的把握，认定他们书房内的这两幅画，肯定是被掉包了，素喜雅静，常对青松的温阳书房内，被换上了一幅绣球蝴蝶，而书房中挂着月季、杜鹃的齐判官家中，怎么会挂上一幅迥异的青松图？”
周庠忙问：“那么，对调这两幅画，到底有何用意呢？”
“这用意，其实就在于一幅画。”黄梓瑕说着，将从温阳家中找出的那封傅辛阮的信取出，给众人念了一遍：
“……念及庭前桂花，应只剩得二三，且珍惜收囊，为君再做桂花蜜糖。蜀中日光稀少，日来渐觉苍白。今启封前日君之所赠胭脂，幽香弥远，粉红娇艳，如君案前绣球蝴蝶画……”
她放下这封信，轻叹道：“与傅辛阮交往的人，对于平时自己的踪迹十分留意，他在风化场所用的，一直都是别人的名字，傅辛阮也不例外，她一直都称呼对方为'温郎'，在给自己姐妹写的信中，也一直提到'温阳'，所以，这个所谓的'温阳'，小心翼翼地遮掩着自己的行迹，在乐坊中从不留下自己的只字片纸，与傅辛阮的交往，也极少书信，这可能，是他们之间仅有的传书——于是他拿过来，作为证据，放在温阳的身边，让温阳这个替死鬼因为这封信而坐实了与傅辛阮有过交往，同时也用这封信，诱导我们将他们中毒身亡作为'殉情'处理，用以瞒天过海，遮掩耳目。”
范元龙顿时跳起来，结结巴巴问：“你……你的意思是，这个温阳，不是真的温阳……不，真的温阳，不是这个温阳？”
他的话虽然颠三倒四，但是众人都听懂了他的意思，一时在场所有人都呆在当场。
黄梓瑕点头，说道：“正是，信上的'温阳'，还有傅辛阮遇见的'温阳'，全都不是真正的温阳、温并济。而有一个人，他的名字与温阳正是一对，于是他经常便利用这个化名，在花街柳巷之中厮混，所有将情书赠给他的人，都叫他'温阳'——谁也不知道，他的名字其实叫齐腾，齐涵越，外号寒月公子。”
想着齐腾在人前那种温和从容的模样，众人都无法想象他在花街柳巷与另一个人厮混的模样，而范元龙则问：“杨公公，若照你这么说，齐判官公然冒充温阳的名号在花街柳巷厮混，那他难道就没有想过，或许有朝一日，他会在这边，被别人发现吗？而万一被温阳撞见，岂不是更糟糕？”
黄梓瑕摇头，说道：“不，齐判官自然有万全之策，他选择冒充温阳，当然不仅仅只是因为对方名字与自己凑巧相对，也不仅仅是因为他们都是父母亡故、妻子早逝，还有一点，是因为他知道，自己绝对不可能在妓馆与温阳相遇。”
周子秦悄悄说道：“崇古，可是温宅的下人说，他也偶尔会去烟花巷陌的……”
“他去的地方，与齐判官去的地方，截然不同——”黄梓瑕说着，从那叠妩媚诗笺之中，取出那一张蓝色方胜纹的诗笺，说道，“在这一堆诗笺之中，这是非常特别的一张，因为，它来自小倌馆，是好男风之人所去的地方。”
众人都露出恍然的神情，又觉得这些事难以出口，只能面面相觑，无法出声。
“所以温阳与傅辛阮，是绝对不可能殉情的。因为，他对女人毫无兴趣。他在妻子死后，也从未想过要再续弦，为了隐藏自己的秘密，他每次趁深夜悄悄地去见不得人的地方，又悄悄地回来——像这样的人，怎么可能会与傅辛阮郎情妾意数年，又怎么可能给她送桂花，送胭脂，以至于连傅辛阮这样令无数人倾慕的女子，都将自己的一颗芳心送交与他呢？”黄梓瑕平静而缓慢地冷静分析着，仿佛她真的是一个与此事毫无关联的宦官，“而齐判官知道，温阳曾用假冒的钟会手书，企图骗取……某男子好感的事情。别人或许不以为意，但他是惯于混迹章台的，自然了如指掌。他放心地在外以温阳的名义厮混，又在急于摆脱傅辛阮之时，将真正的温阳拉了过来，作为替死鬼，替自己了结情债。而这个时候，他当然也要消除温阳身边所有足以泄露他秘密的东西，包括，当初那张假的钟会手书，以及小倌写给温阳的情诗。同时，他还千方百计地调换东西，企图造成温阳确实曾与傅辛阮交往颇深的假象。”
周庠听着，不由得痛心叹道：“李代桃僵，瞒天过海，这齐判官，真是心思颇深啊！幸好……”
幸好，你的女儿周紫燕没有嫁给这个人。众人在心里想。但转而又想，齐腾与傅辛阮交往数年，一直都好好的，这回痛下杀手，焉知不是为了攀上使君府的高枝，迎娶使君千金，为了永除后患？
“然而，将傅辛阮写给他的这封信拿来作为证物，有一个漏洞，即信上提到的，案前'绣球蝴蝶'那幅画。所以，真正拥有这幅画的齐腾，只能想办法带着这幅画去温阳家——借口嘛，当然就是同一诗社的人过来祭奠之类的。温阳家的人大字不识一个，对字画自然不会关注，所以事后我去问的时候，他们就连画是什么时候出现的都不知道。而齐腾将青松画偷换回来之后，发现自己书房中原本四幅的画缺了一幅，十分不协调，刚好青松画大小差不多，又是植物，于是挂上去暂时先放着——谁知，直到他死，还未准备好另一幅画，就此留下了痕迹，”黄梓瑕说着，又将两叠放在桌上，说，“为了制造温阳与傅辛阮亲密的迹象，齐腾还做了其他手脚。比如说，将温阳的手稿，偷了一部分，藏到傅辛阮的家中。然而他偷窃时可能是太过慌乱了，将不该拿走的，也夹杂在了里面。比如左边这半部《金刚经》，是我们从温阳的家中找出来的，而右边这半部，则是从傅辛阮家中找出的，以证明他们二人确实日常有在交往。可惜的是，他不知道，温阳写这部《金刚经》，却是另有其用的。”
众人查看温阳手抄的这部《金刚经》，沐善法师首先说道：“这几页佛经，页边距留出甚多，看起来，倒有点像是近年流行的蝴蝶装似的。”
“正是。温阳向来自衿书法，因此特意写的这一份《金刚经》，显然是要装订成册送人的，所以如何会将这份经书分了一半在别人手中呢？显然不合常理。”
周子秦看看公孙鸢和殷露衣，想要命人逮捕时，又忽然想起一件事，赶紧问：“崇古，我有个疑问，还得你解答。”
黄梓瑕望向他，点了一下头。
“有没有这样一个可能，冒充温阳的另有其人，他在杀死傅辛阮的时候，故意栽赃嫁祸给齐判官？”
“如果是这样的话，如何解释傅辛阮信上的'绣球蝴蝶'画，以及'将庭前桂花盛囊送来'句呢？你可还记得，齐判官宅中的厅堂前，恰好就有一株桂花树。”黄梓瑕说到这里，沉默片刻，终于还是说，“之前，节度府受邀去当铺购买物什时，曾有一个双鱼手镯，未曾记录便被当铺送给了某人。而当时，正值齐腾担任节度府判官不久，他必定会到场——手下的人怎敢当着长官的面向当铺掌柜讨要手镯，又堂而皇之拿走呢？我想，能拿走的人，必定就是齐判官。”
提到双鱼手镯，她只觉得自己的心口猛地一颤，有些如同钝刀割肉般的疼痛，在胸口缓缓蔓延开来。她的目光不由自主地看向人群后的禹宣，而他也隔着灯光远远地看着她，那眼中，有极其模糊的东西，深远幽暗。
她慢慢地转过脸去，然后又抬手拿起桌案上的暗蓝色荷包，说：“齐腾是傅辛阮情郎的最大的证据，就在于，这个荷包。”
暗蓝色的旧荷包，在她的手中毫不起眼，甚至和周围那些精致的诗笺、画卷有些格格不入。
“这个荷包，我们从齐腾书房的废纸篓中拿到，当时里面空无一物。”说着，她举着荷包示意站在人群后的一个人，“汤升，你还记得当日你在双喜巷与你的姑姑汤珠娘见面的时候，她从包里取出的那个荷包吗？”
汤升一直站在人群最后，他身材瘦削，形容猥琐，压根儿没人在意，此时骤然被黄梓瑕点到，他在众人目光之下，顿时显得手足无措：“啊？这个……这个荷包？”
黄梓瑕点头：“当日你曾说，你的姑姑本想从包里取荷包给你，但又塞回去了，可有此事？”
“是啊，才拿了一半，就塞回去了，说什么'还是带到城里去打一对银簪子'吧，结果呢，人就死在半道上了，什么银簪子，压根儿也没见到！”汤升晦气地说着，仔细一打量她手里的荷包，又惊讶地“咦”了出来，说：“你手里的这个荷包……好像，就是她当时拿出一半的荷包嘛！”
黄梓瑕反问：“你确定？有没有看错？”
“没看错，绝对的！我当时还以为她给我好东西呢，所以死死地盯着看，我看得很仔细，记得很牢靠！”
“好，所以这个出现在齐判官废纸篓中的荷包，正是傅辛阮身边仆妇汤珠娘死后，不见的那一个，”黄梓瑕说着，目光转向公孙鸢，“公孙大娘曾在傅辛阮死后，给汤珠娘塞钱，让她帮自己取走一个镯子，而齐判官当然也可以在官府搜查封闭傅宅的时候，让汤珠娘帮自己放一些东西进去，比如说，他从温阳那边悄悄拿来的手书。同时，因为汤珠娘是傅辛阮身边唯一的人，就算傅辛阮再深居简出，就算齐判官再谨慎小心，瞒得了别人，却绝对瞒不过汤珠娘。所以，齐判官为了隐藏行迹，设计遮人眼目的殉情案，第一个要收买的，就是汤珠娘的口风。汤珠娘收了齐判官的钱之后，收拾了东西要回老家过安稳日子，但齐判官自然不会容许这样一个人存活于世，于是他自然选择了，在她回老家的路上，将她推下山崖，永绝后患！”
范元龙与齐腾平时交情不错，此时在无可辩驳的事实下，还是弱弱地插了一句：“杨公公，或许……汤珠娘是失足坠崖而死？或者是，遇上劫匪呢？”
“若是失足坠崖，她身上的荷包又如何会被齐判官丢弃在废纸篓？若是劫匪，为何验尸时她的包裹整整齐齐，只少了一个荷包？而且范公子别忘了，当时正是夔王爷在山道遇险那几日，西川军封锁了进出口，放进去的人寥寥无几，更严禁任何人骑马进入——而就在那一日，差不多汤珠娘坠崖的那个时刻，夔王身边的这位侍卫张二哥，却在山崖边也被一个骑马的人撞下了山崖！而当时连进山搜寻的西川军都大多是徒步，能骑马进入里面的人，我想，西川节度府判官，应该能是一个吧。”
范应锡脸色十分难看，赶紧先向夔王告罪，然后对站在他身后的张行英拱了拱手。
张行英忙还礼，不敢轻受。
“我一直在想，凶手为何在杀害汤珠娘之时，一定要将这个荷包取走？后来我想到汤升说的一句话，才终于明白了过来，”黄梓瑕看向汤升，“当时你姑姑把荷包塞回自己包袱里，说，'还是我先带到汉州去，给你未过门的媳妇打一对银簪吧'，对不对？”
汤升点头：“没错，一字不差！”
“先'带'到汉州去，'打'一对银簪——齐判官给汤珠娘的，不是钱，而是银子。”黄梓瑕说着，指着这个荷包，“小小一个荷包，可能半贯钱都装不下，但因为是银子，所以就能塞下一两锭。齐判官要收买汤珠娘，自然需要不少钱，他日常在节度府中经手大小事务，自然能接触到库银，收买汤珠娘时携带几贯钱自然不方便，于是直接便给了汤珠娘银子。然而每锭银子上都会镌刻来历，若他不收回，傅辛阮的仆妇尸身上出现一锭节度府的银子，说不定会引火烧身，所以他必定要追回，决不能遗漏在外。”
眼见证据确凿，齐腾犯案已经无可辩驳，范应锡终于长出了一口气，痛骂道：“可恨！可恼！这狼心狗肺的东西，在我府上多年，我竟不知他如此心机深沉歹毒！杀人嫁祸之事做得如此顺手，灭口销迹又如此轻描淡写！”
周子秦也看向自己妹妹周紫燕所在的碧纱橱，叹了一口气，喃喃说道：“幸好我妹妹还未出嫁。”
众人只顾唾弃恶人，替周家侥幸，倒像是完全忘记了公孙鸢和殷露衣。黄梓瑕转头看向她们，见她们面如死灰，但恐惧之中又隐约透出一种扭曲的快意，在心里不由得轻轻叹了口气，说：“公孙大娘，我最早觉得傅辛阮不应该是殉情，是在看见她的衣柜时——当时她柜中艳丽华服无数，最后死时却穿着一件半旧的灰紫色衣衫……我想无论哪个女子，要与情郎携手踏上不归路之时，都会选择打扮得漂漂亮亮再饮下毒药，而不是那么匆忙潦草。”
“是……阿阮她，最喜爱鲜艳明丽的服饰，”公孙鸢终于缓缓地开口，声音哽咽嘶哑，她的身躯也微微颤抖，完全失去了以往那种出尘的袅娜之感。她按着胸口，用力地呼吸着，终于还是努力地说出了自己想说的话。“阿阮她……个性也像个孩子一样，无所顾忌，肆无忌惮……她可以毫不犹豫拒绝自己最好的归宿，拒绝唾手可得的荣华富贵，只因对一个我们从未见过面的，连她自己也只见过寥寥数次的人念念不忘——温阳……不，齐腾，天真的阿阮还以为他是软红千丈，游丝软系，谁知他却是缠在她臂上的一条毒蛇，在平时柔若无骨，贴肤游走，却会在不防备的时候，露出世间最毒的利齿……”
黄梓瑕沉默地看着她，没有接话。而周子秦忍不住，问：“你和齐腾见面机会好像也只有那一次，为什么你却立即就会觉察到事实真相而进行报复呢？”
“阿阮她曾给我写信，烦恼地说，温阳的左手背上，长了六颗鼠痣，颇为难看……于是我教她，用旱莲草捣出汁水擦鼠痣，几次就能好了，但是旱莲草会在肌肤上留下黑色痕迹，十分难看，得过几日才能褪去，”公孙鸢靠在栏杆上，长长地呼吸着，那声音虽依然嘶哑，身影虽依然微颤，但终究，还是镇定了一些，“在义庄，我见到了阿阮的尸体，发现了她手上的痕迹，然而我偷偷看了验尸档案，发现并未提及温阳手上有鼠痣的事情。而后来，我在上衙门询问案件进展的时候，忽然发现，原来那个即将迎娶周使君千金的齐判官，他的左手背上，刚好有六个小点疤痕，看起来，就是鼠痣刚刚被擦掉的模样。我偷偷地打听了齐腾的家世，发现与阿阮之前信上说过的一模一样，而且在风尘中混迹，我们自然也知道，许多人都会冒充他人姓名去眠花宿柳，于是我便寻了个机会，直接向他盘问……”
说到这里，公孙鸢陡然激动起来，胸口起伏许久，才将那狂乱的气息压下去，狠狠地说：“他不但承认了，还嘲笑阿阮，说她是个蠢货，他外面足有十几个相好的，她居然毫不知情，以为他在她面前发誓说再不做浪子行迹，就真的说断就断了，居然丝毫不起疑心……”
她说到这里，激动得以头触柱，眼泪簌簌而下，哽咽道：“我小妹阿阮，她十二岁便名扬天下，编曲编舞天下无双，就连长安教坊的老乐师们都要请教她，称她一声'六姑娘'才请得动！阿阮这样聪明灵透的人，她怎么可能没有觉察到情郎的异样？谁都知道她忍下这一切是为什么，而他居然说她蠢……这该碎尸万段的混账……”
殷露衣抱住她的手臂，将自己的脸贴在她的肩上，闭眼不语，只有眼中泪迅速地渗出来，濡湿了公孙鸢的衣裳。
黄梓瑕低声说道：“虽然你们的心情我能理解，可这世上，毕竟没有擅自动手杀仇家的道理，官府会帮你们洗清冤屈的……”
“哼……齐腾就是你们官府的人，就算你们调查出了真相，最后又真的会追究他吗？”公孙鸢说着，扬起下巴，脸色铁青，却倔强而坚定地说道，“杀人偿命，欠债还钱，天经地义！我小妹被他杀了，那么就由我这个做姐姐的来追讨！就算赔上我自己这条命，又有什么好说的，公孙鸢活在世间问心无愧，死而无憾！”
黄梓瑕默然无语，缓缓退回到李舒白身后，说：“我只揭露真相，其余事宜，非我所能。”