Although the two men disliked each other, since it was a murder after all, Jiang Lingyao did not hesitate any longer. She turned around, took Chi Yan's reins from the servant, and easily got on the horse with one flip.
She had sharp ears and could tell the direction of the sound the moment it came.
Chi Yan's petite figure was like a ray of fire, disappearing from everyone's sight in a flash.
Before Xingyun could stop her, Jiang Lingyao sped away.
Duan Nanzhu stared at the direction where Jiang Lingyao disappeared, quickly gave Wen Zhu a few words, then jumped on his horse and chased after her.
In an instant, the two disappeared into the alley.
Although Chi Yan is small, it is very fast, almost as fast as a precious horse. It took Jiang Lingyao to shuttle through the alleys, and Jiang Lingyao stopped outside the patrol shop in the blink of an eye.
This is where the sound comes from.
As soon as she stopped, the sound of horse hooves behind her became clearer and clearer, and Duan Nanqi arrived instantly.
When both of them stopped outside the patrol house, they looked at the common people in short brown clothes standing outside the patrol house.
He was a middle-aged man in his thirties, carrying a large fish basket on his back. Water kept flowing out of the basket, and a fishy smell spread from it.
The man had dark skin with obvious cracks and wrinkles, and was obviously a fisherman who worked in wind and rain.
There were patrolmen on duty at the patrol house day and night. At this moment, a young patrolman was standing outside the patrol house, talking to the middle-aged fisherman. The fisherman was probably frightened and could only shout "Someone was murdered, someone was murdered".
The young patrolman was a little impatient, and when he saw Jiang Lingyao and the other person suddenly appear, the gloom on his face became even more obvious.
"Who are you and what are you doing!" he scolded.
After seeing the clothes of the two people clearly, the patrolman's expression was a little stiff, but he still said: "Do not let your horse make noise in Wanping City."
Duan Nanqi didn't waste his words. He took off the dragon and tiger gold and silver medals and threw them into the policeman's arms. "Beizhen Fusi is investigating the case. What happened?"
The patrolman took the gold and silver medal in a hurry, but when he saw the runes on it clearly, his expression changed drastically and he was so scared that he almost threw the medal to the handman.
His face turned pale and he stammered, "He reported that someone had died. I am making inquiries."
Duan Nanqi hummed and lowered his eyes to look at the middle-aged fisherman with a panicked face.
He said gently, "My dear, have you just come back from fishing? Did you see any murder on the way? Can you tell me about it?"
The fisherman saw that Duan Nanqi looked rich and noble, and knew at first glance that he was no ordinary man. In addition, he was very friendly, so he was much more certain than before. He nodded, pointed behind him, and said, "I came back from fishing today and took the old route. As a result, when I passed by the Jingye Flower Garden, I saw a person lying in the flowers. He was red and looked like he had bled a lot."
The fisherman was terrified and said, "I shouted a few times, but the man didn't move. I didn't dare to look anymore and hurried over to report it."
Ordinary people had never seen such a scene before and were extremely frightened. He stumbled forward to report the case, but the policeman was so fierce that he was so frightened that he couldn't say anything for a while.
This young man seems much more polite, at least he makes people talk.
Duan Nanqi naturally did not ask him whether he was sure that the person was dead. He only said to the patrolman: "One of you will stay at the patrol shop to accompany the citizen who reported the case, and the other two will follow us to the scene. Let's set off now."
The captain of the police in the patrol room must have heard the commotion outside. He stumbled out, snatched the gold and silver medals from the patrolman, and presented them respectfully to Duan Nanqi.
He said flatteringly, "Sir, I will accompany you."
The patrol inn has horses, so the captain of the police took the horse and led his three men forward.
"Sir, the Quiet Night Garden is just five miles ahead. There are gardens and pavilions. In previous years, there would be a market here when the Lantern Festival started, for tourists to buy and sell. However, the Lantern Festival is two days later, and the Quiet Night Garden is not set up at the moment. During the day, only the people in the city should occasionally go there to cool off, but there are not many people."
The captain seemed much smarter and spoke fluently. He had originally been concerned about the wife of the Jinyiwei lord and did not dare to ride fast. However, he did not expect that the couple, each more ferocious than the other, rode away at full speed. As soon as he finished speaking, the two riders could only see the horses' tails.
Jiang Lingyao and Duan Nanqi ignored his nonsense and hurried to the crime scene. The trip back and forth took them two or three quarters of an hour. If what the fishermen saw was true, or if the man was just injured and not dead, every moment they could save their life would give them a glimmer of hope.
As the two of them thought this, they both exerted force with their feet. The horses received the order, neighed in unison, and ran even faster.
For a moment, the horse was galloping at lightning speed, as happy as the wind. Jiang Lingyao hadn't ridden a horse for a long time. If she hadn't been busy with a case at this moment, she would have almost laughed out loud.
Duan Nanqi kept looking at her as he rode quickly. Seeing her riding steadily on the horse with a serious and determined expression, and not panicking at all, he could not help but ask through the wind, "Madam, didn't you say your riding skills are not good?"
The sound, along with the wind, penetrated into Jiang Lingyao's ears.
Jiang Lingyao glanced at him and said provocatively, "How can my riding skills be considered good if you can catch up with me?"
Duan Nanqi smiled.
He said nothing more and just rode forward with Jiang Lingyao. The two of them went north along the alley. After they were far away from the city alley, which took only a cup of tea, they saw a large and lush garden in the distance.
The garden must have been specially maintained by the government. Even though the flowers and leaves are lush at this time, it is not messy. The paths are quiet, the flower beds are exquisite, and the pavilions are beautiful, which is very pleasing to the eye.
It was already evening, the sunset glow in the sky was turning from orange to purple, the setting sun was brilliant, and the garden was peaceful and quiet at night, with no visitors.
The garden has a main gate, but it is not locked. At this time, the iron gate is wide open, and a small path leads into the garden. At the end of the path, about two meters away, there is a lush and blooming peony bed, which means a winding path leading to a secluded place.
As soon as Jiang Lingyao and Duan Nanzhi stopped in front of the door, they saw a crimson figure lying on the flowerbed in the center.
Because it was not very close, if you were in a trance, it really looked like a person covered in blood lying in the flowers.
Jiang Lingyao and Duan Nanqi looked at each other, and they both jumped off their horses.
As soon as Duan Nanqi landed, his eyebrows furrowed and he immediately said, "Be careful."
But he spoke too late. Jiang Lingyao's deerskin boots had already touched the ground. She felt wet and slippery under her feet. She stumbled and was about to fall forward.
"I've already said that..."
Duan Nanqi was very agile. Without even thinking, he had already put his long arms around Jiang Lingyao's slender waist.
"Be careful."
With a turn, Jiang Lingyao was held firmly in his arms. Jiang Lingyao's heart was beating like a drum and she was still unable to recover from her shock.
She said subconsciously, "Thank you."
After she finished speaking, she felt the strong arm on her waist. Duan Nanqi's arm seemed to be even harder than the Xiuchun sword before. Putting aside prejudices, it was indeed very reassuring.
If she fell directly to the ground, Jiang Lingyao would be crushed into a pulp and would be in a miserable state.
Jiang Lingyao was not so ungrateful. Duan Nanqi had saved her, so she couldn't cry out for help or anything like that. She just said, "My dear, I can stand up straight now."
Duan Nanqi nodded lightly, then let go of his hand.
The moment he left her slender waist, Duan Nanqi thought in his heart: How can it be so light?
Jiang Lingyao had already lifted her skirt and was walking inside, one foot deep and one foot shallow. As she walked, she said, "Did it rain in Wanping yesterday? The bluestone pavement in the city is not smooth, and it is really hard to walk in the suburbs."
Duan Nanqi and she knew exactly how to enter the scene. They consciously avoided the central avenue and walked along the grass on the side. When they reached the flower bed, Jiang Lingyao immediately frowned.
Her heart sank slightly, and she said in a dry voice: "He has been dead for a long time."
Yes, the person is indeed dead.
The red they had just seen at the gate was not a silk robe, nor was it bloodstains, but the scene of the dead person's back being tightly stitched together - a bright red peony embroidery.
Only the afterglow of the setting sun remained, with wisps of orange light and shadow falling on the bright red embroidery, creating a brilliant display. The peony, like the other blooming peonies around it, seemed truly alive.
Enchanting, beautiful, and captivating.
The deceased's entire body was wrapped in plain white cotton cloth, with only the back exposed, as if to show off the gorgeous embroidery and the lifelike peony flowers on it.
Jiang Lingyao looked closely and saw that the embroidery was tightly stitched together with the dead man's flesh. There were only white bloodstains on the flesh, but no bloodstains. Even so, it still looked shocking.
Jiang Lingyao had seen many scenes before, but this was the first time she saw a deceased person with such an appearance, and she couldn't help feeling a little nervous.
This scene is so breathtaking no matter how you look at it.
Duan Nanqi's expression was also rare and serious: "The body of the deceased was stiff, and he must have been dead for a long time. The deceased was facing the garden gate, and the embroidery on his back was completely exposed. On the side facing the gate, the soil of the flowerbed was turned out, and several peonies were uprooted, as if to let people see the peony embroidery at a glance."
Duan Nanqi turned his head and looked at Jiang Lingyao: "Could it be that the murderer wanted to show the embroidery?"
Jiang Lingyao frowned slightly, and she subconsciously said, "Not entirely. If you look closely, these pulled-out flowers also have broken branches and leaves left. It's possible that they were pulled out because they were bent."
As the two were talking, they heard the sound of horse hooves outside. It turned out that the city patrol had arrived.
Duan Nanqi turned around and said in a low voice, "Don't rush in on horseback, stop at the door and walk in."
The captain of the police then walked carefully along the grass, while the other patrolmen stood guard outside and did not dare to enter.
Duan Nanqi turned around and looked at the patrol officer, saying, "This is indeed a murder scene. The victim had been dead for a long time when we arrived. Order people to seal off the entire Jingye Garden and have someone inform the county government immediately to send more runners to guard the garden. Also, take my badge and go to Jiang's house in Luanshan Lane immediately and have the servants at home inform the Jinyiwei Yamen. This case..."
Duan Nanqi glanced at Jiang Lingyao and said calmly, "The Jinyiwei Beizhen Fusi will take over this case."
Jiang Lingyao's heart moved, she looked up at Duan Nanqi, and saw that his face was serious and his eyes were indifferent. His handsome face was cold in the afterglow of the setting sun, and even the warm yellow sunset could not warm up his coldness.
The captain felt his legs go weak, not only because of Duan Nanqi's cold eyes, but also because of the creepy peony pattern on the dead man's back.
"This is a face garment, a face garment..."
He sat down on the ground with a thud, his face pale with fear, as though he were a human being.
Duan Nanqi frowned, looked at Jiang Lingyao, and then asked, "What is a mask?"
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