Chapter 67: Dining Together

Shen Yuan deliberately asked people to pay attention, but after several days, she didn't hear any movement from the Qin family. She now suspected that her method was not effective at all, but she had no other choice for the time being. She couldn't just go to the door and say that your daughter might not be your biological daughter, right?

Seeing her daughter's sad face, Qing Dai suggested, "Girl, it's not hot today, why don't you go out for a walk?"

Shen Yuan thought about it and agreed. Today was the tenth day of the lunar month, and the court was on holiday. Her father had gone out to meet friends early in the morning. Her sister-in-law was also resting because she was not feeling well. Shen Yuan went to see her early in the morning and came back. She had nothing to do at home alone, so she might as well go out for a walk.

She didn't have a specific place to go, so she just walked along the street and unknowingly came to Er Niang's pancake stand. The difference from before was that there was another person at Er Niang's pancake stand now, a man who was about the same age as Er Niang and looked like a scholar.

Er Niang was chopping meat and making cakes, while the man was in charge of greeting customers, packing cakes and collecting money. The two of them worked in perfect harmony.

"Girl, do you want to buy some cakes?"

Shen Yuan shook her head. "No need. This is good enough." She saw that there were many people waiting to buy cakes in front of Er Niang's stall, so she decided not to disturb them.

"Miss Shen! I haven't seen Miss Shen for many days."

"Lord Fan, you have worked hard." Shen Yuan saw that Lord Fan Lutong's face was darker and shinier than before, and thought that being a street officer was really a tough job. Today was a day off for everyone in the court, but the street officers still had to go out on patrol.

"It's a matter of loyalty to the emperor! Miss Shen, have you discovered anything today..." Fan Lutong looked at Shen Yuan expectantly. In his opinion, a talent like Shen Yuan was born for the Street Department!

Shen Yuan immediately understood what he meant, but he didn't find anything along the way today.

Shen Yuan shook his head and said with a smile: "Master Fan, you are so dedicated to your duties. I think things like that will not happen again."

When Fan Lutong heard this, his mouth stretched to his ears and his back straightened even more. He wished he could patrol five more times right away. With him around, there would be no trace of a single unscrupulous businessman in the entire capital!

After bidding farewell to Lord Fan, Shen Yuan planned to find a restaurant to eat. Seeing people coming out of the jewelry shop across the street, Shen Yuan once again lamented that the capital city was really small.

"Miss, it's Lord Xie." As a personal maid, Qingdai, who was considerate and caring, had naturally seen through her young lady's little thoughts a long time ago. After seeing Xie's reply, she subconsciously reminded her young lady in a low voice.

"I know, I saw it." Seeing that Xie Hui was about to leave, Shen Yuan subconsciously called out to stop him, but after that he didn't know what to say.

Xie Hui stopped when he heard Shen Yuan's voice. Shen Yuan thought that since he had already called her, he might as well take the opportunity to say a few more words, so he crossed the street to the other side.

"Thank you, sir. What a coincidence. You're here... to buy jewelry?"

"My mother's birthday is coming soon. Today is my day off, so I came to pick out a birthday gift for her."

"I see. Thank you for wishing me a happy birthday, sir."

"Okay, I'll definitely pass it on."

"Well...how did the last case go?" Shen Yuan searched his mind and found that this was all he could say.

"Please make way for me, both of you." Xie Hui was about to speak when he was interrupted. Shen Yuan then realized that they were standing at the door of a satin shop, blocking the shop from moving goods.

"Sorry, sorry..." The two of them quickly made way. It was not appropriate to talk about the case on the street, so Xie Hui suggested, "How about Shen's Tavern?" The case had been solved, and Shen Yuan was also a hero for solving the case, so there was nothing that could not be said.

"Okay." Shen Yuan agreed without hesitation. If her father saw it, he would probably accuse her of being unreserved.

Shen's Tavern was also on this street, not far away. When they reached the door, Qingdai suddenly said to Shen Yuan, "Miss, I almost forgot that the young mistress asked me to buy snacks from Daoxiangfang."

"Ah? Oh, then go quickly, and remember to buy more." Shen Yuan almost didn't react. Sometimes, it's a problem when the maid is too caring!

In such weather, fish hotpot is of course not available. The focus today is not on eating, so the two of them simply asked the store to serve some of the store's signature dishes.

"Mingwu has already confessed his guilt." Xie Hui said as he poured a cup of tea for Shen Yuan.

"Thank you." Shen Yuan took the teacup, took a sip and then asked, "Why did he kill Xiang Qingshan?"

"Because he thought Xiang Qingshan recognized him as the murderer who poisoned the Yao family." Xie Hui said while observing Shen Yuan's expression. He found that when she heard the name Yao family, there was no confusion or shock on her face. Instead, it seemed as if she had known it for a long time.

"He thought? So did Xiang Qingshan really recognize him?"

"That's unknown. He met Xiang Qingshan at Yao's house, and then met him again in the capital. He was afraid that Xiang Qingshan would recognize him, so he killed him and took his household registration documents. After all, he killed so many people, maybe he felt uneasy, or maybe he wanted to become a monk and change his appearance. After that, he became a monk in Du'e Temple. In the past few years, he had been safe and sound."

It was also a coincidence that the place where he buried Xiang Qingshan might have been dug by wild animals in the mountains. Then it rained heavily for several days, and the corpse was washed down. One of the bones was stuck in the middle of the river, so it was discovered and Xiang Qingshan was able to return to his hometown and rest in peace.

"The Huizhou government has already found Xiang Qingshan's family. Soon his family will come to Beijing to take his body back to his hometown for burial."

Shen Yuan also felt sad when he heard this. He died tragically without any clear explanation and he didn't know how his family had been through these years. Fortunately, he could now be buried in peace, which was a comfort.

"Speaking of which, this case is largely thanks to you, Miss Shen. Thank you, Miss Shen, for your toast."

Xie Hui raised the teacup solemnly, which made Shen Yuan a little at a loss. He also raised the teacup and took a sip.

"I didn't do anything, it was just a coincidence."

"Miss Shen, there is no need to belittle yourself. Without you, Mingwu would have escaped. I have also reported this to the emperor. Now that the case has been closed, I think the reward from the court will arrive at your house soon."

"Reward?!"

Seeing Shen Yuan was nervous, Xie Hui comforted her, "Even if the common people provided clues to the case, the Dali Temple would have given rewards. Moreover, Miss has caught the murderer, so it is right for the court to give rewards."

Shen Yuan was only surprised for a moment, and now he began to think about what the reward from the emperor would be.

Although the dishes at Shen's Restaurant look simple, the aroma is very tempting. The two of them had been talking about the case just now, and the dishes had been served for a long time, but no one picked up their chopsticks.

Shen Yuan hadn't expected that he would be eating at the same table with Lord Xie so soon. What a huge progress!