When Zhou Ru's mood improved a little, Jiang Lingyao asked, "Xiao Ru, can you tell me about your mother?"
When Zhou Ru heard the word "mother", her expression became more desolate.
She was still curled up in a small ball, and her voice was very low: "When Xiaoyi and I were born, my mother died of dystocia. I don't know what my mother looked like, and I don't know what kind of person she was, but I know she must be the most gentle person in the world."
Zhou Ru's words were full of hope: "If she were still alive, we sisters would definitely be the happiest children in the world."
Jiang Lingyao said, "Yes, did your father tell you about your mother's past?"
"My father rarely talked about my mother," Zhou Ru's face was filled with sadness again. "When Xiaoyi and I were little, we often asked him about it, but he refused to tell us. The only time he said that my mother was the best embroiderer in Wanping when he was drunk was when he said that her embroidery was lifelike. If she were still alive, she would definitely become a famous embroiderer in Wanping."
Jiang Lingyao raised her eyes and glanced at Duan Nanqi, then continued to ask, "Do you know her name?"
Zhou Ru paused. She seemed to think for a long time before she remembered her mother's name.
She said, "In fact, when we were little, we would often ask the aunts and sisters in the neighborhood, but they all said that my family had just moved here, and they didn't know my mother, or what kind of person she was. My father wouldn't tell us, so it was only after Xiaoyi and I grew up that we found my mother's name from her belongings at home."
Zhou Ru slowly raised her head and said with eyes that had lost their innocence, "My mother's name is Rong Ya."
"What a nice name," Zhou Ru said, "My mother's name is Rong Ya, Rong for glorious and Ya for elegant. Sir, does it sound nice?"
Her expression already showed a hint of obsessive nostalgia, an escape that emerged from the depths of her heart after suffering a huge blow.
It seems that if her mother were still alive, she would not suffer such heart-wrenching pain, and someone would protect her, hold her tightly in her arms, and give her a happy life.
Jiang Lingyao sighed and patted Zhou Ru on the back gently: "It sounds nice."
Zhou Ru was already in such a state that no one could ask her anything more. Jiang Lingyao originally wanted Shen Suning to accompany her, but Zhou Ru said, "Sir, I don't need anyone to accompany me. I just want you to find Xiao Yi as soon as possible. Please, sir."
In this case, Jiang Lingyao no longer insisted. She just asked the yamen runners to guard the door and followed everyone out of the compartment.
When we returned to the lobby, the Jinyiwei who had been inquiring about the neighbors had also returned. A young Tiqi stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Sir, I have already inquired about the six households near the Zhou family, and the rest of the Jinyiwei are still inquiring from house to house. However, we know that Zhou Sen has a bad leg. His left foot is a little sloping, and he walks with a stagger. That's why he rarely goes out, and spends most of his time at home making lanterns and lanterns."
Duan Nanqi hummed, and suddenly turned around to look at Jiang Lingyao: "Master Qiao, do you still remember the footprints on the flowerbed?"
Jiang Lingyao's eyes lit up and said, "In this way, we have a basis for the strange footprints."
At that time, they found two footprints. One was right next to the flower bed. It was the right foot. The center of the footprint was very solid, but the two sides were hollow. It was about seven and a half inches in size. The left foot was relatively complete, but it was lightly stepping on the flower soil. If you didn't look carefully, you couldn't tell that the footprint was very close.
It would be reasonable to say that Zhou Sen has a problem with his feet being sloppy.
Na Tiqi continued, "Sir, the neighbors all say that Zhou Sen is usually taciturn. Even when they go to his house to buy candles, he ignores them and is very indifferent to them. Fortunately, his two daughters are cute and sensible, so the neighbors feel sorry for them and take care of his business."
"An aunt also said that her youngest daughter was very strong and could move a large water tank by herself. She was also very lively. But the eldest daughter was very pitiful and gentle. The two sisters always relied on each other, which was very touching."
Duan Nanqi asked, "Did you find any clothes or other items in Zhou's house?"
Ti Qi said, "It has not been found yet. I will search again later to avoid any omissions."
If the Jinyiwei wants to solve a case well, they can find clues by digging deep into the ground. They don't need Duan Nanqi's supervision. These Tiqi who have been working in the Jinyiwei for many years know how to act on their own.
Duan Nanqi nodded with satisfaction and said, "Very good, go and get busy."
"Sir, I will take my leave."
Duan Nanqi waved his hand to let Tiqi leave, and Jiang Lingyao said thoughtfully: "This explains why Zhou Sen only locked up Zhou Ru, but took Zhou Yi away. It's because she is too strong and Zhou Sen has a hard time controlling her."
Duan Nanqi nodded: "That's right."
Jiang Lingyao Lu'e was silent for a moment, then stood up and said, "Master Duan, I'm still a little worried. Zhou Sen has been missing for three days, and Zhou Yi is also missing. I also want to go to the warehouse in the suburbs of Beijing to look for Zhou Yi."
Duan Nanqi did not stop them. He said, "That's fine. The case is about to be solved. It's useless to wait any longer. We might as well search together."
Although it was past curfew, Duan Nanjue and Jiang Lingyao were on duty to enforce the law and were not allowed to obey the curfew. Duan Nanjue selected another twenty cavalrymen, and Jiang Lingyao led Shen Suning, and the group rushed out and headed towards the suburbs.
As there have been several victims in this case, both the Imperial Guard and the government have been very cautious. They have not relaxed since the incident happened yesterday. After a day of running around, Jiang Lingyao is actually a little tired.
But it was only her body that was tired. Her mind was constantly analyzing the cases, analyzing every clue, and finally combining them together to form a clear line.
This line, like the stars in the dark night, leads them to their final destination.
The group sped through the dark countryside. Apart from the twinkling stars in the sky, there was no other bright light.
The slightly cool breeze of the starry night blew in front of her, which made Jiang Lingyao's fatigue dissipate a little. She looked at the road ahead with a firm gaze, and like everyone around her, she worked tirelessly to save everyone.
Facing the wind, Duan Nanzhi looked back. Although it was dark at night, the determination in Jiang Lingyao's eyes was still as bright and dazzling as the stars in the dark night.
For some reason, Duan Nanqi's heart seemed to have a starlight.
As the group turned from the official road to the bank of the Baihe River, they heard the sound of galloping horses. Duan Nanzhui's horse did not stop and galloped forward quickly.
But within two breaths, two riders appeared in front of everyone.
Those were two Royal Guards.
The two teams quickly stopped in front of each other. The Jinyiwei didn't waste any more words and reported directly: "Sir, we have found Zhou Sen and Zhou Yi. They are both in the second to last warehouse three miles ahead. Both are dead."
Jiang Lingyao felt a little sad when she heard that Zhou Yi was dead, but she didn't say much. She only heard Duan Nanqi say, "I know. Go and ask the coroner Zheng to come and perform an autopsy."
When they arrived at the low warehouses on the west bank of the Baihe River, the group dismounted. The Jinyiweiti cavalry had already come to search in advance, and now there were about five warehouses under guard.
Countless torches flickered by the river, not only illuminating the dark night sky, but also making the trickling stream sparkle.
Jiang Lingyao sighed slightly: "I still couldn't save Zhou Yi."
Duan Nanqi walked forward with big strides. He did not look back, but just said: "But this case has been solved. From now on, no one will die because of Zhou Sen."
"We are not gods or Buddhas, and we cannot save everyone, but as long as we do our best, we will not regret it."
Duan Nanqi's voice was very cold. Jiang Lingyao couldn't see his face, only his tall back.
The pent-up anger in Jiang Lingyao's heart slowly dissipated, and she said, "Master Duan is right."
Several people quickly came to the second to last warehouse. Although the warehouses here were connected together, they were not adjacent to each other. Each household had an independent house and courtyard.
Because it has been abandoned for many years, the path under your feet is covered with weeds, and every warehouse is gray and silent, and you can tell at a glance that no one has lived there for a long time.
Only the room that was closely guarded by the Royal Guards had less weeds inside and looked relatively neat.
There are only two rooms in this warehouse. The one on the left should be a temporary compartment for living, and the one on the right has double doors and looks very spacious.
Zheng Feng stepped forward quickly and said to Duan Nanqi, "Sir, the dead are all in this room. Please be careful when you go in. There are a lot of bloodstains on the ground. They have been marked."
Duan Nanqi nodded, exchanged a glance with Jiang Lingyao, and the two of them pushed the door open and walked in together.
A strong smell of blood came towards me.
Several lamps were already lit in the house, and a hanging lamp was specially hung on the roof, illuminating the entire house like daylight.
As soon as Jiang Lingyao entered, she saw the girl lying on the wooden bed.
The girl was wearing a beautiful brocade dress with round flowers. She was lying quietly on the wooden bed, with a square round flowered top covering her face. Without looking closely, Jiang Lingyao knew that it was Rong Ya's legacy.
On the other side, a thin man was leaning back in a chair, his left arm hanging at his side and his right arm resting on the hilt of a knife.
Two sharp knives pierced into his waist and abdomen. The flowing blood dyed his clothes red, and sculpted him into a blood-red clay figure.
Judging from the handles, the two knives seem to be different and should be tools used to make lanterns.
Jiang Lingyao and Duan Nanqi went to Zhou Yi first and found that she had been strangled to death. There was a deep bruise on her neck and her nails were broken. The nail on her right index finger was broken, revealing the bloody flesh inside.
Jiang Lingyao and Duan Nanqi remained silent, waiting for Zheng Sanji to arrive and draw up the autopsy form before taking any action.
"Why did Zhou Sen kill his own daughter? Because Zhou Yi knew about his crime?"
Duan Nanqi frowned slightly and asked, "Why did he only kill Zhou Yi and not Zhou Ru? It was Zhou Ru who saw him kill Xiao Zhen first."
Jiang Lingyao didn't know why. She sighed and said, "I don't know either."
The two of them looked around Zhou Yi carefully for a moment before going to see Zhou Sen.
There were no injuries on Zhou Sen's body. He sat leisurely on the chair as usual, looking at his sleeping daughter while stabbing two carving knives into his abdomen.
The wound in his abdomen was very deep and blood was gushing out. It was obvious that the two knives stabbed into him without hesitation.
Jiang Lingyao frowned: "Who killed Zhou Sen again?"
Duan Nanqi walked around Zhou Sen's back and together with Jiang Lingyao, they looked at Zhou Sen's hand holding the carving knife.
His hands were covered with scars from working as a lamp maker for many years. At this moment, his hand was still tightly grasping the handle of the knife, as if he didn't want to let go for a moment.
The two looked at each other, and Jiang Lingyao asked in disbelief: "Did he commit suicide?"
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