Chapter 21: Breaking Greed "Go on, use the trick I taught you"...
Even through the gauze curtain, she could still feel the young man on horseback glancing at her.
She recognized this man. He was Song Yutai, the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple, the son of the emperor's uncle Song Haisheng. He and the young prince Qin Yanheng grew up together. They were only one or two years apart in age, so they had a deep relationship. She also heard that Song Yutai's method of solving cases was also taught by Qin Yanheng himself.
Who would have thought that Qin Yanheng, at such a young age, was actually the "grandmaster" of the Dali Temple? No wonder he scolded Xu Sheng, the nearly sixty-year-old Dali Temple Justice, so hard that day that he dared not talk back.
Thinking of this, Luo Qingling stood on tiptoe and looked over the crowd. She saw that the soldiers had surrounded the crowd and left a path on the mountain road for the carriage to pass. She walked through the crowd, got on the carriage and left.
Qin Yanheng was still waiting in the Taoist temple, so she had to leave quickly.
Unexpectedly, the carriage had not gone far when a male voice interrupted Luo Qingling's thoughts.
"Madam, please stay," the man said. Although his words were polite, his tone was unquestionable. "Lord Song has ordered that for the convenience of the investigation, witnesses cannot leave without permission. I hope Madam will forgive me."
Oh no, I just happened to run into the Dali Temple investigating a case... Luo Qingling slowly got out of the carriage, thinking about how to shirk responsibility. If she stayed here as a witness, then Uncle Zhao and Aunt Zhao would definitely not be able to leave either. However, Qin Yanheng was still in the Taoist temple, so she couldn't send anyone to inform him.
Moreover, since it was the government that was handling the case, it would be inappropriate for her to reveal her identity to get some convenience. This would not only be detrimental to Aye's reputation among the people, but more importantly, this Shaoqing of the Dali Temple was a legitimate royal relative and the only blood descendant of the empress of this dynasty, apart from the late crown prince and the young prince Qin Yanheng.
If she wanted her father to be transferred back to the capital as soon as possible, she must not offend the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple.
Luo Qingling looked around. Everyone who had been watching at the ferry crossing had been surrounded by soldiers, and no one was allowed to leave. It was almost time for her and Qin Yanheng to meet, and she had to find a foolproof way to leave as soon as possible.
"The sharp weapon chopped it open, breaking the leg bones..."
Not far away, Song Yutai's voice, neither too loud nor too low, reached everyone's ears.
Luo Qingling looked in the direction of the sound and saw that at the ferry crossing on the river, the boat that had been floating in the river had been pulled to the shore at some point. Song Yutai was squatting beside the female corpse, observing it carefully. From time to time, he turned his head and whispered something to the clerk beside him. The clerk nodded repeatedly and then wrote down all of Song Yutai's words on paper.
The female corpse lay quietly on the deck, dark red blood coagulated at the places where her legs were severed, revealing her bones. The wounds were facing directly in the direction of Luo Qingling, which shocked her heart again.
Who could be so cruel to kill a woman and dump her body by the river, and make her die in such a tragic way? No wonder the woman ran to her in her dream to ask for help. She must have died unjustly.
"Sir Song, how can you deduce the cause of death by only looking at the leg wound?" Luo Qingling said to Song Yutai who was squatting by the ferry, regardless of the clerks' obstruction.
Rather than waiting, it was better to take the initiative. Moreover, perhaps because the woman had transformed into something neither human nor fish and begged for help in her dream last night, she would inevitably feel uneasy if she simply stood by and watched. Luo Qingling thought for a moment and decided to step forward.
Song Yutai was dressed in official uniform. When he saw Luo Qingling, he slowly stood up and looked at her straight, with a smile in his eyes, as if he recognized her.
"It turns out to be Madam Luo. I've heard of her for a long time." Song Yutai clasped his fists and bowed to her. "Forgive my poor eyesight and for stopping Madam Luo. If the Queen sees me, I'm afraid she'll blame me."
Song Yutai recognized her as expected!
Luo Qingling glanced at Song Yutai and knelt in a pretentious gesture. She had seen him from afar when she arrived in the capital, but they had never met. As for why Song Yutai recognized her, Luo Qingling had an idea in her mind—it must be because Song Yutai had seen the portrait she had previously sent to Qin Yanheng's room!
Unexpectedly, Song Yutai had such a good memory that he recognized her at a glance, and even joked with her regardless of the situation. I don't know whether it was intentional or "intentional", which really made people feel unhappy. Luo Qingling couldn't help but have some prejudice against this person.
Thinking of this, Luo Qingling did not respond, but someone spoke for her.
"It's not an ordinary person who can make the Queen blame Lord Song! Could this unfamiliar noble lady be a royal relative? Why have I never seen her before?" Someone asked in a low voice, and the voice was clearly heard by everyone.
"I'm not really a royal relative. I heard that not long ago, the Queen wanted to see a picture for the young prince, so she placed the portraits of several noble ladies in the young prince's study. But the young prince cleared away all the portraits in public, including..."
Everyone was talking, and then suddenly they stopped talking, and silence fell all around.
Just as Luo Qingling was thinking about how to respond, a sneer was heard behind him, but no one dared to look back or respond.
"Anyone who discusses the royal family privately will be punished with three hundred strokes of the cane." The voice was familiar, the tone calm, and intimidating without being angry.
Even without turning around, Luo Qingling could accurately guess who it was. Qin Yanheng had appeared behind the crowd, seemingly unnoticed. Today, the young prince wore a round-necked red and black brocade robe, the collar placket adorned with a piece of mutton-fat jade. His fair neck was visible above the red and gold round collar. Veins shone slightly as he spoke, and he glided through the crowd.
"Cousin!"
Song Yutai smiled and approached, but Qin Yanheng avoided him with a look of disgust. Song Yutai seemed accustomed to this man's attitude. He put one hand on Qin Yanheng's shoulder and shouted, "Cousin, you're here, just in time! Take a look at this case!"
"Are you the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple or am I?"
Qin Yanheng turned his head and looked at Song Yutai, who was slightly shorter than him, with a forced smile. His eyes drifted over Luo Qingling who was standing beside him, and then he raised his chin towards the carriage.
"Get in the carriage. I don't have the time to waste with you."
He couldn't sleep well until the matter of the Golden Dragon Sword was resolved. He had thought that he would have resolved the fetters after noon today, but he waited and waited in the Taoist temple but no one came. It was not until Xuanying came to report that it turned out that it was Song Yutai who stopped the man.
So annoying.
So much money is allocated to the Dali Temple every year, it's really a waste of people to support them. Even to solve a case, we want him to do it personally. What a good-for-nothing!
Qin Yanheng stopped and was about to turn around to say a few words to Song Yutai, but then he paused and strode away.
Never mind. After all, he was his younger brother who had been following him around since childhood. Qin Yanheng knew Song Yutai's character very well. Song Yutai was just a little talkative, but he was still very concerned about the case.
I believe that the case of the female corpse will be solved within two days. After all, Song Yutai's method of solving cases was taught by Qin Yanheng himself, and he has always been confident in himself.
Including the matter of the Golden Dragon Sword.
*
Taoist temple, library.
"Your Highness...will this trick really work?"
Luo Qingling held a sword in her right hand and an ancient tome in her left. One end of the tome dangled to the ground, its surface densely inscribed with characters and filled with spells. She looked at the young man not far away, his arms stretched out in front of her, a hint of doubt creeping onto her face.
It was almost dusk. She and Qin Yanheng had tried no less than a hundred kinds of Taoist magic in two hours. In the end, Qin Yanheng was learning from an ancient book in one hand, and making a gesture with the other hand as he attacked the Golden Dragon Sword. However, the Golden Dragon Sword lying between them remained motionless. The power that bound her and Qin Yanheng was not affected by the Taoist magic at all.
Later, Qin Yanheng decided to let her use the Golden Dragon Sword to attack him to see if she could break the bond, so the scene just now happened.
Qin Yanheng, who was standing in front of him with his arms outstretched, nodded with a determined look in his eyes. He parted his thin lips slightly and squeezed out a word between his white teeth: "Come on, I don't believe that this Golden Dragon Sword can really kill me--"
The last syllable suddenly rose, and Qin Yanheng suddenly jumped up, dodging behind a bookcase. A burning smell wafted over, and the carpet he had just stepped on instantly turned to charcoal. Qin Yanheng let out a short breath, blowing his hair from his temples, and then looked at Luo Qingling with surprise in his eyes.
"Luo Qingling!"
Qin Yanheng shouted loudly. He stood at the bookcase and shook his sleeves, brushing away the black charcoal that had drifted over his head. He took a deep breath and said, "Can you tell me before you use your moves? If someone doesn't know, they'd think you were going to kill me!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Luo Qingling was a little flustered. It wasn't that she had deliberately attacked, but the Golden Dragon Sword had only recently recognized her as its master, and she wasn't quite used to it yet. She moved to check on Qin Yanheng, but he stopped her. Standing there uncomfortably, Luo Qingling asked, "Young Prince, what's going on now..."
"Go on," Qin Yanheng straightened his clothes and walked out from behind the bookcase, keeping his hands spread out. "Use the move I taught you."
Golden light shines out from the stained glass window and blends into the dusk outside the window, and the bond cannot be untied.
Qin Yanheng sat cross-legged among the ancient books, his elbows on his knees. He supported his chin with the back of his hand and looked at the golden dragon sword in Luo Qingling's hand with a sad face.
He just felt depressed.
In the past two hours, he and Luo Qingling have tried almost all the Taoist magic left to him by his master, but not a single magic can break the restraint of the Golden Dragon Sword. That would be fine, but there is not even a single ancient book in this library that records this kind of power that can restrain the two of them - how on earth did the Golden Dragon Sword restrict him to within ten miles of Luo Qingling?
Qin Yanheng didn't understand, and couldn't fathom it. He would soon embark on a southern tour. If the Golden Dragon Sword's shackles remained unbroken, how would he explain this to his father? He couldn't just tell the truth...
Thinking of this, Qin Yanheng glanced up at Luo Qingling, who was sitting across from him, also at a loss, and quickly dismissed the idea. His father and mother had a deep relationship. If his father knew about his current situation with Luo Qingling, his mother would definitely know within half a day. Given his mother's temper, she would probably gossip about his feelings towards Luo Qingling again.
What else could he think? They were just two people who had met by chance, accidentally bound together by the Golden Dragon Sword. Once this power was removed, he and she would never meet again.
"Mrs. Luo, please go back first."
Qin Yanheng spoke suddenly. He looked out the window. It was getting late, and he couldn't keep anyone in the Taoist temple for too long. If the news got out, it would be bad for Luo Qingling's reputation.
Luo Qingling immediately understood what Qin Yanheng meant. He bent his knees slightly and saluted before turning and leaving.
The sound of footsteps faded away, and the entire library fell silent again. Qin Yanheng lowered his head and continued searching for ancient books. He had to let Luo Qingling leave first, so as not to arouse suspicion from outsiders.
The carriage returned along the same route, and Luo Qingling leaned his head against the window sill, dozing with his eyes closed.
“Save me…save me…”
who?
"Save me..."
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