Chapter 146 Clues

Xie Wuqi actually pointed it out directly!

No more beating around the bush, no more dodging, just laying it out in the open.

Pei Ji's eyes suddenly darkened, and the knuckles of his fingers holding the teacup turned slightly white.

He didn't expect Xie Wuqi to be so direct, which disrupted his preset pace.

"Rest assured?" Pei Ji's voice grew colder. "Master Xie, what do you think makes me feel uneasy?"

Xie Wuqi smiled, a hint of mockery in his smile. "That's something you'll have to ask yourself, Brother Pei. Is it because you lack confidence in yourself, or do you lack trust in Sister Zhaohan?"

These words were like a needle, accurately piercing the most secret and most unwilling to admit corner of Pei Ji's heart.

He certainly didn't have a deep trust in Luo Zhaohan. Their marriage was a family alliance, and their time together was limited. Luo Zhaohan, with her aloof temperament, always maintained a polite yet distant distance towards him.

Instead, it was this seemingly unreliable man in front of her who occupied a large part of her memories and emotions from her childhood and adolescence.

Pei Ji's face darkened completely, and the aura of pressure from being in a superior position for a long time around him no longer subsided, but spread out in strands, and the air on the table seemed to become heavy.

"Xie Wuqi," he called him by his full name for the first time, his voice cold, "Watch your words."

"My words are very clear." Xie Wuqi met his gaze without fear, "Pei Ji, I don't care whether you asked me out today to test me or to give me a warning. I only want to tell you one thing -"

"Since Luo Zhaohan has chosen you and agreed to this marriage, given her personality, she will definitely not waver. If you have any doubts, you are insulting her and looking down on me, Xie Wuqi."

"As for me," he stood up and looked down at Pei Ji who was still sitting. His eyes returned to that lazy, yet distant look. "Where I am and how long I stay is my business. Sir Pei, don't worry about it. I can stay in Jiangzhou if I want to, and I can leave naturally if I want to."

After saying this, he no longer looked at Pei Ji's face which had turned extremely ugly in an instant. He raised his hand and drank the completely cold cup of tea on the table in one gulp, as if he was drinking wine with a heroic spirit, but with a sense of determination.

"I've finished my tea. Thank you, Master Pei, for your hospitality." He placed the empty cup on the table with a crisp sound. "Goodbye."

Turning around, he went downstairs. A cyan robe flashed around the corner of the stairs.

Tap, tap, tap... the footsteps gradually faded away and finally disappeared.

Pei Ji was the only one left in the elegant seat by the window on the second floor.

He still maintained an upright sitting posture, his back straight, his face ashen, and his eyes so sinister that water could drip out of them.

There were two cups of tea on the table, one full and cold, the other empty.

The sun is shining outside the window, the river is still sparkling, and the streets are as bustling as usual.

But Pei Ji only felt a lump of depression in his chest, which he could neither spit out nor swallow.

Xie Wuqi's last few words were like a slap in the face, burning with pain.

Did he really look down on Luo Zhaohan? And did he also look down on Xie Wuqi?

No.

Pei Ji clenched his fists suddenly, and his joints made a slight crisp sound.

He would never let anyone or anything disrupt this established marriage or shake what he had believed in.

Xie Wuqi...

Let’s wait and see.

…

The next day.

Dali Temple.

Xie Wuqi raised his eyebrows when he saw that Pei Ji did not look surprised when he saw him.

"Master Pei doesn't seem surprised to see me. Where is your fiancée Luo Zhaohan?"

Xie Wuqi asked directly, with a teasing glint in his peach blossom eyes. He just stared at Pei Ji, as if trying to draw some interesting expression from his face.

But what about Pei Ji? He was known in the capital as the King of Hell with a cold face, but his handsome face was still as smooth as a piece of fine jade, without a single crack.

He even had the leisure to raise his hand and slowly brush away the non-existent dust on the sleeves of his official robe.

"Thank you, young marquis, for your good mood," Pei Ji said, his voice as steady as the surface of a frozen lake, without a single ripple. "In the dead of night, with the rain pouring and the wind gusting, why don't you stay in your peaceful place, but come to watch the fun in this dangerous place where I'm handling a case?"

He avoided the main point and didn't respond to Luo Zhaohan's remarks at all.

Xie Wuqi chuckled in his heart, knowing that this guy was not so easy to deal with.

He simply stopped walking and strolled forward two steps. His boots made a slight sound as they stepped on the wet bluestone floor.

Looking around the messy courtyard, the officials from the Dali Temple were holding torches, and the rain hit the flames, making a crackling sound, casting bright and dark shadows on everyone's face.

"Master Pei, what you said is a bit too formal, isn't it?" Xie Wuqi smiled, his whole body exuding the carefree spirit of a dandy. "After all, we are friends who robbed bird nests together when we were young. I heard that your future wife was in trouble, so I came here specially to show my concern!"

His eyes were like hooks, and he wanted to see if Pei Ji could hold on.

Pei Ji finally lifted his eyelids and looked him straight in the eye. His eyes were very deep, like two ancient wells, dark and bottomless.

"Thank you for your concern, young marquis. However, this is official business for the Dali Temple, so it would be best for you to avoid suspicion. It's late at night and the rain is heavy, please go back."

Are you ordering me to leave?

Xie Wuqi's curiosity grew even more excited. The more Pei Ji was so careful, the more he felt that there was something wrong, and it was a big deal!

Even though he hadn't seen Luo Zhaohan in years, they'd played in the mud together as kids, not to mention she was now Pei Ji's fiancée. With the man missing and the situation in such chaos, how could Pei Ji still sit back and relax? He was kidding!

"Avoid suspicion? What suspicion should I avoid?" Xie Wuqi simply acted like a rogue, crossed his arms over his chest, and leaned against a leaning tree next to him.

"Who in this capital doesn't know that I, Xie Wuqi, am just an idler who lives a life of idleness and waits for death? I have no fame and no real power, and all I have left is a kind heart. Lord Pei, tell me, what happened? Why did the little girl from the Luo family disappear? Was she robbed or kidnapped? Do you need help finding her? Don't hesitate!"

He asked a lot of questions, but his eyes kept glancing towards the room.

There was a big hole in the window and the door was tilted to one side. It was pitch black inside. In the light of the torches outside, I could see that the tables, chairs and benches were scattered on the ground, making it a mess.

Pei Ji frowned, as if he was at a loss as to how to deal with the stubborn plaster that Xie Wuqi was sticking to his head.

"Miss Luo's maid came to report to the police in the evening, saying that Miss Luo had disappeared since the afternoon, and there were signs of a struggle in the room." Pei Ji finally spoke, but his words were dry and without any emotion. "I am investigating the scene and searching for clues."

"Traces of fighting?" Xie Wuqi caught the word and raised his eyebrows even higher. "Luo Zhaohan has that kind of personality. Could she possibly fight with someone? She's not..."

He paused mid-sentence.

The always quiet little girl in his memory certainly didn't look like someone who would fight. But Xie Wuqi still remembered a bit of the stubbornness hidden in her eyes when she occasionally looked up at someone.

"People will change." Pei Ji said lightly, as if answering his unanswered questions, or as if stating a fact.

He turned away from Xie Wuqi and instructed an old official wearing a coroner's uniform, "Carefully examine the pry marks on the doors and windows, as well as the debris on the ground, to see if there is anything that doesn't belong in this room."

"Yes, sir." The old official bowed quickly in response.

Xie Wuqi touched his chin, his eyes rolling around.

Pei Ji's attitude was completely off. His fiancée had disappeared, her life or death uncertain, and yet here he was, meticulously investigating the case, as calmly as if he were handling anyone else's.

Even though Pei Ji was born with a cold and unemotional personality, this was still too...

Unless, he knew something? Or, he anticipated what would happen?

"Pei Ji," Xie Wuqi suddenly changed his address, his tone becoming more serious, no longer so carefree. "Tell me honestly, have you offended someone? Did they kidnap your fiancée and come to cause trouble for you?"

This is the most reasonable explanation he can think of at the moment.

Pei Ji, the Minister of the Dali Temple, was in charge of the trial of criminal cases. The corrupt officials and bandits he had arrested were so numerous that they could circle the imperial city, and his enemies were probably lined up from the south to the north of the city.

It's very likely that someone kidnapped his fiancée as revenge.

Pei Ji paused while checking the traces on the ground without looking back.

"I can't rule it out," he replied cautiously, "but everything still requires evidence."

"Evidence, evidence. By the time you find the evidence, it will be too late!" Xie Wuqi was a little anxious. Although he looked unruly, he was still loyal.

Luo Zhaohan is at least his childhood friend.

"Don't you have any clues? Like, have you received any blackmail letters? Or have you handled a difficult case recently, and the other party is threatening to make you suffer?"

Pei Ji finally stood up and turned to look at him. Under the flickering firelight, his eyes were full of complexity.

"Xie Wuqi, this matter is not as simple as you think. You..."

Before he could finish his words, a guard suddenly ran in hurriedly from outside the courtyard. He was soaked and didn't even bother to greet him. He leaned close to Pei Ji's ear and whispered a few words urgently.

Pei Ji's face darkened almost instantly. Although the change was extremely subtle, Xie Wuqi was a very smart person and caught it immediately.

"Where is it?" Pei Ji asked in a deep voice.

"It's... next to the garbage dump in the back alley..." The guard's voice trembled a little, as if he had seen something terrible, "But my lord... only has clothes and..."

The rest of the words were so low that Xie Wuqi couldn't hear them clearly even though he pricked up his ears. But he saw Pei Ji's fist clenched suddenly, and the veins on the back of his hand were stretched out.

There's a way! They must have found something! And it's something extremely bad!

"Lead the way." Pei Ji squeezed out two words from between his teeth, and no longer cared about Xie Wuqi. He raised his foot and followed the guard out.

How could Xie Wuqi miss such a lively scene? He immediately followed and said, "Hey, hey, wait for me! There is strength in numbers. I want to go and take a look too!"

Pei Ji didn't stop, but he didn't say anything to stop him, which was considered as his consent.

Xie Wuqi became more certain of his guess. There was definitely something wrong with Pei Ji's reaction!

The two of them walked out of the yard quickly, one in front and one behind, and turned into a narrower and darker alley next to it.

The place was filled with a foul, sour smell of garbage and rainwater.

Several officials from the Dali Temple were gathered together. The light from the torches illuminated a small area. Their faces did not look good, and were even a little pale.

Seeing Pei Ji coming, the officers automatically made way for him.

Xie Wuqi squeezed over to take a look, and his heart skipped a beat.

It was a haphazard heap of garbage, swollen with rainwater.

Next to the garbage dump, on the wet ground, there was a pile of women's clothes scattered, including a water-green silk top, a moon-white pleated skirt, and a mauve embroidered bodice.

The clothes were torn to shreds, covered in mud, and even had some dark spots on them.

Next to the clothes, there was a broken jade hairpin thrown there, which was exactly the style popular among the young ladies in Beijing at that time.

Xie Wuqi's heart sank. This scene was too easy to bring up bad associations.

Rape? Murder? First the other?

He suddenly turned his head to look at Pei Ji.

Pei Ji just stood there, motionless, staring at the pile of clothes and hairpins. The firelight shone on his face, flickering, making his entire face look like he was wearing an expressionless mask.

But Xie Wuqi was close enough to see the storm surging deep in his eyes, and his tightly pursed lips, so pale that there was not a trace of blood.

The only sounds around were the patter of rain and the crackling of burning torches. The atmosphere was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

After a long while, Pei Ji squatted down and stretched out his hand, as if he wanted to touch the broken jade hairpin.

His fingers paused in the air for a long time, and finally did not fall, but just hung there, trembling slightly.

Xie Wuqi looked at his back and suddenly felt that this guy was not as cold and hard as a stone.

At least at this moment, the sadness and anger emanating from him were real.

"Are you sure these are Miss Luo's clothes?" Pei Ji's voice sounded, very hoarse, as if it had been rubbed with sandpaper.

An officer who looked like the leader nearby replied with a stiff face, "Sir, Miss Luo's personal maid has been asked to identify them... She confirmed that the dress and hairpin are indeed what the young lady is wearing today..."

The words almost sealed the matter. A dead silence fell all around, with only the sound of the falling rain becoming louder, pounding on everyone's heart with a chill.

Xie Wuqi licked his dry lips, and he couldn't describe the feeling in his heart.

Although he always got into conflicts with Pei Ji and was often scolded by him when he was a child, and even when he grew up he couldn't stand his always stern look, but Luo Zhaohan... that girl actually had nothing wrong with her.

She was a bit dull, and a bit prim and reserved when she was little, but she was truly beautiful, like a jade sculpture. If she had truly died, and died so miserably...

He was cursing in his heart when he suddenly noticed something wrong.

Pei Ji squatted there, as if carefully examining the mud around the clothes? He even carefully pushed aside the garbage, as if searching for something.

Huh? This reaction doesn't seem like pure grief or anger. It's more like he's trying to confirm something.

Xie Wuqi couldn't help but move closer and squinted his eyes to look carefully.

The location where the pile of clothes was thrown was indeed a bit coincidental. It happened to be in the depression formed by the garbage dump and the corner of the wall. Although it was washed away by rain, some traces were still faintly visible.