“I suspect this assassination attempt using a siege crossbow is related to the case we are investigating.” At this moment, a calm voice came from the side. It turned out that Xiao Jianren had come out after hearing the news.

"Oh?" Zuan was a little curious and wanted to hear what he could analyze.

Xiao Jianren said, "Last time, the boss asked me to investigate which of these nobles in the capital might be keeping a master who could kill casino owners silently."

"I went through all the files in the embroidered tower and found that although there weren't many such people, there weren't a few either. Almost all the high-ranking officials and nobles kept some foreigners as their subordinates. However, after eliminating some people who were obviously not related to this case, I found that there was a woman named Jia Sili among the guests of the Shi family. She came from the mysterious southern border and was proficient in the art of spirit summoning. It would be very easy for her to kill a casino owner silently."

"In addition to the siege crossbows that appeared this time, as well as those suicide soldiers, they all came from the army. Back then, Shi Miao, the head of the Shi family, also climbed to this position through military merit. Now his third son, Shi Tong, is the captain of the Archers in the six major camps of the capital. I suspect that those suicide soldiers came from the Shi family."

"Moreover, the crime scene this time was at Xinrui's mother's house. What a coincidence that everything could be connected to the Shi family and the case we were investigating. So I suspect that the Shi family was behind the plot to frame the Crown Princess. I just don't know who they were targeting this time."

Zuan laughed heartily: "Not bad, very good analysis, almost exactly the same as the facts."

Xiao Jianren smiled bitterly, "It's a pity that all of this is just speculation. We have no evidence, and the Shi family can simply deny it. Whether it's the siege crossbow or those assassins, the Shi family can easily claim that it has nothing to do with them. Although the Grand Commander is investigating the identities of those people, since they are assassins, it's most likely that he won't be able to find out."

Dai Laoqi and Chen Laoba, who were standing to the side, also sighed in unison. They had been investigating this case for so long, and just when they were about to find out the truth, they had no evidence.

If it were anyone else, they could have simply arrested them and tortured them to extract a confession. But the Shi family was no ordinary family. The head of the family, Shi Miao, was one of the eight most respected dukes in the Great Zhou Dynasty, and his sons were all top-ranking nobles in the court.

The eldest son died young, so we won't go into details. The second son, Shi Qiao, was a secretary in the Ministry of Personnel. The third son, Shi Tong, was a captain in the Archery Corps, one of the six major field armies. The fourth son, Shi Jun, was a vice minister in the Ministry of Personnel. The fifth son, Shi Jun, was a prefect of a prefecture. The most useless son was probably the sixth son, Shi Kun, but he was also a retainer of the crown prince before.

Therefore, the Shi family was a truly prestigious and influential family, one of the top families in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty. In addition, they also held a pardon from death, making it difficult for the Embroidered-Robed Envoy to make a move against them.

Seeing the group's dejected expressions, Zuan smiled and said, "Don't worry, I have evidence. I'll go see the Grand Commander first."

Watching him leave, Xiao Jianren and the others exchanged bewildered glances.

"We used the entire embroidery workshop's resources and still couldn't find any evidence, but the boss found it just by going out for a short while?"

"Our boss is truly unfathomable!"

"Truly awe-inspiring!"

...

Zu An arrived at Zhu Xie Chixin's office and found him throwing a tantrum at his subordinates. It turned out that after investigating for half a day, they found that none of the assassins left at the scene were listed in the military's records. In fact, no matter what official records they were looking for, they couldn't find any trace of these people.

"How could so many people appear out of thin air? Even if they were assassins, they must have left traces in the capital over the years. How can you tell me you can't find any?" Zhu Xie Chixin roared angrily.

The person below replied tremblingly, "It might take a little more time; perhaps we can find something out."

"Maybe, perhaps?" Hearing such words, Zhu Xiechixin became even more furious. "The Emperor is pressing us so hard now, how can we possibly have any time!"

The group fell silent, trembling with fear. Zu An coughed lightly and said, "Commander, I do have a lead."

"Oh?" Zhu Xie Chixin was startled when he saw him, but then delighted. "Do you have any clues?"

Looking at his appearance, Zaun was somewhat dazed. Back in Jasley's illusion, he had fought him to the death. However, he quickly came to his senses: "There are some things I need to say to the Grand Commander in private."

Zhu Xiechi knew his special status, so he waved his hand, signaling the others to leave first.

When those people left, they were all feeling both relieved and envious. They were relieved that they would finally not have to face the president's anger, and they were envious because this Gold Medal Eleven had just arrived and seemed to be very favored by the president, chatting with him privately all the time.

After only the two of them remained in the room, Zu'an said, "The person those assassins were trying to kill was actually me."

Zhu Xiechi was startled and hurriedly asked, "What exactly happened?"

Zu'an then recounted what had happened that day, omitting details about Yun Yuqing: "Later, I fled all the way, and those experts relentlessly pursued me."

"The Shi family has some nerve!" Zhu Xiechi slammed his fist on the table in anger, shattering the fine pear wood desk into pieces. "Judging from your description, those three experts should be Bu Zhou with the Golden and Silver Rings, Luo Xin with the White Horse and Red Spear, and Yuan Fu with the Three Hammers. They are all renowned warriors in the army, having fought alongside Shi Miao in numerous battles and made many contributions. It's truly remarkable that you managed to escape from their combined attack. Unfortunately, we have no evidence. Even if we go to their doorstep, the Shi family will not admit it."

“Who said there’s no evidence?” Zuan said with a strange expression, clapping his hands to signal the people outside to come in.

Upon seeing the three corpses carried in on stretchers, Zhu Xiechi's eyes nearly popped out of his head in shock: "It's them..."

----

I've been revising previous chapters these past few days, so updates might be unstable. This is the only chapter today.

Sigh, I've tried my best to avoid detailed descriptions in this book, glossing over almost all the relevant plot points, often just an ellipsis and "I don't know how much time has passed" before the next day arrives. I was worried about following in the footsteps of this book, but I didn't expect it still wouldn't work...

Does this mean couples can't be intimate with each other? Even if I don't describe it in any specific way, do they have to be virgins from beginning to end?

Actually, the policies from above aren't that strict at all, but some people insist on creating this kind of atmosphere. I'm speechless.