My father ordered me to kill the emperor, but His Majesty bestowed a princess upon me instead.

Chapter 39, Geng Character 27, Dead Man's Clothing

At the entrance of the old prison of the Ministry of Justice, Han Jun's face was even more unpleasant than last time.

Last time, at least he could say "not welcome".

This time, it's hard to say whether he welcomes it or not.

Because Zhao Guanlan was standing next to me, holding the emperor's imperial edict.

The Censorate, together with the Ministry of Justice, verified the evidence of stolen goods from the old clothing store.

They only inspect the items, not the people.

The emperor's eight words effectively silenced the Ministry of Justice.

After reading the vermilion rescript, Han Jun remained silent for a long time.

"Lord Zhao, Lord Shen, the Ministry of Justice's old clothing room is filthy; why must you two go in personally?"

Zhao Guanlan said, "I am here by imperial decree to inspect."

Han Jun added, "Bai Laoxiu has already confessed, and the Ministry of Justice will handle the collection of evidence."

Zhao Guanlan replied, "I am here by imperial decree."

Han Jun's face stiffened.

Zhao Guanlan's way of speaking is indeed more concise than mine.

It all boils down to four words.

They were ordered to meet together.

Sometimes, shorter is better.

I added from the side, "Lord Han, rest assured, we will only inspect the goods, not question the people. His Majesty has written it clearly, and I dare not ask any further questions."

Han Jun gave me a cold look.

"Lord Shen, you'd better remember that."

"Remember."

Of course I remember.

Don't ask anyone.

Ask about clothes.

The dead man's clothes won't change his story if I press him too hard.

The Ministry of Justice's old clothing room was located behind the old prison.

It's colder than a prison cell.

Pushing open the door, a musty, rotten smell hit me.

If Ah Liu were here, he would probably have taken three steps back on the spot.

Inside the room were rows of wooden shelves, on which were placed old clothes, tattered robes, straw sandals, belts, and some miscellaneous items left behind by the prisoners who had died.

Each compartment has a sign.

A, B, C, D.

Further inside, there's the "Geng" shaped frame.

Han Jun was followed by two minor officials from the Ministry of Justice and an older official in charge of the secondhand clothing store.

The old official was slightly hunched over, with gray hair, holding a booklet in his hands, his face full of fear.

Han Jun said, "The character 'Geng' is twenty-seven."

The old official's hand trembled as he flipped through the book.

"The old clothes with the character '庚' on them were burned yesterday as per usual procedure."

I laughed.

"Yesterday?"

The old official nodded.

"According to custom, the clothes of death row inmates in old prisons were burned after they expired."

"When was it burned?"

"Shen Shi (3-5 PM)".

"By Shenshi (3-5 PM) yesterday, hadn't Bai Laoxiu been taken to the old prison of the Ministry of Justice yet?"

The old official's face turned pale.

Han Jun said coldly, "The burning of old clothes is in accordance with the Ministry of Justice's regulations, and it is not determined because of Bai Laoxiu."

I nodded.

"And what about the ash?"

Han Jun frowned.

"What gray?"

"Burning clothes always leaves ashes."

"Of course."

"have a look."

Han Jun's gaze darkened.

The old official dared not refuse to lead the way.

Behind the old clothes shop was an iron basin filled with burnt ashes.

I crouched down to look.

There is very little dust.

That's not enough.

If the 27th day of the Geng month was a complete set of clothes for the dead, including the outer robe, inner lining, belt, and straw sandals, no matter how much it was burned, there shouldn't be only this little bit of ash.

I used the fine needle Xiaoxiu gave me to rub it.

The ash contains both cloth ash and grass ash.

However, there were no traces of gold thread.

Even stranger, there was a piece of coarse hemp thread that hadn't burned completely in the ash.

If the clothes worn by the dead are old clothes of prisoners in jail, they are most likely made of coarse cloth and hemp thread.

But Bai Laoxiu said that the crane tent was embroidered on the lining of the dead person's clothes.

The lining wouldn't use such thick hemp thread.

This basin of ashes was made up of other clothes.

I stood up.

"Lord Han, the gray color is incorrect."

Han Jun remained expressionless.

"Lord Shen even knows how to burn clothes?"

"I know a little."

"How did you know that?"

"The southwest is poor; even the clothes of the dead have been burned."

That's half true and half false.

I have indeed seen clothes used to burn people.

But I've never cooked it myself.

Han Jun sneered: "You're saying it's wrong just because of Grey Young Master?"

"And hemp thread."

"The clothing in the old prisons was mostly coarse cloth; what's wrong with using hemp thread?"

"Old Bai is a skilled embroiderer," I said. "If he really hid the crane tent in his clothes, he wouldn't have used such thick thread. Thick thread can't hide the stitches."

Han Jun said, "Perhaps Bai Laoxiu is lying to you."

"Then why is Lord Han in such a panic?"

His eyes turned cold.

"Shen An".

Zhao Guanlan said calmly, "Continue the investigation."

Han Jun took a deep breath to suppress his anger.

I walked back to the Gengzi frame.

The character "庚" in the twenty-seventh position is indeed empty.

It was completely empty.

But there were still old clothes on the 26th and 28th tables next to them.

I took out my old clothes, size 26, and glanced at them.

The clothes were moldy and smelled pungent; there were numbered wooden tags on the cuffs and lining.

The same goes for the 28th.

In the twenty-seven compartments, not only were the clothes gone, but even the dust underneath had been wiped away.

It's too clean.

I reached out and touched the bottom of the wooden frame.

It's a little damp.

I just wiped it.

"Who wiped it?"

The old official shuddered.

"This...this old wardrobe is damp, it needs to be wiped down often."

Is the tide on the 26th of the Geng year?

"No……"

"Twenty-eighths tide?"

The old official dared not speak.

Han Jun said coldly, "Lord Shen asks about things, not people."

I nodded.

"Then ask Muge."

I tapped the wooden board with the character "庚" (27) on it with my fingertips.

The sound was a bit muffled.

It's not the sound a space should make.

Zhao Guanlan glanced at me.

I drew my short blade and gently flicked it along the edge of the wooden board.

Han Jun immediately said, "Lord Shen! The items in the old clothing room must not be damaged!"

I stopped.

He looked at Zhao Guanlan.

Zhao Guanlan, expressionless, said: "Verify the evidence of the stolen goods."

These four words are very useful.

I continued picking.

A crack appeared in the wooden board.

There are no accounts inside.

There are only a few thin gold threads.

Han Jun's expression finally changed.

I used a fine needle to pick out the gold thread.

The gold thread was broken very short, as if it had been forcibly torn from some fabric.

In other words, the twenty-seventh character of the Geng character did indeed spare clothing with gold thread patterns.

Someone took the clothes away, wiped the wooden frame, and burned the fake clothes, but didn't have time to clean the threads in the cracks of the wood.

I placed the gold thread on the white paper.

"Lord Han, isn't this also evidence in the embroidery theft case?"

Han Jun did not answer.

He certainly couldn't answer that.

If the answer is yes, then we need to continue the investigation.

If the answer is no, then the presence of gold thread in the wooden lattice of the old clothes shop cannot be explained.

I continued flipping through the Geng character shelf.

Twenty-six, twenty-eight, twenty-nine.

I only look at the lining of each garment.

Xiao Xiu once said that the crane tent wasn't written on the front, but embroidered on the back.

Sure enough, there were several strange stitches on the back of the lining of the old garment number 28.

It's not a crane pattern.

It's more like a test needle.

I used a fine needle to pry it open a little and saw a tiny "two" hidden needle inside.

Incomplete.

Like part of a tent.

A thought struck me.

If there is a broken needle on number 28, then number 27 was likely in the same batch as it before it was taken away.

The crane tent is not necessarily hidden in just one garment.

It may have been disassembled and hidden inside the linings of multiple dead people's clothes.

I asked the old official, "Which death row inmate corresponds to the number 27 in the character 'Geng'?"

The old official looked at Han Jun.

I laughed.

"Asking about objects. Clothing corresponds to death row inmates, so it doesn't count as asking about people."

Han Jun gritted his teeth: "Speak."

The old official flipped through the book.

"The twenty-seventh day of the Geng year, Chen Wu, a death row inmate, entered prison three years ago and died of incarceration last winter. His clothes were returned to the old clothes room and have not yet been destroyed."

"Why was it suddenly burned down yesterday?"

The old official's lips trembled.

Han Jun immediately said, "Lord Shen."

I raised my hand.

"Okay, I won't ask anyone."

I looked down at the floor of the old clothes room.

Behind the Geng-shaped frame, there is a diagonal beam supporting the structure, with dust and scraps of cloth piled up at its base.

Probably because of its low location, it's not usually cleaned.

I crouched down and used a needle to brush away the dust.

There was a small piece of cloth inside.

The cloth corners were dark in color and finer in texture than ordinary prison clothes.

Just as I was about to reach for it, Han Jun suddenly stepped forward.

"That is not something from the twenty-seventh day of the Geng year."

I looked up at him.

"How did Lord Han know?"

Han Jun's face stiffened.

Zhao Guanlan also looked at him.

That statement was revealed too quickly.

Han Jun shut his mouth.

I picked up the corner of the cloth.

On the back of the fabric corner, there are several extremely fine gold thread stitches.

It is not crane-shaped.

It's a number.

I don't understand it, but I remember Xiaoxiu mentioning the base code 372.

Three needles for the crane's crown, seven needles for the crane's wings, and two needles for the crane's feet.

I turned the corner of the fabric over and over to look at it, and finally found a set of stitches on the edge.

three.

seven.

two.

My heart tightened.

found it.

The real Geng-character Twenty-Seven Dead Man's Garments are indeed here.

When it was hurriedly taken away, a corner was torn off and got stuck in the crack of the beam.

Han Jun's face was already very pale.

I handed the corner of the cloth to Zhao Guanlan.

Zhao Guanlan glanced at it only once before saying, "Seal it."

Han Jun immediately said, "This is evidence from the Ministry of Justice's used clothing warehouse."

Zhao Guanlan said, "The Ministry of Justice and the Censorate will each seal a copy of the records obtained from the joint investigation."

"Lord Zhao!"

"If Lord Han is not satisfied, we can discuss it in the Golden Hall tomorrow."

That's a really useful phrase.

I've decided to study more in the future.

However, the fabric corner was too small, and only the bottom code was available; there was no complete account.

not enough.

I continued to check the seams in the beams.

Even if Han Jun wanted to stop them, he didn't dare to do so too obviously.

Yan Xiaoyi stood guard at the door, and whenever the Ministry of Justice officers tried to approach, he lazily glanced them away.

Sometimes, lazy people can be quite frightening.

I used a fine needle to carefully pry open the gaps in the beam.

The dust made my nose itch.

Finally, they picked out another small roll of cloth.

The cloth roll was only the width of a finger, rolled very tightly, and wrapped with black thread on the outside.

I unfold.

There are no words on it.

It is covered with countless needle dots.

I don't understand.

However, some of the characters for "ink" were added later using very light ink.

Three seven two.

Taken from: Pei Fu Jiqing.

Silver: Yongfeng Third Container.

Delivery: North of Anren Bridge.

I stared at those lines of text, and my heart skipped a beat.

Pei Fu Jiqing.

It wasn't the name Bai Laoxiu uttered when he was beaten half to death.

It's not Xiaoxiu's memory either.

It is physical evidence.

Although it was just a fragment, it was enough to drag Ji Qing onto the table.

Moreover, the payment counter was not at the Pei residence.

It is Yongfeng Third Container.

Yongfeng Bank.

Three cabinets.

Where the money comes from is more crucial than where the people come from.

Because people die.

No, not silver.

I handed the roll of cloth to Zhao Guanlan.

After reading it, Zhao Guanlan's expression changed.

"Shen An".

"Your humble servant is here."

"This thing can be brought to the Golden Palace."

I felt a slight sense of relief.

Within the three-day deadline, we finally obtained our first solid piece of evidence.

Although it's not enough to defeat Qian Rong.

It's not even enough to touch Pei Shen.

But that's enough to keep Ji Qing hooked.

If we can capture Ji Qing, we'll have a chance to unlock the Golden Thread Crane and the Secret Order to Clear the Tent.

Han Jun finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"Lord Zhao, this item's origin is unknown; how can it be so easily used as evidence?"

I smiled.

"So we need to investigate."

Han Jun stared at me.

"What else does Lord Shen want to investigate?"

"Yongfeng Bank".

Upon hearing these four words, Han Jun's eyes twitched slightly.

It's very light.

But I saw it.

Zhao Guanlan also saw it.

I suddenly realized that the money trail of Yongfeng Bank was probably connected to more than just Pei Fujiqing.

It is also connected to the Ministry of Justice.

Han Jun said coldly, "Bank transactions involve both people and merchants. Lord Shen, please do not overstep your authority again."

I cupped my hands in greeting.

"Rest assured, Lord Han, I will write the memorial."

Han Jun's face was even more ashen than the burial clothes in the old clothes room.

When I left the old clothing room of the Ministry of Justice, the sky was already setting in the west.

I didn't sleep all night and spent most of the day tossing and turning; my steps felt as weak as if I were walking on cotton.

Yan Xiaoyi glanced at me.

"You look like a dead man's cloak right now."

"What's wrong?"

"He's not dead yet, but he'll be soon."

I really didn't have the energy to yell at him.

Just as he stepped out of the Ministry of Justice, a clerk from the Censorate hurriedly came to greet him.

"Lord Shen! Lord Zhao!"

Zhao Guanlan frowned.

"What is it?"

The constable, panting, said, "Pei's chief servant, Ji Qing, asked for leave from the Secretariat half an hour ago, saying that his elderly mother was seriously ill and he had already left the capital."

I stopped abruptly.

Leaving Beijing?

What a coincidence?

No.

It's not a coincidence.

Someone knows that we've tracked down the Ministry of Justice's used clothing warehouse.

Ji Qing ran away.

Looking at the roll of cloth in my hand, I suddenly felt that it had become even heavier.

The evidence has been obtained.

But the person ran away.

In this round, we won by half a step, and we also lost by half a step.

Yan Xiaoyi asked, "Should we pursue them?"