Faked Bruise

“That’s all to it.” Liu Sui looked up at Zhao Zhi with a calm look in his eyes, his demeanor steady. “I’m the one who killed these people. I did all of it. It has nothing to do with my Young Master.”

The room fell deathly silent after he said that.

It was a sunny day. The sunshine coming in through the windows illuminated everything, including Liu Sui’s face.

The whole living room was quiet and warmly lit, so there was no wickedness in the air.

Everything had happened too quickly and everyone was still reeling in shock.

Governor Zhang and Governor Li’s eyes widened. It never crossed their minds that things would go this way!

Qi Yan’s eyes were almost falling out of their sockets. How could this be? How could this be?!

Song Caitang and Zhao Zhi were wrong? The killer wasn’t Liu Zhenghao but his servant?!

But the servant had described how he dealt with the victims with such vivid detail. It would be impossible for him to do that if he hadn’t actually been there!

After Liu Sui finished saying those words, he turned to bow apologetically toward Liu Zhenghao, “I am very sorry, Young Master. I’m the one at fault, but you have been unnecessarily implicated as a result.”

Liu Zhenghao took two steps backward and clutched his forehead as though he was terribly shocked. “So, it was really someone in our house who did it! Liu Sui, how could you… how… I’m so disappointed!”

Liu Qinian also casually apologized to Zhao Zhi, “I was just annoyed at being falsely accused, I didn’t expect one of my servants to turn out to be someone of such poor morals. As he said, this case has nothing to do with the Liu family, so take him away and close the case!”

“We’re in no hurry,” Zhao Zhi remained calmly seated. He asked Liu Sui, “How did you think of putting things into Yuetao’s body? You did not have such a habit before her, so why did you suddenly make this change? What was special about Yuetao?”

Qi Yan had rattled off a string of things, but he knew which parts were important and did not divulge them, including their guess that Yuetao had asked for those things to be put inside her.

Liu Sui frowned. “It was just a thought that struck me on the spot. Yuetao was very much to my liking.”

“Was that all?”

“Yes.”

Liu Sui’s replies were short and sweet.

Zhao Zhi continued with his questions, “When you did that to her, what did she say and what was she like?”

“She was afraid, terrified, and she screamed.”

“Besides that?”

“That’s all.”

Qi Yan finally understood why Zhao Zhi was asking these questions.

This Liu Sui… was basically a scapegoat!

This guy wasn’t some psycho killer. He didn’t know every single detail and didn’t have the psyche of a killer. The family had already arranged for him to be the scapegoat a long time ago, and he might have even helped Liu Zhenghao to handle the bodies after the murders. They had foreseen that a situation like today would happen in the future and so, they got everything ready beforehand!

He glanced past Liu Qinian, Liu Zhenghao…

Liu Qinian seemed very pleased with the current situation and kept nodding away. Liu Zhenghao had a little smile on his face. He wasn’t just pleased. He was feeling smug and very gleeful about this.

Qi Yan couldn’t help but gasp inwardly in disbelief. What sort of people did this family produce?!

Zhao Zhi went on, “The things inside the victim’s body, the pearls, the shells, the turquoises, the golden and silver beads… these were all high grade items and are very expensive. They’re all yours?”

Liu Sui lowered his gaze and kept his hands in front of him. “My masters are very generous and often give these things to us as rewards from time to time. Others might find them rare and expensive, but it’s quite commonplace for us.”

When he got to this point, he looked as though he just recalled something and frowned as he looked at Zhao Zhi, “I remember at one point I got really excited and I hit Yuetao especially hard on the right buttock. I hit her real hard, and I think a handprint was left behind. You could get the coroner to compare the bruise with my palm.”

A handprint…

Zhao Zhi shook his head. “There was no such bruise on the victim’s right buttock.”

Song Caitang had examined Yuetao’s body and Zhao Zhi had read the autopsy report too. No such injury had been recorded.

Liu Sui smiled . “I remember what I did very clearly. This bruise definitely exists. If it doesn’t, that means… the coroner missed it.”

Qi Yan too, knew that Song Caitang was the one who examined this body and got agitated, “Impossible! The coroner for this case couldn’t have missed it!”

“Well, Coroner Wu has been in this line for many years now and would not have missed something like this. Perhaps after you’ve checked the autopsy records again, you won’t be so sure of yourself anymore.”

Zhao Zhi suddenly looked very intently at Liu Sui.

He was not doubting Liu Sui’s words, but Liu Sui’s level of confidence bothered him.

This man knew what was in Coroner Wu’s autopsy report, and knew that remarks about his handprint were definitely included.

How could a servant know anything about official documents from the authorities?

Besides, if there was really a bruise there, Song Caitang wouldn’t have missed it.

There wasn’t one before, but there was one now…

Something was up.

This Liu Qinian was really something. He had prepared everything in advance already.

Liu Qinian couldn’t sit still anymore. “We’ve got actual evidence now! Let’s go and take a look at this bruise! I’ll go along too! I want to witness the closure of this case with my own eyes and see if anyone else dares to falsely accuse my family of wrongdoing!”

Qi Yan didn’t know what to say.

His gaze found Liu Zhenghao, and he suddenly felt that this young man’s expression was particularly annoying.

Liu Zhenghao was smiling faintly and seemed both elegant and well-mannered, like how an upper class young man from a prominent family ought to look like. But if you looked closer, you would notice the glee in his eyes, as though he were issuing a challenge to the rest.

It seemed like he was saying, I’m the one who did it, I’m the one who committed murder, but so what? I’ve got a dad who’s willing to cover my ass, I’ve got someone willing to take the rap for me, so I’ll be able to walk out there in the streets and move from city to city without a problem, enjoy the respectful gazes of others, and even…

…continue killing!

What can YOU do about that?

It seemed as though the Lius had won this round.

Governor Li quickly picked a side. He started supporting Liu Qinian, “Since the killer has admitted to his guilt and there’s concrete evidence, this case can be closed! All of us should be very happy about this. Surveillance Commissioner Zhao, I think…”

Zhao Zhi glared at him and snorted, “Governor Li, do you really think we should all be very happy about this?”

Governor Li nodded. “Of course! Look! We’ve caught the killer!”

“If we let off the actual killer, not only will the case not end, but it will be the mark of a new start,” Zhao Zhi confronted Governor Li. “As a surveillance commissioner, I am required to move from place to place, so once this case is closed, I can leave for another place, but Governor Li has to stay here because you’re in charge of this prefecture. If another case occurs again and the higher ups question you, how are you going to answer them?”

Governor Li wasn’t sure how to respond.

He enjoyed making sure he was in the right camp, but he wasn’t blind. He could see that this Liu Sui was merely a scapegoat. If the case closed like this and Liu Zhenghao got away scot-free, he would definitely continue committing more murders…

Luanze and Qingling River was already one of Liu Zhenghao’s usual spots and this had already become a habit to him. He wouldn’t suddenly stop now.

In the past, nobody knew about these murders. But now, Zhao Zhi had his eye on the case. If Liu Zhenghao struck again, Zhao Zhi would definitely make sure he got questioned about it!

If Liu Zhenghao committed another murder, he would be questioned once. If Liu Zhenghao committed two murders, he would be questioned twice. And if Liu Zhenghao committed three murders…

He could forget about keeping his position!

Liu Zhenghao had money and power, so he could always find a new scapegoat. But Governor Li didn’t come from that sort of family. He became an official thanks to his uncle who was also an official. His uncle wouldn’t bail him out!

When Liu Zhenghao noticed that Zhao Zhi didn’t look cooperative, his smile faded a little and he laughed a little nervously, “You are from the royal family, a surveillance commissioner appointed by the emperor, so you have to go by the book for all matters. Evidence is the most important in investigations, so you can’t just go by your instincts and make random arrests based on that, right?”

“The laws of the country will not allow that!” He uttered this last sentence with gusto, and a lot of sarcasm.

Zhao Zhi glanced sharply at him and suddenly broke into a smile.

“Thanks for telling me that! That reminds me…”

“Even if the laws of the country can’t do anything about you, I’ve got other methods.”

His brows were like swords, threatening to kill at any time, “Well… if you were to meet with an accident in the middle of the night and died without a single sound, do you think anyone would dare to suspect that I did it?”

A master had special rights over their servants and could both order them to do anything as well as decide if they lived or died. Similarly, anyone from the royal family could do things that commoners could not.

Zhao Zhi was the emperor’s favorite nephew, had a title, made significant contributions to the nation through wars, had military rank - even if he went bonkers and killed a high ranking court official, he would not face any punishment. Liu Zhenghao was merely the son of the Luanze pacification commissioner and didn’t hold any rank. He was nothing!

Liu Zhenghao’s smile disappeared instantly.

Zhao Zhi grinned at him cheekily, then turned to lead the way. “Come along, we’re going back to the courthouse!”

Qi Yan narrowed his eyes and threw a few punches in the air at Liu Zhenghao before running after Zhao Zhi.

“Brother Zhi, are we seriously heading back?”

Zhao Zhi nodded.

After all, as long as there was a new piece of evidence presented, they were obliged to verify it.

Whether there was really a mark on Yuetao’s butt, whether Coroner Wu had been bribed - as long as there was suspicion, it had to be investigated.

“Then about Liu Zhenghao…”

Zhao Zhi’s lips curled into a confident smile. “He won’t get away.”

“Then tonight… do we secretly…”

Qi Yan drew a line across his neck.

Zhao Zhi replied, “Compared to using some underhanded or illegal means, I find it more satisfying to use my capabilities and the real work of the investigation team to arrest him.”

Qi Yan thought about it, then said, “Hmm, that’s true. Since we’re trying to crack a case, then we’ll have to make sure we’ve got enough evidence to bring him down. Once we present enough evidence, he’d have no way of defending himself and he would have no choice but to confess. That would be really satisfying.”

“But I’m not like that.”

Qi Yan immediately lit up at these words. His Brother Zhi was always someone different from the rest!

“In that case, tonight we…”

Zhao Zhi grinned. “I prefer to do it both ways. More satisfying.”

Qi Yan gasped.

So, not only was Zhao Zhi intending to use real evidence to convict the man, but he was also going to beat him up on the sly?!

So aggressive! But that’s my Brother Zhao!

It didn’t take long for Song Caitang to hear about what happened. Since it involved the examination of the body, she was asked to be around as well.

The body was transferred out of the mortuary to the main hall. All the officials present kept to themselves and did not say a word. Zhao Zhi sat at the seat reserved for the highest office holder and nodded slightly at her.

It was hard to say too much, given the people present in the room. But they could understand what was needed by just exchanging a few glances.

Qi Yan sat next to Zhao Zhi and kept throwing glances at Song Caitang to tell her to be careful of Coroner Wu.

That old man had turned out to be a bad guy who created false evidence for others!

Song Caitang was very surprised.

She was not close to Coroner Wu, but they had worked together twice. She thought that he was an upright, kind and careful coroner who didn’t like getting into any sort of trouble.

When it came to these body examinations, she had always been a detailed person. She had examined Yuetao’s body more than once and that supposed handprint did not exist. If it did now, it meant that this Coroner Wu must have done something to it!

She wondered what could be used to create a fake bruise on a corpse…

Yuetao’s body was quickly sent to the room and placed on the table.

The cloth covering the body was removed and everyone started looking for that exact spot.

There was really a bruise there!

It was a slightly dark shade of reddish purple and clearly in the shape of a hand. That was exactly what Liu Sui said!

Liu Qinian exclaimed, “There’s a bruise there! Liu Sui was really the one who did it!”

Governor Li wished he could hide himself in a hole. He looked at Zhao Zhi, “What do you think, Surveillance Commissioner Zhao?”

Zhao Zhi ignored him and kept his eye on Song Caitang.

Song Caitang frowned as she stared at the bruise for a while, then understood what happened.

She looked at Coroner Wu and asked, “Did the victim already have this bruise when you first examined the body?”

As usual, Coroner Wu was stern and steady, “I suppose you were not able to notice it because you were too inexperienced and missed it out.”

Song Caitang finally understood why the older man had not found the things inside Yuetao’s body. He might have already known about it and had missed it out on purpose.

As for this bruise, the Lius might have come up with it out of desperation because the case was being solved too quickly.

After all, the body was the best proof of what happened, and was usually something preserved properly and left untouched as far as possible.

“This is a faked injury and did not occur naturally,” said Song Caitang in a clear voice.

Liu Qinian said in a slightly sarcastic tone, “What are you talking about, Miss Song? Which one of these bruises on the body could have occurred naturally?”

She could tell that Liu Qinian’s remarks were meant to agitate her, so she ignored him and looked straight at Zhao Zhi. “The roots of the Indian madder is a natural red dye. The pigments can be extracted and spread on the skin, and with the right amount and technique, you can recreate a bruise that looks realistic.”

Coroner Wu’s pupils constricted a little when she mentioned the Indian madder.

Liu Qinian had talked to him much earlier on and he had accepted this job, so he went to find out more about Song Caitang. He found out that Song Caitang had saved someone on the streets before and had also seen through a fake bruise made from the sap of the zelkova tree, so he purposely used a different substance this time.

But Song Caitang was still able to tell!

Then again, it didn’t matter if she could tell or not.

More importantly, she had to prove that it had been applied and could therefore be removed.

The Indian madder’s pigments were very special. Once it was used to stain something, it was very hard to remove it. Moreover, he had applied the dye layer by layer, so using alcohol or vinegar or other similar substances would not be able to get rid of it!

Very few people knew how to do this, and very few coroners knew about this trick. He was confident that a young woman like Song Caitang wouldn’t know anything about this!

Just as he was thinking about these things, he heard Zhao Zhi ask, “Can it be wiped off?”

“Of course,” Song Caitang smiled. “Faked bruises aren’t real bruises, so it’ll just take a few wipes to get it off.”

Coroner Wu’s eyes twitched a little. That was easier said than done! He couldn’t wait to watch her fail!

Song Caitang said, “But I will need some things.”

Zhao Zhi replied, “No problem. Just tell me what you need!”