Chapter 14 Fourteen, phoenix is light
Stepping out of the Qianji Chariot and Horse Shop, Zhou Ziqin complained: "It's so boring... Listening to these chugging words over and over again, where is the corpse that can make me show my talents? Where is the moment when this case suddenly becomes clear?"
"Investigating cases is always a boring thing. What you need now is to pull out the most important threads from the mess and reorganize everything." Huang Zixia said, walking along the streets of Xishi keep going.
Zhou Ziqin asked bitterly, "Where are you going?"
"Lu's Incense Candle Shop."
"What... are you dealing with that old man again?" Zhou Ziqin held Xiao Xia by the hand, with a look of reluctance on his face, "Sometimes I really want to replace Di Cui and slap that old man hard! You said there is such a thing in the world? Is it a fool?"
"Before the truth comes out, it's too early to say anything." Huang Zixia said, tied the Fusha under a willow tree by the roadside, and walked into Lu's incense candle shop.
Lu Zhiyuan was making candle wicks. After the reeds were cut, the thin and thick ones were neatly stacked.He heard someone coming in, but without raising his head, he just asked, "What do you want?"
"Master Lu, is business going well?" Huang Zixia asked.
Lu Zhiyuan raised his head slowly, glanced at her, then lowered his head and continued to peel the reed leaves in his hand: "Oh, it's you."
"I'm bothering you, I have something to ask this time, so please don't dislike us for bothering you several times." Seeing that he ignored her, Huang Zixia pulled the stool next to her and sat down with Zhou Ziqin.
Lu Zhiyuan was always concentrating on making candles, Huang Zixia didn't take it seriously, and asked with a normal expression: "I heard that the day before Wei Ximin died, did you buy Lingling incense in your store?"
He said slowly: "There is no family of incense candles, I am a incense candle shop."
"Can you tell me in detail how Wei Ximin came over that day?"
"The eunuch came to my shop before to bring me money for the Princess Mansion. This time, he was brought by Boss Qian. Who would have thought that he asked for Lingling Xiang, saying that he had a headache and couldn't sleep at night. , Linglingxiang is not bad when used. I only have two yuan left, so I sold it to him. The total is three or four yuan, and I charged him six hundred and eighty yuan."
"What about after the sale?"
"I don't care what happened to him, the business came to the door, I did it, received the money, what else?"
Huang Zixia was noncommittal, and only said: "That night, Wei Ximin disappeared. People from the Princess Mansion couldn't find him, and the next day, he died in Jianfu Temple."
Lu Zhiyuan raised his head slowly, staring at her with a pair of cloudy eyes: "Could it be that the father-in-law means something to do with me?"
Huang Zixia looked at him and said nothing.
"A person who has hands and feet and can walk by himself appeared alive in Jianfu Temple the next day. He came to me to buy some spices the day before, and it's none of Dali Temple's business." Lu Zhiyuan ignored her, stood up, dragged Take some of the longest reed wicks, tie them together, and tie them with linen to make a huge candle wick.
Zhou Ziqin asked: "Such a big candle, is it to make up for the blown candle in Jianfu Temple?"
"Well, I'll make the candle body tonight, and tomorrow I'll paste the flowers, birds, dragons and phoenixes carved from colored wax, and paint it with gold and silver powder, and it will be done."
In other words, making such a large candle looks like a daunting project, but in the hands of a skilled person like Lu Zhiyuan, it is also very fast.Huang Zixia thought to himself, looked at the bucket of wax again, and said, "Old man Lu really has a way. You said before that Jianfu Temple had been looking for you for a long time before I could get you the wax for two candles. In a few days, you put together the wax yourself."
"My old man hasn't saved any money for so many years, but he has saved some wax." Lu Zhiyuan said, dragging the core slowly to the back.There was an unpleasant smell of wax being melted in a huge cauldron at the back.
He dipped the candle wick wrapped in sackcloth into the hot candle oil to let it soak up the wax oil. At the same time, he pulled out a candle mold that was as tall as a person, and then moved out several barrels of different sizes.
He climbed onto the stool, scooped up the melted wax juice with a large copper spoon one foot square, and filled the candle mold and each bucket one by one.
Huang Zixia said casually: "The old man is in good health. He is almost sixty, and he can still do such heavy work by himself."
"Huh, young people nowadays can't bear hardships. After two days of apprenticeship, they will run away. What can I do?" Lu Zhiyuan said coldly, "Old man, I was called into the army when I was young. A crossbow capable of pulling three stones!"
"It turns out that the old man also served the country." Zhou Ziqin didn't care, and brought the topic back, and asked, "This mold seems to be much smaller than the candles made?"
"Where can I find a ten-foot-high mold?" Lu Zhiyuan said while pouring wax, "The wax blocks in the buckets below will also be poured out at that time. The place is cut off, coated with a layer of wax, and it becomes a whole."
Zhou Ziqin asked stupidly: "Then how do you put the candle wick on?"
The old man glared at him: "The wax in the middle freezes slowly, so after folding it, don't rush to cut the outside. When the middle is still a little soft, put a red-hot iron point under the candle wick, and directly Insert it, and it will be over in one fell swoop."
"So it is!" Zhou Ziqin admired, "Sure enough, there are three hundred and sixty lines, and there is a trick to doing them!"
When Huang Zixia was thinking about how to interrogate Lu Zhiyuan about the death of that grandson, a sudden shout came from outside: "Old man Lu! Lu Zhiyuan!"
Lu Zhiyuan ignored it and just poured candles there.
The man at the door rushed in, stamped his feet and shouted, "Old man Lu! Your daughter Di Cui... is going to die!"
Lu Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment, his hands that had been holding the copper spoon trembled, and then he asked, "What? She's not dead yet?"
"Not dead! But, I'm really going to die now!" Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin were stunned at the man's words.
"Your daughter went to Dali Temple and surrendered herself, saying that she killed the eunuch and Sun Laizi of the Princess Mansion!"
Dali Temple. Cui Shaoqing, who was supposed to sneak home to accompany his wife after lunch, was still here today.As soon as he saw Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin coming, he immediately greeted him beamingly: "Ziqin! Chonggu! It's so good, the murderer surrendered himself without any effort, the torment of these days can finally be over! Princess The pressure from the government has finally dissipated!" Huang Zixia followed him inside and asked, "Have all the prisoners been recruited?" "Take it! She came over with a painting and surrendered. She also said that the painting was written by the first emperor. I don't think it looks like that kind of mess." While talking, he has already arrived behind the main hall of Dali Temple.There is no prison in Dali Temple, only a few clean rooms are set up in the back, and the prisoners who should be detained are temporarily held. Dicui was sitting in one of the rooms, staring blankly at the branches and leaves fluctuating in the wind outside the window. Huang Zixia, Zhou Ziqin, and everyone from Dali Temple entered, closed the door, and called her, "Lu Dicui." Dicui stood up reflexively, and when she saw the men in front of her, she curled up subconsciously and took a step back unconsciously. Huang Zixia knew that there was still a shadow in her heart, so she quickly comforted her: "Miss Lu, we are just here to ask according to the rules, you just need to answer truthfully." Lu Dicui bit her lower lip, looked at her for a long time, then nodded silently. Huang Zixia signaled her to sit down first, then stood beside her, watching the two governors of Dali Temple ask her about the case. "Name, age, place of origin?" "Lu Dicui... is seventeen years old, a native of the capital." "Give yourself up, what did you do?" Di Cui's eyes were still red and swollen. She sat in front of them in a trance, dazed for a long time, then slowly bit her lower lip, and mumbled a few words: "I killed someone. Killed... Two people." The two governors obviously knew the reason for her surrender from the very beginning, and they were not surprised, they just said: "One by one, tell the truth." Dicui's voice was hoarse and slow, and she said intermittently: "I killed... Wei Ximin, the eunuch from the Princess Mansion, and also... Sun Laizi from Daningfang." "Why kill people? By what means?" "Wei Ximin once harmed me. People beat me unconscious and left me on the corner of the street, so that..." At this point, a distorted hatred finally appeared on her seemingly dead face, and her voice began to strain. Get up, "That day at Jianfu Temple, the veil on my head fell off, and when Zhang Xingying helped me pick it up, I saw Wei Ximin... He was wearing eunuch's clothes, and he was particularly eye-catching in the crowd. Right here At that time, a thunderbolt struck, and the candle exploded. The wax block was mixed with various flammable colors, and it would catch fire. I... I don't know where I got the strength. It was like going crazy. When he squeezed to my side, he pushed hard, and he fell into the burning fire of the wax block, and his whole body was burned..." Huang Zixia stood by, listening calmly and silently, without saying a word. The governor asked again: "Then, what about the death of the grandson?" "Sun Laizi...that beast...he bought my father with money, but I will never let him go!" When Di Cui said this, he was finally furious, and his voice became hoarse and shrill, which sounded very scary "At noon that day, I went to Daningfang to look for Sun Laizi. I was afraid that the woman would be weak, so I put poison on the dagger. The beast heard my voice and opened the door. I rushed up and stabbed him twice. He fled back to the house and locked the door. I wanted to stab him a few more times, but I didn't open the door, so I turned around and ran away." Huang Zixia looked at Dicui, and slowly frowned: "Then, where did your poison come from?" Huang Zixia asked. Dicui gritted her teeth and said, "Second brother Zhang has aconitum in the medicine cabinet, he taught me to know medicinal materials." "But Sun Laizi died on the bed." "Maybe...maybe he crawled back to bed after being injured, and died after the drug attack." Cui Chunzhan asked the two governors in a low voice: "Does what she said match the case?" A governor nodded and said, "The wound is superficial and not deep. It seems that it was indeed a woman's hand." Cui Chunzhan nodded, and asked her again: "Lu Dicui, since you have already killed two people without anyone noticing, why did you come here to surrender and seek death?" Di Cui took a deep breath, looked at him with courage, and said: "These two cases have caused a lot of trouble in the capital, and innocent people have been involved. Although I am a weak woman, one person does things and the other person is responsible. Moreover, I am more I want the wicked people in the world to see that there will be retribution for all kinds of evil!" Cui Chunzhan nodded after hearing her words, and sighed: "This feeling is pitiful, this crime is inevitable!" A governor asked again: "The son-in-law was injured in the killing field, did you know?" Di Cui lowered her eyes and nodded, "I heard... my benefactor, Zhang Xingying, was on the field that day." "Does this matter to you?" Di Cui shook her head, thought about it and nodded again, and said, "I deserve death... I heard that Zhang Xingying was going to participate in the shooting competition, so I prayed at home that day, praying that the opponent would fall off the horse and let Zhang Xingying win... I think, I I think maybe my secret prayer was heard by the Bodhisattva..." For this explanation, even Cui Chunzhan could only say to the two governors: "There is no need to write this, and it doesn't matter if you think about it." The governor asked again: "What happened to the painting you brought?" "It's a painting in Zhang Xingying's home. Dali Temple asked for it, but he couldn't find it. In fact... I stole it. I think the revenge has been avenged, but I left the capital, but I have no travel expenses. I heard about this painting. It was the imperial pen of the former emperor, and I thought it must be valuable, so I stole it and pawned it, but who knew that Dali Temple came to look for it, causing an uproar, so I had no choice but to redeem it and send it here." "Do you know what is painted on it?" Di Cui shook his head dumbly: "I don't know... I looked at it for a long time, but there were only three ink balls, so... I pawned it for ten coins." The governor turned around and said to Cui Chunzhan: "We went to the pawnshop to check, and it is true. Although the gentleman at the pawnshop couldn't understand the painting, he said that the paper and ink are good, and the mounting is not bad. It is expected to have an extraordinary origin, so he agreed to be ten. money." Cui Chunzhan is a person who loves fragrance and loves jade, looked at Dicui, shook his head and sighed, and asked: "Lu Dicui, do you have anything else to explain?" Dicui knelt in a daze for a long time, then looked up at Huang Zixia, and said, "Eunuch Yang, please help me tell Second Brother Zhang that there is no fate in this life, and Adi will tie a knot with grass in the next life...to repay his kindness." Huang Zixia only felt a sore heart, nodded and said: "Okay."
A group of people returned to the lobby, and one of the principals had already taken out the painting and laid it flat on the table for everyone to see. It is still the three graffiti ink blobs, drawn on jute paper, framed in white silk, beautifully bound, but it cannot conceal the fact that it is just clumsy graffiti. Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin had seen it last time anyway, so they glanced at it a few times and were sure it was the painting last time, so they only looked at each other once. Cui Chunzhan almost put his face on it, looked and looked, and frowned: "This kind of thing is the emperor's imperial pen? This is simply treason, slandering the emperor!" The officials of Dali Temple next to it also echoed and dismissed the painting.But having said that, after all, it is the physical evidence of this case. When everyone retreated, Cui Chunzhan rolled it up with his own hands and prepared to put it back into the treasure house. Seeing that there was no one in the hall, Huang Zixia asked in a low voice: "Cui Shaoqing, this painting... can I borrow it?" Cui Chunzhan was a little bit embarrassed: "Oh, this... Eunuch Yang, this thing is an important physical evidence-although I don't know what it's useful for-but generally speaking, the case has not yet been finalized, so if you want to take it away, it may not be legal. ..." Huang Zixia took out a letter from his pocket, and handed it to him with both hands: "Cui Shaoqing, I will pledge the letter from the Kui Palace, please borrow it for half a day, and it will be returned tomorrow morning." Cui Chunzhan looked at the Lingxin and thought for a while, then handed the scroll to her very simply, and said: "You were appointed by the emperor to be involved in this case, and it is not justifiable for you to use it for research on the physical evidence related to this case." ? Write a note to the evidence room and take it away."
Holding the scroll, Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin were both hungry. They went out early in the morning and traveled all over half of the capital city. Now the meal time has passed, and today's regular meal is gone. Cui Chunzhan asked the dining room of Dali Temple to quickly cook some simple meals for them to satisfy their hunger. After eating and leaving Dali Temple, Huang Zixia casually asked the concierge of Dali Temple about the busy man Kui Wang, and someone said, "The bus from Yushitai came half an hour ago, and the driver was drinking tea at our side. Said that King Kui is over there." There are many yamen in the imperial city, and there are signboards in front of each door, saying that if you write a letter, you will get off your horse here.So Zhou Ziqin and Huang Zixia stopped riding horses at all, tied their horses to Dali Temple, and walked to Yushitai. Zhou Ziqin pulled her sleeves as he walked, and said weakly, "Chonggu...I really admire you." Huang Zixia blocked the scorching sun above her head with the booklet in her hand, and looked back at him: "What?" "I said, I admire your energy..." Zhou Ziqin looked at her with admiration, "I've been running for a long time without a break, I'm exhausted, don't you need to take a break?" "After the case happened, we should race against time, without delay." Huang Zixia said, suddenly remembered something, and said, "By the way, where is Sun Laizi's body now? Do you remember the shape of his two wounds? " As soon as he mentioned the corpse and the wound, Zhou Ziqin suddenly regained his energy. In this hot summer, he was as excited as if he had eaten a large piece of ice, and his eyes lit up: "No problem! I have seen the wound, remember Clear and clear! Whatever you want to ask, I will come as soon as I open my mouth!" Huang Zixia looked back at him and said, "I want to know the specific shape of the wound and the direction in which the murder weapon stabbed." "One wound is under the lute bone of the left shoulder, and the other is on the waist on the right side of the navel. Both wounds are stab marks from the left side of the body to the right..." Zhou Ziqin opened his mouth for a while when he said this, and then Looking around, she lowered her voice and asked, "So...Dicui is lying?" "Well," Huang Zixia said in a low voice, "If Sun Laizi was standing opposite her, with her gesture of holding the knife, the dagger must be stabbing down from top to bottom, how could someone stab it from left to right? A dagger? The one that can cause such a wound must only be when the opponent is lying on his side." Zhou Ziqin took a deep breath, with a puzzled and shocked expression on his face: "But...but why did Dicui take the initiative to plead guilty and take all this on herself? What did she do...for?" Huang Zixia looked at him silently for a long time, then gently shifted her gaze to behind him. They saw a man squatting under the high wall of Dali Temple. Zhang Xingying. He squatted there for an unknown how long.He lowered his head and looked at the ground, his eyes were dazed and loose, but he remained motionless. Zhou Ziqin stared at him for a long time, his round eyes and mouth widened before he slowly responded, and said "ah" softly and unconsciously. And under their gaze, Zhang Xingying seemed to finally feel it.He slowly raised his head and looked in their direction.After a long time, his slack gaze finally gained some focus, and he seemed to have finally recognized them. He stood up and called out, "Brother Yang..." In the hoarse voice, his feet, which had been squatting for too long, became numb, unable to support his body, shook twice, and fell to the ground. Under the scorching sun, on the scorching mud, his whole body seemed to be parched, and he didn't feel anything. He just stood up against the wall and walked towards them step by step. Huang Zixia stared at him with complicated emotions. And Zhou Ziqin hurried over to support him, Zhang Xingying was very tall, Zhou Ziqin was already considered tall, but he was two or three inches taller, when he was pressed on him, even Zhou Ziqin staggered. "Second Brother Zhang, what's the matter with you?" Zhou Ziqin supported him and quickly comforted him, "Don't worry!" Zhang Xingying leaned on him, but kept looking at Huang Zixia, her lips that were dry and chapped by the sun moved, and her voice was almost old: "You must help Adi... She, she is impossible, I know she is impossible Killer..." Huang Zixia lowered her eyes and silently nodded her head. Seeing her so little reaction, Zhang Xingying became anxious immediately, and rushed forward to grab her shoulder, almost unable to control her own strength: "She is such a weak woman, how can she kill someone? I, I don't know why she surrendered herself, but I ...I beg you to save her, save her!" His voice was hoarse, and the broken begging was squeezed out of his throat with difficulty and force, and he could hardly speak. Huang Zixia let out a long sigh, patted his arm, and said, "Don't worry, Brother Zhang, I will definitely reveal the truth. By then, the murderer will be known to the world, and there will be nowhere to hide." Zhang Xingying stared at her wide-eyed for a long time before he seemed to understand her words. He let go of the hand that was about to crush her shoulder blades, put it down, staggered back two steps, and said in a low voice: "Yes... I believe you... can restore Ah Di's innocence." "Second brother Zhang, now, you can go back to Zuojinwuwei, and you can go to Yingmao tomorrow." Huang Zixia looked up at him, and said softly, "Don't disappoint Ah Di's expectations of you."
Yushitai has always been the most dignified and unsmiling yamen in this dynasty, but when he came in at this time, he saw the old masters sitting next to King Kui, such as the Yushi Zhongcheng, the servant Yushi, and the supervisor Yushi. Li Shubai rambled on and on, as if he hadn't noticed that the time for leaving the office had already passed. As soon as Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin entered, Li Shubai signaled her to wait a moment, then stood up and said to everyone: "This is Yang Chonggu who is beside me, he is good at solving cases, and this time he is also one of the people appointed by the Holy Majesty to cooperate with Dali Temple to investigate the case." She must have come here to report the progress of the case, so I will bid farewell to everyone first." "Send off King Kui." Several people still had happy faces, stood up and sent him to the door. When he got out of Yushitai, Zhou Ziqin couldn't help but said: "This Yushitai treats people very differently! When I passed by, a group of old men all had their nostrils turned upside down, as if I was a shame of the dynasty. I can’t bear to add a pair of chopsticks. But when King Kui came, look, all the old faces were smiling like chrysanthemums, and every wrinkle was stretched out!” Li Shubai couldn't help but twitched the corners of his lips, and said, "They're just in a good mood today." "Huh? The people at Yushitai will also be in a good mood? Don't they just scold people with a straight face every day?" Li Shubai turned his head to look at Huang Zixia, and said: "The emperor summoned several important officials because of the theft of Jiuluanchai, and said that the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, and Yushitai will try the case together. The other two departments are fine. This group of old people pushed back on the spot, saying that the three jurisprudences were tried together, and it must be a major case, a serious case, and an important case related to the country's society. How could they mobilize all the people for the theft of a princess and a nine-luan hairpin? The emperor said Said that there were two dead and one injured in this case, and seeing that the princess might be in danger, it was necessary to investigate thoroughly as soon as possible and not to evade. Just when the dispute was inconclusive, news came from Dali Temple that the suspect in this case had surrendered himself! Yu Shitai learned that the emperor Household affairs don’t have to be turned into court affairs, so everyone will be happy.” Zhou Ziqin frowned and said, "But... Dicui is not the murderer..." "Whether it is or not, at least it is a very suitable opportunity for her to come out to take the blame now, isn't it?" Li Shubai said, and glanced at Huang Zixia lightly, "Do you want to continue to investigate the task assigned by the emperor, or stop here?" "Dicui and I have a little relationship. Her life experience is so miserable, and I can't let her die." Huang Zixia frowned, "What's more, even if she surrenders, I think this case will still be quiet and the wind will not stop. .” Li Shubai raised his eyebrows and asked, "You mean, the murderer might not stop yet?" "Yes, it's very possible. Because the third deceased in the painting hasn't appeared yet." Huang Zixia handed the scroll to him. As Li Shubai walked with them, he unfolded the scroll and glanced at it. With just one glance, his footsteps stopped. The ever-changing King Kui looked at the scribbled scroll in his hand, stood in the imperial city at this time, stood under the shadow of the high walls of the various yamen, looked at the painting in his hand, and for a moment, his figure froze. under the sky. The blue sky was like washing, the sun was blazing, and the long wind was blowing back, rolling up the wide sleeves of the three of them standing here, making a loud noise. Li Shubai's drooping eyelashes finally lifted slowly, he put the scroll in his hand back into Huang Zixia's hand, and said, "Put it away." Zhou Ziqin hurriedly asked: "What the prince saw, is it the tragic death of three people?" Li Shubai nodded slightly, and said: "It's far-fetched, it's just a slight resemblance. How can such absurd thing be linked to the handwriting of the former emperor." Zhou Ziqin suddenly lost interest and said, "Really." He peeked at Huang Zixia and saw that she was more and more like Li Shubai, with a face that was watertight, he couldn't help but sighed in his heart, and said, "My lord, I think there are still doubts about Di Cui's killing of Sun Laizi, I'll go first." Take a look at Yizhuang and say goodbye." Seeing Zhou Ziqin leave, Li Shubai signaled Huang Zixia to get on the carriage. The carriage passed by the gate of Dali Temple, and the guard untied the rope that brushed the sand, and it followed obediently, it was amazingly obedient. Huang Zixia sat down on her old seat - a small stool with a footrest. Li Shubai stretched out his hand to her, and she immediately understood, took out the scroll from her arms, and held it in front of him. Li Shubai unfolded it and spread it on the small table.Several cases are shorter, and the framed part hangs in his lap.He pressed his hand on the scroll, and his fingertips followed the first painting, which seemed to be an image of a person being burned to death, and slowly slid down: "You said last time, you think, this is a person who was burned to death look like?" "Yes... and the thin vertical line above seems to us like a thunderbolt falling from the sky. So in this picture, it seems that a person was struck down by the thunder, burned his whole body, and struggled to death." "The Zhang family said that this painting was written by the late emperor, do you believe it?" He raised his eyes slightly and looked at her. Huang Zixia thought about it, and said slowly: "I haven't seen the first emperor's calligraphy, so I can't be sure." "I can be sure." Li Shubai silently pressed his hand on the painting, and said: "This ink is specially made by Zu Min. In his later years, the emperor hated the smell of ink due to physical discomfort, so Zu changed the formula to remove pearl and jade shavings. In addition, a new kind of incense from foreign countries was added to the ink ingots at that time, only ten ingots were made, seven ingots were used, and the remaining three were buried with him. It has been ten years now, and it still has the same fragrance as before." Huang Zixia bowed her head and smelled it, and there was only a very faint smell, but that strange fragrance was indeed quite different from other fragrances. She raised her head to look at Li Shubai, and Li Shubai said again: "When the first emperor picked up a pen to write or draw, he often compared it to the side first. This is his habit for many years. People who are not often by his side usually don't know. But you see here--" Next to the vertical line that they regarded as a thunderbolt, there was a hair-thin line that was almost invisible, juxtaposed beside it. "This line is not parallel to the one next to it. It is obviously not the messy hairs on the brush, but the traces that the emperor himself did not notice when he started to draw." Huang Zixia said: "I will go to Zhang's house and ask Father Zhang about the origin of this painting in detail." "It's time to ask, why did the emperor draw such a painting, and why did he give it to a private doctor." Li Shubai said slowly. Looking at the painting, Huang Zixia recalled the abnormal reaction of E King Li Runna. Sure enough, Li Shubai also said: "And now, we should go to Prince E's Mansion—since you said that when he saw this painting, he reacted abnormally." Huang Zixia nodded, and when he was about to say something to Uncle Ayuan who was driving the carriage, there was a sudden commotion at the intersection ahead, Uncle Ayuan stopped the carriage slowly, and did not move at the intersection for a long while. Huang Zixia hurriedly opened the small window and asked Uncle A Yuan, "Uncle Yuan, what's the matter?" "The front is too cluttered, and the intersection is blocked." He stretched his neck and said, looking ahead. Huang Zixia lifted the curtain of the car, and found that Zhou Ziqin, who had already run away, was also blocked, and looked at her with a bitter face: "Chonggu, I can't leave." "I'll go down and see what happened ahead." Huang Zixia quickly jumped off the carriage and went to check. Zhou Ziqin also hurried to her side, pushing away the people in front of her: "Come on, come on, there's something exciting to watch, I'll take you there!" Huang Zixia was a little helpless: "Ziqin, I don't want to watch the excitement..." "But this excitement is rare in the capital. It's a great event in Pingkangfang! You will regret it if you don't watch it!" Zhou Ziqin said, pulling her into the crowd. Li Shubai looked at them coldly, and then said to Uncle Ayuan: "Let's go." Uncle Ayuan hurriedly said: "But, it is obviously impossible to move forward now..." "Go back and go to Dali Temple." He looked away at Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin who had almost disappeared into the crowd, and said.
Huang Zixia followed Zhou Ziqin, he swipe left and right in the crowd, and actually squeezed into the most crowded place of the crowd. This is near Pingkangfang. The roads in Chang'an City were originally wide, but due to the clearing of canals on both sides, the locust trees that have grown for many years have crooked into the street, so that most of the roads here are occupied. The traffic situation is already severe, but who knows that two sorcerers in Pingkangfang still set up a small stage at the intersection, showing off to each other, for a while, the flutes and flutes blared, and the dancers fluttered, countless idlers gathered under the stage, blocking the road. And amidst the commotion, Huang Zixia saw Princess Tongchang's gold and jade-embellished carriage lying across the road, unable to move an inch. Huang Zixia saw that Chuizhu, Luopei, Chuyu, and Qingbi were all following the carriage, and several eunuchs and guards were pushed back again and again by the people around them, but they still leaned on the carriage and dared not leave. She walked up and greeted them in the crowd: "What a coincidence, the princess is here too?" It's hard for Chuizhu to salute in such a crowded crowd, and said: "Yes, father-in-law... also came to watch the fun with Young Master Zhou today?" Huang Zixia was nodding, when Princess Tongchang raised the curtain of the car window and glanced at her.Her originally thin and sharp eyebrows and eyes are now frowning because of irritability, and she seems to be more aggressive: "Eunuch Yang, are you here? Where are the princes of Dali Temple? Why don't you disperse the crowd quickly? " Huang Zixia heard that the anger in her words made it clear that Yue Zu was acting as the commander's mansion, and felt a little helpless, so she could only say: "I'm afraid the princess will be disappointed, I came alone, and there is no one else to accompany me. " "Hmph, don't come early, don't come later, it just so happens that the carriages and horses of my palace pass by here, and they are blocked! And it just so happens that I go out in a hurry, and I only bring these dozen or so useless things with me!" While contemptuous of the people around her, Princess Chang turned her head to reprimand the coachman, "Even if you enter through the Phoenix Gate, so what if you pass through the East Palace? Has this palace never met the prince?" The coachman was so scolded that he could only bow his head and be obedient. When Huang Zixia heard about the Phoenix Gate, she was slightly taken aback, and asked, "The princess has been ill recently, it's better to rest in peace, why is she suddenly going to the Tai Chi Palace?" Chuizhu nodded, looked worriedly at the crowd ahead, and murmured, "Concubine Shu is still waiting for the princess..." Only Wang and Empress live in the Taiji Palace now, and now Concubine Guo Shu is there, and Princess Tongchang is going there, what's the matter? She suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly asked: "Is the emperor also there?" "I don't know... Concubine Shu sent someone to inform the princess." Chui Zhu said cautiously. Huang Zixia immediately understood that today must be an important moment for the Queen, and Concubine Guo Shu invited Princess Tongchang to deal a fatal blow to the Queen. She remembered what Queen Wang had said when she summoned her. At that time, she casually mentioned her return to the palace. At that time, Queen Wang seemed to have won the victory. She must have an important bargaining chip in her hand to fight against Concubine Guo Shu, but...today... Can't use it? Just as she was thinking, the music was getting louder in her ears. It turned out that the duel between the two masters had reached the final moment of victory and defeat.The woman in red on the right is dancing a song, turning left and right, as swift as the wind, which attracts applause from the people below; while the woman in green on the left has an extremely high-pitched voice, singing a song "Moonlight Night on the Spring River". The singing voice is still clearly distinguishable in such a din, which shows its skill.Unbiased, what he sang was exactly that sentence—— Huang Zixia's eyes couldn't help looking at Princess Tongchang. Princess Tongchang hadn't heard of it, her face was full of irritability, and she cursed fiercely in a low voice: "When will father and emperor be driven out of Chang'an for these annoying advocates!" As she spoke, she slammed the car curtain hard.The people outside the carriage were extremely crowded, and the two horses pulling the carriage in front were frightened in the crowd, pacing uneasily, and the carriage began to shake from side to side. Chui Zhu hurriedly protected the car door, and asked inside: "Princess, is the princess alright?" Before the words were finished, Princess Tongchang had already opened the car door and stepped down in a few steps. She hadn't recovered from her illness, and her temper was irritable. This time she walked in a hurry, her feet wobbled, and she almost fell down. Chui Zhu hurriedly supported her, and the accompanying dozen or so eunuchs surrounded her, shielding the surrounding people away. The street was already crowded, and these dozen or so people intervened, making the surroundings even more chaotic. The people who were enjoying the singing and dancing next to them were overwhelmed, and a few grumpy ones had already shouted: "What are you doing? What a eunuch? You can't do it even when the emperor is here." Don't let the common people watch the singing and dancing!" In the midst of the chaos, Princess Tongchang's eyes suddenly fell on a certain part of the crowd, her sharp eyes opened wide, and she cried out, "Jiuluanchai!" Huang Zixia looked in the direction she was looking at, but saw a crowd of people, but there were a few fireworks girls wearing various flower decorations on their heads, but the colors and shapes looked very gaudy, not like the jade-colored Jiuluan Chai. Several maids of Princess Tongchang also looked towards the crowd, and Chuizhu subconsciously asked: "Princess, have you seen Jiuluan Chai? But...the servants didn't see it..." "Over there, in a person's hand!" Princess Tongchang pointed to the southwest, and unconsciously took two steps towards that direction. The crowd surged, and the guards behind her couldn't keep up, and the eunuchs were pushed outside by the angry crowd. Only a few maids were left by her side, but they couldn't keep up with her. Chui Zhu quickly reached out to pull her: "Princess, be careful..." Before she finished speaking, Princess Tongchang was already grabbed by the arm, and fell forward involuntarily.She was petite, and at this moment she was suddenly pulled into the crowd, and the crowd that parted and closed was like a ferocious beast, opening its mouth wide and devouring her immediately. On both sides of the stage, the song "Moonlight Night on the Spring River" was being sung by dozens of singing girls. It was extremely lingering and melodious. In the end, other people's voices gradually couldn't keep up. Only the singing girl's voice was suppressed. After all the hustle and bustle, the high-altitude sound transfer is like a journey through thousands of mountains, almost zigzag, straight up to the sky. Hu Xuanwu was at the most rapid moment, and the audience was full of the enchanting and soft figure of the woman on the right stage.She spread her hands, turned her face to the sky, and spun desperately with laughter.The braids that were braided into hundreds of tiny braids spread out, together with the scarf on the head and the skirt on the body, flying left and right, like a colorful vortex. Chuizhu and the others' exclamations were covered by the loud music at this time.The princess was dragged into the crowd in front of dozens of people. Everyone around her couldn't believe it, and couldn't react for a while. Huang Zixia was the first to recover, and immediately separated from the crowd and squeezed inside. 拥挤的人群中，各色衣服，各样人物，她也迷失了左右，站在街心一时不知该去往何处。就在此时，有人拉住了她的手腕，将她拖了出来。 黄梓瑕转头看见周子秦。他好歹身高不错，使劲分开人群，终于把她抓住了。 只见他左顾右盼，问：“公主呢？你看到公主了吗？” 黄梓瑕摇头，皱起眉头说：“赶紧命伎乐家立即撤去，我怕公主出事！” “不会吧，这么多人，大庭广众之下，能有什么事啊？”周子秦说着，但也赶紧回身去聚拢各位侍卫宦官，让他们赶紧驱散人群。 但这么多人，这么混乱的场面，一时半会儿，人群根本无法立刻散开。 垂珠急切道：“公主在消失之前，喊了一句'九鸾钗'，我想必定是有人以九鸾钗引她而去。公公……您看，我们如今去哪儿找公主啊？” 黄梓瑕下意识地在人群中寻找李舒白，他记忆非同凡响，平康坊大街四条，小街十六条，大小巷陌一百二十三条，他脑中必定清晰无比。 可是，如今李舒白，并不在她身边。 她对平康坊又不熟悉，只能与周子秦商量着，两人迅速剔除伎乐坊聚集的各条行道，剔除酒肆众多人多眼杂的街衢，剔除前方是死胡同的巷陌，将最为可能的十余条街道筛选出来。 无头苍蝇般乱转的公主府宦官和侍卫们，赶紧按照他们分派的任务，前往各条街道搜寻。 黄梓瑕回头看了看，发现公主身边的侍女已经只剩了三个，她扫了一眼，问：“垂珠呢？” “垂珠刚刚追赶公主，也跟在人群中不见了……”坠玉的声音未落，忽然听得远远有尖叫声传来，在此时疏散了人群后初初安静下来的街道上显得格外恓惶：“来人啊……来人啊……” 是垂珠的声音。 周子秦和黄梓瑕反应最快，立即循声飞奔而去。 坊墙后，尚余三四尺空地。疯长的茑萝正爬上院墙，生机勃勃地开出一大片殷红的花朵，如同斑斑的血溅在绿叶之上。 而就在茑萝的尽头，同昌公主的身子正靠着墙，慢慢滑倒下去。她的眼睛已经闭上了，身体还在抽搐。 她身上那件蹙金百蝶的红衣，洇出一种异样鲜亮的湿润的痕迹，在阳光下颜色明亮得几乎刺眼。 茑萝的后面，是丛生的蓬蒿蔓草，此时，只有几枝瘦小伶仃的一串红，还在缓缓摇曳。 垂珠踉踉跄跄地跑过去，茑萝纠缠，她绊倒在地，却不知哪儿来的力气，连哭带爬还是滚到了同昌公主身边，用力抱住她，吓得脸色煞白，连叫都叫不出来了，只用力去按她心口那个一直在涌出鲜血的地方，可她的手掌怎么能阻止同昌公主生命的流逝，她唯能眼睁睁看着公主鲜活的生命连同温热的鲜血一起自胸口涌出，渗入此时生机蓬勃的大地，消渐为无形。 她按着同昌公主的伤口，脸上因太过震惊悲痛而显出无法面对的茫然。 黄梓瑕的脚步也乱了，她疾奔到她们身边，看见了同昌公主鲜血滴落的地方，被践踏伏地的残败茑萝之上，静静地躺着那一支本已神秘消失的九鸾钗。 九种颜色的奇妙玉石，被雕琢成九只舒缓翱翔的鸾凤，鲜血滴在上面，温润绚丽，难以言表。 而九鸾钗后面弯月形的钗尾，如今已经折断，正插在公主的心口。 鲜血斑斑，更加鲜明地显出上面刻着的那两个古篆——
Dali Temple. Cui Shaoqing, who was supposed to sneak home to accompany his wife after lunch, was still here today.As soon as he saw Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin coming, he immediately greeted him beamingly: "Ziqin! Chonggu! It's so good, the murderer surrendered himself without any effort, the torment of these days can finally be over! Princess The pressure from the government has finally dissipated!" Huang Zixia followed him inside and asked, "Have all the prisoners been recruited?" "Take it! She came over with a painting and surrendered. She also said that the painting was written by the first emperor. I don't think it looks like that kind of mess." While talking, he has already arrived behind the main hall of Dali Temple.There is no prison in Dali Temple, only a few clean rooms are set up in the back, and the prisoners who should be detained are temporarily held. Dicui was sitting in one of the rooms, staring blankly at the branches and leaves fluctuating in the wind outside the window. Huang Zixia, Zhou Ziqin, and everyone from Dali Temple entered, closed the door, and called her, "Lu Dicui." Dicui stood up reflexively, and when she saw the men in front of her, she curled up subconsciously and took a step back unconsciously. Huang Zixia knew that there was still a shadow in her heart, so she quickly comforted her: "Miss Lu, we are just here to ask according to the rules, you just need to answer truthfully." Lu Dicui bit her lower lip, looked at her for a long time, then nodded silently. Huang Zixia signaled her to sit down first, then stood beside her, watching the two governors of Dali Temple ask her about the case. "Name, age, place of origin?" "Lu Dicui... is seventeen years old, a native of the capital." "Give yourself up, what did you do?" Di Cui's eyes were still red and swollen. She sat in front of them in a trance, dazed for a long time, then slowly bit her lower lip, and mumbled a few words: "I killed someone. Killed... Two people." The two governors obviously knew the reason for her surrender from the very beginning, and they were not surprised, they just said: "One by one, tell the truth." Dicui's voice was hoarse and slow, and she said intermittently: "I killed... Wei Ximin, the eunuch from the Princess Mansion, and also... Sun Laizi from Daningfang." "Why kill people? By what means?" "Wei Ximin once harmed me. People beat me unconscious and left me on the corner of the street, so that..." At this point, a distorted hatred finally appeared on her seemingly dead face, and her voice began to strain. Get up, "That day at Jianfu Temple, the veil on my head fell off, and when Zhang Xingying helped me pick it up, I saw Wei Ximin... He was wearing eunuch's clothes, and he was particularly eye-catching in the crowd. Right here At that time, a thunderbolt struck, and the candle exploded. The wax block was mixed with various flammable colors, and it would catch fire. I... I don't know where I got the strength. It was like going crazy. When he squeezed to my side, he pushed hard, and he fell into the burning fire of the wax block, and his whole body was burned..." Huang Zixia stood by, listening calmly and silently, without saying a word. The governor asked again: "Then, what about the death of the grandson?" "Sun Laizi...that beast...he bought my father with money, but I will never let him go!" When Di Cui said this, he was finally furious, and his voice became hoarse and shrill, which sounded very scary "At noon that day, I went to Daningfang to look for Sun Laizi. I was afraid that the woman would be weak, so I put poison on the dagger. The beast heard my voice and opened the door. I rushed up and stabbed him twice. He fled back to the house and locked the door. I wanted to stab him a few more times, but I didn't open the door, so I turned around and ran away." Huang Zixia looked at Dicui, and slowly frowned: "Then, where did your poison come from?" Huang Zixia asked. Dicui gritted her teeth and said, "Second brother Zhang has aconitum in the medicine cabinet, he taught me to know medicinal materials." "But Sun Laizi died on the bed." "Maybe...maybe he crawled back to bed after being injured, and died after the drug attack." Cui Chunzhan asked the two governors in a low voice: "Does what she said match the case?" A governor nodded and said, "The wound is superficial and not deep. It seems that it was indeed a woman's hand." Cui Chunzhan nodded, and asked her again: "Lu Dicui, since you have already killed two people without anyone noticing, why did you come here to surrender and seek death?" Di Cui took a deep breath, looked at him with courage, and said: "These two cases have caused a lot of trouble in the capital, and innocent people have been involved. Although I am a weak woman, one person does things and the other person is responsible. Moreover, I am more I want the wicked people in the world to see that there will be retribution for all kinds of evil!" Cui Chunzhan nodded after hearing her words, and sighed: "This feeling is pitiful, this crime is inevitable!" A governor asked again: "The son-in-law was injured in the killing field, did you know?" Di Cui lowered her eyes and nodded, "I heard... my benefactor, Zhang Xingying, was on the field that day." "Does this matter to you?" Di Cui shook her head, thought about it and nodded again, and said, "I deserve death... I heard that Zhang Xingying was going to participate in the shooting competition, so I prayed at home that day, praying that the opponent would fall off the horse and let Zhang Xingying win... I think, I I think maybe my secret prayer was heard by the Bodhisattva..." For this explanation, even Cui Chunzhan could only say to the two governors: "There is no need to write this, and it doesn't matter if you think about it." The governor asked again: "What happened to the painting you brought?" "It's a painting in Zhang Xingying's home. Dali Temple asked for it, but he couldn't find it. In fact... I stole it. I think the revenge has been avenged, but I left the capital, but I have no travel expenses. I heard about this painting. It was the imperial pen of the former emperor, and I thought it must be valuable, so I stole it and pawned it, but who knew that Dali Temple came to look for it, causing an uproar, so I had no choice but to redeem it and send it here." "Do you know what is painted on it?" Di Cui shook his head dumbly: "I don't know... I looked at it for a long time, but there were only three ink balls, so... I pawned it for ten coins." The governor turned around and said to Cui Chunzhan: "We went to the pawnshop to check, and it is true. Although the gentleman at the pawnshop couldn't understand the painting, he said that the paper and ink are good, and the mounting is not bad. It is expected to have an extraordinary origin, so he agreed to be ten. money." Cui Chunzhan is a person who loves fragrance and loves jade, looked at Dicui, shook his head and sighed, and asked: "Lu Dicui, do you have anything else to explain?" Dicui knelt in a daze for a long time, then looked up at Huang Zixia, and said, "Eunuch Yang, please help me tell Second Brother Zhang that there is no fate in this life, and Adi will tie a knot with grass in the next life...to repay his kindness." Huang Zixia only felt a sore heart, nodded and said: "Okay."
A group of people returned to the lobby, and one of the principals had already taken out the painting and laid it flat on the table for everyone to see. It is still the three graffiti ink blobs, drawn on jute paper, framed in white silk, beautifully bound, but it cannot conceal the fact that it is just clumsy graffiti. Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin had seen it last time anyway, so they glanced at it a few times and were sure it was the painting last time, so they only looked at each other once. Cui Chunzhan almost put his face on it, looked and looked, and frowned: "This kind of thing is the emperor's imperial pen? This is simply treason, slandering the emperor!" The officials of Dali Temple next to it also echoed and dismissed the painting.But having said that, after all, it is the physical evidence of this case. When everyone retreated, Cui Chunzhan rolled it up with his own hands and prepared to put it back into the treasure house. Seeing that there was no one in the hall, Huang Zixia asked in a low voice: "Cui Shaoqing, this painting... can I borrow it?" Cui Chunzhan was a little bit embarrassed: "Oh, this... Eunuch Yang, this thing is an important physical evidence-although I don't know what it's useful for-but generally speaking, the case has not yet been finalized, so if you want to take it away, it may not be legal. ..." Huang Zixia took out a letter from his pocket, and handed it to him with both hands: "Cui Shaoqing, I will pledge the letter from the Kui Palace, please borrow it for half a day, and it will be returned tomorrow morning." Cui Chunzhan looked at the Lingxin and thought for a while, then handed the scroll to her very simply, and said: "You were appointed by the emperor to be involved in this case, and it is not justifiable for you to use it for research on the physical evidence related to this case." ? Write a note to the evidence room and take it away."
Holding the scroll, Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin were both hungry. They went out early in the morning and traveled all over half of the capital city. Now the meal time has passed, and today's regular meal is gone. Cui Chunzhan asked the dining room of Dali Temple to quickly cook some simple meals for them to satisfy their hunger. After eating and leaving Dali Temple, Huang Zixia casually asked the concierge of Dali Temple about the busy man Kui Wang, and someone said, "The bus from Yushitai came half an hour ago, and the driver was drinking tea at our side. Said that King Kui is over there." There are many yamen in the imperial city, and there are signboards in front of each door, saying that if you write a letter, you will get off your horse here.So Zhou Ziqin and Huang Zixia stopped riding horses at all, tied their horses to Dali Temple, and walked to Yushitai. Zhou Ziqin pulled her sleeves as he walked, and said weakly, "Chonggu...I really admire you." Huang Zixia blocked the scorching sun above her head with the booklet in her hand, and looked back at him: "What?" "I said, I admire your energy..." Zhou Ziqin looked at her with admiration, "I've been running for a long time without a break, I'm exhausted, don't you need to take a break?" "After the case happened, we should race against time, without delay." Huang Zixia said, suddenly remembered something, and said, "By the way, where is Sun Laizi's body now? Do you remember the shape of his two wounds? " As soon as he mentioned the corpse and the wound, Zhou Ziqin suddenly regained his energy. In this hot summer, he was as excited as if he had eaten a large piece of ice, and his eyes lit up: "No problem! I have seen the wound, remember Clear and clear! Whatever you want to ask, I will come as soon as I open my mouth!" Huang Zixia looked back at him and said, "I want to know the specific shape of the wound and the direction in which the murder weapon stabbed." "One wound is under the lute bone of the left shoulder, and the other is on the waist on the right side of the navel. Both wounds are stab marks from the left side of the body to the right..." Zhou Ziqin opened his mouth for a while when he said this, and then Looking around, she lowered her voice and asked, "So...Dicui is lying?" "Well," Huang Zixia said in a low voice, "If Sun Laizi was standing opposite her, with her gesture of holding the knife, the dagger must be stabbing down from top to bottom, how could someone stab it from left to right? A dagger? The one that can cause such a wound must only be when the opponent is lying on his side." Zhou Ziqin took a deep breath, with a puzzled and shocked expression on his face: "But...but why did Dicui take the initiative to plead guilty and take all this on herself? What did she do...for?" Huang Zixia looked at him silently for a long time, then gently shifted her gaze to behind him. They saw a man squatting under the high wall of Dali Temple. Zhang Xingying. He squatted there for an unknown how long.He lowered his head and looked at the ground, his eyes were dazed and loose, but he remained motionless. Zhou Ziqin stared at him for a long time, his round eyes and mouth widened before he slowly responded, and said "ah" softly and unconsciously. And under their gaze, Zhang Xingying seemed to finally feel it.He slowly raised his head and looked in their direction.After a long time, his slack gaze finally gained some focus, and he seemed to have finally recognized them. He stood up and called out, "Brother Yang..." In the hoarse voice, his feet, which had been squatting for too long, became numb, unable to support his body, shook twice, and fell to the ground. Under the scorching sun, on the scorching mud, his whole body seemed to be parched, and he didn't feel anything. He just stood up against the wall and walked towards them step by step. Huang Zixia stared at him with complicated emotions. And Zhou Ziqin hurried over to support him, Zhang Xingying was very tall, Zhou Ziqin was already considered tall, but he was two or three inches taller, when he was pressed on him, even Zhou Ziqin staggered. "Second Brother Zhang, what's the matter with you?" Zhou Ziqin supported him and quickly comforted him, "Don't worry!" Zhang Xingying leaned on him, but kept looking at Huang Zixia, her lips that were dry and chapped by the sun moved, and her voice was almost old: "You must help Adi... She, she is impossible, I know she is impossible Killer..." Huang Zixia lowered her eyes and silently nodded her head. Seeing her so little reaction, Zhang Xingying became anxious immediately, and rushed forward to grab her shoulder, almost unable to control her own strength: "She is such a weak woman, how can she kill someone? I, I don't know why she surrendered herself, but I ...I beg you to save her, save her!" His voice was hoarse, and the broken begging was squeezed out of his throat with difficulty and force, and he could hardly speak. Huang Zixia let out a long sigh, patted his arm, and said, "Don't worry, Brother Zhang, I will definitely reveal the truth. By then, the murderer will be known to the world, and there will be nowhere to hide." Zhang Xingying stared at her wide-eyed for a long time before he seemed to understand her words. He let go of the hand that was about to crush her shoulder blades, put it down, staggered back two steps, and said in a low voice: "Yes... I believe you... can restore Ah Di's innocence." "Second brother Zhang, now, you can go back to Zuojinwuwei, and you can go to Yingmao tomorrow." Huang Zixia looked up at him, and said softly, "Don't disappoint Ah Di's expectations of you."
Yushitai has always been the most dignified and unsmiling yamen in this dynasty, but when he came in at this time, he saw the old masters sitting next to King Kui, such as the Yushi Zhongcheng, the servant Yushi, and the supervisor Yushi. Li Shubai rambled on and on, as if he hadn't noticed that the time for leaving the office had already passed. As soon as Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin entered, Li Shubai signaled her to wait a moment, then stood up and said to everyone: "This is Yang Chonggu who is beside me, he is good at solving cases, and this time he is also one of the people appointed by the Holy Majesty to cooperate with Dali Temple to investigate the case." She must have come here to report the progress of the case, so I will bid farewell to everyone first." "Send off King Kui." Several people still had happy faces, stood up and sent him to the door. When he got out of Yushitai, Zhou Ziqin couldn't help but said: "This Yushitai treats people very differently! When I passed by, a group of old men all had their nostrils turned upside down, as if I was a shame of the dynasty. I can’t bear to add a pair of chopsticks. But when King Kui came, look, all the old faces were smiling like chrysanthemums, and every wrinkle was stretched out!” Li Shubai couldn't help but twitched the corners of his lips, and said, "They're just in a good mood today." "Huh? The people at Yushitai will also be in a good mood? Don't they just scold people with a straight face every day?" Li Shubai turned his head to look at Huang Zixia, and said: "The emperor summoned several important officials because of the theft of Jiuluanchai, and said that the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, and Yushitai will try the case together. The other two departments are fine. This group of old people pushed back on the spot, saying that the three jurisprudences were tried together, and it must be a major case, a serious case, and an important case related to the country's society. How could they mobilize all the people for the theft of a princess and a nine-luan hairpin? The emperor said Said that there were two dead and one injured in this case, and seeing that the princess might be in danger, it was necessary to investigate thoroughly as soon as possible and not to evade. Just when the dispute was inconclusive, news came from Dali Temple that the suspect in this case had surrendered himself! Yu Shitai learned that the emperor Household affairs don’t have to be turned into court affairs, so everyone will be happy.” Zhou Ziqin frowned and said, "But... Dicui is not the murderer..." "Whether it is or not, at least it is a very suitable opportunity for her to come out to take the blame now, isn't it?" Li Shubai said, and glanced at Huang Zixia lightly, "Do you want to continue to investigate the task assigned by the emperor, or stop here?" "Dicui and I have a little relationship. Her life experience is so miserable, and I can't let her die." Huang Zixia frowned, "What's more, even if she surrenders, I think this case will still be quiet and the wind will not stop. .” Li Shubai raised his eyebrows and asked, "You mean, the murderer might not stop yet?" "Yes, it's very possible. Because the third deceased in the painting hasn't appeared yet." Huang Zixia handed the scroll to him. As Li Shubai walked with them, he unfolded the scroll and glanced at it. With just one glance, his footsteps stopped. The ever-changing King Kui looked at the scribbled scroll in his hand, stood in the imperial city at this time, stood under the shadow of the high walls of the various yamen, looked at the painting in his hand, and for a moment, his figure froze. under the sky. The blue sky was like washing, the sun was blazing, and the long wind was blowing back, rolling up the wide sleeves of the three of them standing here, making a loud noise. Li Shubai's drooping eyelashes finally lifted slowly, he put the scroll in his hand back into Huang Zixia's hand, and said, "Put it away." Zhou Ziqin hurriedly asked: "What the prince saw, is it the tragic death of three people?" Li Shubai nodded slightly, and said: "It's far-fetched, it's just a slight resemblance. How can such absurd thing be linked to the handwriting of the former emperor." Zhou Ziqin suddenly lost interest and said, "Really." He peeked at Huang Zixia and saw that she was more and more like Li Shubai, with a face that was watertight, he couldn't help but sighed in his heart, and said, "My lord, I think there are still doubts about Di Cui's killing of Sun Laizi, I'll go first." Take a look at Yizhuang and say goodbye." Seeing Zhou Ziqin leave, Li Shubai signaled Huang Zixia to get on the carriage. The carriage passed by the gate of Dali Temple, and the guard untied the rope that brushed the sand, and it followed obediently, it was amazingly obedient. Huang Zixia sat down on her old seat - a small stool with a footrest. Li Shubai stretched out his hand to her, and she immediately understood, took out the scroll from her arms, and held it in front of him. Li Shubai unfolded it and spread it on the small table.Several cases are shorter, and the framed part hangs in his lap.He pressed his hand on the scroll, and his fingertips followed the first painting, which seemed to be an image of a person being burned to death, and slowly slid down: "You said last time, you think, this is a person who was burned to death look like?" "Yes... and the thin vertical line above seems to us like a thunderbolt falling from the sky. So in this picture, it seems that a person was struck down by the thunder, burned his whole body, and struggled to death." "The Zhang family said that this painting was written by the late emperor, do you believe it?" He raised his eyes slightly and looked at her. Huang Zixia thought about it, and said slowly: "I haven't seen the first emperor's calligraphy, so I can't be sure." "I can be sure." Li Shubai silently pressed his hand on the painting, and said: "This ink is specially made by Zu Min. In his later years, the emperor hated the smell of ink due to physical discomfort, so Zu changed the formula to remove pearl and jade shavings. In addition, a new kind of incense from foreign countries was added to the ink ingots at that time, only ten ingots were made, seven ingots were used, and the remaining three were buried with him. It has been ten years now, and it still has the same fragrance as before." Huang Zixia bowed her head and smelled it, and there was only a very faint smell, but that strange fragrance was indeed quite different from other fragrances. She raised her head to look at Li Shubai, and Li Shubai said again: "When the first emperor picked up a pen to write or draw, he often compared it to the side first. This is his habit for many years. People who are not often by his side usually don't know. But you see here--" Next to the vertical line that they regarded as a thunderbolt, there was a hair-thin line that was almost invisible, juxtaposed beside it. "This line is not parallel to the one next to it. It is obviously not the messy hairs on the brush, but the traces that the emperor himself did not notice when he started to draw." Huang Zixia said: "I will go to Zhang's house and ask Father Zhang about the origin of this painting in detail." "It's time to ask, why did the emperor draw such a painting, and why did he give it to a private doctor." Li Shubai said slowly. Looking at the painting, Huang Zixia recalled the abnormal reaction of E King Li Runna. Sure enough, Li Shubai also said: "And now, we should go to Prince E's Mansion—since you said that when he saw this painting, he reacted abnormally." Huang Zixia nodded, and when he was about to say something to Uncle Ayuan who was driving the carriage, there was a sudden commotion at the intersection ahead, Uncle Ayuan stopped the carriage slowly, and did not move at the intersection for a long while. Huang Zixia hurriedly opened the small window and asked Uncle A Yuan, "Uncle Yuan, what's the matter?" "The front is too cluttered, and the intersection is blocked." He stretched his neck and said, looking ahead. Huang Zixia lifted the curtain of the car, and found that Zhou Ziqin, who had already run away, was also blocked, and looked at her with a bitter face: "Chonggu, I can't leave." "I'll go down and see what happened ahead." Huang Zixia quickly jumped off the carriage and went to check. Zhou Ziqin also hurried to her side, pushing away the people in front of her: "Come on, come on, there's something exciting to watch, I'll take you there!" Huang Zixia was a little helpless: "Ziqin, I don't want to watch the excitement..." "But this excitement is rare in the capital. It's a great event in Pingkangfang! You will regret it if you don't watch it!" Zhou Ziqin said, pulling her into the crowd. Li Shubai looked at them coldly, and then said to Uncle Ayuan: "Let's go." Uncle Ayuan hurriedly said: "But, it is obviously impossible to move forward now..." "Go back and go to Dali Temple." He looked away at Huang Zixia and Zhou Ziqin who had almost disappeared into the crowd, and said.
Huang Zixia followed Zhou Ziqin, he swipe left and right in the crowd, and actually squeezed into the most crowded place of the crowd. This is near Pingkangfang. The roads in Chang'an City were originally wide, but due to the clearing of canals on both sides, the locust trees that have grown for many years have crooked into the street, so that most of the roads here are occupied. The traffic situation is already severe, but who knows that two sorcerers in Pingkangfang still set up a small stage at the intersection, showing off to each other, for a while, the flutes and flutes blared, and the dancers fluttered, countless idlers gathered under the stage, blocking the road. And amidst the commotion, Huang Zixia saw Princess Tongchang's gold and jade-embellished carriage lying across the road, unable to move an inch. Huang Zixia saw that Chuizhu, Luopei, Chuyu, and Qingbi were all following the carriage, and several eunuchs and guards were pushed back again and again by the people around them, but they still leaned on the carriage and dared not leave. She walked up and greeted them in the crowd: "What a coincidence, the princess is here too?" It's hard for Chuizhu to salute in such a crowded crowd, and said: "Yes, father-in-law... also came to watch the fun with Young Master Zhou today?" Huang Zixia was nodding, when Princess Tongchang raised the curtain of the car window and glanced at her.Her originally thin and sharp eyebrows and eyes are now frowning because of irritability, and she seems to be more aggressive: "Eunuch Yang, are you here? Where are the princes of Dali Temple? Why don't you disperse the crowd quickly? " Huang Zixia heard that the anger in her words made it clear that Yue Zu was acting as the commander's mansion, and felt a little helpless, so she could only say: "I'm afraid the princess will be disappointed, I came alone, and there is no one else to accompany me. " "Hmph, don't come early, don't come later, it just so happens that the carriages and horses of my palace pass by here, and they are blocked! And it just so happens that I go out in a hurry, and I only bring these dozen or so useless things with me!" While contemptuous of the people around her, Princess Chang turned her head to reprimand the coachman, "Even if you enter through the Phoenix Gate, so what if you pass through the East Palace? Has this palace never met the prince?" The coachman was so scolded that he could only bow his head and be obedient. When Huang Zixia heard about the Phoenix Gate, she was slightly taken aback, and asked, "The princess has been ill recently, it's better to rest in peace, why is she suddenly going to the Tai Chi Palace?" Chuizhu nodded, looked worriedly at the crowd ahead, and murmured, "Concubine Shu is still waiting for the princess..." Only Wang and Empress live in the Taiji Palace now, and now Concubine Guo Shu is there, and Princess Tongchang is going there, what's the matter? She suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly asked: "Is the emperor also there?" "I don't know... Concubine Shu sent someone to inform the princess." Chui Zhu said cautiously. Huang Zixia immediately understood that today must be an important moment for the Queen, and Concubine Guo Shu invited Princess Tongchang to deal a fatal blow to the Queen. She remembered what Queen Wang had said when she summoned her. At that time, she casually mentioned her return to the palace. At that time, Queen Wang seemed to have won the victory. She must have an important bargaining chip in her hand to fight against Concubine Guo Shu, but...today... Can't use it? Just as she was thinking, the music was getting louder in her ears. It turned out that the duel between the two masters had reached the final moment of victory and defeat.The woman in red on the right is dancing a song, turning left and right, as swift as the wind, which attracts applause from the people below; while the woman in green on the left has an extremely high-pitched voice, singing a song "Moonlight Night on the Spring River". The singing voice is still clearly distinguishable in such a din, which shows its skill.Unbiased, what he sang was exactly that sentence—— Huang Zixia's eyes couldn't help looking at Princess Tongchang. Princess Tongchang hadn't heard of it, her face was full of irritability, and she cursed fiercely in a low voice: "When will father and emperor be driven out of Chang'an for these annoying advocates!" As she spoke, she slammed the car curtain hard.The people outside the carriage were extremely crowded, and the two horses pulling the carriage in front were frightened in the crowd, pacing uneasily, and the carriage began to shake from side to side. Chui Zhu hurriedly protected the car door, and asked inside: "Princess, is the princess alright?" Before the words were finished, Princess Tongchang had already opened the car door and stepped down in a few steps. She hadn't recovered from her illness, and her temper was irritable. This time she walked in a hurry, her feet wobbled, and she almost fell down. Chui Zhu hurriedly supported her, and the accompanying dozen or so eunuchs surrounded her, shielding the surrounding people away. The street was already crowded, and these dozen or so people intervened, making the surroundings even more chaotic. The people who were enjoying the singing and dancing next to them were overwhelmed, and a few grumpy ones had already shouted: "What are you doing? What a eunuch? You can't do it even when the emperor is here." Don't let the common people watch the singing and dancing!" In the midst of the chaos, Princess Tongchang's eyes suddenly fell on a certain part of the crowd, her sharp eyes opened wide, and she cried out, "Jiuluanchai!" Huang Zixia looked in the direction she was looking at, but saw a crowd of people, but there were a few fireworks girls wearing various flower decorations on their heads, but the colors and shapes looked very gaudy, not like the jade-colored Jiuluan Chai. Several maids of Princess Tongchang also looked towards the crowd, and Chuizhu subconsciously asked: "Princess, have you seen Jiuluan Chai? But...the servants didn't see it..." "Over there, in a person's hand!" Princess Tongchang pointed to the southwest, and unconsciously took two steps towards that direction. The crowd surged, and the guards behind her couldn't keep up, and the eunuchs were pushed outside by the angry crowd. Only a few maids were left by her side, but they couldn't keep up with her. Chui Zhu quickly reached out to pull her: "Princess, be careful..." Before she finished speaking, Princess Tongchang was already grabbed by the arm, and fell forward involuntarily.She was petite, and at this moment she was suddenly pulled into the crowd, and the crowd that parted and closed was like a ferocious beast, opening its mouth wide and devouring her immediately. On both sides of the stage, the song "Moonlight Night on the Spring River" was being sung by dozens of singing girls. It was extremely lingering and melodious. In the end, other people's voices gradually couldn't keep up. Only the singing girl's voice was suppressed. After all the hustle and bustle, the high-altitude sound transfer is like a journey through thousands of mountains, almost zigzag, straight up to the sky. Hu Xuanwu was at the most rapid moment, and the audience was full of the enchanting and soft figure of the woman on the right stage.She spread her hands, turned her face to the sky, and spun desperately with laughter.The braids that were braided into hundreds of tiny braids spread out, together with the scarf on the head and the skirt on the body, flying left and right, like a colorful vortex. Chuizhu and the others' exclamations were covered by the loud music at this time.The princess was dragged into the crowd in front of dozens of people. Everyone around her couldn't believe it, and couldn't react for a while. Huang Zixia was the first to recover, and immediately separated from the crowd and squeezed inside. 拥挤的人群中，各色衣服，各样人物，她也迷失了左右，站在街心一时不知该去往何处。就在此时，有人拉住了她的手腕，将她拖了出来。 黄梓瑕转头看见周子秦。他好歹身高不错，使劲分开人群，终于把她抓住了。 只见他左顾右盼，问：“公主呢？你看到公主了吗？” 黄梓瑕摇头，皱起眉头说：“赶紧命伎乐家立即撤去，我怕公主出事！” “不会吧，这么多人，大庭广众之下，能有什么事啊？”周子秦说着，但也赶紧回身去聚拢各位侍卫宦官，让他们赶紧驱散人群。 但这么多人，这么混乱的场面，一时半会儿，人群根本无法立刻散开。 垂珠急切道：“公主在消失之前，喊了一句'九鸾钗'，我想必定是有人以九鸾钗引她而去。公公……您看，我们如今去哪儿找公主啊？” 黄梓瑕下意识地在人群中寻找李舒白，他记忆非同凡响，平康坊大街四条，小街十六条，大小巷陌一百二十三条，他脑中必定清晰无比。 可是，如今李舒白，并不在她身边。 她对平康坊又不熟悉，只能与周子秦商量着，两人迅速剔除伎乐坊聚集的各条行道，剔除酒肆众多人多眼杂的街衢，剔除前方是死胡同的巷陌，将最为可能的十余条街道筛选出来。 无头苍蝇般乱转的公主府宦官和侍卫们，赶紧按照他们分派的任务，前往各条街道搜寻。 黄梓瑕回头看了看，发现公主身边的侍女已经只剩了三个，她扫了一眼，问：“垂珠呢？” “垂珠刚刚追赶公主，也跟在人群中不见了……”坠玉的声音未落，忽然听得远远有尖叫声传来，在此时疏散了人群后初初安静下来的街道上显得格外恓惶：“来人啊……来人啊……” 是垂珠的声音。 周子秦和黄梓瑕反应最快，立即循声飞奔而去。 坊墙后，尚余三四尺空地。疯长的茑萝正爬上院墙，生机勃勃地开出一大片殷红的花朵，如同斑斑的血溅在绿叶之上。 而就在茑萝的尽头，同昌公主的身子正靠着墙，慢慢滑倒下去。她的眼睛已经闭上了，身体还在抽搐。 她身上那件蹙金百蝶的红衣，洇出一种异样鲜亮的湿润的痕迹，在阳光下颜色明亮得几乎刺眼。 茑萝的后面，是丛生的蓬蒿蔓草，此时，只有几枝瘦小伶仃的一串红，还在缓缓摇曳。 垂珠踉踉跄跄地跑过去，茑萝纠缠，她绊倒在地，却不知哪儿来的力气，连哭带爬还是滚到了同昌公主身边，用力抱住她，吓得脸色煞白，连叫都叫不出来了，只用力去按她心口那个一直在涌出鲜血的地方，可她的手掌怎么能阻止同昌公主生命的流逝，她唯能眼睁睁看着公主鲜活的生命连同温热的鲜血一起自胸口涌出，渗入此时生机蓬勃的大地，消渐为无形。 她按着同昌公主的伤口，脸上因太过震惊悲痛而显出无法面对的茫然。 黄梓瑕的脚步也乱了，她疾奔到她们身边，看见了同昌公主鲜血滴落的地方，被践踏伏地的残败茑萝之上，静静地躺着那一支本已神秘消失的九鸾钗。 九种颜色的奇妙玉石，被雕琢成九只舒缓翱翔的鸾凤，鲜血滴在上面，温润绚丽，难以言表。 而九鸾钗后面弯月形的钗尾，如今已经折断，正插在公主的心口。 鲜血斑斑，更加鲜明地显出上面刻着的那两个古篆——