Ink Burns

Chapter 128: Lamb Stew
A shocking event occurred in the capital city - Xue Changfeng, one of the three highest officials of the dynasty and the Prince's Guardian, suddenly killed his wife and was caught on the spot in a wing of the post station in front of the Qingshou Palace.

The scene was bloody and brutal. His wife, Zhu, fell to the ground with her face on the ground. She was stabbed several times on the forehead, back of the head and back, and fell in a pool of blood.

The post station servant pushed the door open and came in, frightened and screaming.

It happened that the emperor went out of the palace to enjoy the spring at the Qingshou Palace. A group of guards noticed something was wrong, so they climbed up the building and broke into the room. They arrested Xue Changfeng, who was holding a weapon, on the spot and immediately threw him into prison.

In the Twelve Hutongs in the Southeast, the living room on the first floor of Tianxiang Tower is bustling with people, with guests coming and going in an endless stream. The chef is good at cooking Western cuisine. The three live black-horned sheep tied at the door are a display of the day's ingredients. The iron racks and the pungent charcoal fire on the east and west sides are open-air stoves.

Tianxianglou roasted lamb is a specialty in the capital. Because it is located at the crossroads of the Twelve Hutongs, right between Jingzhao Yin, Yushitai, and the Ministry of Justice, it is also known as "trouble-making lamb". Officials from these departments like to go there to eat two lamb chops and drink two pots of hot wine after work.

In the past few days, there have been unprecedented numbers of petty officials coming to eat mutton at night.

They all looked tired and exhausted.

".Don't mention it. This is a murder case at its root. It doesn't matter if he killed his wife or a chicken. It's a matter of using a knife and seeing blood. Why did you send it to the Censorate? In my opinion, it should be sent to Jingzhao Yin!"

At the second table west of the lobby, Xiong Laowu, the inspector of the Censorate, had been on duty for too long and had no taste for food, so he ate roasted lamb with chives. The lamb got stuck in his teeth, so he half-closed his eyes and picked his teeth with his little finger, which had long nails.

Although it was already night, the night in the capital was as lively as the day.

The seven or eight tables in the lobby were full, and everyone was listening attentively to what Xiong Laowu said - who knew that the civil servant was crazy, but who the hell knew that the civil servant was so crazy! ? Crazy enough to chop his wife off with his own hands! ?

"No, no." The people at the four tables opposite the door all wore silver helmets and tight clothes. The host put down his chopsticks and said, "According to the laws of the Wei Dynasty, officials of the third rank and above who commit crimes are sent to the Censorate for trial, and their assistants assist in the investigation. This is in accordance with the law. However, your Censorate's official Xue is the father of the suspect Xue Taibao, so according to the law, you should recuse yourself to show fairness."

The Justice and Administration Department of Jingzhao Yin likes to wear silver helmets and tight clothes when eating out: after eating, they don’t have to pay the bill.

While picking his teeth, Xiong Laowu glanced at his colleagues at Jingzhao Yin: "Why didn't you recuse yourself? The emperor ordered the Left Censor-in-Chief Qin to personally investigate the case, and Xue recused himself - haha, we are different from Jingzhao Yin. We never wear official uniforms to eat. We are very disciplined!"

Jingzhao Yin of West Fourth Table:?
"We are just too tired after working overtime and are too lazy to change into casual clothes!" One of the Jingzhao Yin officials blew his beard and glared.

Secondly, Jingzhao Yin hurried to help pat his back and calm him down: It is more important to find out the gossip than to argue with this group of people who are telling tales.

This case can be said to be the most eye-catching case in the capital this spring and summer!

"The Censorate is directly managed by the Holy Saint, so it naturally follows the rules! Who dares to offend the Censorate when working for the court?"

The second Jingzhao Yin smiled flatteringly and quickly changed the subject: "This case of Taibao Gong is really a coincidence. How could the killing of a person happen at a time when the saint was incognito?"

The second Jingzhao Yin raised his eyebrows, covered his mouth with the back of his hand, and whispered in a low voice: "Everyone guessed that it was Censor Xue who set up a trap for his father!"

The fact that this father and son do not get along is well-known in the capital.

Mr. Mad Dog even dared to handle the case of his own uncle. It was patricide, so it was nothing to him!

"You, you, you are talking bullshit!"

Xiong Laowu sprayed out wine mist, which flashed a colorful rainbow under the halo, and even a few strands of mutton stuck in the teeth were vaguely visible.

"Then, if Taibao Gong wanted to kill someone, it was also our master who put the knife in his way!"

"Then, that saint passed by there, and it was also our master who carried the sedan chair!"

"Also, that little boy jumping around was also poked in the ass by our master!"

Xiong Laowu shouted loudly: "How amazing! Our Censorate has always been outside the Three Levels and has jumped out of the Five Elements! It is true that our Lord Xue has never been well-received by civil officials and military commanders! But you are not allowed to put this false charge on me, our Lord!"

To put it bluntly, the Censorate was responsible for "punishing people", specifically punishing court officials and rectifying the work style and discipline.

When court officials met the Censorate, they smiled brightly in front of it, but cursed at it behind its back.

Xue Xiao is one of the best among them.

He betrayed his clan, betrayed his master, ignored the friendship among his fellow clan members, and did whatever he wanted to anyone he wanted to kill. He treated every case as if it were his last in his life - he felt like he would die after finishing this one.

To put it nicely, he is called a "pure minister"; to put it bluntly, even if he died, no one would visit his grave.
Although these words are the truth, you should just think about them in your heart. There is no point in speaking them out loud!
Seeing Xiong Laowu taking up the issue, the second Jingzhao Yin struck while the iron was hot and asked again: "In the whole capital, no one would be surprised if someone killed his wife, except the Grand Protector. The Grand Protector and his step-wife were in perfect harmony, and he never took a concubine! I heard that Madam Zhu and the Grand Protector were childhood sweethearts, and that Madam Zhu saved the Grand Protector's life when they were young - with such a perfect couple, there is no reason for the Grand Protector to kill someone!"

Jingzhao Yin began to ask questions. In the hall, everyone pricked up their ears to eavesdrop.

The man sitting on the left side of Xiong Laowu is named Yao Zaozheng, one of the thirteen censors of the Censorate and a new Jinshi who made it into the top ten of the second class a few years ago.

Yao Zaozheng glanced at Jingzhao Yin calmly, but did not remind Xiong Laowu.

"You know nothing! The Lord Protector was deceived! The dead Madam Zhu was not the real one at all! The girl who saved the Lord Protector was the eldest daughter of the Zhu family, and the dead Madam Zhu was the concubine of the Zhu family! The real one was killed by the fake one, and the fake one successfully replaced her and married into the Xue family!"

Xiong Laowu shouted: "If you were Taibaogong, would you be angry?"

The crowd was in an uproar.

The second Jingzhao Yin nodded: "So, the motive for the crime is very clear." He asked another question: "Why did Xue Taibao kill his wife in the wing room of the post station outside the mansion?"

Xiong Laowu snorted coldly, "This matter needs to be told from the beginning: Madam Zhu's trusted woman hired someone to kill our master, and our master detained the woman in the Imperial Censorate for interrogation. Later, due to official business, the woman had to be transferred out of the city. Madam Zhu was afraid that she was guilty, so she followed her secretly all the way, and was caught by Xue Taibao."

Jing Zhao Yin nodded: "It sounds like this was Xue Xiao's plan."

Xiong Laowu was speechless: "It doesn't matter whether it's a bureau or not! Now it all depends on what happens to Xue Taibao!"

"Then why do you want to arrest Xue Taibao?" asked the Jingzhao Yin.

Xiong Laowu was speechless again.

This case was top secret even in the Censorate.

Xue Taibao had already been transferred to a farm on the outskirts of the city for solitary interrogation.

There are only a few people in the Censorate who can be involved in this case.

The above information was circulated in the Censorate. As for the news after that, they knew as much as outsiders.

Xiong Laowu was unable to answer, so he raised his voice to argue: "That depends on what the saint wants! In our dynasty, the emperor has always been guilty of the same crime as the common people. No matter if he is a first-rank official or a third-rank official, once he enters our Censorate and is subjected to the methods used against him, he will tell everything he knows! It depends on what else Xue Taibao says——"

Before Xiong Laowu finished speaking, the entire lobby, which was originally noisy, suddenly became quiet.

He thought that his mysterious words had worked and he had won everyone's respect. He could not help but feel smug: "Anyway, our Censorate is strong and has many methods. Even if we report to the emperor, it will be the Left Censor-in-Chief who will see him directly, unlike other officials in the capital who have to go through the cabinet."

Yao Zaozheng reached out and tugged at his sleeve.

Xiong Laowu said impatiently, "Tsk, are you disturbing me while I'm pretending?"
Yao Zaozheng glanced behind him.

Xiong Laowu turned his head.

I saw a tall and slender figure, wearing a black gown, with his black hair tied up high with an ebony hairpin, walking into the lobby with steady and unhurried steps.

"Xue Xue, Master!" Xiong Laowu inadvertently started crying.

I didn't check the almanac before going out today, and was pretending outside, when I unexpectedly met this killer!
Although Xue Xiao, the God of Killing, is the second-in-command in the Censorate, the Left Censor-in-Chief Qin Mingliang is already old and has always been cautious and has not interfered in the affairs of the underworld for a long time. The Censorate is managed by this nominal second-in-command.

Xue Xiao, I hate people from the Censorate the most, leaking the secrets of the case outside!

Xiong Laowu is about to cry.

He just wanted to pretend to be good in front of the group of waiters in uniforms at Jingzhao Yin.
I have no interest in being skinned and having my tendons pulled out by the God of Death!

Xue Xiao walked into the hall without looking around, threw a piece of silver, and said in a low voice: "Boss, help me pack two pounds of mutton, with skin, not roasted, stewed."

When there are wounds on your face, you should avoid eating spicy, fried, or grilled foods.

Mutton is warm in nature, and is most nutritious when stewed with wolfberry, red dates, codonopsis, etc.

(End of this chapter)