The first work of the imperial prison

Of course, you can't take it for granted when handling a case. All reasoning and guessing must have factual evidence.

Ying Baisu, the married woman who was brought home by the Marquis of Ying Gong, whether she also took a lunch break after eating, or whether she fell asleep so deeply that she needed someone to wake her up, Qiu Xunqing has already sent someone to check.

As for Mrs. Cai, because they were very close, Ye Baiting directly asked her close maid, Xiao Xing: "Did your wife go to bed after lunch?"

Xiao Xing nodded: "Yes, I slept very deeply, so the servant girl was relieved to do other things, but I don't know when Madam woke up and why she fainted again."

Cai's face was ashamed: "Sorry, I caused you trouble."

The prince frowned when he saw Cai, and when he saw the wound on her forehead and the clothes on her body, he wanted to ask: "Why are you here?"

Mrs. Cai also knew that this was the eldest son of the mansion after listening to the questioning in front of her. She should call her eldest brother, and saluted: "Something happened at home, someone died, I thought I killed it..."

"Nonsense!" Shizi immediately shook his sleeves, as if very angry.

Shen Jiang became curious: "Why are you talking nonsense? Don't you think Mrs. Cai will kill people?"

Prince: "Of course she won't kill people. There won't be such a thing in our house. One family, why is there so much resentment!"

Shen Jiang narrowed his eyes: "But your third younger brother and sister, Lu Shi, just told us directly that your third younger brother and this second sister-in-law have something to do."

The prince frowned even deeper: "But how can you trust a woman's pretentious words? How could there be such filth in the mansion of my marquis? I will never allow murders to occur in my family. Usually small quarrels, everyone will Yes, it's normal, but with me watching, the conflict in the family will never rise to this point, if there is any serious hatred, it would have happened long ago, why wait until now?"

He took a deep breath and looked at Shen Jiang with a sincere expression: "The rumors are unbelievable. Everyone knows the third brother. Some are ignorant and can't figure it out. The second brother and sister always know the general situation. You said she didn't hold back and taught me a lesson in private. The third younger brother, I believe, but she probably won't kill people."

It's a pity that the next moment, Cai slapped him in the face: "It's not necessarily...I don't remember anything now."

"Don't remember?" The prince looked at Cai's expression and was very surprised, "What do you mean you don't remember?"

Cai: "It seems that I fainted for a while. When I woke up, I completely forgot. I didn't even know who I was."

Shizi frowned slightly: "How could it be...so?"

Cai shook her head: "I don't know either."

The prince thought for a while and asked Qiu Xunqing: "Dare to ask the commander, how did my third younger brother die?"

Qiu Yiqing answered skillfully: "When the envoy arrived, he was hanging on the beam inside."

"Isn't that suicide?" The son immediately said, "If so, our government can solve it by itself, and it's good to hang up the funeral."

Qiu Yiqing: "Whether it is true or not, after Jin Yiwei investigates, he should explain it to the prince."

The atmosphere here seems a little heavy, too quiet.

Ye Baiting then said again: "The timeline that Shizi just mentioned needs to be clear and clear. I want to ask, you finished your business and went home for dinner. There was no special event during the dinner. The atmosphere was the same as usual. room to rest, but that’s the case?”

"Yes."

"Whoever leaves first, who is last, does your son know?"

"The second younger sibling seemed a little unwell, so she got up first to resign, and then the third younger brother, both of them left, and the elder sister didn't stay any longer, and then the third younger sibling also left quickly, leaving only my wife and I in the main courtyard. There is a father. My father is old and has a regular lunch break. He left soon. I waited for my wife to order the servants to clean up the table, and after explaining a few things, I went back to the yard with my wife."

Ye Baiting memorized this timeline, the order in which everyone left, and continued to ask: "You know that you slept deeply, so you may be sure about your wife's status?"

The prince thought for a while: "I was awakened by a servant, and she woke up after pushing her twice. In the past, she would not have slept so deeply."

"Where's the old Hou? How did you sleep?"

"I came over from the main courtyard just now, and I greeted my father specially, and he was indeed in a deep sleep."

"What about the conditions of the courtyards today, have there been any accidents, special movements?"

"No," Shizi shook his head, "We are all old, we feel light, and we basically leave no one around when we rest, and the yard is very quiet."

There's no one in the yard, it's very quiet...

Ye Baiting raised his eyes: "Is it possible that any of you have been out of the yard in the middle, but no one knows?"

Shizi: "This...should be very unlikely."

"Why?"

"People like us, no matter how quiet they are, they don't like to be disturbed by servants, and they don't like to keep people around, so we should keep at least one person on duty. We can't always get what we want by ourselves. When we leave the small courtyard, people come outside. Coming and going, everyone has their own work to do... I know what your Excellency is asking, but the possibility of this is very small, no matter who we are, it is impossible for no one to see us when we leave the yard."

Qiu Xunqing: "So you think your third brother's death was an accident?"

"This... didn't the commander just say that he was hanged on the beam of the house," Shizi looked at the door, trying to see clearly, but the room was dim and the angle was wrong, so he couldn't see clearly, "Isn't it suicide?" ?”

Qiu Xunqing didn't answer and asked instead: "The deceased recently, has anyone had any enemies?"

The crown prince shook his head: "I've been very busy recently. I have too many things on hand, so I don't care much about my family. I really don't know what the third child is busy with or what troubles I have these days."

Ye Baiting asked again: "Today's family reunion, who arranged the reunion dinner?"

"My wife. She is the one who takes care of everything in the family, and you have to take care of everything." Shizi also knew what the other party was asking, and added, "But it's just an arrangement, and it's impossible to do everything by myself."

Ye Baiting looked at him: "But today is different. Is it a birthday party, or is it a date that has been set in advance, the agreed time, the ingredients of the dishes...the list will probably be made in advance?"

Shizi nodded: "Yes."

Ye Baiting: "Except Madam Zun, who can touch these things?"

"Then there are only servants?" The son came to his senses, as if he felt reasonable, "Could it be that the servants killed the third younger brother?"

Ye Baiting was not sure, and asked again: "Is there any conflict between the respected lady and the deceased?"

The crown prince frowned, and was very sure: "No, my wife is virtuous and virtuous, behaves well, and will never have conflicts with others, especially family members. Even if I occasionally reprimand my third brother, it is only for his own good, never There was an overstepping the norm."

"Train him?"

"This..." Shizi sighed for a long time, "The third brother didn't like reading since he was a child, he didn't learn to do calculations, and he didn't even know how to take care of common affairs, let alone doing business? Young, with a chance for the prodigal son to return, it's a pity to be so wasteful, my wife only occasionally sighs."

Ye Baiting and Qiu Yiqing looked at each other, knowing in their hearts that some too deep information would inevitably be difficult to get out, and they had to wait for the follow-up investigation and interview, so they turned around and asked, "The deceased husband and wife don't seem to have a good relationship?"

Prince: "Yes."

"Why?"

"It's not fate, the two of them are a pair of resentful couples."

"Why?"

"There's nothing to hide." The prince paused, and then sighed again, "Blind and dumb marriages need more or less adjustment. Some people have made it through and live a harmonious life. Some people have a strong temper, so this road will go smoothly." It's not easy, the third brother and sister had quarreled before they got married, and the two of them didn't cultivate their relationship after marriage, they always quarreled, the elders on both sides tried to persuade them, but it still didn't work..."

Speaking of this, Xichang Changgongban and An laughed: "If you talk about this aspect, who can compare to you, Shizi?"

Ye Baiting looked at Ban and An.

Ban and An took a step forward: "The eldest son and the honored wife have similar family backgrounds. They grew up playing together since they were young. They were childhood sweethearts and childhood sweethearts. After they got married, they raised their eyebrows and respected each other like guests. To this day, it is a good story in the capital. Everyone is so envious. "

The prince cupped his hands and smiled for the first time: "It's just luck."

He had already seen Mr. Xichang who was standing on the side. Someone like Mr. Mr. Chang could not have come to the mansion for anything other than looking for him, so he took the opportunity to bow his hands at Qiu Suqing: " Jin Yiwei has its own procedures for handling cases, so I don't want to intervene, but that's all I know. Since the incident happened in my mansion, the whole mansion will do their best to cooperate. If there are no more questions now... can I invite the factory Would you like to take a step to speak?"

Qiu Yiqing still has the same attitude. The case is not clear and the evidence is not abundant. Even if he is a criminal suspect, he should have freedom: "My son, please go ahead."

Ban Hean also smiled at Ye Baiting: "Let's excuse me for a moment."

In short, everyone is nearby, so they can't run, it's impossible to run, Jin Yiwei just follow his own work flow, there's nothing to worry about.

The invited doctor also arrived soon, just by looking at the white beard on his chin, he knew that he must have good medical skills, so Qiu Xunqing arranged for someone to accompany Mrs. Cai to a spare room to see a doctor.

On the other side, the person who went to the big aunt Ying Baisu's side to ask questions also came back, and said that she went back after lunch, but she didn't go out, she went to bed and took a rest for lunch, she was also in a deep sleep, and she was woken up by the servants when something happened , but for some reason, she is not in a good condition, her spleen and stomach are not in harmony, she is vomiting, and it is not convenient to come to answer, please ask Jin Yiwei to help me with a message, if you have any questions, can you send someone to ask.

Qiu Yiqing immediately pointed to Shen Jiang: "You go in person."

Shin Kang: "Yes!"

Everyone was busy, and Ye Baiting and Qiu Yiqing seemed to be free. They looked at each other with a tacit understanding - and then looked at the scene of the crime.

The conditions at the scene were insufficient, and the body of the deceased could only be subjected to a rough inspection. More detailed results had to be brought back for careful inspection after the on-site inspection was completed. What needed more observation and understanding was still the scene itself.

While the Jin Yiwei soldiers were staring at the scene and drawing pictures, their brushes were flying fast, Ye Baiting and Qiu Yiqing approached the place where the deceased had just hung in the air, wanting to understand how the murderer operated.

Dead bodies are heavy, dragging is easy, but moving is difficult. How did the murderer hang the dead in mid-air?

Definitely have to use tools.

The first thing Ye Baiting checked was the rope. This is a piece of hemp rope with very good toughness and good load-bearing capacity. It is twisted into four strands and is relatively thick. It doesn't look like something from the study, it should be brought in from the outside——

"The murderer's goal is very direct, that is, to kill people. The thickness and length of the rope are very suitable, and there are no traces of freshness in the middle and the end, just cut and trimmed."

Qiu Yiqing tiptoed and jumped onto the beam: "The dust on the beams and pillars has obvious traces of rubbing, some blur, but not wide - if it is an ordinary suicide, the traces will probably be like this."

There were no traces of rubbing dust on a large area, no grooves, or any leverage devices, indicating that the murderer hadn't moved his mind on this aspect.

Ye Baiting pondered: "If it's not above, then it's below."

They checked the round stool for the feet. If it was a suicide, they stepped on the round stool and then kicked it down. No matter the height and direction, it was suitable and there was no problem.

Not a stool, what about a table?

Ye Baiting looked around the whole room. The study room is very big. The round stool matches the round table on one side. It is a set. The height of the table must be higher than the stool. It is not suitable for people to step on it and hang themselves. It is slightly higher, but if... it is made What about auxiliary tools?

Qiu Xunqing also thought of this, and immediately went to the round table, checked the tablecloth first, there was no trace, then lifted the tablecloth off, and checked it up and down carefully, still there was no trace, it was clean.

"Not this." He shook his head.

Ye Baiting also agrees, first of all, the area of ​​the round table is enough, the height is enough, but it is a little small, it is not convenient to operate, and when he just did the autopsy, he found that the corner of the deceased's lapel was snagged, and the traces of snagging were very new, it is very likely Related to his death, if the round table was used as a tool, it is impossible to see nothing.

"It must be in this room..."

Must be somewhere, they didn't notice.

Ye Baiting was looking at the room when he suddenly paused and looked at Chou Yiqing. Chou Yiqing obviously noticed it too. He took a step ahead of him and walked to the position next to the west wall. There was a long desk.

The desk is narrow and long, with a length of seven feet and a width of two feet and two inches. It is more than enough for one person to lie on, and it is taller than the round table just now.Ye Baiting didn't see any chairs, probably this desk is not for sitting, but for people standing to practice calligraphy or draw.

He and Qiu Yiqing didn't notice this place just now, because the desk was too narrow and looked too thin, but in fact, it was shaken vigorously. It is inconvenient to take it and use it, it is troublesome.

Observing carefully now, I found something wrong. The desk was messy. It looked as if it was being used before. The owner interrupted and left, keeping it as it was at that time. It was chaotic and orderly. place.

Ye Baiting: "The prince said that the deceased didn't like to learn things. There are a bunch of miscellaneous books on it, as well as random writing and two paintings. Why is there still "Historical Records"?"

It's normal to have this kind of book on the bookshelf in the study room. There are always some things to decorate the appearance, but when you take it out and read it, you even read half of it and put it on the book case casually, which is not like the behavior of the deceased.

So it must be man-made, someone deliberately put it in this way, the purpose is obvious, to confuse the view - this is not a very convenient thing to use, and it has to be put back in the same way after use, how troublesome is it?

"The case was probably empty before."

"Or, there are only a few things in Liao Liao, and the murderer deliberately added things in to confuse the effect."

It's a pity that I still made a mistake and added something that shouldn't be added.

Qiu Xunqing personally went to Jin Yiwei to find a pen and paper, carefully drew the book case, including the books on it, and the small traces, and then started, and emptied the book case one by one, showing its original appearance.

The desk that was removed was also very clean, with no blood or special traces, as if nothing had happened, but——

Ye Baiting lightly rubbed the surface with his fingers, twisted his fingertips, and sniffed again: "Is it a little wet?"

There are no obvious water stains. Only by touching it with your fingers and sniffing carefully can you detect the subtle difference in taste, which is different from ordinary dry desktops.

"And here—" Qiu Yiqing's eyes fell to a few corners of the case, and the lower part of the case, "Come and see."

Ye Baiting walked over, and saw a section of silk thread hooked off, very conspicuous, it was the material of the white underwear worn by the deceased today.

So this is undoubtedly an auxiliary tool.

"Push it over and try?"

"it is good."

The two pushed the desk together to the middle of the study, while paying attention to the traces it left behind.

The table is very narrow, and one person can lift it up, but it is too long, so it is easier to push it when it is actually used. The study of the third master of the Hou Mansion is decorated with good materials and the floor tiles are of good quality. There are no traces, at most it is just drag marks where the dust has been pulled away.

When they reached the hanging position of the deceased, the two stopped and stepped back to observe.

With the book case, the height is even higher. The deceased only needs to sit on the book case, or lift it a little, to touch the rope hanging from the beam. It is easy to let it fall down and operate the action of hanging on the beam.

If it was a man, it would be easy to complete, and it is not impossible for women. The corpse can be dragged on the ground, dragged, and carried to the desk. It only takes a moment of exertion. The deceased was not tall and thin. Less than 130 catties, women are not strong enough, but it is not too difficult to do this.

"The murderer has plenty of time." Ye Baiting looked at the book case, "Go into the study, strangle the deceased, remove the things on the book case, push them to this position, and use them to easily hang the deceased on the beam, and then push them back , put the things on the desk back to their original places, or add a few more things, the whole process didn't have a single extra movement, the murderer was very calm."

Qiu Suiqing's head: "Either I am very familiar with this place, or I have demonstrated it many times in my mind, the plan is sufficient, and I know this time to start, there is enough time, and no one will see it."

So here's the question, what was the killer's path of entry and exit, and why wasn't he seen?When Cai ran out of the study, she would be seen by the servant girl, who would scream in fright. Why did no one know the murderer came and went?

Speaking of Cai, the wound on her forehead is too obvious, and she still has a dagger in her hand. If no one else nearby had a similar wound at the same time, then she was the one who was there at the time. When did she come?Is she a murderer?If not, when did she come in, before or after the murderer did it?The servant girl only saw her run out, but she didn't see when she came in.

She doesn't remember what she said now, when did this 'don't remember' accident happen?Who knocked her head against the wall?The murderer or the dead?Was it her intention to enter this study?Or did something else happen before she came in and she had to come?

I feel like there are a lot of things to check in this case.

Ye Baiting and Qiu Yiqing didn't stay in the room for a long time, when they came out, the old doctor just came out after seeing Mrs. Cai.

"I've seen the commander." The old doctor saluted with his hands clasped.

Qiu Yiqing raised her hand: "How is her condition?"

Old husband: "There are indeed some problems, not like lying. This old man has seen this kind of disease. It is usually caused by accidentally ingesting a special poison, or a severe impact on the back of the head. The patient behaves like the latter, and it is not that he has not recovered. Possibly, but when and whether it can be recovered, the old man is not sure."

"Possible to determine when the onset of the disease?"

"According to the performance, it should have been not long ago."

He was fine during lunch, but something happened after the lunch break in the hospital. No matter how you think about it, it was all related to the murder case.

"It's your job."

"You're welcome, the prescription has already been prepared, if you have any questions later, just come and find the old man."

On the other side, the prince had a conversation with the factory owner, Ban Hean, and they both had something to do, so they came over to say goodbye. Ban and An's very kind Ye Baiting said goodbye, and didn't say anything about seeing each other again, but Ye Baiting just felt that they would See you again, this one, Mr. Bidongchang is not too comfortable to get along with.

The son didn't have time to accompany him anymore, so he called the housekeeper Xu Kai over, and pushed it to Qiu Yiqing: "He is familiar with all the affairs in the mansion, and if the commander has any doubts, feel free to do so."

Qiu Xunqing: "The envoy wants to take a look at the surrounding environment so that he can easily understand the entry and exit routes. I wonder if it is feasible?"

Jin Yiwei's action, if it can't be done, it has to be done. If you say no, they will also secretly investigate. Why bother?

Of course the crown prince smiled and said, "Commander, please go ahead."

Xu Kai also stepped forward to salute: "The villain serves you two."

So next, Qiu Yiqing took Ye Baiting together, and simply took a walk around the surrounding environment.

After all, it is the Hou Mansion, with a large area and many houses. The housekeeper Xu Kai dutifully introduced: "Two to the east, enter the big courtyard, one is the courtyard of the eldest son and the eldest lady, go inside, next to the old Hou Ye in the middle, and go outside. The second room lived in the courtyard of the second master. After the death of the second master, only the second wife lived alone. The west side also entered the courtyard in front and back. ...The house is very quiet during the day, few people visit the house, and at night, each courtyard will issue keys without interfering with each other..."

Ye Baiting listened and understood, the courtyard where the deceased lived was on the west side, and outside, let alone the study, he went directly to the outer courtyard: "So the courtyard of the deceased is a bit off?"

Xu Kai stood up respectfully with his arms tied: "If you want to say it's biased, it's Missy's yard that is biased."

"Oh? What's the explanation?" Isn't it close to the west, next to the old master?

Xu Kai lowered his eyebrows and lowered his eyes: "Although the yard is located in the inner part, it is also closest to the west outer wall. It is not quiet on weekdays, and you can hear the noise from outside the street."

Ye Baiting: "But she is a widow at home and cannot go out."

"Yes."

Qiu Yiqing was walking, suddenly stopped, turned to the rockery, took three steps forward, then three steps to the side, and pressed his big palm against a small stone in the corner: "What is this?"

Xu Kai paused for a moment: "The commander said this, isn't it a rockery? It's nothing unusual, if you want to see it, the villain will take you to the side, there is more—"

"No need."

Qiu Yiqing moved and pressed the big palm, the small stone retracted in response, there was a sudden noise in the rockery, the stone door opened, and there was a secret passage inside!

"That's what you said, nothing unusual?"

Ye Baiting was taken aback, there was a secret way?Generally, where there are secret passages, there must be cats hiding, so of course you have to go down and have a look!