Chen Caozhi returned to the Eastern Garden beside the Qinhuai River, where an imperial edict arrived ordering him to assist the Minister of Justice in trying the Lu Song Palace Entry Case. Last night's interrogation had only been preliminary, the testimony was sketchy, and not all the witnesses had been assembled. A further hearing was necessary-
The order for Chen Caozhi to try the Lu Song Palace Entry Case had been proposed by Wang Biaozhi, Pushe of the Department of State Affairs. With such a grave incident in Jiankang, Huan Wen was certain to seize the opportunity to enter the capital and purge his opponents. On his previous visit, Huan Wen had deposed the emperor to establish his authority; this time, they feared he might overthrow the Jin imperial house. Emperor Sima Yu, Wang Biaozhi, and the others were deeply apprehensive, so Lu Song's case had to be handled with the utmost care. Chen Caozhi was both Huan Wen's trusted confidant and someone who had professed his loyalty to Emperor Sima Yu. Having him assist in the trial would give Huan Wen an accounting, and presumably Chen Caozhi would also mediate, keeping the case from implicating too many people and sapping the court's strength-
That afternoon, Chen Caozhi, Ran Sheng, and the monk Zhi Fahan arrived at the Minister of Justice's offices in the west of the city. The Minister of Justice was on sick leave, recuperating at home, so the Right Supervisor and Left Supervisor assisted Chen Caozhi in jointly interrogating the suspects in the Lu Song Palace Entry Case. Chen Caozhi had become the presiding judge. After giving his testimony at the offices, Zhi Fahan stayed to accompany Chen Caozhi through the hearing. He was very interested: Chen Caozhi was renowned for Mysterious Debate, but could he also