Related Cases (1)
Related Novels (1)
Related Chapters (5)
The Turfan Verdict
Words: 3230 · Source Novel:: The Forger's Silence
Modern archaeologists unearth the original Wang Wenhuan v. Zhang Weiren case file alongside Simo's pigment analysis in a Turfan tomb. A forensic conclusion is finally written: the painter murdered himself to testify, making his death the most eloquent silence in legal history.
Reopening the Case
Words: 3509 · Source Novel:: The Forger's Silence
The loan case Wang Wenhuan v. Zhang Weiren is retried. Zhang Weiren, now a broken man, testifies fully. The magistrate and his nephew are executed, and Simo's silent protest is entered as evidence in the Tang courts.
The Ledger of Bodies
Words: 3058 · Source Novel:: The Forger's Silence
He finds that his father's loan case was a sham to launder gold from forgery sales. The county files Wang Wenhuan v. Zhang Weiren are themselves forged—real debt papers written over a hidden roster of murdered painters.
Zhang Confesses
Words: 3042 · Source Novel:: The Forger's Silence
Under torture of conscience, Zhang Weiren admits he obtained the scroll from a murdered Sogdian merchant. Before dying, the merchant bit his own finger and drew a hidden accusation on the canvas, which Zhang papered over to hide the crime.
Debt of Shame
Words: 3124 · Source Novel:: The Forger's Silence
665 AD, Gaochang. Creditor Wang Wenhuan drags debtor Zhang Weiren before the county office. Zhang cannot pay in cash and forcibly offers a scroll attributed to Gu Kaizhi as collateral. Wang takes the painting home, unaware it is about to infect his household with quiet horror.