Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 201: Coming for her

Upon hearing this, Granny Hu panicked. She slapped her thigh and exclaimed, "Young Master Zhou, I didn't kill anyone! I was just trying to give her water. Oh dear, this is truly a case of mud falling into my crotch. I can't explain myself even if I had a mouth!"

Zhou Zhao nodded at the old woman, "If you had killed someone, why would you have displayed the body in front of your own door? You are not the murderer."

Old woman Hu felt as if her heart had been thrown into her throat and then dropped back into her left chest.

"Young Master Zhou, you are truly an upright and just official! I thought Chen Jiyuan was just bragging when he said that!"
After all, that kid isn't exactly a genius at sewing shoe soles!

Zhou Zhao was speechless for a moment.

Did Chen Jiyuan know that he was considered a fool by the common people around the Court of Justice?
Although he really does seem like a fool.

Zhou Zhao ignored Granny Hu and looked at Su Changying. "If my guess is correct, the deceased came to Chang'an not to find relatives, but to the Court of Justice, for the sake of Shao Qingqing's case."

She knew she would die, so she dressed herself up meticulously. The time and place of her death were carefully planned.

Zhou Zhao spoke with a heavy heart.

"If she came to the Court of Justice to investigate a case, why didn't she go directly to the officials there? If she intended to commit suicide by poison, why did she choose this location instead of in front of the Court of Justice's gate? Wouldn't it have been easier to be discovered if she had died right there at the gate?"

Hearing the voice at the door, Zhou Zhao looked in that direction.

Min Zangzhi was leaning against the doorframe, his chest heaving as he breathed heavily. The chrysanthemum on his head had been replaced with a small silk peach blossom. He looked radiant and full of self-satisfaction.

"Because Shao Qingqing is very likely to be executed in the autumn. The Court of Justice has already made a decision. Without solid evidence, it is impossible for an ordinary citizen to overturn the case. He might even be treated as a troublemaker and beaten out with sticks."

Officials of the Court of Judicial Review are also human beings; as humans, they are prone to bias and mistakes.

There are good people and bad people among all people.

In the Great Qi Dynasty, local officials could handle cases directly if they did not involve the death penalty. However, if the death penalty was involved, they had to request the Court of Justice to review and approve the case before a death sentence could be handed down.

The deceased traveled a thousand miles to Chang'an, leaving behind a letter written in blood, perhaps because he had a grievance and had nowhere to appeal.

“If she dies in front of the Court of Justice, whoever is the first to see her will have the case. But if she dies here after curfew and is discovered by the patrolling Northern Army, then the case will fall into my hands.”

As Zhou Zhao spoke, she raised her chin, her eyes brimming with confidence.

"She came for me."

Her relationship with Su Changying was common knowledge in Chang'an. Anyone with a discerning eye could easily find out that any murder discovered by the Northern Army would almost always fall directly into Zhou Zhao's hands. After curfew, no one dared to walk on the streets. The old woman surnamed Yan had died here, and the person who discovered her body must have been a Northern Army soldier on night patrol.

And the person who took the case must be Zhou Zhao.

"As for whether my speculation is true, we'll find out by checking with the Court of Justice."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he opened the package on top of the chest. Inside the package was a simple set of clothes, also patched up, a bamboo tube about the thickness of a finger, and half a string of silver coins. A small longevity lock was threaded through the same red string, engraved with the name of Shao Qingqing and her birth date.

Zhou Zhao handed the bamboo tube to Liu Huang, who took it, glanced at it, and nodded.

“It was used to hold arsenic, and there are still some medicine residues at the bottom.” Min Zangzhi listened and gave Zhou Zhao a thumbs up. He thought for a moment and said, “The case files of the Court of Justice all have to go through my hands and Wu Qingshan’s. I have no impression of Shao Qingqing. This should be a case from the Right Court.”

Although the Court of Justice had more than just him and Wu Qingshan as clerks.

However, the only people who could be involved in the case and seal up testimonies and evidence were him and Wu Qingshan.

He usually followed Chang Zuoping to be in charge of the left courtyard, while Wu Qingshan followed Guan Youping to be in charge of the right courtyard's files.

Zhou Zhao nodded. "First, take the body back to the Court of Justice."

As she spoke, she looked at Su Changying, and her nose twitched involuntarily. There was a scent of ink, though it was mixed, but she still recognized a familiar smell, like the orchid ink fragrance that Min Cangzhi had once blended.

Su Changying just visited Manmoji?

What was he doing at Manmoji?
Zhou Zhao had doubts, but now was clearly not the time to ask questions. Not to mention that Han Ze was by his side, they hadn't even found the mole in the Court of Justice.

Thinking this, she subtly separated Su Changying from Min Zangzhi and gently touched Su Changying's fingers.

Su Changying's heart skipped a beat, and she instantly realized her oversight.

Hearing Han Ze's screams, he figured Zhou Zhao would surely come with such a commotion. If his adoptive father wanted to kill Zhou Zhao, perhaps he had set some kind of trap. So he came immediately without a second thought.

Min Zangzhi is skilled in perfumery, so he must have a very keen sense of smell.

He had stayed at Manmoji for so long, so it was inevitable that he would pick up some of its smell...

"Han Ze, you take the body back to the Court of Justice. The Northern Army has bandits to interrogate. Zhou Zhao, A Huang, I won't go with you."

Zhou Zhao nodded, shoved the evidence on the table into Min Zangzhi's arms, and the group carried the body toward the Court of Justice.

Upon entering the Court of Justice, the group tacitly parted ways. Liu Huang took the corpse to the mortuary, while Zhou Zhao and Min Zangzhi went directly to check the case files.

Today is a day off for the Court of Justice, and almost no one comes. The Court of Justice is unusually empty, except for a few people from the Left Court who are still dealing with the aftermath of the case of the corpse hidden in the ball during the day.

"Found it, the Shao Qingqing case."

Zhou Zhao put down the file in his hand and moved closer to Min Cangzhi. Min Cangzhi pushed the file towards Zhou Zhao and couldn't help but ask, "Why don't you ask me if Chu You agreed to my request?"

Zhou Zhao chuckled, "Do you even need to ask? Min Wenshu, every single strand of your hair is about to bloom into a colorful flower!"

Min Zangzhi chuckled, a rare moment of silliness appearing on his face.

"If you treat my sister Chu You badly, I'll skin you bald and see if you can still call yourself a charming and suave gentleman. The iron certificate can protect your life, but it can't protect you from being plucked and beaten every few days, don't you think?"

Min Zangzhi jolted awake, his smug expression fading slightly. He steadied himself and pushed the dossier towards Zhou Zhao.

"Hmm, this case is quite unusual. A strange case has occurred in Hualing County, Lujiang. There is a wealthy family in the county town named Cao. The patriarch of the Cao family is named Cao Hongfu, and the family consists of thirteen people. Starting from the thirteenth of three months ago, every three days, one person dies in a room where all the doors and windows are locked."

It wasn't until the seventh person died that Li Mu, the local official in charge, apprehended the murderer, Shao Qingqing, with irrefutable evidence.