The first person to investigate was the old eunuch who had brought this matter to light.
This eunuch was surnamed Chen, given name Ying, originally from Nankang Prefecture, Qianzhou, Jiangnan West Circuit. In the thirteenth year of Wude, when local Yao people rebelled, Emperor Taizu sent troops to suppress the rebellion and captured some prisoners to serve in the palace. Chen Ying was one of them.
When Chen Ying entered the palace, he was still a half-grown boy. Initially assigned to the Inner Servants Bureau to tend horses, he was later transferred to the Yeqing Bureau to train palace maids due to his diligent work, and finally rose to the rank of Inner Attendant in the Inner Attendants Ministry. In the fifth year of Tianshou, he was dismissed from the palace due to old age and acquired property in the suburbs. After a lifetime of ups and downs in the palace, he could be considered to have had a good ending.
Who would have thought that at nearly seventy, he would cause such a commotion.
With Zheng Yang’s help, they found Chen Ying’s residence in the suburbs without much trouble. Because it involved that major case, even though the man had been dead for several days, he still hadn’t been buried and was laid out in the main hall, already giving off a faint odor of decay.
There was one other person helping at Chen Ying’s house, called Chen Aniu, an adopted son Chen Ying had taken in years ago outside the palace, prepared to handle his affairs when he grew old.
Upon seeing the corpse, Ning Santong immediately got to work without hesitation. Su Cen took the opportunity to examine the furnishings in Chen Ying’s house. Some palace eunuchs, to guard against having nowhere to go when old, would prepare property and wealth outside the palace early on. Some would even secretly smuggle things from the palace to sell for silver. They served as others’ slaves in the palace, but once outside, each became a master.
Su Cen suspected that Chen Ying had also been caught stealing and selling palace items, which forced him to come forward and make accusations. However, Chen Ying’s house appeared frugal and simple—a small courtyard with one entrance and exit, and the main hall contained nothing particularly valuable. Going into the inner room, he finally found a Guanyin statue. Su Cen weighed it in his hands, then helplessly put it down—it was inferior goods from a southern kiln, worth only a few taels of silver on the market.
Zheng Yang went to befriend Chen Aniu. This Chen Aniu appeared honest and simple, not seeming cunning, and answered all of Zheng Yang’s questions.
Zheng Yang asked: “Did Chen Ying show any unusual behavior before the incident? For instance… did anyone visit the house? Was Chen Ying restless? Didn’t he say anything to you?”
Su Cen glanced toward Zheng Yang, knowing they were thinking along the same lines.
After leaving the palace, Chen Ying had lived a stable life with someone to serve him. Though not wealthy, he was clothed and fed without worry. For him to step forward and accuse the current regent prince at this point, the methods would be nothing more than threats or bribes. But speaking out meant certain death, and no benefit was worth more than one’s life. So in Su Cen’s view, threats were more likely than bribes, though he still hadn’t figured out what leverage this old eunuch had been caught with.
Chen Aniu scratched his head: “No, my adoptive father was fine before the incident. Even on the day it happened, he tidied up as usual before going out. I didn’t notice any unusual behavior.”
Zheng Yang was puzzled: “Then why did he come forward to falsely accuse my uncle for no reason?”
“Who says it was false accusation,” Chen Aniu muttered quietly. “Maybe it was true.”
“What did you say?” Zheng Yang immediately became angry, rolling up his sleeves ready to fight. “Say that again if you dare!”
Su Cen quickly stepped forward to restrain him. Chen Aniu hugged his head and hid far away, still eyeing Zheng Yang nervously.
Hearing the commotion, Ning Santong also looked over and shook his head at Su Cen: “The man indeed committed suicide. There are no other external injuries on the body, no signs of resistance. The hyoid bone is fractured, tongue tip protruding, eyeballs bulging—all consistent with death by hanging.”
Zheng Yang gritted his teeth angrily: “He got off easy.”
“If it were me, I’d also commit suicide,” Su Cen said. “Living would be suffering; better to die quickly.”
One stone stirred up a thousand waves, and that stone was destined to sink to the bottom.
With that, he turned and continued into the inner room to look for evidence.
Zheng Yang and Ning Santong exchanged glances, knowing it was useless to say more here. They split up to work separately.
Su Cen found Chen Ying’s bedroom, which was as simple and clean as the outer rooms. A rope still hung from the beam—the very one Chen Ying had used to hang himself that day.
Su Cen carefully examined every corner but still found nothing. Just as he was about to leave, his gaze suddenly fixed on the kang where Chen Ying usually slept.
More precisely, on the fire chamber beneath the kang.
Though it was the depths of winter, no fire had been lit in the chamber. Not only that, but the chamber was clean without a trace of ash, clear to the bottom at a glance.
Chen Aniu, not daring to provoke Zheng Yang again, was now following behind Su Cen watching. When Su Cen turned to ask “Did you clean this?”, he was stunned for a moment before realizing what Su Cen was referring to, quickly replying: “No, no, adoptive father never let me into his room. He cleaned it all himself.”
Su Cen nodded, turned back to kneel at the chamber opening, and reached inside to feel around.
The chamber turned out to be quite deep. After several unsuccessful attempts, Su Cen had to call out: “Zheng Yang, come help me.”
Hearing the commotion, both Zheng Yang and Ning Santong rushed over. Seeing the scene, they quickly stepped forward: “What’s happening?”
Su Cen turned back: “Bring a candle.”
Ning Santong quickly found a candlestick and handed it over. By candlelight, Su Cen could see the general layout of the chamber, and after more feeling around, he actually pulled out a wooden box.
It was a rosewood box with two intertwined mandarin ducks intricately carved on the lid. Su Cen glanced at it and handed the box to Zheng Yang, then stood up and brushed the dust off himself.
“Finally found it. Hidden so deep, it must be something valuable,” Zheng Yang eagerly opened the box. Inside, lying on silk cloth, was a dark green jade object—two fingers thick, several inches long, thick at one end and thin at the other, with raised fine patterns carved on its surface.
Su Cen and Ning Santong exchanged glances, both finding the answer in each other’s eyes. Before they could stop him, Zheng Yang had already taken the object out, examining it care fully in his hands. Unable to figure out what it was for a moment, though it looked like a valuable item, he looked up and asked: “What is this?”
Su Cen was embarrassed to speak, and Ning Santong hesitated for a long while before saying: “Jade… phallus.”
Zheng Yang, who was about to bring the object to his nose to smell it: “…”
What had just been carefully examined suddenly became a hot potato—he couldn’t throw it away, but couldn’t keep holding it either. Zheng Yang tossed it in his hands a few times, when Chen Aniu, who had been guarding the door, suddenly rushed in and snatched the object from Zheng Yang’s hands, clutching it to his chest and refusing to let go.
Zheng Yang was actually relieved, carefully lifting his robe to wipe his hands thoroughly, saying angrily: “Indeed a filthy eunuch. Who would have thought he had such tastes? Uncle must have been framed by him!”
“My adoptive father wasn’t a filthy person!” Chen Aniu suddenly spoke up. “He neither kept male prostitutes nor harmed innocent young ladies. He couldn’t perform as a man his whole life. When lonely, he just closed the door for self-comfort. What right do you have to call him filthy?!”
Su Cen frowned: “You’ve seen this?”
“I… I accidentally saw it once when getting up at night.”
This Chen Aniu knew about Chen Ying’s special preferences but still stayed by his side devotedly—he could be considered a loyal and filial person.
“My adoptive father was a good man,” Chen Aniu wiped his tears with the back of his hand and continued. “When I was small and wandering the streets, everyone bullied me. Only adoptive father saved me, gave me good food and drink, and taught me to read and be a good person. He’s not a bad person. If he said that prince did it, then he definitely did it!”
Zheng Yang stepped forward: “Come here!”
Su Cen blocked Zheng Yang and looked at Chen Aniu: “You say your adoptive father was a good man because he saved you. The Prince fought through thorns and brambles on battlefields in his early years, resisting foreign enemies. Later he served as regent, saving countless common people. Do you say he’s a bad person?”
Chen Aniu pressed his lips together and fell silent.
“Just as you trust your adoptive father, we firmly believe the Prince would never kill the former emperor. So someone must have manipulated this matter. Your adoptive father died under unclear circumstances, his body displayed for so long without burial. Don’t you want to catch the real culprit and give your adoptive father justice?”
Chen Aniu pressed his lips and remained silent for a long while before finally saying: “Before the incident, someone did come to see adoptive father.”
Everyone’s eyes lit up as they all looked over.
“Who was it?” Su Cen asked.
“I don’t know who it was,” Chen Aniu shook his head. “I only know he talked with adoptive father for a long time. As soon as he arrived, adoptive father sent me out to buy vegetables. When I returned, he still hadn’t left. But he didn’t stay for dinner—adoptive father invited him but he refused. When he finally left, adoptive father saw him to the door and stood there for quite a while before coming back.”
“What did that person look like?” Zheng Yang pressed.
“I didn’t see his appearance clearly,” Chen Aniu pressed his lips. “But I remember he wore a pure black thumb ring on his hand.”
##
