The entrance of the underground palace is only half the height of a person. It was originally blocked with stone bricks and filled with earth and rocks. Now it has been dug again, and the inside is still spotless.
Lu Ke lit a torch in front, followed by Huo Weilou, followed by Sun Zhao, Wu Xiang and the others. They walked through a narrow downhill road that was four or five feet long, and soon came to a stone gate.
The mechanism next to the stone gate is very easy to crack. Lu Ke opened the stone gate, and a sinister chill came over his face.
The light of the torch illuminated a corner of the doorway, and the eyes were stacked ice bricks. Lu Ke held the torch in one hand and the saber at his waist in the other, and walked in cautiously.
The ceiling of the underground palace is about ten feet high, and the length and width are several feet. The walls on all sides are made of ice bricks, except for an altar on the north side.
The altar is made of stone, and the Taoist talismans and incense candles on it are complete. Behind the altar, two crystal clear ice coffins stand quietly. Lu Ke ordered the embroidered clothes envoys to place torches around, and the ice bricks reflected a piece of firefly. Stride towards the ice coffin.
The ice coffin was crystal clear, with layers of frost on it, which hadn't melted for years. He pushed the lid of the coffin, but he didn't push it for a while. Through the two-hand-thick ice wall, he could vaguely see the corpse lying inside.
Huo Weilou stretched his arms, and after a crisp sound, the condensed coffin lid was pushed away, and the coffin lid slowly slid away, revealing a corpse in a silver-red wide-sleeved woven gold palace skirt.
This is a moldy female corpse. Even though it has been lying in the ice coffin all year round, people come in and out of it. Not far from the ground is a high-temperature alchemy alchemy room. Slightly corrupted.
The body of the deceased was obviously carefully packed. Her hands were folded in front of her chest, her hair was high in a bun, and she was wearing a graceful ring. However, due to the long time of death, most of the hair fell out. At this moment, it was piled up behind her head. Not only was it covered with flaky mold, but it also became a layer of waxy gray-white human skin attached to the bone, and the bones of the deceased could be seen vaguely.
Huo Weilou knew that this was Princess Anyang.
"Open that ice coffin too."
Huo Weilou gave the order, Lu Ke stepped forward and pushed the second ice coffin away, and what was lying inside was indeed a moldy corpse of a child more than two feet in length. Inside the ice coffin, the face and bare hands are also gray waxy skin, and because of the bright colors of the clothes on the body, it gives people a particularly creepy feeling.
Sun Zhao's voice trembled when he spoke, "Master Hou, are these the bodies of Princess Anyang and the eldest son of the uncle's mansion?"
Huo Weilou nodded, and looked around again. Soon, he realized that something was wrong. Although there were ritual artifacts and treasures on the altar in front of him, it was not the Seven Treasures Stupa, and although there were several treasures in the ice coffin The soul-suppressing objects buried with him are just ordinary treasures. If the Seven Treasures Stupa has been smelted, what about the Buddha bone relics
The so-called Buddha bone relic is just a piece of finger bone left by the Buddha according to the rumors. If the relic is also smelted into the alchemy furnace, there will be no trace there. Huo Weilou frowned, "Search carefully—"
Wu Xiang had been to the place where Li Shen murdered Wen Jin, and there was also an altar there, he looked around, and came back quickly: "Your Majesty, there is nothing unusual, and there are no bloodstains or chains and sharp weapons used to murder children, and Li Shen The altar under the cloth of the gentry is different, it seems that this place is only for offering sacrifices."
If it cannot be proved that Feng Qin murdered the children, it would be useless to find the bodies of Princess Anyang and Feng Yu. Although this trip is very ethical, Princess Anyang and Feng Yu are Feng Qin's wife and children, and there is no law to stipulate what to do. For the burial of the corpse, Feng Qinruo said that this is the tomb he set up for Anyang and Feng Yu, and no one else can blame him.
"Master Hou, someone is coming from the palace—"
Huo Weilou turned his head suddenly, Feng Qin and his son were still outside, and found that the underground palace was only a moment later, and someone came to the palace
Sun Zhao was also very surprised, "Master Hou, this..."
Huo Weilou said to Wu Xiang: "Continue to search, Benhou will go out and have a look."
Huo Weilou walked out, Sun Zhao hurriedly followed, when the two came out together, he saw Fuquan standing outside with two young eunuchs, Fuquan seemed to be a little surprised by the scene, when he saw Huo Weilou, the corners of his lips twitched. He came up to him.
"Meet Lord Hou."
Huo Weilou looked at him coldly, "Why did you come?"
Fu was embarrassed all over, glanced at the crumbling Feng Qin, and said in a low voice: "Master Hou, what is this saying? How did the investigation find Uncle Zhongyi here? As soon as the palace gate opened in the morning, there were people in Uncle Zhongyi After handing over the booklet to the Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager personally sent someone to summon His Majesty, and His Majesty ordered the old servant to go outside the city."
It is not yet noon, and after they entered Zhuangzi last night, no one in Zhuangzi left, who entered the palace to inform? There is only one possibility, Feng Qin expected that the direct envoy would come to search the Zhuangzi, and had already left people outside, so he could ask the palace for help so quickly.
If there is no ghost in your heart, how can you make such preparations
Huo Weilou looked at Feng Qin with cold eyes, but Feng Qin raised his hand to cover the corner of his lips and coughed lightly, Fuquan said again in a difficult way: "Master Hou, His Majesty wants you to enter the palace right now, what kind of situation is it? Explain to him to avoid misunderstanding."
This is a verbal order, Fuquan said it tactfully, but Huo Weilou has been a minister for many years, so he should understand, "Does Uncle Loyalty want to enter the palace together?"
Seeing that Huo Weilou's tone was relaxed, Fuquan nodded quickly, "If you want it, Lord Hou and Lord Uncle will face you together, just make it clear."
Huo Weilou turned his eyes to look at Sun Zhao and Lu Ke, Lu Ke's expression was serious, Sun Zhao blinked nervously, seemed to be aware of it, nodded quickly, Huo Weilou raised his voice and said: "Forget it, then go see Your Majesty first —”
Fuquan heaved a sigh of relief, and went to look at Feng Qin again, "Uncle, please—"
Huo Weilou rode on horseback, Feng Qin and his son got into the prepared carriage, and the group returned to the capital to face the saint together.
The wind stopped and the snow stopped, and the fields outside the city were all white. After entering the city gate, it was almost noon, and they galloped along the imperial road until they arrived at Xuanwu Gate. Step into the palace gate.
Emperor Jianhe met them in the warm pavilion of Zhaoyang Hall next to Chongzheng Hall.
The hall was as warm as spring, and Emperor Jianhe sat leaning against the west window, leaning on a spotted tiger skin behind him, and waited for several people to enter the room to salute, his old god swept over the two of them, and asked in an ordinary voice: "What's going on here? The envoy investigated the case and found Feng Qin's house?" Yan Bi glanced at Feng Qin's hanging left arm, "I said you were burned, but you are better?"
Feng Qin bowed and said, "It's all over now, thank you Your Majesty for your concern."
When the words settled down, before Huo Weilou could answer, Feng Qin lifted his robe and knelt down, "I am guilty of a crime, your Majesty, please come down to the crime—"
Emperor Jianhe raised his eyebrows, "What do you mean by that?"
Feng Qin's throat choked up, "Your Majesty, Anyang and Yu'er passed away for seventeen years. When they passed away, I was devastated. I married Anyang and we have a very strong friendship. Both you and the Queen Mother You know, Yu'er is five years old, Bingxue is smart, and is the eldest son of the minister, at that time, the minister wished he could pluck the moon from the sky and give them to them."
Feng Qin's eyes turned red, "But they suddenly died suddenly, how can I accept it? So... I did something to deceive the emperor."
Feng Qin was sincere, with tears in his eyes, Huo Weilou raised his eyebrows coldly, and looked at him motionlessly.
"The matter of deceiving the emperor?" Emperor Jianhe was a little surprised. Uncle Zhongyi had always been indifferent to fame and fortune, and he was quite restrained in his conduct. How could he dare to deceive the emperor
"Yes, Weichen... Weichen couldn't bear to watch Anyang and Yu'er be buried at that time, so he kept their bodies outside without telling everyone. The coffins that were sent to the ancestral mausoleum were actually just their clothes."
Emperor Jianhe looked surprised, and Fuquan was also horrified when he heard it.
"Then...then where did you put Anyang?"
"My minister put the bodies of Anyang and Yu'er into ice coffins and sent them to a villa outside the city. Over the years, I have devoted myself to cultivating Taoism, and I also want to pray for their mother and son. If I suffer from lovesickness someday, I will Go out of town and visit them."
He said that everyone in the palace had chills down their backs, but his eyes were full of sincerity and longing, "I have been able to persevere in penance training all these years, and it is all because their mother and son are there, and my bedroom outside the city is very far away from their underground palace." Recently, I told Anyang at the beginning that life and death should not be separated, and I have done it, and I have never broken my promise."
The more he spoke, the hoarse his voice became. At first everyone felt terrible, but now they were moved by him, and Jianhe Dimou couldn't bear it, "Now their remains are still in Zhuangzi?"
"yes-"
"Then don't you ever think that only by letting them go to the ground can they rest in peace? What is it that you spend all day with the corpse?"
Feng Qin showed a look of pain, "I originally wanted Anyang to keep his face forever. For this reason, I dug an underground palace and made an ice coffin. The underground palace was also full of ice bricks. But I didn't expect that even so, At most, they can only keep their looks for a year, and after that, they have become more and more disfigured. Although I am desperate, I believe in Taoism, and I think that as long as I practice Taoism sincerely, they will be with me."
When a person dies, but still asks to be with him, is it a ghost
Emperor Jianhe showed a look of embarrassment, "Your trip is against ethics, even Taoism, I'm afraid there is no such saying."
Feng Qin sighed bitterly, "Although it should be buried in the ground for peace, the underground palace is also like a tomb, with excellent geomantic omen, and the fact that the ministers often do things will not disturb them. The crime of the minister is to hide it from this matter." For everyone, even His Majesty and the Empress Dowager have been concealed by this humble official, and this humble official has committed the crime of deceiving the emperor, please forgive me."
Although Emperor Jianhe felt that this matter was weird, but if he said it was a crime of deceiving the emperor, it was not considered a crime. He saw Feng Qin's expression was sad, and was about to comfort him, but saw Huo Weilou who had a cold face and a speechless expression. Yizheng, "Danglou, did you investigate the case recently and found out about this matter?"
Huo Weilou nodded, "Not bad."
He glanced at the kneeling Feng Qin, "What Uncle Zhongyi said just now is just his one-sided opinion. He did hide the remains of Princess Anyang and Feng Yu, and the minister has found the remains, but the truth is not just what he said like this."
Emperor Jianhe stared, "What is the truth?"
"Your Majesty should know that the direct envoy recently investigated the theft of the Seven Treasures Stupa. After some investigation, I discovered that the theft of the Seven Treasures Stupa was related to Wang Qingfu, the former Minister of Taichang Temple, and Wang Qingfu stole the Buddha bone relic that year."
Emperor Jianhe glanced at Feng Qin, "Uncle Zhongyi is related to this case?"
"The two pieces of Buddhist treasures that were stolen are both sacred objects of Buddhism. With this sacred object alone, one cannot do evil. Loyalty and righteousness are cultivating Taoism. However, there is an evil sect in Taoism that practices the art of killing people and using living people as sacrifices. Longevity can also bring the dead back to life, Uncle Zhongyi’s friendship with Princess Anyang is indeed true, but he put the body of Princess Anyang in the other village, but it is not just for the purpose of paying homage.”
"My minister suspects that Uncle Loyalty sacrifices children to Princess Anyang and Feng Yu all the year round in order to bring them back to life, and the children who died strangely inside and outside the capital before were all murdered by Uncle Loyalty!"
A look of humiliation appeared on Feng Qin's face, "Your Majesty—"
"Your Majesty has worked very hard to investigate and handle the case. I also want to solve the case earlier and give an explanation to His Majesty and the common people. I understand very well that it is also my fault to hide Anyang's body this time. , and then imposed those heinous crimes on me, I will never agree, your Majesty knows the character of me, how can I murder young children?"
"As for the death technique..."
Feng Qin looked back at Huo Weilou, and said in disbelief: "Your Majesty, don't forget that when you investigated the case, you needed to find someone to understand the Taoist teachings. The prince came to Ye'er. As soon as I heard that I was on business, I immediately visited him. I was the one who told Master Hou about this death technique, may I ask which murderer in the world would be so stupid as to send him to the door?"
Huo Weilou looked at Feng Qin, "How dare you ask Uncle, why is there gold and silver in the alchemy furnace? And the fire started suddenly, uncle has practiced alchemy for many years, this is the first time he was injured by the collapse of the alchemy furnace?"
Feng Qin felt even more ridiculous, "There is gold and silver in the alchemy furnace, so I used a lot of gold, silver and jade to refine the alchemy medicine to be presented to the Queen Mother. In order to refine these, I used more than usual. This made the pill furnace overwhelmed and collapsed, and I was injured because of it, my injury was seen by the imperial doctor, and His Majesty also knows that such an accident of mine has something to do with the case that Lord Hou wants to investigate?"
Huo Weilou fell silent, Feng Qin complained bitterly about his friendship with Anyang at this moment, which made people feel his deep love for Anyang, and described the collapse of the alchemy furnace as an accident, and even involved the empress dowager's alchemy. Compassionate, but it is true that the Secretary has never found direct evidence of crime.
No matter how much you argue, it will be useless, but it will make Uncle Zhongyi more aggrieved. At this time, a little eunuch walked quickly to the outside of the palace gate. After a few whispers, the little eunuch outside said softly: "Your Majesty, the empress dowager is here—"
Huo Weilou frowned, and when he glanced towards the door, he saw Feng Qin's tensed shoulders loosen.
…
Bo Ruoyou wanted to know the news at the first time, so he didn't go home all night. When it was midnight, he knew that there was probably no news to come back before dawn, so he took a rest in the Nuan Pavilion of Huoweilou. When he got up at dawn the next day, he asked the city Wai Ke got news that Mr. Fu appeased her and waited with her after breakfast.
At noon, an embroidered clothes envoy galloped into the city and rushed straight to the Hou's mansion. After a while, he came to Bo Ruoyou and said respectfully: "Master, I found two corpses in the underground palace of Zhuangzi outside the city of Zhongyibo. A female corpse, the corpse of a five or six-year-old boy, hidden in an ice coffin, has turned into a moldy corpse, looked at for many years, it seems to be the Anyang Princess and the eldest son of the Bofu, Feng Yu."
Bo Ruoyou's eyes brightened, "I really found it!"
The embroiderer continued: "Only these two corpses were found, and no other suspicious things were found. Although molten gold and silver were found in the alchemy furnace, it did not prove that it was related to the case. Not only that, Uncle Zhongyi didn't know Why did you report the letter to the palace, His Majesty has already let Lord Hou and Uncle Zhongyi enter the palace, and I think he is going to face the saint right now."
Fu An was stunned, "Enter the palace to face the saint?"
The embroidered clothes envoy repeated Fuquan's words about going to Zhuangzi, and Fu'an showed embarrassment. Later, Uncle Zhongyi believed in the truth, and often preached scriptures to the Empress Dowager, this time he must have asked the Empress Dowager for help, if there is no evidence, and the Empress Dowager is the guarantor, then he will really be unable to hold Uncle Zhongyi."
Bo Ruoyou heard anxiously, "He really has a guilty conscience, otherwise, how could he arrange it like this?" Then he asked the embroiderer, "Is there really no other clue?"
"There are a lot of weird things, but there is indeed no direct evidence. When we arrived, the underground palace was under the alchemy room, and it had been covered up. Later, we dug a few places to find the entrance. The underground palace was very clean and there was no trace of blood. We also searched the Zhuangzi for signs of murder and murder, and there was nothing strange."
"What about the clues related to Buddha Treasure?"
The embroidered clothes envoy shook his head, "There is nothing else, only the gold and silver in the alchemy furnace, but everyone has the gold and silver, it does not prove that it is on the Buddha treasure, Lord Hou entered the palace, and now it is Master Sun and Lu Du The lieutenant is commanding the search, and reporting back and forth to the county lord is also the intention of the captain."
Bo Ruoyou has never seen the Seven Treasures Relic Pagoda, nor the Buddha Bone Relics, but when she was in Famen Temple, she had read many records about Buddha treasures, and those Buddhist classics had described these Buddhas in detail. precious.
"I remember that in addition to gold and silver, there are many gems and chalcedony on the stupa. As far as I know, these things cannot be completely smelted. We still need to search for these things carefully, and two years have passed since the last case. Most of Zhuangzi has no intuitive clues such as bloodstains, and you can find things related to cults."
After Bo Ruoyou finished speaking, the embroiderer should be, and went back out of the city to go to Zhuangzi. Bo Ruoyou looked at Eunuch Fu again, "Elder-in-law might send someone to the palace to inquire about news? I don't know when Lord Hou will come out."
Fu'an originally came from the palace, and there are many spiritual attendants in the Hou's mansion. He immediately went out to explain, and Bo Ruoyou felt a little uneasy in his heart. time of conviction.
Her mind was spinning rapidly, still wondering if there was something missing, and at the same time, in the Zhaoyang Palace, the Empress Dowager Song was weeping for Princess Anyang.
She sighed and wiped the corners of her eyes, "Feng Qin, you are too obsessed, which is contrary to your practice of inaction. Listen to Ai's family, let the corpses of Anyang and Yu'er return to the ancestral mausoleum, lest they fall into the spring." Difficulty, the Ai family often hears people say that there are people in the world who care too much, and people in the underworld who don’t want to be reincarnated, it’s been almost twenty years, you should let it go.”
Fearing that Feng Qin would not want it, she lowered her voice and said: "This matter is against ethics, and if it spreads out, it will not be good to anyone in your uncle's house. Tonight, people will open the ancestral mausoleum and rebury Anyang and Yu'er. It is considered unknown." Before you know it, if you do a few rituals in the future, the matter will be settled, and His Majesty and Aijia will not blame you for acting like this."
Feng Qin's eyes were red, he hesitated several times, and finally nodded sadly, "Yes, then I will listen to the Queen Mother's arrangement."