Maybe Not Dead

It happened along the river outside the city.

The wind and rain were strong, but not stronger than the curiosity of the people. From afar, they spotted runners from the court approaching the area in large numbers, surrounding the area and sealing off any entry to the river, even disallowing passersby from coming too close. That made the people very excited.

Anyone who had been in Bianliang long enough knew what was going on. Someone had definitely been murdered!

And when they noticed which area was being cordoned off, they realized the victim must have been drowned!

The weather was terrible, yet both young and old men would rather brave the weather and don raincoats than to miss the fun. They were much earlier than Zhao Zhi and his team.

When Zhao Zhi and his companions arrived, they did not get overly distracted by the crowds that had gathered. They quickly looked at the surroundings and noted anything special they spotted.

The wind and rain also caused a lot of damage to the scene of the crime. The river was long and winding, and the body inside could not be in there for too long in this tumultuous weather. Everyone was very tense as they focused all their energies in making sure they could complete this task as quickly and carefully as they could.

“Alright, start searching the water!” A command was given and the runners quickly removed their clothing and leaped into the water like dumplings into a pot.

Zhao Zhi stood by the side and waited with his companions.

The current was not particularly strong, but the river was very wide, so the runners would have to cover quite a bit of water and it would take a while for them to find anything. Thankfully, it was early summer and the temperature of the water was acceptable. It was raining cats and dogs, but the water would not get that cold. The runners were all well-trained men who knew how to handle such situations, so they were fine for the time being, as long as towels, coats and warm drinks were ready for them after they came out of the water.

Zhao Zhi waved a hand and ordered a subordinate to bring the man who reported the case to him.

The only reason why the authorities knew about this case so quickly despite the weather was because there was an eyewitness who reported it.

The man who reported it was a young man named Wang Dazhuang. He had a squarish face, large eyes and walked with confidence. He probably had no idea that Zhao Zhi was actually a prince and thought he was just some county official, so he didn’t look scared or anything and just bowed out of courtesy. “Good day, sir! My name is Wang Dazhuang. My house is along Pagoda Tree Alley and I’m a waiter at a small pub.”

Zhao Zhi scanned the man. “You’re the one who reported the case?”

“That’s right! I did that!” Wang Dazhuang had a loud voice.

“The victim was Zhou Tongxing from the Ministry of Rites?”

“That’s right! I saw him myself!”

Zhao Zhi raised an eyebrow, then asked, “You…know Zhou Tongxing personally?”

“Mr. Zhou is an interesting official who doesn’t put on airs and is even willing to drink at a small pub like ours, so everyone around here knows who he is.” Wang Dazhuang rubbed his hands with a smile. “But while I know who he is, he doesn’t know who I am.”

This man was a typical small pub waiter, alright. He was quick to react and he was able to pick up hints from what others said and explain his answers clearly.

Perhaps he had passed Zhou Tongxing on the streets, or he had seen people try to butter Zhou Tongxing up in the pub, or perhaps Zhou Tongxing had eaten a meal or two near him, so he knew who Zhou Tongxing was. But he only recognized the official and did not know him personally. Zhou Tongxing probably had no idea he even existed.

“Since that’s the case, that means you’re not especially familiar with him.”

Zhao Zhi stared at the river in the distance. The rain was so heavy, it was impossible to see someone standing just a meters away clearly…

“How were you so sure that the person who fell into the water was Zhou Tongxing?”

Wang Dazhuang immediately realized Zhao Zhi was suspecting him!

He quickly waved his hands about and shook his head vigorously, “Sir, please don’t misunderstand! It was a bit far, but I saw him with my very own eyes! Mr. Zhou was dressed in his usual robes with a crane embroidered on his collar, a silver stripe and a wavy green hem!”

He elaborated on these clothes, “I don’t know much about anything, but I chat with our customers very often and so after some time, I do know a thing or two. Those are robes that only the officials from the Ministry of Rites would wear, and it was a newly made robe too. The Ministry of Rites is full of old fellows, so there aren’t many who are younger, with black hair and that sort of figure. Even if I couldn’t see his face clearly, I’m very sure it was him!”

Zhao Zhi did not acknowledge what he said or ask any questions. He just calmly looked out at the river with no expression on his face.

Wang Dazhuang slapped himself in his mind. He had reported the case half because he was curious about what was going on and also because he thought it was the right thing to do. He didn’t expect to land himself in trouble for it!

He paused to think, then his eyes lit up as he remembered something and continued defending himself, “Sir, you might not know this, but Mr. Zhou and his companions had a lot of fun in the pub last night and bought a lot of alcohol. He won a lot from just playing some games, including a peach shaped piece of white jade. That piece was round and looked faintly pink in the candlelight, smooth and full, like a woman’s… Well, alright, let’s not go there – but that jade hanging from his belt alone helped me to recognize him! I wouldn’t dare to say it was someone else!”

Zhao Zhi moved his finger slightly and a man came running over immediately. He bowed slightly and said, “Yes, everything he said is true.”

This man was one of Zhao Zhi’s secret guards who had already confirmed everyone’s statement earlier.

It was a rest day today, so a lot of officials did not mind staying out late and getting drunk the night before. Zhou Tongxing was one of them. He had stayed out later than usual, he had been gambling with his companions and won a lot of things, including that jade piece mentioned. Wang Dazhuang’s description of Zhou Tongxing’s clothes was also correct.

Wang Dazhuang patted his chest, relieved that he was no longer a suspect. They just had to wait for the body to be hauled out of the water.

But as time passed, the wind grew stronger and the rain grew heavier. Three batches of runners had leaped into the river to search for the body already, but they still couldn’t find anything.

It was taking a lot longer than expected. This made the situation a little more nerve-wracking.

Zhao Zhi paused for a moment, but gave the order anyway, “Search again!”

Two searches later, still nothing.

Now, even Wang Dazhuang began to doubt himself. He bit his nails and stared hard at the river. Why couldn’t the runners find anything? How could that be? He had seen it with his own eyes! Could he have been mistaken?

But that’s not possible!

It was possible for one to mistake tree leaves for paper, but it was hard to confuse a human falling into the river with anything else.

The crowds that started off excited were now disgruntled that nothing had been found for so long. After all, they had braved the wind and rain, and now they were cold and wet! Nasty looks could be seen on their faces as they all turned to glare angrily at Wang Dazhuang.

Wang Dazhuang felt guilty for some reason and even though Zhao Zhi didn’t ask him any questions, he looked like he was about to cry and sounded anxious as he tried to explain things, “Sir, I swear everything I said is true! I really saw it happening! Mr. Zhou really drowned! Someone even pressed his head down and dragged him to the middle of the river… That person only left after Mr. Zhou stopped moving…”

Zhao Zhi had read the notes on what happened and thought he could just wait for the body to be hauled out of the river first before asking any questions. But now, the search had yielded no results and Wang Dazhuang was getting antsy, so it was a good time to ask him questions.

He quietly asked, “So, you’re saying that Zhou Tongxing did not fall in and drown, but that someone else killed him by drowning?”

“Well, that…I can’t say for sure, can I?” Wang Dazhuang’s eyes began to tremble. “Maybe…maybe Mr. Zhou was still alive after that person left?”

“What did that person look like?”

“That person was dressed entirely in black with a hood over their head. The hood was pulled very far down so I couldn’t see their face. That person held Mr. Zhou,” Wang Dazhuang started acting it out, “from behind, then pressed his face into the water. This person must have been very strong. Mr. Zhou struggled for a while, but he didn’t struggle for long before he stopped moving and just sank into the water!”

“That person left immediately, but I secretly hid myself along the shore. I thought that perhaps Mr. Zhou was still alive and would start struggling to get to shore soon, and I could help him if that happened. But after a long time, nothing moved at all, so I thought, he must be dead! But…I don’t know why the runners haven’t been able to find anything…”

Wang Dazhuang desperately tried to prove that he was telling the truth and tried to paint himself as a good person, afraid that others might suspect him.

But the crowd was already very displeased by this turn of events and weren’t accepting anything he said now. One even mocked him, “If you’re such a righteous guy, why didn’t you stop that person! Then at least that Mr. Zhou wouldn’t have died!”

“Oh my goodness, listen to yourself! Of course I wouldn’t have dared to do anything like that!” Wang Dazhuang was not fearful at all when he spoke to other ordinary citizens. “I had to stay alive to bring justice to this matter! That person was so strong and so fierce, if I approached them, they might decide to kill me too! Then you’d have two dead men and nobody to even report the deaths!”

He was still able to stand his ground and argue with others confidently now, but when it reached the four hour mark and the runners had still found nothing, he was completely dumbstruck and was on the verge of tears.

“How is this possible…this is impossible! I saw it myself! It happened right over there!”

The crowd jeered at him. “You were just bored on a rainy day, so you decided to pull a fast one on the authorities, right?”

“That’s a crime, don’t you know? You’ll go to jail for lying to the authorities!”

Wang Dazhuang really started crying now. “I wasn’t lying! I really saw it!”

He didn’t seem to be faking his reaction and he didn’t behave like someone who had made a false report. But it was also true that nothing had been found in the river even after so many hours of searching, so even Qi Yan, Song Caitang and Wen Yuansi were beginning to doubt this man.

What was going on?

The wind was cold, the rain like a curtain from the sky.

As time slowly ticked by and still nothing turned up, the atmosphere grew more and more tense.

And just when everyone was about to burst, a man walked toward the crowd from afar.

“What’s going on? Why is everyone crowding around?”

When the crowd saw who had come, they all took a few steps back in fright.

Qi Yan also leaped backward in horror as he pointed a trembling finger at him. He couldn’t even speak properly, “Zhou…Zhou…Zhou…”

The man who had come was none other than the man whom everyone thought was dead, Zhou Tongxing!

Wang Dazhuang was so shocked that he fell to the floor and let his mucus run. “Aren’t you…aren’t…aren’t you dead?!”

Zhou Tongxing’s expression fell and he looked nasty as he marched up to Wang Dazhuang, as though he was going to punch the young man. “I’m not dead! You are!”

Wang Dazhuang was so frightened, he wrapped his arms around his head and pushed his body backward desperately. “He’s a ghost! A ghost!”

But Zhou Tongxing didn’t beat him up. He stood up straight again and observed the shocked faces of the crowd and listened to the hushed conversations they were having among themselves. He raised an eyebrow as he finally put two and two together.

“So…all of you were trying to fish me out of the water? You thought I was dead?”

Zhao Zhi shifted the responsibility without even flinching. He pointed at the terrified Wang Dazhuang, “He reported it.”

Zhou Tongxing glared at the young man again. “How dare you curse me like that!”

Wang Dazhuang could only shiver in silence.

“It’s all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!” Qi Yan finally snapped out of his initial shock. The man standing in front of them was a real, living human, not a dead man, not a ghost. Qi Yan wasn’t scared anymore and tried to lighten the atmosphere, “Don’t be so offended, Mr. Zhou!”

But Song Caitang and Wen Yuansi exchanged glances.

They could see clearly that the robes that Zhou Tongxing was wearing beneath his raincoat was a white, ordinary robe.

Not a court official’s robe.

Zhao Zhi noticed that too. He asked Zhou Tongxing, “When did you last change your clothes?”

“This morning.” Zhou Tongxing avoided Qi Yan, who was grinning at him apologetically and spoke directly to Zhao Zhi, “After having fun the entire night, I got changed when at the brink of dawn while walking along the street.”

Qi Yan’s eyes widened. “You got changed while walking along the street?!”

What??!

“Not like that,” Zhou Tongxing frowned. “I saw a beggar along the way and his clothes were very tattered. After having fun at the pub the whole night, my clothes smelled terrible and I couldn’t really stand wearing it anymore. But while I couldn’t stand it, a beggar wouldn’t mind, since it’s made of good fabric. So, I took it off and gave it to him. Of course, I only gave him my outer robe.”

Zhao Zhi noticed something else and asked, “What about that piece of white jade?”

Had Zhou Tongxing given away the most expensive thing he had won the night before too?

“Oh yes, there was that too,” Zhou Tongxing looked dismayed when he remembered it. “I forgot I had hung it on my belt and I just gave the entire robe to him without noticing it!”

After that moment of dismay, he patted his chest and let out a long sigh. “Forget it, it didn’t belong to me in the first place, since I won it in a game. If it’s gone, it’s gone.”

Zhao Zhi asked a few more questions, and Zhou Tongxing’s answers all made sense and were consistent with what happened. It seemed like all this was really just a misunderstanding.

But when Zhou Tongxing realized what had happened, he furrowed his brows tightly. “So, there’s someone who’s trying to kill me, only this person got the wrong guy because they used my robe to identify me. This will not do – you have to keep investigating this matter!”