Tang Dynasty Prison Administration

Chapter 118: The Collection of Fragrance

Upon hearing this, Xu Ge understood, quickly bowed, and turned to leave.

Cui Lingyu placed some food in Su Wen's bowl, then said with a smile, "Su Lang, don't be in a hurry. This case will definitely be investigated by you. Let's eat first!"

Su Wen responded and picked up his bowl and chopsticks to start eating. At this moment, Su Wen vaguely realized that after the marriage, Cui Lingyu would definitely be the head of the household!

Keep in mind that Cui Lingyu is only sixteen years old. For her to be so mature at sixteen is quite surprising and even shatters Su Wen's expectations.

About half an hour later, Xu Ge came to Su Wen with a document and said, "Master, the Chief Secretary has written a document!"

Cui Lingyu took the document from Xu Ge, opened it, read it through, and then looked at Su Wen, saying, "Young Master Su, the real name of Qinglongfang is Feng Xiao. He is an extremely upright and incorruptible man. If necessary, you can seek his help!"

Su Wen responded, "Xu Ge, let's go, take me to the crime scene!"

Xu Ge responded.

Before long, the three arrived at Qinglongfang in Wannian County. Upon arriving at the scene of the crime, they discovered that it was a villa that looked extremely wealthy and must belong to a rich family.

Su Wen glanced at Xu Ge and said, "Go and call Forensic Doctor Jiang here!"

Xu Ge said, "Forensic doctor Jiang is already inside performing the autopsy!"

Su Wen nodded and entered the villa with Xu Ge.

Upon arriving at the door, Su Wen noticed the extremely messy footprints inside the room. Looking at Xu Ge, he saw that many people had already come in and seen the place by the time the people went to report it to the authorities and the officials arrived.

Su Wen frowned. This situation of people watching the spectacle was really infuriating, but there was nothing he could do. It seemed that Su Wen had to suggest to the Sage that no one should enter the crime scene without permission, otherwise they would be punished.

Otherwise, the crime scene would practically turn into a marketplace. Even if the real culprit left clues, the sheer number of people rushing in to watch would completely destroy them. (The concept of crime scene protection was formally established only after Song Ci of the Song Dynasty; before that, it was merely symbolic!)

Upon entering the room, Su Wen smelled a faint fragrance.

The room was neatly arranged, without the slightest sign of disorder. The deceased lay peacefully on the bed, the blankets perfectly in place. Jiang Fengyu, having already completed the autopsy, waited and said, "The deceased is female, approximately sixteen or seventeen years old. Preliminary examination indicates death occurred between Hai (9-11 PM) and Zi (11 PM-1 AM). There are lacerations in the yin area, suggesting the area has been cleaned. There are signs of rape, but the deceased showed no signs of resistance. The cause of death is likely asphyxiation, but there are no strangulation marks on the neck, nor any indication of the mouth or nose being forcefully covered. Therefore, the specific cause of death cannot be determined. However, by observing that the deceased's tongue is pressed against her upper lip, it appears she died of asphyxiation!"

Su Wendao said, "The fact that the deceased showed no signs of resistance means that the murderer killed her first and then raped her!"

Jiang Fengyu nodded: "Judging from the scene, although the murderer cleaned it exceptionally well, the murderer should be a young person who is extremely vain and fond of cleanliness. I smelled carefully, and there was no sandalwood scent on the deceased. The murderer must have lit the sandalwood. I can't deduce anything else because this place is too clean, so clean that it doesn't seem like a human dwelling!"

Su Wen nodded and carefully examined the room. He then noticed a burn mark on the table by the window. Otherwise, the room was extremely clean, with no other clues whatsoever.

Su Wen looked at Xu Ge and said, "Xu Ge, you said this case is extremely strange. What makes it strange?"

Xu Ge said, "Call the night watchman and the maid!"

Then an old man and a maid of about fifteen or sixteen years old walked in one after the other.

Su Wendao said, "Tell me about it!"

The old night watchman said, "Last night, around 1:45 AM, as I was walking along the street outside the gate, I saw a dark shadow fall from the sky and land directly in this house. I immediately reported it to the authorities, thinking there was a thief!"

Xu Ge replied, "Last night at four-quarters past midnight, the neighborhood head Feng Xiao, who was in charge of patrolling, led his men to this household to inquire and investigate. According to the neighborhood head, they saw candlelight still burning in the young lady's room, and the person inside was reading a book!"

Su Wendao: "Reading?"

The maidservant said, "Yes, Shangguan, recently a book called 'The Collection of Fragrance' has become very popular in Chang'an. Almost everyone in our circle has read it. Miss's friends all highly recommended it, and Miss bought a copy to have something to talk about with them. As a result, Miss has fallen in love with this book and reads it day and night!"

"Last night, just like usual, around 1:15 AM, I asked the young lady if she wanted to wash up. She said no, and told me to go back to my room to rest. She even said she wanted to continue watching for a while!"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen looked at Jiang Fengyu and asked, "The examination results indicate that the death occurred between 9 PM and 11 PM, is that correct?"

Jiang Fengyu nodded.

Su Wen sneered, "This is indeed strange. How can a dead person talk to you? And be seen reading by the neighborhood head at four in the morning?"

Jiang Fengyu spoke first: "Shangguan, I have examined at least three hundred, if not five hundred, corpses without a single mistake. I never misjudge a case. Even if the victim has applied ice, I can still tell. So I would never misjudge. Although I cannot know the specific cause of death, she must have died between Hai and Zi hours. The lividity on her back proves this!"

Su Wen gestured, saying, "You don't need to explain, I believe you!"

At this moment, the old watchman said, "Shangguan, I think it might really be haunted. A couple of days ago, Chang'an County was also haunted. Old Man Lin also said that he saw a dark figure flying in the sky one night. At that time, the Imperial Guards even shot arrows at it, but the arrows went straight through the person's body. It was extremely strange!"

Su Wendao said, "There are no ghosts in this world, only people who pretend to be ghosts!"

Su Wen looked at the maid and asked, "Who gifted your young lady the Ningxiang Collection, and where does she live?"

The maidservant thought for a moment and said, "She lives in Yanfu Ward in Chang'an County. Her name is Pei Yinnu, and she is the youngest daughter of the Pei family of Hedong. She is fifteen years old!"

Su Wen looked up and carefully examined the roof, then said, "Xu Ge, go get a ladder. I'm going up on the roof to take a look!"

After a while, Xu Ge brought over a ladder, and Su Wen slowly climbed onto the roof. Fortunately, this was the roof of a wealthy family, and the roof was exceptionally sturdy; otherwise, Su Wen might have easily broken the tiles and fallen down.

Su Wen carefully examined the roof, deliberately lifting a few tiles. The crisscrossing beams beneath the tiles were very sturdy. The widest gap between the vertical beams was less than a foot (25cm), and they formed a square shape.

It's clear that no one could squeeze through such a narrow space unless they also knew the bone-shrinking technique used by Lu Yao!

After covering the tile with the roof tile, Su Wen prepared to leave. However, just before leaving, Su Wen noticed an extremely thin thread on the tile, fluttering in the wind.

Su Wen squatted down and picked it up. Upon closer inspection, he realized that it was none other than the silk he had seen on the sandbar before!