This Lord Wen Daofu of Torn Gust Decree was really a very sinister man.
He had actually deliberately brought in three men to mislead Yun Zhonghe and make people think that the murderer was among those three men.
But then, he also said that the murderer was right inside that secret chamber, and he was not lying at all.
But no matter which one of these three men Yun Zhonghe singled out as the murderer, he would be wrong.
And at that very moment, the incense stick had completely burned out.
"Time's up!" Lord Wen Daofu said. "Let's hear it from you. Which one of them is the murderer?"
As soon as this was said, every single person present looked over at Yun Zhonghe with eyes filled with ill intentions. Even the two warriors who were holding on to the water-fire sticks in their hands were eager to take action as soon as they could.
They were all just waiting for Yun Zhonghe to say something, and then they would beat him up so viciously that he would no longer be able to take care of himself.
And Lord Wen Daofu was already on his feet, ready to leave.
His time was simply too precious. It was already a great honor for him to find time in the midst of other pressing affairs to play a role in this show. As for what kind of beating Yun Zhonghe should be subjected to and the matter of expelling him from the City of Torn Gust, he was totally not interested at all.
"The murderer is none other than this adviser of the judicial department himself. He committed suicide," Yun Zhonghe said indifferently.
The moment this was said, Lord Wen Daofu suddenly froze in the midst of movement. He was not completely standing up, nor was he seated on the chair.
After a moment of slight hesitation, he sat back down.
And the other people in the room could not help but be stunned. Yun Zhonghe was this clever and treacherous?
Even this was not enough to fool him?
How could he possibly know that the former adviser of the judicial department had committed suicide? Did he really possess such a godlike ability when it came to making judgments or was he just making a completely wild guess?
Because Lord Wen Daofu had indeed just solved this case and said that the former adviser committed suicide out of fear of punishment.
Lord Wen Daofu said, "Yun AoTian, so how did you come to a verdict that this former adviser committed suicide?"
Yun Zhonghe said, "This is very simple. Something pierced through his heart, and that was the cause of his death. And this wound he had was slanted downwards. However, it is not a very big angle of inclination, so the possibility of suicide is the highest."
The former adviser of the judicial department right in front of them was relatively tall. If the average person were to attempt to kill him with a knife held in their forehand, then they would most likely stab him in an upward angle. Whereas, if the killer were holding the knife in a backhand manner, then he would be stabbing downwards, at an angle as well, but this would be a very steep one.
But the wound found in the heart of the advisor lying in front of them was caused by a horizontal insertion of the knife along the skin, albeit slightly slanted upwards. This very much conformed to the angle of a wound caused by suicide.
"You do have a little knowledge, but that's all." Wen Daofu gave a cold sneer and said, "With this smattering of knowledge of yours, you ended up being taken advantage of the murderer instead. Eventually, this became a case of wrongful conviction. Don't you agree with me, Wenshan?"
Who was Wenshan?
It turned out to be that middle-aged scribe, that man who had brought Yun Zhonghe to meet Wen Daofu. He was Wen Daofu's trusted aide.
His given name was Wenshan, and his courtesy name was Biren!
Today, after Yun Zhonghe had stepped into the bureau, the one who had received him was none other than this Mr. Wenshan.
After hearing Wen Daofu's question, that middle-aged scribe by the name of Wenshan said, "What you said made perfect sense, my lord. But being able to see this, Mr. Yun AoTian here is already doing quite well."
This Mr. Wenshan was, unexpectedly, kind to other people.
Lord Wen Daofu said in a stern voice, "Men, strip Yun AoTian of his pants and give him 50 heavy strokes of the rod."
The crowd could not help but feel stunned.
What was going on? The beggar standing before them, by the name of Yun AoTian, clearly got the right answer, and the former adviser of the judicial department had obviously committed suicide. About half an hour or so ago, Lord Wen Daofu had already come to a conclusion on the verdict of this case.
Could it be that Lord Wen Daofu was actually turning the facts upside down in order to suppress the beggar, Yun AoTian? This was not befitting of Lord Wen's character. He had always been an upright character with high moral integrity.
Mr. Wenshan stepped forth and said, "Lord Wen, it seems like this Mr. Yun AoTian has not made a wrong conclusion for this case, you…"
Yun Zhonghe could not help but cast a glance over at the other party. This Mr. Wenshan was really very morally upright. Even at a time like this, he was still willing to speak up for a beggar like himself.
"What are you still standing there for?" Wen Daofu fumed.
Two warriors stepped forward and swiftly pressed Yun Zhonghe to the ground, intent on ripping off his pants to give him a good flogging.
At that point in time, Yun Zhonghe was also startled. I obviously made a right guess about the murderer, why do I still have to be beaten up? And why do I have to be expelled from the City of Torn Gust?
Could it be that this old man, Wen Daofu, was trying to turn the facts upside down?
But Wen Daofu had a very good reputation. He was dauntless and unyielding, had a terrible temper, and was proud beyond compare. He would not bother himself with resorting to deception or employing trickery. Even during the reign of the former castellan, Jing E, he would still speak out whenever he felt he should.
It was also because he had such backbone and integrity that the old castellan, Jing E, made him the teacher of the two siblings, Jing Zhongyue and Jing Wubian. He also made Wen Daofu the most important Torn Gust Decree, where he was made to take charge of this big city comprising more than a hundred thousand people.
It was absolutely impossible for such a person to turn facts upside down just because he wanted to suppress a small fry like Yun Zhonghe.
Could it be that what he had concluded about the case was wrong?
Had this former adviser of the judicial department not actually committed suicide?
But whether it was from the looks of his wounds, or from his last words before he died, it was evident that he had committed suicide.
"Hurry up and get on with the beating. When you are done, throw him out of the City of Torn Gust," ordered Wen Daofu. He was ready to walk straight out of the room.
Yun Zhonghe said, "Hold it, Lord Wen."
Wen Daofu asked, "What is it?
Yun Zhonghe said, "May I examine the corpse again?"
Wen Daofu frowned and said, "Yes."
Yun Zhonghe went forward to examine the corpse once again. Instinctively, he wanted to summon Patient Twenty-seven to possess him again.
But suddenly, he seemed to be struck by some sort of inspiration.
He could not always rely on this golden finger. He also needed to rely on his own intelligence. This was really of the utmost importance.
And, he had really captured an incredibly profound inspiration. But he could not pinpoint it all at once.
What inspiration?
What inspiration?
Yun Zhonghe had to rack his brain, concentrating hard.
Right, he figured out what this inspiration was.
Yun Zhonghe said, "Do we still have the murder weapon?"
Wen Daofu said, "Bring it here."
Yun Zhonghe padded his hand with a white cloth and held up a dagger. This was an extremely sharp, yet very narrow dagger.
Strange!
The dagger was so narrow, how could a stab wound caused by it be so wide?
Upon further careful investigation, he discovered that only the outermost wound was wide. The one inside the heart was still relatively narrow.
What did this prove? When the dead man was committing suicide, he had exerted more force in driving the dagger down further to create a deeper wound.
This… Why did he do that?
He was not a masochist, and this was not a Japanese Seppuku ceremony of suicide by disembowelment. Piercing one's heart would definitely kill anyone; there was no need to stab any further down. How painful would this have been?
This was a sign that the dead man wanted to send out.
That's right, that's right, that's right!
The character, heart, plus a vicious stroke of a knife across it, what character would that be?
Bi, which translates to must!
Just now, Lord Wen Daofu had said that the murderer was amongst the people right in front of him.
Other than the three suspects used as a smokescreen, Lord Wen Daofu, Yun Zhonghe, and the four warriors, there was still one other person there!
That was the middle-aged scribe who had led Yun Zhonghe all the way here, who was also Wen Daofu's trusted aide. That was Wenshan, Wen Biren.
There was also the Bi character in his name!
Yes, yes, yes!
It had to be this man!
Immediately, Yun Zhonghe said, "Patient Twenty-seven, possess me, possess me!"
"My dear Director, your slave is here!"
Patient Twenty-seven, Ghost Bride, possessed Yun Zhonghe, who went about examining the corpse all over again while attempting to make use of her psychic powers.
Other than being able to hear the last words of the deceased before he died, was there anything more to it?
Yun Zhonghe went up to the corpse and pried open the eyes of the deceased.
Instantly!
A bizarre image suddenly imprinted into his brain.
This… this was the last scene the former adviser of the judicial department saw before he died?
A middle-aged scribed was laughing hideously, and in his arms, there was a sleeping child. His dagger was positioned horizontally across the child's neck, where he could claim the little life at any moment. This child was most likely the son of the former adviser of the judicial department.
And this middle-aged man was none other than this seemingly harmless man in front of him, Wenshan, Wen Biren.
Today, he had been following Yun Zhonghe around the whole time, but it felt as though he was completely non-existent.
Moreover, he was also Lord Wen Daofu's trusted aide.
And this scene was the scene where Wenshan had forced the former adviser of the judicial department to commit suicide.
***
Now, the truth was out in the open!
The former adviser of the judicial department did not commit suicide. Instead, he was forced to take his own life.
So, the real murderer was Lord Wen Daofu's trusted aide, Wenshan!
Yun Zhonghe was truly awestruck.
This Lord Wen Daofu truly lived up to his name. He was truly impressive, remarkable!
It was a trap within a trap, a pit within a pit.
At that point in time, not only did he want to drive Yun Zhonghe out, he also wanted to put a bizarre murder case to trial in a most incidental manner.
"Are you done with the investigation?" Lord Wen Daofu said, "Don't you even think of stalling for time. I am a very busy officer."
Yun Zhonghe closed his eyes, and Patient Twenty-seven, Ghost Bride, completely faded away.
He opened his eyes once more.
Wen Daofu said, "Yun AoTian, you still have one more chance. Only one more chance. If you name the right murderer, you will stay here and be an official. But the moment you get it wrong, you will be given an additional ten strokes for a total of sixty strokes, and then you will be expelled from the City of Torn Gust."
Then, Lord Wen began to count down. "Three, two, one!"
Yun Zhonghe said, "Lord Wen, the former adviser of the judicial department, had indeed committed suicide, but it was not really a suicide out of willingness. And the real murderer is none other than this trusted aide standing by your side, Wenshan!"
Yun Zhonghe suddenly pointed towards Wenshan.
As soon as this was said, the entire audience was shocked.
Was he out of his mind? This beggar in front of them, had he lost his mind?
This Wenshan was Lord Wen Daofu's most trusted aide and had handled many official duties in his place. Many people had taken him as the shadow of Torn Gust Decree.
Moreover, Mr. Wenshan was very knowledgeable and refined. How could he possibly be a murderer? He would not even dare to kill a chicken.
However, after hearing what Yun Zhonghe said, Lord Wen Daofu's face completely changed.
"What did you say?" Wen Daofu cried out involuntarily.
Yun Zhonghe said, "The person who forced the former adviser of the judicial department to commit suicide is Mr. Wenshan, who is standing beside you."
Wen Daofu asked, "And the reason? For what reason?"
Yun Zhonghe said, "When the former adviser of the judicial department committed suicide by stabbing himself in the chest with a dagger, he drove the blade further down towards the lower-left corner. If it were a normal case of suicide, this would be completely unreasonable. A stroke of the blade across the heart, this leaves us precisely with one character, Bi. Before he committed suicide, he wanted to remind you, my lord, that the one who forced him into committing suicide was Wen Biren."
Suddenly, Lord Wen Daofu was utterly dumbfounded. He looked at Yun Zhonghe in complete disbelief.
Yun AoTian was just a young beggar who was not educated in any criminal investigation methods.
Could it be that he really was a genius?
***