Chapter 13

Zeng Yuanzhi, with a calm expression, went out and instructed the attendant official, “Find an artist. Have the servants who saw the robber describe him. Also, seek clues from nearby people. Work with the Jingzhao Prefecture to issue a wanted poster.”

The official went to do as he was told.

Zhang Yuzhen felt like she was in a dream.

As if in a daze, Zeng Yuanzhi was already in front of her, saying, “My condolences.”

Zhang Yuzhen showed a look that seemed to be both crying and laughing. “Thank you.”

Zeng Yuanzhi said, “You’re welcome,” and turned to leave.

It wasn’t his shift at the moment. He had only been urgently summoned because of the sudden incident. Since he was now handling the case, it would naturally be recorded in the files, and he would inevitably have to go back to the Dali Temple.

The walls of the capital city were adorned with mirrors.

It was said that Chaofeng was the third of the nine sons of the dragon, and could ward off evil spirits.

The main gate of the Dali Temple, as well as the doorways of the officials’ homes, were decorated with statues of Xiezhi.

Even the legal caps worn by the officials in the Dali Temple and other judicial offices were called Xiezhi caps.

It was said that Xiezhi was also an ancient mythical beast that could discern right from wrong and recognize good from evil.

Zeng Yuanzhi arrived at the Dali Temple, heading towards his office. As he pushed open the door, he heard a dull, emotionless question from above.

In the Dali Temple, this voice could only be heard in the offices of the Dali Temple Chief and the two Deputy Chiefs.

The question was, “Zeng Yuanzhi, do you have a clear conscience?”

Zeng Yuanzhi closed the door and answered as usual, “No shame.”

…

For many people, Zheng Xianzong’s death was inconsequential.

But for some people, Zheng Xianzong’s death was very important.

There were also people who didn’t care about Zheng Xianzong’s life or death, but the fact that he was murdered, and the killer was still at large, was very important to them!

Zheng Xianzong was currently the Left General of the Yifu Mansion, a fifth-rank official. He wasn’t particularly prominent in the capital city, but he wasn’t completely unknown either.

An official who could appear before the emperor in court being killed by a robber in his own home was a provocation to the Shendu Defense Force.

Not to mention that Zheng Xianzong himself was the Left General Zuolang of Yifu Mansion, inherently belonging to the Sixteen Guards.

Even if the various guards had their own private rivalries, at this time they should all unite and present a united front.

Zeng Yuanzhi finished writing the documents for the Zheng Xianzong case in his office. As he was about to go out, he heard a subordinate report that the case would be jointly handled by the Yulin Guard and the Jinwu Guard, who were responsible for guarding and patrolling the capital city.

Zeng Yuanzhi asked, “Is there any mention of who will be specifically handling it?”

The subordinate shook his head, “I expect it will be decided tomorrow.”

Zeng Yuanzhi resolutely went out and headed towards the Zheng family.

The subordinate was a little confused, “You just came from the Zheng family…”

Then he thought about Zeng Shaoqing’s meticulousness and responsibility when handling cases, and it didn’t seem so strange anymore.

Although it was late at night, both Zhang Yuzhen and Mrs. Ruan were still awake.

After such a huge storm, it would be strange if they could sleep peacefully!

Hearing that the Dali Temple Shaoqing who had left earlier had returned, both of them were a little uncertain.

Mrs. Ruan anxiously said, “Should we see him?”

Although Zhang Yuzhen was young, she was far more decisive than her aunt, “If it’s fate, it can’t be avoided!”

She looked around and whispered, “I think Zeng Shaoqing knows what happened, but he’s going to let us go. He’s come back after leaving, which doesn’t seem malicious.”

Mrs. Ruan was relieved for the moment.

It was still Zhang Yuzhen who went to see the guest.

Zeng Yuanzhi went back and forth to the scene of the crime, then called her over and asked, “Was it Zheng Xianzong who first discovered the robber?”

Zhang Yuzhen was startled, then understood and nodded, “Yes, it was my uncle who first discovered him.”

Zeng Yuanzhi nodded, then sighed, “Drinking is harmful. If not for that, according to Zheng Xianzong’s skills, the robber wouldn’t have had a chance to get behind him.”

Zhang Yuzhen echoed, “My uncle was indeed very drunk when he came back. He said he wanted to rest in the bedroom. We didn’t expect to hear something wrong as soon as he went in…”

Zeng Yuanzhi interrupted her, “Since Zheng Xianzong was so drunk, and you were in the outer room, why didn’t anyone help him in?”

Zhang Yuzhen was stunned, then quickly said, “My uncle is a warrior. He’s very straightforward and never likes these little things. He rarely has servants follow him when he’s not busy.”

Zeng Yuanzhi nodded slightly and asked a few more questions, then finally got up to leave.

Zhang Yuzhen understood, and was infinitely grateful, but she didn’t want to reveal it in words and arouse suspicion. She calmly sent him off, went back to her room, and colluded with Mrs. Ruan, firmly memorizing this set of statements.

The next day, when dawn broke, new guests arrived.

It was none other than the famous Goshawk Yu Pu!

Although the Zheng family’s servants had all witnessed the robber escaping from the window, and the maids had confirmed that several extremely precious pieces of jewelry were missing from Mrs. Ruan’s dowry, Yu Pu still found something suspicious.

“Zhang lady,” he said lightly, “I heard from the servants that they vaguely heard Zheng Xianzong’s scolding in the courtyard. Is that true?”

Zhang Yuzhen told him truthfully that she had intended to buy her mother’s freedom from the Jiaofangsi, but Zheng Xianzong didn’t agree, and even wanted to stop it.

“My uncle was very angry when he found out that my aunt and I had gone to see the Duke of Yue today, so he acted out…”

Yu Pu asked, “What happened then? Did you have an argument?”

Zhang Yuzhen smiled bitterly, “How dare I argue with my uncle, being a guest in his house? My aunt… everyone knows my aunt’s temper, she’s the most gentle person.”

Yu Pu made a sound of “Oh,” and remained silent for a moment before asking, “Who discovered the Strong Man first?”

Zhang Yuzhen’s heart tightened, but she remained composed, “It was my uncle who discovered him first.”

Yu Pu asked again, “Where did he find him?”

Zhang Yuzhen pointed towards the bedroom.

Yu Pu asked a few more questions, and Zhang Yuzhen answered flawlessly. Finally, he stopped asking, but he stroked his jaw with his gloved hand, looking at her thoughtfully.

Zhang Yuzhen felt uneasy under his gaze and forced herself not to show any fear.

At this time, Yu Pu smiled slightly, beckoned her to come closer.

Zhang Yuzhen hesitated and walked over.

Yu Pu was tall, even sitting down, he was taller than her standing up.

She walked forward, and heard Yu Pu ask in her ear, “Did Zeng Yuanzhi teach you to say that?”

Zhang Yuzhen was almost out of her mind!

She was a girl who had experienced the upheavals of a great family, and she managed to hold herself together. She kept a blank expression on her face and said in a daze, “What are you talking about?”

Yu Pu looked at her, then suddenly changed the subject, “You said earlier that you went to see the Duchess of Yue yesterday.”

Zhang Yuzhen shuddered again.

She said, “Yes.”

Yu Pu looked at her with a faint smile, but didn’t say anything.

Zhang Yuzhen felt that his gaze was like the tongue of a venomous snake, already spitting on her face. Her legs went weak, and a layer of cold sweat appeared on her back at some point!

She even felt that perhaps Yu Pu had already guessed that the robber from last night was the Duchess of Yue!

But Yu Pu looked away at that moment.

Because Zeng Yuanzhi had arrived.

Yu Pu greeted him with a familiar tone, “Ah, you’re here.”

Zeng Yuanzhi said, “How’s it going?”

Yu Pu sat back in his chair, laughing lightly, “Thanks to you, it’s not going well.”

He smiled and said, “Maybe I should take this Zhang lady to the Yulin Prison. I bet you haven’t taught her how to deal with the punishments in the Yulin Prison.”

Zhang Yuzhen’s scalp tingled, and she was terrified. She wanted to escape, but her feet were rooted to the ground, unable to move.

Zeng Yuanzhi fell silent.

After a moment, he said softly, “Suqing, why are you picking on a little girl?”

“Do you think I’m deliberately making things difficult for two women?”

Yu Pu slammed his hand on the table, his smile gone, “I’m doing this for ‘the law’!”

He said sharply, “Just because you feel sorry for them, you can disregard the law? A wicked person should be protected by the law, right? Zheng Xianzong beat his wife, there was no blood relationship between them. He’s a bastard, so he was killed, and we shouldn’t investigate who the killer is. We should turn a blind eye and pretend nothing happened, right?!”

Zeng Yuanzhi remained silent.

Seeing this, Yu Pu’s expression turned indifferent, and he continued, “Do you know that the dead man who was lying there not long ago has been supporting the families of 121 soldiers who died in the Yifu Mansion? Among these 121 families, there are old people and children?”

Zeng Yuanzhi remained silent.

Yu Pu calmly asked him, “Zeng Yuanzhi, why don’t you answer my question?”

Zeng Yuanzhi could only say, “Suqing, according to our dynasty’s laws, it’s lawful to resist when one’s life is in danger.”

Yu Puyou then asked with a smile, “If so, why don’t you say it’s lawful resistance? And why is that righteous person hiding?”

Zeng Yuanzhi said, “Because it would inevitably cause reputational damage to the victim, because we can’t be sure how the judiciary will specifically judge this case, because our dynasty’s responsibility determination for this type of case is not clear enough.”

He gave three reasons, and finally said, “This is the responsibility of the court’s political and religious system, the responsibility of the Secretariat, which drafts laws, and the shared responsibility of all the subjects of the dynasty. How can we put all of this on two women?”

Yu Pu was silent for the first time.

After a while, he nodded slightly, showing a hint of approval, “A very clever argument. You’ve convinced me.”

Not only Zhang Yuzhen, but even Zeng Yuanzhi, couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Yu Pu looked at him with amusement and stood up, “For your sake, I’ll let this go. But I hope someone can tell that righteous person that next time they fall into my hands, they won’t be so lucky.”

Zeng Yuanzhi sighed helplessly.

Zhang Yuzhen was still in a daze.

Yu Pu then stood in front of her, looking at her intently, “Zhang lady, you should know that this is for you, right?”

Zhang Yuzhen was terrified of him, and trembled with fear.

Zeng Yuanzhi was already pushing Yu Pu towards the door, “What are you scaring her for…”