Chapter 58: Taking it a Step Further
"Miss Xie."
Xie Huailing waited until Leng Xue spoke first.
A cold-blooded figure stood at the boundary between light and shadow in the back hall, lean and upright, a sheathless sword casually tucked at his waist, poised to strike. He stared intently at Xie Huailing, who pushed open the door. His emerald eyes were almost like those of a wolf on a snowfield; once he set his sights on the newcomer, he wouldn't let go.
But there was a difference. He wasn't staring at Xie Huailing's face; his gaze swept over it only briefly before settling on the hairpin atop her head. The single hairpin, a sparse touch of jade against her jet-black hair, singlely held up her sleek updo. Leng Xue stared intently at the hairpin, watching as its owner pulled out a chair and sat down opposite him. Yet even sitting like this, he might not even know what Xie Huailing looked like by the time they finished speaking.
There were no pleasantries, let alone formalities. Leng Xue's actions were swift and decisive. As Xie Huailing sat down, he immediately pulled out a tightly rolled-up oil paper package from his pocket, placed his palm on the table, and instead of handing it directly to her, pushed the package towards Xie Huailing.
His voice had the clear, crisp quality unique to young people. As one of the younger martial artists Xie Huailing had ever met, his voice alone set him apart from the other men. He spoke concisely, almost stingily, saying, "This was found by the Six Doors."
Perhaps realizing he hadn't said enough, and the information was disjointed and difficult to transfer, he paused for a moment before adding, "My senior brother asked me to deliver this, saying we should also consult Miss Xie on how to proceed with the investigation."
For Leng Xue to be able to utter such a long and difficult sentence to a strange woman was already quite an achievement. Xie Huailing had heard about his personality before. Although she herself was a person with a quirky sense of humor, she had no interest in making things difficult for him at work. She reached out and untied the thin string of the oil paper package, then leaned back in her chair and took out a stack of papers.
The paper contained a briefing written in tiny, fresh ink. Xie Huailing quickly scanned it, reading swiftly yet taking in every single word. The information settled in her eyes like pebbles at the bottom of a stream.
While she was deep in thought, Leng Xue changed his gaze from the hairpin to the tabletop. His breathing was extremely light, as if a mushroom had sprouted on the table, and he couldn't see Xie Huailing no matter how he looked around.
Some men are born knowing how to deal with women, how to please them, and how to please everyone—like Chu Liuxiang, or the legendary Lu Xiaofeng, and perhaps his third senior brother, Zhui Ming, could also be considered one. But Leng Xue is definitely not like that.
Zhuge Zhengwo had taught him that sincerity is essential in dealing with people, and that it's best to look people in the eye when speaking. But back then, his cold-blooded nature made it impossible for him to do this with women; he was always uncomfortable with it. He's better now, though not by much. Especially after seeing Xie Huailing today, with Wuqing emphasizing her intelligence and Zhuge Zhengwo also stressing her wisdom, resourcefulness, and unpredictability, and even his senior brother and uncle saying so, he felt even more uncomfortable talking to her.
This is a troublesome thing, but it's not really a big deal. Some people are suited to being sophisticated and charming, while others are suited to being a little naive. Leng Xue may not realize that this is actually part of his charm.
After a moment, Xie Huailing put the intelligence back on the table and tapped a spot on the paper with his fingertip.
She said, "Should we praise them or scold them? The Six Doors found out this much in just three or four days. If Chief Steward Yang could only find this much in a day, I would have to go find a Taoist priest to exorcise the evil spirits. Oh well, at least they found something, and at least it's useful information."
Better than nothing, Xie Huailing knew that he couldn't expect the Six Doors to investigate quickly through all the procedures: "The identity of the assassin... Young Master Li killed more than five people at the noodle stall, and they only found out three. 'The Three Black Wind Fiends,' guys from the Black Wind Stronghold area of Qin Prefecture, known as 'When the Black Wind passes, not a blade of grass grows.' They were considered ruthless figures in the Hebei Road bandit world, but unexpectedly, they were used as pawns and died in the back alley of a small noodle stall in Bianjing."
Her fingertips then moved to the description of the weapons: "'The weapons that can be found can all be called sharp weapons, and judging from their craftsmanship, they were not made by northern craftsmen.' Hmm, that's interesting. The Black Wind Three Fiends have been famous for many years, and although I have never seen their usual weapons in person, according to the rules of the greenwood and their style, they are either large ring swords or mountain-splitting axes, rough and heavy, all made by northern craftsmen."
She seemed to be talking to herself: "What kind of employer can make a desperate person willingly give up their life of bandits and work as a dog for someone else, and even give up their usual means of livelihood to use a new weapon? Either they are coerced to the extreme, or they are tempted to the point that they cannot refuse."
Finally, Xie Huailing pointed to the information about the poison Li Xunhuan had been given: "'The Western Regions Bewitching Powder is colorless and odorless. When mixed with food and drink, it initially causes only fatigue and a slight stagnation in internal energy circulation. Once the effects are fully realized, one becomes like a drunkard, completely at the mercy of others. It is a secret medicine from the palace of a small Western Regions kingdom, extremely rare in the Central Plains, and more valuable than gold. It is used specifically to deal with masters of internal martial arts.' Such a good medicine is truly the perfect remedy for Young Master Li; it couldn't be more suitable."
"The person behind the scenes has gone to great lengths."
Xie Huailing looked up, and the boy's emerald eyes appeared even more profound in the darkness, like two bottomless pools of icy water. He sensed that she had something to ask, and then turned his gaze back to her hairpin.
"Bandits in the Taihang Mountains, weapons in the south, poison in the Western Regions..." Xie Huailing asked, "The Six Doors felt that the three lines were completely contradictory and intertwined, making it impossible to know where to start. Is that why they only found out so much?"
Leng Xue didn't speak, but the tacit agreement in his eyes gave the answer: the Six Doors were indeed in a terrible predicament.
Xie Huailing couldn't help but sigh, there were so many people in the martial arts world who sought fame and fortune. She smirked slightly, not that she looked down on them, because looking down on them would be a waste of her emotions. She glanced at the name at the end of the document and said to Leng Xue's face, "Jin Jiuling is really a complete idiot. If he can't do it, he should just retire and go back to his hometown."
“In my opinion, these are all good clues.” The light from the oil lamp cast a flickering shadow on Xie Huailing’s face, adding an eerie quality to her empty eyes. She then stated her deduction, “The fact that these three completely unrelated things were used at the same time and in the same place to assassinate Li Xunhuan already outlines the shadow of the person behind the scenes.”
Leng Xue remained silent, staring at her.
Xie Huailing spoke slowly, tapping his fingers on the table, one tap at a time: "Firstly, to command ruthless bandits like the Black Wind Three Fiends to risk their lives requires extremely deep connections and influence, or enough wealth to buy them a carefree life for the rest of their days. Ordinary江湖 (jianghu, the martial arts world) feuds can't afford to hire this group, especially since there are at least six or seven more of them. The requirements for wealth or status are extremely high."
"Secondly, the ability to provide high-quality weapons that are not produced in the vicinity of Bianjing indicates that their influence or network extends extremely far, and they control resources and channels that are difficult for ordinary people to access. This is something that ordinary gangs or lone travelers cannot do, which overlaps with the first point."
"Thirdly," she lowered her voice, "the Western Regions Bewitching Powder is rare in the Central Plains. To be able to obtain it and know that it is most effective against Li Tanhua, one must either be a powerful force that has been dealing with the Western Regions for many years, or a noble person who is well-versed in the secret medicines of the imperial court."
Leng Xue's hand, resting on the table, unconsciously tightened slightly in sync with her movements. Xie Huailing's judgments were all reasonable and worthy of deep consideration. He wanted to ask further questions, but missed his chance, as Xie Huailing had already continued speaking on her own.
She concluded, "The number of forces in the entire Song Dynasty that can simultaneously satisfy all three conditions can be counted on one hand. The three seemingly contradictory clues, when intertwined, actually point in the right direction—this mastermind is high-ranking, powerful, well-connected, and incredibly wealthy. All three are indispensable. But that's obvious; anyone could figure that out. What's really important is... I have another hypothesis."
This was what came to her mind when she saw these three different directions. Xie Huailing paused for a moment, and only after seeing Leng Xue take a deep breath with complete concentration did she slowly voice her thoughts.
"When you're investigating cases, have you ever heard of 'throwing far away and burying nearby'?" she asked.
Cold-blooded, suddenly called out, immediately pursed his lips and replied, "What is that?"
Xie Huailing explained to him, "I've also had some interest in things like crime investigation, and I often heard older people talk about these four words. In some civil cases, when criminals kill innocent people, they usually follow these four words when dealing with the evidence. Judging from the location of the crime and where he himself is staying, whether it's dismembering, dumping the body, or drowning it in a lake, he usually chooses a more distant place for these kinds of actions; while for actions like burying the body, he chooses a closer place."
"In reality, what lies behind this is not just the case itself, but also the human heart. Human instinct is to seek advantage and avoid harm. If one doesn't want their actions to be traced back to them, they will put effort into covering them up. Such premeditated actions involve thorough preparation beforehand. 'Distant discarding and nearby burying' means that the effort is focused on keeping the evidence and clues as far away as possible from oneself, thus focusing on the journey; 'nearby burying' means that the effort is focused on processing the evidence, as time is limited, so one abandons what is nearby. This case can also be approached from these four words."
"Looking at the section on weapons, I became suspicious. Since the Black Wind Triads have been entrenched in the Taihang Mountains for years, yet they use weapons made by craftsmen from the South, no one in the martial arts world doesn't know how important a handy weapon is, especially since what they're doing is assassinating Li Xunhuan. This shows that the person behind the scenes is very shrewd and unwilling to leave any trace. To maintain secrecy, they are even willing to sacrifice the success of the assassination."
"Therefore, he must have an identity that cannot be exposed..."
Xie Huailing tapped the teacup with his finger, sketching a few lines on the table that, when put together, formed a map of the Great Song Dynasty: "The Black Wind Three Fiends reside in the Qin Prefecture area, located in the northwest; their weapons come from the south, and south of Hangzhou, the artisan industry is thriving; their secret medicines come from the Western Regions, which border the southwest. Cold-blooded Constable, looking at it this way, which area is actually empty?"
Having handled cases with a cold heart for many years, he was intimately familiar with the map of the Song Dynasty. He could recite the place names without even looking at Xie Huailing's pointing: "The area around Bianjing."
“Exactly.” Xie Huailing pressed his fingertip on a spot on the map, the watermark marking the location of Bianjing, and a hint of murderous intent emanated from him.
She disappeared back into the shadows of the chair back. The lamplight flickered, casting her face in and out of focus, the two red moles on her cheeks appearing, in a hazy light, like splattered blood, then shifting in the corner of his eye—whether it was dazzling radiance or eerie ghostly aura, it was impossible to say. Sitting opposite her, Leng Xue momentarily felt fortunate he hadn't looked at her face; at this moment, if their eyes had met, the light in her eyes, whether intense or not, would have been enough to terrify many.
Bianjing, the big shot in Bianjing. As Leng Xue uttered those words, he knew another storm was brewing.
Xie Huailing seemed impatient to prepare for the storm.
"As for our side, we also found some clues today." She then briefly and clearly recounted the information she had extracted from the Palace Master, as well as her analysis of Long Xiaoyun's psychology based on it.
There were also some unspoken words left unsaid in the house, which he told Leng Xue face to face: "So Long Xiaoyun is also part of the plan behind the scenes, but how the person behind the scenes saw Long Xiaoyun and saw through the burning jealousy in his heart requires not only time, but also continuous observation. Coincidentally, Long Xiaoyun has been staying in Bianjing for the past three months."
This undoubtedly added fuel to her speculation. The young constable's wolf-like eyes lit up when he heard about the progress, and he asked, "Where is Long Xiaoyun now?"
Xie Huailing gestured to stop him: "No rush. Going to him now would be a terrible idea, alerting him. Cold-blooded Constable, I need the Divine Marquis's Mansion to secretly investigate Long Xiaoyun's whereabouts over the past two months. We need to find out where he frequently goes in and out of Bianjing, who he often contacts, even if it's just a casual chat with a street vendor or a chance encounter in a teahouse or tavern."
Leng Xue readily agreed: "Okay, I'll go back and talk to my senior brother."
Having finished their conversation, Xie Huailing was finally able to have a cup of tea and relax for a while.
However, there was one last question. She asked, "By the way, regarding Li Yuan and Grand Tutor Li's enemies, has the Six Doors found anything? Who has the motive to harm Li Xunhuan?"
Leng Xue remained silent, took the paper in his hand, and lit it over the oil lamp.
The firelight, used to destroy traces of his work, illuminated his overly young, and unsurprisingly handsome face. His expression was resolute, as if nothing in the world could destroy him: "No, matters of the court are difficult to handle."
Xie Huailing wasn't surprised; the Six Doors wouldn't risk getting themselves into trouble over a single case. As the saying goes, work is work, and life is life.
She said, "It's alright, I have my own way. Well then, Cold-blooded Constable, we'll see you next time."
Xie Huailing drank some tea, then got up from her chair and rubbed her shoulders. She wouldn't move until Leng Xue opened the door and walked outside.
Actually, Xie Huailing wanted to ask Leng Xue if he knew what she looked like, but her intuition told her that if she asked, she would probably have to stay there for a while longer. She was eager to leave work and hadn't figured out how to report Gong Jiu's matter to Su Mengzhen yet. She didn't want to be ruthlessly reported on before that, so she decided to let Leng Xue off the hook for now.
Bai Feifei waited outside the door, keeping her eyes closed and resting. When she saw her come out, she didn't ask a single question. Bai Feifei wasn't concerned about the progress of the matter; she was only concerned about her medicine. She asked her if it was time to go back.
But Xie Huailing would insist on telling her, saying something unrelated to the question: "When did Lin Shiyin come to see me? I suddenly realized I miss her a little."
Bai Feifei's choice was to directly expose her: "You don't miss her, you just remember her value."
Xie Huailing countered, "What's wrong with that?"
"No." Bai Feifei was extremely surprised that she didn't refute her. She said, "There's nothing wrong with it. If you can't remember, then you're the one with the problem."
At least on this point, the two of them are absolutely compatible.
Xie Huailing leaned close to her ear mysteriously, getting very close. Bai Feifei tried to pull away in disgust, but Xie Huailing grabbed her sleeve. Xie Huailing whispered, "Actually, I have something very important to tell you today. If I can't tell you, then I will lose most of my soul and all the fun I've had today."
Bai Feifei pushed her away, already knowing something was terribly wrong: "I don't want to hear it."
Xie Huailing said, "You have to listen. Do you remember the plate of snacks you ordered at the teahouse? After you went to chase after the Palace Master, I ate it even though I didn't want to eat it at all, and in the end, I paid for it with your money."
"...Why are you telling me this?"
"Because if I do something stupid and don't let you know, then my stupidity is meaningless."
As soon as Leng Xue stepped outside, he heard a furious "Get out!"
He also saw Xie Huailing, who had just looked like he could see through everything, tightly holding Bai Feifei's hand, his fatigue completely gone, saying, "This is it. Divine doctor, I feel much better."
When he saw Bai Feifei again, he became enraged and shouted, "Get out of here!"
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