Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 237 The Blurred Truth
At two o'clock in the morning, Shen Xie, who had fainted after his leg was broken, woke up from the excruciating pain. But as soon as he woke up, he wished he could faint again. The pain of breaking bones and pulling tendons was simply too torturous.

Suddenly, Shen Xie heard the vague sound of mourning and the friction of wood.

Lu Wenzhao walked into the cell where Shen Xie was imprisoned, holding a lit candle. Before Shen Xie could see the man's face clearly by the candlelight, Lu Wenzhao couldn't wait to speak: "I heard your name is Shen Xie?"

Shen Xie was startled by the voice. In that instant, the pain in his body was diminished by the sudden fear. He remembered this voice, this calm voice that broke his leg with those few, light words. "Villain. Uh, it's Shen Xie." He clenched his teeth, trying his best not to whine, but the pain that seemed to come from the depths of his soul still emanated from his teeth in a groan.

"Come, have a drink. It will make you feel better." Lu Wenzhao signaled the Jinyi captain beside him to help Shen Xie up. Then, smiling, he brought the mouth of the wine pot to his lips and said, "It was my fault during the day. I was impulsive and offended you. I hope you will forgive me, Brother Shen."

"Sir, don't worry about it. It's just that I'm ungrateful and asking for a beating." Shen Xie forced out a smile that was uglier than crying.

Beat someone up and then say nice things to them in a sarcastic way. He did this kind of thing often, so he naturally knew how to deal with it.

"Very good." Lu Wenzhao patted Shen Xie's fat face covered with sweat. "Brother Shen, did you hear that?"

"What did you hear?" Shen Xie was so nervous and trembling from the pain that he didn't even notice the faint wailing that spread throughout the prison. If Lu Wenzhao hadn't reminded him, he would have thought it was just hallucination. "I heard it."

"To be honest, the criminal justice system here is really low-level. All you do is just flogging, clamping sticks, picking nails and other tricks. If it were placed in the Northern Pacification Division's criminal justice families, this level of punishment wouldn't even be enough to pass the exam." Lu Wenzhao wiped the sweat off Shen Xie's clothes and continued, "Some people have already enjoyed this low-level treatment and made confessions. You will make your own confessions soon. I can't say how I feel about myself, but I am strict with others and especially hate to hear people lie. If your confessions don't match, someone will have to go with me to Beijing and be imprisoned in the Northern Pacification Division's imperial prison. There are many tricks in the imperial prison." Lu Wenzhao paused and said mysteriously:

"For example, there's something called scrubbing. Specifically, they strip the person naked, then pour boiling water over the affected area several times. While the skin is still red and hot, they scrub it carefully with an iron brush until all the flesh is removed and the bones are exposed. Don't worry, we have excellent medicine, so you won't die for a while. Would you like to try it? This is a privilege only afforded to officials."

"No, I don't want to experience it!" The pain sparked Shen Xie's imagination, allowing him to immerse himself in the "cleansing" described by Lu Wenzhao. "I dare not lie. I dare not lie! Just ask."

Seeing that the intimidation was almost over, Lu Wenzhao poured another sip of wine into Shen Xie. "Answer whatever I ask. I just want the truth. Even if you have killed someone or set a fire, we won't care."

Shen Xie opened his mouth to reply, but a sudden dizziness forced him back. He nodded vigorously, both to clear his head and to show that he had heard clearly.

"Very good." Lu Wenzhao waved to the Jinyi captain behind him, signaling him to start recording. "You know Wang Gui, right?"

Shen Xie shuddered. But then he stared in horror and replied, "I know."

"He told us that your youngest son raped and murdered his daughter. To prevent him from going to Beijing to file a complaint, you wrote a note asking Shen Zhengping to arrest him. Is that true?" Lu Wenzhao smiled faintly and gave Shen Xie another sip of wine. "No rush. Think it over before you speak."

Shen Xie's face twitched as he used his remaining rationality to think. Finally, he nodded and said, "I was a bad parent. It's true."

"Oh, that's right." Lu Wenzhao seemed satisfied. "Answer honestly. Tell the truth. The Imperial Guards are not inspectors, let alone judges. Do you understand?"

"I understand." Shen Xie tried to smile back at Lu Wenzhao, but he could only twitch his face and grin.

"I'm glad to hear that." Lu Wenzhao handed the wine jug to Shen Xie and said, "Let me ask you again, when did your uncle Shen Caiyu disappear?"

"We left early in the morning on the seventh day after the city gates were opened." Shen Xie gave an exact time.

"Which gate did they use to leave the city?" Lu Wenzhao frowned.

"I don't know. I didn't go with them." Shen Xie explained, "I didn't even know my uncle had escaped. He just told me that he had something to do and was going to be away for a few days. He told me to deal with the authorities and if anyone asked, I should just say that he was sick and needed to rest for a few days."

"Who else in the family is missing?" Lu Wenzhao asked again.

"My uncle only took Shen Bo away." Shen Xie added, "Shen Bo is the housekeeper of the inner chambers and also serves as the bed attendant."

"In other words, the so-called inner chamber housekeeper is not really a metaphor for that woman." Lu Wenzhao murmured softly.

"What did you say, sir?" Shen Xie's ears were ringing like thunder and he couldn't hear clearly.

Lu Wenzhao didn't want to talk to him about this, so he asked, "What does Shen Bo do?"

"Take care of social interactions and the household accounts." Shen Xie curled up his right palm, tightly grasped the wine jug, and took a sip on his own initiative.

"Then what do you care?" Lu Wenzhao stared into Shen Xie's eyes.

"I am the housekeeper of the outer room. I am only responsible for the servants in the house and collecting rent from the tenant fields. After the rent is collected, the grain money is no longer my responsibility." Shen Xie replied.

"Are you sure it's only Shen Bo?" Lu Wenzhao asked.

"It's really just Shen Bo. The servants and wives in the house are all here." Shen Xie was very sure.

Lu Wenzhao was silent for a moment, then asked, "Who did Shen Caiyu meet before he disappeared?"

"This" Shen Xie was stuck.

"Answer me. Who have you met?" Lu Wenzhao frowned, his voice a little rougher: "Is there anything else you want to hide?"

"Sir, that's not the case." Shen Xie hurriedly shook his head and said, "There are too many people paying New Year's greetings recently. As soon as the New Year comes, officials of our guard, both big and small, will come and go. In addition to officials, there are also local gentry and elders. It can be said that anyone with a little fame and reputation will take advantage of the New Year to come to your house to give gifts and curry favor." The alcohol reduced Shen Xie's instinctive defensive will and also slightly alleviated his pain.

"There must be a book to record the gifts you send. Where did you put it?" Lu Wenzhao asked.

"It's in my study where I work." Shen Xie replied.

"Speak more carefully."

"The west wing in the front yard."

The next morning, Lu Wenzhao came to the duty room of the Pacification Office with a lunch box. He didn't rest for long, but at least he didn't stay up all night.

Entering the duty room, Shen Zhengping was already under Luo Zongqi's control. He sat woodenly at his desk, his face even more exhausted than Lu Wenzhao's. Seeing Lu Wenzhao enter, his eyes flashed with fear and pleading at the same time.

However, Lu Wenzhao only glanced back at him calmly, then sat down at the wooden table. "God, come, it's time for breakfast." Lu Wenzhao waved to Luo Zongqi. "Zhongqi Luo, come too."

"Thank you, sir." Luo Zongqi slept all night at the door of the duty room, holding his sword. He could wake up immediately when he heard any movement, but this did not prevent him from sleeping soundly. Therefore, it could be said that Luo Zongqi was the most energetic of the three.

"I'm on duty. What are you going to do?" Mr. Luo did not stop Shen Zhengping from sleeping, but Shen Zhengping had a guilty conscience and tossed and turned all night.

"Breakfast, please." Lu Wenzhao opened the lunch box, which contained two trays of steaming buns and several plates of steamed dried meat and pickles. "Let's not drink so early in the morning."

"Why don't you let me go back?" Shen Zhengping's heartbeat began to accelerate and his tone became hurried.

"Why go back? It's not like I can't sleep in the government office." Lu Wenzhao chuckled and said, "I'm going to sleep here. Don't worry, your family has been notified. They won't worry."

"Just tell me what's going on." Shen Zhengping clenched his fists and his body began to tremble.

"Actually, I still admire you very much. At least you dared to ask me for orders from the rear court and the Ministry of War when everyone was silent." Lu Wenzhao handed the chopsticks to Shen Zhengping, but still did not speak directly as Shen Zhengping expected.

"Are you angry with me for not knowing what's going on?" Shen Zhengping took the chopsticks tremblingly.

"Of course not. Who do you think I am?" Lu Wenzhao shook his head. "Didn't I just say that? I admire you. At least you know how to follow the rules." Lu Wenzhao changed the subject. "But sometimes you go beyond the rules, right?"

"I don't understand what my superiors mean." Shen Zhengping stood there in a daze, holding his chopsticks.

"Eat, don't talk." After Shen Zhengping started eating, Lu Wenzhao continued, "You may not know this yet. I brought two elite troops with me this time. I led one of them myself, and the other took over the four gates of our guard when we entered the city."

Shen Zhengping's chopsticks stopped in mid-air. "This..."

Lu Wenzhao seemed not to notice Shen Zhengping's hesitation and continued, "What's the name of that place? Oh, right, Gongbei Gate. My brothers stopped a carriage covered with white cloth at Gongbei Gate. Fortunately, the people in the carriage were still alive."

"That's not it..." Shen Zhengping felt cold sweat pouring down his back.

"He was just cold and hypothermic, but the jailer mistakenly thought he was dead and wanted to drag him out of the city and bury him." Lu Wenzhao raised his voice, forcibly interrupting Shen Zhengping. "My brothers gave him some ginger and sugar water. They managed to revive him, and he told us a story. I'll tell you now." Lu Wenzhao took a sip of white rice porridge to moisten his throat before continuing.
"He said the son of a local high-ranking official's steward had killed his wife and raped his daughter. He felt that suing the officials locally was tantamount to seeking death, so he thought of going to Beijing to file a complaint, since it wasn't far away. But he was stopped by the Zhenfusi on the way. What did the Zhenfusi find? Hiss!" Lu Wenzhao gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and asked, "God of Peace, what crime did the Zhenfusi find against Wang Gui? Murder of his wife and daughter, incest and adultery. Is that right?"

Shen Zhengping couldn't bear it anymore. He dropped his chopsticks and fell to his knees.

Lu Wenzhao picked up a piece of steamed pork jerky and put it in his mouth. As he chewed, he said calmly, "I heard from that jailer who did the wrong job that the Pacification Office released a lot of prisoners yesterday."

"I am guilty!" Shen Zhengping kowtowed heavily. This was irrefutable evidence.

"I don't understand what Shen Zhenfu means." Lu Wenzhao put down his chopsticks and looked down at the top of Shen Zhengping's head.

"Please show me a way to survive!" Shen Zhengping pleaded.

"Shen Zhenfu, you're joking. Weren't you at the Zhenfu Division when they released him?" Lu Wenzhao continued to smile. "And there's nothing wrong with letting him leave the city. Find out the facts, and if they're not false accusations, then release them."

Shen Zhengping's eyes twitched, and after a moment's pause, he immediately understood. "If you have anything to tell me, I will do my best to do it."

"Look at what you're saying. I'm just stating the facts. There's nothing else to order, just follow the rules." Lu Wenzhao turned around and continued eating his steamed bun. "Wang Gui's daughter was raped and murdered by Shen Xie's son. You simply arrested the wrong person initially. You let him go after you later clarified the facts. It was all a misunderstanding, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Shen Zhengping nodded repeatedly.

Lu Wenzhao pointed to the desk. "There's paper and pen over there, telling you who the Zhenfu Division helped and what they did. Write it down yourself."

"Who does my boss want me to write about?" Shen Zhengping knew that this was his way of making a living.

"What do you mean I asked you to write? You wanted to write it yourself," Lu Wenzhao said casually. "You took the initiative to expose the illegal activities of the military officers of Tianjin Garrison."

"Yes! I wanted to write it myself, and I took the initiative to expose it." Shen Zhengping nodded repeatedly.

"If the higher-ups are satisfied, you might even get a promotion." Lu Wenzhao nodded slightly, expressing his satisfaction.

"Up there?" Shen Zhengping was stunned, as if he understood something. "I'll write it right away!"

"Why are you in such a hurry? Have breakfast first. There's no rush now." Lu Wenzhao stood up, walked to a wooden shelf, and took a clean linen cloth from it. He wiped the porridge stains from the corners of his mouth. "General Luo, follow our Shen Zhenfu and learn the difference between the official documents here and those in Beijing. I have an article to write, so I'll be leaving now."

"Yes." Luo Zongqi stood up, clasped his fists and bowed, saying, "Goodbye, sir."

Shen Zhengping didn't stand up, but remained kneeling on the ground. He wiped the layers of cold sweat from his forehead and kowtowed, saying, "Sir, take care. I will definitely finish writing this article."

　Thank you for your comments.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)