Chapter 34 Double Confusion (XIV) He tried his best to keep his heart from wavering. ...
"ah?"
Du Zhong, holding his bowl, was utterly taken aback by Jiu Li's summary. He simply held his chopsticks in mid-air, unable to bring them down to the plate. With his mouth half-open and a grain of rice still clinging to his chin, he looked utterly foolish.
Jiuli rolled her eyes at him two hundred times in a row. How could anyone think they were siblings?! There was no way they could be born of the same mother, no way!
The bright morning light fell on the kang table. She stretched out her arm, and through the light, you could see her skin and flesh inside the sleeve. She was gradually shedding her plump, childlike fragility, and instead, the delicate and resilient charm of a woman was becoming more and more apparent each day.
She lifted his chin with her hand and closed his mouth, saying, "Don't eat with your mouth open, didn't your uncle teach you that?!"
Du Zhong quickly chewed the food in his mouth a couple of times and swallowed it, then leaned closer and asked, "You said your master likes your mother? Your biological mother?"
She nodded confidently.
How did you know?
"I guessed."
He couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Then I'll make a bold guess: could you be Master and your mother's illegitimate daughter?"
Jiuli stopped. If we calculate by age, Yu Qi must have given birth to her when he was eleven or twelve. It's rare for a man of that age to give birth, but it's not unheard of!
She felt a chill run down her spine and quickly put down her chopsticks. "Is this even possible?"
Du Zhong chuckled, “Think about it, otherwise why would Master have taken you in? Why wouldn’t he tell the old lady about your background? Maybe it’s because you were young and reckless, so he’s embarrassed.”
Jiuli frowned and thought for a long time before suddenly raising her hand to slap him, "Stop talking nonsense!"
He laughed so hard he collapsed onto the couch. Hearing his unrestrained laughter, she gradually felt a sense of relief. It was impossible. Yu Qi didn't look at all like her, and besides, Yu Qi had never shown any such intention; it was simply a pipe dream.
She glared at Du Zhong fiercely, "Don't joke like that, you're scaring me to death."
"Isn't it good that your master is your own father?" Du Zhong laughed until his stomach hurt, then slowly sat up. "Who told you to make up stories first? Your master likes your mother? How could you even think of that!"
"I was just thinking that randomly."
"Why don't you think about it? Maybe your master has a good relationship with your father, which is why he took you in."
Jiuli held her chopsticks and pondered, but it was impossible. In her hazy memory, there was never a "father," only a mother, who was just a slender but indifferent figure. She felt heartbroken whenever she thought of her. Her mother didn't seem to like her much. Fortunately, there was Yu Qi, who picked her up amidst all the pain.
Seeing that she seemed to be thinking about something sad, Du Zhong tapped the bowl and said, "Eat quickly, we still have to go out after we eat. Didn't Master say yesterday that although the knife found in Wan San's room is the murder weapon, it still needs to be verified?"
Jiuli pouted, brushing aside the hazy memories, and immediately put down her bowl, saying she wouldn't eat anymore. She then hurriedly sat down in front of the mirror to fix her hair.
Before long, he dressed up and went out. When he arrived in the courtyard, he saw Cai Jin standing there without wearing official uniform, holding a knife about ten inches long, his eyes staring emotionlessly at the two closed doors of the north room.
She had a rough idea of why he had come. Although she was a little scared, she went over to him and said, "My uncle has gone on his rounds. If you need anything, why don't you go find Brother Zhang?"
Cai Jin snapped out of his daze, his face momentarily showing astonishment, before he gave a nonchalant smile. "There are some things that can only be discussed with Mr. Yu."
"Then wait a moment. Many patients have recovered now, and Uncle will be back from his rounds soon." Jiuli looked him over, nodded, and led Du Zhong away from the garden.
Now that Cai Jin had come, he wouldn't leave. He sat under the eaves for a while and, sure enough, saw Yu Qi and a group of doctors return.
Yu Qi was a little surprised to see him walk around from behind the pillars and appear. He thought he would need more time to settle his family. Did he come so early because he was afraid that Yu Qi would regret it?
He opened the door, but didn't invite him in. Cai Jin followed him in, closed the door, and held up a long knife with both hands towards Yu Qi's back. "Mr. Yu."
Yu Qi turned around and glanced at him, took the knife, and sat down on the chair. "You used this knife to kill Guan Zhan? This isn't a standard yamen knife."
He smiled and said, "This was made by someone for my brother a long time ago. He likes knives."
Yu Qi drew his sword and held it up in front of him. “The Tang dynasty’s shield sword was used to shield the body and defend against enemies, and was used for close combat. Your brother was indeed a good constable. He spent his life subduing bandits and killing thieves to serve the court, while you have become a murderer.”
"What good is serving the court? After you die, your whole family will still have trouble even eating."
Yu Qi flicked his wrist slightly, sheathing his sword. Cai Jin looked on in surprise, but didn't say a word. Yu Qi glanced at him; once someone like him made up his mind, there was no way to get him to talk.
He placed the knife on the table beside him, smiled dismissively, and said, "So, what do you want from me?"
Cai Jin knelt down, saying, "I killed Guan Zhan. It has nothing to do with anyone else. Please, sir, stop investigating. Even if you continue, you have no evidence. You are not a government official, so why waste your energy?"
Yu Qi smiled in silence. "Now that you're kneeling here, you must have no more worries. Since you're willing to die, why should I worry about you? Get up. I'm not a blessed person and can't bear to be knelt to by others."
Unexpectedly, he was so agreeable. Cai Jin was somewhat incredulous and hesitated as he stood up. "Sir, are you really not going to pursue this further?"
"If you investigate further, you'll point to the mastermind?" He shook his head with a self-deprecating smile. "You know you're doomed anyway, so you might as well take the blame yourself and protect those you want to protect. If you protect her, given her generous nature, she'll surely ensure your family will live a life of comfort from now on. I'm just a little curious, is this all out of affection or for personal gain?"
Cai Jin was taken aback by the question, and after a long while shook his head. "I don't know either. Maybe she knows, but she didn't tell me." He then gave a sad smile. "The affairs between men and women are inherently complicated and hard to explain."
Yu Qi squinted at him for a moment, then tossed the shield into his arms. “Go find Zhang Da and prepare your confession. He may be a bit dim-witted, but your Lord Qi is not so easily fooled.”
He took the knife and felt relieved. "Lord Qi never cares about the affairs of insignificant people like us."
Yu Qi frowned, watching him leave through the door before slowly pacing back to the door. Qi Xubai didn't care about the affairs of insignificant people, so what was his intention in taking on these two cases?
Just then, Jiu Li was also frowning as he looked around a kitchen. It was hardly a kitchen at all! There wasn't a single intact cooking utensil in sight, and the few bowls and plates that were there were broken beyond recognition. The stove was so cold that it looked like it hadn't been used for centuries, and the walls were piled with dusty wooden carrying poles and buckets.
A man leaned against the door and laughed, “Those were left here by a sloppy shopper. They were broken and unusable, so nobody bothered to throw them away and just left them piled up in this room.”
Upon hearing that it was a garbage can, Jiu Li was relieved that her hand hadn't touched it yet. She quickly withdrew her hand, straightened up, glanced at the man, and moved her lips twice, but heard no sound.
Xu Bai knew she was cursing the man for not saying so sooner. She was very clean, and if she had actually run into him, she would have chopped off her own fingers.
He found her amusing, took a silk handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her, then turned and asked, "So you never cook in the kitchen?"
"Who has the time for that?" The man chuckled shamelessly, "Don't underestimate this little courtyard; it's full of people who make a living on the streets."
If they don't cook, where did the meat-removing knife come from? Luckily, Yu Qi reminded us to ask in this courtyard, otherwise we would have been fooled by Wan San. Jiu Li quickly asked Du Zhong for the meat-removing knife to show him, "Is this something from your courtyard?"
The man examined it several times and shook his head. "No, this is for cutting meat. We don't light fires here, so why would we need a knife like this?"
"Have you ever seen it in Wan San's house before?"
He thought for a while, then shook his head again. "No, don't be fooled by Wan San's tough talk. He's actually more timid than a mouse. I used to advise him to walk around the streets more often. I suggested he buy a dagger and carry it with him. If he encountered those lords ordering their servants to beat people, he could pull it out and scare them. But that coward didn't dare. He said he was afraid he'd accidentally hurt himself."
"Then tell me, is it possible that he could have killed someone?"
The man sneered even more, "He kills people? I think he's only fit to be killed! Last time, two debt collectors came and cornered him in the yard and gave him a good beating. He didn't dare utter a sound until they left, then he started cursing."
Jiuli glanced back at Xubai and asked, "Did someone really come looking for him to collect a debt?"
"That kid owes seventy or eighty taels of silver. I don't know how he got into this debt. He doesn't gamble, drink, or visit women. I don't know where his money went."
Seeing that he couldn't explain it clearly, Jiuli had no choice but to take the knife back and walk all the way out, only handing it to Du Zhong when they reached the bridge.
After boarding the palanquin, he went straight to the yamen. Upon entering, he went straight to the prison cell and heard Wan San weakly groaning, presumably because his dislocated arm from yesterday hadn't been set yet. He continued to call out to himself, while the two jailers continued drinking at the table in front, ignoring him. When they looked up, they saw Xu Baifang getting up to greet him.
When they reached the cell, the jailer opened the door. Wan San heard the noise and came to greet Xu Bai. "Sir, sir, I've confessed to everything. Please send a doctor to set my arm. Let me die a good death!"
Before Xu Bai could speak, Du Zhong laughed and came over, grabbed his arm and twisted it hard a few times, then let go and patted his shoulder, "You want to die? It's not that easy. Do you think you can just say whatever you want? Do you think the government is your private property?"
Wan San lifted his arm and spun it around a few times, then laughed when he felt better. But then he realized there was a hidden meaning in his words and immediately stopped laughing. "I've confessed everything. What else do you want?"
Du Zhong pulled out the knife and threw it on the ground with a clatter. "Where did you get this murder weapon?"
"I brought it from home."
"Bullshit! You live in that tenement and never cook, so where would you get a meat cleaver?"
Wan San glanced at the three of them and stammered, "I, I, I misremembered. I bought it on the way."
Jiuli asked with a smile, "Which street and which shop did you buy it from?"
Seeing that the three of them were serious, he lowered his head and said, "I...I...I don't remember very clearly."
"How could you forget something that happened so recently? Your memory is really terrible." As she spoke, Jiuli glanced at Xubai and took out a yellow talisman from her sleeve. "I'm asking you, is this the one you took to the Lychee Garden that night to pretend to be a ghost?"
He nodded immediately upon seeing it, "Yes, yes, I brought it."
She threw it at his face, "Still lying! I just bought this talisman on the street, it's a talisman for protection!"
Wan San looked flustered, then examined the talisman for a while before saying, "Yes, yes, it's a talisman for protection. I misjudged it; the talisman I drew at Liyuan was red."
Jiuli smiled and said, "So you drew that talisman yourself? Okay, draw another one for us to see now."
He was speechless for a moment. If he said he didn't draw it, they would definitely ask who drew it and would investigate. He could only chuckle and say, "Sir, I've already confessed, why ask so many questions? Just execute me and that's it. Anyway, my life is worthless, why bother you with all that trouble?"
Jiuli's smile faded. "It's all fate. Why distinguish between noble and lowly?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Bai couldn't help but glance at her. Her expression was so solemn, and a beam of sunlight from the rooftop shone upon her, giving her an almost divine radiance. Although he didn't quite agree with her words, he felt a tremor in his heart at that moment.
He looked at Wan San and suddenly felt a pang of pity for this man who looked like a blade of grass. "If anyone threatens your family's lives, you can speak up and I will ensure your family's safety."
Wan San glanced up at him, then walked to the corner and squatted down forlornly. "Thank you for your trouble, sir, but I have no family. My family members all died long ago, and I am all alone."
Since he wasn't coerced, he must have willingly taken the blame for someone else. Who could it be that would make him risk his life?
Seeing that he was about the same height as Du Zhong, but excessively thin, huddled in the corner like a stray dog, Jiu Li felt a pang of pity. She went over to him and kicked his foot with her embroidered shoe, saying, "You're all alone, are you trying to kill yourself? If your parents were alive, wouldn't they be heartbroken?"
He tilted his head back, grinning stubbornly, "I don't want people to pity me. Do you look down on me? I'm the one who should pity others!"
"That's right. If the person you care about sees you like this, they'll feel sorry for you too."
He lowered his head again and remained silent, picking up a blade of grass and scribbling on the ground. The rustling sound was like the whimpering of a small animal. Compared to beasts, humans simply possess more emotions.
Seeing that she couldn't get any information out of him, Jiu Li had no choice but to slip out of the cell first. Xu Bai and Du Zhong followed closely behind. When she got outside into the sunlight, she saw Du Zhong looking around aimlessly and asked, "What are you looking at?"
Du Zhong smiled sheepishly, "It's nothing, this county government office is quite big."
She glanced at him, then suddenly turned to Xu Bai and said, "I'll find out. Don't hit him anymore."
Xu Bai, also exposed to the sun, felt a sudden, unsettling embarrassment and smiled at her, "No, I'm fine."
She pursed her lips slightly, "You already did it yesterday."
His eyelids twitched, so he could only make a promise, "Don't worry."
After leaving the camp, they were unsure where to begin their investigation and could only return to Liyuan by carriage. As evening approached, a yamen runner with a lantern came to greet them at the gate, saying that the murderer of Guan Zhan had turned himself in. Jiu Li and Xu Bai went to his room together. In truth, they already knew the answer in their hearts, but upon entering and seeing Cai Jin kneeling there upright, they were still momentarily flustered.
Of his men, Xu Bai only really knew Zhang Da. He couldn't remember most of the others' full names. If he remembered a character, he would add "A" before it, which was common in the south.
"Ah Jin?" He glanced at Cai Jin as he walked to the front chair, his shocked expression quickly calming down. "How could it be you?"
Zhang Da glanced at Cai Jin with pity. He had interrogated him three or four times already, but no matter how he tried to persuade him, Cai Jin insisted that he had killed Guan Zhan in a fit of rage because of a grudge against him.
He presented a confession to Xu Bai, saying, "I've confessed everything, sir. Please take a look."
Jiuli went over to read it. The confession said that Cai Jin had a quarrel with Guan Zhan when he went to the Guan family to deliver a message for the yamen, and had long harbored resentment. Coincidentally, that night, Cai Jin was on the first shift at the Liyuan Garden. He met Guan Zhan in the garden, and Guan Zhan invited him to his room to talk. They started arguing again after only a few words, so Cai Jin was filled with hatred and killed him.
Zhang Da specially summoned two servants from the Guan family to testify. They are still inside the house. The two servants both said, "It happened around the end of last year. Constable Cai came to our house to convey Lord Wang's message, saying that with the end of the year approaching, there might be bandits on the move, and that all shops and businesses should be extra vigilant. My eldest daughter specially gave Constable Cai sixty taels of silver as a token of her gratitude. Constable Cai accepted the silver, and the two of us saw him out. We ran into our second master in the front yard. Our second master pulled Constable Cai aside to talk, and after a while, we heard our second master start cursing."
What did they say?
Cai Jin himself didn't quite remember what he said, but Guan Zhan somehow discovered his affair with Youjun and, fearing that others would hear and damage his sister's reputation, had no choice but to pull him aside and question him.
The servants of the Guan family said, "I only heard the Second Master say that Constable Cai was doing this for our family's money, and he cursed him as a scoundrel. Because we were far away, I couldn't hear it very clearly, but the Second Master was furious that day."
This testimony, like the confession, omitted the essentials and left some irrelevant information. Apart from proving that Cai Jin and Guan Zhan did indeed have an argument, it could not prove anything else.
Xu Bai shook the confession and glanced at Cai Jin, "Jin, did I really manage to get a few more reward money from the Guan family for you?"
Cai Jin insisted, "Miss Guan has always been so generous. She usually rewards the officials who go to the Guan family. It just so happened that it was the New Year, so Miss Guan gave more than usual, out of respect for the two gentlemen. I didn't expect to run into Master Guan. He must have been reluctant to give her the reward, so he scolded me for a while."
Xu Bai had no way of distinguishing between truth and falsehood, but as far as he knew, Guan Zhan was never a stingy person, so why would he get angry and scold someone just because he gave them a few extra coins?
He could only ask again, "Since a conflict has already occurred, why would Guan Zhan invite you to his room to talk that night?"
"Since the Lin Mo case, I have been working in the garden with Constable Zhang. I have also met Guan Zhan before, but we had never spoken. But that night, I ran into Guan Zhan as soon as I went out on patrol. He suddenly called me into his room to talk. I found it strange and followed him in, only to find out that he had taken a fancy to a female patient in the west of the garden, named Li Yuxian. But Li Yuxian was a proper person and refused to comply. He called me in so that I would force Li Yuxian. I naturally refused. He got angry and scolded me for only taking the Guan family's reward money but not doing anything for them. He called me a disobedient dog. I kept thinking about the words he had said to me before, and anger rose in my heart. I decided to settle all old and new grudges at once."
A message was sent to the door that Li Yuxian had come in to ask questions. It was confirmed that Zhan had teased her, but she knew nothing else.
After listening to Cai Jin's testimony, Jiu Li found it to be without any discrepancies. He even clearly explained that Guan Zhan only poured himself a cup of tea when he entered the room, and didn't pour any for him. Naturally, Guan Zhan looked down on him, so why would he pour him tea?
However, according to Jiuli's observation, although Guan Zhan was arrogant, he was not an easily angered person. Was it mostly fabricated by Jiuli, or was there something extraordinary that made Guan Zhan so furious?
Since Guan Zhan was already dead, and it was confirmed that he was the one who killed him, we could only let him say what he wanted. But how could he speak so calmly? There wasn't a trace of resentment in his eyes.
The case has come to an end. The murder weapon, witnesses, and confessions are all available. Like Zhang Da, even if Xu Bai felt there were other hidden circumstances, he had nowhere to verify them and was too lazy to do so. He simply ordered his men to escort Cai Jin back to the yamen overnight.
A moment later, the moonlight shone through, hazy and indistinct. Jiu Li looked up, feeling a bit confused, realizing that the so-called truth had only come to light, like looking at flowers through a fog. The flower was a jade hibiscus, which gradually transformed in her mind into Guan Youjun's pale and pale smiling face. She suddenly felt a chill towards this woman, yet within that chill, there was also a kind of admiration.
Lost in thought, she suddenly tripped and fell hard, her foot sinking into a ditch. Du Zhong put down his lantern to help her up. She pulled her foot out, but when she moved her ankle, it hurt terribly. "I twisted this ankle last time, and it's the same one again! Am I cursed by this ankle?!"
"I think you stepped on a villain with this foot," Du Zhong laughed. "It must be because you weren't fully healed last time, and you were being lazy, not applying the medicine when it didn't hurt."
He had just squatted down to carry him on his back when Yu Qi suddenly appeared from the darkness. "I'll carry you, you hold the light."
He said "Oh," picked up the lantern, and stood aside to wait for Yu Qi to carry Jiu Li on his back.
Jiu Li wrapped her arms tightly around Yu Qi's neck, as if she wanted to strangle him. Yu Qi hooked one arm around her knee and patted her arm with the other, "Loosen up a bit."
She remembered how he used to carry her on his back when she was little. So many years had passed, and she hadn't had the chance to lie on his strong back again. Suddenly, she felt a secret relief that she had sprained her ankle, and she nestled affectionately against his shoulder. Looking out from his shoulder, the view was as far as it had been in her childhood, and even though the distance was dark, it was as if she could see a garden in full bloom, a scene of desolate spring. She smelled the scent of his neck, a damp, cool fragrance carrying the scent of grass and trees.
"Uncle, what brings you here?"
Yu Qi regretted carrying her on his back, because he could clearly feel her soft breasts pressed tightly against his back. However, if he didn't carry her, Du Zhong would. Du Zhong was the same age, and the two weren't siblings. He was afraid that their skin would rub against each other and cause trouble.
He felt something was off in his throat, and deliberately made it sound colder and deeper than usual. "It's dark and you haven't come back yet. I guess you came with Qi Xubai to interrogate Cai Jin."
Jiuli thought he was angry from the sound of his voice, so she leaned on his shoulder and peered at his expression. "This morning when we went out, we saw Cai Jin waiting for you in the yard. What did he say to you?"
"nothing."
She glanced at me and said, "You're lying to me again."
"Anyway, it won't implicate the mastermind."
There really is someone in charge. "I bet it's Guan Youjun, isn't it?"
She excitedly twisted her body twice on his back, and he tried his best not to let his emotions get the better of him, so he remained silent.
She thought his silence was an attempt to cover for someone else, and became somewhat displeased, scoffing, "You accepted someone's fine tea, yet you do something so unscrupulous."
Du Zhong, still pondering her previous words while holding a lantern, said belatedly, "I think so too."
Two pairs of eyes turned to him, and he shuddered, quickly shaking his head, "No, no!"
Yu Qi chuckled and looked away. "When did I ever develop a conscience?"
Jiuli gave a soft hum behind his back.
He slowly composed himself, "The man was killed by Cai Jin; that's absolutely true. He wasn't innocent."
"I know."
She was thinking about Guan Zhan, but instead looked at Du Zhong from Yu Qi's shoulder. She felt that Du Zhong seemed to have grown taller than before. He had grown too fast and was still thin no matter how much he ate. She suddenly felt a pang of pain in her heart and couldn't help but reach out to pinch his face.
Du Zhong glared at her, "Why are you pinching me?!"
She pinched him, knowing he wouldn't dare retaliate; she still held some authority over him as his older sister. She rolled her eyes, then looked back at his face, unsure of her true feelings, but suddenly longed to see Du Zhongcheng's biological son with her own eyes.
Du Zhong felt uncomfortable under her gentle gaze and hummed twice, "Your foot doesn't hurt anymore?"
Unbeknownst to anyone, Jiuli turned his dangling feet and hissed as he did so.
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Author's note: Thank you for reading.
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