The magistrate of Baoji County had the surname Song, with the given name "Ming".
Song Ming was only twenty-seven years old this year, but he was already accomplished at a young age. Eight years ago, he passed the imperial examination and became a jinshi scholar. He gave up the opportunity to stay in the Capital City and instead requested to be sent to the small Baoji County as a seventh-rank county magistrate. He had been diligently working there for eight years, conscientiously protecting the people of this land so they could live and work in peace and contentment.
Song Ming had a habit of visiting the prison periodically to check if there were any instances of jailers beating prisoners. After all, in the past, there had been many cases of jailers torturing prisoners for fun or threatening prisoners' families for money.
Today, as usual, he was inspecting the prison cells when he unexpectedly saw clerk Tang and Zhao Qiang there.
"This morning, someone came to file a complaint, and the suspect is Zhao Instructor. The complainant didn't write an official statement, so clerk Tang asked them to go back first, and then came to the prison to question Zhao Instructor himself," a nearby jailer stepped forward and quietly explained the situation to Song Ming.
"Your Honor, should we call clerk Tang out? After all, they are relatives..." the jailer suggested, trying to gauge Song Ming's thoughts.
But Song Ming stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and still refused. He stood in the blind spot of the two men's vision until he had heard their entire conversation, and then emerged from the shadows.
Clerk Tang and Zhao Qiang knelt nervously, waiting for Song Ming to speak.
In the current situation, clerk Tang, as an official, had directly contacted the suspect in private without going through the proper channels, and had even bypassed his superior, the county magistrate. This was already considered overstepping his authority. If Song Ming were to report this, clerk Tang's position as an eighth-rank clerk might be in jeopardy.
"Your Honor, please understand, this lowly official and Zhao Qiang absolutely did not conspire to fabricate testimony. It's just that he is this official's nephew, and I was anxious to understand the case. I momentarily lost my composure. Please forgive me!" Clerk Tang said, his forehead breaking out in a cold sweat.
Song Ming was known for his upright and impartial character. Clerk Tang wasn't afraid that Song Ming would use this opportunity to make things difficult for him, but he was worried that Song Ming might recuse him from the case to avoid any appearance of impropriety. If that happened, how could Zhao Qiang be saved?
Song Ming gave clerk Tang a cool glance and only said, "The prison is not a place to discuss official business," before turning to leave.
Clerk Tang immediately stood up, intending to follow Song Ming.
"Uncle, I won't cause you any trouble, will I?" Seeing that clerk Tang was about to leave, Zhao Qiang quickly grabbed his sleeve and asked, his eyes full of worry and deep remorse.
"It's alright!" Clerk Tang patted Zhao Qiang's hand, reassuring him: "Magistrate Song is a good official. We have clear consciences, there won't be any problem!"
Zhao Qiang let go of his hand and watched through the prison bars as clerk Tang hurried out.
Song Ming hadn't gone far; he was waiting for clerk Tang in the courtyard outside the prison cells.
After coming out, clerk Tang seemed less nervous when facing Song Ming alone, adopting a businesslike attitude: "Your Honor, may this lowly official boldly ask, how much of our conversation did you overhear?"
Song Ming didn't try to hide anything and frankly replied, "From beginning to end, without missing a word."
Hearing this, clerk Tang actually smiled. If Song Ming had only heard half of the conversation, he would have been worried about misunderstandings due to lack of context. Hearing it all was better; hearing it all meant he knew that he and Zhao Qiang weren't conspiring to fabricate testimony, but merely analyzing the case.
"May I ask what Your Honor thinks of this case?" Clerk Tang asked with a smile.
Song Ming could see clerk Tang's desire to lessen Zhao Qiang's crime, but he didn't know much about the case and felt it would be biased to make a judgment based solely on the conversation between the uncle and nephew in the prison.
"Let's wait until the official complaint is submitted tomorrow before making any decisions," Song Ming said first, and then continued: "However, clerk Tang, let me give you a warning in advance. Even if all your deductions just now are true, and Zhao Qiang was deceived into stealing money, the facts remain that he abused his position to drug someone, broke into a civilian's home, and intended to commit theft. These are indisputable facts. According to the laws of Great Liang, he will not escape a beating, and after that, he will certainly not be able to continue serving as an instructor in the yamen."
Clerk Tang had worked with Song Ming for eight years and knew the temperament of this county magistrate. He could guess some of his thoughts and knew that these words were a warning, telling him not to harbor any illusions about Zhao Qiang getting off scot-free.
So clerk Tang said no more, only responding, "Yes, then this lowly official will take his leave."
Song Ming gave a sound of acknowledgment, and after clerk Tang had bowed to him and straightened up, he added meaningfully, "Clerk Tang, I'm very curious. You clearly have a quick mind and meticulous thinking. Why do you insist on pretending to be a dull-witted mediocrity?"
Clerk Tang was taken aback and hesitantly replied, "This lowly official doesn't understand Your Honor's meaning."
Song Ming chuckled lightly, "You heard just a few words from Zhao Instructor and were able to sense that something was amiss. Then, based on his account, you were able to deduce the cause and effect of the entire incident in a matter of moments. With such case-solving abilities, why are you content to remain a mere eighth-rank clerk for twenty years? Isn't this a case of 'a pearl hidden in the dust'?"
Clerk Tang looked at this county magistrate, who was even younger than Zhao Qiang, and gave a wry smile, "Your Honor, you are heaven's favored child, with exceptional talent and knowledge. If you had stayed in the Capital City after passing the imperial examination, you would surely have become an important minister by now. Your Honor has your choices, and this lowly official has his. It's simply a matter of 'each to his own ambition.' How can you speak of 'a pearl hidden in the dust'?"
"Hahaha..." Song Ming suddenly burst into laughter. He had worked with clerk Tang for eight years, but this was the first time they had truly opened up to each other. He hadn't expected that this clerk, old enough to be his father, would live his life with such clarity and acceptance.
Seeing that they had nothing more to say, clerk Tang bowed again, "This lowly official takes his leave."
After watching clerk Tang walk away, Song Ming entered the back courtyard of the yamen, where the constables rested.
"Go to Lotus Flower Village and find a man called Huzi. If he's not in Lotus Flower Village, check Gold Jade Hall," Song Ming instructed.
What Zhao Qiang had said earlier should all be true. As he said, he had stayed at Huzi's house until nightfall, and Huzi didn't know he was going to Lotus Flower Village to steal money. Huzi had only let him stay at his house all afternoon because of Houzi.
Whether or not Huzi knew about Zhao Qiang's plan to steal, it was certain that he had some connection to Gold Jade Hall, and he was very likely to know about the inside story of the arson.
Song Ming lightly tapped his chin with his index finger, a habit he had when thinking.
The aspect of this case that interested Song Ming the most was the identity of the girl who had fought Zhao Qiang to a standstill. Just now, Zhao Qiang had repeatedly referred to her as "that woman," suggesting he didn't know her name.
Moreover, Song Ming had a feeling that this murder case hidden beneath the theft case was related to that girl!
Why didn't he suspect Liu Ming'an? That was because Song Ming knew Liu Ming'an was a scholar.
Baoji County had a total of six towns and thirty-three villages under its jurisdiction. This year, twenty-nine people had passed the provincial examination to become xiucai scholars. Only three of them came from villages, while the rest were from the towns. Therefore, Song Ming remembered the name Liu Ming'an.