Chapter 78

Wei Tianqing entered the hall, followed by two warriors who carried the corpse of Fat Fan. They walked straight into the hall and placed the corpse on the floor.

The crowd on both sides were greatly shocked to see a corpse being carried in. Magistrate Hu almost stood up from his seat, but he managed to suppress his fear. After a look of panic flashed across his face, he remained seated.

Wei Tianqing entered the hall and glanced at Magistrate Hu, then turned to Lan Tingyu and said, "Sir Lan, I went to the prison to interrogate Chu Huan and happened to see Zhang Xuan attempting to slash County Magistrate Zhao with a knife, so I intervened."

Lan Tingyu remained calm, nodded slightly, and asked, "Sir Wei, whose corpse is this?"

"This is a prisoner who shared a cell with Chu Huan. After I entered the prison, I discovered this shocking incident..." Wei Tianqing walked to an empty chair and sat down. "This person died of poisoning." He magically produced a bowl of braised pork from his hand and said calmly, "I have already questioned the matter. This person died after eating this bowl of meat. I also had it examined, and indeed, the meat contained a highly toxic drug."

The officials of Qingliu County all changed color.

Lan Tingyu leaned back in his chair and looked at Magistrate Hu, asking, "Hu Wei, what do you have to say about this?"

Magistrate Hu stood up, clasped his hands, and said solemnly, "Sir, I know nothing about this matter."

"Know nothing?" Lan Tingyu remained calm, even smiling slightly. "According to my information, you, Sir Hu, were in the prison tonight. I won't ask why you were there so late at night, but since you were in the prison, how could you be unaware of such a major incident?"

Magistrate Hu replied, "I admit to dereliction of duty, and I beg for your punishment."

Lan Tingyu smiled and nodded, then turned to Zhang Dahu and asked coldly, "Zhang Xuan, you are the head of the prison. Did you know about the prisoner who died of poisoning?"

Zhang Dahu kept his head down and did not speak, only replying, "Sir, I... I..."

"Do you know or not?" Lan Tingyu asked again.

Zhang Dahu finally raised his head, beads of cold sweat on his forehead, and nodded. "I... I know..."

After he said this, Magistrate Hu frowned, his lips twitching slightly.

Lan Tingyu smiled and said, "Good. Now, I ask you, why did this person die of poisoning? Was this bowl of braised pork the food you provided? Why was there poison in the food?" He picked up the gavel and slammed it down, saying sternly, "Tell me everything you know. If you hide anything, don't blame me for being harsh!"

Magistrate Hu, fearing Zhang Dahu would slip up, quickly interjected, "Sir Lan, I dare to say, according to my knowledge, after Chu Huan entered the prison, he had a violent conflict with his cellmate... This bowl of braised pork was likely the result of an internal conflict among the prisoners."

"An internal conflict?" Lan Tingyu smiled faintly. "Sir Hu, do you mean the poison in the meat was put there by the prisoners?"

Magistrate Hu, with a stiff upper lip, said, "I indeed believe that!"

"Sir Hu, I am surprised. Since these people are in prison, were they not searched beforehand?" Lan Tingyu stroked his chin. "Where did the prisoners get such a highly toxic drug?"

Magistrate Hu showed a look of shame. "This is my dereliction of duty..."

He now wanted to avoid the more serious charges. He could take the blame for dereliction of duty, but not for murder.

Lan Tingyu smiled. "So it's dereliction of duty again." He paused and sighed. "I can't understand why a prisoner, already guilty, would dare to poison and kill someone in the prison. This is truly shocking!"

Magistrate Hu's forehead was damp with cold sweat, but he still said, "Sir, the cells in the A-wing are filled with the most heinous criminals. They are extremely vicious... harboring resentment, and secretly poisoning, is not impossible to explain!"

"True, that makes sense," Lan Tingyu nodded. "So, according to Sir Hu, the person who poisoned the meat must be Chu Huan, right?"

Magistrate Hu did not commit himself, saying, "Who exactly poisoned the meat needs further investigation. I can only make a guess, but I cannot be certain!"

Lan Tingyu smiled slightly and looked at Zhang Dahu, asking, "Zhang Xuan, do you agree with Sir Hu? Do you think the prisoners, out of resentment, poisoned and killed someone?"

Zhang Dahu kept his head down and did not speak immediately. The hall was eerily quiet.

Wei Tianqing finally spoke in a deep voice, "Zhang Xuan, if you tell the truth, Sir Lan will be lenient. If you confuse the issue and speak nonsense, well..." He only smiled coldly, but the unspoken threat was more powerful.

Magistrate Hu also quickly said, "Zhang Xuan, speak your mind. Although you have made mistakes, it is also my dereliction of duty. If there is a charge of dereliction, I will take the lead in accepting it!"

These words gave Zhang Dahu some confidence, reminding him not to be afraid, as they were in this together and had to stand firm.

Zhang Dahu finally raised his head, glanced at Magistrate Hu, and for some reason, his expression was very calm, the fear on his face completely gone, perhaps because of Magistrate Hu's words.

"Sir, I confess everything!" Zhang Dahu gritted his teeth and said, "The poison in the braised pork was not put there by the prisoners, but... but I put it there myself!"

This statement shocked everyone in the hall. No one expected Zhang Dahu to take the blame so easily.

Magistrate Hu was first shocked, then a look of gratitude appeared in his eyes, thinking, "Zhang Dahu, I have treated you well, and in this critical moment, you are indeed a man of character."

Zhang Dahu's voluntary confession made Magistrate Hu think that Zhang Dahu was taking all the blame to protect him, a strategy to sacrifice a pawn to save the king.

...

Lan Tingyu said calmly, "Zhang Xuan, are you sure? Did you really put the poison in the meat and kill this person?"

"Sir, I dare not lie," Zhang Dahu raised his head and said calmly, "This bowl of braised pork was originally meant for Chu Huan. Before it was sent, I secretly put the poison in it. But later, by a twist of fate, Chu Huan did not die, but Fat Fan did..."

"Bang!"

The gavel sounded, and Lan Tingyu said coldly, "Why did you put the poison in? Why did you want to kill Chu Huan?"

Zhang Dahu glanced at Magistrate Hu and said calmly, "Sir, I have no grudge against Chu Huan. I only acted on orders!"

Magistrate Hu's heart skipped a beat, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, and he felt a chill all over.

"Acting on orders?" Lan Tingyu's face did not change. "Whose orders?"

Zhang Dahu lowered his head and said, "I dare not say!"

"Speak!" Wei Tianqing shouted sternly.

Zhang Dahu raised his head, raised his hand, and pointed at Magistrate Hu, saying loudly, "I am just a small prison head. The person who ordered me to put the poison in was the county magistrate!"

Magistrate Hu felt dizzy and saw stars. He trusted Zhang Dahu the most, but he never expected that without any torture, Zhang Dahu would betray him so quickly.

He suddenly stood up, pointing at Zhang Dahu, both angry and terrified, and said in a trembling voice, "Zhang... Zhang Xuan, are you mad? What... what are you talking about?"

After saying this, a flash of insight came to Magistrate Hu. He suddenly realized something was very wrong. Just now, Zhang Dahu was completely calm and spoke with great composure. Why would Zhang Dahu be so calm in such a situation?

Zhang Dahu said loudly, "I dare not lie. The county magistrate feared Chu Huan and was worried that he would not be convicted. He was afraid that Chu Huan would seek revenge after being released and that Chu Huan was a stumbling block. Therefore, he decided to eliminate Chu Huan. He found me, gave me the poison, and ordered me to put it in the food to kill Chu Huan..."

Magistrate Hu was furious and terrified, his body trembling, his facial muscles distorted. "Zhang Dahu, you are slandering me! I... I never gave such an order! You... you are framing me! Do you know the consequences?"

"I am just telling the truth!" Zhang Dahu's voice was clear and calm, showing no fear. "To ensure everything went smoothly, the magistrate also had me bring in Fat Fan and gave him a packet of the same poison to plant as evidence. When Chu Huan died, the poison could be found on Fat Fan, proving that Fat Fan was the one who poisoned him... If the city sent investigators, with both evidence and witnesses, Fat Fan could not deny it and would become the scapegoat for poisoning Chu Huan... But later, something went wrong, and Chu Huan did not die, but Fat Fan did..."

The officials in the hall were all terrified, not only because of the bizarre poisoning case in the prison but also because everyone knew that Zhang Dahu was Magistrate Hu's confidant, yet he so easily betrayed him during the night trial.

Moreover, Zhang Dahu spoke clearly and confidently, as if he had rehearsed his words.

Magistrate Hu felt dizzy and almost fell, grabbing the chair to steady himself. He sat down, his face pale, cold sweat pouring down, and muttered, "This... this is a trap... a trap..."

Lan Tingyu, however, remained calm and said, "Zhang Xuan, is there anything else to say?"

"After Fat Fan died, the magistrate was worried that the city would send investigators, so he planned to dispose of Fat Fan's body and the evidence to cut off the trail. But Chu Huan blocked us from removing the body and the evidence. The magistrate went to the prison late at night to retrieve the body and the evidence, but Chu Huan was determined, and we couldn't overpower him. The magistrate didn't want to alarm too many people, so we were at an impasse. Later, the magistrate gave the order to gather people and archers to shoot all the prisoners in the A-wing and then accuse them of trying to escape..."

Wei Tianqing stared at Magistrate Hu and said coldly, "What a vicious heart!"

Lan Tingyu now looked at Magistrate Hu and said with a faint smile, "Hu Wei, is what Zhang Xuan said true?"