Chapter 325: Chapter 325: Found The Evidence
325 Finding the Evidence
"Lake."
"Moon."
"Sun."
Zhao Zhitong was reading each word aloud.
Qiao Muchen timely interjected, "It’s Sun Moon Lake."
...
At Mount Huang in the suburbs of Capital City, there was a lake named Sun Moon Lake. Despite its beautiful name, the landscape was not as pleasant, so not many people visited.
By the time Zhao Zhitong and her party arrived, it was already late afternoon. The setting sun was about to sink into the mountains, leaving only traces of its glow.
The water of Sun Moon Lake was clear enough to see the bottom, yet there were very few fish. The areas around the lake were barren, marked by remnants of ruined walls and a scarcity of vegetation. It was certainly not an ideal place for sightseeing.
Everyone inspected the area around Sun Moon Lake but found nothing unusual.
Zhao Zhitong squatted by the lake, staring at the water for a while before asking, "Why is it called Sun Moon Lake?"
Qiao Muchen, who had been observing the nearby mountains and rocks, replied, "Legend has it that this lake can reflect the sun and the moon simultaneously, hence the name."
Zhao Yue commented, "Reflect the sun and the moon at the same time? That sounds like an exaggeration. How is that possible?"
Everyone else also felt this was rather unrealistic.
But Zhao Zhitong remembered what Grandpa Bai had taught her about the reflection of light. Looking at the lake, she said quietly, "It’s not entirely impossible."
"The lake is divided into eastern and western sides. At dusk, it’s indeed possible for the setting sun and the rising moon to appear in the lake simultaneously."
"Coincidentally, it’s dusk right now." Saying this, Zhao Zhitong rose and began walking along the edge of the lake.
The lake was quite large. As Zhao Zhitong moved west along its edge, her eyes suddenly brightened, and she called out to the others, "Quick, come and see!"
Qiao Muchen and Zhao Yue were the first to reach her. Standing beside Zhao Zhitong, they followed the direction her finger indicated.
"To the east, the lake reflects the afterglow of the sunset westward," Zhao Zhitong explained, "and to the west, it reflects the nascent moonlight eastward. This must be the spot."
Just then, Wei Shulan and the others hurried over.
Zhao Zhitong continued, "The item Uncle Pei left for us should be here. Let’s all search for it."
Everyone nodded and began to search the surrounding area separately.
A moment later, Zhao Yu suddenly called out, "Sister, come and look! There seems to be something here!"
Drawn by his voice, the group gathered around. Zhao Yu had moved a large stone, revealing a black package underneath. Opening it, they found a wooden box.
Zhao Yu was the first to pick up the box. After examining it, he passed it to Zhao Zhitong.
The box was plain, without any hidden mechanisms or codes to decipher. Inside, upon opening, lay a stack of papers and letters.
Zhao Zhitong sifted through them, her astonishment growing. The box contained a complete set of evidence exposing the collusion between the King of Chu, Zhuo An, and their cronies to persecute loyal officials and exploit the common people. Furthermore, there was incriminating evidence of the King of Chu secretly recruiting soldiers and forging counterfeit currency. She instantly feared that Prince Liang’s recent accusation of treason was directly connected to the contents of this very box!
Wei Shulan seemed puzzled. "Since Prince Liang had so much evidence against the King of Chu, why didn’t he present it to the Emperor?"
Guan Er, who had been silent for most of the journey, finally spoke. "This evidence was collected by my master over many years. He hadn’t found a suitable opportunity to present it to the Emperor before the King of Chu discovered it and falsely accused him in retaliation.
"Now that my master has been arrested, presenting this evidence at this time would only lead the Emperor to believe it’s a power struggle between the brothers.
"It would merely cause the Emperor to grow weary of them both. The King of Chu is adept at currying favor with the Emperor, and as the Emperor’s own nephew, it’s feared that not only would this fail to completely topple him, but he would also be allowed to continue bringing disaster to the people."
Qiao Muchen contemplated for a moment and said, "Indeed, it would be inappropriate for Prince Liang to present this evidence to the Emperor."
As the Emperor aged, the issue of the next heir had become a matter of great controversy. There were even rumors that the Emperor intended to pass the throne to the Pei Family. Thus, the Emperor’s two nephews—Prince Liang and the King of Chu—became the most contentious candidates. Prince Liang had always portrayed himself as an idle prince, rarely interfering with court affairs, and had spent the last two years traveling. Consequently, the King of Chu became the most probable successor. At this juncture, finding an imperial robe and evidence of Prince Liang’s rebellion in his mansion completely shattered the idle image he had cultivated. The inherently suspicious Emperor likely already suspected Prince Liang of feigning ignorance while harboring grand ambitions—playing the fool while being a wolf in sheep’s clothing. If Prince Liang were to present evidence against the King of Chu now, the Emperor probably wouldn’t truly believe it, dismissing it as a mere power struggle between the two.
Just then, Guan Er suddenly knelt on one knee before Qiao Muchen, cupped his fist, and pleaded, "Young Master Qiao, I beg you to save my master!"
Startled, Qiao Muchen quickly urged Guan Er to rise.
Guan Er stubbornly remained kneeling. "If you do not promise me, I will not get up."
Qiao Muchen frowned. "Please get up first. Prince Liang shares a significant bond with us; we won’t stand by and watch him perish."
"However, how should this evidence be presented to the Emperor?"
Guan Er continued, "My master said that Young Master Qiao is exceptionally talented. In the upcoming imperial examination, you are likely to place among the top three. At that time, you will enter the Imperial Palace for the final examination, allowing you to meet the Emperor. This is a great opportunity."
Qiao Muchen frowned. "That’s too uncertain. No one can guarantee I’ll be in the top three. We must think of another way."
While they were grappling with this dilemma, Zhao Zhitong discovered a skeleton in a cave near Sun Moon Lake.
Zhao Yue had already called them over to take a look.
Zhao Zhitong was squatting beside the skeleton. After examining it, she said calmly, "Judging by the bone age, the deceased was merely a boy of eleven or twelve."
"A boy?" Wei Zijian leaned over curiously. "Master, how can you tell he was a boy from a pile of bones?"
Zhao Zhitong explained, "It can be determined from the pelvic bones, as they exhibit the most distinct gender characteristics.
"A male pelvis is narrow and tall, with thick, rough pelvic walls and a heavy skeletal structure. The pubic symphysis is narrow and tall, and the pubic arch angle is small, less than a right angle.
"A female pelvis is relatively shorter but has a wider cross-section, resembling a barrel. The subpubic angle is larger, greater than a right angle."
After explaining, she seemed to recall something else, picked up a stone, and drew a right angle on the ground. "Something like this is called a right angle."
Wei Zijian nodded, responding excitedly, "Master, I’ve memorized it!"
Zhao Zhitong nodded and continued to examine the corpse. After a moment, she said, "The murder weapon was this arrow; it directly pierced the heart."
Qiao Muchen reached out for the arrow, studying it for a moment. "There seem to be characters on this arrowhead," he observed. "Strange. Why would the words ’King of Chu’ be engraved here?" This felt far too deliberate.
At this point, Zhao Yue spoke up. "I’ve heard my master mention this. Every autumn, the Imperial Palace prepares for an autumn hunt. During the hunt, the young masters from princely and noble families compete. To facilitate scoring after the competition, each person’s arrows are marked with their name using special ink from the Imperial Palace. This arrowhead might be from an autumn hunt."