Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 218 The Next Ticket
As Zhou Zhao pondered, he saw that He Tingshi had already put down his chopsticks and finished his meal, and his face even showed a slightly tipsy look.

She picked up the kettle from the small stove beside her, then picked up a golden chrysanthemum, placed it in a teacup, brewed two cups of chrysanthemum soup, and placed the first cup in front of He Tingshi with both hands.

He Tingshi picked up his teacup and slowly began to drink the tea until it was empty.

He then stood up, sat down at the desk, and began to write.

Unlike Li Youdao's simple and crude approach, He Tingshi wrote with divine inspiration, penning a long scroll before finally stopping and affixing his personal seal.

Zhou Zhao took the letter of recommendation and glanced at it; upon reading it, he was truly stunned.

If Su Changying wrote in this style, she would probably only see Pangu creating the world every time, and wouldn't see how she herself died.

“Uncle’s words are all gems, and his writing is superb. Zhou Zhao is truly convinced.”

He Tingshi smiled even more kindly, his face as wrinkled as a chrysanthemum blooming in a teacup.

He stroked his white beard, waved to Zhou Zhao, and sat down again. "Regarding the abolition of corporal punishment, I once asked the Imperial Censor Chen Qi. He said that when Princess Changyang was still alive, she had mentioned this matter to His Majesty, and His Majesty rebuked him for being too kind."

"I wrote this letter of recommendation for you not so that you might rashly petition for the abolition of corporal punishment in the future, but simply because I value your talent," He Tingshi said, letting out a soft sigh.

"My nephew He Yuanjiang has served in the Court of Justice for many years. He is upright and has the demeanor of a distinguished family. He was originally considered an outstanding talent in the Court of Justice. This time, I intend to recommend him regardless of kinship. I will send him my letter of recommendation."

However, he is not as good as you. He is still reviewing the case, while you are already discussing it; in comparison, he has fallen to the lower level.

He Tingshi paused, then continued, "However, by recommending you, I not only caused my nephew to miss an opportunity, but also risked offending Jingyi. Therefore, I have a request..."

Holding the letter of recommendation, Zhou Zhao looked intently at He Tingshi, and she could guess what he wanted her to do.

That old fox wants both the fish and the bear's paw!
“Nephew, even if you don’t care about me, for Li Youdao’s sake, please investigate the Blood Mist Mystery case and find out who killed Li Youzhi. Your master, Li Youdao, is a man of great talent. He is in his prime and should not be wasted like this.”

Therefore, regardless of whether it succeeds or not, let's go to the Lost City.

Zhou Zhao listened and couldn't help but get excited.

Here we come! The Lost City!
Li Youdao was the first to mention the Lost City to her, Han Ze came to tell her that Su Changying had already gone to the Lost City, and now He Tingshi is telling her to go to the Lost City as well.

Li Youdao, Han Zetong, and He Tingshi are all possible traitors.

Was He Tingshi's apparent appreciation for talent genuine, or was it merely a cover to lure her into going to the Lost City?
In any case, she has already received a second letter of recommendation.

Zhou Zhao thought for a moment, then cupped his hands in thanks to He Tingshi, "Thank you for the recommendation, He Tingshi. I will go to the Lost City and catch the murderer who killed Li Youzhi."

She's definitely going to the Lost City. If she doesn't take the bait, how can she catch the fisherman?
Seeing that she was obedient, He Tingshi stroked his beard and nodded. He turned to the side and looked at the lame cat at the door. He didn't know when, but the cat had moved to another position and was now lying across the doorway.

He Tingshi stood up, walked over, picked up the cat lying on the ground, gently stroked it, and said nothing more.

Zhou Zhao tactfully got up to take his leave and departed from He Tingshi's bamboo grove courtyard.

On the surface, Jingyi only received two votes from Tao Tingshi of the Left Court and Yan Tingshi of the Right Court, but Guan Youping was clearly an old stubborn man who disliked her as an official of the Left Court.

Lord Zhou has lost Guan Youping's vote. Jingyi is Li Huaishan's confidant, serving him tea and water every day, leading his horse and carrying his load. Even if he hasn't done anything meritorious, he has certainly worked hard.

Lord Zhou has unfortunately lost Li Huaishan's vote.

As Zhou Zhao walked, she was thinking and went straight to the place where Chang Zuoping was on official business. She peeked through the small courtyard gate, but before she could see what was inside, she heard a dog barking wildly.

Immediately afterwards, three large dogs, one yellow, one white, and one black, bared their teeth and rushed out, pouncing straight at Zhou Zhao.

Zhou Zhao's expression changed, and realizing something was wrong, he turned and ran.

As she ran, she looked around. Luckily, it was lunchtime and no one was around to visit Zuo Ping. Otherwise, she would have been utterly humiliated.

It's not very impressive to hear that Master Zhou was chased all over the street by a dog!
It should be Lord Zhou chasing the dog all over the street!

As Zhou Zhao thought about it, he turned and changed direction. The three dogs couldn't stop in time and rolled on the ground.

Zhou Zhao hid in the tree, watching the three furry creatures. With a light tap of her foot, she flew back to Chang Zuoping's courtyard. She flashed into the main room and closed the door. The three dogs that had just returned barked wildly at the door.

Chang Zuoping looked up from the case file, glared fiercely at Zhou Zhao, and shouted out the window, "Beheading, dismemberment, branding with hot irons, shut up and lie down."

The barking stopped abruptly.

Zhou Zhao breathed a sigh of relief. Upon hearing the dog's name, he looked at Chang Zuoping speechlessly. What kind of kind person would name a dog like that!

"What kind of behavior is this, rushing around like this? You and Min Zangzhi have completely disgraced the Court of Justice! Do you know how much face the Court of Justice has lost in front of all the civil and military officials today because of Li Mu? And you still dare to come here!"
And where has that shameless scoundrel Min Zangzhi gone? He suddenly announces he wants to get married, fine, but why is he plundering my treasured possessions as a dowry?

As Chang Zuoping spoke, his face was filled with heartache, and his expression toward Zhou Zhao grew increasingly hostile.

Zhou Zhao chuckled, his gaze sweeping across the antique shelf behind Chang Zuoping. When he saw a skull on it, his eyes lit up instantly!

"Chang Zuoping, Lord Chang! I'm getting married soon, how about this as part of my dowry? I see there are five holes on this skull, and judging by their even width and distribution, it looks like a master craftsman dug them out with five fingers! I don't have this in my collection!"

Chang Zuoping's face turned green with anger!

"Zhou Zhao!" Chang Zuoping gritted his teeth and said, "What are you doing here?"

Zhou Zhao glanced longingly at the skull, then placed both recommendation letters in front of Chang Zuoping. "Lord Chang, I am a member of our Left Court! If Jingyi becomes a court clerk and enters the Right Court, he will be whispering in Li Tingwei's ear on behalf of the Right Court!"

Chang Zuoping's pupils contracted, and he looked at Zhou Zhao in disbelief.

"What pillow talk? Jingyi and Li Tingwei..."

Chang Zuoping dared not imagine the face of the Court of Justice... The Court of Justice had no face at all!
Zhou Zhao was taken aback, pulling his attention away from the skull. "What? Isn't Jing Yi a confidant of Li Tingwei?"

Chang Zuoping blushed. Zhou Zhao was only sixteen or seventeen years old. How could she have thought of such things? He was really overthinking it.

"It's nothing!" he said, hurriedly opening the two letters of recommendation, then frowning. "He Tingshi actually wrote you a letter of recommendation? It's no use coming to me; we don't usually write letters of recommendation. Besides, if you become a Tingshi, you'll be filling the vacancy in the Right Court anyway."

"Am I some kind of idiot? You think you can go and bolster that old man Guan's reputation? Forget about it. Just stay in the Left Court and investigate the case."