Weitai Restaurant is not big, with two floors and eight private rooms. There are twenty-three hired cooks, bartenders, busboys, and the shopkeeper. At this time, they are all gathered in the foyer of the restaurant like birds in the cold. The common people are afraid
Seeing the officials, even the few restaurant waiters who were shouting and beating up the Korean barbarians looked frightened in front of the Jin Yiwei and the soldiers from the Military Horse Division——
The six windproof lanterns in front of the restaurant were swaying in the biting north wind. It was early in the month and the curfew had started. All other shops and restaurants had closed their doors and turned off their lights. The huge chessboard square was now deserted.
Only the cold wind blew fallen leaves and discarded objects, making a long whistle in the dark night.
"Zhang Xiuzhuan——"
Zhen Zidan, a member of the Jinyiwei family, respectfully said to Zhang Yuan: "Please ask me a question." Then he shouted to the group of Qingpao shopkeepers: "Kneel down and answer." People are required to kneel when they see officials.
There are all kinds of miraculous rumors in the capital about the youngest number one scholar in the Ming Dynasty. Not to mention his unforgettable memory and great talent, the number one scholar can also solve cases. Dong Qichang and his son by the Paozi River murdered people and buried their bodies. It was the number one scholar who solved the case——
Zhang Yuandao: "There is no need to kneel down, just stand and answer." He asked the shopkeeper: "What is your surname and where do you come from?"
The shopkeeper in Qingpao crossed his hands and replied: "The villain's surname is Zhai, his nickname is Dongsheng, and he is from Puzhou, Hedong." Hedong is Shanxi, and Puzhou is said to be the capital of Emperor Shun.
Zhang Yuan looked at the group of cooks, bartenders and busboys, and asked, "Are everyone in this restaurant here?"
Shopkeeper Zhai said: "Everyone is here."
The guard general reported: "Master Zhang, I have seen everyone in the restaurant, and there is no one else."
Zhang Yuan said "hmm" and asked the three restaurant waiters involved to stand up and ask them how they saw the young bartender Du Ermao being beaten to death.
The man named Sun Erli said: "I was serving wine to the guests at the table at the west end. I heard Du Ermao quarreling with someone. When I came over to take a look, I saw Du Ermao staggering out of the room.
He fell down at the entrance of the stairs. The villain wanted to help him up, but he touched blood on his hand. Du Ermao said, "Korean barbarians beat me," and then he died, and the villain started shouting."
Zhang Yuan asked the other two clerks. The two clerks said they came over after hearing Sun Erli shouting and saw that Du Ermao was already dead——
Five Koreans stood on the side of the stairs listening to Zhang Yuan's interrogation. The pleading officer Jin Zhongqing whispered in the ear of the envoy Liu Dongming. Jin Zhongqing was preparing for the worst, and he really couldn't escape responsibility. Then let one of the two accompanying him
Taking the blame. Liu Dongming's face was extremely ugly, and he thought to himself: "This is obviously a frame-up, but our companions are asked to take the blame. Are we, the Korean country, just allowed to be slaughtered like this?"
Zhang Yuan asked the Jin Yiwei general to lead shopkeeper Zhai and the three clerks to another room. He wanted to question the other cooks and servants. Shopkeeper Zhai said dissatisfiedly: "Zhang Zhuangyuan, this is a North Korean murder."
My restaurant boy is dead. Why does Zhang Zhuangyuan only interrogate the people in my restaurant!"
The commander-in-chief of Jinyiwei shouted: "You're so annoying, hurry up and get aside." Several captains pushed shopkeeper Zhai and the three waiters to the left room.
Zhang Yuan first bowed his hands to North Korean envoy Liu Dongming and said, "Envoy Liu, how did you find this restaurant for dinner?"
Liu Dongming motioned to the petitioner Jin Zhongqing to answer. Jin Zhongqing hesitated and said: "Zhang Xiuzhan, I heard that Weitai Restaurant's dog meat casserole and miso soup are very famous, so I wanted to come and taste it."
Zhang Yuan thought: "Korean people have a long history of liking to eat dog meat. Weitai Restaurant is a favorite of Korean people. In our Ming Dynasty, dog meat is not allowed in banquets. Of course, there are many people who like to eat dog meat, but
It’s rare for people to serve dog meat when treating guests. It’s a sign of loss of status.” He nodded and said nothing more. He turned around and looked at the remaining 19 cooks, bartenders and busboys, and said, “Don’t be surprised.
Fear, this matter has nothing to do with you, so I will ask you a few questions - who did Du Ermao talk to before serving these North Korean envoys, not counting those who greeted him."
The cook, bartender, and servants looked at each other in confusion. After a while, one of the servants timidly said: "I saw Du Ermao and Sun Erli talking in the kitchen -"
Zhang Yuan asked: "What did they say?"
The servant replied: "The villain didn't hear clearly. He seemed to be making some kind of bet."
Zhang Yuan asked: "When did this restaurant's specialties, dog meat casserole and miso soup, become available?"
A cook replied: "It just started at the beginning of winter this year. Shopkeeper Zhai taught us how to make it. It only needs to be hot and sour."
Zhang Yuan asked: "Is this Weitai Restaurant always opened by shopkeeper Zhai?"
The cook replied: "Shopkeeper Zhai only bought this restaurant before the beginning of winter, and none of the original restaurant servants were fired."
Zhang Yuan asked: "Are Sun Erli and Du Ermao both servants of the original restaurant?"
The cook replied: "Yes."
Zhang Yuan was silent for a while and then asked: "Have you, shopkeeper Zhai, had any relatives or friends come to visit you in the past few days?"
Two people answered at the same time: "Yes." One of them detailed: "Shopkeeper Zhai was still drinking with his friend today evening. The friend was a scholar, in his twenties or thirties, and his speech was very refined.
You’re welcome, there is also a mute attendant. Although he cannot speak, his eyes are fierce and domineering.”
Zhang Yuan asked: "The scholar doesn't live in this restaurant?"
He replied: "I don't live here. I seem to live outside Zhengyangmen."
Zhang Yuan thought to himself: "The mysterious guest who was looking out of the window on the second floor must be shopkeeper Zhai's scholar friend. Zhengyang Gate is only more than a mile away from here, and he must have left the inner city by now." He said, "Okay.
All of you, please step back and bring up shopkeeper Zhai and Sun Erli."
Restaurant owner Zhai Dongsheng followed Jin Yiwei Zongqi out, his head slightly lowered, but his eyes scanned the hall, and looked at the faces of Zhang Yuan and Zhen Zidan. He felt uneasy and uneasy. He didn't expect things to be so complicated.
No one expected Zhang Yuan’s appearance——
Zhang Yuan stared at Zhai Dongsheng and said nothing for a long time.
Zhang Yuan didn't speak, and of course the others didn't dare to make a sound. Only the sound of the howling north wind poured into the hall. Zhai Dongsheng forced himself to calm down. But his heart was beating faster and faster——
Zhang Yuan spoke: "What kind of business did Shopkeeper Zhai do before he bought this restaurant?"
Zhai Dongsheng's mouth was dry and his body was cold. He wanted to hide it, but he knew that he couldn't. The Jinyiwei people were here and they could quickly find out his details. He replied: "The villain was working in the rice industry in Fushun."
I have accumulated some small profits from my business over the years. I don’t want to suffer from the bumps and bumps of long-distance transportation anymore, so I went to Beijing to buy this restaurant and make a stable living.”
Fushun, the front line of Ming Dynasty's battle against Hou Jin Dynasty, is not far from North Korea. Zhang Yuan smiled and asked: "Why do you use dog meat and miso soup as special dishes? Do you specifically attract North Koreans to dine here?"
Zhai Dongsheng said cautiously: "I had dealings with North Korean merchants in Fushun, and I thought their dog meat was very delicious. When I came to the capital, I learned how to cook dog meat. There are many restaurants in Beijing, and it is difficult to get a foothold without some special dishes...
…”
Just as Zhai Dongsheng was speaking smoothly, he suddenly heard Zhang Yuan ask: "Where does that friend of shopkeeper Zhai live outside Zhengyang Gate? Is he the one who drank with you in the secret room in the evening?"
Zhai Dongsheng was shocked and speechless. He didn't know what his restaurant waiter had just said to Zhang Yuan, and he didn't know how to respond -
Zhen Zidan, who was on the side, saw that the shopkeeper had a strange look on his face. Apparently Zhang Yuan had asked the important question, and said sternly: "What Zhang Xiuzan asked you, why didn't you answer it?"
Zhai Dongsheng forced a smile and said: "That is a friend I met on a business trip before. We have no friendship. This time we met by chance in Beijing and invited us to have a drink together. I don't know where he lives?"
Zhang Yuan asked: "What is that person's name and where is his home?"
Zhai Dongsheng said: "This little guy doesn't know. He only knows that his surname is Tong. He calls me Brother Zhai, and I call him Brother Tong Xian."
Zhang Yuandao: "You have met that man not only once or twice in the past few days, but how come you don't know where he lives? What are you trying to hide?"
Zhai Dongsheng knelt down and said, "I really don't know, sir. Please take a closer look."
Zhang Yuandao: "A young man dressed as a scholar and a companion who dare not speak for some reason are very eye-catching. How many inns are there in Zhengyangmen? Do you think that if you don't tell them, the people from Jinyiwei and Bingmasi will be there?"
Can’t you find out?”
Zhai Dongsheng's face turned pale, but he still insisted that he did not know where "Tong Xiandi" lived.
Zhen Zidan loved torture and said with a sneer: "People who don't want to be punished don't know how to talk about it. Zhang Xiuzhuan asked the humble official to take him back to the Yamen, and I guarantee that he will be punished for whatever he asks."
Zhang Yuan smiled and said: "Shopkeeper Zhai is also the accuser's culprit. How can he punish the accuser? Zhen Baihu will still work with the Bingma Division to find the scholar and the mute follower overnight. Then Shopkeeper Zhai will naturally be able to speak - but in
Before looking for someone, I want to ask Sun Erli what bet he made with Du Ermao in the kitchen earlier?"
The man was so shocked that his knees weakened and he immediately knelt down and said, "We didn't make any bets, we just chatted a few words."
Zhang Yuan did not question Sun Erli, but instead asked the other two guys involved: "Do you two have anything to say? If you wait until tomorrow, it will be too late."
The two guys were trembling. It was really cold. They knelt down together. One of them said: "Shopkeeper Zhai promised me two taels of silver to beat these Korean barbarians. They said that the Korean barbarians were killing people in the restaurant.
It will cause no one to patronize the restaurant in the future, and the North Korean barbarians will not be able to escape without paying hundreds of taels of silver."
Zhai Dongsheng argued forcefully: "A murder in a restaurant will definitely affect the business. Of course the villain wants them to compensate."
If there is no punishment, there is nothing left to ask. Shopkeeper Zhai is highly suspected of framing the North Korean envoy. Now we have to see if we can find the scholar and the mute attendant. The scholar's identity is mysterious.
Zhang Yuandao: "Zhen Baihu, immediately ask the soldiers and horses to go to the Zhengyangmenwai Inn to find a scholar with a mute attendant. Shopkeeper Zhai and Sun Erli are temporarily detained. The North Korean envoy -"
Zhang Yuan turned around, bowed his hands to Liu Dongming and others, and said: "Please invite Envoy Jin and his two companions to come to the Jinyiwei Yamen to cooperate in investigating the case. Mr. Liu and Mr. Xu will go back to the hall and wait for the news."
Liu Dongming and others had just looked at Zhang Yuan's questioning of the case with cold eyes, peeling off the cocoons and analyzing each piece. The case was obviously in their favor. They all breathed a sigh of relief. Liu Dongming bowed and said: "Thank you Zhang Xiuzhan for upholding justice and restoring our innocence."
Zhang Yuandao: "It's too early to say this now. We should know tomorrow."
Zhen Baihu sent people to see Liu off and promised the two North Korean envoys to go back. At the same time, he ordered the commander of the Military and Horse Division to quickly return to the Nancheng Military and Horse Division to summon the patrol sergeants to go out from Zhengyang Gate to search various inns——
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