Chapter 505: Underhanded tricks and a grand gift

Seeing that Chen Yan had seen through it at a glance, the tense lines on Yuwen Hu's face relaxed slightly. He nodded slowly and praised: "A Yan, your eye for this is truly excellent!"

Having said that, he raised his hand to pick up the purple clay teapot on the desk. The teapot body was wreathed in heat, and the fragrance of tea mixed with the scent of charcoal permeated the hall.

He tilted his wrist slightly, and the clear tea soup was poured into two white porcelain cups.

He pushed one of them gently toward Chen Yan and sighed lightly: "To think that with just one glance, you could see its unusual nature..."

Chen Yan did not touch the teacup. His fingertips were gripped so tightly they turned slightly white, and his face was full of solemnity. The previous shock had turned into deep worry. He looked up at Yuwen Hu and said: "May I ask the Grand Tutor, where did you get these fake copper coins?"

Yuwen Hu picked up the teacup in front of him and brought it to his lips for a sip. After the hot tea entered his throat, he said in a deep voice: "This object was obtained by a personal guard of my mansion when he went to the Chunman Lou to drink flower wine..."

"That day, after he paid the bill while drunk, the turtle slave gave him a few such copper coins as change..."

"It was Mr. Gongyang who noticed something wrong!"

Hearing this, Chen Yan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. The congestion in his chest eased slightly, but it was replaced by an even deeper solemnity.

He lowered his eyes to look at the fake copper coins on the desk, his gaze becoming increasingly profound, and he murmured in a deep voice: "Sure enough, it was that kind of place..."

Yuwen Hu caught the "sure enough" in Chen Yan's words and examined his expression more closely.

Although it was full of solemnity, there was not much surprise in his eyes; instead, it revealed a certain calmness of "confirming a hypothesis."

His heart stirred. He put down the teacup, leaned forward slightly, and his tone carried a touch of inquiry: "Mm? A Yan, your reaction—could it be that you had already noticed?"

Chen Yan met Yuwen Hu's sharp gaze. Without the slightest concealment, he nodded slowly, his tone steady as he replied truthfully: "Returning to the Grand Tutor, your subordinate has recently been investigating the case in the Jingzhao Prefecture where someone was killed by using a curse to pretend to be a ghost..."

"It just so happens to be connected to this object!"

"Oh?" Yuwen Hu's brows arched, obviously somewhat surprised. "The deaths of those two military advisors and the Shao Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture are actually connected to fake copper coins?"

He tapped his fingertips lightly on the desk, the rhythm gradually quickening. A flash of brilliance crossed his eyes, and then his eyes narrowed slightly, a meaningful arc hooking at the corners of his mouth as he said in a deep voice: "This is interesting!"

He had originally thought it was just a simple case of private minting of fake currency, but who would have thought it would be entangled with the murder case of court officials? The two matters were linked together, obviously hiding a larger net behind them.

Seeing this, Chen Yan, after phrasing his words, continued: "Your subordinate personally went to the Jingzhao Prefecture yesterday to perform an autopsy, investigating the true causes of death of Military Advisor Zhang, Military Advisor Li, and Shao Yin Wang..."

"In the interlayer of Military Advisor Zhang's shoe sole, I accidentally discovered a copper coin!"

As he spoke, he raised his hand to lift his lapel and took out a small oil-paper package from his bosom, unfolding it layer by layer.

Inside the oil-paper package, a copper coin lay quietly, its shape and size almost identical to the batch of fake currency on the desk.

The "Bu Quan" characters on the front were engraved just as roughly and crookedly, and the edges bore unpolished burrs, as different from the regular and rounded official "Bu Quan" coins as heaven and earth.

Yuwen Hu pinched the two "Bu Quan" coins with his fingertips—one taken from Chunman Lou, one from the sole of Military Advisor Zhang's shoe—rubbing and comparing them repeatedly between his fingers.

He narrowed his eyes, his gaze like a torch, carefully examining every detail on the copper coins.

The crooked trend of the characters, the burrs remaining on the edges, and even the subtle impurities mixed in the copper material were all taken into his eyes one by one.

After a long while, Yuwen Hu placed the two copper coins side by side on the desk, tapped his fingertips heavily, and said in a deep voice: "These two are afraid they came from the same person's hands!"

Whether it was the texture of the copper material, the craftsmanship of the casting, or the charm of the "Bu Quan" character engravings, there was an astonishing consistency; they could not have been forged by different gangs.

Hearing this, Chen Yan nodded: "Exactly."

Immediately, he finally picked up the hot tea in front of him. The warm tea soup slid down his throat, dispelling some of the chill and making his thinking increasingly clear. "According to your subordinate's investigation, Military Advisor Zhang being killed this time in the name of a curse was no accident."

"A few days before he died, he had already noticed the clues of fake currency circulating in the capital. While investigating in secret, he learned that the source of the fake currency might be related to the Chang'an Ghost Market, so he went alone to investigate..."

He put down the teacup, his tone carrying a touch of admiration: "I suppose he found key clues in the Ghost Market, but he also alerted the people behind it. Realizing his own safety could not be guaranteed, he used his wit to hide this fake copper coin in the interlayer of his shoe sole, leaving it as a clue pointing to the true culprit."

"It's just a pity that he ultimately could not escape the disaster!"

After listening, Yuwen Hu showed a touch of emotion on his face and shook his head slowly: "Zhang Yinxian was indeed a capable official!"

"His mind was meticulous, and he was steady in dealing with matters. It's a pity he died here..."

"If he could have been used well, he would have been a pillar of the imperial court!"

"Indeed!" Chen Yan felt the same way, his tone full of regret as he echoed: "Military Advisor Zhang was meticulous in every detail. If he had been transferred to the Autumn Office to specialize in criminal law, I'm afraid he could have clarified many accumulated difficult cases..."

Yuwen Hu was silent for a moment. He placed the copper coin in his hand gently on the desk and looked up at Chen Yan, his gaze as sharp as before, asking with inquiry: "A Yan, when you heard that the fake currency came from Chunman Lou, you said 'Sure enough, it was that kind of place.' Could it be that you had thought of something?"

Hearing this, Chen Yan nodded slowly. The solemnity between his brows became increasingly deep, and his face was full of seriousness. He clenched his fists and said in a deep voice: "The mastermind behind all this has an extremely vicious mind."

"The reason for using a curse to kill is by no means just to silence someone; the core is to cover up the imperial court's investigation into the fake copper coins!"

His gaze swept over the fake currency on the desk, his tone carrying a touch of sternness: "Military Advisor Zhang was investigating the circulation of currency, which touched their foundation, so he was silenced."

"Using the absurd theory of a curse can both scare others away and lead the government astray when investigating the case, delaying time for the fake currency to continue spreading."

"And places like Chunman Lou are the strongholds they carefully selected." Chen Yan changed the subject, his tone becoming increasingly heavy. "Those who come and go are all people who spend money like water and don't care much about the authenticity of copper coins..."

"Even if they receive fake copper coins, most of them are unwilling to make a fuss out of concern for their reputation."

"In this way, they can to a great extent let the fake copper coins they produce flow into our Great Zhou market silently. Over time, they will completely destroy our Great Zhou's finances!"

If fake copper coins are rampant, prices will soar, directly leading to inflation.

The people have no means of livelihood, and the imperial court finds it difficult to collect taxes. What is hidden behind this is a conspiracy to shake the foundation of the country...

It is far greater than the damage of a war!

"Mm."

Yuwen Hu nodded repeatedly after listening, deeply agreeing. He slapped the desk heavily and said in a deep voice: "You are absolutely right. Once these fake copper coins flow into the market in large quantities and become a climate, I am afraid our Great Zhou's finances and people's livelihood will be severely damaged!"

"At that time, the hearts of the people will be shaken, and if we encounter foreign enemies, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Chen Yan looked at the fake currency on the desk and sighed slowly, his tone carrying a touch of luck: "Fortunately, heaven blesses our Great Zhou, allowing Mr. Gongyang to see through the fake currency in time, and allowing Military Advisor Zhang to leave key clues, letting us discover this conspiracy in advance and giving us enough time to respond!"

If it were any later, once the fake copper coins spread to every prefecture and county, trying to trace the source and collect and destroy them would be as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Moreover, by the time it was discovered then, it would have already caused great trauma, and I am afraid it would be impossible to save the situation...

The jade thumb ring on Yuwen Hu's fingertip turned with his thoughts, making a subtle rubbing sound, his gaze deep as an abyss.

His brain operated at high speed, smoothing out all the entanglements of this matter one by one. After a long while, he opened his mouth heavily: "Such a large handwriting, and with such great energy, the private minting of fake currency can circulate in the capital, and they even dare to openly kill court officials..."

His words paused, and his peripheral vision glanced inadvertently out the window. The cold wind was rolling fragments of snow and hitting the window lattice, and his eyes suddenly became sharp: "I am afraid this person with ulterior motives comes from the east!"

"They cannot break through the Yubi defense line from the front, so they want to use such underhanded tricks to shake the foundation of our Great Zhou. How vicious their intentions are!"

Just as he finished speaking, Chen Yan stood up abruptly, straightened his dark brocade robe, bowed and cupped his fists, his tone earnest: "I ask the Grand Tutor not to startle the snake for now!"

Yuwen Hu withdrew his gaze, looked at the determined Chen Yan, arched his brows, and asked: "A Yan, is it that you already have a strategy in your heart?"

Chen Yan straightened his body, nodded in response, his tone decisive: "Exactly!"

Immediately, he bowed again and asked for instructions: "I wonder if this case can be handed over to your subordinate to handle?"

As he spoke, a flash of ruthlessness crossed his eyes, his aura suddenly became sharp, and he said in a deep voice: "Your subordinate is prepared to send the person behind the scenes, along with a grand gift to the east!" ===== CHAPTER 506 =====