flstandardbreds Chapter 364: The Palace Maids Are Not to Be Tried With 5
Chapter 364: The Palace Maids Are Not to Be Tried With 5
The Shaoqing of Dali Temple is only lower than the Qing of Dali Temple in the Dali Temple, and is the fourth rank.
The Dali Temple has 1 Dali Temple Minister and 5 Dali Temple Vice Ministers. With Zhang Xintong, there are now 6 Dali Temple Vice Ministers.
Although the Dali Temple was the Empress's right-hand man, they did not believe that women could investigate cases. When Zhang Xintong arrived, the people in the Dali Temple were somewhat disdainful.
After all, the Dali Temple Minister is a member of the Queen's faction. Zhang Xintong has to investigate the case of the sacred stone within a month. The Dali Temple Minister asks Lu Shaoqing, the most upright person in the Dali Temple, to help investigate.
Zhang Xintong was in a very good mood when she saw Lu Shaoqing. Before she went to look for him, he appeared.
Lu Shaoqing, whose real name is Lu Yunling, is 20 years old, the same age as Zhang Xintong. He is upright and serious, always bravely pursuing cases, fearless of life and death. Lu Yunling is also known for his stubborn and unyielding temper. He refuses to give face to any high-ranking official involved in any case he handles, regardless of their involvement. This has caused him to offend many.
Xiao Yu liked Lu Yunling's character very much, so even though many people impeached Lu Yunling, Xiao Yu protected him.
The Dali Temple Minister introduced Lu Yunling to Zhang Xintong
"Xia Shaoqing, this is Lu Shaoqing. For the next month, Lu Shaoqing will work with you to investigate the case in the Imperial City."
"Okay, thank you, sir."
Dali Temple Minister and Lu Yunling introduced Zhang Xintong
"Lu Shaoqing, this is His Majesty's newly appointed court lady Xia Shaoqing. For the next month, you will investigate the case in the Imperial City together. Cooperate well and get to the bottom of it as soon as possible."
"Yes, my lord"
The divine stone that fell from the sky in the imperial city is called the Divine Stone Case, and this case has a great impact on Xiao Yuan.
The sacred stone suddenly appeared at the foot of a mountain three miles away from the imperial city, and anyone passing by the imperial city could see it.
The sacred stone is about the height of three adult men, half as wide as it is long, and half as thick as it is wide. There are only eight words on it: "When a woman occupies a high position, great disaster will befall from heaven."
The sacred stone is large and heavy, and it appeared suddenly three days ago. Now the whole imperial city is spreading the news that the heavens are not pleased with the empress's accession to the throne and are about to bring down natural and man-made disasters.
Zhang Xintong and Lu Yunling rode their horses straight to the sacred stone outside the imperial city. Lu Yunling did not speak to Zhang Xintong on the way.
Lu Yunling hated the arrogant and frivolous sons of aristocratic families, relying on their ancestors' protection but lacking any real talent or knowledge. Lu Yunling thought Zhang Xintong was the same, relying on the Empress's favor to bully others in the Dali Temple. He hadn't expected that Zhang Xintong, a woman, could ride a horse at a fast pace and could easily keep up with him.
The two men arrived at the place where the sacred stone was and jumped off their horses to check it out.
Zhang Xintong walked around the sacred stone several times. The sacred stone was really big. It was incredible that it could stand here, so some people believed what was written on the stone.
In fact, it is very easy to transport the stone here and then stand it here. It can be done with the simple principle of leverage. These ancient people did not know the power of knowledge and were just ignorant.
The stone of the sacred stone is very ordinary, just larger. The words on the sacred stone are carved, and there is nothing unusual.
While Zhang Xintong was checking, Lu Yunling was also checking. There was nothing except stones, so they could only start with the stones.
"Lu Shaoqing, let's go to the stone shop."
"Um"
There were three stone quarry shops in the imperial city: Zhang's Stone Quarry, Chen's Stone Quarry, and Wang's Stone Quarry. Ancient people liked to name their shops by starting with their surnames and adding the shop's line of business.
Zhangji Stone Shop is run by an elderly couple. The couple is quite old and the shop is very small. It is not located on the main street, but further in.
After entering the store, Lu Yunling looked around and showed the old couple the sign of Shaoqing of Dali Temple.
"Old man, has anyone in your store ever ordered a block of stone that's about 20 feet long, 10 feet wide, and 5 feet thick?"
The couple responded quickly
"Sir, our shop is small, and we mainly sell small items. We have never done such a large business."
The old couple looked very timid and were very afraid of them. Zhang Xintong looked at their account book and found nothing wrong, so she went to the second house.
Chenji Stone Shop was opened by two brothers as a partnership. Located on Main Street, it was neither too big nor too small and had a very good business.
Zhang Xintong and Lu Yunling did not wear the uniforms of Dali Temple officials today. When they arrived, Zhang Xintong did not let Lu Yunling speak or show the brand. Instead, she ordered stones from the store, asking for big stones, and the price was negotiable.
The shop owner really wanted the silver note in Zhang Xintong's hand, but the store didn't have that kind of big stone.
"Sir, the big stones you want are only available at Wang's Stone Shop. We can't get them."
"Seriously, if you don't have it, I'm leaving."
Zhang Xintong shook the banknotes in her hand as she spoke until the two of them walked out of Chen's Stone Shop. Although the shopkeeper looked heartbroken, he did not call them back.
"Lu Shaoqing, let's go! I guess this one doesn't have it, let's go to the next one."
"Um"
When Zhang Xintong and Lu Shaoqing arrived at Wangji Stone Shop, the shop was in a mess and there were many people. Before Zhang Xintong could ask anything, a man dressed as a waiter rushed into the shop.
"Is the proprietress here? Her husband died in our inn. Go and see him."
The shopkeeper couldn't believe what he heard.
"Who did you say died?"
The boy repeated it again
"Shopkeeper, go and call the proprietress! Her husband died in our inn."
The shopkeeper ran to the backyard, and soon a sick and thin woman was helped out by the shopkeeper.
"Hurry... hurry... hurry, let's... go to... the inn."
The boss's wife was in poor health and spoke incoherently. Her surname was Wang, and her name was Wang Mingyun. The stone shop belonged to her family, and the boss, Chen An, was her son-in-law.
The shopkeeper helped the landlady onto the carriage and headed straight for the inn. Many people followed the carriage, eager to watch the excitement, as is common everywhere.
Zhang Xintong and Lu Yunling also followed him to the inn. Not knowing what was going on, they could only follow and see.
When they arrived at the inn, they saw a man lying on the ground. The inn was run by a beautiful woman, whom everyone called the beautiful woman Manager Li.
When Shopkeeper Li saw the owner of the stone shop coming, he hurried over to explain.
"Mrs. Chen, our inn didn't do anything. Your husband checked out and suddenly collapsed to the ground while paying the bill. He then died."
Chen An had no wounds on his body and his clothes were neatly dressed. Mrs. Chen, Wang Mingyun, seemed very easygoing and did not blame Manager Li.
"My husband has chest pain, and I think he's having an attack."
At this moment, the onlookers also understood that Chen An had suffered from chest pain and died here.
Chest pain is a heart disease, which can be fatal. But Zhang Xintong knew that Chen An definitely did not die of a heart disease.
If a heart patient has a heart attack, he will hold his chest tightly, instead of lying on the ground with his hands hanging at his sides.
Mrs. Chen, Wang Mingyun, asked the owner of the stone shop to call someone to carry Chen An back home to prepare for his funeral. The innkeeper Li did not ask for compensation.
The two families had no intention of reporting the case, so the matter was about to pass.