Murong Ci and Qin Ruo followed Shen Zhiyan to the study, and the arresters stretched out their arms to stop them, "You two, this is the scene of the crime, no one else is allowed to enter."
Shen Zhiyan quickly turned around and said, "These two." Seeing His Highness winking at him, he smiled calmly, "These two are my subordinates."
The head catcher heard that they were also from Dali Temple, so he let them in.
Murong Ci asked Qin Ruo not to go in, and then looked in front of the book case, his cold eyes swept back and forth sharply.
The desk, the bookshelf, the blue and white porcelain, etc. are all in good condition, and everything is in order, except that there is a book on the ground below the left side of the desk, and there are several sheets of paper on the desk facing the chair. On the side, the ink in the inkstone was half dry. There are a few books on the other side of the desk, all of which are old and have many annotations. It can be seen that the owner of this study often flips through these books.
The deceased, Zhuang Qin, fell on the ground in front of the desk, his clothes still neat.
Shen Zhiyan put on thin gloves and knelt down to check.
The assistant from the Jingzhao Mansion squatted aside and said: "Master Shen, I think Mr. Zhuang died of poisoning after a few hours. But I can't see what kind of poison is in Mr. Zhuang's body."
Shen Zhiyan nodded, never leaving his eyes from the corpse, "Remember, the deceased Zhuang Qin died around the time of Ye Lizi. He was thin and bony, with a dark complexion, narrowed pupils, cyanotic lips, and purple-blue fingers."
Murong Ci found it inconceivable, how could Zhuang Qin become so thin
Although she had never met Zhuang Qin, he was a dignified member of the Ministry of Industry, Wailang, so he couldn't be so thin.
"Master Zhuang should have died of poisoning." Shen Zhiyan came to a conclusion, stood up and took off his thin gloves.
"Can you see what kind of poison it is?" she asked solemnly.
"It's not known at the moment." He said to the head hunter, "Jingzhao Mansion is in charge of this case, but Mr. Zhuang died strangely. I have to take the deceased back to Dali Temple for a more detailed autopsy. Maybe I will open the body to see look."
"Open the corpse" that person was startled, it is unheard of to dissect a corpse.
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, the lower officials will send someone to send the deceased to Dali Temple later. As for whether the case will be handed over to Dali Temple, it will depend on what Dali Temple thinks." The head catcher said bluntly.
The two police officers carried the deceased out, while Murong Ci and Shen Zhiyan continued to inspect the study, hoping to find useful clues.
The head catcher said again: "By the way, Master Shen, Master Zhuang died in the study in the middle of the night. Early in the morning, the housekeeper came to the study and knocked on the door, only to find that Master Zhuang was already dead."
She frowned slightly, "Master Zhuang didn't go back to bed, did Mrs. Zhuang send someone to look at the study?"
He replied: "I asked Mrs. Zhuang, Mrs. Zhuang said that Mr. Zhuang often reads very late in the study. If the time is near, Mr. Zhuang will rest in the warm pavilion of the study instead of going back to bed."
Murong Ci and Shen Zhiyan looked at each other, then looked to the northeast, there was indeed a small door.
The small door was blocked by a bookshelf, so she didn't notice it for a while.
They entered the Nuan Pavilion. The Nuan Pavilion was very small, only half of the study outside. There was a bamboo couch with a small table beside the couch.
She fixed her gaze, and picked up a carved bong from the table. There was also a delicate jade pendant hanging on the bong, "This is the legendary bong."
Shen Zhiyan took it over and looked at it carefully, "It should be."
In Beiyan Kingdom, there are very few people who smoke opium, because the imperial court banned its subjects from smoking opium fifty years ago. Once it is found that one person smokes opium, three people will sit in a row. The laws are harsh, law enforcement is like a mountain, and everyone is at risk. In the past few decades, no one has smoked opium.
Unexpectedly, Wailang, a dignified member of the Ministry of Industry, was hiding in the Nuan Pavilion of the study and smoking opium.
Murong Ci felt slightly angry, picked up a carved wooden box next to the bamboo pillow, the wooden box was not big, but a bit heavy, "What is this?"
Open the lid, and a strange light fragrance wafts out.
The wooden box contained a brown ointment, only a thin layer remained, she leaned closer and smelled it, "What is this?"
His complexion changed drastically, "This should be tobacco cream for opium smoking."
"Is this related to Master Zhuang's death from poisoning?"
"I can't answer His Highness right now, but I think Mr. Zhuang died strangely."
"I just saw the teacup on the desk, and there is still half a cup of tea in the teacup. Let's take them back to Dali Temple for inspection."
"Well, I'll tell them to be careful."
The two came out of the warm pavilion while talking, and handed over the bong and wooden box to the headhunter, and asked him to send it to Dali Temple.
When Murong Ci came outside, the police quickly brought a middle-aged woman in front of her. Murong Ci asked, "You are Mrs. Zhuang."
Mrs. Zhuang was wearing a plain summer shirt, her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and the tears were still there. She was so distraught that she almost couldn't stand still, and the older nanny supported her. She wiped away her tears and replied, "I am."
Murong Ci asked: "Last night, did you know that your master will spend the night in the study?"
Mrs. Zhuang nodded, "Last night at Haishi, I brought a bowl of mung bean soup to the master in the study, and the master ate it right away. I advised the master to rest early and take care of himself. He said that he had a lot of things to do today and he would not return to his room until late. Let me go to bed first. I heard from him that he should not go back to the room to sleep, so I will go back
Fang rested first. "
"Master Zhuang, can you have a concubine and a concubine?"
"No. I have been married to the master for more than 20 years, and he has always treated me very well, treating each other with respect and respect."
"Is there a lot of business in Zhuang University's labor department recently? I often don't go back to my room to sleep."
"Yes, in the past six months, the master has often returned to his room very late, and spent half of his days resting in the warm pavilion of the study."
"Mrs. Zhuang, doesn't Mrs. Zhuang think that Master Zhuang's cleanliness?" Murong Ci stared at her, not letting go of her expression, but she was very calm, her eyes were firm, and she didn't dodge.
"In the past six months, the master has lost a lot of weight. I asked the kitchen to make a lot of nourishing soup for him to nourish his body. However, the Ministry of Industry has a lot of affairs. He stays in the study until late every day, and he can survive like this every night. Not thin? I watched him getting thinner and thinner, and I was anxious and worried, but every time I tried to persuade him, he would beat me up, scolding me for what a woman knows, and don’t care about men’s business." Mrs. Zhuang was sad and wronged, her voice was hoarse.
"In the past six months, Master Zhuang has not only become thinner and thinner, but also pale, his limbs are weak, he often drowsiness, and sometimes he is mentally weak and unresponsive, is it?" Shen Zhiyan asked suddenly.
"What your lord said is true, it is true. At first I suspected that the master was suffering from a hidden disease, so I went to the doctor to give him a diagnosis and treatment, but he threw the doctor out and scolded me." Madam Zhuang replied, tears streaming down again , "My lord, did my master die of poisoning? Why did he die of poisoning so well? My lord, you must find out the truth."
Murong Ci and Shen Zhiyan looked at each other, expressing that they would investigate thoroughly.
After leaving the dealer, she followed to Dali Temple, wanting to see further autopsy results.
However, Shen Zhiyan did not dissect the body, but went to the palace to go to the imperial hospital. She followed to Tai Hospital, looking for books in the vast collection of books.
He said that he had seen a record of a poisonous flower in a medical book, but he couldn't remember which medical book it was.
Qin Ruo also helped to find it, and the three of them quickly rummaged through the huge bookshelf, forgetting to eat and sleep.
"The slave just found out today that there are so many books in the Tai Hospital." Qin Ruo cried, "When will I find it?"
"Look for it, there will always be a time to finish it." Murong resigned and said without looking back.
"It's my sin to let Your Highness do this kind of thing." Even though he said so, Shen Zhiyan's voice didn't sound apologetic.
"Master Shen, when Master Zhuang's murder case is settled, you should reward His Highness well." Qin Ruo said with a smile.
"Okay, okay, I will treat His Highness and you as a sumptuous meal." Shen Zhiyan laughed.
At this time, the envoy of Shen Yuan of the Supreme Hospital came in and asked with a smile: "His Royal Highness, Mr. Shen, what book are you looking for?"
Shen Zhiyan raised his head and said: "Master Shen, I'm looking for a medical book. There is a kind of flower recorded in that medical book. The whole plant of that flower is poisonous. After it bears fruit, extract the juice from the fruit to make a kind A chronic poison to which man is addicted."
Court Envoy Shen walked towards a row of bookshelves, and glanced at the bookshelves, "I remember seeing the kind of flowers you mentioned in a book a year ago."
Murong Ci said pleasantly: "Emissary Shen, do you still remember which book it is?"
He didn't answer, but after searching for a while, he took out a booklet from the shelf, opened it to read, and said happily, "This is it."
The three immediately went over and surrounded him. He pointed to a page in the book, "Afurong, is this the flower?"
"Yes, yes, this is it"
Shen Zhiyan smiled happily, "Master Shen, thank you so much."
Murong Ci took the book, frowned and asked, "Are hibiscus and hibiscus the same family of flowers?"
He laughed and said, "It's not the same flower of the same family."
The envoy of Shen Yuan said: "A lotus is also a kind of medicinal material, which is often used to relieve diarrhea and relieve cough. We have not found a lotus in Northern Yan."
Qin Ruo asked: "Where is the drug?"
"It is recorded in this book that the Eastern Chu Kingdom once discovered wild Afurong." Court Envoy Shen said with a smile, "His Royal Highness, what did Lord Shen do with Afurong?"
"Master Shen, let me ask you for advice, if the fruit juice of the lotus is extracted to make a lotus cream, what will happen if people smoke the lotus cream?" Shen Zhiyan asked solemnly.
"You can't do it, you can't smoke it." Court Envoy Shen was taken aback, "A lotus ointment is forbidden by the imperial court. Once you smoke it, you will be punished and even sit down."
"Bengong understands, I just want to know what will happen to people after taking drugs." Murong Ci's heart sank.
Envoy Shen sighed, and said heavily: "Decades ago, there were a few years in the southern border of our Northern Yan Kingdom. A lotus ointment was very popular. A lotus ointment is very addictive. Once addicted, it is difficult to get rid of the addiction. Smoking After a long period of use of Aphrodisiac cream, people will become yellow and thin, pale, nausea and vomiting, limb weakness, unresponsive, seem to be unable to wake up all day, drowsy, lack of energy, rapid pulse, rickety and emaciated, and become sickly. If you take too much, you will suffer breath failure and die from the poison."
She and Shen Zhiyan looked at each other, isn't it Zhuang Qin
Shen Zhiyan cupped his hands in thanks: "I understand. Thank you, Envoy Shen."
Murong Ci's heart was very heavy, and he asked again: "I don't know where there are wild drugs in this world."