A moment later, Zhan Feiyu returned to the carriage, her gaze locking onto Steward Liu standing in the crowd through the window.
Compared to the anxiety of others, Steward Liu, though frequently wiping sweat from his brow, was noticeably calmer. He occasionally glanced at the gate of the detached residence, showing neither the guilt of a murderer nor the pride and arrogance of having defeated the Jinlong Guard.
Too much or too little! Zhan Feiyu's round face broke into a smile. Excessive calmness was the biggest flaw. Not to mention a mere steward, even a second-rank official like Lord Liu would fear the Jinlong Guard. Yet, Steward Liu remained composed!
Meanwhile, inside the detached residence, no matter how enraged Liu Jian was, the Jinlong Guard acted with such overbearing arrogance and unreasonableness. If he was unhappy, he could only suppress it!
Several times, Liu Jian wanted to question Yin Wuyan, asking if he was just going to be left waiting. However, Yin Wuyan's aura was too cold, and after much hesitation, Liu Jian still didn't speak.
Chong Guang searched the detached residence again, digging three feet into the ground. He then walked to the entrance of the main hall and said, "My lord, I have something to report."
Prince Yu, Prefect Zhang, Vice Prefect Tong, and others were also getting anxious. At this moment, they all looked towards Chong Guang outside the door. Had they found Zhou Wenquan's body?
Liu Jian's hand, holding a teacup, trembled violently. But in an instant, he regained his composure, lowered his head to drink his tea, concealing the fleeting unease in his eyes.
Only Gu Qingzhou remained calmly standing by the window, admiring the scenery outside.
"Seventh Master." Chong Guang glanced at the people inside with their varied expressions and reported in a low voice to Yin Wuyan, "The chubby girl intends to test the Liu family members..."
"Do as Xiao Yu says." Yin Wuyan's cold voice held no hesitation.
Although it was within expectations, Chong Guang couldn't help but mutter, "Seventh Master, why do you trust the chubby girl so much? Someone trusted by Liu Jian to handle a corpse wouldn't easily show a flaw."
Was this the saying that heroes fall for beauties? After the Jinlong Guard forcefully entered the detached residence last night, Seventh Master had already sent people to watch in secret. Every one of the more than thirty people standing outside, whose expressions were abnormal, were under their surveillance.
It had been two hours already. If they couldn't expose themselves at such a good opportunity last night, they wouldn't now!
Sensing the doubt and teasing in Chong Guang's words, Yin Wuyan, from beneath his silver mask, shot him a cold glare.
"Yes, your subordinate obeys!" Chong Guang, instantly subdued, quickly replied. With a flash, he was in the courtyard, heading straight for the main gate.
Standing outside under the scorching sun was indeed an ordeal, especially with constables armed with sabers nearby and royal guards not far away.
Chong Guang strode over, scanned the crowd, and his clear voice carried a hint of danger and cold-bloodedness, "Those whose names I call, step forward! Zhao Jia..."
Without any pause, Chong Guang rattled off nine names. The more than twenty people whose names were not called seemed to have escaped a disaster, their expressions instantly relaxing.
"These nine people step out. The rest can go about their business." Chong Guang waved his hand, signaling the remaining people to leave.
"This..." Although they wanted to leave, in this tense and dangerous atmosphere, no one dared to be the first to move. One step forward, and their heads could roll.
These people were truly timid! Chong Guang curled his lips, suddenly remembering how Zhan Feiyu had slit the throat of the Jade Faced Gentleman with a single stroke last year. Indeed, the chubby girl was more interesting.
His voice suddenly turned cold, and Chong Guang's gaze was so dangerous it made people's backs crawl, "What? Not leaving? Do you want to spend a few days in the yamen's prison?"
With a rush, the more than twenty people vanished. A few ran too hastily, falling on their faces, but they immediately got up and disappeared in a flash.
At this moment, the nine people whose names were called and who remained grew nervous. Fortunately, they were all Liu Jian's guards. Even when facing Chong Guang from the Jinlong Guard, the eight guards and Steward Liu remained relatively calm. They simply straightened their bodies instinctively, each in a state of defense.
Curling his lips into a smile, Chong Guang's sharp gaze swept over each of the nine people, "Alright, I won't waste words. The Jinlong Guard is looking for someone among you nine. Those whose names are called, step out, form a single file with three feet between each person. Every five steps, stop for twenty breaths. Starting from the main gate, walk around the entire detached residence before coming out."
"Whenever you pass a house, go in one by one. After closing the door, stay for fifty breaths before coming out."
Chong Guang's request was neither strange nor particularly unusual, but it was unfathomable. After his command, the nine people lined up in a single file, with Steward Liu standing in the middle.
Before Steward Liu had taken five steps and reached the main gate, he lowered his head and subtly glanced around.
The yamen constables, the royal guards, and Chong Guang himself did not follow, but Steward Liu knew that someone must be watching from the shadows.
One step, two steps... after five steps, the leading guard stopped. After twenty breaths, they continued to move. From the main gate to the front courtyard, even without anyone watching, they dared not disobey the Jinlong Guard's orders.
Was this meant to make him "confess without being accused"? Steward Liu, who had stopped, silently curled his lips. It seemed the Jinlong Guard was nothing special; they had run out of tricks.
Hiss! Suddenly, a chilling sensation came from the back of his right hand. Steward Liu was startled and abruptly raised his right arm.
The four people in front did not notice Steward Liu's sudden movement, but the four guards behind him were startled and looked at Steward Liu, who was usually the most composed, in confusion.
He touched the back of his right hand. Steward Liu felt it was still cold, but the guards were three feet away. Could he be suffering from heatstroke and hallucinating?
After another five steps, this time everything was normal. Steward Liu's uneasy heart slowly relaxed. Perhaps he had been too affected by the sun, and his mind was playing tricks on him.
But a moment later, the cold sensation returned to the back of his right hand. Steward Liu suddenly turned around as if a ghost were behind him.
The four guards standing behind Steward Liu stared at him, dumbfounded.
Panting heavily, Steward Liu clenched his fist. Under the corridor, besides the nine of them, there wasn't even a ghost.
This was impossible! Suppressing the fear and unease in his heart, Steward Liu stood properly again. If this had happened last night, he might have suspected the Jinlong Guard was playing tricks under the cover of darkness.
But in broad daylight, under the clear sky, with Liu family guards all around him... Steward Liu's expression changed several times, but he eventually calmed down.
Another five steps, and this time they entered a guest room. After closing the door, Steward Liu clenched his right fist. He looked around the room. It was just a guest room. Besides the closed wardrobe that could hide someone, the room was in plain sight.
"Ah!" Suddenly, Steward Liu felt something brush against the back of his left hand. The slippery sensation startled him into shouting.
He raised his hand and looked closely. On the back of his left hand, there was a trace of blood. The glaring red made Steward Liu tremble uncontrollably.
There's a ghost! Steward Liu quickly turned around, looked back, and then looked to his left and right. But in this room, besides him, there was no one else!
Looking at the bloodstain on the back of his hand, Steward Liu frantically wiped it with his sleeve until the back of his hand turned red and the bloodstain disappeared.
The other eight people also entered and exited the guest rooms one by one. To be honest, anyone with eyes could see that Steward Liu's emotions were not right, but they were all confused. Although the door was closed when each person went in, there was nothing in the guest room.
Half an hour later, looking at the room in front of him, Steward Liu's legs trembled. He finally took a step into the room and, after confirming no one was there, turned to close the door.
Leaning against the wall, Steward Liu extended his hands in front of him. One breath, two breaths... until fifty breaths passed, and finding no further abnormalities, Steward Liu wiped his face fiercely. If it weren't for the clear bloodstain on his sleeve, he would have truly believed that the previous strangeness was just his imagination.
He moved his right foot and felt like he had kicked something. Steward Liu looked down and saw a finger. There was dried blood at the severed end, and a small section of white bone was clearly visible.
Terrified, Steward Liu's lips trembled as he opened them, but no sound came out.
Confucius said to avoid strange tales of ghosts and spirits! Steward Liu closed his eyes, calmed his breathing, and opened them again. The finger was still in front of him.
Since no one was supervising him, Steward Liu clearly exceeded the time limit this time. The moment he stepped out, he looked back inside. He looked as if he had been struck by lightning; the finger had vanished into thin air.
When he entered the next room and saw the white soul-summoning banner hanging on the door bolt, Steward Liu's eyes were already somewhat dazed. Only when attending funerals or paying respects to the dead would a soul-summoning banner be fixed to a bamboo pole and planted in front of a grave.
Main Hall.
Liu Jian was getting impatient. He didn't know if Chong Guang's earlier visit to Yin Wuyan was due to a genuine discovery or a deliberate ruse, but over an hour had passed.
"Is Lord Liu hungry?" Prince Yu looked at the grim-faced Liu Jian with schadenfreude.
In fact, after sitting there for so long, Prince Yu was also restless. But seeing Liu Jian being tormented, Prince Yu suddenly felt a surge of comfort. He could sit for another ten days or half a month!
"Lord Yin brought people in before dawn. It's already a great kindness from heaven that this official wasn't sunburnt to death or starved to death!" Liu Jian's voice was filled with resentment. If it weren't for the Jinlong Guard's overly domineering and ruthless actions, Liu Jian would have long since lost his temper.
"When the Jinlong Guard investigates a case, everyone in the court can only cooperate. Lord Liu, please be understanding." Gu Qingzhou deflected with a light touch.
The body was hidden in this detached residence. Never mind waiting for a few hours, even waiting for three to five days. With the emperor so far away, Liu Jian could only endure it.
"Indeed, Lord Liu, please be patient. No matter how well the body is hidden, with the hot weather, the smell will likely spread in a few days." Prince Yu didn't mind mentioning the body anymore; everyone knew the situation.
...
Zhan Feiyu never expected her mediocre golden finger to help find a body. When she saw Steward Liu standing rigidly in place, his face ashen and devoid of color, not even daring to look up at the room, Zhan Feiyu guessed that the body was most likely hidden here.
This was a dilapidated small courtyard on the north side of the detached residence. It had three main rooms and two side rooms on either side. It was quite damaged, with sunlight visible through the roof.
"Chubby girl, honestly, what trick are you playing?" Chong Guang withdrew his gaze and looked at Zhan Feiyu standing beside him. He had followed the chubby girl's instructions and withdrawn the secretly monitoring personnel.
Of course, this order came from Yin Wuyan. Otherwise, Chong Guang wouldn't think his Seventh Master was blinded by lust! This arrangement by the chubby girl was clearly meant to expose Steward Liu, but withdrawing the monitoring personnel was contradictory.
Could it be that Steward Liu would have a crisis of conscience and cry out when he reached the place where the body was hidden? If he were so impatient, Liu Jian wouldn't have let him handle the corpse. Although the chubby girl had asked the constables to get a finger from the Yi Zhuang (mortuary).
But inexplicably, Steward Liu did show a flaw. The first four people went in, and Steward Liu tripped on the threshold with a bang, then scrambled out.
Although Chong Guang had followed orders and withdrawn the secretly monitoring personnel, he hadn't completely left. He was just far away, unable to hear or see, but Steward Liu was so scared he shouted about ghosts. Chong Guang immediately led his men over.
"Heaven's secrets cannot be revealed." Zhan Feiyu smiled mysteriously. Glancing at a group of people walking towards them, she quickly moved aside.
Prince Yu's movements were swift and powerful. In a few steps, he reached the gate of the detached residence, "It's here? The body was found?"
"Replying to Your Highness, the place where the body is hidden is in this small courtyard, but the specific location hasn't been found yet." Chong Guang replied, then looked at Liu Jian. He saw that Liu Jian's expression was still grim and unpleasant, but there was no sign of panic. Either it was hidden extremely well, or the body wasn't hidden here, which was why Liu Jian was so calm.
"The Jinlong Guard has searched several times, and not a single body has been found? Lord Yin previously said he was pursuing a fugitive, and now he's looking for an unidentified corpse. The Jinlong Guard's investigation methods are truly admirable." His tone was filled with sarcasm. Liu Jian looked through the moon gate at the dilapidated small courtyard, "A body is not a small thing; it can't just be hidden in any hole."
Zhou Wenquan was thin, but he was an adult man. Hiding his body was not easy, especially since the detached residence had been under surveillance by Prince Yu's guards. Hiding a body would be even more difficult.
Liu Jian had considered dismembering the body, boiling it, and then disposing of it. But even so, there would still be many bones, and how to hide these bones?
Furthermore, steaming and boiling would require a kitchen. The servants in the detached residence were sent by Vice Prefect Tong and were not Liu Jian's confidantes. Liu Jian didn't trust them to handle the corpse.
But if he moved the kitchen staff away and had Liu Jian's guards work in the kitchen, the Jinlong Guard only needed to interrogate a servant to find out what was unusual.
Therefore, Liu Jian himself didn't know how the body was ultimately disposed of. He deliberately didn't ask, which was also to avoid showing any flaws when confronting Prince Yu and the Jinlong Guard. Otherwise, Liu Jian would not be so calm right now.
Gu Qingzhou pretended to be angry and looked at Zhan Feiyu standing beside him, "Didn't I tell you to stay in the carriage and read? Why did you come over?"
His young disciple was quite bold, but after all, she was only eight years old. If the body was found, Gu Qingzhou was worried Zhan Feiyu would be scared.
"Teacher, I was getting a bit bored." Zhan Feiyu smiled fawningly and stood obediently beside Gu Qingzhou, "I'll just stand outside, I promise not to go in."
The chubby girl was quite good at pretending! Chong Guang heard the conversation between the master and disciple behind him and was about to turn around to expose Zhan Feiyu, but unfortunately, Yin Wuyan shot him a warning glance, and Chong Guang immediately became as obedient as a quail.