The thin and tall guard's face was gray, and he wanted to cry without tears: "Then, what should I do, if there is another murder case, we will all be unable to eat and walk around." He grabbed the arm of the young guard in panic: "Brother, brother, you have always had face in front of He Zongqi, you, you want to save my brother." ”

The young guard patted the thin and tall guard on the shoulder, and persuaded with a smile: "You can stay here with peace of mind, don't let others go out, don't worry, I will pick you clean." ”

The thin and tall guard smiled in gratitude to Dade, and sent the young guard back to the public hall, he watched the young guard leave, his face suddenly sank, and his eyes flashed with a gloomy light.

He suddenly heard a few low insect chirps, and slowly turned his head, only to see a black shadow flashing under the porch.

He hurriedly blocked the door of the public hall, watched the window next to him open a gap, and the figure suddenly slipped into it like a gust of wind.

He breathed a sigh of relief without a trace, looked left and right, and leaned his head under the pillar.

A window on the third floor of Mingyuan Building closed gently, silently, without alarming anyone.

Yao Qi stood behind the window, the faint sky light shining through the window, reflecting a pale bright blue on her face.

She turned her head with a smile and said with a narrow face: "My lord, it seems that there are still a little few guards in the internal guard." ”

Hearing this, Han Changdu's originally very irritable mood unexpectedly calmed down.

He curled his lips and smiled: "Then, give the internal guards a little more money?" ”

Yao Ji sneered: "It's up to the adults, whether the internal guards are up or not has nothing to do with the lower officials." ”

Han Changdui's eyes flashed, and he glanced at Yao Qi: "Has Meng Sui arranged it there?" ”

Yao Qi nodded: "It's all arranged, but will they do it in the next two days?" ”

Han Changwan shook his head incomprehensibly: "No, at least not today." ”

Yao Ji understood in an instant.

The scholars left the Gongyuan at dusk today, and if there were people who wanted to do it tonight, it would inevitably narrow the scope of suspicion and make it impossible to muddy the waters to the greatest extent.

Yao Qi glanced at Han Changdui, what a fox spirit.

As soon as the sky was bright, a wisp of azure bloomed in the gray sky, and the dim and lonely sky was added with a strong stroke.

The Gongyuan, which had been silent all night, gradually became lively, and in the east and west houses, the scholars began to prepare for the morning meal.

The stove room behind Mingyuan Building was full of smoke, steaming, and the aroma of rice wafted with the heat, not affected by last night's shock, and it was full of fireworks.

Four flatbed trucks delivering vegetables stopped outside the corner gate of the Gongyuan, and the leading Cai Laoda saluted the forbidden army at the gate, and said politely: "Two military masters, the villain is here to trouble the two military masters again." ”

As he spoke, he took two three-layer octagonal food boxes and handed them to the forbidden army, and said with a deliberate flattering smile: "Two military masters, this is a little food, it's nothing, and please accept it with a smile." ”

This is a conventional rule, there is nothing to excuse, and there is nothing to be ashamed of.

The forbidden soldiers looked at each other and smiled, took the two food boxes with peace of mind, and opened the top lid to take a look.

A burst of beef aroma wafted out.

The smiles on their faces deepened.

Beef is a rare item at this time, and only the rich and expensive can afford it.

One of the forbidden soldiers walked to the car, lifted the oilcloth covering the car, hastily swept the watery greens in his eyes, nodded, and said casually: "Okay, let's go in." ”

Boss Cai piled up the smile lines on his face, nodded and led the coachman, pulled the car, walked into the tribute courtyard through the wide open corner gate, and finally parked the four flatbed trucks that were full of piles in the middle of the road.

He shouted to the coachman to unload the car, and the people in the stove room heard the movement and came over to help.

He glanced at the end of the corridor, a corner of dark clothes fluttered at the end of the corridor, he walked over quickly, his figure flashed, and disappeared at the end of the corridor.

Everyone was in a hurry, unloading the dishes in a hurry, and they didn't have time to care about who came next to them, and they didn't notice that Boss Cai had gone away.

The sun was rising, the sky was blue, the clouds were swirling, and the weather was fine.

The empty room next to the warehouse on the first floor of Mingyuan Building opened the door again.

The two guards carried Bingjian into the room, and the cool white mist lingered on it, and the room suddenly fell into winter.

Seeing the corpse on the ground, Sun Ying's eyes suddenly lit up, he walked forward quickly, circled around the corpse, and sighed: "It's too ruthless, it's too cruel, it's too powerful." ”

Han Changdui nodded: "I did a rough examination, this person was strangled with his arm, as for whether there is poisoning or something, I have to do an autopsy by Sun Yan." ”

Sun Ying's eyes lit up with excitement, and she rolled up her sleeves impatiently: "The humble duty will definitely not disgrace the mission." ”

Yao Qi saw Sun Ying's eager appearance, smiled, looked at He Zhenfu and said, "What kind of medicine did you pour him, this is crazy?" ”

He Zhenfu raised his eyebrows and smiled: "Just tell him that there is an autopsy job, and he will be like this." ”

Sun Ying glanced at Yao Qi and He Zhenfu, and snorted disdainfully: "You don't understand, who is like you, a model who doesn't learn and has no skills." ”

Yao Qi and He Zhenfu sighed in unison and glanced at Sun Ying with fierce contempt.

Sun Ying laughed twice, opened the autopsy box, and all kinds of tools were neatly placed under the candle flame, the cold light flickered, and the chill was overwhelming.

He untied all the clothes on the corpse, and when he saw the shoes on the deceased's feet, he sighed softly: "Moire shoes, why is there only one?" ”

Yao Qi explained: "Yes, the deceased was salvaged from the thatched house, and there was only one shoe on his foot when he was salvaged, I thought that the deceased was struggling before he died, and the shoes fell off, but the internal guards salvaged all night, and did not find the lost shoe, and now it seems that it is very likely that the murderer took away another shoe." ”

Sun Ying nodded, took off the deceased's shoes, and examined them carefully.

The thick layer of dirt covered by the upper has not been completely cleaned, but where the dirt is thin, you can see the bamboo blue upper embroidered with moon-white moire.

The upper is an ordinary satin, and the embroidery thread is also an ordinary silk thread, and there is nothing special about it.

The sole is made of wood and is carved to prevent slipping.

This kind of shoes are commonly used by the next gentleman, lightweight, waterproof and non-slip, and the price is high.

Sun Ying frowned twice, took the results of the inquest one by one, and thought, "My lord, this moire shoe is really too ordinary. ”

Han Changdui wrinkled his eyebrows and said distressedly: "If it is really just an ordinary cloud pattern shoe, why did the murderer take it away with all his heart." ”

Sun Ying was also puzzled, took the stinky moire shoe, turned it over and looked at it upside down.

"What is this?" Yao Qi's eyes moved, and he suddenly pointed to the tip of the shoe downward, close to the soles of the shoes, and said softly: "Why is the color of this piece different from other places." ”

Sun Ying hurriedly turned the shoes over, peeled off the place where the wooden sole and the satin upper met, and saw two moon-white spots the size of small fingernails in the gap.

He narrowed his eyes: "Scissors." ”

Yao Qi hurriedly took a pair of sharp and delicate copper scissors from the autopsy box and handed it to Sun Ying.

Sun Ying held the scissors and carefully disassembled the sole and upper of the shoe.

As the sole and upper of the shoe were disassembled, his face suddenly changed: "My lord, this shoe has been disassembled!" ”

"What?" Han Changwei was taken aback: "Has it been dismantled?" ”

"Yes." Sun Ying took the lamp and candle and illuminated the removed vamp.

On the edge of the bamboo-blue upper, there are two rows of pinholes, one row of new and one row of half-old, the half-old pinholes are arranged very neatly, while the new pinholes are uneven and crooked.

The man who re-sewed the upper seemed to want to sew along the old pinholes, but due to poor craftsmanship, some of the pinholes overlapped the old ones, while others were very far away, and as for the cut coarse cotton threads, they hung on the new pinholes one by one.

Several people looked at each other, and it was difficult to hide the shock on their faces.

The upper was indeed taken apart and then sewn back in a hurry.

But why?

Why take apart a shoe and sew it back again.

So what about the other shoe, is it also disassembled?

Sun Ying found a small spot in the place where the upper and sole were sewn together, in addition to the two small spots.

Yao Qi was puzzled: "This is, faded?" ”

Han Changwan shook his head: "This shoe looks new, it shouldn't fade so quickly." ”

Sun Ying lowered his head and looked at it for a long time, then twisted the upper of the shoe with his hand, his face was slightly gloomy, and he suddenly said: "This is not an ordinary fading, this bamboo cyan is dyed with woad mixed with weed, the color is bright, but if the solid color is not done well, after encountering water, woad will fade, and the color of woad will fade very light, and finally become moon white." ”

He paused and said, "This shoe obviously doesn't have any solid color, and it will fade very badly when exposed to water," he barely ignored the smell on the shoe: "It's just that the shoe is covered in filth, and the upper is not as obvious as the fading in the gap." ”

Han Changdui was silent for a moment, his mind moved, and he suddenly spoke: "Is there a way to make the color of the shoes completely fade?" ”

Yao Qi suddenly realized: "What adults mean is ......"

Han Changdui nodded: "Yes, there is not much time left until dusk." ”

Sun Ying looked at Han Changdu, then at Yao Qi, and smiled proudly: "As long as there is clean water, the humble position will soon make this shoe change color." ”

"Wait, wait," He Zhenfu suddenly came back to his senses and asked eagerly: "My lord, this is not right, when the scholars enter the tribute courtyard, they have to search their bodies, if someone brings a shoe in, wouldn't it arouse suspicion?" ”

Han Changdui said lightly: "If a person brings a shoe to the tribute courtyard, he doesn't need to be searched?" ”

He Zhenfu pursed his lips and instructed the internal guard to bring in a few basins of clean water.

Sun Ying put the disassembled upper and sole in two basins of clean water, and the clear water rippled slightly a few times, returning to calm.

He clapped his hands: "After about a stick of incense, this color will begin to fade." ”

Yao Qi and He Zhenfu are on the left and on the right, guarding two copper basins.

Sun Ying took out a slender silver needle, and the cold light flashed, piercing the throat, stomach and abdomen of the deceased in turn.

The room was silent, silent, everyone held their breath, waiting for the final result.

When it was time for lunch, the scholars began to prepare before leaving the Tribute Academy, and finally checked the examination papers again to confirm that the examination papers were correct and that there was no dirt, and some scholars handed in the examination papers in advance and left the house with confidence.

When the scholars walked to the head of the Feihong Bridge, they found that this year's provincial test was very different from before.

In the past, after every exam, the scholars could leave the Gongyuan directly, but this year, Feihongqiaotou has an additional team of Beiya forbidden army and a team of internal guards.

Two Beiya forbidden soldiers and one internal guard were in a group to search the departing soldiers again.

Such a change made the scholars somewhat panicked, but after seeing the unsympathetic and inhumane methods of the forbidden army and the internal guards, most of the people dared to be angry and did not dare to speak, so they had to hold their breath, raise their arms flat, and let the Beiya Forbidden Army and the internal guards search thoroughly from beginning to end.

A low sigh came from the quiet room, Sun Ying wiped his sweat, looked at the silver needles placed side by side in the copper tray, and said clearly: "The silver needle probe shows that the deceased did not show signs of poisoning before he died, and the results of the autopsy can also confirm that the deceased died of suffocation, and did not inhale any drugs before death." ”

This result was expected, and Han Changwan and Yao Qi did not show a look of surprise.

The door of the room creaked, He Zhenfu took the disassembled upper, pushed the door in, and shook his head: "Among the soldiers who went out just now, no one wore a pair of shoes like this." ”

This moire shoe has completely changed its appearance, from bamboo blue to moon white, the moon white moire looms, if you don't come to the front and look closely, you can't see that this upper is also embroidered.

Yao Qi stared at this greatly changed moire shoe, twisted his eyebrows and said: "My lord, none of us have ever seen the appearance of the lost shoe, but we just preconceived that the lost shoe and this shoe are the same pair, but what if the murderer actually took away a pair of shoes from the deceased, and left this shoe to fish in troubled waters and confuse the public?" ”

Han Changdu's eyes lit up, and he eagerly instructed He Zhenfu: "Leave those who have brought an extra pair of shoes or a shoe with them, as well as those who wear a pair of shoes that don't fit well." ”

At dusk, the sky is full of light and splashes of color.

In the end, there were still a few scholars who handed in the papers in advance, and most of the scholars waited until the last moment when the Gongyuan opened the door before they carefully handed in the examination papers, and walked towards Feihongqiao with a nervous heart.

Xia Yuanji walked out with the flow of people, and saw that the people at the front were divided into eight teams, neatly lined up at the head of Feihong Bridge, and carefully searched by the forbidden army and internal guards.

Seeing this, the faces of the scholars changed dramatically and began to discuss.

"What's going on, I've never heard of a body search after leaving the Tribute Courtyard."

"yes, it's a shame."

"Insulting Sven, insulting Sven."

Although the voices of resentful discussion came and went, the scholars only dared to lower their voices and complain, but they did not dare to scold loudly, and they didn't even have the courage to say a word more if they pointed at Sang and scolded Huai, insinuating and insinuating.

As the flow of people gradually moved forward, Xia Yuanji finally couldn't maintain the calm on his face, he cautiously looked around, and seeing that no one noticed him, he slowly retreated quietly.

He had just taken a few steps back when he slammed into something his back, making a soft clang.

He looked back, a swarthy face with a smile on his face crashed into his eyes, and he was about to get angry, when he heard the owner of the black face apologize: "This brother, I'm really sorry, I bumped into my brother's platform, brother's platform is not strange, and I apologized to my brother." ”

He suddenly felt that he had punched the cotton, and there was nowhere to spill his anger, he looked down, and saw two test baskets hanging on a flat shoulder one after the other, and the one that hit him was swaying and spinning in front of him.

He suddenly changed his face and said with a tolerant smile: "Brother Tai is too polite, this is nothing, Brother Tai doesn't have to blame himself." He looked at the flat pole and turned sideways: "Brother, let's go first." ”

The man was not polite, thanked him with a big grin, and crossed Xia Yuanji with his shoulder and walked forward.

Xia Yuanji followed behind the man, slowly approached Feihongqiao, saw that after the forbidden army and the internal guards searched him, he picked out some people, and vaguely heard questions about bringing an extra pair of shoes, what was going on with these shoes.

His heart froze, his expression changed slightly, he cautiously glanced around, and quickly stuffed a pair of shoes in his examination basket into the examination basket that the person in front of him picked behind.

After doing this, he covered his pounding heart, and walked out of the team quietly, at the end of the line next to him.

Han Changwei stood on the third floor of Mingyuan Building, stood by the window, and saw all this scene in his eyes, and then ordered He Zhenfu with an expressionless face: "Let Xia Yuanji go out, order someone to follow him, don't startle the snake, in addition, buckle Bao Cheng, wait until all the scholars have left, and then let him go, don't confiscate the shoes, let people protect him in the dark, and see if Xia Yuanji will go to him." ”

Yao Ji fiddled with the moire shoes that had been cleaned and dismantled, and muttered to himself: "What secrets can be hidden in a pair of shoes, Li Cheng, a scholar who participated in the provincial examination, why should he wear a pair of shoes with secrets to the tribute courtyard, is it because he is afraid that he will enter the tribute courtyard, and the shoes will be stolen at home, this is good, because these shoes lost their lives, it is better to be stolen." ”

When Han Changdui heard Yao Qi's muttering, he couldn't help but laugh dumbly, walked over slowly, took the upper, and said in a rambling voice: "It is also possible that Li Cheng was ordered to go to the Gongyuan to find these shoes, and then hand them over to someone, but in the end, he was killed and killed." ”

Yao Qi bent a pair of apricot eyes, and said with a smile: "My lord, don't be funny, usually when the guards of the Gongyuan are lax, they don't come in to look for things, but take advantage of the time when the guards of the Gongyuan are the strictest, come in to look for things, I'm afraid it's not to look for things, it's to look for death." ”

Han Changwan raised his eyebrows: "What if the person behind the scenes has just gotten the news, he just knew that things were hidden in the Tribute Courtyard, and the Tribute Courtyard was guarded by the Beiya Forbidden Army and the internal guards, and the place where the things were hidden was the most heavily guarded place in the Tribute Courtyard. ”

Yao Qi was a little unconvinced, and asked with a stalk around his neck: "Then these shoes must not have been hidden in the Gongyuan for a day or two, so tell me, where is the most heavily guarded place in the Gongyuan, but it can hide an object as big as a pair of shoes, and it has escaped waves of searches by the forbidden army and internal guards without being discovered?" ”

Han Changwan smiled, and gently knocked his fingers on the book case twice: "The warehouse of Mingyuan Building." ”

Yao Qi suddenly realized: "Adults mean those wooden floors that were pried up?" ”

Han Changdui nodded: "We have always been unable to figure out why the exam papers leaked out are the test papers that have been invalidated, maybe the people who entered the warehouse were not really to steal the exam papers, but to find out where the shoes were hidden, after the investigation was clear, I don't know what the reason was, but we couldn't take the shoes away, so we had to leak the exam papers stolen in advance, which was used to cover up the real purpose, so as to take the shoes out of the Tribute Academy." ”

Yao Qi pondered: "Maybe the one who stole the exam papers and shoes was the official in the Mingyuan Building, or the forbidden army and internal guards in the Tribute Academy, these people were not allowed to leave the Tribute Courtyard before the list was released, and after getting the shoes, this person handed them over to Li Cheng, and Li Cheng took them out of the Tribute Academy, no, no." She eagerly denied herself, shook her head and said: "Since it was brought out of the tribute courtyard by Li Cheng, why did he die in the latrine, and how could those shoes end up in Xia Yuanji's hands again." ”

Her heart moved, and she blurted out: "My lord, Li Cheng and Xia Yuanji belong to two forces, they infiltrate each other and monitor each other, and finally Xia Yuanji is superior in skill and got this thing, in order to avoid a long night dream, he took advantage of the fact that he left the tribute courtyard today, and he wanted to take this thing out and hand it over to the people behind the scenes." ”

Han Changwan smiled: "Yes, this is the most reasonable statement, but who did it in the warehouse, and who Li Cheng and Xia Yuanji obeyed, these are still unknown." ”

Yao Qi breathed a sigh of relief: "Didn't the adults already order people to follow Xia Yuanji, sooner or later they will know whether he is going to see a human or a ghost." ”

Saying that, she gloated and laughed: "Is Bao Cheng a natural unlucky bastard, this kind of once-in-a-century thing can be bumped into by him, and the shoes are still hidden in his exam basket, if the shoes are not the pair that hides the secret, it is better to say something, otherwise, he will not escape the fate of being killed." ”

Han Changwan raised his eyebrows and said curiously: "What, do you think the shoes hidden in the Bao Cheng test basket are just a pair of ordinary shoes?" ”

Yao Qi nodded heavily, and said as he should: "Of course, such an important thing, of course, must be worn on your feet to rest assured." ”

Han Changdui stared in the direction of the window, and carefully recalled Xia Yuanji's walking posture, which was natural and comfortable, without the slightest awkwardness, he squinted his eyes: "What you said is that then the things hidden in these shoes are worth studying." ”