The first work of the imperial prison

On the mortuary table was a male corpse.

The body had been dead for many years at first glance, the fat and water had long since dissipated, and the body was shriveled, with bones covered under the skin, and the skin around the body was black. Judging from the body shape and characteristics, he was tall, with thick joints, and he should have been in the prime of life when he died. Leaning back slightly, with hands stretched forward naturally, this posture... seems to be floating in water.

Ye Baiting took a rough look and asked, "Where was the body found?"

Shanglu: "The brother who sent it said it was a swamp."

"There are not many swamps in the capital." Ye Baiting walked towards the corpse.

Shang Lu nodded: "Isn't that the reason? Our land is not a place where we are used to getting out of swamps. If you want to see swamps, you have to go south. I heard that there are many such things in Shu, Lingnan, and deep mountains. , Some of them have poisonous miasma, which we ordinary people in the capital can’t see, and the area is hundreds of miles away, counting all the nearby provinces and counties, there is only one place with swamps.”

"Oh?" Ye Baiting asked, "Where?"

Shang Lu: "You probably haven't been there before. I don't know. To the west of the outskirts of Beijing, surrounded by mountains, there is a hot spring belt. Many dignitaries and dignitaries in Beijing have set up villages there. There is water and hot springs. The terrain of that area It's different from other places. Going deep, there is a small swamp, which is famous far and wide. Everyone calls that place "ghosts come to collect", and usually no one goes there. This time it was a coincidence. I was collecting vegetables in the village, and I happened to take a short cut and passed by, so that I would not die, and if something fell into it, I had to find a way to hook it out, but this hook, well, one more person came out.”

If he wanted to change someone else, he was startled, scolded twice angrily, threw the body back and ignored it, and had nothing to say, but who called this brother Jin Yiwei?The pamphlet issued by the commander states that Jinyiwei is responsible for monitoring cases, and if they encounter an unknown corpse, they must follow the rules and enforce the law, first send it back to the department, and follow the procedure.

Shang Lu sighed again as he spoke: "It's been a month since the public notice was hung up, and no family members have identified the body. After a year, we'll have to deal with it ourselves."

"He also has an ax birthmark behind his ear?"

"Yes, it's right here," Shang Lu said, gently moving the dead man's head down to let Ye Baiting see it more clearly, "Because of the color of the corpse, the birthmark is not so obvious, but you can still see it if you carefully identify it." clearly."

Ye Baiting saw the birthmark clearly, it was almost exactly the same as the one behind Zheng Hongchun's ear.

But what he paid more attention to was not the birthmark, but the mole between the eyebrows of the deceased.

Ma Xianglan said before that Zheng Hongchun's elder brother disappeared in the early years, and his family thought he was dead. No one was alive or dead. The biggest characteristic of this man is that there is a mole between his eyebrows, which is said to be a sign of good luck.

With the distinctive mole and the identical birthmark behind the ears, is the deceased on the mortuary the same as Zheng Hongfang?

It's a pity that there is no modern equipment, so I can't do a kinship test. Ye Baiting has the urge to identify Ma Chunlan's body immediately to confirm the identity of the deceased, but it can't be done. What if Ma Xianglan refuses to let the autopsy be done?

The corpse is now an unidentified corpse, unclaimed, and whose identity is unknown. The inspection standard can be based on Jin Yiwei's own rules.

"Prepare dissection tools."

"Yes!"

You see, this posture is about to be autopsyed, and Shanglu is in a good mood. He usually looks like an old man who is lazy, but now he runs faster than anyone else. He hugged the small box and asked the question: "Accordingly This corpse has been soaked in water for many years, shouldn't it have been rotted long ago, why is it preserved so well?"

"General corpses entering water will indeed accelerate the degree of corruption, but you also said that this is dug out of the swamp. The swamp and water are not the same thing."

Ye Baiting observed the dead body carefully, and said: "Swamp, also called acid swamp, is mostly formed by meadows, low-lying land due to slope and soil viscosity, poor water drainage, or difficulty in infiltration, accumulating a large amount of peat, and the acidity inside is very high. High, this acid will quickly infect the corpse, causing the skin of the corpse to turn black, and form a leathery substance...not only will it not accelerate the decay of the corpse, but it will have a strong protective effect."

Shanglu's eyes widened: "There is such a thing!"

Ye Baiting pursed his lips: "Otherwise, where do you think that dignitaries have so many ways to prevent corpses from decaying?"

It is nothing more than observing nature, imitating nature, and accumulating after long-term experimental experience.The materials and methods used may be different, but the goal is the same. In short, a place like a swamp has special significance for the preservation of corpses. When he was in school, he followed a research project with his tutor. The corpse stayed in a swamp for 1000 hours. Years later, the integrity is still pretty good.

Shanglu put down the box and prepared the dissection tools: "But this corpse is not all black. If you look closely at the face, neck, and chest, there seems to be traces of blue..."

"Blue is right."

Another common point is related to this case. It would be even more exciting if it was a murderer. Lou Kai was not the first victim, this is!

However, just as Ye Baiting put on his gloves, took over the scalpel, and just as he lowered his head to make a move, the door was pushed open.

"The poison was found."

It was Qiu Xunqing, holding two things in his hand, one was obviously the investigation file handed over by Jin Yiwei, with special marks on it, and the other, no matter how it was folded or the characteristics of the paper, Ye Baiting was more familiar with, it was his The note that is often used is passed to the jailer Xiang Zi'an.

"Found it?" He straightened up, "What is it?"

Qiu Yiqing: "It is an evergreen fir tree with a stretched crown. It is an ancient tree that grows in the colder northern land. Due to the special environment, it is rare. Except for the fruit, the whole body is highly poisonous. With a certain hallucinogenic effect, after the poison is fatal, the face, neck, and chest will turn dark blue, and the dose of the poison will adjust the speed of death, and there is no antidote."

Ye Baiting felt that he didn't finish his words: "Is there any more?"

Qiu Yiqing held up the note sent by Xiang Zi'an: "The leaves of this fir tree soaked in water and taken in water will not only cause hallucinations, but also cause certain convulsions in the body...there is an abortion effect."

The fir tree, whose skin turns blue after being poisoned, was once used as an abortion drug...

Ye Baiting suddenly slipped a poison in his mind, English yew leaf!

It's this kind of poison, why did he forget it, the toxicology teacher has mentioned it emphatically!The main toxin of yew is taxine, which has a certain effect on calming the myocardium. At present, some laboratories are doing anti-cancer research...

It was this!

"There are leaves in Lou Kai's stomach that are similar to tea leaves, so the poison used by the murderer in this case should be cedar leaves?"

"good."

"The tree that grows in the colder places in the north..." Ye Baiting frowned, "How did the murderer get it? And it has the effect of slipping tires, so it's even more subtle."

Qiu Xunqing looked at the corpse on the stage and replaced it with another one, which he had never seen before: "Is there any gain from the autopsy?"

Ye Baiting's eyes were bright: "Yes! It's a very big harvest!"

But before he finished speaking, another messenger rushed in from outside, saying that he had brought it for Shen Baihu. He found the suspected poisonous thing, and it was at Sheng Long's place!

"Sheng Long?" Ye Baiting paused, "Does she have poison?"

"Mr., that's right, Shen Baihu has been found!"

Qiu Yiqing looked down at Ye Baiting: "Go and see?"

Ye Baiting thought for a while, put down the scalpel, and took off the gloves: "Well, go and have a look first."

The corpse is here, and it can't escape. It can be tested at any moment sooner or later. The suspect is different. If it is ignored or missed, a lot of evidence will be covered up. And if this key poison is found, where is the source?Sheng Long is just a boudoir girl, someone has to find and buy for her, so the Sheng family needs to do some investigation...

The two walked out of the room, and as soon as they arrived at the yard, Qiu Xunqing pointed to his lips and whistled long.

"Tat-tat-tat-"

A black and majestic horse ran over. It was black all over, with only a white patch on the forehead and between the brows, pointed ears, and smooth and beautiful muscles. It seemed to be full of strength. Want to take a belt, the spirit is not enough.

Ye Baiting knew it, it was Qiu Yiqing's horse, he had ridden it before.

But... It seems that not everyone wants to take it with him. The horse ran over, because it was too fast, and was afraid that it would hurt someone or himself. Jin Yiwei stopped him, and the horse rushed at him unceremoniously After snorting, he almost raised both front hooves, and his temper was quite violent.

But when it came to Qiu Yiqing, it was very obedient, so it slowed down by itself, came over slowly, sniffed Ye Baiting, rubbed Ye Baiting's hand, saw that he was not moving, it didn't do it anymore, took it Head on his shoulders.

Ye Baiting: ...

Why do you feel like you met another Xuanfeng?

Chou Yiqing was more straightforward than the horse, he grabbed Ye Baiting's waist and pushed him up, and the two sat on the horse: "Let's go."

As if the horse understood the words, it jumped out of the gate very fast!Ye Baiting didn't react, and leaned against Qiu Yiqing's chest!

Qiu Suqing paused: "This is faster."

"I know……"

Knowing is knowing, whether you are used to it or not is another matter, the leader is indeed vigorous and resolute, speed and efficiency are always the first pursuit!

The sound of horseshoes, the sound of wind, the sound of bells... the sound was endless, and the whole journey was fast. Ye Baiting was not very familiar with riding a horse, and his legs were a little weak when he arrived at Sheng's house.

Qiu Yiqing patted the horse's head, and handed it to Jin Yiwei who came up to meet him: "Xuan Guang likes you."

"Xuan... light?"

Ye Baiting realized that this was Ma'er's name, which was the same as Xuanfeng's, and was of the same generation as Xuanfeng.

Qiu Yiqing blocked the young man's eyes from looking straight at the horse: "Let's go, the business is important."

"Ah."

The two walked in through the gate, and felt a very different atmosphere. The environment was too quiet and silent, and the more they walked, the more depressing it was, exactly the same as the first time they went to Lu Wang's Mansion.

Looking at the passing terrain, building architecture, and geographical location, Sheng Long, as the "favored daughter" of the family, does not live in the best place, and it is even a bit out of the way. The west wall of the courtyard is the street.

The Sheng family knew that the commander of the Jinyiwei was coming, and everyone was very nervous. The head of the family was not there, and the housekeeper took the lead to greet him. Qiu Yiqing just nodded and did not stop. When it comes to handling affairs, the Sheng family just needs to cooperate.

finally come!

Shen Jiang in the room heard the movement, couldn't hold it back, and rushed out to meet his boss.

He found out that the poison was really a coincidence. According to the commander's intention, he checked the suspect's timeline outside. The two little girls in Lu Wang's mansion were not very cooperative, or they were cooperative. He answered all questions, see He looks very good and has a good attitude, but basically the answer to all questions is three words: I don't know.Zhu Yue said that she had been guarding the spirit of her father all night, and Zheng Baiwei said that she had been guarding the spirit with Zhu Yue all night, and the two of them hadn't gone anywhere, not to mention the gate, they had never been out of the two gates of the palace.

After finding Yan Rouman, Yan Rouman said that she was too busy these few days, and she didn't even have time to eat and drink. I can't tell the timeline, so let him ask the person in charge below to confirm, anyway, when will she What she did, what she wanted to do, and what appointments she had, were all arranged by the manager. She had gone to too many places, and she couldn't remember them all.

Shen Jiang asked her, the deceased Zheng Hongchun flirted around yesterday, and he didn't miss you. He said he would look for you at night... and said that he was not suspected and knew nothing?

Yan Rouman rolled her eyes at him directly, saying that women are so good at coaxing people, do you believe it?

In short, the whole work process was not smooth, and he was in a very unhappy mood. He observed and sorted out carefully, and recorded everyone's timeline, about what they were doing during a certain period of time. At this stop, they came to Sheng's house and asked Sheng Long.

The entire Sheng family was lifeless, no different from the previous Prince Lu's Mansion, and the living people didn't make much noise. Before that, he wondered why the family was so quiet because the son was used to playing People, the mansion is always full of violence and coercion, how can it be lively, aren't you afraid of being implicated and punished?

The Sheng family is probably the same, like a pool of stagnant water, where live fish would suffocate.

He found Sheng Long and asked about yesterday's timeline as usual, where he went and what he did from yesterday afternoon to this morning.

Sheng Long's performance was as usual, her posture was elegant, her face was quiet and beautiful, she was very cooperative, she said that she was very tired after coming back from the palace, and she didn't force herself to do other things, so she rested after eating...

Just after saying a few words, without even explaining in detail the alibi, the cabinet in the corner of the room was suddenly knocked open.

It turned out that a cat got into it at some unknown time. The little white cat probably fell asleep and clawed its paws to come out. But when it opened the cabinet door accidentally, it brought out a small white porcelain bottle. The porcelain bottle fell to the ground and shattered instantly, and the contents spilled out with an extremely crisp sound.

The cat was taken aback at first, but then couldn't resist the natural curiosity, jumped to the ground, picked up the spilled, leaf-like things, and wanted to bite.

"Do not move!"

Sheng Long suddenly reacted very violently, not only scolded the cat sharply, but also went to drive the little thing away in person, and cleaned up the leaves on the ground through the silk handkerchief.

Shen Jiang felt strange, in this case, if there were a woman with a bad temper, there was, but Sheng Long definitely wasn't, she just knocked over a bottle, why was she so sensitive?

He walked over to take a look, only to find that the leaves were strangely shaped and familiar, but he couldn't remember when he had seen them before, so he subconsciously reached out and picked one up——

With a "pop", Sheng Long slapped it down hard.

Shen Jiang narrowed his eyes: "What is this?"

Sheng Long lowered her eyes, and continued to carefully clean up the leaves on the ground through the silk handkerchief: "Shen Baihu should not touch the things in my daughter's house."

Shen Jiang really didn't recognize the leaves at first, but he was more familiar with the broken leaves than the complete ones. When Sheng Long quickly packed up the whole leaves and saw the pieces underneath, he immediately remembered that he really I've seen this thing!Young Master Jiao was cut out from the stomach of the deceased Lou Kai!

So this is the poison!

"Do you know what it is?" Shen Jiang stared at Sheng Long's expression, "That's why you don't let others or cats touch it?"

Sheng Long: "What are you talking about? I don't understand."

Shen Jiang narrowed his eyes: "Do you understand or not, you will know if you try it? Do you want me to find a cat or dog?"

Sheng Long didn't speak any more, as if he had been caught and was irrefutable.

Of course, Shen Jiang couldn't let it go, and immediately arranged for the people below to report back to Beizhen Fusi, and tried to ask the commander and Young Master Jiao to come over, while personally watching Sheng Long to prevent the suspect from doing other things.

Sheng Long knew that she had been discovered and what it meant, but she was able to hold her breath, she didn't object, she didn't speak, she put the leaves that she had just packed on the table, she should watch a play, she should Drink tea, drink tea, it's time to eat snacks...it seems to be fine.

All the elders like Shen Jiang have been rectified.

Could it be that he was wrong?Did you wrong the good guy again this time?

Fortunately, Young Master Jiao will never let him down, and he really came here with a commander!

Facing a little girl, it's not too light to be too serious, she can't go to the board to beat her up and ask someone to recruit her, Shen Jiang really has nothing to do, she can't do this job!

"You guys are finally here!"

Shen Jiang took the small bottle of leaves on the table, opened it for Ye Baiting to see: "Young master, look at this, is it something in Lou Kai's stomach!"

Ye Baiting recognized it immediately: "Not bad."

It is the English yew.

He looked at Sheng Long: "Do you know this is poison?"

The Commander of Jin Yiwei arrived, Sheng Long didn't dare to neglect, and got up from the table by the window: "I know."

The courtyard is not that big, the building is a bit old, and it is bleak in winter, and there is no good view from the window. The room is also small, and when there are too many people, it will become cramped, which is very unsuitable for a young girl.

The girl herself doesn't care about it, or she has already gotten used to it, her eyebrows are like pear blossoms that quietly bloom in the years and wither silently: "This substance is very poisonous, very similar to tea, if you take too much, you will die immediately."

"Is this your thing?"

"Yes."

"Where did you get it?"

"I asked my servants to set it up."

"Which servant, where did it come from?"

"My personal servant girl, who reached her age last year, was sent out to marry someone," Sheng Long said calmly, "As for where she bought it from, I don't know, and she probably won't know if she is found, because she is all from the inner house. , Tossing and turning outside to inquire about the news, I don’t know who has passed one by one, and who is selling it, I can’t find out.”

There was no need for others to ask, Sheng Long said by himself: "Although I bought it, I haven't used it. I bought it early and planned to put it in the dowry. When I get married to the palace, it will be used by that beast. Who would have thought that the bastard would die before the marriage was consummated, and this thing is useless, so it can only be put away."

Ye Baiting narrowed his eyes: "You are going to kill Lu Wang's son——in the wedding night in the bridal chamber."

Sheng Long just laughed, his eyebrows and eyes were infinitely cold: "Shouldn't such a beast deserve to die?"

Qiu Yiqing said: "You can also choose to do it when you are not married, and you don't have to break yourself."

Will a woman who freely enters and exits Prince Lu's mansion every day and is treated differently by the crown prince, have the chance to poison her and pay for her entire life?

"Men in the world are all fickle, no matter you are a mother, a first wife, or the biological mother of your children, as long as they don't care, they don't have to care. I would rather be a widow than spend time in the boudoir, waiting for a man who doesn't know what kind of man, and marrying in a hurry gone."

Sheng Long has her own plans and ideas: "The Prince Lu's Mansion without the heir is very good. There are no parents-in-law to wait on, and they are not the thorn in the eyes of others like before. If you manage well, you will have a good life in the future, and your sister's children are also very good. , I want to watch them grow up for my sister, get married and have children, until I die of old age."

For some reason, these words must be lifeless in the eyes of ordinary people, and they need criticism and encouragement, but when Sheng Long said these words, there was light in his eyes, as if this was what she could pursue. The most perfect life.

Qiu Xunqing: "Where were you last night, what did you do, is there anyone to prove it?"

Sheng Long: "I came back from the palace yesterday afternoon and felt very tired, so I didn't force myself to do other things. I rested after eating and didn't leave the room... If you have any questions, you can ask the people in the mansion. people."

"Do you know that Zheng Hongchun is dead?"

"Shen Baihu has such a great official authority, and when he comes here, he asks questions and reads things, so he knows it."

"Are you familiar with the deceased?"

"It's hard to say that we are acquainted," Sheng Long said with a faint brow, "Zheng Hongchun is a slippery philistine, he can't walk when he sees a better-looking woman, and he dares to talk to other people regardless of their wife or lady. When he was talking...you should have seen it, I saw you standing far away from the crowd."

Speaking of this, Sheng Long paused for a moment, and suddenly smiled: "It's strange that you came to look for me. Isn't the person who should be looking for me the most now, isn't Team Leader Yan? Before the man left yesterday, he even shouted to Team Leader Yan, saying that he would wait for me at night. Watch her, so she must not be late..."

Ye Baiting noticed her expression, and suddenly asked: "Are you familiar with Team Leader Yan?"

Sheng Long's voice was still calm: "It's not familiar, I've heard of some things."

Ye Baiting and Qiu Yiqing looked at each other.

The case has been handled so far, but the truth has not yet come out. I have heard a few stories, and they are very touching. Now it is okay to hear one more...

The murderer's ultimate motive may be hidden in each of these stories.

"What has Miss Sheng heard? It just so happens that I have time today, why don't you tell me?"

"If you really want to hear..."

Sheng Long laughed, invited the three of them to sit by the window, and ordered the servants to serve tea: "I'll gossip about other people's right and wrong behind their backs."

"This class leader Yan is actually a pitiful person. Everyone who saw her thought she was flamboyant, playing around in the world, not taking men seriously, and not taking herself seriously, belittled at will, but No one has ever thought about whether she is really willing to be like this?"

Sheng Long's voice was soothing and light, like pear blossoms blooming in April, with a kind of tranquil beauty: "She lost her father since she was a child, and was raised by her widowed mother. Young, but not in good health, how do you live?"

"Her mother is willing to do anything to support her. When there is no food and rice, she can be dragged into the house by any man. But her mother has no knowledge. She has lived a miserable life, and she still thinks that women are like this. You should not expect anything else, teach your daughter how to be careful, learn how to speak from others, and how to dress yourself. Yan Rouman wants to learn to read, but she won't let her. No matter what she does, she won't let her do it, saying that a woman's lack of talent is virtue, and the most important thing is to find a man to marry. .”

"Her mother sees her very strictly. Whenever she wants to learn those 'useless things', she will be beaten. She must learn to speak, what kind of man she meets, what kind of words, how to speak and behave to let her Her mother thinks it's useful for a man to pity her. It's not that her mother doesn't love her daughter. She can accept "that kind of business" by herself, but it's not okay for a customer to reach out to her daughter. She will strictly stop it, and she will desperately , because a daughter must be chaste, but if a man just says a few words to tease her daughter, she doesn't care. She thinks that her daughter needs to grow up, and she has to learn how to deal with men. As long as it's not too much, just touch it, no Whether it hurts or not, and you can’t die, there’s no need to worry about it.”

"But how did she know that what she sees in her eyes is not all. When she turned away and couldn't see, other people's actions would not be so 'gentleman'."