An Ying and Xiao Yi followed Mr. Su to the Minister of Rites' Mansion to check on the situation. Yun Pan and Guo Xi went to Qi Duke's Mansion to check.
It's hot in summer, and it's usually too hard to ride in a carriage, and Mr. Su has no interest in riding a horse in the sun. .
The three of them walked slowly along the shade of the street.
"Cheng Qi, fifty-two years old, has served as Minister of Household Affairs for five years. It is expected that he will change his position this year."
"Cheng Qi has a mean and ruthless personality, and has offended many people in his position as Minister of Household Affairs."
An Ying answered: "Is it possible that someone killed someone in revenge? A vendetta?"
"This is what I find strange. It is Cheng Qi's character. He also knows that he offends many people, so he does an excellent job in protecting his own mansion. Moreover, he practices martial arts all the year round, and one or two ordinary men can easily get close to him. He can’t live with him.”
"Well, what I'm more concerned about is how did Cheng Qi die? What was the cause of death?" An Ying said: "We can only investigate after the cause of death is determined. We still have to check Cheng Qi's body."
Cheng Qi's mansion is at the end of Yongji Street.
Cheng Qi's wife Qi Han was already waiting at the door.
Qi Han was tall and tall, and people said that a person should be pretty and dress filial piety, but she was standing at the door of Cheng's house like a white door panel in a white filial piety dress.
"Hello, Mr. Su. It's such a hot day, why don't you come here in person." Qi Han wiped his tears.
"Where is Mr. Cheng, an important minister of the country. Now that there are doubts about his death, it is the responsibility of our Criminal Department. How dare we talk about hard work." Mr. Su saluted, "Mrs. Cheng, please take me to see where Mr. Cheng's accident happened."
Mrs. Cheng said while leading the way: "Old Cheng has always been in good health. He rests in Qinghui Garden on weekdays, which is only a hundred steps away from his study, which is convenient. He also rested in Qinghui Garden that day."
After passing through the screen wall of the gate, there is a curved corridor leading to two directions. Mrs. Cheng introduced: "The east corridor is connected to Qinghui Garden, and the west corridor is connected to the backyard. The two sides are not connected to each other, so we have to take the corridor in the front yard."
"Lao Cheng is always cautious. There are two women guarding every door here. There are guards patrolling every hour."
Su Huangzhe nodded and said: "I have heard that the guards in your Cheng Mansion are doing a good job, and now it seems that they are indeed good. This will make our investigation much easier."
Qinghui Garden is a quiet residence. There is a pool in a row of houses, and there are many fat koi carps in it. There are several houses in the back hidden in the thick shade of trees.
There is a plaque hanging under the eaves of the main house, with the words "Pixiang Hall" written in bold characters.
"This is the place where the master's accident happened. Nothing inside has been touched. Just some food was taken by the governor of the capital for inspection, but nothing was found." Mrs. Cheng stood at the door and pointed to the man kneeling on the corridor. A row of boys said, "All the guards on duty that day are here. Master Su, feel free to ask. Xiao Tao, come here."
A young man wearing a hemp-colored jacket came out, "He is the master's personal attendant. He was at the door that day, and he was the first to find the master."
Su Huangzhe walked into the house. There were notes and a few lamps on the table, and there was a lot of uneaten food on the low table beside it. It was a hot summer day and it already stunk, attracting a lot of flies. An Ying couldn't help but cover his mouth and nose.
Xiao Tao sobbed softly and followed behind. Without Master Su asking, he kept talking: "Master Su, our master is a good man. You must find the murderer and redress his grievances. What kind of coward would you dare to use such a method?" Despicable means..."
An Ying couldn't stand his chatter, so she interrupted and asked, "First tell me what happened that day. The more detailed the better."
"Hey. On the night of the second grade of junior high school, Mr. Cheng rested here as usual."
"Is he here alone?" An Ying asked, pointing to the things on the table.
"He is the only one." Xiao Tao confirmed: "We adults have a good appetite, and we always eat and drink a lot. We eat and drink these by ourselves. This is the case every day."
An Ying was a little surprised, "There are at least three bets here. Can you drink so much in one night? Is there wine in them?"
"A pot of plum wine from the main store on Qianjie Street, a pot of fruit stuffed wine made by the house, and a pot of sweet water made by the house. The big pot here is filled with cold snow dumplings. These are all chilled by me. Okay, bring it."
Su Huangzhe looked at the utensils on the table, "Where are these foods?"
"This one is filled with lactose real snow, this one is filled with meat noodles for adults, and this one is steamed cornstarch that adults like."
An Ying clicked his tongue and said, "Oh my God, can one person eat so much in one night?"
Xiao Tao said: "We adults are from the Lian family, and eating these is a common thing. If you don't believe it, ask our mistress, this is how adults eat on weekdays. He is alone in the house."
"Okay, you continue."
"We adults usually don't like to be waited on by others. I put down my things and waited on the porch at the door."
"The middle-aged man called me in once. He said the snacks were all sweet and asked me to get something salty to eat. I ran to the kitchen and asked the cook to make the pork noodles. It was this bowl, and the man didn't take a few bites. It’s probably hot.”
"Then when you walked away, there was no one here?" Su Huangzhe asked.
"Where, I walked to the end of the corridor and called the king's guard to come and guard for me. I walked away for only half a quarter of an hour. When I came back, I even went into the house to give you a meal. At that time, you were fine, I remember The time is just after Xu Shi."
"Then I stood guard at the door, and the lights inside never went out. Later, when it was about time for the rooster to crow, I heard a clang, as if something had fallen, so I went to the door and waited for the adult to call me. But there was no movement inside. .”
Su Huangzhe looked at the furnishings in the inner room and asked, "You adults often rest here all night?"
"Yes. We adults eat a lot, drink a lot, and the other one also goes to the latrine. We adults often rest here because we are afraid of disturbing my wife. Moreover, it is close to the study, and it is cheap to come here after doing business."
"Continue what you just said. After you heard the bang, you didn't go in?"
"Oh, I couldn't enter the house without being summoned by the master, so I waited at the door for a while. There was no movement inside for a long time. I thought maybe the master accidentally knocked something while he was asleep. Then in the second half of Yin time on the second day, it stands to reason that It’s time for you to get up and practice your martial arts.”
"I called loudly at the door a few times, but no one answered. I felt something was wrong, so I called out to the guard Wang next to me for a few seconds. Then I realized something was wrong, so we pushed the door open together and went in."
"Then we saw the master lying on the ground in the inner room. He was clutching his chest and looking very painful. I tried it, but he was no longer breathing."
"Wang's guard immediately shouted for someone. There were six guards in the corridor, and two more came over. The master has a rule that if there is an emergency, one should leave one at the post, and all must not be evacuated. I went to the backyard Report to madam. Madam called for Dr. Chen, who is often used in the mansion, and rushed over. "
