diskusbooks Chapter 111 System Authentication: Ironclad Evidence
Chapter 111 System Authentication: Ironclad Evidence
As dawn broke, the old locust tree in the courtyard was already buzzing with the chirping of early-rising sparrows. Lin Chen, clutching the silk shop's business license from 1936, squatted by the small window of the storage room, pretending to tidy up firewood, his eyes fixed on the deaf old woman's door. The morning light filtering through the window fell on the gilded border of the license, its cold gleam reminding him of the feel of the hardcover book he'd touched at the scrap yard the night before—the edges worn smooth by time, yet still exuding the dignity of the former shopkeeper.
"Master Lin, up so early?" Yan Bugui came in from outside the courtyard gate carrying a cloth bag on his back. The words "Serve the People" embroidered on the bag were faded from washing. He glanced at the firewood in Lin Chen's hand, his eyes darting around like abacus beads. "This firewood is too damp, it'll produce a lot of smoke when it burns. Want to trade it for some dry wood? I have some jujube wood I collected last winter, it burns very well. How about I trade you half a jin of grain coupons?"
Lin Chen straightened up, dusted off his hands, and deliberately stuffed the business license into the pile of firewood: "Teacher Yan, you're too kind. This firewood will do. By the way, are you going to school this morning?" He knew that Yan Bugui went to Hongxing Elementary School to prepare lessons at this time every day and would pass by the street office on the way. This was a deliberate attempt to provoke him.
Sure enough, Yan Bugui straightened his back, revealing a teacher's composure: "That's right, I have to prepare lessons in advance to teach the children arithmetic. I heard the neighborhood committee is coming down today to inspect the implementation of benefits for families of martyrs, and I might need to help with the bookkeeping." Lin Chen's heart skipped a beat, and he was about to ask further when he heard a "clang" from the deaf old lady's house, like a ceramic pot breaking on the ground, followed by Yi Zhonghai's reassuring voice: "Don't worry, old lady, that thing is well hidden, no one can find it."
The two exchanged a glance. Yan Bugui curled his lip and lowered his voice, saying, "That old lady, she's always causing trouble, all because Master Yi is protecting her." With that, he slung his cloth bag over his shoulder and hurried away. As he passed the old lady's door, he deliberately slowed his pace and glanced inside. Lin Chen watched his retreating figure, a cold smile playing on his lips—that old bastard Yan Bugui loved to pry. Once the news of the street inspection spread, he'd definitely stir things up in the courtyard, saving Lin Chen a lot of trouble.
Back in the side room, Lin Chen locked the door, took the business license and the piece of Hangzhou silk from the firewood pile, and placed them together on the kang table. He took a deep breath and activated the "All Things Fusion System." The pale blue panel slowly unfolded in the morning light, and the icon for the "Item Appraisal" function shimmered with a soft glow. This was the first time he had officially used this function since reaching level 5. He had only tried it on small items before and didn't know how effective it would be on such an old document.
He first tapped the business license with his finger, and the system panel immediately displayed lines of text: [Item Name: Business License of Zhang Ji Silk Shop in Beiping; Printing Year: 1936 (Republic of China Year 25); Material: Mulberry bark paper coated with tung oil, gilded border; Key Information: 1. License number Beiping Shang Zi No. 0379, verified as genuine registration by the Beiping Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce during the Republic of China; 2. The shopkeeper's photo is an original print, with no signs of later modification; 3. The back of the license has a hidden mark "Zhang Ji Secret Seal," consistent with the stamp on the corner of the attached Hangzhou silk fabric; 4. The paper's aging degree conforms to natural preservation patterns, ruling out any possibility of artificial aging.]
Lin Chen's heart sank. He then pointed to the Hangzhou silk fabric beside him: [Item Name: Hangzhou Peony Pattern Silk; Weaving Year: 1935; Material: High-quality mulberry silk, gold thread embroidery; Key Information: 1. The "Zhang Ji" stamp on the corner is from the same source as the hidden mark on the business license; 2. The weaving technique is unique to Hangzhou Shen Ji Silk Shop, lost due to war after 1940; 3. The fabric retains a trace of rouge fragrance, consistent with the composition of "Shuang Mei" brand rouge from the Republic of China era.]
Now the evidence was even more conclusive. He retrieved the photos of the martyrs' family certificates he had taken earlier and examined them again: [Item Name: Martyrs' Family Certificate; Printing Year: March 1950; Material: Ordinary Xuan paper, red lacquer printing; Key Information: 1. The seal reads "Beiping Municipal Martyrs' Family Preferential Treatment Committee," which, upon comparison, is a 1950 imitation seal. The original seal was discontinued in 1949 due to the reorganization of the organization; 2. The handwriting in the martyr information registration section is highly similar to that of Zhang, a street clerk, in 1950, suggesting it was handwritten by someone else; 3. The photo is a copy of a business license photo, with obvious cropping marks at the edges; 4. The paper shows obvious signs of aging, and the degree of wear does not match the "used for twenty years" claim.]
The system thoughtfully displayed comparison images: Zhang Cuihua's photo on the business license on the left, and the "Martyr's Widow" photo on the martyr's family certificate on the right. Through the system's image overlay technology, it was clear that the facial contours of the two photos were completely identical; however, the photo on the martyr's family certificate had been deliberately blurred and had a few fake white hairs added. Lin Chen saved screenshots of these identification results one by one. The system automatically generated an identification report with a watermark, and the words "Authoritative Certification of the All Things Fusion System" were displayed at the bottom. Although this couldn't be used directly as evidence, it gave him a clearer understanding of the entire incident.
"Knock knock knock," a knocking sound suddenly rang out, accompanied by He Yushui's urgent voice: "Brother Lin Chen, something bad has happened! Grandpa Yi took the old lady to the street office and said he's going to sue you for occupying the martyrs' family's vegetable garden!" Lin Chen quickly put away the system panel, locked the business license and silk into the wooden box, and opened the door to see He Yushui running with her face flushed and her forehead hair soaked with sweat.
"Don't rush, tell me slowly." Lin Chen pulled her into the house, poured her a glass of cold water, and handed it to her. "When did they leave? What did they say to the neighborhood committee?" He Yushui took a sip of water, panting, and said, "Just now, I came back from the police station and saw Grandpa Yi helping the old lady walk towards the street corner. The old lady was crying and shouting 'You're bullying this old woman!' A lot of neighbors went to see what was going on. I heard from Teacher Yan that the old lady told the neighborhood committee director that you took over her vegetable garden last autumn to plant sweet potatoes and even pulled up her seedlings. Grandpa Yi and Jia Zhangshi are both willing to testify!"
"Jia Zhangshi?" Lin Chen frowned. He had forgotten about this troublemaker. Jia Zhangshi had only been back from the labor camp a few days ago and was definitely trying to curry favor with Yi Zhonghai so that he would take better care of Qin Huairu in the workshop. But it was fine this way; the more witnesses there were, the more flaws there were. He remembered the "ghostwriter Zhang" mentioned in the system's assessment and asked, "Yushui, do you know who the street office clerk was in charge of processing martyrs' family certificates in 1950? The system assessment said that it was a clerk surnamed Zhang who ghostwrote them back then."
He Yushui thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up: "The clerk surnamed Zhang? Is it Grandpa Zhang? He's retired now and lives in the next alley. I used to hear him talk about his past when I was a kid. I heard he was punished for making fake certificates for people back then, and he's been very careful ever since." Lin Chen was overjoyed; this was truly a case of finding something without even trying. He quickly picked up the wooden box key and said to He Yushui, "Let's go find Grandpa Zhang, or we'll be too late."
As soon as the two stepped out of the room, they saw Qin Huairu standing by the pond in the central courtyard, clutching a washboard and looking at them with a complicated expression. Lin Chen knew she had been forced by Jia Zhangshi to come and gather information, so he stopped and said to her, "Sister-in-law Jia, I know you've had a hard time, but some things can't be fooled by playing the victim. The old lady's status as a martyr's family member is fake; Uncle Yi helped her fabricate it. If you get involved, you'll only bring trouble upon yourself in the end."
Qin Huairu swayed, the washboard in her hand falling to the ground with a thud. She looked up, her eyes red-rimmed: "Master Lin, I... I didn't want to either. Jia Zhangshi forced me. She said if I didn't testify, she would pin the Dongxu work injury on me." Lin Chen sighed, took two grain coupons from his pocket and handed them to her: "These are two jin of coarse grain coupons. Take them and buy some food for the children. When you go to the market later, just say you don't know anything, don't get involved. Just rely on your sewing skills to make a living; that's better than anything else."
Qin Huairu took the grain coupons, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something but then she swallowed it back. In the end, she just bowed deeply, picked up the washboard, and hurried back into the house. He Yushui watched her retreating figure and sighed, "Actually, she's quite pitiful, being used as a pawn by Jia Zhangshi and Master Yi." Lin Chen shook his head, "There's always a reason why someone is pitiful. When she was scheming against Sha Zhu, she didn't think of herself as pitiful. But if this time she can wake up to the truth, it'll be a good thing."
The alley next door wasn't far from the Hongxing Courtyard, and the two arrived in just a few minutes. Grandpa Zhang lived in a small, crowded courtyard with a pomegranate tree in the yard, still bearing dried pomegranates from last year. Lin Chen knocked on the door, and an aged voice came from inside: "Who is it?" He Yushui quickly replied, "Grandpa Zhang, it's me, He Yushui. My father is He Daqing; we used to work together at the neighborhood committee."
The door creaked open, and an elderly man with gray hair peeked out. Seeing He Yushui, he smiled and said, "It's Yushui! Come in, come in. How's your father doing lately? I haven't seen him in ages." He Yushui helped him into the house, and Lin Chen followed behind, looking around at the furnishings—a yellowed group photo hung on the wall, a picture of the staff from the street office from back then, with Grandpa Zhang standing on the far side, holding an abacus in his hand.
After they were seated, He Yushui explained her purpose. Grandpa Zhang's face immediately darkened, and he slammed his teacup on the table with a loud thud. "You mean, Zhang Cuihua's fake martyr's family certificate is still being used to bully people?" Lin Chen nodded, took out a photo of the martyr's family certificate from his pocket, and handed it to her. "Grandpa Zhang, do you think this is the one you had it made on your behalf back then? The system analysis says the handwriting on it looks very similar to yours."
Grandpa Zhang put on his reading glasses, examined the photo carefully for a long time, and suddenly slapped his thigh: "That's it! I had only been working at the subdistrict office for a few days when Yi Zhonghai brought this Zhang Cuihua to me, saying she wanted to apply for a martyr's family certificate. I immediately felt something was wrong. I asked her the martyr's name, the time and place of his sacrifice, but she couldn't say anything clearly. It was Yi Zhonghai who smoothed things over for her. Later, Yi Zhonghai gave me two jin of flour, and in a moment of confusion, I helped her get it done and even signed the papers for her."
He sighed, dragged a wooden box from under the bed, and rummaged through it for a while before pulling out an old ledger: "Look, this is the register from back then. I secretly wrote 'ghostwriting, suspicious' in the back, just in case something happened later. Sure enough, someone reported me, and I was punished and almost lost my job. Since then, I've never dared to do such a thing again. Over the years, I've always felt uneasy, always thinking about when I could clear things up, but I'm also afraid of being retaliated against by Yi Zhonghai. He's an eighth-grade fitter at the steel rolling mill, with a wide network of connections."
Lin Chen took the ledger, flipped through it, and sure enough, on the registration page from March 1950, it read, "Zhang Cuihua, martyr's family member, written by proxy, suspicious." The handwriting was exactly the same as the registration handwriting on the martyr's family member certificate. A weight was finally lifted from his heart. He said to Grandpa Zhang, "Grandpa Zhang, the neighborhood committee is currently inspecting the implementation of benefits for martyrs' families. This is a good opportunity to clarify things. As long as you are willing to testify, I guarantee Yi Zhonghai won't dare retaliate against you. I'm now a key technical worker at the steel rolling mill, and Director Zhou values me highly."
He Yushui chimed in, "Uncle Zhang, if you don't speak up, she'll use this fake identity to bully even more people. My husband works at the police station; if Yi Zhonghai dares to retaliate against you, we'll definitely stand up for you." Uncle Zhang remained silent for a long time, then, as if making up his mind, slammed his hand on the table: "Fine! I'll go to the neighborhood committee with you! The mistakes I made back then must be corrected now; I can't let this swindler get away with it any longer!"
As the three of them stepped out of the courtyard, they saw Yan Bugui leading a group of neighbors towards them, calling out from afar, "Lin Chen, where have you been? The neighborhood director wants you to come over; the old lady has fainted from crying!" Lin Chen glanced at Grandpa Zhang, who nodded, straightened his back, and clutched the old account book tightly in his hand. Lin Chen knew in his heart that this good show was finally about to begin.
The neighborhood office was packed with people, and many neighbors stood in the courtyard watching the commotion. Jia Zhangshi was helping the "fainted" deaf old lady to a chair, while Yi Zhonghai stood beside her, indignantly accusing Director Wang of the neighborhood committee: "Director Wang, you have to stand up for the old lady! That young man Lin Chen has gone too far! Not only did he take over the old lady's vegetable garden, but he also spoke rudely to her, making her faint! Everyone in our neighborhood can testify to that!"
Director Wang, a middle-aged man in his fifties, wearing black-rimmed glasses and holding a notebook, frowned and asked, "Where's Lin Chen? Why hasn't he arrived yet?" Just then, Lin Chen walked in with Grandpa Zhang and He Yushui, loudly proclaiming, "Director Wang, I'm here! But Grandpa Yi and Grandma, you need to give me an explanation. When did a vegetable patch become Grandma's? How come I didn't know?"
When Yi Zhonghai saw Lin Chen arrive, accompanied by an unfamiliar elderly woman, his heart skipped a beat, but he still tried to remain calm: "Lin Chen, don't try to deny it! Teacher Yan from the front yard, Liu Haizhong from the back yard, and Sister-in-law Jia can all testify that the old lady had a vegetable garden!" Yan Bugui quickly stepped forward: "That's right, I can testify, the old lady did indeed grow vegetables before!" Liu Haizhong also nodded in agreement: "I've seen it too, under the old locust tree in the middle yard!"
Lin Chen sneered and looked at Qin Huairu: "Sister-in-law Jia, you've seen it before too?" Qin Huairu lowered her head and whispered, "I...I haven't seen it. When I first came to the courtyard, there was no vegetable garden under the old locust tree." Jia Zhangshi got anxious and shoved her: "You brat, how can you talk like that! Your husband used to help the old lady water the vegetables!" Qin Huairu staggered from the shove, her eyes reddened even more, but she didn't say another word.
Director Wang frowned and said to Lin Chen, "Lin Chen, what do you have to say?" Lin Chen nodded, walked to the center of the yard, and said loudly, "Director Wang, neighbors, please don't rush to conclusions. Let me ask the old lady a few questions first. If she can answer them, I will admit that I encroached on her vegetable garden; if she can't answer them, then it will be clear who is lying."
He looked at the deaf old woman who had "fainted" and raised his voice: "Grandma, you said your husband died on the Korean battlefield in January 1950, right? Then let me ask you, what was the unit number of your husband's unit? Who was the commander? And what was the specific county and village in Korea where he died?"
The old lady, who had apparently fainted, visibly stiffened. Yi Zhonghai quickly stepped forward: "The old lady has fainted, how can she answer your questions? You're deliberately making things difficult for her!" Lin Chen ignored him and continued: "Then let me ask you again. You said you've lived in our courtyard house since 1945, but I checked the courtyard house's household registration records, and you only moved in in 1949. Before that, you lived in Zhangjia Village on the outskirts of the city, and you were a silk merchant, right? Your real name is Zhang Cuihua, not some martyr's widow!"
These words caused an uproar. Yi Zhonghai's face turned deathly pale. Pointing at Lin Chen, he exclaimed, "You...you're talking nonsense! The old lady's martyr's family certificate was issued by the neighborhood committee; how could it be fake!" Lin Chen pulled a photo of the business license and the system's authentication report from his pocket and handed them to Director Wang: "Director Wang, look at this photo. It's a silk shop business license from 1936. The shopkeeper's name is Zhang Cuihua, and the person in the photo is the old lady. The system authentication shows that the photo on the martyr's family certificate is a copy of this photo, and the seal is also fake!"
Grandpa Zhang stepped forward and handed the old ledger to Director Wang: "Director Wang, I can testify! I am Zhang, a clerk at the street office in 1950. Back then, Yi Zhonghai gave me two jin of flour to process a fake martyr's family certificate for Zhang Cuihua. The writing in the register is mine, and it even has a note saying 'ghostwriting, suspicious.' This is the register from back then; you can verify the handwriting!"
Director Wang took the account book and photos, carefully comparing them for a long time, his face growing increasingly grim. He looked at Yi Zhonghai, his tone stern: "Yi Zhonghai, what exactly happened? Is what Grandpa Zhang said true?" Yi Zhonghai trembled all over, opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word. At this moment, the deaf old lady who had been "fainting" suddenly sat up, pointing at Yi Zhonghai and cursing: "It's all your fault! If you hadn't made me forge the certificate back then, would I be in this state today? I was running a silk shop in the city, doing just fine. If you hadn't said there would be benefits from getting a martyr's family certificate, I wouldn't have done this!"
A deathly silence fell over the room, followed by a thunderous murmur of discussion. Yan Bugui slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "I knew this old lady was acting strange! She'd been pretending to be deaf and dumb all day, and it turns out she was just faking it!" Liu Haizhong added, "No wonder she's so rich, always sending gifts to Yi Zhonghai; she's the owner of a silk shop!" Jia Zhangshi, terrified, collapsed to the ground, muttering, "It's over, it's over, everything's ruined..."
Director Wang slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "Quiet! According to the investigation, Zhang Cuihua's certificate of being a martyr's family member is indeed forged. Yi Zhonghai is suspected of bribery and assisting in the forgery of documents, and Zhang Cuihua is suspected of defrauding the state of martyrs' family benefits! Effective today, all of Zhang Cuihua's martyrs' family benefits are revoked, and all previously issued subsidies are recovered! As for Yi Zhonghai, we will report the situation to the steel rolling mill, and the mill will handle it!"
After saying this, he had someone take Yi Zhonghai and Zhang Cuihua to the inner room to make statements, and Jia Zhangshi was also called in for questioning by the street officials. The neighbors surrounded Lin Chen and Grandpa Zhang, asking all sorts of questions about what had happened. Yan Bugui even grabbed Lin Chen's hand, his face beaming, "Master Lin, you're really amazing! You managed to find this out! From now on, you'll be the backbone of our neighborhood!" Lin Chen just smiled and looked at He Yushui, who gave him a thumbs up.
Stepping out of the neighborhood office, the sun shone brightly. Lin Chen looked up at the sky and felt a weight lift from his heart. He knew this was just another step in establishing himself in the courtyard house; more troubles awaited him, but he was no longer as helpless as he had been in his previous life. With the system's help, his own wisdom, and the support of people like He Yushui and Grandpa Zhang, he was confident he could live a different life in this complex era.
Back at the courtyard house, Qin Huairu was waiting for him at the door, holding a cloth bag. She handed it to Lin Chen, saying, "Master Lin, these are the insoles I sewed for you. Thank you for reminding me today. From now on, I won't get involved in the affairs of the courtyard anymore. I'll just focus on raising the children and making a living with my sewing skills." Lin Chen took the insoles; they were embroidered with simple patterns, and the stitches were very tight. He nodded, "Making a good life is more important than anything else."
Entering his side room, Lin Chen carefully put away Grandpa Zhang's account book and the system's appraisal report. He activated the system, and a new task notification popped up on the panel: [Completed the task "Exposing the False Identity of a Martyr's Family Member," earning 1000 points and unlocking the new function "Trace Tracking."]