Chapter 27: Deduction

The three men had been walking underground for the duration of a stick of incense, yet Su Ze had seen nothing resembling an underground black market. Aside from the profound darkness, the only things he occasionally caught sight of were refugees hiding in the depths—a far cry from the bustling marketplace Su Ze had envisioned.

The lean soldier, walking at the rear, reminded him, "Master Su, the path ahead is winding. Please keep close."

Captain Li walked ahead, holding a lamp. He navigated the labyrinthine tunnel without a moment’s hesitation, as if he were following a map. Just as Su Ze began to feel disoriented, Captain Li stopped and said, "Master Su, we have arrived."

Su Ze could not help but glance at the stout captain. To hold such a rank within the Imperial City Guard, this Captain Li clearly possessed some genuine ability.

"Captain Li has an excellent memory," Su Ze praised.

Captain Li wore a look of pride, while the lean soldier chimed in from the side, "Master Su, when it comes to scholarship, our captain cannot compare to scholars like yourself. But when it comes to knowing the way, no one in the entire city of Bianjing can best him."

"There isn't a single alley or lane in all of Bianjing that our Captain Li cannot find! Once he has been somewhere, he carves it into his heart. He never loses his way!"

Su Ze looked at the stout captain in surprise; he had not expected such a talent. Upon reflection, it made sense—to rise to the rank of captain in the Imperial City Guard, he could hardly be an ordinary man.

Captain Li felt pleased, but he did not forget the task at hand. As they rounded a corner, two warriors dressed in black emerged from the shadows and bowed to him. "Captain!"

Captain Li acknowledged them and turned to Su Ze. "Master Su, the underground printing workshop is just ahead."

"What of the others who worked here?"

"A black-market workshop cannot afford full-time staff. The woodblock carvers were artisans from the official printing house under the Court of Imperial Manufactories, while the printers and bookbinders were hired on a temporary basis. The Imperial City Guard has taken them all into custody, but we haven't been able to extract any information."

It was no surprise that the mastermind had chosen this workshop to print the seditious books; once the job was done, they only needed to silence the owner to sever the trail completely.

"Let’s go in and take a look."

Pushing aside the curtain covering the entrance, Su Ze was hit by a pungent, heavy odor of ink—the same smell he had encountered on the pirated newsletters he had purchased. This slightly foul-smelling ink was the sort used by impoverished scholars, and its low cost made it the standard material for such illicit workshops.

Captain Li clapped his hands, and several guards stepped forward to light a circular chandelier, then pulled a pulley mechanism to hoist it toward the ceiling. Su Ze noticed reflective stone shards embedded in the cavern roof, designed to bounce the candlelight down below. He couldn't help but marvel at the ingenuity of the laborers. Once lit, the entire workshop was illuminated, allowing Su Ze to see clearly.

It appeared to be a natural underground cavern that had been excavated and reinforced, covering about seventy square meters. The equipment was rudimentary. Woodblocks were piled haphazardly in a corner, alongside the tools used to carve them. On a wooden shelf lay stacks of paper. The "printing press" was nothing more than a frame to hold the woodblocks in place. Once the blocks were secured and evenly coated with ink, paper was laid on top and smoothed repeatedly with a roller to transfer the content. Afterward, the pages were trimmed with a paper cutter, manually collated in order, and bound with needle and thread.

Su Ze felt a tinge of disappointment. Shen Kuo had recorded in his *Dream Pool Essays* that Bi Sheng had invented movable type during the Qingli era, yet this workshop was still clinging to the old method of woodblock printing.

Su Ze picked up a wooden block from the corner. He could vaguely make out that it was for a popular collection of poetry and vernacular fiction. One block even featured a half-naked woman—an illustration for some erotic tale.

"The blocks for the seditious books and the unbound pages have already been taken to the Imperial City Guard," Captain Li said. "If you wish to examine them, Master Su, you may accompany me there."

Su Ze finished inspecting the blocks and moved to the storage rack, picking up several uncropped printed sheets to examine them. Time ticked by, and after Su Ze had spent half an hour scrutinizing the materials, the lean soldier began to look disappointed; apparently, scholars were not omnipotent after all.

Suddenly, Su Ze spoke. "Captain Li, please come and look at this."

The two men hurried over. Su Ze was holding a poorly printed sheet—evidently a discarded printing error.

"Captain Li, look at the content here," Su Ze said.

Captain Li took the paper and managed to make out a few characters: "Official dispatch from Governor Fan requesting merit for the northwestern troops."

"Is this... a tabloid?"

Su Ze nodded. The style and layout of this scrap were nearly identical to the tabloid he had purchased—the pirated version of the official gazette. Privately circulated newspapers were often called tabloids. These pirated gazettes were not mere copies; they were curated and edited, selecting topics of interest to the common people and occasionally adding annotations.

"When was the owner of this workshop arrested?" Su Ze asked.

"Ten days ago," Captain Li replied promptly.

"Then he was not the true owner of this operation. At the very least, there is someone behind the scenes."

"Why do you say that, Master Su?" Captain Li asked urgently.

"Because as of two days ago, I was still able to purchase the latest issue of this pirated gazette."

The lean soldier remained confused, but Captain Li had begun to grasp the implication.

Su Ze explained, "This misprinted sheet proves that this workshop was indeed printing the pirated gazettes. However, if these gazettes are still being printed after your guards raided this place and arrested the owner, what does that signify?"

Captain Li continued, "It means this workshop had a superior. This was merely one of several printing sites."

"Captain Li is quick-witted indeed!" Su Ze praised. "Given the status of this workshop's owner, could he possibly have obtained the latest layout of the gazette from the Transmission Office?"

Captain Li shook his head repeatedly. The Transmission Office was a government agency; a small-time underground printer could never have gained access to it. Thinking further, if the workshop had a superior, it was impossible for them to have printed the seditious books on their own; they would have had to report to their superiors. The excuse that the workshop owner had "found" the seditious manuscript and printed it privately was nothing more than a convenient lie from a dead man.

The picture became clearer in Su Ze’s mind: the seditious book incident was surely linked to high-level court struggles, and only a "big figure" capable of obtaining the gazette from the Transmission Office in advance could be involved in such a conflict. As agents of the Imperial City Guard, rooting out the parasites within the Transmission Office who colluded with tabloid merchants was part of their duty, and Captain Li naturally had his own methods for such investigations.

With a clear direction, Captain Li bowed sincerely to Su Ze. "Many thanks for your assistance, Master Su! If we capture the mastermind, I will certainly report your contribution to Commissioner Li!"

Su Ze pointed to the woodblocks and tools in the corner. "I merely spoke; the real investigative work falls to you both. Would you be able to have these sent to my residence? I find these things rather interesting."

"That is easily done. I will have them delivered to your mansion tomorrow morning!"