Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 310 The secret that cannot be told
As Zhou Zhao pondered, his fingers gently caressed the bamboo slip stained with dark red blood.

"When my brother's body was found, his hand was touching this bamboo slip. At the time, the people of the Court of Justice also regarded this bamboo slip as a clue he left behind."

How stunningly beautiful was Zhou Yan back then?
Even His Majesty believes he will be the next Minister of Justice.

Unlike Zhou Zhao, who was always associated with bloodshed and turmoil, Zhou Yan was a true gentleman, and even his political enemies could hardly find anything to criticize about him.

His biggest stain back then was probably "allowing his sister to commit murder".

But they were too embarrassed to say it out loud, because anyone could see that Zhou Zhao was a wild horse that Zhou Buhai couldn't control no matter how much he jumped around.

Therefore, it wasn't just Su Changying.

"At the time, everyone in the Court of Judicial Review believed that my brother would not have died silently; he must have left clues. For example, he might have left behind a mystery about the murderer's identity, or he might have secretly hidden the murderer's identification token."

In short, he must be the kind of person who, no matter how much the heavens try to stop him, can loudly proclaim that so-and-so killed him before he dies himself.

But he left nothing behind except this blank bamboo slip. At that time, bamboo slips were scattered all over the floor of the bookshelf. Many of those bamboo slips were blank, which Princess Changyang had prepared so that when someone was engrossed in reading, they could take notes or copy from the book.

The officials of the Court of Justice examined the bamboo slips for several years but couldn't figure them out. Later, Li Huaishan decided to discontinue the investigation into the Shan Ming Changyang case, and Min Zangzhi entrusted these bamboo slips to me as my brother's keepsake.

The myth of Zhou Yan, along with this blank bamboo slip, gradually faded into nothingness.

Zhou Zhao thought for a moment. Now that Li Huaishan was about to be executed, her life-or-death crisis had been resolved, so she could talk to Su Changying about the "Letter to My Deceased Wife".

But the words just wouldn't come out.

She had memorized "Letter to My Deceased Wife" perfectly, but when the words came to her lips, she couldn't utter a single one.

Zhou Zhao's heart skipped a beat. It seemed that things that were too mysterious and profound to be revealed to others.

She first saw the "Letter to My Deceased Wife" at the Court of Justice. At that time, Chang Zuoping took the bamboo slip from her hand, but neither of them could see the words on the bamboo slip. Only she could see them, as if she had been chosen to exchange her life for his.

As Zhou Zhao thought about it, his eyes trembled slightly as he looked at Su Changying.

Yes, it's about trading one's life for another.

"Zhaozhao, what's wrong?"

Su Changying reached out with some concern and touched Zhou Zhao's forehead. "If you can't figure it out, don't think about it for now. You can think about it after you're fully recovered. Besides, according to what Prince Consort Fan said, this case may eventually lead to someone who can't be spoken of."

I know that with your abilities, the truth will eventually come to light. But you must be prepared; this won't happen overnight.

Princess Changyang died because of that secret, and His Majesty refused to reveal a single word to Consort Fan.

This shows what?
There must be something very complicated behind this case, and it may even involve matters that shake the very foundation of the country. Otherwise, he wouldn't understand why His Majesty has remained silent about it.

Judging from his interactions with His Majesty, His Majesty is a wise and capable ruler.

"His Majesty values ​​relationships and loyalty, and Zhang Ran rose to prominence along with him. However, Princess Changyang and Zhang Ran may very well have died because of this secret. This matter has far-reaching implications, and it is not something that you and I can figure out in one night."

There's plenty of time, so don't rush things.

"Fan Fuma doesn't yet have enough influence, but we're still young. In the future, when I hold significant military power and you become the Minister of Justice, we'll weigh the pros and cons. Once we both have enough influence, things we couldn't say before will naturally become possible."

Zhou Zhao looked into Su Changying's eyes and softly hummed in agreement. After a moment's thought, she tentatively handed the bamboo slip to Su Changying, "Take a look and see if there's anything special about this bamboo slip?"

Su Changying obediently took the bamboo slip. He looked at it carefully over and over again, but finally shook his head.

"I didn't see anything special about it; there wasn't a single word on it."

Zhou Zhao thought for a moment, then tried to say:

“I always had a feeling that this bamboo slip was the secret, that it was the real ‘Six Paths Heavenly Book’ while the tortoise shell was fake.”

It seems that as long as the contents of the "Letter to My Deceased Wife" are not revealed, other things can be discussed.

Su Changying was clearly surprised that Zhou Zhao suddenly jumped to the topic of the "Six Paths Heavenly Book". He frowned and spoke after a long while.

"I don't know. But when I was in Tianying City, Li Huaishan never gave me the order to take away the Six Paths Heavenly Book."

Either he wasn't interested in the "Six Paths Heavenly Book," or he knew those tortoise shells weren't part of the "Six Paths Heavenly Book."

Otherwise, he could have easily ordered me to take back the tortoise shells we brought back to Chang'an and hand them over to him, instead of letting them be so easily sent to the palace.”

As Su Changying spoke, she glanced at Zhou Zhao's expression and saw that she was listening intently, clearly pondering what he had said.

He paused, then said, "If this bamboo slip is the secret, then it is the 'Six Paths Heavenly Book'."

Prince Consort Fan said that the secret was given to Princess Changyang by His Majesty.

So, if His Majesty entrusted the "Six Paths Heavenly Book" to Princess Changyang, then he should know better than anyone what the "Six Paths Heavenly Book" is like. Why then did he order Zhang Ran and Consort Fan to search for the "Six Paths Heavenly Book" everywhere?
Is it to confuse the public, or to test these two people?
More importantly, Zhou Zhao, the Six Paths Heavenly Book is not some unspeakable secret.

Anyone who investigates this matter with a discerning eye will hear many wondrous tales. Within Tianying City alone, Qin Tianying is not the only one who knows of the existence of the *Six Paths Heavenly Book*. When Consort Fan questioned His Majesty, His Majesty had no reason to remain silent.

He could have bluntly cried and said: "Waaah, I shouldn't have given the 'Heavenly Book' to the princess, causing her to lose her life."

Since he didn't speak, it means this matter is unspeakable.

Zhou Zhao was speechless. After thinking for a moment, she was convinced by Su Changying's last sentence, "You are right. The Six Paths Heavenly Book is not some unspeakable secret. Prince Consort Fan himself knows about it."

Although he couldn't go into details, Zhou Zhao felt that these bamboo slips were like a heavenly book.

It was no coincidence that Zhou Yan's hand happened to touch one of those many blank bamboo slips.

The Heavenly Book may be an important item, but it is not the secret that Prince Consort Fan mentioned.

Zhou Zhao sorted out her somewhat chaotic thoughts. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "What did Zhang Ran want to meet Princess Changyang at Shanming Villa for? Why did Li Huaishan know about this, and why did the second murderer also know about it? Even the time of their arrival was so precise, with everyone arriving one after the other."

Zhang Ran has a sieve around him; all the information has leaked out. Or did he deliberately arrange to meet the princess and set her up in a dead end?

So when we found him, he was already dead.

We can investigate Zhang Ran further, and also check if my brother had any special connection with Princess Changyang. This connection must be traceable; otherwise, how would the second murderer have known this and killed my brother for it?

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he looked at Su Changying.

“You’re right. There must be a huge secret behind this case. We can’t rush things.”