Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 228 The Reputation of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Takes a Turn for the Better
"Well--"

Whether it was Haiyue's slow and methodical analysis of the truth or Sun Weixian's fierce and menacing questioning of motives, both were like dark clouds collapsing a city, pressing down on people, especially those with guilty consciences, making it hard to breathe.

Qin's face turned ashen, and her body went limp as she collapsed to the ground.

Shen Mo's heart sank, but he still didn't give up, his eyes darting around nervously.

Haiyue's attention was mostly focused on the judge, and she gave him a look when she saw this.

Sun Weixian immediately waved his hand: "Take him away!"

"You! Ugh!"

As soon as he finished speaking, two burly men grabbed him from both sides and dragged him backward, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Qin was left all alone, isolated and helpless, trembling with fear.

At this moment, Madam Gu finally reacted and hissed, "Eldest sister! The three of us are all orphans, raised by our master since we were little. Why...why did you do this?"

"Why...why...ha! I never thought that after all my scheming and plotting to get rid of that bitch Feng Min'er, you would be the one who benefited in the end!"

Qin showed a natural fear of the Imperial Guards, but she was not afraid of Gu. Her tone was filled with hatred and absurdity, and she suddenly said at the end, "I did not kill my master!"

Sun Weixian said coldly, "Now that things have come to this, you still want to argue? The torture in my prison is not just for show!"

Qin steeled herself, her chest heaving, and repeated through gritted teeth, "I didn't kill my teacher! I killed my mother!"

Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent.

"what?"

Everyone was shocked, and Madam Gu screamed, "What did you say?"

"Are you shocked?"

Qin said coldly, "That old hag was extremely beautiful when she was young, but she never married and had no children of her own. Instead, she adopted the three of us. Our original neighbors have been gossiping about it for a long time! And look at our appearances, don't we look somewhat alike?"

Everyone looked at Madam Qin and Madam Gu and found that these so-called fellow disciples did indeed have some resemblance in their eyes and eyebrows.

However, since the two had different face shapes and their expressions and mannerisms were so different, they didn't immediately think in that direction.

Qin dared not be arrogant towards Sun Weixian, but she quoted one of his earlier words: "The official said I murdered my master and sister, humph! Murdering my sister is not right. That bitch, Feng Min'er, is not my junior sister, but my own sister!"

"The same to you!"

Qin said sternly, "The three of us are not her disciples at all, but her own daughters. She just raised us under the guise of being her disciples!"

Madam Gu froze, but as her expression changed, she seemed to vaguely realize something, and her eyes immediately reddened.

Sun Weixian came to her senses: "If they are mother and daughter, why did you adopt them as disciples?"

"Of course it's because our fathers are not the same person!"

Qin gritted her teeth and said, "I know why she looks down on me the most. It's because my father is useless. He's just a poor, down-on-his-luck scholar who failed the provincial examinations twice. He couldn't stay in the capital and had to return to his hometown. Of course, the old woman was dissatisfied and therefore disliked me! As for that bitch Feng Min'er, her father has gained power, so she naturally fawns over him and gets all the good things done for her!"

Sun Weixian clicked his tongue in amazement: "Is that so?"

Haiyue then asked, "So you deliberately chose that murder weapon?"

The two died in different ways. Madam Sheng died of poisoning, while her second disciple, Madam Feng, was stabbed in the chest with a weapon. The weapon was the hairpin that Madam Sheng had been clutching tightly in her hand after she died.

"That hairpin was her most cherished possession, which she always said she would leave to her most beloved disciple as a dowry... She was still clutching it tightly when she breathed her last, and her knuckles turned white!"

A chilling glint flashed in Madam Qin's eyes: "I pried her fingers apart one by one and personally plunged this hairpin into the heart of her most precious daughter! I will make sure she never finds peace, even in the afterlife!"

Such deep-seated hatred even made the seasoned Imperial Guards, who were used to seeing death, take notice.

It should be understood that taking an object from a freshly dead body is no ordinary thing, let alone risking being discovered by others. Yet Qin still did it, and the depth of her resentment was truly chilling.

After Haiyue waited for her to finish venting, she asked, "Who is Feng's father?"

Without hesitation, Madam Qin replied, "His surname is Shen, and he's a high-ranking official!"

"what?"

Sun Weixian immediately said, "Could it be Shen Dai, the former Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works?"

The current uproar is about the marriage between Shen Yanqing, son of the former Vice Minister of Works Shen Dai, and Xu Niangzi, daughter of the former Duke of Dingguo. It seems like a match made in heaven, but in reality, Shen Yanqing is impotent.

The person who brought this marriage together was Madam Sheng.

"So, according to this logic, Madam Sheng didn't do this on the orders of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but rather because she wanted to curry favor with the Shen family?"

Sun Weixian was shocked.

This answer was something he never expected.

Haiyue wasn't too surprised.

After confirming that Madam Sheng, the top official matchmaker in the capital, was a mole of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, everyone, including Lu Bing, began to suspect which bigwig within the Embroidered Uniform Guard had instructed her to do this despicable thing.

Was it the former Vice Commander Xiao Zhen, or the Commander-in-Chief Wang Zuo, or some other important official in the Northern Garrison?
One thing was overlooked—

It was Lady Sheng's own will! But that wasn't the end of it. Haiyue then asked, "Who is Gu's father?"

"I don't know!"

Qin shook her head, but then looked at Gu with schadenfreude: "However, I know that the old hag both hates and fears your father, which is why she is nice to you on the surface but deliberately sows discord so that we can deal with you. I am just putting on an act. Feng Min'er has really ruined your plans several times in the past few years, and she hates you to the bone!"

Gu swayed, her gaze becoming vacant, clearly having suffered a great shock in a short period of time and unable to react.

Haiyue secretly shook her head. This mother-daughter/sister relationship was truly abnormal to the extreme. Finally, she asked, "How did you conspire with Judge Shen Mo?"

Now that things had come to this, Qin had no more worries: "It wasn't that I conspired with him. That scoundrel came to me on his own initiative. He said that the old hag was going to act as a matchmaker for a nobleman. If something happened now, the government would close the case hastily. He would then pretend to question me first, and then find an opportunity to overturn the case and frame that slut Gu Pan'er! In that way... the old hag's vast fortune would all belong to me! This is what I deserve! I am the eldest daughter!!"

"Was the poison administered by the maid Shuangxi?"

"Yes! She is my informant in the Sheng residence. This time, she was paid a large sum of money and drugged me!"

"She knows the inside story?"

"She was unaware of my and Judge Shen's scheme, so she couldn't hold out long after entering the yamen and betrayed me! This perfectly fits the plan, and once the evidence arrives, we can successfully overturn the case!"

"What is the evidence?"

"A secret box contained a letter I wrote in the old woman's handwriting, revealing her disgust for Gu Pan'er, which gave Gu Pan'er a motive to kill her!"

Shen Mo ordered the constables to search the Sheng residence because he had long been prepared to overturn the case.

When the time is right, he can then have his men "discover" the key evidence, overturn the initial conclusion that Qin was the murderer, and pin the blame for Sheng Niangzi's death on Gu.

The plan was originally ingenious, but he did not expect that there were hidden talents among the Yixin Society. When Yan Shifan and Zhao Wenhua saw the search in the government office, they immediately concluded that Madam Sheng was a member of the Liyuan Society. In order to take credit, they reported the matter to the Duke of Dingguo, which resulted in the current situation.

Haiyue asked for a few more details, including when Shen Mo contacted her and what benefits he wanted to obtain.

Qin explained the contact details very clearly, but when she mentioned the benefits, her expression became somewhat confused: "That fellow only said that once things are done, he will want one thing, but the old woman's property will definitely still be mine. He didn't go into details about what it is!"

"Oh?"

Sun Weixian's gaze sharpened.

The mystery surrounding Madam Sheng's death has now been solved, but the role of Judge Shen Mo in this case remains perplexing.

What benefits would it bring to Shen Mo to join forces with the Qin family to fight for the family fortune?

Just for money?

You dare to take a life?

It doesn't seem worth it...

"Hai Hanlin, I think this man has ulterior motives. Perhaps he wants the intelligence on high-ranking and powerful families that Madam Sheng has collected over the years. We need to interrogate him thoroughly!"

Sun Weixian hesitated for a moment, then leaned close to Haiyue and whispered.

After saying that, I realized it wasn't right.

This isn't the Commander-in-Chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, why should I ask him for instructions?
Even if he really was Commander Wang Zuo, he would only show him respect on the surface. If he really had the chance, he would bring him down!

“Commander Sun’s concerns are not without merit!”

Haiyue cautioned, "Given Shen Mo's usual conduct as an official, he would never take such a risky step, unless..."

Sun Weixian immediately chimed in: "Unless someone coerced him with their power! And this person is so powerful that he had no choice but to comply—could it be his backer?"

Haiyue nodded and said, "Let Vice Commissioner Sun conduct the trial!"

When facing an official appointed by the imperial court, the Embroidered Uniform Guard is still more capable.

Such a scene was not suitable for a Hanlin scholar like him to be present.

So Haiyue stood up and walked outside.

Sun Weixian watched the man leave, then suddenly realized what was happening. He clicked his tongue, and anger resurfaced between his brows. He said resentfully, "Bring me the confession and make her sign it! Send a copy to that young duke for his review first, then come with me to have a good talk with that audacious Magistrate Shen!"

"Yes!"

at the same time.

Haiyue walked out of the main courtyard and was greeted by Lu Bing rushing towards her in a frenzy of joy: "Haha! As expected of Mingwei, he was able to resolve such a thorny issue so decisively and efficiently. It's truly an eye-opener!"

Madam Sheng's actions were actually driven by her own selfish desires and had nothing to do with the Embroidered Uniform Guard!
The reputation that seemed beyond repair suddenly had a chance to turn around!

The Imperial Guards were ecstatic!
Haiyue wasn't surprised by his good information. The interrogation hadn't been conducted in secret, but she instructed him, "Wenfu, the details of the case have been basically clarified. The remaining question is about Judge Shen Mo's intentions, but there's one more thing we should ask him clearly!"

"What's the matter?"

"To which high-ranking member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard does Madam Sheng pledge allegiance directly?"

Hai Yue paused, then said in a deep voice, "I have some suspicion that her third daughter, Gu Shi, may very well have been born to this man!"

(End of this chapter)