RWNEFE -Chapter 589 A Draw Means It Was an Accident!

Shen Lanxi sat in her chair and chuckled lightly. “I haven’t even called on anyone yet, and Minister Wang has already volunteered.”

Wang Shen looked as if he had choked on something.

Having already been pushed onto the fire, he couldn’t very well explain that he had been kicked out by someone else.

“Since everything is ready, let’s not waste time. Begin!” Shen Lanxi announced.

Wang Shen’s vision darkened; he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Officials from the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice stepped forward and briefly explained the case.

They were merely going through the motions. The topic of the contest had been announced the previous day; after a whole night, both sides must have made preparations.

Wang Shen steadied himself and stepped forward to question the witnesses.

“Are there any witnesses? Who was the first to discover the young madam’s death?”

While he was questioning people, Mr. Ruohua chose to inspect the crime scene.

Once Mr. Ruohua left, Wang Shen secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

This way he wouldn’t have to worry about being copied. Mr. Ruohua’s reputation was renowned throughout the land; if he accused Wang Shen of stealing his methods, it would be tantamount to making an enemy of scholars everywhere.

After a short while, Mr. Ruohua returned from the scene.

“I would also like to examine the body.”

Everyone was stunned.

Wasn’t Mr. Ruohua a teacher?

He knew how to conduct an autopsy?

The Dali Temple official said, “This way, sir.”

Seeing that Mr. Ruohua had moved ahead of him, Wang Shen grew anxious. He immediately stopped questioning and hurried to examine the scene as well.

In truth, as a Vice Minister of Works, he did not really understand criminal investigation. What he was doing now was merely what he had picked up by hearsay.

The Dali Temple officials assumed Mr. Ruohua would only look at the wound, so they merely pulled the white cloth covering the body down slightly, to the neck.

To their surprise, Mr. Ruohua removed the entire cloth.

“An examination must be carried out from hair to soles. Not a single detail can be overlooked.”

The Dali Temple officials were startled, and so was the coroner standing nearby.

A mere teacher… wasn’t afraid?

The young madam’s head wound was rather gruesome.

As time passed, Shen Lanxi did not remain idle.

Two of her most important ministers were already at each other’s throats, even coming to blows. Naturally, she had to mediate a little.

“My condolences, ministers. I will certainly give both of you justice.”

Liu Mingxin had an injury on his cheek and kept half-covering his face, somewhat ashamed to be seen.

Wu Yanzhi was not in much better shape; his forehead was bruised and swollen, though he made no attempt to hide it, looking full of anger.

“Your Majesty, my daughter died unjustly!” Wu Yanzhi said.

“Your Majesty, I too have been wronged,” Liu Mingxin said. “My daughter-in-law’s death was an accident, yet some people speculate and falsely accuse us.”

“Liu Mingxin, you’re talking nonsense. It was your son who murdered my daughter!”

“Wu Yanzhi, you have no evidence. Stop making wild accusations.”

“Liu Mingxin—”

Shen Lanxi raised her hand. “That’s enough, both of you. Don’t be so hot-tempered. At your age, what if anger harms your health? What would become of your families then?”

Liu Mingxin and Wu Yanzhi fell silent, each angrily flicking his sleeve, unwilling to face the other.

“Dali Temple, Ministry of Justice—do you have a result yet?” Shen Lanxi asked.

Wei Jie said, “Your Majesty, to avoid influencing the contest, I will not announce it aloud.”
He wrote down the result instead.

After reading it, Shen Lanxi raised an eyebrow, glanced at Liu and Wu, and folded the paper.

“Let’s wait for the others’ results.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Everyone was curious about what result the Emperor had seen, silently urging the two contestants to hurry.

“Your Majesty, I already have a conclusion,” Wang Shen said after returning from the scene.

“Will you state it now, or write it down?” Shen Lanxi asked.

Wang Shen hesitated. “I will write it down.”

A quarter of an hour later, Mr. Ruohua also reached his conclusion.

“The young madam’s death was an accident.”

Shen Lanxi unfolded the papers written by Wang Shen and Wei Jie.

“All three of you have written the same conclusion—an accident.”

That meant it was a draw.

Wang Shen quietly breathed a sigh of relief, then glanced smugly at Mr. Ruohua.

He had won.

“Explain your reasoning,” Shen Lanxi said.

Wei Jie spoke first.

“The tile that struck the young madam did not fall from the wall, but from the pavilion.”

Liu Mingxin immediately objected. “The pavilion in my residence was renovated just last year. Every year we have people inspect the tiles. They could not possibly be loose.”

Wei Jie produced evidence—a tile marked with bird droppings.

“I am not saying Lord Liu’s residence was poorly maintained. Rather, a bird happened to perch on the pavilion. The bird must have been fairly large, and when it took off again, it gripped the tile forcefully.”

“Besides bird droppings, there are also claw marks left by the bird.”

To demonstrate the droppings, Wei Jie had not ordered them cleaned earlier. Now that everyone had seen them, he brushed away the filth.

“Gentlemen, please look.”

“They really are claw marks.”

“They’re so deep—it must have been an owl.”

“But it happened in the daytime.”

“Then it must have been an egret or a hawk.”

“With claw marks this deep, it must have been a hawk!”

Many people in the capital kept hawks.

After examining the tile, Liu Mingxin and Wu Yanzhi’s faces turned dark and pale by turns.

“Some people previously said a tile falling from a pavilion couldn’t kill someone. That is not necessarily true.”

“If the sharp edge strikes the back of the head—precisely where the young madam was struck—it can indeed be fatal.”

Wu Yanzhi still could not believe it.

“My daughter… really died by accident?”

Wei Jie replied, “Indeed.”

Wang Shen added, “I reached the same conclusion. If the Prime Minister does not believe it, he may send someone to examine the pavilion. There will certainly still be traces of bird droppings there.”

Birds often landed on rooftops; leaving droppings on a pavilion roof was entirely normal.

Wu Yanzhi fell silent.

Mr. Ruohua then said, “The young madam had no other external injuries, nor was she poisoned. I examined the surroundings of the pavilion and the pavilion roof itself and found no footprints.”

“As Minister Wang said, there are indeed many traces of bird droppings on the pavilion.”

The heavy stone weighing on Liu Mingxin’s heart was finally lifted.

“My son did not murder your daughter. On the contrary, from the moment your daughter entered the Liu household, she relied on you, the Prime Minister, and bullied everyone in my residence,” Liu Mingxin began settling accounts.

For days, rumors in the capital had painted the Liu family as murderers of their own daughter-in-law; their reputation had been utterly ruined.

All because of Wu Yanzhi—and his ill-fated daughter.

“My daughter is already dead, and you still slander her! Liu Mingxin, I am irreconcilable with you!” Wu Yanzhi shouted.

Shen Lanxi quickly intervened.

“Your family matters can be discussed after we leave. The contest is not yet finished.”

Liu Mingxin and Wu Yanzhi froze.

They had actually become the subject of the contest—the case to be judged.

“Your Majesty, this old minister…” Liu Mingxin began.

Shen Lanxi smiled. “Your innocence has now been proven. You should be glad and reconcile.”

Liu Mingxin and Wu Yanzhi looked at each other, each wishing the other dead.

“You are both pillars of the state. Now I have a difficult task to entrust to you.”

Liu Mingxin said immediately, “I am willing to brave fire and water for Your Majesty, and would not hesitate even unto death!”

Wu Yanzhi was so angry he nearly spat blood—those were the phrases he usually used himself.

“Your Majesty,” Wu Yanzhi said stiffly, “this old minister will certainly do his utmost, serving with all his heart and strength, even unto death!”