How did I, a mere son-in-law lying down, become a "Fenglang Juxu" (a legendary martial art

Chapter 19 Poisoned Milk

After a brief silence, Chen An began to recount contents that differed greatly from those recorded in the case file.

Chen An was not familiar with Ge Yuniang. After being detained, he resolutely denied having an affair with Ge Yuniang, and even more so denied conspiring to poison Wang Pinlian.

However, Liu Xinian used Ge Yuniang's confession to force him to confess. When he refused to confess, he subjected him to severe torture.

Chen An said in a sorrowful voice, "Although I am a militia instructor and my body is stronger than the average person, I still couldn't withstand the repeated tortures... Later, the county magistrate promised me that as long as I confessed, I wouldn't have to be tortured anymore... Your Honor, I was really wronged, Your Honor!"

Liu Shan couldn't help but feel some sympathy, but having never been punished himself, he couldn't truly empathize. For the time being, he could only investigate the case as soon as possible and clear the name of the wronged.

Looking at the records in the file, he continued to ask, "It says here that you bought arsenic from Manager Sun of the Sanqi Pharmacy in Jinhua County, and then handed it over to Ge Yuniang, asking her to poison Wang Pinlian when the opportunity arose..."

Chen An suddenly interrupted excitedly, "I didn't! I've never bought any arsenic! The county magistrate forced me to say this!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Shan turned to look at He Qiong.

He Qiong was a seasoned veteran in officialdom, and he instantly understood the clerk's look. "In that case, the manager of this pharmacy, Mr. Sun, is the third key figure in this case."

"!!!"

Liu Shan was terrified and screamed in his heart, "He Qiong, please don't say that again!"

The first and second key figures mentioned by He Qiong are now dead and missing, respectively, and he has now "named" a third key figure...

Liu Shan had a bad feeling; he feared that Manager Sun was also in grave danger...

At this moment, He Qiong looked at the captain of her personal guards and instructed, "Send someone to the Sanqi Pharmacy now and invite Manager Sun over."

Just as the captain of the personal guards was about to agree, Liu Shan interrupted him: "Sir, it might not be appropriate to send someone to invite him. If he is stopped by Magistrate Liu on the way, it could cause unforeseen complications."

He Qiong thought about it and felt that Liu Shan's words made sense, so he ordered the captain of his personal guards: "Take everyone with you, we're going to the Sanqi Pharmacy to meet this Manager Sun."

Seeing that things had truly taken a turn for the better, Chen An knelt on the ground and kowtowed forcefully, "My lord, I have truly been wronged! Please, my lord, do justice for me!"

Even as the jailers carried him away, he struggled to call out to the receding figures of Liu Shan and the others, "My lord, I kowtow to you! My lord, I bow to you..."

The group traveled without stopping, and arrived at the Sanqi Pharmacy in just a short time.

However, to their astonishment, the pharmacy's entrance was covered with white cloth and white lanterns.

Oops!

Liu Shan's heart tightened, and his ominous premonition intensified. He hurriedly ran inside.

He Qiong sighed, somewhat reluctantly clutching her belly, and hurried a few steps.

Inside the pharmacy, people gathered in small groups, talking quietly. Everyone looked somber, and some were crying and wiping away tears; they were probably relatives of the deceased.

Liu Shan came to the coffin and bowed very solemnly.

The people kneeling on the ground, dressed in mourning clothes, cried even harder.

After returning the greeting, one of them stood up and offered incense, asking with slight doubt, "May I ask... are you also a friend of my father?"

Liu Shanxian offered incense first, and then asked softly, "May I ask who the deceased was?"

The man was even more puzzled and replied, "The deceased was my father."

"..."

Liu Shan had no choice but to explain his purpose: "We are officials from the Cangzhou government, here to see Manager Sun."

Upon seeing that it was an official, the man dared not be negligent and hurriedly bowed, saying, "He is right in front of you."

Liu Shanting disliked this person; he only said half of what he meant, leaving the other half to be guessed.

However, since it concerned the case, he couldn't just give her a hard time. Instead, he patiently asked, "Inside the coffin?"

"Exactly."

Upon hearing this, Liu Shan was completely stunned. He Qiong was simply a poisonous jinx!

At this moment, He Qiong finally walked over, panting, and asked directly, "Was Manager Sun murdered?"

The man frowned, somewhat displeased. His father had passed away at the age of eighty-five, a peaceful death, which, strictly speaking, was already a happy one.

How can this person talk like that? They have absolutely no sense of propriety!

He gave a perfunctory bow and casually asked, "I am Sun Wangang. May I ask who you are?"

With a flash of light, a cold-blooded waist knife was placed against Sun Wangang's neck.

"Answer whatever the adults ask. If you dare to utter another word, I'll take your head!"

He Qiong gestured to the captain of his personal guards to put away his sword, then smiled kindly and said softly, "I am He Qiong, the chief clerk of the Cangzhou Prefecture."

The person in front of me was actually the head of the government office?

Sun Wangang's legs trembled, and he almost ran away first.

The captain of the personal guards suddenly shouted, "Answer immediately!"

"Pfft!"

Sun Wangang sat down heavily on the ground, his voice trembling as he said, "My father died peacefully in his sleep, not by murder."

"really?"

He Qiong's smile grew even more amiable, but in Sun Wangang's eyes, there was a great terror hidden in that smile!

“It’s absolutely true! Our whole family knows medicine, how could we not be able to determine the cause of death?!”

Liu Shan felt somewhat helpless. The family said the person died of natural causes, which left them with no reason to conduct an autopsy. They couldn't very well force the issue, could they?

However, He Qiong showed him the arrogance of ancient officials.

"You, go and open the coffin."

Sun Wangang was stunned for a moment, then asked incredulously, "Sir, what did you say?"

He Qiong: "Open the coffin and examine the body!"

Sun Wangang was about to refuse when he abruptly stopped himself.

The icy dagger was once again pressed against his neck.

"Quickly...quickly open the coffin, hurry!"

Sun Wangang was the eldest son. After his parents died, the eldest son was in charge of the family. Moreover, under the coercion of several waist knives, the Sun family members, despite their reluctance, still hurriedly opened the coffin.

Despite his discomfort and the strange smell in the air, Liu Shanqiang peeked out and took a quick look.

An old man with white hair and beard lay quietly in the coffin, showing no other abnormalities except for some lividity on his face.

He Qiong didn't want to look at the corpse. He snapped, "What are you standing there for? Go and examine the body!"

Although Sun Wangang was not a coroner, he still possessed basic autopsy skills.

He first solemnly kowtowed three times to the corpse, then reached out and pressed the corpse's bones in an orderly manner, and then pressed the corpse's abdomen.

"My lord, my father... his bones are intact, and his internal organs are intact."

The captain of the personal guards nodded, confirming that Sun Wangang was not lying.

He Qiong: "Let's continue."

Sun Wangang lifted the corpse's limbs one by one. "Sir, there are no signs of poisoning in the hair or nails."

The captain of the personal guards nodded again.

Sun Wangang took a deep breath and murmured, "This was a last resort. Father, please don't be afraid, and please don't hold a grudge against your son..."

After repeating it three times, he stepped forward, lifted the corpse's lips, and revealed yellowed teeth.