Chapter 66: Answering Fluently

Xiao Sizi recited the prearranged story Lin Xuan had taught her: "I don't remember my parents' names. I was very young when I started traveling with an old man."

"Later, the old man fell ill, closed his eyes, and stopped speaking, so I walked alone."

Officer Chen paused his pen, lifted his head, his gaze sharpening: "You walked alone? Do you remember what large buildings were on the street that night you went missing?"

"Or were there glowing signs, traffic lights?"

When people fabricate lies, they usually prepare only the main points; sudden detailed questions often expose logical fractures.

Lin Xuan's palms grew sweaty.

But what if it was half-truth and half-lie?

Xiao Sizi turned her head.

She pulled up a map of Chang'an during the Tang Dynasty in her mind.

Using the layout of Tang-era Chang'an's wards and markets, she substituted modern terms vaguely, crafting a flawless wandering trajectory.

"The roads were wide, crisscrossing in straight lines."

"Tall walls surrounded all sides."

"After dark, someone rang a bell."

"The bell rang for a long time. Then no one was allowed on the streets—I could only huddle in the corner by the wall."

Officer Chen frowned.

Tall walls? A bell? Restricted movement at night?

In his mind, he conjured an isolated mountain town, or some sealed-off special zone.

Such details could not be invented by a child raised in a city.

"What color and style of clothing were you wearing that night?" the young officer interjected.

"Gray cloth robes, torn in a few places. The wind made them very cold," Xiao Sizi answered without hesitation.

"What snacks did the old man who took care of you ever buy you?" Officer Chen shifted direction, probing into daily life.

"No snacks."

"When he got hard wheat cakes, he broke one in half and gave me half."

"Sometimes I drank leftover rice gruel."

The two officers exchanged glances.

A child who had truly endured long-term hardship often showed no strong emotional reaction when describing suffering.

Because it was their normal life.

Officer Chen turned his gaze to Lin Xuan, then back to Xiao Sizi: "How did you meet this Uncle Lin?"

Xiao Sizi extended her finger, pointing at Lin Xuan: "On the day it rained heavily, I was too hungry to walk and collapsed in an alley."

"Brother Lin came over, picked me up, and carried me home."

"What did he do after he brought you home?"

"Brother took a Glass tube and clamped it under my arm."

"He said I had a fever—39.2 degrees," Xiao Sizi recited Lin Xuan's rescue of her with clear diction, "He gave me white pills called Ibuprofen, and mixed warm water for me."

Officer Chen froze, gripping his pen tighter.

A child under six years old could name an exact body temperature and a Western medicine?

"Then what?" he pressed.

"Then Brother cooked—tomatoes with scrambled eggs, and seaweed egg drop soup."

"Uncle Lin's food was delicious—I ate two bowls of rice!"

Xiao Sizi recalled precisely how many meals she'd eaten and what medicine was bought.

"The next day, Brother took me to a store to buy clothes—the ones I'm wearing now."

"At noon, he took me to eat something called KFC—ordered a hamburger, two fried chicken wings, and a cup of fizzy black water."

She paused, then lifted her head: "This morning, Brother suddenly clutched his chest and fell down."

"I was terrified. Brother had taught me—if I met a bad person, press 110; if I was about to die, press 120."

"So I used Xiao Du to dial 120."

A string of data, names, and events in precise sequence—no hesitation, no stumble.

Officer Chen closed his hardcover notebook.

He had interrogated many suspects and met many rescued children.

The maturity of this girl far beyond her age left him stunned.

No malicious person could have coached such a tightly constructed, detail-rich testimony.

He completely dismissed any suspicion of Lin Xuan, classifying him as a concerned citizen who rescued a homeless child.

…

The Sky Screen spanned ancient and modern times.

The Tang Dynasty timeline.

Wei Zheng, Fang Xuanling, and other senior Tang ministers held their breath as they watched the scene on the Sky Screen.

The questions from that otherworldly officer came one after another, each a trap.

Wei Zheng shook his sleeve, straightened his robes, and knelt to the ground, facing the Sky Screen.

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"Princess, you remained calm under pressure, acting with perfect poise."

"Such courage echoes the spirit of His Majesty at Hulao Pass."

"Truly a blessing for the Tang Dynasty!" Wei Zheng raised his voice.

Fang Xuanling and other famous ministers, seeing Xiao Sizi handle the interrogation flawlessly, knelt together and shouted that the princess was incomparably wise.

Li Shimin sat on the dragon throne, his palm resting on the armrest.

His eyes reddened, and the corners of his mouth lifted high.

His daughter, in a strange future era, used Chang'an as a chessboard and her royal upbringing as a shield to resolve the crisis.

The Ming Dynasty timeline.

Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang ignored the Tang princess on the Sky Screen.

Holding a brush, he wrote and drew on Xuan paper.

"Biao-er, do you understand?"

Crown Prince Zhu Biao bowed: "Your Imperial Father, that future detective's questioning does not follow conventional logic."

"First asking about residence, then clothing, suddenly shifting to food—it seems chaotic and disordered."

"This is called disrupting their footing! Cross-examination!"

Zhu Yuanzhang tossed aside the brush, extremely appreciative of such meticulous interrogation techniques: "When people lie, it is easy to fabricate stories in order."

Zhu Yuanzhang stood up and strode down the Danbi.

"Those fools in the Brocaded Guard only know how to use torture when investigating cases."

"The leg clamp, the water bench, skinning..."

"Beating until the end, when the prisoner can no longer endure, they confess whatever they are told."

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted in dissatisfaction: "Few true words, but a mountain of wrongful convictions!"

He turned to look outside the door: "Summon Mao Xiang!"

Mao Xiang, Commander of the Brocaded Guard, hurried into the hall and prostrated himself on the ground.

"Did you clearly see the interrogation methods of the future officials on the Sky Screen?"

Zhu Yuanzhang pointed at the Sky Screen, ordering the Brocaded Guard to imitate the modern police's cross-examination method.

Eliminate torture to extract confessions and improve the judicial interrogation efficiency of the Ming Dynasty.

"Go back and write a memorial for me; from now on, when catching people, interrogate them first with your brain, then with your mouth!"

"If anyone still only knows how to use brute force and causes wrongful or false convictions, I will chop off their hands and feet!"

"Your subject obeys the decree." Mao Xiang pressed his forehead against the golden bricks, daring not to look up.

Inside a modern hospital ward.

Officer Chen took a transparent sealed bag from his shoulder police bag.

After tearing it open, he took out a long-handled cotton swab and a plastic test tube.

Officer Chen softened his tone: "Little friend Li Mingda, uncle needs to use this cotton swab to wipe inside your mouth twice."

"It won't hurt. Open your mouth."

Xiao Sizi instinctively turned her head to look at Lin Xuan on the hospital bed.

Lin Xuan subtly nodded his chin.

Xiao Sizi turned back and opened her mouth.

The police extracted Xiao Sizi's oral mucosa for DNA database comparison.

The cotton swab entered the mouth, scraped a few times, was withdrawn, and placed into the test tube for sealing.

Officer Chen showed the test tube: "Uncle is collecting your DNA; we will send the sample for testing."

"If her biological parents have ever filed a report, the database can produce a match."

"During this time, the child may need to be temporarily placed under the care of a welfare institution."

"Officer Chen." Lin Xuan spoke up to interrupt.

He pulled out the IV needle from the back of his hand, threw off the quilt, and got out of bed.

"I understand the legal procedures."

"If your database comparison yields no results, and if it is confirmed she is an abandoned infant."

Lin Xuan took the opportunity to state that if the search for relatives failed, he was willing to follow legal procedures to adopt her.

Xiao Sizi suddenly raised her head, both hands clutching the hem of her clothes.

Officer Chen was stunned for a few seconds, looking Lin Xuan up and down.

"Alright, as long as the process is correct, this can be done."

"Mr. Lin truly has a lot of kindness."

Thinking of the rare treasures Li Shimin had sent previously, Lin Xuan felt a bit embarrassed: "Ahem... the child is both cute and pitiful, and it's just a matter of an extra mouth to feed."

"Not to hide it from you, I am also an orphan, raised by kind-hearted people."

Hearing this, Officer Chen's expression changed, with shock mixed with more admiration.

It seemed somewhat unexpected.

"Mr. Lin, let me remind you."

"The adoption procedure is very cumbersome; you must be mentally prepared and wait for our notification."

Having finished speaking, Officer Chen put the test tube back into his bag.

Two police officers turned and walked out of the ward...