Dream Broken You Pavilion

Yangcheng, the next day, in the back hall of the government office

As soon as Jing'er and Zhizhou sat down, they asked straight to the point: "My lord, when did you hear the outside rumors that Xiao Yuntian sold the iron ore to several blacksmiths?"

Chang Xichen said: "It was the morning of the next day after the case happened. The policeman heard about it and reported it, so the lower officials immediately sent someone to investigate."

Jing'er thought to herself: This Mr. Chang acts swiftly and resolutely.He asked again: "Excuse me, my lord, could you be with me when I went to investigate?"

Chang Xichen raised his forehead and said: "The lower officials personally brought people to investigate. At first, the master blacksmiths who received the goods were secretive and refused to say anything. Later, when they saw that the lower officials wanted to search, they knew they couldn't hide. So they told the truth, they said that someone knocked on the door in the middle of the night, and then the other party reported to their house that the iron ore from Fulong Mountain was delivered, and asked if they wanted it."

"They are all small households. Even if they smelt some iron, they still use old techniques. There are few and slow smelting. There are few iron mines in Hunan and they are controlled by the government. They only buy wrought iron on weekdays. Come back to make some rough ironware, but now iron ore is scarce, so naturally the tide rises, the blacksmiths are eager to have cheap iron ore, after all, the cost of iron ore is much cheaper than wrought iron, and now this product is delivered to your door , and the price is ridiculously low, they also hesitated, in the end some people wanted it, some people didn't want it, and those who didn't want it were threatened with a knife, but they bought it anyway. And those who bought iron ore didn't dare to say it what."

Jing'er asked: "Since it was all a sneaky transaction, why did it spread all over Yangcheng the next morning? Did it even reach your ears, my lord?"

Chang Xichen took a deep breath, stroked his beard and muttered, "Young Madam, what do you mean, someone deliberately spread the news?"

Jing'er smiled slightly, "Can you please ask the arrester who told you the news?"

"That's right, that's right," Chang Xichen hurriedly called out loudly: "Where's Da Chen? Quickly call Da Chen over."

The yamen servant outside the door answered "Yes."

After a while, a police officer ran all the way into the hall, clasped his fists and said, "My lord, do you have any orders for me to come here?"

Da Chen was in his twenties, dressed as a policeman, and looked very burly and strong.

Chang Xichen asked: "Da Chen, let me ask you, where did you get the news that Fulongshan sold the iron ore to the blacksmith shop?"

Da Chen thought for a while, and said: "That day when I went out early in the morning, I saw two men standing in front of my house muttering, and I didn't know what to say. "Iron ore smuggling in Fulong Mountain", because I heard about the robbery of the iron ore in Fulong Mountain the day before, so I paid attention to it and went up to ask them. They said that it was Xiaoyuntian who sold the iron ore It was privately sold to our small iron shop in Yangcheng, is it okay for the villain to hear it? So I came to tell the adults right away."

Jing'er looked at Chang Xichen, smiled slightly, and said, "My lord, isn't it a coincidence?"

Seeing that there was an ulterior motive in her smile, Chang Xichen nodded with a serious face, and then asked Da Chen: "Do you recognize these two?"

Da Chenzi replied: "One of them recognizes Liu Yang from Changle Town, and the other one seems to have seen it before, but he is not familiar with it, and his name is unknown."

Jing'er asked: "May I ask Butou Chen, when you went to inquire with the two of them, what expressions did they have?"

Da Chen said: "The villain asked them, and they told me. It seems that they don't have any expression."

Jing'er smiled slightly, but kept silent.

Chang Xichen also reacted, and said to him: "It seems that they are waiting for you to ask. Take someone to bring Liu Yang here. Remember, you are not allowed to say anything to them, let alone publicize it. Just quietly bring someone over to me."

Da Chen was slightly taken aback, then clasped his fists together and said, "Yes, my lord."

After Da Chen left, Chang Xichen revealed a look of guilt, and said: "If the young lady hadn't reminded me, the officials would have really neglected this matter."

Jing'er said: "The incident happened so suddenly, my lord didn't think it was normal for a while, Jing'er is an outsider, so a bystander will know."

Chang Xichen said gratefully, "Thank you, Young Madam, for your understanding. I don't know how the young Madam did the investigation yesterday?"

Jing'er said: "The same as what you found out, the goods received by the five companies were all delivered directly to the door, and they were all self-reported. There is no intention of shy away from it. The selling price is only [-]% of the normal transaction price. It can be said to be sold at a low price, my lord, if it is really Xiao Yuntian who secretly delivered the goods, traded them privately, and sold them if he had the goods, how could he be so courageous and dare to declare his family? Not only did he sell them at a low price, but he also sent them to you in Yangcheng? It’s just about to be delivered right under the nose of your Master Zhizhou.”

"Shang Wuyang's ten cartloads of goods were originally sent to Yangcheng Iron Smelter, but five cartloads were lost, but these five cartloads were sold to small iron shops at a low price. to do such inexplicable things."

Hearing this, Chang Xichen also found it inconceivable, "Young Madam, who do you think this Shang Wuyang has offended, and who would want to put him to death like this?"

As soon as Jing'er stretched out her hand to Xuelian behind her, Xuelian immediately took out some papers from her sleeve pocket and handed them to her. Jing'er put the papers gently on the table and said:

"My lord, this is what those blacksmiths described from their impressions, the appearance of the person who sold them the iron ore, and then we will draw the shadows and graphics. Look, is there anyone who knows?"

Chang Xichen took them and looked at them carefully one by one.

Jing'er said: "They all said that because it was late at night, they only saw those people wearing dark blue clothes, but they couldn't remember their faces clearly, so they could only draw as many as they could. And I heard that the few people who were injured when Xiao Yuntian robbed the goods The brother said that the other party was wearing dark green clothes. But Shang Wuyang and Xiao Yuntian's guards were all wearing black clothes."

"These people have very ugly faces." Chang Xichen took a picture on the table and said, "This person has a scar on his forehead."

Another photo was taken: "This person has a black mole under the corner of his eye, and the rest are plain with no obvious features."

Jing'er said: "My lord, please order someone to draw a few more copies of these pictures. This person, no matter whether he can find it or not, he still has to look for it. Don't make it public, just search in private."

Chang Xichen nodded and said, "Yes, I'll make arrangements for you now."

Jing'er said: "My lord, it is a serious crime to buy and sell iron ore in private. You have confiscated the iron ore from several blacksmiths. I see that the masters are trembling. I am afraid that you will detain them."

Chang Xichen said: "It used to be a big crime for both parties to buy and sell privately, but since the fight between Xiangguo and Chuanyang 20 years ago, the demand for weapons forging has gradually increased, and the official ones are not enough. The folk blacksmiths were activated, and everything was considered from the perspective of ensuring combat operations. Later, when blacksmiths bought iron ore privately, they just turned a blind eye. After all, the price of iron ore is getting more and more expensive. How much money? Even if you buy iron ore, how much can you buy? This confiscation of iron ore is the biggest punishment for them.”

Jing'er nodded silently.

……

After more than half an hour, Da Chen returned to the back hall and reported: "My lord, Liu Yang has been arrested."

Chang Xichen stood up and said to Jing'er: "Young Madam, let's meet Liu Yang in the front hall."

Jing'er forehead: "Okay."

In the lobby, after Chang Xichen sat at the table, Jing'er took a seat on the next chair.The master was sitting behind a small table beside him, readying his pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and the eight yamen servants on both sides of the hall were holding killing sticks, majestic and majestic.

With a solemn face, Chang Xichen patted the gavel heavily, and shouted in a deep voice, "Take Liu Yang!"

"mighty!"

"Go in!"

Liu Yang was pushed in by Chief Chen.

This Liu Yang was only a young man in his early twenties, with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks, thin and thin, only a pair of big eyeballs like goldfish eyes that almost burst out of the deep sockets.

"mighty!"

Shocked by the killing blow, he took two steps tremblingly, knelt on the ground with a "plop", and said tremblingly, "Little, I have seen adults."

Chang Xichen stared at him without anger, and shouted in a deep voice: "Who is in the hall, please report your name."

Liu Yang trembled, and replied: "Small, villain Liu, Liu Yang."

Chang Xichen asked: "Liu Yang, I'm asking you, why did you stand in front of the headhunter Chen's house a few days ago?"

Liu Yang's dead fish eyes flicked around in confusion, and said, "Little, little man, I don't remember, I'm afraid, I'm just passing by..."

"Passing by?" Chang Xichen snorted coldly: "Do you dare to say that you are just passing by? Liu Yang, do you still remember what you said in front of Chen Butou's door?"

Liu Yang said: "My lord, the little one, I don't remember the little one."

"Don't remember? Well, since you don't remember, I will let you remember it!" Chang Xichen stared and shouted: "Come on!"

The yamen servant under the hall shouted: "Here!"

Chang Xichen shouted: "Give me another [-] big boards!"

"Yes!"

Jing'er laughed secretly in her heart, if this person's small body was hit by a few boards, he would probably fall apart, but from his flustered eyes, Jing'er could tell that there was no need for thirty boards, this person was about to speak .

A yamen servant came up and pushed Liu Yang to the ground, and two boards more than ten feet long slapped him hard on his buttocks.

Every time Liu Yang was hit, he let out a scream, and after only seven or eight hits, he was out of his wits, weeping and begging for mercy: "My lord, my lord, don't hit me, the villain said, the villain said..."

Chang Xichen said in a deep voice: "Say! Otherwise, you will be punished."

Liu Yang got up on his knees, shaking his hands desperately: "There is no need for severe punishment to wait on, there is no need for severe punishment, my lord, the villain can say anything..."

He was trembling all over, and said tremblingly: "That day, the villain was playing in the Xifeng Tower in the city, and he came out just after dawn. He was a friend of the villain's town. Ge Sanxi, he asked me if I recognized the people in the yamen, and I said I recognized Chen Butou's house, he gave me some money, told me a few words, and asked me to take him to Chen Butou's door, the villain For the sake of money, I agreed, so I did as he said."

Chang Xichen asked sharply, "What did he tell you?"

Liu Yangdao: "He said, 'I saw that the iron ore in Fulong Mountain was secretly sold by Xiao Yuntian to the blacksmith's shop.' The villain was confused when he heard that, so he asked him: 'What do you mean?' He said:' Selling iron ore privately is a capital crime, and Xiao Yuntian is too courageous. Many people saw it last night, so they sold it to a few blacksmiths, and Xiao Yuntian’s people must not be allowed to go unpunished.” He said someone If you have seen it, tell us to spread it on purpose, preferably for people in the yamen to hear it."

Chang Xichen: "What else?"

Liu Yangdao: "No, that's all. The villain thought, anyway, he gave the villain money, and it's okay for the villain to say a few words, so he took him to the door of Chen Butou's house, and then saw that Chen came out quickly." Yes, the villain sang with Ge Sanxi, Butou Chen came to ask us when he heard it, and the two of us repeated these words again, that's it."

Chang Xichen said: "Do you know if he witnessed this?"

Liu Yang replied: "He said he never saw it in person, but someone gave him a silver so that he could tell."

Chang Xichen asked again: "Who told him?"

Liu Yang shook his head: "My lord, the villain really doesn't know, I just talked to him for the sake of money, who would have known that this would happen, I would have been caught in the government office, punished and beaten to death I won't even say it!"

Suddenly, he seemed to think of something, and hurriedly said: "Wait a minute, I seem to remember that when I came out of Xifeng Tower and saw him, there was another person beside him..."