The various circuits of the Great Song established the Bureau of Judicial Commissioners to handle local cases of injustice. In the event of a suspicious case or a case where the main culprit was unknown and the investigation was delayed, a Commissioner of Judicial Affairs could personally travel to the locality to preside over the trial.
Back then, the Qu family case took only a little over a month from the occurrence of the event to the filing of the report. Although it was far reaching, it should not have been judged with such haste and negligence.
That was why Nan Zhi suspected that either Wang Fugui had bribed the presiding official back then, or someone else had interfered in the Qu family case.
Although over thirty years had passed, it had been a major case that shocked the court and the commoners at the time. If she wanted to access the case files, she could only start with the Capital Judicial Bureau.
“How is that difficult?”
Xu Zi patted her chest and immediately took the task upon herself. “The relatives of a clerk at the Capital Judicial Bureau were once plagued by a greater ghost, and they invited me to capture it. What is so special about borrowing a sealed file? I will go there personally this afternoon and guarantee that I will bring the items back for you.”
“Then I shall trouble you, A-Zi. When you return, I will treat you to fried stinky tofu again.”
Nan Zhi smiled. “As for Wanniang and me, we need to meet someone first and deliver a gift to the Kaifeng Prefecture.”
Xu Zi was somewhat confused, and Wanniang also looked slightly dazed, her eyes filled with doubt as she looked at Nan Zhi.
...
Meanwhile, the people of the Kaifeng Prefecture had stayed at the dock for an entire day. Not only did they help count the victims, but they also had to post notices in the market, stating that evil sorcerers had recently been causing trouble and advising people to look after their young children carefully.
Seeing that the people from the Demon Suppression Division had taken the victims and left without any intention of helping, some of the runners could not help but complain upon returning to the Kaifeng Prefecture.
“Those people from the Demon Suppression Division are really going too far. They are treating us like runners!”
“Exactly! This human trafficking case was clearly our job, but the Demon Suppression Division snatched it away. It truly makes one feel unexplainably furious!”
“A few days ago, various prefectural offices reported missing relatives. We brothers have been investigating for so long, yet who knew that fourth-class demon suppressor would be so lucky? She actually stumbled upon it and took all the credit.”
“Tomorrow in court, the Demon Suppression Division will surely lord it over our Kaifeng Prefecture again!”
Zhan Zhao could not help but frown slightly and turned to reprimand them.
“Be careful with your words! The Demon Suppression Division and the Kaifeng Prefecture are both administrative offices of the Great Song. Above, we respect His Majesty; below, we protect the people of the capital. Where is this talk of one lording over the other coming from?”
“That trafficker deserved to die. It is a blessing among misfortunes for the people that he fell at the hands of our colleagues in the Demon Suppression Division.”
“Now that the case is solved, we should be happy rather than scheming behind their backs and obsessing over credit and hard work. You are all veterans who have followed the Lord for many years. How can you become more muddled as you grow older?”
Seeing that some still looked unconvinced, Zhan Zhao's gaze grew deeper as he spoke word by word.
“Lately, a trend of restlessness has emerged in the capital, with many rumors that our Kaifeng Prefecture and the Demon Suppression Division are at odds. As guards of the Kaifeng Prefecture, how can you just follow whatever people say without any thoughts of your own?”
“I will report this to Lord Bao later. Please conduct yourselves with dignity.”
Seeing his grave expression and being scolded awake, the crowd immediately nodded in agreement. They knew that the Lord was strict with his subordinates; now that they had been caught by Guard Zhan speaking ill, they would likely be fined half a month's salary.
Zhan Zhao turned and left after speaking. He thought to himself that at this time, Lord Bao should have returned from the palace and should be reviewing petitions in the Yinbin Hall.
Thinking of this, he walked away with hurried steps. He encountered servants and cooks in the manor, who all greeted him with smiles.
“Guard Zhan, are you on duty today?”
“Guard Zhan, fresh fish arrived today. The manor will have braised fish tonight!”
“Guard Zhan, the Lord has just returned. Mister Gongsun is about to send someone to find you!”
Zhan Zhao nodded to each of them like a young gentleman from next door, occasionally stopping to respond. The short path from the Yingwu Tower to the Yinbin Hall felt incredibly difficult to traverse.
When he arrived at the entrance of the Yinbin Hall, he saw Wang Chao and Ma Han guarding the door. Oil lamps had already been lit inside the room.
Upon entering, as expected, he saw a black-faced man with a rounded and full figure sitting at a table by the window. His eyes were deep, and a crescent moon was on his forehead, giving him a particularly unique appearance.
This man wore the official robes of a second-rank official of the current dynasty, and his hat had iron wings. His face was serious; even without speaking, a natural aura of authority emanated from him as he looked up or down.
In addition, there was another person in the room who was not in official robes but dressed as an advisor. He wore a set of emerald green robes, had phoenix-like eyebrows, and a welcoming smile. His temperament was lean and elegant, like a forest of emerald bamboo.
This was the Registrar of the Kaifeng Prefecture, Gongsun Ce.
“Guard Zhan—”
The person sitting at the table was the current Prefect of the Kaifeng Prefecture, whom His Majesty had personally appointed to handle criminal cases in the capital. He was the second-rank official Bao Zheng, who held the reputation of “Justice Bao.”
Contrary to what many imagined, Bao Zheng did not have three heads and six arms, nor did he have double pupils or eagle-like eyes.
Aside from the crescent moon between his eyebrows and his slightly dark skin, he looked like a good-tempered fat man.
Upon seeing Zhan Zhao, the sorrow between Bao Zheng's brows lessened. He called out, and Zhan Zhao bowed gracefully, recounting the events of the day in detail.
“Lord, this morning, an official from the Transport Office reported that on a cargo ship from Shouzhou to Bianjing, an evil Taoist used beast-craft sorcery to kidnap and sell people.”
“That evil Taoist was named Ma San, likely a native of Shouzhou who had some small property there. He was killed by Nan Zhi, a native of Dingyuan and a demon suppressor who came from the same direction on the ship.”
“By the time I arrived, Officer Xu of the Demon Suppression Division had already taken over the case. It is expected that the victims kidnapped here will be sent back soon. Since the Ghost Festival is approaching, many strange people and events have appeared in and around Bianjing, so I took the liberty of posting notices in the market to warn the citizens.”
Bao Zheng stroked his beard and turned to look at Gongsun Ce. The latter smiled slightly and spoke without even needing to flip through the case files.
“Lord, some time ago, there were indeed reports from Jiangling, Xiangzhou, and Taiyuan regarding missing relatives.”
“However, since disappearances occurred in various places and the victims included both men and women, and it did not seem like a typical kidnapping case, no one connected these cases together. Solving this case is indeed a joyous occasion, but Guard Zhan is right. Lately, Bianjing has become a den of dragons and snakes, and I fear...”
“I naturally understand.”
Bao Zheng nodded, his eyebrows knitting together tightly.
“The Ghost Festival approaches, and the Gates of Hell will open. Half a month ago, State Uncle Cao submitted a memorial mentioning that the Zhongyuan Ghost Market might appear in the capital this year, which will inevitably cause some chaos.”
“This year, Chenzhou is suffering from a severe drought, and the Binzhou area has been hit by floods. Now, there are evil people using beast-craft sorcery to kidnap and sell the people...”
“I worry that similar cases will occur in the future. Speaking of which, although the Demon Suppression Division acts harshly, which I do not like, every demon suppressor truly takes the protection of the Great Song as their duty.”
“If our Great Song had more such loyal and righteous individuals, what would we have to fear from any number of monsters and demons?”
“Lord went to the palace this morning, presumably for the matter of disaster relief in Chenzhou?”
Zhan Zhao shifted the topic and added, “Seeing your furrowed brows, I assume the Emperor has already decided on the candidate for the relief efforts in Chenzhou?”
Gongsun Ce shook his head and said helplessly, “It is Consort Pang's younger brother, that Marquis of Anle, Pang Yu. The Emperor issued the imperial decree last night. By now, he should have already left the Bian Canal.”
Pang Yu?
Zhan Zhao instantly understood why Bao Zheng was like this.
Pang Yu was the youngest son of the Grand Preceptor. After his eldest sister entered the palace and became a consort, he received the title of “Marquis of Anle.”
This Marquis of Anle was a well-known profligate in the capital. Aside from drinking at flower houses and fighting crickets, he spent his days bullying men and women.
How could such a person be sent for disaster relief?
“The people recommended by State Uncle Cao were all caught in their weaknesses by the Grand Preceptor—either their character was flawed or their virtue was lacking.”
Bao Zheng gave a cold snort, a hint of anger rising in his brows.
“The calamity of factional strife is dragging the common people into it. How can the Emperor not see it? He is clearly favoring the consort and showing partiality to the Grand Preceptor. It is truly...”
Muddled.
He could only swallow those last words and remain silent.
He only hoped that the young marquis would not cause trouble. He did not ask for him to achieve anything, but only for him to successfully and safely deliver the disaster relief silver and grain to Chenzhou.
With so many guards and attendants following him, and with the Grand Preceptor's household retainers present, to put it bluntly, even a pig would not make a mistake at such a critical moment, right?
The three people in the room were heavy-hearted because of this matter, but then someone came in from outside to report.
“Lord Bao, the Demon Suppression Division has sent over two suspects. They say a case fell into their hands, but upon detailed investigation, they found it should be under the jurisdiction of our Kaifeng Prefecture, so they sent the suspects over.”
The Demon Suppression Division sending suspects to the Kaifeng Prefecture?
This was truly a first since the beginning of time.
The three people in the room were all extremely surprised.
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