Chapter 498: Privately Minted Copper Coin

Chen Yan heard that and, almost reflexively, asked, "What object?"

Before the words finished, everyone's gaze in the hall converged on Tang Jingwen, and even their breathing unconsciously lightened.

Tang Jingwen's expression grew more solemn; he raised his hand and fumbled in his bosom for a moment, his fingertips finally touching the tightly wrapped object.

He then, carefully, took it out, revealing an item wrapped in layers of oil paper, its edges pressed flat, clearly having been meticulously protected all the way.

"Lord, please have a look!" he cupped the oil‑paper bundle with both hands and slowly handed it to the table.

Liu Mu Zhi lifted his hand to take it, his fingertips feeling the outline of the hard object beneath the oil paper, and he gently peeled the layers off.

As the oil paper unfolded, a dull copper plate suddenly came into view…

It was a round coin with a square hole, edges with slight wear, the surface still clinging to barely noticeable mud, looking indistinguishable from ordinary circulating copper coins.

Gao Jiong leaned in, gave a cursory glance, his face full of doubt, and couldn't help asking, "Isn't this just an utterly ordinary copper plate?"

Liu Mu Zhi bent over, staring at the copper plate, his eyes repeatedly examining its surface, his brows furrowing tighter, then suddenly as if he had just realized something, his pupils contracted and he shouted, "No! This plate is not officially minted, but privately cast!"

Before the words finished, he gestured at the front of the plate, his tone urgent yet firm: "Lord, look at the two characters 'Bu Quan' on it; the strokes are soft and feeble, the line thickness varies, and the edges have untrimmed burrs!"

"Officially minted copper coins demand regularity and heft, with robust strokes; they never have such a rough appearance!"

Speaking so, he disregarded the slight mud on the plate, carefully lifted it, weighed it with his fingertips, then pulled a copper coin he uses daily from his bosom and placed the two coins side by side on the table.

The firelight fell on the two coins, making the contrast increasingly stark.

Liu Mu Zhi pointed at both, adding in a deep voice, "Lord, look again, the weight is also unusually light!"

Gao Jiong, seeing this, quickly composed his expression, leaned down to examine carefully, mimicking Liu Mu Zhi's way of weighing the two coins, and after a moment of thought said, "Being this light, it must have been mixed with a lot of lead!"

"Lead is soft; the more mixed in, the lighter it becomes, and the characters become hard to cast neatly."

The charcoal fire in the hall crackled, and everyone's gaze focused on that privately cast copper plate.

Chen Yan slowly nodded, his eyes narrowing slightly, and in a deep voice said, "This is probably what Lieutenant Zhang went to the Chang'an Ghost Market to investigate!"

"It is the reason the murderer killed him to silence him…"

Liu Mu Zhi lowered his eyes, recalling something, and said loudly, "Lord, Liu Prefect previously mentioned that Lieutenant Zhang is quick‑witted and highly observant."

"Back then he served in the county, and while following the County Commandant on cases, he repeatedly could find breakthroughs from subtle clues others ignored, solving many difficult major cases."

He paused, his gaze landing on the privately cast copper plate on the table, and continued, "I think his recent trip to the Chang'an Ghost Market to investigate private minting must mean he sensed the opponent's power was formidable, and that he himself had already fallen into danger."

"Therefore he deliberately hid this most crucial copper plate in the inner compartment of his shoe, both concealed and hard to be taken away…"

"He had long prepared for the worst, leaving this vital clue for subsequent investigation!"

Gao Jiong, listening beside him, nodded repeatedly and immediately echoed with strong agreement, "Clerk Liu's words are indeed correct!"

"With such meticulous thinking, Lieutenant Zhang must have sensed the murderous intent, which is why he left this copper plate as a contingency!"

"Privately minted copper coin?"

Chen Yan murmured softly, after a moment of silence he suddenly sighed quietly, his tone heavy: "What this person is after must be quite substantial!"

Privately minted copper coins may seem merely profit‑driven, but once they scale up, they would disrupt the entire Jing Zhao Fu and even Great Zhou's merchants and populace, possibly even shaking the foundation of the state.

Ordinary lawbreakers would never have such audacity and capability; the behind‑the‑scenes involvement must be considerable…

He stared at the copper plate on the table, his gaze profound, gradually sinking into a state of deep contemplation.

Gao Jiong, seeing this, tentatively called lightly, "Lord!"

Liu Mu Zhi also stepped forward, exchanged a glance with Gao Jiong, and then together called softly, "Lord! Lord!"

"Hm?"

These two calls finally pulled Chen Yan's thoughts back; he lifted his eyes toward the two, the deep contemplation in his gaze gradually fading, returning to his usual composure, and asked with slight puzzlement, "What is it?"

Gao Jiong bowed and inquired, "Shall we, following Lieutenant Zhang's clue, immediately enter the Chang'an Ghost Market to investigate and capture the murderer?"

Chen Yan raised his hand to press down, a deep hue flashing through his eyes as if calculating something, and said decisively, "Not yet!"

A hint of surprise flashed on Gao Jiong's face, Liu Mu Zhi also slightly frowned, but they asked nothing further, merely awaiting his next words.

Chen Yan turned his gaze to Liu Mu Zhi, speaking calmly, "Mu Zhi, in a moment go straight to the Mingjing Office, find You Xian, and assign a task for our office!"

As a former aide to that big boss, Chen himself knows a bit about economics…

Going after the murderer immediately would likely alert the culprits and wouldn't quickly stop inflation.

Chen intends to exploit the 'curse' to maximize profit…

Moreover, while those behind the scenes are still unaware, and even after they have noticed, we can still present them with a grand gift!

Liu Mu Zhi dared not delay, immediately stepped forward, bowing his waist even lower, clasping his fists respectfully, and replied, "Lord, your command!"

Chen Yan smiled lightly, spoke slowly, and ordered, "Have You Xian spread the news that Jing Zhao Fu has encountered a curse, along with our office dispatching an embroidered messenger to protect Liu Prefect personally for twelve hours, and release this information…"

Liu Mu Zhi, hearing this, saw his respectful expression instantly turn to full worry, and hurriedly said, "Lord, if we don't dispel rumors but instead spread the curse rumors, aren't we afraid it will cause panic among the people of Chang'an…"

Before he could finish, he abruptly stopped speaking, his pupils slightly contracting as if suddenly realizing a crucial point; the worry on his face faded, replaced by incredulous astonishment.

He stared blankly at Chen Yan, his Adam's apple moving slightly, his voice trembling with uncertainty, "Wait! Are you perhaps planning…?!"

In that instant, Liu Mu Zhi grasped his master's intention…

"Exactly!"

Chen Yan, seeing this, showed a half‑smile, twirled the tea bowl on the table with his fingertip, leisurely brought it to his lips and sipped the hot tea, then said meaningfully, "Protecting Old Liu is protection, protecting others is also protection…"

Chen's aim is to let mid‑level officials in Chang'an know that the Mingjing Office can provide protection, prompting them to voluntarily come seeking…

to earn their goodwill!

Let these officials be grateful!

Lord Chen Yan's benevolence cannot be limited to the common folk…

Such a heaven‑sent opportunity must be seized!

Gao Jiong instantly understood, his face full of awe, immediately raised his thumb, and with sincere admiration said, "Lord, Gao!"

"Shuyi admires you immensely!"

At that moment, Gao's reverence flowed like an endless torrent of river water…

What a masterful stratagem!

Standing there, you squeezed the favor!

I must learn!

Liu Mu Zhi also nodded repeatedly, the admiration in his eyes unabashed, bowed and said, "Shuyi, bring it back and go find the roaming Mirror Master!"

At that moment, a light, gentle footstep sounded from outside the door.

A bailiff bowed and entered, clasping both fists, and respectfully said to Chen Yan, "Sir, someone from your residence has come looking for you!"

Hmm?

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, and raised his hand, saying, "Bring them in!"

A moment later, a robust man was led in.

He wore sturdy armor, a wide belt cinched at his waist, his face resolute and his posture upright—he was a Private Soldier of Weiguo Gongfu.

Chen Heyi entered, quickened his steps forward, bowed respectfully, and with a resonant voice said, "Your Excellency, Duke!"

Chen Yan sat upright in his chair, his gaze falling on him, and asked puzzled, "Why have you come?"

Chen Heyi snapped his head up, his face full of urgency, his voice trembling with agitation, "Madam Mingyue has sent me to request the Duke to return to the mansion immediately…"

"The lady is about to give birth!"

【'Jing Zhao Fu suddenly encountered a strange case, bizarre and unfathomable.

Three officials suddenly died in full view of the crowd; the forensic examiner inspected them, finding no injury on their bodies, as if their souls had departed.

The magistrate Liu Bingzhong suddenly recalled the blood‑letter curse that had appeared earlier in the mansion: "Jing Zhao Fu officials shall each meet death," he was shocked, and urgently summoned the Founding Emperor, then serving as Magistrate of Wan'nan.

The Founding Emperor first went to Jing Zhao Fu, leveraging his prestige to pacify the people, and then ordered the Mirror Department forensic examiner to re‑examine the corpses.

Upon careful investigation, it was found that the three deceased had all previously visited the Ghost Market of Chang'an, and the judicial officer Zhang Yinxian had entered specifically to investigate the case.

The forensic examiner, living up to the trust, determined the cause of death, and also found a privately minted counterfeit coin hidden in Zhang Yinxian's shoe sole.

The Founding Emperor saw this, suddenly realized, and understood that the mastermind behind it was no small matter!

—Excerpt from "History of Wei", Chronicle of the Wen Emperor, the Founding Emperor.