Bone Painting Coroner

The third absurdity? 

The audience was staring in anticipation, waiting for her to prove Old Chu wrong. On the other hand, the fear in Old Chu built up as he listened to Ji Yunshu.

They witnessed Ji Yunshu folding the sleeves of the shirt the body was wearing before she lifted one of the hands. On the wrist, there was actually a mark with different shades of bruising. It was apparent that the wrist was gripped with great strength. If the deceased was raped before she was killed, this mark meant nothing unusual!

However… she did not stop there. She then unbuttoned the deceased’s top there and then, gently pulling it down to unveil the thin shoulders. The audience was aghast. It was already odd enough for one to have the courage to touch a dead body; now, she was even unclothing the corpse! Such a weirdo.

Back in ancient times, innocence and purity were the most important things for a lady. However, Ji Yunshu’s actions were no surprise to the people who knew how she worked. They had grown used to seeing Teacher Ji do such ‘dirty’ things during the process of case investigations!

There were bruises all around the two sides of her shoulders and around her neck. Looking from afar, one would think that the deceased had been assaulted with a heavy object. However, if one took a closer look, one would be able to tell that the bruises were caused by strangulation.

Ji Yunshu concluded, “These two bruises and the scratches on the deceased’s wrists were caused by the same person.”

Liu Qian spoke, “Then, isn’t it the same as Old Chu’s statement?”

“Same? It’s totally different!” She stared at Old Chu as she spoke, “You checked the bruises on the deceased’s wrists. You can prove that she was pressed down before she died but you cannot prove that Fu Bo is the murderer. However, Fu Bo is now cleared of that suspicion because of the bruises on the wrists and shoulders of the deceased.”

“What do you mean?” Liu Qian asked.

She first pointed to the deceased’s wrists. “Although there seem to be nothing unusual about these bruises, but…” She followed by pointing at the shoulders, “But the bruises on the shoulders tell a different story. The marks from being pressed down don’t seem to be as evident as the ones on the wrists. However, this can clearly prove that the rapist is someone else!”

The crowd’s curiosity accumulated as all of them tried to take a look at what’s happening in the middle of the hall. Ji Yunshu lifted the left shoulder of the body and gently angled it to forty-five degrees. The bruises at the back of the shoulders were unveiled.

The body’s shoulder was grabbed by one hand. Why did the mark have only four fingers? That was so unusual. Should a normal person not have five fingers?

“Everyone can see it. The mark on the deceased’s shoulder has only four fingers. According to the location of the mark, the missing finger is the index finger. However, the mark on the right shoulder of the body has all five fingers. It proves that the rapist is a person who lost his index finger on his right hand. Both of Fu Bo’s hands are complete, so, how can he be the murderer? Master Chu, being a coroner, you only looked at the bruises but did not study them. This is your third absurdity!”

All three points were more than sufficient to prove that Fu Bo was not the murderer. Old Chu was flustered and had no more strength to defend himself. He lowered his head, feeling extremely ashamed.

Ji Yunshu looked at Liu Qian. “This one has already explained the whole thing. According to the three points, Fu Bo’s innocence is proven. It is evident that Fu Bo did not rape the deceased, not to mention, kill her. The deceased decided to end her own life after losing her virginity.”

A commotion arose among the audience. They were all impressed at Ji Yunshu’s ability at solving the case and their eyes were filled with admiration and surprise.

Indeed, Teacher Ji, famed across Jinjiang and Capital, has delivered! 

After Liu Qian heard her explanation, he pondered upon it briefly. He shifted his gaze to the dead body, then again to Fu Bo, who was still kneeling on the ground. Lastly, he looked at Old Chu, who had remained silent with his head lowered.

Embarrassed, he hunched his back with both his hands hidden in his sleeves. His eyes darted around, up and down, for a good while before he finally declared, “Teacher Ji’s analysis is right!”

“After listening to Teacher Ji’s statement, this official thinks that he is right. All the evidence show that Fu Bo is wrongly accused. In that case, Fu Bo is innocent and may leave now.”

Fu Bo presented a kowtow with teary eyes, “Thank you, Milord.” He turned around to present a kowtow to Ji Yunshu, “Thank you, Teacher Ji.”

“Please get up. I’ll have my life reduced by receiving your kowtow.” She quickly went up to help up Fu Bo, who was badly injured. She then ordered two of the yamen runners, “Please help to send Fu Bo back to the Wei Residence. There will be someone there to treat him.” And so, the task fell to the absent Mo Ruo.

“Yes!” The yamen runners escorted Fu Bo out of the place.

After that blow to his pride, Old Chu had nothing else to defend himself with and could only attempt to shrink away from the public eye. Don’t look at me! Just ignore my presence! 

Liu Qian was still confused, “If Fu Bo did not kill the deceased and she died of suicide… then who raped her?”

Ji Yunshu answered, “The deceased has already told us.”

“Told us? She is dead. How could she tell us?” He was puzzled.

“Of course, we’ll have to examine the bruise on the body again.” She again tilted the body to one side and pointed at one part of the bruise. She explained patiently, “This small bruise appears to be a regular shape, but it isn’t exactly regular. It is obvious that the colour of the outer part is darker than the inner part of the bruise. If the murderer pressed against the shoulders of the deceased, the darkest part should be the part underneath the palms, followed by the tips of the fingers. But now, the darkest part appears to be this irregular site. Moreover, it is only found on the left shoulder but not on the right shoulder.”

“What does this mean?”

“That means the murderer was wearing a ring on his right finger,” she revealed the picture of the ring that she drew yesterday as she spoke. “This is the pattern of the ring.” On the paper, there was a vividly-drawn Buddha sitting within an oval. Yes, that’s a Buddha! 

However, Liu Qian questioned, “When did you draw this picture? How did you know about the pattern of the bruise? Does Teacher Ji have the ability to foresee the future? Is that how you can finish this drawing beforehand? Besides, you said that the back of the body did not show the mark of the deceased being pressed against a knee or an item. However, you had not seen the back of the body. How could you tell?”

“I will not lie, Lord. This one visited the yamen last night and examined the body.”

“What? You were here? How can this official not know?” He was shocked.

“Lord Liu, isn’t it more important to find out the true murderer behind the case now? After the criminal is arrested, this one will provide Lord Liu with an explanation.” Liu Qian stared at her before he nodded hesitantly.

Ji Yunshu lifted the picture in her hand. “It sounds easy to find a person with a broken index finger. In actual fact, it’s as difficult as finding a needle in the deep sea. However, this picture in my hand can help with the search. I think most of the religious people here know that there’s a temple in Jinjiang, namely the Qing An Temple. Many devotees visit the temple to pray for wealth or offspring. The abbot will distribute a ring with this pattern every year to one lucky person, and there’s a list of those people who have received it. We only have to visit Qing An Temple to acquire the name list, then find the person with a broken index finger from the list, and we will be able to find the rapist.”