Tang Dynasty Prison Administration

Chapter 123: The Azure Dragon Case

In truth, Su Wen wasn't entirely certain about this, but the silkworm thread and the so-called black shadow walking on air were very likely illusions, and it was even highly possible that they were the same group of people from Dunhuang.

Zhang Xizhou had been plotting for over a decade, but all his money was taken away and his original plans were ruined, forcing him to rebel prematurely.

However, judging from Zhang Xizhou's long planning, he couldn't possibly only have this one path. The most important point is that simply taking Dunhuang might not have much impact on the Tang Dynasty, so he must have other plans!

Therefore, Su Wen had no choice but to bring the matter to the forefront.

Seeing that no one in the court was speaking, the emperor looked at Su Wen with a hint of doubt and said, "Oh, Su Wen, do you mean that Li Xinyue's death is related to Zhang Xizhou's rebellion?"

Su Wen replied, "Yes!"

The sage asked, "How can you prove it?"

Su Wendao said, "Your Majesty, I cannot speak of it now, lest the information leak out and be noticed by those hiding in the shadows. I even have a vague feeling that there may be Tibetan spies hiding in the Tang Dynasty behind this case!"

Upon hearing this, the emperor pondered for a moment and then slowly said, "Then when you solve this case, I will surely reward you handsomely!"

After speaking, the Emperor glanced at everyone in the court and asked, "My esteemed ministers, do you have any objections to Su Wen taking responsibility for this case?"

Upon hearing this, Li Linfu was the first to bow and say, "Your Majesty, I have no objection!"

After Li Linfu finished speaking, Xiao Song, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, echoed, "This humble subject has no objection!"

After the two finished speaking, everyone chorused, "Your Majesty, we have no objections!"

The Emperor said, "Very well, then this case will be entrusted to you for investigation. You have the authority to act as you see fit. If necessary, you can directly mobilize the Right Jinwu Guard. Li Xingguo is the judicial officer of your prison office; he is very familiar with the Jinwu Guard. If necessary, you can have him mobilize the Jinwu Guard to assist you. In addition, you can mobilize everyone in Chang'an County, Wannian County, the Ministry of Justice, and the Court of Judicial Review, and order them to do their jobs. My beloved ministers are all well aware of the connections behind Zhang Xizhou's rebellion; I will not say more!"

After speaking, the emperor turned and left. At this moment, Gao Lishi shouted, "Dismiss the court!"

Su Wen interrupted Gao Lishi, deliberately raising his voice, "Your Majesty, I have another matter I wish to request your permission for!"

The sage stopped and looked at Su Wen, asking, "What is it?"

Su Wen took a deep breath and said, "Your Majesty, I wish to dissect the body of Li Zheng's daughter, Li Xinyue. I humbly request your permission!"

The sage frowned, and the others exchanged bewildered glances. The sage then asked, "What is dissection?"

Su Wendao said, "It involves using a knife to cut open the deceased's abdomen, carefully examining their internal organs, and then putting them back into the body one by one, and sewing them up with needle and thread..."

Upon hearing this, Li Zheng immediately rebuked, "Su Wen, do you know what you're saying? My daughter was only a teenager when she died. Since you have leads, why don't you investigate them? Instead, you disemboweled my daughter's body. What exactly are you trying to do?"

Su Wendao said, "Governor Li, Li Xinyue died of suffocation, but there were no signs of strangulation, rope binding, or face covering on her neck or face. If we don't dissect her body and examine her internal organs, how can we know the true cause of Li Xinyue's death?"

At this moment, the Grand Secretary Cui Lin also came out and said softly, "Your Majesty, Su Wen, death is a serious matter. Now that we have clues, let's investigate them first. Why resort to knives and dissecting the body?"

Su Wendao said, "Only by dissecting the body and examining the internal organs can we know how the deceased died. If we don't even know how the deceased died, then what's the point of investigating the case?"

"Insolence!" Li Zheng roared, "Su Wen, are you trying to humiliate me, to humiliate my daughter?"

"Governor Li, by dissecting the corpse to understand the cause of death, is not humiliating, but rather a sign of respect for the deceased. It is also crucial for making a judgment on the case, and can even allow future generations to understand the gravity of the matter!"

"Su Wen!" With a loud shout, Li Zheng was so angry that he took two steps back and even became unsteady on his feet.

In contrast, Su Wen continued, "Your Majesty, I have no other intentions. Dissecting the body can reveal the true cause of death, which is crucial to the case. I have no other selfish motives!"

The Emperor glanced at Su Wen, then looked at the crowd and said, "My beloved ministers, Su Wen is a coroner. He respects the dead more than any of you here. Therefore, I think that since Su Wen believes dissecting corpses is extremely important, let him do it!"

......

Having obtained the authority to handle cases and with a temporary prison warden in place, the people Su Wen recruited finally had an office area, and Su Wen could officially begin investigating cases openly and legitimately.

Su Wen, Cui Lingyu, Li Xingguo, Cheng Nianci, Jiang Fengyu, Cui Changfeng, Ye Chujiu, Ji Ming, and the other supervisors all stood quietly at the door watching.

As several constables hung the prison warden's nameplate on the gate, a look of joy appeared on everyone's face.

Su Wendao said, "Brothers and sisters, from now on, the prison ward is our home. We must treat all the people who come to report cases with courtesy. The prison ward will absolutely not allow torture to extract confessions. The Dali Temple does not accept reports from outsiders, but we in the prison ward will. As long as there is a report, we will accept it!"

Everyone responded in unison, and Su Wen continued, "Our Warden's motto is: justice will never be too late, darkness will always recede, we will never wrong an innocent person, and we will never let a wicked person go unpunished!"

Everyone responded in unison. As they entered the prison, they saw the four characters "正大光明" (Upright and Just) prominently displayed in the courtroom.

Cui Lingyu asked, "Su Lang, did you write this?"

Su Wen said somewhat embarrassedly, "My handwriting isn't very good, but it's my ideal, and the ideal of everyone in our prison warden!"

Cui Lingyu said, "Although the handwriting isn't very beautiful, the effort put into it is immediately apparent. It's upright and honest, very good!"

......

Cheng Nianci said, "I've already found out the information you asked me to investigate yesterday through the ghostwriter's channels. There aren't many people selling Azure Dragon Powder in the city, only three: two foreign merchants and a local ruffian from the Tang Dynasty!"

Su Wendao said, "Cui Changfeng, bring these three people to the prison warden for questioning!"

Cheng Nianci continued, "As for the silkworm silk, we're still investigating!"

Su Wen responded.

Cui Changfeng led several constables out of the prison. Su Wen noticed that the uniforms they were wearing weren't very nice, so he had an idea. After this case was over, Su Wen wanted to ask the Emperor if he could design uniforms for all the prison staff.

Before long, Cui Changfeng returned with Cheng Nianci.

He brought three more people with him, and Su Wen asked, "What is this Azure Dragon Powder? Do you know anything about it?"