She walked quickly outside, and the servant hurriedly followed, " Shopkeeper Jin, where are you going?"
"Go to the Capital Prefecture to find Lu Chi."
"It's no use looking for him. He's been keeping watch at the Court of Judicial Review since last night and hasn't come out yet..."
No sooner had the servant finished speaking than Meng Anzhi rushed out, her face pale, and said, "Auntie, has something happened to Anci?"
Jin Shanyao her head reassuringly, "It's alright, let's see which bastard dares to touch him..." After saying that, she strode outside.
Worried, Meng Anzhi followed her aunt to the Court of Judicial Review, where she unexpectedly saw Feng Qixian, who was anxiously pacing outside.
Jin Shanyao walked past him toward the Court of Judicial Review, but was stopped by the gatekeeper, who said, "Who are you, daring to trespass into the Court of Judicial Review?"
"I am Meng Anci's aunt, and I would like to see him."
The gatekeeper angrily said, "There's an order from above: Meng Anci's case is serious, and visits are strictly prohibited."
Jin Shanyao casually pulled out one hundred taels of silver and stuffed it into the gatekeeper's hand. The gatekeeper glanced around and lowered his voice, " Lord Meng's case is difficult to handle; it has already alarmed His Majesty. Let alone you, even Lord Lu would find it difficult to see him."
Upon hearing this, Jin Shanyao snatched back the silver note, stuffed it into her bosom, glared at him, and said, "You can't do anything, so why are you taking my money?" With that, she turned and left.
The gatekeeper stood there dumbfounded... It was the first time he had ever seen such an arrogant family member.
In prison.
Meng Anci sat on the haystack, his eyes still cold, as he went through the events that had happened during this period.
How did those rubbings of ancient books end up in Yu Jiaonu's room? And what did she know?
How did Zither Master Wu die? What was his connection to the rubbings? Who had the opportunity to obtain his rubbings?
With various questions intertwined, Meng Anci considered everyone in the Hanlin Academy: who would risk their life for money that could cost them their head?
The light from the ventilation shaft gradually dimmed, plunging the prison into complete darkness. No one had interrogated him since he arrived; what was their purpose in keeping him in custody?
At the same time, Jin Shanyao summoned Lu Chi, and the group secretly went to the coroner's room. The old man on night duty in the coroner's room was a retired member of the Fu Household Army. He only gave a greeting before going in.
Jin Shanyao and Meng Anzhi found Zither Master Wu's body. The white cloth was lifted, revealing a hideous wound on the neck. Meng Anzhi held up an oil lamp and carefully examined the wound.
"Auntie, look at this..." She held the oil lamp closer, letting Jin Shanyao so she could see more clearly, "The shape of the broken hyoid bone isn't from a knife cut; he must have been strangled to death."
The location is inconspicuous and easily overlooked because it's covered by the knife wound. If the person was already strangled... why add another stab?
"Move the crime scene," Lu Chi and Jin Shanyao said simultaneously.
"Let's go... Boss, let's go check out Pure Joy Pavilion..."
Jin Shanyao her eyes. "What are you looking at? Go home and sleep at night..."
"Ah..."
This time, not only was Lu Chi shocked, but Meng Anzhi was also baffled. At such a critical moment, her aunt actually wanted to go home to sleep. Her eyes darted around slightly. Could it be that her aunt wanted to summon a ghost to interrogate her?
Thinking of her aunt's abilities, Meng Anzhi felt much more at ease.
The sale of ancient books at the Hanlin Academy has put everyone on edge... The room, usually filled with laughter and conversation, has suddenly become eerily quiet. No one dares to speak, fearing that a single wrong word might cause trouble.
Zhao Zhiyuan continued to copy books and work every day. People around him cursed him in their hearts, though they didn't say anything. He was always inseparable from Meng Anci, but when something really happened, he didn't dare to ask her a single question.
Tsk tsk tsk... What a promising talent for officialdom.
Ignoring the strange looks from his colleagues, Zhao Zhiyuan delivered the copied book to the main room. " Lord Yan... the book is copied. Please take a look."
Yan Shuan looked up, appearing as if he had aged considerably overnight. He put down his pen and sighed, "This matter concerning Meng Anci has been a significant blow to me. I never expected him to... Never mind, let's not talk about it. You can just leave the book here."
"It happened so suddenly, no one expected it to turn out this way, sir, there's no need to blame yourself..."
"Alright, stop trying to comfort me... Go get back to work."
Zhao Zhiyuan bowed and took his leave... As he was leaving, he glanced at the bookshelf behind Yan Shuan out of the corner of his eye...
Meng Anci sat from dusk till dawn, the necklace around her neck emitting a light invisible to the naked eye.
He slowly stood up, walked to the prison door, and said to the jailer, "I want to see the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review."
The jailer gave Meng Anci a deep look, and seeing his unwavering gaze, swallowed his words of refusal...
"Please wait a moment, Lord Meng, I will go and inform him..." The jailer returned shortly after leaving, opened the cell door, and led him to the main hall.
Pang Yougong, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, sat behind his desk. " Meng Anci... I haven't even summoned you yet, and you're already getting restless. Speak, what brings you to see me?"
"My lord, I'm innocent..." Meng Anci suddenly yelled, startling Pang Yougong so much that he almost fell off his chair.
He awkwardly steadied himself, and when he looked up, he saw that Meng Anci's eyes were red and he looked extremely aggrieved.
"I beg you, Your Excellency, to do me justice! Investigate thoroughly who stole my manuscript, and also investigate all my assets to clear my name!"
Pang Yougong looked at the young man before him helplessly and said, " Lord Meng... According to my investigation, your sister Meng Anzhi frequented Pure Joy Pavilion and was in contact with Yu Nujiao. The madam of the Pure Joy Pavilion can testify to this. Now, Zither Master Wu, Yu Nujiao, and Tuoben are all at the Pure Joy Pavilion... Tell me, if I don't arrest you, who should I arrest?"
Meng Anci, "Then let's start with Yu Jiaonu, investigate her relationship with Zither Master Wu, and find out if she knows about the rubbings..."
Pang Yougong laughed in exasperation. "So you're going to teach me how to judge cases?" He wanted to see what was so special about Meng Anci that made the emperor personally appoint him as the top scholar.
"Bring Yu Jiaonu here."
A moment later, Yu Jiaonu was led into the main hall like a walking corpse. " Yu Jiaonu, I ask you... do you know Meng Anzhi of the Anzhi Hall, Doctor Meng?"
Yu Jiaonu recalled for a moment, thinking of the girl who had treated her for free, and tugged at the corner of her lips, "I only met her once."
"I'll ask you again, did she give you anything?"
"I smashed a bottle of medicine..."
Pang Yougong said sternly, "Still dare to lie? We've found evidence that Zither Master Wu and Meng Anzhi were trading rare ancient books at the Pure Breeze Pavilion. How long do you intend to keep this a secret?"
Yu Nujiao suddenly raised her head, looking at Pang Yougong with a blank expression. "My lord... I don't know what you're talking about. I'll say it again: I killed the person, and it has nothing to do with anyone else."
Moreover, Doctor Meng is a kind-hearted person who has provided free medical consultations to the girls in the building on many occasions. How could he possibly associate with a despicable person like Zither Master Wu? I hope Your Excellency will see the truth."
Meng Anci carefully examined Yu Nujiao, finding her features increasingly familiar. Then, noticing the small mole on her chin, a sudden realization struck him, and he blurted out, " Feng Miaoyin!"
Yu Jiaonu subconsciously turned around, their eyes met, and Meng Anci, having confirmed his suspicions, Dadan said, " Feng Miaoyin, do you know that Feng Qixian has spent half his life searching for you...?"
After her initial shock, Yu Jiaonu quickly regained her composure. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, but the change in her expression didn't escape anyone's notice.
Moreover, Pang Yougong made his living by solving cases, so he immediately replied, "Men, arrest Feng Qixian and bring him to justice."
Yu Jiaonu panicked completely, "Why did you grab him?"
Meng Anci sneered, "We suspect that Zither Master Wu was killed by him, and you are taking the blame for him..."
Pang Yougong looked at the young man and thought to himself, "Who's talking to you like 'we'? You haven't even gotten rid of your crimes yet, and you're already acting like you're my colleague."