The Delicate Lady Coroner Chapter 9: One Inch of Gold 09
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Chapter 9 An Inch of Gold 09
"Gold-sprinkled paper is originally ordinary rice paper. However, when making rice paper, fine gold and silver powder or gold and silver foil is applied with glue powder on the paper surface, and then the colored wax paper is given a gold and silver brilliance. Therefore, , also called gold and silver five-color wax paper."
Bo Ruoyou used two bamboo tweezers to carefully fiddle with the porcelain plate, "Therefore, gold-sprinkled paper is thicker than ordinary rice paper, and it is not easy to scatter ink. Many people like to recite poems and paint on it, which seems The more ancient meaning is that it should be a common thing in the Marquis Mansion. However, this thing was swallowed by the deceased and remained in the stomach for a long time, and most of the ink stains have been dissolved. Fortunately, the paper is thick, so there is a way to save it."
At this point, Bo Ruoyou raised his head and said, "People's women need a piece of bluegrass."
Bao Ruoyou bent over and rolled up her sleeves, revealing a small section of her jade arms and bright wrists, and her slender waist became more and more voluptuous. Her whole body was clearly busy, but there was also a hint of The stockings are inexplicably gentle and elegant.
Huo Weilou looked at her, "What kind of blue grass?"
"Both polygonum and woad are acceptable."
Blue grass can be dyed and is commonly used in ordinary dyeing workshops. Huo Weilou nodded, walked out and gave instructions.
Bo Ruoyou lowered his eyes and fiddled with the small ball of gold paper.
The golden paper was only the size of a palm. It was crumpled into a ball and swallowed, and then melted in the stomach for several days. At this moment, the outermost layer was only a thin layer. Bo Ruoyou did not dare to be rude. , for fear that the writing would not be found if it was broken.
After changing the water twice more, the crumpled and sticky paper ball finally showed its shape. Eunuch Fu also stood aside and watched, surprised: "It turned out to be gold paper."
After being diluted with water, the faint gold and silver powder on the gold-sprinkled paper showed its luster, but the entire paper became thin and soft, and only occasional strokes of ink could be seen on the writing on it.
Eunuch Fu sighed: "How can you tell this?"
Bo Ruoyou said: "It's impossible to decipher every word. The daughter of the people will do her best."
Eunuch Fu turned his eyes and glanced at Huo Weilou, "Is there anything to gain from asking the Marquis in the front yard?"
Huo Weilou's expression was solemn, "It's not very different from what Zheng Wenyan said."
Eunuch Fu sighed, "So, we can't be sure that Mr. Zheng is lying. Although his thoughts are somewhat evil, without evidence, we can't be sure that he is the one who harmed others."
Eunuch Fu's eyes fell brightly on Bo Ruoyou, "Let's see if Miss Bo can find the writing on it."
Huo Weilou was also looking at Bo Ruoyou.
He has gone down to the local prefecture to handle cases several times, but this is the first time he has met Bo Ruoyou like this. He is more diligent than the chief officer. The most important thing is that he is indeed very skilled. If he is a man, he can be Collect.
There was a trace of regret in Huo Weilou's eyes. At this moment, Bo Ruoyou wiped the sweat with the back of her hands. When she raised her eyes, she met Huo Weilou's gaze. She was slightly startled, a little confused.
The emotion in Huo Weilou's eyes flashed away, and he frowned: "How long will it take to make the handwriting appear?"
His tone became majestic again, as if Bo Ruoyou had just been dazzled for a moment. She thought for a moment, "I'm afraid it will be tomorrow." After saying that, she looked out the window and saw that the rising sun was almost at its peak, and said again, "The sun still needs to be good today."
Huo Weilou frowned, as if he was not satisfied with this time. Bo Ruoyou also didn't know why, but suddenly he thought of Huo Weilou's dissatisfaction when he learned that she was the widow invited by He Cheng when they first met yesterday, "Huo Weilou looks down on her The thought of "woman" slipped through her mind, and she changed her mind, "It will be dark, and it will be dark today at the earliest."
Huo Weilou's brows slightly furrowed and his eyes became cloudy. Is there any superior in the world who doesn't like such a subordinate?
Huo Weilou once again felt a trace of regret in his heart, but this time he didn't show it on his face at all.
"Master Hou——"
The voice suddenly came, it was He Cheng who came in a hurry. Huo Weilou turned around, and He Cheng walked in and said: "The officials have sent people over to the ancestral hall. They have already met the Aunt Jade. She lives alone in the ancestral hall. According to reports, She said herself that she had never left the ancestral hall in the past few years. She only knew about the affairs in the house that the old lady died, and she didn’t even know that Mr. Zheng fell from the building."
After saying that, He Cheng looked a little strange, "This person is a little weird."
Huo Weilou looked at He Cheng, He Cheng's chubby face wrinkled, "I don't know what to say, I just think it's impossible for a person to live in the ancestral hall for so many years without leaving home, and it seems impossible. ... Mr. Marquis has never seen her, but when he looks at her, he makes people feel a little bit hairy and yin-y, very yin-y..."
After thinking for a long time, He Cheng used the word "Yin Qi".
Huo Weilou frowned, "Where is he now?"
He Cheng said: "Still in the ancestral hall."
Huo Weilou glanced at Bo Ruoyou and said, "Take me to have a look."
He Cheng nodded immediately, Huo Weilou looked at Eunuch Fu again, and Eunuch Fu immediately said: "Don't worry, Lord Marquis, I will stay here."
After saying this, Huo Weilou just left the mourning hall.
As soon as I went out, I felt that although the sun was shining today, the oncoming wind was extremely cold. At this time, two servants who were carrying heavy objects to the mourning hall came not far away. Huo Weilou could see it at a glance. The hands they were carrying were all red from the cold. His phoenix eyes were heavy, and he suddenly thought of Bao Ruoyou's ten fingers holding bamboo tweezers, as thin as onions, as if they had been covered in ice and snow.
Huo Weilou withdrew his gaze.
He didn't say a word about what he was thinking, and only looked at the garden of the Hou Mansion. Since the ancestral hall had been separated from the main body of the Hou Mansion, the farther north Huo Wei Tower went, the more he realized how big the Hou Mansion was. "This garden was built by the Zheng family." ?"
He Chengzai couldn't figure out the meaning of Huo Weilou's question, so he had to say honestly: "No, this garden was the residence of a prince from the previous dynasty. When it was built, the running water of Huanhua Creek in the south of the city was drawn, and the garden was built in the garden. There were three inner lakes. Later, when dynasties changed, the garden was abandoned and the inner lakes were all dried up. About sixty or seventy years ago, it was bought by the then Mr. Zheng, renovated and then used as the ancestral residence."
As far as the Huo Wei Tower is concerned, the further north you go, the more centuries-old pines and cypresses you can see. If Zheng built this garden himself, it would cost a lot of money. He is responsible for supervising hundreds of officials, so he will care about these things. Trivial details.
Passing through a moon gate, you really left the main body of the Hou Mansion. In front of you was a dense bamboo forest. The sun was high in the sky, and the bamboo forest cast a mottled light and shadow. Huo Weilou led people through the quiet path, and soon saw the secret. The ancestral hall of the Hou Mansion under the pines and cypresses.
The pines and cypresses are towering into the sky, and the snow is slightly green. The pines and cypresses are as lush as umbrella canopies and cover the ancestral hall like a sky. So just standing outside the ancestral hall, you feel that it is difficult to see the sky and the atmosphere is extremely gloomy.
Although ordinary ancestral halls are often accompanied by pines and cypresses to show solemnity and respect for ancestors, the scene in front of you really corresponds to the word "Yin Qi" mentioned by He Cheng.
The group of people entered the courtyard gate. The courtyard was covered with snow. There were only a few monotonous footprints on them, which were the ones left a moment ago. He Cheng walked quickly in front and called the door, "Aunt Yu? The Marquis is here, open the door." ——"
You could hear a needle drop in the quiet room. Just when He Cheng frowned, the door suddenly opened without warning. Before that, He Cheng had not heard any footsteps approaching the door.
A face appeared inside the door that looked a little pale because it had not been exposed to light for many years. Aunt Jade was over fifty years old. Her face was already as withered as chicken skin, plus brown spots and a pair of lifeless, black eyes. The eyes, when they first appear, are a little scary.
Her face was exposed behind the crack of the door, she glanced at the people outside, and fixed her gaze behind Huo Weilou.
She didn't know what she thought of, her expression suddenly changed a bit, she pursed her lips and opened the door.
She was dressed in black, without any clothes. The room was dark, and her whole body seemed to be hidden in darkness. He Cheng hesitated before entering, and Huo Wei walked into the ancestral hall.
Entering the door is the spacious main hall. The memorial tablets of the Zheng family's ancestors are placed due north. There are dimly lit chandeliers under them. There are side rooms on both sides. One side is for incense and memorial objects, and the other side is the living room of Aunt Jade. , Huo Weilou swept his eyes wide, and turned to stare at Aunt Yu. Aunt Yu stood with her hands behind her hands, her head lowered, not looking at Huo Weilou.
Huo Weilou asked: "How many years have you been here?"
"I have been here for fifteen years."
When Aunt Yu spoke, she felt stiff as if she hadn't spoken to anyone for a long time. Coupled with her hoarse voice, it sounded a little strange.
Huo Weilou asked again: "Why are you here?"
Aunt Jade pursed her lips and said, "This slave is guilty and comes here to atone for her sins."
Aunt Yu lowered her head. If she closed the door, she would be like a doll hidden in the darkness. There was no trace of life in her body. Huo Weilou was silent before asking, "What's the crime?"
Aunt Yu lowered her head and stopped answering.
Huo Weilou frowned and said, "The person asking the question is Wu Zhaohou, Aunt Yu. Now there are suspicions about the death of the old lady in the house. I advise you to tell everything you know so that I can seek justice for the old lady." Complete your master-servant relationship."
Aunt Jade's head was still hanging down, "The old lady passed away at the age of fifty. In a few days, the slave will go with her. When she is underground, the slave will renew the relationship of master and servant with the old lady. ”
After saying this, He Cheng couldn't help but shudder.
I didn’t say that I was going to die in a few days, so why did I go underground...
In the darkness, Huo Weilou smiled coldly, "Mommy is not afraid of death, but have you ever thought about the other descendants of the Hou family? Mammy is an old man next to the old lady, and she will not answer the question of why she is here. Why don't you tell me that Zheng Wenyan's birth is unlucky?"
Aunt Yu's shoulders shrank obviously. She suddenly raised her eyes and glanced behind Huo Weilou, as if there was someone hiding behind Huo Weilou. This sight made He Cheng's heart tremble, and he quickly looked towards Huo Weilou. Weilou looked behind him, but not far behind Huo Weilou, there was only a portrait of an unknown ancestor of the Zheng family hanging on the wall.
"Fifteen years ago, a concubine beside the Marquis gave birth to a child. The slave did not take good care of it, so the mother died and the child died. She should have been killed with a stick, but the old lady thought of the love between master and servant and asked the slave to come here to forgive her sin. This That's why this slave is here."
After finishing speaking, Aunt Yu turned around, walked to the ancestors of the Zheng family, knelt down, and read scriptures in her mouth.
Her back was like a stone sculpture. He Cheng wanted to step forward and ask again, but Huo Weilou raised his hand to stop him. Huo Weilou knew that Aunt Jade would never speak again today.
With a sneer on his lips, Huo Weilou turned around and walked out, followed by He Cheng. After he came out, he couldn't help but rub his arms covered with goosebumps, "Master Hou, he is just such a person, so weird. Well, when the official came just now, she opened half of the door and only stood inside the door to answer, which was really scary. Lord Marquis, what should I do now?"
"Go check the people in the Hou Mansion to see who has been in the house for more than fifteen years, and see if what she said is true or false. There are also unlucky rumors about Zheng Wenyan, all the old people in the Hou Mansion asked one by one ."
Huo Weilou suddenly stopped when he reached the entrance of the courtyard. When he turned around and looked at the door of the house, a cold look appeared in his eyes again, "The more he pretends to be a ghost, the more meaningful his ominous words will be."
Huo Wei left the ancestral hall without looking back.
In the mourning hall in the west courtyard, the embroiderer found some bluegrass. Bo Ruoyou was dipping the thin gold-sprinkled paper into the colorless juice. Eunuch Fu looked very interested again, and Bo Ruoyou said , "This juice looks colorless, but it can be colored by soaking the cloth or paper and then exposing it to the sun. The gold-sprinkled paper is already thin, so the coloring will be extremely poor, but where there is ink, the color will appear. ”
Eunuch Fu said in surprise, "How did you know?"
Bo Ruoyou smiled, "My adoptive father taught me that in a county government case two years ago, the murderer sank a letter into the bottom of the lake. The handwriting was also light and difficult to read, so my adoptive father used this method to let some people know. The handwriting is visible."
Eunuch Fu said: "Then your foster father is also a very powerful person."
Bao Ruoyou just smiled and said nothing. After letting the gold-sprinkled paper soak for half an hour, he picked it up and spread it flat on a piece of handkerchief, and then put it under the sun to dry. Eunuch Fu didn't even blink. Looking at the gold-sprinkled paper, I saw that the longer it was left in the sun, the original brown paper began to change color, and the ink stains also showed some shapes.
As the sun gradually set towards the west, there were more and more handwritings, but only one or two words could be barely recognized. Bo Ruoyou's face turned gloomy, he took the kerchief and paper into the mourning hall, and asked the Yamen to make a brazier and add some Grilled.
At dusk, Huo Weilou took He Cheng to the mourning hall again. When talking about the trip to the ancestral hall, He Cheng sighed with emotion, and Eunuch Fu was amazed when he heard this, "How can a good Hou family be so weird everywhere? ”
Night was coming, and Bo Ruoyou said that words can appear when it gets dark. Eunuch Fu may have forgotten this, but Bo Ruoyou did not. She held the piece of paper and got closer for a while. It was roasted to a crisp, and it was ineffective at a distance. He was holding it neither close nor far away, and his little face was roasted red, and the bright eyes reflected the firelight. The firelight jumped, and the beauty was in his eyebrows. As time went by, it actually gave birth to a somewhat clear and charming meaning.
Huo Weilou stood at the door. He just glanced at it, but he couldn't help but stop his gaze.
At this moment, Bo Ruoyou raised her eyebrows, her beautiful eyes brightened, and the corners of her lips raised high, "See the words..."
This was the first time Huo Weilou saw Bo Ruoyou's smile like this. The flowing charm became more vivid in an instant. In an instant, it was like the dim light passing through the misty dawn at dawn, which frightened his eyes. His mind, which was usually focused only on the details of the case, actually stagnated because of this, and he fell one step behind Eunuch Fu before walking over.
In the dim light of the fire, Eunuch Fu couldn't help but read the handwriting on it.
"My first seven is the day of your death."
"In the yin year and yin time, for me...what is this word?"
The ink stains were a little out of shape, and Eunuch Fu couldn't recognize them for a while, but Huo Weilou did.
"In the yin year and yin time, pay for my life."
Huo Weilou read out these eight characters coldly. Eunuch Fu and He Cheng shuddered at that moment, while Bao Ruoyou suddenly frowned, "Today...is the day of the old lady's 27th..."
He Cheng and Eunuch Fu didn't understand what Bo Ruoyou meant, but Huo Weilou straightened up in an instant. At this moment, an embroiderer was about to enter the mourning hall, "Master Hou, something happened to Mr. Zheng! ”