Tang Dynasty Prison Administration

057: Steamed Bun Shop

The two returned to the county government office. As soon as they stepped inside, Chen Xian rushed over and said, "Chief Su, we investigated mercury as you requested, and we found that only two people in the entire Fei County have bought mercury in the past month: one is Doctor Han Xuan, and the other is a wealthy merchant named Lin from this county. But Lin buys it every month; Han Xuan is the only one who bought it this year!"

Su Wen smiled, took the account book, glanced at it, and said, "This is the key evidence. Xu Ge, take a few constables to arrest him. Chen Xian, after Xu Ge leaves, take your men and thoroughly search Han Xuan's house!"

Xu Ge still had a lingering doubt and asked, "Master, if he really killed someone, why would he hide the victim's head in his own home?"

Su Wen chuckled and said, "That's called sexual dysfunction and psychosis!"

Xu Ge, Chen Xian, and the constables all looked bewildered, indicating that they couldn't understand what Su Wen meant at all.

Su Wen simply smiled and continued, "It's just...it's hard to explain in a short time. I'll tell you slowly on the way. Let's get started!"

Xu Ge and Chen Xian bowed and replied, "Yes!"

......

Before long, Xu Ge and several constables escorted Han Xuan to the courtroom, where Su Wen was already sitting at the table waiting.

"Snapped!"

With a thud of the gavel, Su Wen roared, "How dare you, Han Xuan! You're a criminal; now that you're in court, kneel down!"

Han Xuan stood in the courtroom, not kneeling, but smiling, and said, "My lord, I do not know what I have done wrong, why do you call me a criminal?"

Su Wen, of course, knew that Han Xuan would never admit it, so he shouted, "Men, bring the body up!"

Several bailiffs molded the deceased out of yellow clay, and then, with Su Wen filling the body with chunks of flesh, carried it to the courtroom. Upon seeing the corpse, Han Xuan frowned slightly, then immediately turned his head away, refusing to look at the body, and continued, "This humble subject knows nothing; please, Your Excellency, inform this humble subject!"

Su Wen remained expressionless as he said, "The deceased's name was Xiao Yue'er, a courtesan from Wangyue Tower. She went missing three days ago on her way home to visit her family. Her body was found today, cut into several pieces and thrown into the alleys. Many people picked it up, while some were eaten by stray dogs!"

"The deceased was skinned and dismembered. The skin was smooth because mercury was used to separate the flesh, and the skin was peeled off bit by bit with a knife. The head was taken away. I have found that mercury is extremely expensive and not many people buy it. In the past month, only you and Mr. Lin have bought it. He buys it every month and uses it for alchemy. But you are the only one who bought it this month."

Upon hearing this, Han Xuan smiled and said, "Shangguan, I am a doctor, and it is normal for patients to occasionally require the use of mercury in their medications. It just so happens that a patient needed it this month, so I purchased it. Can this be used as evidence?"

Su Wen said, "Don't rush!"

"What have you been doing these past few days?"

Faced with Su Wen's questioning, Han Xuan said, "I run my business in the shop. Occasionally, people come to see me for treatment or buy medicine, and I am naturally in the shop. My neighbors can all testify to this!"

Su Wendao said, "The alley next to you leads directly to the crime scene. It takes less than two hours to walk from your shop to the abandoned house (one hour is equal to a quarter of a quarter of an hour, a common practice in ancient times). You can go dismember the body one minute and then return to your shop the next!"

"Hmph!" Han Xuan sneered, "If Shangguan concludes that I am the murderer based on this alone, I am not convinced and it is a great injustice!"

Su Wen smiled and said, "No rush, no rush. Dissecting a corpse is a big and arduous task. Without a skilled person, it would take a day or two to be able to dissect it as carefully and clearly as you, especially since you skinned it first and then dissected it!"

"Such meticulous work will inevitably take a lot of time, but the smell of blood and fresh meat will attract a large number of stray dogs to gather near the abandoned house. It has been abandoned for many years and hardly anyone goes there. Moreover, those stray dogs come in packs, so no one will dare to go!"

"Since you dared to go, it means you regularly feed those stray dogs. And the smell of your flesh and blood was extremely strong when you dismembered the body, so those stray dogs would definitely attack you. Therefore, you must have been feeding them while dismembering the body. However, there was too much flesh from one person, and those stray dogs couldn't finish it in a day or two. So you threw all the remaining flesh into the alleys for the stray dogs to eat. In this way, you could complete this revenge killing without anyone knowing!"

"I can have some wild dogs caught; they'll surely wag their tails and beg for food, and might even become friendly with you!"

Upon hearing this, Han Xuan's expression clearly began to panic, but he still pretended to be calm, and his eyes began to dart around.

Su Wen studied criminal investigation, and in the study of facial expressions in criminal investigation, this is described as a typical behavior of someone about to lie!

Han Xuan argued, "I am a doctor, and saving lives is my duty. I naturally feel compassion for stray dogs and cats and often feed them. It's normal for them to be friendly towards me. Your Excellency cannot convict me in this way!"

Su Wendao said, "Of course not, that's why I said it was a revenge killing!"

Su Wen stood up and walked to Han Xuan's side, saying, "Let me guess. You often went to Wangyue Tower with your friends. One day, you happened to see Xiaoyue'er selling herself for the first time, so you spent money to buy her virginity. But not long after, Xiaoyue'er was short of money again, so she sold herself to Mo Chuan, a merchant from the next county!"

"After that night, Mo Chuan gave the madam his first payment. I remember that in the mouths of you philanderers, the first time is called 'picking the red,' which involves setting off firecrackers, throwing a big banquet, and spending money lavishly. After all, in your eyes, it's a joyous occasion!"

At this point, Su Wen glanced at Han Xuan, about to continue, when Han Xuan, seeing the people in the hall and the person writing the court document, immediately shouted, "Stop talking! I confess! I killed her! I hate her, I hate her so much! She leaked my secrets to others, making me a laughingstock. This even reached the mouths of my friends, and they ridiculed me in private. I'm furious, so furious! That's why I wanted to kill her, to tear her to pieces!"

Su Wen sneered: "Your friend mocked you, so why don't you kill your friend instead of going after this weak woman?"

Han Xuan looked at Su Wen and said, "She's the one who leaked my secret. If she hadn't said anything, none of them would have known!"

Han Xuan stared at Su Wen and said, "You must already know. I beg you not to say anything. I confess. I killed her. I made shoes from her skin. I'll step on her for the rest of my life. I put her head in the cellar at home. I want her to watch over me, to watch over me forever and ever!"

Su Wen looked at Han Xuan in front of him, took a deep breath, and said, "Do you know why Xiao Yue'er sold herself?"

"I don't want to know. Do you know how much money I gave her to keep quiet? I gave her a whole silver ingot, and that vile woman still told everyone!"

When Han Xuan said this, his eyes were bloodshot, and his hatred remained undiminished!

Su Wen said, "She was trying to get medical treatment for her mother. Xiao Yue'er's father died early, leaving behind an orphan and a widow who suffered endless bullying. That's why she was reduced to performing at Wangyue Tower. When her mother became seriously ill, she chose to sell herself to save her mother. And you... because of this, you so cruelly killed her!"

Su Wen looked at Han Xuan and said, "Are you really a doctor? A doctor can't heal himself? Are you still not awake?"

Han Xuan completely ignored what Su Wen said, and instead knelt down in front of Su Wen, pleading, "Shangguan, I only beg you not to tell anyone about my affairs. You can sentence me to be cut in half at the waist, torn apart by chariots, or torn into a thousand pieces, but please don't tell anyone about my affairs, otherwise I...I..."

Looking at Han Xuan's sickly appearance, Su Wen simply sighed and did not say anything more.

Just then, Chen Xian rushed back and said, "Chief Su, we found this head at Han Xuan's house!"

Su Wen walked to the front and examined it carefully. The head was completely disfigured, covered in blood and flesh, and marked with marks from hammers, fists, and feet. It was so bad that the face was no longer recognizable.