Chapter 43 Fishing from a Seat

As a result, the current situation has become rather strange.

The three of them investigated and returned to the Six Doors. Jin Shu had a large food box from Jinhua Restaurant in her hand.

Yan Zhao, who had been a coroner in the Six Doors for most of his life, had never seen a coroner go out to handle a case and come back with a signature steamed fish.

Jin Shu, without any hesitation, put down the food box naturally, took out a strap from her sleeve, quickly tied her wrists, and strode towards the small room where Miss Lin was lying.

His steps were steady, without the slightest panic.

Yan Zhao stood with his hands behind his back under the eaves, staring intently at Li Jin's face.

Forced to speak by his gaze, Li Jin took a deep breath and explained, "Originally, we were going to the Lin family first to question their servants, but it started to drizzle and she was carrying a fish, which was not appropriate. So we had to turn back first to check on Miss Lin's condition."

Li Jin himself felt extremely guilty after saying this.

After Jin Shu entered the small house, Yan Zhao remained silent. He then snorted coldly and stared intently into Li Jin's eyes: "Your Highness should know that what I'm asking about is not some kind of fish."

Li Jin knew exactly what Yan Zhao wanted to ask. Jin Shu could fool others by disguising herself as a man, but she couldn't fool the chief coroner.

He hesitated for a moment, his smile fading, and fiddled with the fan blades one by one in his hand before finally saying, "It's both fish and bait."

Upon hearing this answer, Yan Zhao felt a surge of anger rise to his head, and he laughed in exasperation: "Your Highness is in high spirits, fishing from a platform! Big fish are the fish, small fish are the bait, what a clever scheme you have!"

Li Jin is logically astute, shrewd, and possesses exceptional strategic planning abilities. Yan Zhao knows him all too well. Because of this understanding, he fears that Li Jin might go astray and is worried that he might stray into darkness.

Despite countless reminders and warnings, he still managed to drag innocent civilians, who had absolutely no connection to the matter, into this quagmire in the capital right under his nose.

Jin Shu is the fish, and Jin Rong is the bait.

Using Jin Rong to lure Jin Shu, making her inseparable from the Six Doors and from Li Jin's grasp.

However, Jin Shu, this fish, is also bait.

They were fishing for those manta rays who harbored ulterior motives and were terrified that the case from six years ago would be brought to light again, those who only dared to hide in the shadows.

In the past, Li Jin did not obtain the gold, and the chief coroner was not allowed to participate in the struggle between the princes due to the imperial decree. Therefore, even though Li Jin knew that the case was a miscarriage of justice, he was never able to take the first step in overturning the verdict.

But things are different now. If Jin Shu really has the ability to inherit his mantle as a chief coroner, then according to Li Jin's strategy, not only can the case be overturned, but the entire capital city can be turned upside down.

The greater her ability, the greater the danger she faces.

Once Jin Shu's existence is revealed, she will become a sitting duck for that group of people in the blink of an eye.

Thinking of this, the veins on Yan Zhao's forehead throbbed.

"Leaving aside her abilities and whether she can shoulder such a great responsibility, right now, these are two lives at stake. How confident is Your Highness in protecting them and ensuring their safe return?"

He sneered: "Furthermore, if her identity is exposed, the Crown Prince has a hundred thousand ways to make all the evidence she finds for you become a piece of waste paper."

The fact that a woman entered officialdom was the Crown Prince's strongest card to eliminate Jin Shu.

Li Jin understood everything he was saying.

Bringing Jin Shu back was a huge gamble for him; it wasn't that he wanted to take a chance, but that he had no other choice.

The longer time passes, the less evidence there will be in the case from six years ago, and the harder it will be to obtain. He no longer has the time to find another corpse whisperer as talented as Jin Shu.

Even now, he wasn't entirely confident that he could protect her completely, nor was he entirely confident that he could get her out of danger unscathed. But ever since he decided to bring her back to the capital, he had been determined to do everything in his power to ensure her safety and well-being.

With her there, he had hope of overturning the verdict; without her, Li Jin's six years of effort would all be for naught.

The light rain pattered down, making Li Jin's mood even more heavy.

In the courtyard, under the eaves, everything was shrouded in a hazy mist. Just like the path Li Jin had chosen, it was indistinct and directionless.

Jin Shu was like the only guiding light for him in this maze.

After a long while, he took a deep breath, without answering any of Yan Zhao's questions, and with a flick of his fan, walked very seriously toward the morgue.

Watching his retreating figure, Yan Zhao's expression became even more terrifyingly somber.

He sneered and spat out two words through gritted teeth: "Stubborn donkey!"

Inside the morgue, Jin Shu was completely focused, undisturbed by the light rain outside.

At this moment, her world consists only of justice awaiting redress and unspeakable injustices.

It was as if time had stopped, and she was isolated from the world. She didn't even notice that Li Jin had been standing behind her for a long time.

Her gaze was entirely focused on Lin Ruxue's body.

As Jin Shu had expected, from the mouth to the entire esophagus and stomach, the mercury had severely burned the area. The amount of mercury remaining in the stomach was enough to fill a small half-cup of wine.

The blunt force injury on the back of the head, after the hair was removed, revealed cracks that would only form after multiple blows. On the skull, there were several indistinct, small-angled indentations layered together.

Finally, based on the condition of the lungs, the cause of death was ultimately drowning and suffocation.

Jin Shu stood there, looking at everything before her, and remained silent for a long time.

Her silence and strange demeanor aroused Li Jin's suspicion.

He took two steps forward, about to speak, when he saw the chief coroner, Yan Zhao, stride in from outside, put on gloves, tied a face towel, and without saying a word, bend down to examine the body.

I examined every part of her—fingers, toes, joints, nails, facial features, scars—carefully.

After a long pause, Yan Zhao raised his eyebrows, looked at Jin Shu who had a furrowed brow, pointed at the young lady Lin in front of him, and said coldly, "Speak."

"The time of death was between 9 PM and 11 PM last night. The victim suffered a blunt force trauma to the back of the head, resulting in a skull fracture with a star-shaped fracture. The wound angles were blunt, the edges were irregular, the skin was peeled off, and there was severe bleeding. The victim was in a prone position after death, hence the large areas of bluish-purple lividity on the head and face."

Jin Shu remained calm and composed, presenting her arguments logically and with evidence: "Based on the oral burns and mercury lines on the gums, the autopsy revealed a large amount of mercury residue in the stomach contents, severe esophageal burns, fluid accumulation in the lungs, and mud and sand in the mouth and nose."

She paused for a moment: "In conclusion, the ultimate cause of death was drowning and asphyxiation."

Yan Zhao narrowed his eyes slightly after hearing this.

That's incredible.

Having witnessed it firsthand, one has to look at this petite woman with new respect.

He glanced at Li Jin, who had a smug smile on his face, as if to say: "It's a small matter, no need to be surprised."

This expression only fueled Yan Zhao's desire to make things difficult for her and test her limits!

He straightened up, his face still cold and sour, and glared at Jin Shu: "In your opinion, what caused the skull fracture, and how should the nature of the case be classified?"