In the entire Nan Yue Kingdom, the common folk might not know about court politics or recent gossip, but there was one person they all knew, whether they wanted to or not: Lu Wuxie, the heir to the Xian Prince's manor, who flitted through romantic entanglements without a scratch, throwing the nation's moral compass into disarray.
"I heard the Xian Prince's heir is quite busy in Jin Cheng. How could he possibly have the leisure to visit this so-called distant cousin?" Zhong Li asked, unable to conceal her curiosity.
When questioned by Magistrate Zhang, he found an opening to speak. With a secretive, gossipy expression, he raised his eyebrows and said, "Miss Zhong is of a quiet disposition, so it's understandable you wouldn't know the rumors in An Ding County. They say... this Xie Xiaoyun was originally to be married to the heir as an additional concubine.
Even the Xian Princess herself almost sent her to the heir's bedchamber with an eight-bearer sedan chair. But guess what happened?"
Zhong Li remained silent, continuing to clean the female corpse before her, but her mind had already reached a conclusion.
Seeing no response from the other person, Magistrate Zhang continued on his own, "The heir discovered this and threw Xie Xiaoyun out of the manor from his bed on the spot. This... the Xie family felt they had lost face, but dared not offend the Xian Prince's manor, so they settled for marrying her into the Jia family."
Hearing this, Zhong Li finally understood. So Xie Xiaoyun once had a 'fleeting romance' with Lu Wuxie? And now Lu Wuxie's visit was likely out of consideration for spurning the Xie family back then, to lend them support?
"Magistrate Zhang, rest assured! As long as the silver is in place, these are not problems." With that, she fell silent and resumed her work.
Reassured, Magistrate Zhang's worried heart finally relaxed. After all, he would need to interact with the Xian Prince's manor more when he took up his official post in Jin Cheng. If he could earn the young heir's admiration today, it would certainly be a good thing.
Seeing that the person opposite him no longer spoke, he turned and left the autopsy room.
The fine rain outside continued to fall, pattering crisply against the oiled paper windows.
As a gust of cool wind blew into the room through the gaps, Zhong Li finally stopped her movements, her eyes widening in surprise as she looked at the lower half of the female corpse.
How could this be?
She held her breath, her gloved hands lifting Xie Xiaoyun's peony-embroidered skirt. Between her legs, she gently pulled out a small, infant-shaped form with a large head and a small body. It was post-mortem delivery.
Following the light filtering through the window, Zhong Li looked at the infant in her hands. If her assessment was correct, the child should be around four months old. However, she had clearly reviewed Xie Xiaoyun's case file before coming, and it did not describe her as being pregnant at all.
Could there be hidden circumstances to this case?
With this thought, she furrowed her brow and continued her work.
Aside from damage to her face, Xie Xiaoyun's fatal wound was on her left back, at the second rib. The wound was wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, penetrating about two inches into the bone. As for the murder weapon, the case file also stated it was a common dagger.
According to this deduction, the killer should have been taller than Xie Xiaoyun and stabbed her from behind, from top to bottom. Therefore...
She turned her gaze to Jia Kun's corpse, covered by a white cloth. Visually estimating, Xie Xiaoyun was about five feet three inches tall, and Jia Kun was about six feet. Coupled with the specific descriptions in the earlier case file, as well as the time and location of the incident, he was fully capable of killing Xie Xiaoyun.
But what was Jia Kun's motive for killing Xie Xiaoyun?
Was it merely because of the few words in the case file: "Xie Xiaoyun and Jia Kun did not get along due to the age difference?"
As Zhong Li pondered this, she quickly dismissed the idea. While the reason seemed plausible at first glance, it did not hold up to scrutiny. After all, Jia Kun had previously divorced his first wife due to her childlessness and then married Xie Xiaoyun. Now that Xie Xiaoyun was pregnant, why would Jia Kun want to kill her?
In the eyes of ancient people, having descendants was far more important than life itself.
So, could the problem lie with Jia Kun?
Zhong Li covered Xie Xiaoyun's body with the white cloth and walked over to Jia Kun's corpse.
The sheet slid down gracefully with her movement.
A stiff, mottled male corpse was thus presented before her.
Zhong Li quickly scanned Jia Kun's face. His eyes were closed, his lips and teeth were black and red, his teeth were clenched, and his tongue pressed against his teeth without protruding. Based on the marks on Jia Kun's neck, this was a typical case of hanging, where the rope would have been above the Adam's apple.
To be sure, she slowly pulled aside Jia Kun's clothes and began to examine other parts of his body.
The condition of Jia Kun's body this time showed no discrepancies with the previous case file. There were no external wounds, and all aspects indeed seemed consistent with suicide. However...
Zhong Li's gaze fell on the healed, protruding flesh lumps on the victim's left and right shoulder blades. They were regular, round shapes, about the size of an index finger.
Seeing this, her heart skipped a beat. Her fingertips quickly pressed and stroked these two lumps. As she had suspected, these were injuries sustained by the deceased during his lifetime, affecting the meridians and touching the marrow. And the only thing capable of inflicting such wounds with such precise control over force was that person, and the Judge's Brush he wielded.
She had stayed in An Ding County for so long, repairing so many corpses, and finally, by Heaven's grace, she had found a clue.
Zhong Li looked at Jia Kun's corpse, then shifted her gaze back to Xie Xiaoyun's. Although she could not be certain whether their deaths were related to the person she had been searching for, she was determined to thoroughly investigate this case. Perhaps she could find the answer she was looking for.
For instance... the death of her adoptive father, Gai Chen.
With this thought, Zhong Li quickly took a piece of Xuan paper from her box, wrote a new autopsy report, covered the corpse with the white cloth, and hurried out of the autopsy room.
Meanwhile, Magistrate Zhang sat in the main hall, leisurely sipping his tea, already organizing the flattering remarks he would use when he met Lu Wuxie.
"Magistrate Zhang." Zhong Li interrupted his reverie with the autopsy report.
Startled by the interruption, Magistrate Zhang's face showed a clear hint of impatience. He was about to scold whoever had disturbed his pleasant thoughts when Advisor Diao came running from the yamen entrance.
"Sir, sir, quickly! Quickly, they're here, they're here!"
Magistrate Zhang was startled again. He glared furiously at Advisor Diao, who was panting beside him, and reprimanded, "Who is here? What are you blabbering about? As an advisor, can't you be more composed? What important person has made you lose your decorum like this?"
Advisor Diao, at this moment, had no regard for Magistrate Zhang's mood. He slapped his chest and panted, "Sir... Young Heir Lu, has arrived."
Upon hearing that Lu Wuxie had arrived.
Magistrate Zhang visibly stiffened. He quickly stood up, brushing off the dust from his official robe, and prepared to walk to the yamen entrance to greet him, only to see a figure gradually appearing before everyone's eyes.
A cloak embroidered with green patterns draped loosely over his body, a tall and slender frame, a straight chest, and a glimpse of his fair white neck instantly conveyed an air of noble youthfulness that could not be profaned. However, when people's gazes moved upwards to the subject's face.
On that handsome face, which could have captivated the world, there was a playful, cynical smile. Coupled with the man's swaggering gait and the tiger-patterned jade pendant swaying at his waist as he walked, his reputation as the foremost dandy of the Nan Yue Kingdom was truly displayed to its fullest extent.
"Young Heir, you have traveled a long distance. This subordinate regrets not coming to meet you. I beg your forgiveness." Magistrate Zhang was the quickest to react. He quickly stepped forward, took the oiled paper umbrella from the young attendant following Lu Wuxie, cupped his hands in a bow, and apologized.
Lu Wuxie raised an eyebrow, cast a casual glance at Magistrate Zhang, lifted his robe, and strode into the hall. He slumped lazily onto a chair, his gaze inadvertently falling on the clear tea placed on the table, followed by a playful smile.
Seeing his expression, Magistrate Zhang felt as taut as a drawn arrow. He stepped forward, picked up the tea from the table, and thrust it into the hands of the advisor beside him, saying, "Quickly, go get the Young Heir the finest Biluochun!"
"Yes, yes!" Advisor Diao, not even minding the tea stains splashed on him, turned and rushed towards the kitchen.
"Young Heir, this tea is what I usually drink. You certainly deserve new tea. The advisor is fetching it now, please wait a moment," Magistrate Zhang said, still with a fawning smile.
Lu Wuxie propped his head to the side, yawned, and waved his hand, "Never mind. You know why this Young Heir is here today, Magistrate Zhang. Do you have my cousin's file? Bring it here, let me take a look. Let's finish this quickly. This Young Heir is waiting to return to Jin Cheng to catch up with Miss Lian Xue."
When Magistrate Zhang heard Lu Wuxie asking about this matter immediately upon arrival, he nodded and bowed repeatedly, "Good, good, this subordinate will go and get it for you right away."
With that, Magistrate Zhang turned to leave.
"Wait." Upon entering, Lu Wuxie had already noticed the woman standing in the corner, dressed in plain attire with a silk kerchief covering her face. After all, a young girl with a strange object on her face was too eye-catching.
Initially, he thought she was a servant bringing tea. It wasn't until Advisor Diao took the tea and retreated that he smelled the faint scent of vinegar emanating from her and the object in her hand. He then stood up, regardless of the girl's reaction, and snatched the case file and autopsy report from her hand, saying:
"Fragrant blossoms carry jade, a scroll of gold, a whiff of lovesickness scented with medicine."