Chapter 20 The Poisoner
Lu Jinping is not in a hurry now and said, "No problem, I can help you find out the real murderer, and it will definitely not exceed an hour. - But, you also know that I am poor now and owe a lot of debts and need money urgently. So I can help you solve this case, but I have to charge some fees. Of course, the fees I charge will not be very high, you should be able to accept it."
Old Master Gao frowned and said, "What? Do you have to collect money when solving the case?"
"Of course I have to pay for my labor. If I am a constable in the yamen or a criminal officer responsible for the case investigation, then I dare not ask for money, because that is my duty, but now I am just a doctorate, and I am not responsible for solving the case. Solving the case is my extra labor. Since labor should be paid, what's wrong? If you are reluctant to leave money, you should ask for another person. I don't want to worry about it."
Old Master Gao was amused and crying, but he couldn't refute his theory. He thought for a while and said, "Then how much do you want?"
"Not much, five hundred mins. The problem of collecting money for a case depends on the difficulty of the case. The higher the difficulty, the more money you charge. This case is easy to solve, so it only costs five hundred mins. If you receive five hundred mins, I promise to help you catch the murderer, and it is definitely the real murderer. Your daughter will be safe in the future, and you don't have to worry about the murderer being poisoned."
These words made Old Master Gao’s heart move. Indeed, if you can buy your daughter’s peace for five hundred people, it would be worth a thousand. Besides, there is not much five hundred people. Then he nodded and said, “Okay, if you have solved this case, I am convinced. I will repay you five hundred people.”
Lu Jinping smiled. If the idea of solving cases and making money can be made, then he will see hope of becoming rich in the future.
Lu Jinping said to Mr. Gao: "Actually, I have already locked in the suspect, but now I need to find evidence." He glanced at the maid and servant kneeling on the ground, as well as the three wives and concubines of Mr. Gao. "The chef and the chef stayed, and the rest went to the yard and separated from each other. No one was allowed to speak. If anyone spoke, he would inform him, and he would undoubtedly be the murderer! Qingqing, you are responsible for supervising. Whoever speaks, arrest him immediately and send him to the yamen as a murderer!"
Ye Qingqing nodded quickly and agreed.
These people saw that Old Master Gao had authorized the doctor to solve the case, of course no one dared to disobey his orders. They hurriedly got up and came out one by one to the yard. When they saw Ye Qingqing standing in the corridor, staring at them, they all separated from each other, fearing that they would be suspected of whispering and arrested them in the yamen as suspects.
There were three chefs in the kitchen and several chefs who helped the kitchen on the floor.
Lu Jinping did not ask questions immediately and said to the stout mothers: "You should stare at them and don't let them talk."
Lu Jinping said to Mr. Gao, "Old Master, please go to the kitchen with me." He then said to the third aunt who was kneeling on the ground, "You go to the kitchen with us, I have something to ask you."
The third aunt was very grateful to Lu Jinping now, so she hurriedly agreed and stood up and followed Lu Jinping and Old Master Gao to the kitchen.
Lu Jinping entered the kitchen, first glanced at the kitchen, and asked the third aunt, "Where did you cook just now?"
The third aunt pointed to a separate small stove located in a corner of the kitchen and said, "Where is it? It is a small stove that specializes in making food in the inner house. I was also making it here just now."
“Do you often cook food in the kitchen?”
The third aunt nodded and said, "My daughter has a good taste. She likes to eat what I cook. Sometimes she is not satisfied with the food made by the chef, so I come to cook in the kitchen, so I often cook."
Lu Jinping walked to the kitchen, looked up and down, left and right, and then asked: "Was anyone ever been to you when you were cooking just now? Or did you cook for you? Get something to deliver something or something?"
The third aunt thought for a while and said, "No! When I was cooking, the big stove hadn't started cooking yet. The cooks who helped the kitchen were washing vegetables in the corner and didn't come."
"Where are those three chefs?"
"I don't know where they are, I'm not in the kitchen anyway."
"Have you ever left midway through cooking?"
The third aunt shook her head again and said, "No, I cooked a few dishes in one breath and took them away, and I never left in the middle."
“Did you wash the meat and vegetables for stir-frying?”
"No, the vegetables and meat you need to use on the small stove are usually prepared by the chef who is responsible for the small stove. I rarely go to the kitchen, but I only go to the kitchen to cook when my daughter wants to eat the food I cook. Usually, the chef is responsible for the food in the inner house. The other two chefs help wash vegetables, and the three of them are responsible for the three of them."
"So, when you come to cook, the cook has washed and prepared the dishes you want to cook, right?"
“That’s how it is.”
“Has anyone else been to the kitchen?”
"I don't know very well who has been there."
“Is there anyone in the kitchen?”
"Other than cooking for three meals a day, there are usually no one."
Lu Jinping looked at the several pots of ingredients on the stove. He put them on and observed carefully, especially the salt pot, and nodded slowly.
Seeing that there was no small spoon in the jar, he asked the third aunt: "Don't these salt jars use spoons? How do you add salt and seasoning to dishes?"
"It's all about using your fingers to grab three points, and only three fingers can be grabbed by five points."
This is a method of traditional Chinese cooking in ancient China, and it is often expressed in recipes. Lu Jinping has relatively good research on cooking, so he also knows it.
Then, he turned around the stove and looked down. Suddenly, he saw a small ball of paper near a small pile of garbage in the corner of the room.
This pile of garbage is all kitchen garbage such as vegetable leaves. Apart from this piece of paper, there is no other waste paper.
Lu Jinping squatted down and looked at it, picked up the piece of paper with his two fingers, turned his head to Old Master Gao and said, "Old Master, please hold this salt jar in both hands. Let's go to the main hall to talk - be careful, if the salt jar is held firmly, don't move around or shake."
Old Master Gao hurriedly held the salt jar, and the third aunt asked for help, but he glared at him and quickly shook his hand back.
They came out of the kitchen and came to the yard. Lu Jinping asked the third aunt to wait in the yard, and then went into the main hall with Mr. Gao.
Lu Jinping placed the paper ball on the coffee table and asked Mr. Gao to put the salt jar on it as well.
Lu Jinping ordered the senior manager who was serving at the door to call in the maids and mothers around Mrs. Gao.
After these people came in, Lu Jinping said, "Rise your hands up!"
Several people looked at each other, not sure why. They all slowly raised their hands.
Lu Jinping walked past them and carefully looked at their long nails, especially the cracks.
In ancient times, women had long nails, especially in wealthy families. For farmers who needed to keep short nails for living, there were no special nail clippers in ancient times, so they were trimmed with scissors, so it was impossible to cut very iron meat, leaving a small piece of nail.
He stopped when he walked to Mrs. Gao's close maid Hanyu, and picked up her palm, carefully observed the cracks of his nails. He couldn't help but sneer, stared at the maid Hanyu and said, "The person who poisoned him is you!"
"I'm wronged!" Hanyu's face was pale and she knelt on the ground with a gurgle. "I've been with the old lady all day long. The old lady can testify about this. I haven't been to the kitchen, how can I poison it?"
Lu Jinping sneered: "How do you know that the murderer poisoned the kitchen?"
Hanyu shivered and said hurriedly: "I am a guess. I have never been to the kitchen and I have really not poisoned it. I am wronged!"
"Unfortunately? You poured the arsenic into the salt jar and stirred it with your fingers. Because the color of the arsenic is different from the particles and salt. You are afraid that someone will see through it, so you stir it with your fingers. Right?" Lu Jinping turned around and said to Old Master Gao, "Old Master, look at the salt jar, are there any signs of stirring in the salt jar?"
Old Master Gao quickly walked up and looked carefully in the salt jar. The salt jar was relatively large and wide-mouthed, so it was clearly visible. There were indeed scratches around the white salt inside the jar, which proved that someone had stirred it, and he said, "Someone had stirred it!"
"Very good. Please find another dog and a piece of meat to try if the salt in the salt jar is poisonous!"
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Chapter completed!