Rise From the Humble

Zhao Qiu, Zhao Daying and all the military attachés were very happy to see Zhu Ping'an stand up and return in disgrace. Seeing Zhu Ping'an deflated, they felt as if they had eaten dragon liver and phoenix marrow, feeling extremely comfortable.

"Master Zhao, uncle and nephew, did a good job of siphoning off the salary and stealing the money to make a living." Officials from the strict party who knew the inside story looked at Zhu Ping'an with gloating, and praised with a low smile. His uncle and Zhao Qiu were close friends, and he was very close to Zhao Daying. During lunch, he had already gotten hints from Zhao Daying and knew the inside story.

"Hush, Brother Wang, be careful what you say. Mr. Zhao acted in accordance with the regulations of preserving the head, and he was upright. How could he cheat and change the situation?" Another official hissed, reminding the official surnamed Wang to be careful what he said, but his face He also had the same gloating expression on his face.

"Oh, it's the best, it's the best. Hahaha"

The official surnamed Wang suppressed a smile and nodded. He couldn't hold back his laughter until he was halfway through speaking. It felt good to have his head tampered with in front of Zhu Pingan and see him deflated.

"He, Zhu Pingan, still wants to use his heads to overturn the situation. Hahaha, what a fool's dream. Comeback? Overturn him! If he, Zhu Pingan, can still use these heads to overturn the situation, my name is written backwards. But it seems that he doesn't have it. This ability, haha.”

"Hurry up and open the coffin. Finish the inspection and go back early to give Mr. Zhao a celebration banquet."

Zhao Daying and others were already sure of victory at this time, and they were already thinking about where to prepare a table of food and drinks, and invite some top brothels to celebrate.

Wang Xueyi, the Minister of Justice at the presiding table, glanced at Zhu Ping'an and others with squinted eyes, nodded and said, "Okay, since you have confirmed that everything is correct, let's open the coffin."

"Open the coffin."

Zhang Captou answered the call and led people to open the coffin.

After driving out the stone nails and scraping off the glutinous rice glue, the officer forcefully lifted up the black board cover and placed it under his feet. The black panel cover has undergone anti-corrosion treatment, and a layer of black paint on it can isolate the air.

After the cover was lifted, a smell of staleness mixed with lime hit my face.

Although Zhu Pingan could conclude that the head in the coffin had been replaced, Zhu Pingan still took care of Liu Dadao and Liu Dachui's emotions. After the coffin was opened, Zhu Pingan bowed his hands to the coffin and saluted to show respect. After all, Liu Dadao They thought the heads in the box were their relatives.

The dead are the greatest.

If the heads inside are innocent people of the Ming Dynasty who were harmed, please rest in peace. I, Zhu Pingan, will do my best to seek justice for you and pay homage to your souls in heaven.

If the head inside is a Tatar or someone who deserves the crime, I advise you to change your mind, be reincarnated as a good person, do more good deeds, and atone for your sins in this life...

Zhu Pingan bowed his hands and came to the coffin box. He saw that the box was filled with stone powder, and the heads were buried in the stone powder.

Stone powder is quicklime.

This was a common method of preserving heads in ancient times.

In ancient times, since the Iron-blooded Qin Dynasty, the method of testing the merits of the head has been used, and there is also considerable experience in the preservation of the head. The most commonly used methods are lime preservation and plant ash preservation. Of course, there are also methods such as salting, frying, and lacquer sealing.

Zhu Ping'an has seen relevant records in modern times. He also carefully checked the relevant information in the Hanlin Academy library a few days ago and did his homework.

Preserving heads with quicklime is a relatively mature antiseptic method in ancient times. The method is relatively simple, but the preservation effect is very good. The first step is to wipe the blood off the head, then take out the brains from the head and dry it in the hot sun for one to two hours. After the blood dries, the head is completely submerged in quicklime and sealed for storage.

In fact, it uses the principle of quicklime to absorb water to keep the coffin dry and alkaline, avoid bacterial growth, and resist decay. At the same time, the coffin is sealed with glutinous rice glue and the head is completely submerged in stone powder, which can isolate the air to a certain extent. , to avoid rot and deterioration.

Fortunately, this is the way.

Zhu Pingan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the way the head was preserved. This method is the least destructive to the head and is less difficult to verify and identify.

"My lords, please take a look."

Two coroners transferred from the punishment department's squad room took out the heads one by one from the coffins, brushed the stone powder off the heads with brushes, and placed them on the wooden board. Fifty-nine heads were arranged in three rows. Wu Zuo has been dealing with these things all year round and serving these heads without blinking an eyelid.

However, other officials did not have such determination.

Faced with so many heads at once, many officials did not dare to look this way.

"Master Zhu, if you're scared, don't hold on. It won't be good if you pee your pants." Zhao Daying felt confident at this time, walked up to Zhu Pingan with his arms folded, and teased with a sneer.

Fear?

Zhu Ping'an glanced at Zhao Daying as an idiot. He looked down upon him. Even if Zhao Daying pissed his pants, I wouldn't know it. Have you seen "The Grudge"? Have you seen "The Ring"? You see. Have you watched "Hanako the Haunted Doll"? Have you seen "Silent Hill"? Have you seen "Saw"? After experiencing the baptism of these modern horror classics, Zhu Pingan's heartbeat would not fluctuate much when he looked at these heads again.

"You seem to talk a lot. Are you feeling guilty?" Zhu Pingan replied lightly.

"You must have a guilty conscience." Zhao Daying shook his shoulders disdainfully and sneered.

When Zhu Pingan and Zhao Daying were fighting, Wu Zuo had already divided the heads on three wooden boards for everyone to see.

"Guilan, little dog." Liu Dadao burst into tears. The 18-meter-old man cried like a child, staggering around looking for his wife and children among the heads.

However

Let him down.

I searched through the twenty heads on one wooden board and found none, and then carefully looked at the thirty-nine heads on the other two wooden boards one by one, but found none.

Then Liu Dadao stood there with a blank look on his face, muttering: No, it's not the case at all, Guilan, Xiaozizi, where are you.

Liu Dachui and the others also looked at the fifty-nine heads displayed on the wooden board with blank expressions.

These heads were completely different from what they imagined. None of them were their relatives.

on the contrary

The heads all seemed to be of Tatar appearance. It is easy to identify. These heads all have Tatar hairstyles. The most prominent feature is the crotch. The hairstyles of foreigners are completely different from those of Ming people, which can be seen at a glance.

Some heads have the Tatar "Khor" hairstyle. The hair around the top of the head is shaved off, and a row of short hair is left in front of the forehead. The hair on the back of the head and on both sides of the hair is braided into a whip; some have their hair loose and braided. There are little braids; some have their hair hanging down on the left and right shoulders.

At first glance, they are not from my race.

"These are Tartars."

"The heads presented by Mr. Zhao are all Tatars."

There were many officials who were familiar with Tatars at the scene, and many officials had seen Tatars on the city wall from a distance last year when Tatar soldiers were trapped in the capital, and they could recognize this Tatar hairstyle. So when they saw these heads, they all nodded.