“So… do you mean that Gu Ling’s mother is sick, and because of the Divine Maiden Sect, something as common as sky blossom powder has become extremely hard to get, so Gu Ling might have…” Hua Yao’s analysis took a turn, she said,
“That’s not right. Didn’t Li’er ask the madam of the brothel before? Gu Ling has been treating the girls in the brothel, and the items she has are all from people’s rewards. She shouldn’t be doing anything underhanded.”
“Does this include this as well?” Zhong Li glanced at Hua Yao, took out a hairpin from her sleeve, and placed it on the table.
“Ah! Isn’t this the work of Master Zhou Qiang?” Hua Yao, being from a prestigious family, naturally recognized these items used by nobles.
“So, if it were you, Yao’er, would you casually gift such a valuable item to a servant?” Zhong Li asked.
Hua Yao shook her head without thinking, “Certainly not, unless it was a life-and-death friendship, like between you and me.”
As she spoke, she linked her arm with Zhong Li’s.
Zhong Li gave her a playful look and said, “Do you think treating a common ailment like leucorrhea warrants a life-and-death friendship?”
“That’s true.” Hua Yao nodded, then added, “Moreover, this Qiong’er has a lover. If she didn’t give it to her lover, it wouldn’t make sense!”
“Right, so I have a bold guess.” Zhong Li said, taking out three letters. “Among the letters written by the three deceased, the most crucial clue is ‘stealing’. At first glance, it seems they wrote suicide notes out of guilt, but if we look at it from another angle, could these repentant suicide notes be…”
“Written by the murderer!” Hua Yao finished Zhong Li’s sentence, speaking as she took over.
Zhong Li nodded, agreeing with Hua Yao’s judgment.
“Written by the murderer… so the murderer we’ve deduced so far is Gu Ling…” Hua Yao continued her analysis, her bright almond eyes blinking in a particularly charming way.
“Oh no!” She suddenly realized something and quickly pulled Zhong Li to run out of the Dali Temple.
Zhong Li followed her steps, rushing straight into the carriage. Seeing her call a few Dali Temple constables to follow, she told the coachman a destination. As the carriage moved, it sped directly towards the outskirts of Jincheng.
Zhong Li watched her, seeing that Hua Yao still looked worried, her delicate eyebrows furrowed, and asked, “Yao’er, what happened?”
Hua Yao bit her lip and slumped down in annoyance, saying, “It’s all my fault, I don’t have Li’er’s brain, it’s all my fault!”
“What happened?” Zhong Li asked, holding Hua Yao who was getting agitated.
“Didn’t I say I kept watch outside Gu Ling’s house all night yesterday?”
Zhong Li nodded, a sense of unease also creeping into her mind.
“Last night, Gu Ling’s house was hanging lanterns and pasting ‘xi’ (喜) characters. If the murderer is really her, then Ah Wu…”
“Ah Wu and Gu Ling are getting married?” Zhong Li’s eyes widened in disbelief.
What was going on? She had lent Ah Wu money just two days ago, and now he was getting married today? And the people from Dali Temple hadn’t even received an invitation.
“No…” Hua Yao waved her hand, with a self-comforting expression, “Perhaps Gu Ling isn’t marrying Ah Wu? I’m just guessing.”
“No, it must be Ah Wu,” Zhong Li negated Hua Yao’s thoughts.
“How can Li’er be so sure it’s Ah Wu?” Hua Yao asked.
Zhong Li pursed her lips, recalling the entanglement between Ah Wu and Gu Ling in front of Hua Man Lou the other day, and Ah Wu’s happy look when he borrowed money from her again. She replied, “Ah Wu hasn’t been at Dali Temple for two or three days. If it’s not him, then who could it be?”
“Then… we are all Ah Wu’s friends. Why wouldn’t Ah Wu send us an invitation?” Hua Yao asked.
Zhong Li’s eyebrows furrowed even tighter. The meaningful words Lu Wu Xie had said to her last night came to mind. She shook her head, “Perhaps Ah Wu already knew who the murderer was.”
“What?” Hua Yao’s cherry lips parted, her expression full of confusion.
---
Southern suburbs of Jincheng.
A dilapidated adobe house, its roof tiles cracked and broken, looked somewhat out of place with the red brocade hung on the eaves and the several brand-new lanterns.
The firecrackers at the entrance had already finished, leaving the ground covered in red, and the smell of gunpowder could still be faintly detected in the air.
The woman sitting in the main hall looked at the newlywed couple kneeling before her, her smile exceptionally genuine.
“Ling’er, I never thought I’d see you get married in my lifetime.”
Gu Ling’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she shyly glanced at the man beside her before replying, “Mother, what are you talking about? Mother will live to be a hundred years old.”
“Mother!” Ah Wu took Gu Ling’s hand and looked at the woman opposite them, saying, “From now on, after I marry Gu Ling, her mother will be mine. Don’t worry, I will definitely treat Gu Ling well from now on.”
“Good, good!” The woman’s face was full of joy, “I never imagined that my Ling’er could marry an official from Dali Temple. This is the blessing accumulated over decades.”
“Mother, from now on, Ah Wu and I will honor you. Ah Wu哥 gave Ling’er a hundred taels of betrothal gifts, so you don’t have to worry about your illness anymore. Ah Wu哥 also said that from now on, all the money he earns will be for his daughter… We will…”
“Perhaps I won’t have a future anymore?” Gu Ling, who was speaking with great enthusiasm, was suddenly interrupted by a woman’s cold snort from outside.
At the same time, all three people inside looked towards the outside.
Ah Wu’s face stiffened upon seeing the person standing outside.
Gu Ling also saw her, and her face turned pale.
“Ah Wu ge.” Her body trembled three times.
Ah Wu squeezed Gu Ling’s slightly cold hand and whispered something in her ear. He then got up and walked towards the person standing outside.
Zhong Li watched Ah Wu like this, whispered a few words to Hua Yao. After Hua Yao nodded and took her people away, she once again focused her gaze on Ah Wu.
“Ah Wu, you should know why I am here.”
Ah Wu took a deep breath, nodded, and knelt on the ground with a *thump*, saying, “Lord Zhong, A Ling has promised me she won’t kill anyone anymore, so please, can you…”
“No!” Zhong Li interrupted Ah Wu before he could finish.
Ah Wu was stunned and looked at the woman towering over him.
“Ah Wu, you are a person of Dali Temple and you uphold the laws of the Southern Yue Kingdom. Those who kill must pay with their lives. She must come with me!”
After Zhong Li finished speaking, she glanced at Gu Ling inside. Seeing her looking at her pitifully with innocent eyes, she suddenly felt an impulse to gouge out those eyes!
“My Lord! Please, just consider it me begging you!” Ah Wu shook his head, his face turning miserable, and kowtowed to Zhong Li.
The sound of his head hitting the bluestone slabs echoed, and soon, blood had dyed more than half of the ground red.
Zhong Li’s expression remained unchanged, and she stared at Ah Wu.
Ah Wu was about to collapse from his kowtowing when Gu Ling, who was crouching inside, rushed out and hugged Ah Wu’s body, crying out, “Ah Wu ge, Ah Wu ge!”
Zhong Li remained standing in place, looking at Gu Ling.
Gu Ling looked up at the woman opposite her indignantly and said, “Everyone says that Young Official Zhong is brilliant at solving cases, but now it seems that Young Official Zhong is just a hypocrite. Your subordinate is begging you like this, and you remain unmoved!”
“Unmoved?” Zhong Li squatted down to meet Gu Ling’s gaze.
Her sharp eyes made Gu Ling appear somewhat flustered.
After a long while, just as Zhong Li was about to pull Gu Ling away, a figure suddenly rushed out from inside the house and shouted at her, “Let go, let go of my daughter!”