Zhao-gege

The initial examination of the body had been completed, and the rest of the investigation was to be carried out by the officials. Song Caitang took an entire day of rest at home and also took the time to calm her nerves.

She had been hunted down, run across an entire mountain before going to examine a dead body and thought hard about the case. She didn’t feel tired at that time, but once she was all relaxed and enjoyed a warm bath, the exhaustion finally hit her.

After she had slept and woke up, her entire body ached, especially her legs. It was as though they didn’t belong to her. She could hardly walk, never mind squat.

She began to wonder if she ought to start training herself up…

That way, if she ran into something like that again, her body would end up giving way.

After resting an entire day at home, Wen Yuansi sent someone to the house early in the morning on the third day.

It was someone familiar. It was Liuhong, the maid whose name was very close to Guan Qing’s head maid, Chunhong.

Just like her name suggested, Liu Hong was very pretty. Like the pomegranate flowers in May, she exuded a bright and magnanimous air, plus she liked wearing red dresses. But because she always followed her employer around, her personality was a bit more introverted and not especially lively.

She had come to say that the investigation team needed Song Caitang to go over.

Of course, the Guans weren’t going to stop her. Guan Qing and Guan Wan had grown up differently from others and were supportive of Song Caitang’s choice of work. Madam Zhang was worried about being implicated and couldn’t wait for Song Caitang to provide her with more information. Once she heard that Song Caitang had to head for the courthouse, she smiled dotingly and said that Song Caitang could go without any worries, since she was around to take care of the house. Song Caitang just needed to focus on doing her work well!

Guan Rongrong, however, did not share the same thoughts as her mother this time.

Ever since she had decided to make Wen Yuansi her target, her heart seemed to be on fire as she kept waiting for a chance and couldn’t wait to leave a good impression on Wen Yuansi as soon as possible. When she heard that Wen Yuansi had asked for Song Caitang, she immediately got changed and came running over to ask Song Caitang to bring her along.

Song Caitang raised an eyebrow, and her elegant smile looked distant, “Second Eldest Cousin, I’m going there to work on the case.”

Guan Rongrong fluttered her eyes in an attempt to look cute, “I know.”

Guan Qing frowned, “She’s going to work on the case. What are you going there for?”

Guan Rongrong had an answer for that, “I’m going there to take care of my cousin! Since she arrived at our house, I haven’t taken care of her!”

Not only did Guan Qing roll her eyes, but Madam Zhang also nearly fainted at these words. How could Guan Rongrong say something like that without feeling embarrassed?!

She was admitting that even though Song Caitang was her biological cousin and had lived with them for a long time, she hadn’t been taking care of her!

Song Caitang just smiled, “Second Cousin, you don’t have to worry. I have Qingqiao with me.”

Qingqiao had been standing to one side quietly, but when she heard these words, she puffed her chest out and said with a stern expression, “Second Young Mistress, don’t worry, I will take good care of Young Mistress!”

Guan Rongrong pulled a long face and ignored Qingqiao as she hooked Song Caitang’s arm and tried to persuade her, “I know my way around town well! I can give you directions!”

Song Caitang replied, “The coachman knows the way.”

The coachman whipped the horses in front of him when he heard her mention him, making the horses whinny but stay where they were.

Yup, the coachman knew the way and he was good at controlling the horses and carriage.

Guan Rongrong gritted her teeth, “The coachman wouldn’t be as attentive as me!”

Song Caitang replied, “I still have Magistrate Wen’s head maid with me.”

Liuhong straightened her back and said solemnly, “Second Miss Guan, don’t worry, I’m here on my employer’s orders, so I will definitely do everything I can to make sure Miss Song is safely brought to her destination.”

Guan Rongrong nearly burst into tears. Everyone was bullying her!!!

But she couldn’t lose now.

She had to do anything she could to get close to Wen Yuansi!

That upright, elegant and gentle man…

Guan Rongrong bit her lip and clung onto Song Caitang. Her face was a little red as she said, “Besides all these… I heard that you ate with Old Madam Li a couple of days ago when you went to the courthouse. So… I could help you… help you take care of Old Madam Li while you’re at work…“

These words were considered very bold and they were clearly hinting at something else.

And given the culture of that era, she was basically being very shameless now.

For the first time, Liuhong stared strangely at Guan Rongrong.

“That’s not necessary. Old Madam left yesterday and is not staying at the house near the courthouse anymore.”

Guan Rongrong had already uttered something so shameless, so she didn’t mind saying more if she could get her way, “I…“

“Guan Rongrong!”

Madam Zhang couldn’t take it anymore and grabbed hold of Guan Rongrong’s arm, “Why are you behaving like a small child who keeps asking their older sibling to play with them? You have work due today! Have you forgotten?”

Her grip was accurate and steady. It made Guan Rongrong let go of Song Caitang while being unable to shake Madam Zhang’s hand off.

Guan Rongrong felt rather indignant, but when she saw the frosty gaze in her mother’s eyes even though her mother was smiling, she dared not move.

“I… I’m sorry.”

Everyone was clever enough to know what was really going on, plus everyone was a fantastic actress. Nobody exposed what Guan Rongrong was really doing and maintained polite smiles as they sent Song Caitang and the two maids on their way, while the rest went back into the house.

Inside the carriage, Liuhong did not say anything inappropriate either and they reached the courthouse soon after.

The courthouse was large and was divided into different sections. There were courtrooms for trials, rooms for examining bodies, a place to hold criminals temporarily, as well as a hall where the atmosphere was less solemn and people could sit down and chat.

Song Caitang was led to such a hall.

Besides Wen Yuansi, Zhao Zhi was there too.

He remained seated without even glancing over when Song Caitang entered the hall, as though he hadn’t seen her.

But Wen Yuansi stood up and welcomed her with a polite greeting. His words were also very considerate, “You went through quite a lot recently, have you already recovered from the ordeal?”

Song Caitang smiled faintly, “I’m well now, thank you for the concern.”

“I’m glad you’re fine. My grandmother mentioned what happened several times and I feel really bad about it,” said Wen Yuansi with a sigh as he motioned to Song Caitang to take a seat while someone else got tea for her.

Song Caitang replied, “Please tell her that I’m really fine, she doesn’t have to worry anymore. If she keeps worrying like this, I will feel bad.”

They spoke kindly to one another and the atmosphere was friendly and heartwarming, but Zhao Zhi frowned and interrupted their conversation, “We’ve called you over today because we got some information from investigating the Wangs’ pub.”

He stared steely at Song Caitang, “A notice has been sent out and the people connected to the case will be coming soon. Listen carefully as they recount what happened and see if you can gain any new clues.”

Since he had started talking business, Wen Yuansi switched modes too and added to what Zhao Zhi said, “The pub has been cordoned off and they will not be open for business for the time being, but the surroundings are too noisy and there are too many passersby, so even after Commissioner Zhao and I checked the place thoroughly, we did not find any clues related to the case. Commissioner Lu did go to this pub on the evening of the 10th day of the 4th month, but the place where he sat and the wine cup he drank from were perfectly fine. We still can’t be sure if the murderer struck there or not.”

Song Caitang frowned slightly.

If the killer didn’t strike there, then… where?

And how did they do it such that Lu Guangzong did not fight back?

“If you want to look at the pub, I can bring you there later,” said Zhao Zhi solemnly. “Since the people we’re waiting for aren’t here yet, I can give you a bit more background information first.”

Song Caitang caught on faster this time, “You mean, the people who were arguing with each other that day?”

The appearance of Fourth Missy Gan and her son seemed very random, but it had made the argument worse.

The drunk man, Niu Baoshan, hated the Lus because they had not been able to find his missing son, but why would he attack Fourth Missy Gan?

“More than ten years ago, Fourth Missy Gan and Niu Baoshan were neighbors for a while…“

Song Caitang got it after listening to what happened.

Fourth Missy Gan was a widow, a very pretty one who lived by herself with her only son. Such a person in this society would definitely attract the attention of many men.

A lot of men would want to take advantage of her, and many men would also despise her.

But Niu Baoshan didn’t fancy her.

“Niu Baoshan’s son had gone missing and Lu Guangzong had not been of any help. At the same time, Niu Baoshan saw Lu Guangzong speaking to Fourth Missy Gan with his own eyes. Lu Guangzong stood very close to her and seemed to be hiding his actions… It made Niu Baoshan very angry, and he felt that Lu Guangzong wasn’t the good and upright official that everyone said he was. To him, Lu Guangzong was someone who got involved with women instead of focusing on his duties. Nobody could find his son for a long, long time, and it became his obsession. He hated Lu Guangzong, and by association, he started to hate Fourth Missy Gan too.”

Song Caitang understood this. This was displaced anger.

After explaining that part, Wen Yuansi added the reason for why Lu Guangzong’s reputation had taken a hit from recent rumors.

“I secretly went to ask around and it seems it has something to do with Pang Qian…“

Pang Qian was a vice regional military governor and had a lot of experience as well as an extensive network. He had a chance to become the pacification commissioner of Luanze, but the emperor gave it to Lu Guangzong. It wasn’t hard to guess how he felt.

He had purposely spread those rumors, and his intention was… definitely to hurt Lu Guangzong.

But nobody knew for sure if that had anything to do with the case.

Song Caitang nodded and fell into deep thought, “So, we have to listen carefully to the statement later and analyze it.”

Wen Yuansi nodded, “Yup.”

As they were speaking, they heard a little noise outside. The people they were expecting were here.

Wen Yuansi got up and put an end to their conversation as he walked out.

Song Caitang drank her tea and wondered where she should sit when the person was giving their statement. She wasn’t an official, so it didn’t seem appropriate for her to sit in the hall like one. Should she sit behind a screen instead? Or what?

As she thought about these things, she sensed that someone was looking at her. She turned to look but Zhao Zhi scoffed at her and turned away.

What… the heck?!

Just then, a fragrant gust of wind blew into the hall.

It wasn’t overpowering, but it smelled sweet like fruit. It was refreshing and lively, faint yet obvious. This was clearly some very expensive perfume.

Song Caitang turned and spotted a young lady in a yellow dress.

The young lady looked around 14 or 15, with finely trimmed brows, almond-shaped eyes and a sweet smile. Neither her clothing nor her accessories matched the trends in Luanze, but they were very unique and looked good on her. They were very suitable for her age.

Her steps were light and quickened as she entered the hall. She practically pounced toward Zhao Zhi.

“Zhao-gege¹! Why didn’t you tell me you were in Luanze!”

Song Caitang nearly spat all her tea out.

Did she say… Zhao-gege?

But because the young lady was really pretty, even though she was whining and twisting both her hips and lips in protest, she did not seem annoying.

Well, that would only be true if Zhao Zhi were her actual older brother.

Zhao Zhi slammed a hand on an empty stool next to him and it slid across the floor to land in the young lady’s way, stopping her from getting any closer to him.

“Who are you? Why should I tell you where I go for work?”

“Humph!! Why are you always like that!” The young lady wrinkled her nose, “If you continue pretending not to know me, I’m going to get angry!”

Zhao Zhi frowned even harder, “Ling Qianqian, you’d better behave yourself! You are not allowed to come any closer!”

Ling Qianqian stuck her tongue out cheekily, “See? You DO know who I am!”

She picked up her skirt, went around the stool, and slowly inched toward Zhao Zhi’s desk as she looked up at him with her watery eyes, “Zhao-gege, have you been very busy lately? I heard A LOT of good things about you on my way here! Everyone says that you’re so capable! So good at cracking cases! You cracked a major case the moment you arrived!”

Zhao Zhi ignored her and drank his tea calmly.

She wasn’t done, “But I suffered so much coming here and fell sick along the way. We couldn’t find a doctor in the deserted countryside and I lost so much weight! Look at how thin my face is!” She stuck her head out so that he could have a closer look, “But you didn’t even ask how I was!!”

Zhao Zhi didn’t even bother looking up and continued sipping his tea.

Ling Qianqian probably didn’t need him to respond. She seemed happy to keep talking all by herself, “Luanze is simply too small. There are some things I’ve never seen before, but it’s no match for the capital. I couldn’t even find nice dresses! I’m so glad you’re here! Otherwise, I’d want to leave right away!”

She went on and on and didn’t seem to understand when to stop. Zhao Zhi shut his eyes and cut her off, “What are you doing in the courthouse?”

Ling Qianqian fluttered her eyes, “There’s a murder investigation going on, right? The Lu Guangzong one?”

“And so?”

“My cousin was also at that pub on the 10th day of the 4th month and he saw Lu Guangzong. He said he was coming here to give his statement, so I came along!”

“Your cousin?”

Ling Qianqian moved aside to reveal the person behind her.

A handsome but seemingly foppish man was standing right beside Song Caitang and kept talking to her.

“You’re the relative of the Lord of Hades, the expert at cutting bodies open, Miss Song?”

“That last part, yes.”

The man looked like he was looking at some creature he had never seen before. He walked around her several times and looked her up and down. “You really know how to cut a body open? As in take a knife and slice a dead person’s stomach open?”

“Yes.”

“After you slice them open, you would know by just touching the internal organs when the victim last ate, what they ate, whether they’d been poisoned and what they last did?”

“Sometimes, yes.”

“Can you let me watch you do that?”

“I’m sorry, but there are no bodies to dissect at the moment. Also, only those involved in the investigation are allowed to witness it.”

“That’s no problem. As long as you’re willing to do it, I can get a dead body for you right now!”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that now. I do not have the time to.”

“Then, when you cut one open in the future, you’ve got to let me know so that I can watch. Deal?”

“If it is possible.”

He stroked his chin and asked curiously, “Dead bodies can’t speak, so how would you know so much?”

She smiled faintly, “Dead bodies can’t. But I can.”

The man paused, then smiled brightly, “Miss Song, you’re really pretty. Are you already engaged to someone?”

Zhao Zhi kicked a stool and it flew across the hall to hit the man in the back of his knees.

He raised an eyebrow and glowered at the man murderously.

“Qi Yan, I’m right here. Didn’t you notice?”