Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 346 The Ninth Bronze Lion

Zhou Buhai's gaze instantly turned deep and unfathomable.

He walked quickly to the door, looked around, and seeing no one, immediately closed the door.

"Ah Zhao, you're in big trouble."

Zhou Zhao blinked. Why did those words sound so familiar? Wasn't that what Yan Junyu had just said?

With a serious expression, Zhou Buhai grabbed Zhou Zhao's wrist and led her to the table. He suddenly punched the wall, and the bookshelf behind him made a slight cracking sound. Without hesitation, Zhou Buhai pushed the bookshelf inward, revealing a dark hole.

He picked up the lamp from the table and went inside first.

Zhou Zhao looked around with interest and followed him inside. "Father, it seems you're a treacherous minister. You even set up a secret room in your house."

Zhou Buhai glared at Zhou Zhao with a complicated expression. "What nonsense are you talking about? This was used to avoid trouble during wartime. It's inconvenient to talk outside, as there might be eavesdroppers."

"Indeed, we need to be careful. After all, His Majesty has been keeping a close watch on our household and often sends people to roll around in my brother's room!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Buhai remained silent for a moment.

He sighed softly. "How could I not know? His Majesty does not trust me, which is why I have not tried to reinstate myself all these years. Ah Zhao, what is the story behind that bronze lion seal?"

Zhou Zhao leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Father, answer my question first, and then I'll answer yours."

Zhou Buhai met Zhou Zhao's eyes and felt a surge of heat in his heart. He thought for a moment and said, "His Majesty urgently summoned eight people to the palace to see the bronze lion medals that were bestowed years ago. If His Majesty wants to see if the lion's tail is broken, then I can say with certainty that all eight lions are intact and their tails are not broken."

Zhou Zhao's eyes widened slightly. What was going on?

She clearly shot down the bronze lion tail from one of the men's hands. Logically, at least one of the eight men's bronze lions should have been damaged.

"Which eight people are they? If Father doesn't answer, I can find out by asking."

Zhou Buhai gave a bitter laugh. "Ah Zhao, is this the kind of person your father is in your heart? I'll tell you whatever you want to know. I know you're investigating your brother's case from back then. As your father, how could I possibly stop you?"

The Crown Prince, the Third Prince, the Marquis of Lu, Grand Commandant Huo, the Marquis of Huaiyang, Prefect Han, Prime Minister Chen, and myself.

After entering the palace, we did not see His Majesty, but waited in a side hall. Han Xincheng carried a tray and we handed over the bronze lion seals one by one. I was the last to hand them over. I checked them, and all eight were complete and without any damage.

Han Xincheng handed over the bronze lion, and then came out to arrange for the Southern Army to send us back to our respective residences.

So, what exactly happened tonight? And what does it have to do with the bronze lion?

Zhou Zhao frowned as she listened. "Do you still remember the secret the Prince Consort mentioned that killed Princess Changyang? With your abilities, it shouldn't be hard to guess what it is. Back then, that secret was hidden by my brother for Princess Changyang. The murderer who killed my brother did so to force him to hand over that thing."

I discovered the secret's location from my brother's study, and tonight I am ordered to go to the princess's residence to retrieve it.

Because of this, we were ambushed and attacked several times. While fighting one of them, I severed the bronze lion's tail.

Zhou Buhai's expression changed drastically. His mind raced, and after a long pause, he finally said, "It seems that the person who killed your brother was either from the Crown Prince's faction or the Third Prince's faction. Such a confidential matter cannot be known by ordinary people; it must be someone His Majesty's confidant." Zhou Buhai paused, "Moreover, they are confidants whose factions are not apparent on the surface, and who are only loyal to His Majesty. In other words, they are a traitor to His Majesty."

Based on my understanding of His Majesty, since he entrusted that secret to the princess, he must have been thinking of a contingency plan to leave behind after his death.

We will absolutely not let those two factions know about this, and we will not allow them to get involved in this matter.

Zhou Zhao listened and couldn't help but sigh.

Sure enough, although her father, Zhou Buhai, had been depressed for four years, he was, after all, a former Minister of Justice, and was far more perceptive than the average person.

He immediately guessed almost exactly what she had found out.

Regardless of how her father treated her, Zhou Yan was her only hope back then, and she could never be the murderer who killed Zhou Yan.

As Zhou Buhai spoke, he tightened his grip on the lamp, his eyes becoming exceptionally deep, almost merging with the darkness. "You believe the murderer is among these eight people? His Majesty did not assign you to examine the bronze lion. Do you know why?"

Zhou Zhao curled his lip in mockery.

"What else could it be? Because once I find out who it is, I will drag him into the Court of Judicial Review tonight and make a scene. His Majesty wants to weigh the pros and cons and consider the overall situation before I do."

He didn't actually trust me and Su Changying as much as he claimed.

Why is His Majesty investigating this matter? It has nothing to do with any admiration for Zhou Yan's talent.

He just wanted to find the traitors among his own people.

Then it's just a matter of deciding what move to make next.

Zhou Buhai looked at Zhou Zhao and said, "You guessed that he would avoid you and come to check on you himself, so you waited here for Father. What if he went in one by one and couldn't see them all? Wouldn't you have made a wasted trip?"

Zhou Zhao laughed mockingly, "What time is it, and Father is still testing me?"
You haven't seen the Emperor's face for so many years, and your sudden summons must have a reason. Not knowing whether it's a blessing or a curse, you'll surely scrutinize every detail to find out the truth. If you don't even have that ability, how can you claim to have once been the Minister of Justice?
Besides, don't you still have your older sister's backing and control over Han Xincheng?

Zhou Buhai fell silent.

Zhou Zhao ignored his thoughts. "I saw them when I was a child. I remember that the bronze lions were all different shapes. The ones you and the Marquis of Lu have are different. Since that's the case, their tails should also be different. Think back, are there any with this shape?"

As Zhou Zhao spoke, she walked up to Zhou Buhai, picked up a pen from the table, and drew the tail of the bronze lion she had found on a piece of white silk.

Zhou Buhai looked at it and shook his head. "You're wrong. You've only seen two. There are two sets of these lions, four in a set, and they are exactly the same. Mine and Lu Hou's are just different..."

As he spoke, he searched his memory and then said, "Based on what I saw tonight, although the lions are different and the angle of their tails is somewhat different, what you have is a severed tail. As long as you turn the direction, the tails of the two sets of lions will overlap. In other words, after the tails of the eight lions are cut off, they can be said to be the same and cannot be used as a basis for judgment."

Zhou Zhao frowned deeply. "It's impossible to recreate one in such a short time, unless there was a ninth one back then."

Father, do you know who built this bronze lion back then...?

Zhou Buhai looked at Zhou Zhao for a long time before saying, "This is a matter that Han Shaofu is in charge of."