Zhong Li sat inside the carriage, gazing at the scenery along the streets of Anding County through the sheer, veil-like curtains.
The Jia manor was now empty. The gardenias that should have filled the estate with their fragrance lay discarded like refuse by the back gate. Occasionally, boisterous children would pass by, picking a flower or two, and chasing each other in their play.
Zhong Li sighed and withdrew her gaze.
Lu Wu Xie, sitting opposite her, took in her every movement.
The corners of his thin lips curled. He casually poured her a cup of clear water and said, "This young prince thought you, Li'er, were a cold-hearted person. I never expected you to lament the decline of the Jia manor."
Zhong Li looked up. She did not take the cup Lu Wu Xie offered, nor did she respond to his teasing. Instead, she asked, "Can the young prince tell me about the jade pendant now?"
Lu Wu Xie gazed at her for a long moment. Seeing that she had no intention of backing down, he finally gave a helpless, soft laugh. He placed the lukewarm water on the table, casually took out the jade pendant from his robes, and said,
"This jade pendant once belonged to someone. That someone was Ge Meng, the Grand General who aided the state of Nan Yue."
"Ge Meng?" Zhong Li narrowed her eyes, recalling the character on the jade pendant, which added a measure of trust to Lu Wu Xie's words.
"Since it belonged to the Grand General who aided the state, why did it end up in your and my hands?" she couldn't help but press.
"Twenty years ago, Ge Meng suddenly disappeared," Lu Wu Xie said, his probing gaze sweeping over Zhong Li.
"Disappeared? Then this jade pendant..." Zhong Li trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.
"In fact, Li'er, you must have seen it yourself. This jade pendant isn't worth much in terms of silver," Lu Wu Xie stated.
Zhong Li did not deny it. Although, as someone from modern times, she knew very little about ancient jade artifacts, she had seen quite a bit in her ten-plus years of being transmigrated. Thus, she agreed with what Lu Wu Xie said.
Jade valued clarity and transparency. If used as an adornment, the carving also had strict requirements. For this dragon-patterned jade pendant, even if the original jade was priceless, paired with such clumsy carving, its value dropped significantly.
"But this jade was priceless in Ge Meng's heart," Lu Wu Xie said, his fingertips slowly tracing the character 'Meng' on the back of the jade. "This was carved for him by his beloved."
"Beloved?" Zhong Li repeated.
"Yes, beloved," Lu Wu Xie nodded, indicating that Zhong Li had heard correctly.
"As far as I know, those who achieved the position of Grand General who aided the state in the history of Nan Yue were mostly over forty. General Ge Meng, at his age, still hadn't married?" Zhong Li asked.
"General Ge never married," Lu Wu Xie replied.
Hearing this, Zhong Li frowned and gazed at the jade, "Then this jade must have been extremely precious to General Ge."
"Who knows?" A hint of a sneer flashed in Lu Wu Xie's eyes. "If it was truly important, why would it have fallen into your and my hands? It can only be said..."
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the elegant face of the woman opposite him, "...that it was once very important."
"It seems you know something," Zhong Li heard the implication in his words.
"Ge Meng and I can be considered acquaintances," Lu Wu Xie shrugged. "Twenty years ago, after he gave me half of this jade, he disappeared."
Twenty years ago?
Zhong Li's gaze swept over Lu Wu Xie's face. His complexion was like jade, his appearance refined, suggesting he had just passed his coming-of-age and was in the prime of his youth. Twenty years ago, would Ge Meng have given a jade he cherished as his life to a mere child, not even considered a toddler?
Lu Wu Xie, sensing her confusion, casually handed the jade pendant to Zhong Li. "Didn't he also give this jade pendant to your godfather?"
Upon hearing Lu Wu Xie mention Gai Chen again, a flicker of sadness crossed Zhong Li's eyes.
She reached out and took the jade pendant, her fingertips still faintly feeling the warmth left by the man opposite her when he gripped it.
"As far as I can remember, this jade pendant was always hung at my godfather's waist. Only on his deathbed did he give this to me, without leaving any words about the jade pendant," Zhong Li said after composing herself.
"Since you don't know the origin of this jade pendant, why were you so insistent on getting this half from this young prince?" Lu Wu Xie asked after a moment of thought.
Zhong Li remained silent.
Lu Wu Xie did not seem to be in a hurry. He casually drank the cup of water that Zhong Li had not touched and said, "Is it related to your godfather's death?"
Zhong Li, still lost in her own thoughts, heard him say this and replied without looking up, "My godfather died of a serious illness..."
"Judgment Brush," Lu Wu Xie casually dropped three words. His usually languid eyes had become sharp at some point, not leaving the delicate hand that tightly gripped the jade pendant.
"What did you say?" Finally, Zhong Li reacted. A moment of shock flickered in her usually calm eyes.
The instant Zhong Li looked up, Lu Wu Xie's face was once again graced with a frivolous, playful smile. "Jia Kun was once ambushed on the official road from Anding County to Jincheng. He sustained two scars. They were caused by the Judgment Brush, weren't they?"
Zhong Li did not answer, her gaze towards the man opposite her turning cold.
Lu Wu Xie raised his eyebrows, as if not seeing her reaction, and continued, "And your godfather, Gai Chen, died from this Judgment Brush..."
"What are you trying to say?" As he spoke, Zhong Li's face showed killing intent. She reached to her waist and in the next moment, a scalpel was pressed directly against Lu Wu Xie's nose.
"Did I guess right?" Lu Wu Xie glanced at the cold gleam in front of him, like a mischievous child who, having learned someone's secret, became increasingly excited.
"Lu Wu Xie," Zhong Li coldly uttered his name. "You can try saying more."
Lu Wu Xie clicked his tongue and shook his head. "The real culprit!"
Zhong Li remained silent, merely giving him a glare.
"I don't mind if you kill me," Lu Wu Xie said. "But..."
He paused, and as the scalpel's blade was about to graze his neck, his voice sharpened, "But you may never be able to avenge your godfather in this lifetime!"
"What do you mean?" Indeed, as soon as Lu Wu Xie finished speaking, Zhong Li's fingertips froze.
Lu Wu Xie blinked at her and slowly pushed Zhong Li's scalpel aside with his finger. He spoke a single, understated sentence, and the knife held between her fingers was completely thrown onto the carriage.
-------------------------------------
Three days later
Anding County Jail.
Zhong Li sat in a swivel chair in the interrogation room, looking at the man opposite her, who was on the verge of death after being tormented.
"Ma Su," she called out.
Ma Su, propped up on a wooden cross, had no intact places on his body from the beatings. Hearing his name, only his fingertips trembled slightly.
Seeing this, Zhong Li opened her portable box and took out a row of golden needles, walking towards Ma Su.
Before coming, she had anticipated that based on the crimes Ma Su had committed, he would likely be tortured half to death in the prison. Now, it seemed he truly had little time left.
However, he still had something to tell her, and she could not let him die for now.
Golden needles were inserted one by one into Ma Su's Baihui, Yintang, and Fengchi acupoints. As a basin of cold water poured down his head, Ma Su finally opened his eyes.
"It... it's you..." Ma Su's dry lips parted, his bloodshot eyes looking at Zhong Li.
"I'm asking you," Zhong Li said coldly. "A year ago, you hired someone to assassinate Jia Kun. Do you know that person who assassinated him? Who was that person?"