Chapter 29 Double Confusion (09) Why are you all wet? ...

The official, surnamed Chu, was not tall and somewhat hunched over. He wore a black satin hat, a silk robe, and silk shoes. His small, squinting eyes revealed a cunning and shrewdness as he stared at the three men suspiciously. "And you gentlemen are—"

Xu Bai bowed slightly and said, "We are from the Jiangning County government. We have a few questions we would like to ask Master Chu. Is it convenient for you?"

"I'm just an outsider, and I don't seem to have any connection with your county government. Why are you asking me?" He was suspicious, but he still invited the three of them back to the private room and sent the man with him to instruct the waiter to change the food and drinks.

This man must have seen a lot of the world, and he wasn't afraid of the officials. He sat in his chair with his legs crossed and his back slightly leaning against the backrest. He tossed a jade tortoise-shaped hand-held piece from his left hand to his right and then from his right hand to his left, displaying a completely carefree and composed demeanor.

Xu Bai looked at him for a moment and smiled, "Is Master Chu from Shu? Have you come to Nanjing to visit relatives and friends, or to do business?"

Master Chu put his legs down, smiled and nodded, "Yes, I have everything. Is there anything that's hindering the official business of the government?"

"No. Is the deal that Master Chu wants to discuss related to Master Li's lychee orchard?"

Upon hearing this, Master Chu laughed twice. “I think I guessed it. You’ve come here because of the murder case at Liyuan Garden, sir. You’ve asked the wrong person. I’m just a stranger here, new to your esteemed land. I don’t even know the name of the person who died at Liyuan Garden. Asking me is just a waste of time.”

"How did that official know that someone had died at the Lychee Garden?"

"What's wrong with that? If I want to buy that garden, I'll naturally try to find out about it. Is that unreasonable?"

Xu Bai smiled and shook his head, "It's not an exaggeration, it's not an exaggeration."

Seeing that he was dressed in fine clothes and had an extraordinary demeanor, with male and female attendants standing behind him, Master Chu suspected that he was not an ordinary minor official, so he asked, "May I ask what official position you hold in the county government?"

"Just a minor county magistrate."

"So you're a gentleman." He casually bowed on the table, showing little respect. "May I ask your honorable name?"

Xu Bai wasn't surprised, "His surname is Qi."

Chu Da Guanren's expression changed slightly, and he looked Xu Bai up and down. "Is this the residence of Master Qi Kui, one of the top three scholars back then?"

That's my grandfather.

The official, surnamed Chu, quickly stood up, bowed, and revealed his name: Chu Fengchun.

Just then, the waiter came to serve the new dishes. Chu Fengchun glanced at them and saw that they were just a few ordinary dishes. He scolded the waiter for his poor taste and ordered a crab soup, a roast duck, two catties of three-year-old ham, lotus-scented six delicacies, and bird's nest and autumn pear stewed pigeon. Unexpectedly, the waiter stared blankly and said that they didn't have them.

Chu Fengchun sat down again, placed the jade tortoise in his hand on the table, and bowed to Xu Bai to apologize, "We met hastily today, so please make do, Lord Qi. We will go to Baiyulou to offer a grand feast another day."

"I cannot accept such a reward without merit. You are too kind, sir." Xu Bai glanced at the jade tortoise, which was turned upwards and seemed to have the character "Shao" engraved on it. He lowered his eyelids slightly, thinking about something.

The two of them immediately began exchanging polite greetings. Jiu Li, standing to the side, grew impatient with these tedious formalities. She pulled out the chair next to her and said to Chu Fengchun with a grin, "I've taken a seat without being invited. I hope you don't mind, sir?"

Chu Fengchun was taken aback for a moment, but seeing that Xu Bai didn't say anything, he smiled and waved his hand, "Please do as you please, young lady."

Without any ceremony, she sat down and asked, "Sir, did you buy that lychee garden for your own residence or for some other purpose?"

Chu Fengchun avoided answering, instead laughing, "What does this have to do with the murder case? You just suspect me of committing murder in that lychee garden to lower housing prices, why do you care why I bought it?"

Jiuli was surprised by his frankness and could only laugh awkwardly.

Xu Bai said, "My lord, please don't take it personally. It's just a routine inquiry."

He waved his hand, "Don't worry too much. We business people inevitably get entangled in lawsuits and often deal with government officials. I know that if you run into a case like this, you should ask about everything you can."

Jiuli then asked, "Where was the master on the night of the fifth of this month? What was he doing? Are there any witnesses?"

"So the murder happened on the night of the fifth day of the lunar new year?" He squinted as he recalled, "On the night of the fifth day, it seemed to be raining. I didn't go anywhere; I just stayed in the inn drinking with my men. There were four of us in total, including my men. The waiters in the inn who served the food and drinks can testify to that."

Jiuli gave Du Zhong a wink, and Du Zhong quietly left.

Chu Fengchun, though aware of the situation, remained calm and continued to chuckle to himself, "I really wouldn't risk someone's life just to haggle over a price. It's not worth it. Although I was haggling with Master Li, haggling is a very common thing in buying and selling. To be honest, the reason I haggled was twofold: first, I was angry that Master Li was taking advantage of me as an outsider. I inquired and found out that he was asking for 15,000, and he had negotiated a price of 10,000 with others, but he told me he wouldn't negotiate below 12,000; second, I also wanted to give the people who came with me some money to reward them for their hard work."

The person who came along doesn't sound like a master-servant relationship; it sounds more like a superior-subordinate one.

Jiuli smiled and said, "Does Your Excellency really not recognize the two dead men from Liyuan? They were both very famous businessmen in Nanjing."

“There are many business people, and you may not know them all. I am an outsider and I don’t know anyone in Nanjing. I don’t do any other business, I only do this one business at Liyuan. I only need to know Master Li.”

"Only do one deal with Liyuan?" Jiulikou Peak changed the subject. "Why must we buy Liyuan? Liyuan is an ominous place, and now there's been a murder case there. People are avoiding it like the plague."

Chu Fengchun laughed and said, "Some people are afraid, and some people are not. But there is no law that says haunted houses cannot be bought or sold."

Xu Bai listened to their conversation for a while, then suddenly stood up and interjected, “Of course not. Buying and selling is voluntary, and this is not something the government should be concerned with.” He then smiled at Jiu Li, “We’ve asked what we needed to ask. Let’s go.”

As the two were about to leave, Chu Fengchun, intending to see them off, suddenly slammed his hand on the table. "By the way," he said, "I just remembered someone. I wonder if they'll be of any use to you in solving this murder case."

Jiuli quickly turned around, "Who is it?"

“I don’t know him either. I ran into him on the street after leaving Baiyulou that day. He was very young and looked like a street urchin. He talked nonsense in front of me for a while. I thought he was trying to get some money, so I just gave him a few coins and didn’t pay him any attention.”

What did he say to you?

Chu Fengchun frowned as he recalled that he had arranged to meet Master Li at Baiyulou to discuss the price that day. Master Li left in a huff, and Chu Fengchun and his men had a little food and wine inside. When they came out, they saw that the streets were bustling with green tiles and red doors, and fine horses and carved saddles. Chu Fengchun was not in a hurry to return to his inn and instead strolled around the streets.

Before long, he heard someone calling from behind. He turned around and saw a boy of about eighteen or nineteen. The boy was wearing an indigo short jacket with two patches. He approached with a chuckle and a bow, saying, "Master Chu, may you be rich! I am Wan San. I heard that Master Chu is discussing a deal with Master Li, so I came to serve you."

Seeing that he was nothing more than a street thug, Feng Chun's henchman waved him away, saying, "Go away! Where did this trash come from?"

Wan San stubbornly refused to leave, slipping past his subordinate like an eel to Chu Fengchun's side. He exclaimed in surprise, "Master Chu, I meant well, but the Li family's garden is not to be bought lightly. That garden is haunted!"

Feng Chun gave a disdainful smile, "I know this without you having to tell me." After saying that, she ignored him and turned to walk forward.

Wan San persisted, still clinging to the side, "Only someone as knowledgeable as Master Chu wouldn't be afraid of ghosts and monsters. This Li Garden rightfully belongs to you, Master. It's just that that Master Li is a scoundrel! He thinks you're an outsider and don't know the garden's market value, so he won't budge. I have a way to force him to lower the price—"

What can be done about such a scoundrel? He's just trying to curry favor and make a little money. Chu Fengchun was too lazy to pay him any attention and joked, "If you can get him to give up eight thousand taels, I'll naturally thank you. I have other things to do right now, so go ahead." He then ordered his men to give him some money as a reward and send him away.

As Chu Fengchun spoke, he saw the two of them out of the inn. "It happened on the 12th of last month. I haven't seen this person since."

Jiuli said, "Wan San? That's not his real name, is it?"

Feng Chun shook his head. "Who knows? I haven't asked either. But since he said his name is Wan San, even if it's not his real name, it's a common name. You won't have trouble finding out if you want to."

After expressing his gratitude and bidding farewell, he first helped Jiu Li onto the palanquin, and then mounted his own horse.

Jiuli climbed into the car and saw Du Zhong already sitting inside. She then sat down, gathering her clothes around her. "Have you asked the shop assistants?"

Du Zhong said, "I asked around. On the night of the fifth day, Chu Fengchun was indeed drinking with his men in the inn. The waiters brought them wine and food several times. I never saw the four of them go out. They didn't stop drinking until after midnight."

It seems Chu Fengchun wasn't lying. Jiuli turned around and lifted the carriage curtain. Xu Bai, standing outside, immediately nodded, "I heard it. I told you long ago that someone willing to spend tens of thousands of taels of silver wouldn't take such a big risk for a few thousand. He didn't kill the person."

Jiuli still frowned slightly. "I'm wondering about something else. Why does he insist on buying Liyuan Garden? If it's for settling down, I don't think so. He clearly said he has no business in Nanjing and isn't from Nanjing. Why would he come here to buy property? If it's for starting a business, that doesn't seem likely either. Liyuan Garden doesn't even have a storefront facing the street. If it's for resale, that's even less likely. Such an ominous garden would be difficult to sell. And look at him, he doesn't seem to care about the murder case and still wants to buy it—what is he really thinking?"

Xu Bai sat upright on his horse and smiled. "I don't know. This has nothing to do with murder. Businessmen have a different perspective than ordinary people, and we can't get any information from them. Why bother with them? The most important thing right now is to find out who Wan San is."

Jiuli nodded, "That's true."

She reluctantly lowered the curtain, but after a while, she turned onto some street and Xu Bai said that his residence was not far away and he needed to go back to get some clothes to change into. He ordered the yamen runner to take the two of them back to Liyuan first.

Fortunately, they returned in time. They had just gotten off the carriage when they were caught in a light drizzle. Luckily, it wasn't heavy. The two covered their heads and hurried into the gate. When they reached the garden, they saw two constables pushing a woman towards the east end of the garden on another road. The woman was reluctant to comply and was twisting her arms and shouting loudly.

Recognizing the voice as Rouge's, Jiuli and Duzhong rushed to the road and stopped the three. They were astonished to see Rouge in shackles. "What are you doing?" they asked.

The constable said, "Officer Zhang ordered that this person is highly suspicious and should be taken in for questioning."

That night, when they talked about Guan Zhan's case, Zhang Da did suspect Rouge, but it was just a deduction without any evidence. Why was she suddenly handcuffed today? Jiu Li, forgetting that she hadn't eaten lunch, wanted to go to Zhang Da's room, while instructing Du Zhong to go back to his room and tell Yu Qi. Since Xu Bai wasn't there, Zhang Da could probably get instructions from Yu Qi.

Rouge found the two constables rude and struggled, saying, "I don't need you to push me, I can walk by myself! Humph, you just see me as a weak woman with no one to rely on, so you're throwing mud at me. You say I killed someone, which eye of yours saw it?!"

The two constables, already impatient, shoved her hard, yelling, "What are you babbling about!"

She lunged forward, nearly falling, but Jiu Li quickly caught her and whispered, "Don't worry, I'll ask Constable Zhang properly when we get there. I think there might be some misunderstanding."

Rouge looked up at her, "You don't believe I killed someone?"

Seeing Jiu Li shake her head, she suddenly felt a lump in her throat and tears welled up in her eyes. Once she started crying, she couldn't stop; tears streamed down her face like broken beads. Jiu Li asked her questions, but she didn't answer; she ignored Jiu Li's attempts to comfort her. After a while, Jiu Li saw that she was crying with a dazed look, her previous energy gone, her face dejected and pale, and she walked slowly and deliberately.

She peered at her and finally understood; she was probably crying for Guan Zhan.

They were taken to Xu Bai's room. Zhang Da was sitting in a chair there. When he saw Jiu Li had come along, he stood up and asked, "Where is our master?"

"He said he was going home for a bit and wouldn't be back until later." She then rushed over and pulled him aside. "Why did you take Sister Rouge? Suspicion is one thing, but you handcuffed her without evidence? Is this how your department always operates?"

Zhang Da glanced back and whispered, "If I weren't a constable, would I arrest people arbitrarily if I had evidence? Don't worry about that, young lady. Let me ask her."

He walked over to Rouge, paced around her twice, and suddenly shouted, "Speak! Did you kill her?!"

This is a trick used by the authorities when interrogating people. They ask a question out of the blue, and some suspects are caught off guard and often blurt out the truth.

Rouge trembled, but said, "I didn't."

Jiuli sighed inwardly. It was hard to talk to Zhang Da, so she could only sit on a chair to the side and wait for Yu Qi to arrive soon.

"You didn't?" Zhang Da crossed his arms and laughed. "Then what were you doing the night Guan Zhan died?"

Rouge snapped out of her reverie, slowly calmed down, and rolled her eyes at him. "You're still asking now? Didn't I go to that room with the young master and young lady of the Yu family that night and find the body? Look, the young lady of the Yu family is sitting right here. If you don't believe me, ask her again."

"Stop trying to confuse me. I'm asking about before you met those two." He deliberately waited a moment, and seeing that she couldn't answer, he smiled and glanced at her. "I asked Xiao Jin, who shared a room with you. She said you went out right after the rain stopped that night, before the first watch of the night—"

Rouge quickly interjected, "I went to the bamboo grove early to wait for the Lu family's daughter-in-law, but who knew it would be the siblings who showed up!"

“Yes, you said you ambushed in the bamboo grove for a while, but who saw you? Nobody saw you. I could also say that you went straight to Guan Zhanfang's house, killed him, and then came out to wait for someone. After a while, the siblings arrived, and you went along with them to Guan Zhanfang's house to find his body. In this way, you would be cleared of suspicion.”

"You're lying!" Rouge glared, her eyes red-rimmed. "You lot who work for the government, you're incompetent at finding the real culprit, so you just frame people randomly!" She sneered. "Hmph, first you arrested the Yu siblings, saying they were suspects, but seeing that Doctor Yu is a tough guy who wouldn't be bullied by your government, you changed the accusation to someone else. And who am I? Just a nobody with no backing. My mother and sisters outside aren't even blood relatives. Who will stand up for me? I'll just be subjected to your humiliation!"

Zhang Da's neck thickened at the sarcastic remark. "Stop playing the victim! Let me ask you, what were you doing sneaking off to the morgue last night? Were you worried that there might be some clues left on the body, so you went to destroy the evidence under the cover of night?"

“You!—” Rouge stared blankly, but was at a loss for words.

Jiuli knew Rouge's strong-willed nature; if she was really provoked, she might actually go back on her word and admit to the matter. Anxious, she quickly got up and went over to her, "Sister Rouge, did you go to the morgue last night?"

Rouge didn't answer, and turned away to the side.

They had no choice but to ask Zhang Da again, "Aren't there yamen runners guarding outside that house? How did she get in?"

Zhang Da chuckled, "The gatekeeper just happened to go to the outhouse at that moment. She thought she could get away with it, humph, if she hadn't left a handkerchief in there, we wouldn't have been able to catch her today!"

"What about the handkerchief?"

Zhang Da produced a moon-colored silk handkerchief from somewhere and handed it to Jiu Li. "This is it. The character 'song' is embroidered on the corner. Let's see how she denies it then."

Rouge's expression changed. She glanced at the handkerchief, then turned her face away again, her expression still full of hatred, and remained silent.

Jiuli looked at the handkerchief for a while and saw that there were dried water stains spreading in circles on it. She sighed inwardly and was about to speak when Du Zhong happened to walk into the room at that moment.

Jiuli pulled him aside and whispered, "Why isn't Uncle here?"

Du Zhong stepped aside and walked up to Zhang Da, saying, "Master said that since Constable Zhang has already caught the murderer, he will leave it to your yamen to handle. However, he also said that Miss Rouge has been coughing again these past two days, so it's not appropriate to take her to the yamen. It's better to keep her here for now."

Zhang Da nodded in agreement, and then ordered someone to move Xiao Ajin out, leaving Rouge to live alone in that room.

Jiuli looked surprised and pulled Du Zhong aside, "Did Uncle really say that? That can't be right. How could he think that Sister Rouge killed her?"

Du Zhong whispered in his ear, "Master said that the yamen takes anyone they suspect for questioning. That's the yamen's rule, and it's none of his business. He told you not to worry about it and to go back and eat first. He also said that Rouge is temporarily being held in the garden. As long as she doesn't go to court, she won't suffer much. Wasn't that the same thing we did a while ago?"

The word "same" suggests that he doesn't believe Rouge is the real culprit, but why did he allow Zhang Da to arrest people arbitrarily? Is it because Yu Qi is cold-hearted and doesn't care, or does he have other plans?

Du Zhong pulled her away forcefully, saying, "Let's go back first. Lin Mo's case hasn't been investigated yet. Why are you taking on this case? I'm hungry. I want to go back and eat."

She could only walk while glancing back at Rouge. Even now, Rouge remained silent, as if any further explanation in her defense would shatter her pride—a pride that truly threatened her.

Du Zhong turned back halfway to get food, and she returned to her room. Yu Qi was in the outer room of the north wing. She slipped into the inner room of the east wing and saw him sitting calmly behind his desk, writing a prescription. Looking at his indifferent and serious face, she suddenly felt a chill. Although she knew he was never a kind person, seeing someone innocently wronged and him ignoring it made her feel somewhat resentful.

She walked up to the desk, snatched the pen from his hand, and glared at him resentfully, saying, "You know perfectly well that Sister Rouge isn't the murderer, yet you didn't say a word in her defense."

Yu Qi could only lean back against the chair, his hands hanging limply on the table. "How did I find out? I didn't know anything."

"Don't be ridiculous!" she scoffed. "You know perfectly well what you're doing. You're just letting me win, wanting me to figure out Lin Mo's case first. That's pointless. It's like wrongly accusing someone. I'm not someone who can't afford to lose."

Yu Qi laughed, "Really? You're not going to throw a tantrum even if you lose?"

She put the pen on the pen holder and shook her head firmly. "I won't make a fuss, I promise! Go tell Brother Zhang to release him. Sister Rouge sneaked into the morgue to cry for Guan Zhan."

How do you know?

"Brother Zhang found Sister Rouge's handkerchief in the morgue and used it as evidence, but the handkerchief was covered in tear stains. People rushing to destroy evidence late at night, do they even have time to wipe away tears with a handkerchief?"

"You've become increasingly clever; it seems all these years of eating haven't been in vain." He smiled and added, "It's not to protect your pride; there's another reason for keeping her under house arrest. I also guarantee that she'll be freed within three days."

Sure enough, there was something fishy going on. Jiu Li immediately felt relieved and desperately suppressed her curiosity, lest she seem overly concerned about winning or losing. Anyway, even if she was concerned, she had to pretend not to. She was grown up now and didn't want him to guess her every time. A girl who was too simple wasn't interesting.

Seeing the flickering light in her eyes, Yu Qi didn't bother to guess what she was thinking. He beckoned to her, calling her behind the desk, and touched a section of her sleeve. "Why is it all wet?"

She lowered her eyes and watched his hands clench the fabric piece by piece, trying to determine how wet it was. She felt his hands gripping her arm, tentatively touching her skin inch by inch.

Her heart was pounding, and she froze, her voice soft and tender, "It's raining outside."

"It's raining?" He suddenly felt a burning heat in her voice, forcing him to release her hand. With his other hand, he pushed open the window beside him and turned the curtain away. "I didn't even know—"

A cool, damp mist seeped into the air, and outside the corridor was a curtain of rain. He only had half his face facing her, and she could see the veins twisting on his neck, strong yet desolate. She suddenly remembered that night many years ago, when he held her in his arms, his neck also showing grotesque veins, and in her hazy memory, she saw flashes of a knife and blood splattered on his neck.

Yu Qi turned to look at her, his tone slightly disdainful, "When did this rain start? Why can't Qi Xubai even afford an umbrella?"

Jiuli was startled and a little stunned. "It started raining when we got to the garden gate." After regaining her senses, she defended Xu Bai, "Besides, he didn't come back with us. He went home."

That's strange. Since they rarely go out, why would Qi Xubai be willing to part ways with her? He smiled, slightly raising his eyes, "Why would he be thinking of going home?"

He said he was going back to get a few changes of clothes.

For something so trivial, would he personally abandon Jiu Li and go home? That's even less likely—he frowned and stood up, "Go back to your room and change your clothes before dinner."

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Author's note: Thank you for reading.