The mystery of Chinese gold

A LEGENDARY JUDGE SOLVES THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF HIS PREDECESSOR... Young Judge Ti Zhenzhi arrives in the frigid port of Penglai to take his first office. Instead of a peaceful administration of the district, however, he finds a fog-shrouded nest of intrigue. His predecessor, Wang, died under mysterious circumstances in the middle of a locked study, and the threads of the crime run all the way to the highest levels of the imperial administration. With the help of the loyal Sergeant Chung and two reformed bandits, Ma Zhong and Jiao Tai, Judge Ti must not only solve the death of the chief and the disappearance of the young bride, but also unravel the mystery of the golden statue that threatens the stability of the entire empire. Every move they make could cost them their heads, for the enemy is much closer than they admit. In this chronological first novel in the famous series of historical detective stories set in ancient China, Robert van Gulik traces the birth of the legendary Judge Ti, whose famous cases range from river brothels to the palaces of the most powerful leaders of the empire.