Chapter 206

Different from the pretty Xiao Jinling, the courtesan was a charming beauty. She glanced at Cheng Maoming as soon as she saw him.

Cheng Maoming's face turned serious. "There's a customer named Dou who often comes to see you. What's his name and who is he?"

The courtesan chuckled, "There are many patrons named Dou. I don't know which one you are talking about, sir."

Cheng Maoming slammed his sword on the table and said coldly, "Don't try to play tricks on me."

"grown ups--"

Cheng Maoming raised his eyebrows: "Or should I take you back to Jinlin Guard to ask?"

The courtesan cursed herself for being a blockhead, not daring to refuse. "There is a benefactor named Dou. I don't know his name, but every time I see him I call him Master Dou."

"You don't even know your identity or origin?"

"I do know his identity..." The courtesan pursed her lips and, though reluctant, revealed the man's identity. "He said he was the third master of the Dou family, and the prince was his nephew."

Cheng Maoming's expression changed slightly, and he thought to himself that any bad premonition was often correct.

"take away."

Following his order, two Jinlin Guards immediately stepped forward.

The courtesan's expression changed drastically: "Sir, I've already said it, why do you still want to go to Jinlin Guard?"

Cheng Maoming walked out while saying, "Anyone involved in the case must go to Jinlin Guard first..."

So the courtesan, Xiao Jinling, and the brothel owner were all invited to be guests at Jinlin Guard.

Cheng Maoming led his men straight to Ruyifang where the Dou Mansion was located.

The Dou Mansion was the maiden home of the late queen. The entire Dou clan lived around the Dou Mansion, occupying almost half of Ruyifang.

Dou San told others that the prince was his nephew, but in fact he was just a branch of the Dou family and was considered the cousin of the late queen.

After finding out Dou San's residence, Cheng Maoming knocked on the door.

"Is Master Dou San at home?"

The person who came out to receive them was a woman in her thirties, with ordinary looks and decent clothes. She was Dou San's wife.

After asking Cheng Maoming's identity, the woman hesitantly replied, "He's not here."

"Does Madam know where he is?"

The woman looked nervous: "I don't know, he went out early in the morning."

"If that's the case, then we'll just have to wait here." Cheng Maoming sat down leisurely. "When will your son come back from school? It'll be the same if we ask him then."

Upon hearing that the Jinlin Guards were looking for her precious son, the woman's face changed drastically. She made up her mind and told him where Dou San might be. "He spends most of his time there during the day. Perhaps you could go and check on him, sir."

Seeing Cheng Maoming leave, the woman's expression kept changing.

To be honest, she was really annoyed with that man. He was always away from home, treating her home like an inn, and his only use was to get money home.

Thinking of this usefulness, the woman hurriedly sent her maid to Dou's mansion to report the news.

Fortunately, Cheng Maoming found Dou San in the residence provided by the woman.

Because the doorman still tried to stop Cheng Maoming after he revealed his identity, he led his men straight in and saw several men sitting in a crooked manner, surrounded by beautiful women in cool clothes.

The room was littered with cups and the smell was foul.

"Who are you?" a thin middle-aged man asked angrily, scolding the servant who had chased in. "You bastard, how dare you be a gatekeeper!"

Cheng Maoming's eyes fell on the disc in the man's hand, and he calmed down before forcing his way in.

Gathering people to take Five-Color Powder was a crime alone. Not to mention that he broke into the place where the late queen's cousin was, even if he was the late queen's brother, the emperor would not blame him.

Reassured, he raised his badge to reveal his identity.

When the thin man heard this, his first reaction was to pounce on the container containing the five-colored powder. The others either ran towards the door or fell to the ground, shrinking in fear and holding their heads.

Without Cheng Maoming's orders, the subordinates he brought immediately controlled the few people.

The thin man shouted, "Do you know who I am? I'm the prince's uncle!"

"Cousin." Cheng Maoming corrected calmly.

Dou San's eyes widened: "Why don't you let me go!"

"If Master Dou San doesn't intend to destroy the evidence, then we can have a good talk." Cheng Maoming pointed at the Five-Colored Powder on the small table, signaling his subordinates to let go first.

Dou San's eyes flashed: "What do you mean by destroying evidence? Can't we just get together privately as friends?"

Cheng Maoming smiled and said, "Master Dou San, you wouldn't say that you don't know this is a prohibited item, right?"

Dou San's momentum faltered, and a flattering smile appeared on his face. He reached out and pulled the purse off and stuffed it into Cheng Maoming's hand: "We just wanted to try something new. We won't do it again in the future. I hope Master Cheng will be flexible."

Cheng Maoming pushed the purse away and said calmly, "I'm afraid it's not just for the sake of novelty, right?"

Dou San couldn't laugh anymore. "What do you mean, sir? Are you really not going to give me any respect at all?"

"Grand Commander, we have a discovery!" Two Jinlin Guards came in and placed two large jars in front of Cheng Maoming.

Even though Cheng Maoming was prepared, he couldn't help but gasp at this moment.

Are you planning to sell so much Five-Color Powder to everyone in the city?

"Master Dou San, are these also for fun?"

Dou San's expression changed again and again, and he had to give in. "Master Cheng, please understand. I'm the prince's uncle, but in reality, I'm just a side branch. I have no power or money, so I have to make a living to support my family..."

Cheng Maoming was too lazy to listen to this nonsense: "Do you know Hu Di?"

"Hu Di?" Dou San was slightly stunned, his eyes a little wandering.

Cheng Maoming reminded him coldly, "I came here because of this person."

Dou San's face changed when he heard this, and he gritted his teeth, "So it was this bastard who harmed me!"

Without waiting for Cheng Maoming to urge him, he blurted out, "He bought medicine from me two years ago. He didn't take much at once, but he kept giving me medicine until now..."

"When did Master Dou San start selling this?"

"Just over two years." Dou San said vaguely, perhaps because he was afraid that the charges would become more serious if he talked about it for too long, or because he was telling the truth.

Cheng Maoming didn't care much about this. He would ask the person clearly after bringing him back to Jinlinwei.

"Please come with me."

"Master Cheng, since you are looking for Hu Di, why bother me, a businessman—"

Cheng Maoming ignored the shouting and struggling of several people, walked out with his hands behind his back, and suddenly stopped after a few steps. He turned around and looked at Dou San who was controlled by his subordinates.

Something is wrong. Absolutely not.

The five-colored powder the prince took was purchased by a trusted eunuch from a pharmacy clerk named Hu Di, who in turn had gotten it from Dou San, a cousin of the late empress. In other words, the prince's five-colored powder came from someone on his maternal side.

But if the Dou family weren't stupid, they wouldn't encourage the prince to eat such things. And judging by Dou San's behavior, he obviously didn't know that the food Hu Di took from him had entered the prince's mouth.

Cheng Maoming touched his chin, and an idea became clear: Is this a trap set against the prince and his mother's family?