Capture the Jade

In just a few days, Song Jian lost a lot of weight, and his voice was extremely hoarse when he spoke.

"Why is the prince here? Please come in."

Lin Chengyou cupped his hands: "It's too presumptuous to come here, and I wish Brother Song our condolences."

Yan Sizhi saluted apologetically: "I've disturbed Prince Song."

Song Jian served in the Imperial Army. In the past, he often met Lin Chengyou inside and outside the palace when he was on duty. Although they were not close friends, they were familiar with each other. He personally led the two to the outer study and ordered the servants to serve tea.

Lin Chengyou asked for another set of writing for Yan Sizhi. When the guests and the host were all seated, Song Jianping stepped down and said, "Is there any progress in Yueniang's case?"

Lin Chengyou said sternly: "It is for Madam Zun's case. I want to ask Brother Song, what was wrong with Madam Zun before the accident?"

Song Jian thought for a while with a pale face, then shook his head and said, "It's not very different from the past. Every day there are people who talk and laugh, and the spleen and stomach are better than when they were first pregnant."

"Then—" Yan Sizhi glanced at Lin Chengyou, "Where has Mrs. Zun been in the last month?"

Song Jian pondered on his face: "Yue Niang needs to host the mid-term feed every day... Before noon, she is usually busy in the mansion, and occasionally goes out after lunch, but when I return to the mansion, it is almost Hai Shi, where does she go during the day? I don't know where I am, and I want to come here to play with the ladies who are good friends, or to go shopping in a shop I know."

Yan Sizhi wrote these words in the record book, and asked, "Has Madam Zun mentioned an acquaintance to you recently?"

Song Jian was slightly surprised: "Acquaintance?"

"Like her past friends, neighbors, relatives—"

Song Jian shook his head.

Lin Chengyou asked another way: "Big Brother Song, do you know who Madam Zun had a grudge against in the past?

Song Jian was stunned for a moment, then pondered for a moment: "Yueniang's temperament is much more aggressive than her sister. In the past, when Zhenniang was still alive—"

A mournful look suddenly appeared in his eyes, and the conversation stopped immediately.

Lin Chengyou lowered his eyes, remembering that when the Dajiang family passed away, A-Niang personally went to Rong Anbo's house to offer condolences. After returning, she talked about the matter with the royal aunt. She felt sorry for the sudden death of the Dajiang family. The ability to know people, to be praised by the mother like this, shows that Da Jiang is a woman with outstanding character.

Song Jian was stunned for a long time, and spoke again: "Zhenniang said that her sister is good in everything, but she is too competitive. When playing with the boudoir lady, she will inevitably stumble and fight with others. I went back to my mother's house to live for a while, and said that I was the eldest sister and should teach my sister. But Yueniang is a lady who has not left the cabinet after all, even if she is at odds with others, she will not have a quarrel to the point of resentment. As for her marrying me—"

He slowly shook his head: "Niang Yue has a lot of temperament, she serves A Weng with filial piety, and she treats the servants very leniently. I deal with the female relatives of various houses on weekdays, and I have never heard of any unpleasantness."

Lin Chengyou didn't say a word. In order to help solve the case, Teng Yuyi took the initiative to tell him what he had seen in the spice shop that day. The little Jiang family did not go to the West Market, but brought eight or nine maids and old ladies with him. And because he was worried about being bumped into by Teng Yuyi, even if they were far apart, the people under him would scold Teng Yuyi.

This kind of frivolity is really not compatible with "broad and respectful".

It is impossible for Song Jian to be completely ignorant of the various actions of the little Jiang family outside. Even so, Song Jian has to protect him everywhere. It can be seen that he cherishes this sweet wife he married very much.

Thinking of this, Lin Chengyou nodded and said, "Where are the servants who are serving Mrs. Zun, can Big Brother Song invite them to come over and ask a few words."

After a while, a number of maids and old ladies came, all of them silently waiting under the porch. Song Jian looked behind the desk and pointed to the leading old lady: "Chen Sangu, come in and answer."

Chen Sangu tucked her skirt inside and knelt down tremblingly.

Song Jian said: "Don't be afraid of this. You can tell me where Madam has been and who you have met in the last month."

Chen Sangu was stunned, and hurriedly kowtowed: "Old slave has forgotten a lot, Rong Numaid and Xiuyun's maids will verify it again and report it again."

Song Jian waved her to step back, but Lin Chengyou said, "It's okay, just say what you know, and we'll ask other maids later."

After Song Jian had the door closed, Chen Sangu racked his brains and recalled: "In the past month, my wife has been going out a lot, and the most frequent ones are two shops. One is the silk shop called 'Jinyun Waterfall' in Dongshi, and the lady's clothes are Most of them are made here. One is Nianzi Building in Fu'an Lane, and my wife likes to eat their fried fish. As for the Fendie Building in Xishi, I haven't been there much."

Speaking of this, Chen Sangu wiped his sweat with lingering fears: "My wife likes to buy things in this spice shop before, and I don't know how many precious spices I bought before and after. Therefore, the shopkeeper and the staff treat my wife as a guest, every time I see my wife. When I go, I will vacate the quiet room downstairs in advance. Although my wife is not as often as before after she is pregnant, she still spends an hour or two in the store every time she goes there.”

An hour or two... Enough for the murderer to kill and blame Zhuang Mu.

Lin Chengyou asked, "How many people know about this?"

Chen Sangu was startled: "Madam often meets acquaintances in the West City, and there should be many people who know about this."

"Which acquaintances have you met in West City recently?"

"Madam hasn't been to the West Market for about a month."

Lin Chengyou: "If that's the case, why did your wife suddenly remember to go to the spice shop that day?"

Chen Sangu's expression was a little confused, and she was stunned for a moment: "I don't know what the slaves do. Madam said after lunch that she was going to buy something in the Fandie Building, and the steward started to prepare the carriage. The slaves didn't ask much at that time."

"Apart from these shops, where has your wife been this month and who has she seen?"

"On the fifth day of the first day, the old lady of the Zhen Guogong's mansion celebrated her birthday, and her wife went out to celebrate her birthday; on the seventh day of the first day, Zheng Pushe's wife held a banquet at her house; and later received a post from the daughter-in-law of Wang Shangshu of the Ministry of Housing, and the wife went to the appointment again. Yuzhen is crowned with ornamental flowers; a few days ago, when the father of the country passed his birthday, the wife took the young master and the young lady to Ledao Villa to live for a few days, and the rest...

"When your wife was walking outside recently, has she ever behaved unusually? For example, seeing someone suddenly look scared, or being afraid of seeing something on a daily basis?"

Chen Sangu paused, as if remembering something, with a strange look on her face, she shook her head and said, "I don't see anything wrong with Madam, whether she is in charge of the house or going out to dinner, Madam is happy, at most. Worried about which jewelry to wear."

Lin Chengyou knew something was different. After Chen Sangu withdrew, Song Jian called two of the little Jiang's personal maids to come in to answer, and the second maid's speech was similar to that of Chen Sangu.

Lin Chengyou saw that it was getting late, so he and Yan Sizhi left together. When passing by the pile of servants under the porch, Lin Chengyou suddenly said to Song Jian: "I originally hoped that the servants of your house would provide important clues, so that we can also arrest the murderer as soon as possible. They didn't know it either... They were Madam Zun's personal servants, and they were at the scene on the day of the accident. The perpetrators were afraid that they would reveal their secrets and might kill again. This thief was extremely ferocious. "

Chen Sangu squeezed into the crowd and shivered when she heard the words.

Song Jian personally escorted Lin Chengyou and Yan Sizhi out of the house, and when they arrived at a rockery, there was a loud noise from the servants in front of them. Accompanied by the cheerful laughter of the child, two small figures ran towards them.

One of them ran too fast and accidentally bumped into Lin Chengyou's knee. Song Jian frowned and stretched out his arms to pick up the child, but Lin Chengyou grabbed the child's shoulders and squatted down to look at the child in front of him. He turned his head and looked at the one next to him. One was a boy and the other was a girl, about five or six years old. He was wrapped in first-class Lingluo, and his appearance was also beautiful. He smiled and said, "You are Brother Song's eldest son, right?"

Song Dalang was intent on throwing himself into Grandpa's arms, but how could he know that Lin Chengyou was holding him hostage? He was eager to break free, and while twisting, he complained, "Let go of me, I want to find Grandpa."

Song Jian beside him scolded: "Presumptuous—"

"It's okay." Lin Chengyou smiled and took a small packet of plum blossom candy from his arms, which Azhi loved to eat. He saw it in the West Market when he was handling the case, so he bought a bag and wanted to bring it to Azhi when he returned to the palace. Eat, take this opportunity to pass the candy to the two children, "I came in a hurry tonight, and I didn't bring anything for the two nephews. This candy is not bad. Take it and eat it with my sister."

As he spoke, he touched Song Dalang's little head.

The brothers and sisters tilted their heads and looked at Lin Chengyou once, remembering that they had seen this handsome and smiling young man on weekdays, they suddenly felt kinder, and then slid their round eyes towards their father, and saw that his father did not object, this was gentle and gentle. Thank you and happily take the candy.

Immediately, he ran to Song Jian, hugged Grandpa's leg and said, "Grandpa, are you done, take me and my sister to bed."

The little girl also opened her arms to Song Jian: "Grandpa, hug me."

Song Jian was accidentally hugged by a pair of children, but in desperation, he had to bend down and hug his daughter into his arms, while holding Dalang's hand, he said to Lin Chengyou with a wry smile, "Let the prince laugh."

Lin Chengyou and Yan Sizhi went out of the house, Yan Sizhi said suspiciously: "Children always look for A-Niang before going to bed, Xiao Jiang is considered to be the aunt of the two children, and the aunt died, why don't the two children talk about it? aunt?"

Lin Chengyou got on his horse, thought about it, and said, "Children won't act like adults and don't look for the little Jiang family, either they can't remember her for a while, or they don't like the little Jiang family on weekdays. If you don't get close, they will naturally No more talking and searching."

Yan Sizhi said again: "When the question was just now, that Chen Sangu clearly remembered something, but she just said she didn't know, and she didn't know what concerns the old woman had."

Lin Chengyou said: "She is the wife of the little Jiang's family. She spends more time with the little Jiang's family and Song Jian every day. The little Jiang's affairs can be hidden from others but not her. What she said just now was enough for her to be frightened. It's been one night, don't worry, let her think about it, I guess she will try to come to Dali Temple to find me at most tomorrow morning."

Yan Sizhi's brows loosened, and he sighed with a smile: "There is still a way for Lin to judge things. It's very late, we have to find—"

Before he finished speaking, Lin Chengyou swung his whip, and the horse turned into a gust of wind and ran into the night.

"Of course I'm going, time waits for no one."

***

Zheng House.

The chief steward heard that Lin Chengyou was here, so he hurried out to greet him, served Lin Chengyou tea in person, and said pleasantly, "It's unfortunate that the little prince came, the master has been busy with the affairs of the court recently, and he is also busy with the appointment of the eldest son and Mrs. Wu. I accidentally caught the wind and cold about the relationship, so it is inconvenient to see guests tonight."

Lin Chengyou smiled and put down the tea cup: "It happens that I also know some tricks of discord, why don't I take the pulse for Duke Zheng. If it doesn't help, I will personally go to Shang Pharmacy to find Yu Fengyu for Duke Zheng."

As he spoke, he walked straight through the central hall.

The big steward suddenly panicked, as long as the little prince was willing, he could overturn the roof of the Zheng residence at any time.

He hurriedly chased after him, and at the same time signaled to his servants to hurry up and send a message to Zheng Pushe. Lin Chengyou, who cares about the big steward's noise, if no one walks through the veranda with his hands on his back,

Yan Sizhi only took a sip of tea, and when he saw this, he had to catch up with his robe.

When he reached the door of the outer study, he saw Zheng Pushe coming out of the courtyard.

Zheng Pushe raised his hand to tidy up his clothes as he walked, looking somewhat embarrassed. Seeing Lin Chengyou, he coughed twice and said with a sullen face, "Why is the prince here so late?"

Lin Chengyou bowed sternly: "Junior came abruptly, and I hope Duke Zheng doesn't blame him. One is to say goodbye to Mr. Zheng, and the other is to ask about a few things. If Mr. Zheng doesn't allow us to enter, we have to ask here. already."

Zheng Pushe stared at Lin Chengyou, neither uttering a word nor moving, confronted for a long time, and in the end was defeated, sighed heavily, and took the lead to turn around and walk in: "Come in and talk."

After entering, Lin Chengyou was always casual, but Yan Sizhi couldn't help but be a little cautious. Zheng Pushe is both a current slaughter and a descendant of the famous Zheng family in Xingyang. , disciples all over the world.

Even though he is over fifty years old, Zheng Pushe still has a straight posture, speaks elegantly, and behaves elegantly. Such a person sitting in front of the table will inevitably make people feel cramped.

After the manager resigned, Lin Chengyou said straight to the point: "The cause of Shu Liniang's death may have other hidden reasons. I came to disturb Duke Du late at night to find out what unusual behavior Shu Liniang has done recently."

Zheng Pushe blushed and looked down the corridor subconsciously. Seeing that the steward had cleared all the people, he expected that these words would not reach the lady's ears, so he immediately pretended to be calm and said, "She..."

He couldn't help clearing his throat, and after thinking for a while, a look of sadness slowly appeared on his face: "I haven't seen anything unusual about her recently. Did you find any new clues, why are you asking this?"

Lin Chengyou glanced at Zheng Pushe, and said directly: "We now suspect that the perpetrator may have known Shu Liniang in the past, and would like to ask Duke Du whether Shu Liniang had a grudge in Huazhou in the past, and where has she been in the last month? Who did you meet?"

Zheng Pushe's face became serious: "Li Niang has a very good temperament, I have never heard of her having a grudge against anyone, and she seldom went out after she was pregnant. I was busy with government affairs in the last January... seldom visited her, only I know that she went to the Qujiang Pond to pray for blessings on the day of the Shangsi Festival, and when she came back, she only said it was fun, and it seemed that she never went out again after that."

Lin Chengyou was obviously very dissatisfied with this answer, smiled and said, "Please, old man, think about it."

Zheng Pushe stroked his beard uneasily, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly said: "By the way, one day I went to Chun'an Lane and heard Liniang and the servants complaining that the waist and abdomen were getting thicker, and the skirt could hardly be worn. , I think the fabric that the tailor brought to the door is not good enough, so I will go to the West Market to pick some good fabrics to make clothes."

Yan Si was stunned for a while, West City.

Lin Chengyou asked, "Which shop? Did Shu Liniang go there that day?"

Zheng Pushe: "I didn't ask about it afterwards."

"Which day is this?"

"At the beginning of the month, remember that it was around the Shangsi Festival."

It seemed that the only way to find the servants next to Shu Liniang was to ask her again.

"Besides these places, where else did Shu Liniang go, or did she say she saw an old friend?"

"The last month..." Zheng Pushe pondered for a long time, "I really can't remember anyone else, but I remembered last month that the flowers in a certain place were blooming very well. , because I never heard her mention it again. As for acquaintances, Liniang has no old acquaintances in Chang'an, only one cousin, it is Shu Changshi of Jingzhao Mansion who is—"

He paused for a while, then said with a sense of loss: "Li Niang has a weak and honest temperament, so she came to join Shu Changshi because her husband's family couldn't tolerate her."

Lin Chengyou said abruptly: "Zheng Gongke asked Shu Liniang's past husband's family to verify this matter. What happened to her and her husband's family?"

Zheng Pushe was startled: "This—"

It doesn't appear to have been verified.

Lin Chengyou waited for a while before the next paragraph, so he had to ask again, "How did Duke Zheng and Shu Liniang meet?"

Zheng Pushe's face showed a bit of discomfort, and it took a long time to speak: "Last Mid-Autumn Festival, I accompanied the sage and the queen to enjoy the moon and drink in the palace. I got out of the car and strolled in the market. At that time, Liniang pretended to be a servant girl, and took a maid to admire the lights on the street. When she bumped into me, a book of poems fell out of her arms. I picked it up and flipped through it. Seeing that it is full of beautiful words and compliments, when I ask, I know that this little lady did it herself in the past..."

Lin Chengyou listened earnestly, Zheng Pushe was already old, and this charming mind was not inferior to that of young people.

In this way, it originated from the encounter at the Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival.

He thought for a while and asked, "Apart from the maid, did Shu Liniang have other friends at the time?"

Zheng Pushe shook his head.

"The daughter of the Shu family isn't here either?"

"Only the two masters and servants of Liniang."

Lin Chengyou and Yan Sizhi left, and Yan Sizhi wondered: "It's strange, doesn't Shu Changshi have any children? Shu Liniang is a relative of the Shu family, and the Mid-Autumn Night Lantern Festival will come out to play, so there should always be a few cousins ​​of the Shu family by her side. "

Lin Chengyou is also thinking about this matter, either Shu Changshi has no unmarried daughter, or the Shu family doesn't like Shu Liniang very much. Or there are other possibilities, you can only know if you ask in person.

Suddenly, a man came across the face, and he almost bumped into it. When he saw Lin Chengyou, the man hurriedly stopped: "Prince."

Lin Chengyou was surprised: "Master Zheng?"

Zheng Yanrang and Zheng Pushe were carved out of the same mold. They were tall, thin, fair, and elegant.

Zheng Yanrang was obviously uneasy: "I went to a banquet with friends just now, when did the prince come?"

Yan Sizhi calmly sniffed, there was a dark fragrance floating in the air, thinking that it was coming from the clothes of Mr. Zheng. Yan Sizhi didn't use incense by himself. Although Lin Chengyou had a dark fragrance on his body, the smell was cold and upright, not like the lingering and lingering aura on Mrs. Zheng's body. This smell was the incense used by women.

Yan Sizhi was secretly surprised. Zheng Pushe had never taken a concubine, and disciplined his children very strictly. I heard that the first son of Zheng never sleeps, and he is about to be engaged. I don't know where the fragrance came from. Alas, it can be seen that there are countless rumors, Zheng Pushe is privately raising other housewives, and the eldest son-

Lin Chengyou also smelled it, and only said: "I heard that Mr. Zheng's good things are coming, congratulations to Mr. Zheng first."

Zheng Yanrang was stunned for a moment, then forced a smile: "Thank you."

While talking, he personally sent Lin Chengyou and Yan Si directly to the outside of the mansion.

Lin Chengyou was about to get on his horse when Zheng Yanrang suddenly said, "I heard about Mrs. Rong'an Bo Shizi at the banquet, and they all said that the murderer only picked pregnant women to attack. I wonder if the murderer can be caught?"

His expression was very casual, as if he was just asking casually.

Lin Chengyou looked at Zheng Yanrang, and after a while he replied, "Oh, I haven't caught it yet."

Zheng Yanrang nodded and stood beside the horse.

Lin Chengyou originally wanted to go to Shu Mansion, but it was almost time. Thinking about the things he heard about tonight, it is enough for him to sort out the case now, so he took Yan Sizhi home by the way, and went back on his own. Cheng Wangfu.

***

Teng Yuyi slept well last night. Because Du Tinglan was leaving the temple today, the sisters were busy packing their bags when they woke up early.

In a blink of an eye, Teng Yuyi was thinking about giving some delicious food to Juesheng and Qizhi. At this time, the big monk Mingxin brought a few little novices over and said that the vegetarian meal was placed in the Xixintang, please Teng Yuyi and Du Tinglan to use it in the past. meal.

Teng Yuyi had to give up the idea of ​​secretly eating meat in the temple. The two sisters went out of Libaixuan, and met Juesheng and Qizhi on the way. When they saw Teng Yuyi, they ran over, "Miss Teng..."

Teng Yuyi smiled and said, "I know, you all copied the scriptures last night."

Anyway, those drinks and food were not prepared in vain, at least she entertained Lin Chengyou well.

Juesheng and Qizhi nodded desperately, they were determined to come, but the senior brothers forcibly stopped them from coming.

"Did you live in the East Wing last night?" Teng Yuyi asked.

Juesheng and Qizhi shook their heads: "Last night, we lived in the Tibetan Scriptures Pavilion, and only after we finished copying the scriptures did we know that there were a few ladies in the East Wing temporarily moved in. We had to move our luggage to the quiet room in the Tibetan Scriptures Pavilion again."

While talking, they saw a few young ladies coming out from a distance, and Jue Sheng and Qi Zhi looked up and looked strange.

Du Tinglan and Teng Yuyi looked at each other: "What's wrong?"

Jue Sheng lowered his voice: "Last night, Qizhi and I went back to the east wing to pick up our luggage, and saw a lady go to the Taolin behind, it was almost midnight, I don't know who the lady went to see, I He Qizhi was worried about the accident, so he stayed where he was and waited, and it didn't take long to see that lady came back safe and sound."

Teng Yuyi coughed and lowered her voice, "Who?"

Juesheng and Qizhi scratched their heads: "It was midnight at that time, and the lady was wrapped in a big cloak, and we didn't know who it was."

Just as he was talking, two more young novice monks came to pass the message: "There are many guests in front of you, two Tan Yue surnamed Du want to see Teng Tan Yue, in addition, Master Jing Chen from Yu Zhen Nu Guan Guan also came and said that they would like to see Teng Tan Yue. Find Teng Tanyue."

Du Tinglan and Teng Yuyi looked at each other and said with a smile, "It's not A Niang and Shao Tang who came to visit A ​​Yu."

Teng Yuyi was naturally happy, and after thinking about it, she revealed a look of surprise: "Did the teacher find my pearl step by step?"

She was in a hurry to see her aunt and cousin, and inquired about Bu Yao's whereabouts from Master Jing Chen, and she didn't care about having breakfast, so she turned around and went to the front yard.

On the way, he met the Peng family sisters, Li Huaigu and Duan Qingying.

Surprisingly, they didn't go to breakfast either, and they seemed to be going to the front yard as well.

Aunt Peng and Erniang Peng took the initiative to say hello: "Miss Teng, Madam Du."

Teng Yuyi and Du Tinglan returned the salute with a smile. Li Huaigu didn't seem to have slept well last night. His face was not as good as usual, but his demeanor was always soft. He took a closer look at Teng Yuyi and greeted him with a smile: "Ayu, sister Lan."

Seeing the monk Mingxin, Juesheng and Qizhi respectfully asked, "Where is the abbot his old man at the moment? We want to go and greet him."

Ming Xin said, "The Prince of Chun'an personally sent several volumes of scriptures to the temple, and the abbot is receiving the Prince in the Zen room."

Jue Sheng and Qi Zhi said cheerfully: "There are really enough people in this early morning temple."