Chapter 42 Mother-of-Pearl Incense (05) The deceased is Tang Chengguan.
Who would have thought they would encounter such a poor, unreasonable, and shameless woman? Moreover, they heard a baby crying inside the house. Even Yu Qi was at a loss and could only say, "Tell Zhang Da to bring people from the yamen to visit this person tomorrow."
As he walked out into the street, he suspected that the woman's spittle had landed on his clothes, so he kept brushing it off. He eventually took off his black gauze cloak and hung it on his arm, leaving only his honey-colored silk robe underneath.
Looking at his furrowed brows, Jiuli finally couldn't help but burst out laughing, "So even Uncle has times when he suffers in silence!"
Yu Qi gave her a cold look, and she immediately shut up, her face flushed from trying not to laugh.
Turning her head, she saw a restaurant with a shaved ice stall in front of it, and she pestered Yu Qi to have some. Yu Qi was worried that the ice might not be clean, but when he saw that she had a layer of fine sweat on her face, he had no choice but to agree.
The two sat by the octagonal table, watching as many people came and went, looking listless under the scorching sun. Especially the laborers, whether they were peddlers carrying goods or pulling carts for others, they were all drenched in sweat, with streams of sweat running down their necks and soaking their chests and backs. Yet they dared not rest and continued to rush about.
A man carrying a large bag walked past the shed. After walking a short distance, he suddenly swayed and fell to the ground. Jiu Li jumped up from the long bench in surprise and ran over to check on him.
"Uncle, he has fainted due to heatstroke!"
A crowd of passersby gathered around, pointing and shoving. Yu Qi coldly shouted at them, "Make way!" He then picked up the old man and carried him into the shaded area. He laid the old man flat on the ground, borrowed a rag from the shopkeeper, wet it, and wiped the old man's chest and armpits twice. The old man gradually regained consciousness.
Jiuli breathed a sigh of relief. She could tell that the man was at least fifty years old. She felt sorry for him, seeing him working so hard on the street in such hot weather. She helped him up and sat him down on the bench, pushing two bowls of shaved ice to him. "They're freshly made. We haven't tried them yet. Please have some."
The old man thanked him profusely, ate quickly, and then continued on his way, carrying his large bag.
Jiuli ordered two more bowls, sat down and sighed to Yuqi, "It's really not easy. Under such a blazing sun, and at such an advanced age, we still can't enjoy our retirement at home."
"Providing for the elderly, educating the young, supporting the poor, and helping those in need—these are merely hopes in books, or empty words from officials."
Although his tone was as indifferent as ever, Jiu Li could detect a hint of wistfulness beneath it. Indeed, not everyone was as lucky as her—an orphan who had met him. Thinking about it this way, she realized he wasn't a cold-hearted person after all.
Yu Qi glanced around at the shed and said, "The weather is getting hotter and hotter now. We can set up a shed like this in front of our shop and brew a few pots of herbal tea every day for passersby to drink as they please."
Jiuli feigned ignorance and sarcastically remarked, "Brewing herbal tea? Doesn't that cost money? Besides, what if they steal all the tables, chairs, dishes, and other utensils if they help themselves? Are you willing to let them?"
"There's no need to set out any tables or chairs. Where can't exhausted people sit? There's no need to set out any bowls or plates either. If they're extremely thirsty, they can just pick a leaf from the roadside and use it to scoop up water."
She laughed as she leaned on the table, tilting her head to look at him, as if she were looking at him from a different perspective. Suddenly, she noticed that his half-closed eyes resembled those of a bodhisattva in a temple, and his face was also expressionless and emotionless. But if you looked closely, you could see that his face might actually carry a hint of pity.
She caught a glimpse of a familiar figure walking across the street and straightened her back to greet him with a smile. It was Xu Bai, who was passing by in a sedan chair. Seeing the two of them sitting in the shaded pavilion, he ordered the sedan chair to stop and came to bow to Yu Qi with a letter in hand.
Yu Qi glanced at him, then continued pouring his tea and drinking. "If Lord Qi is busy, please go ahead and do your thing. There's no need for you to get out of your sedan chair to greet me."
Xu Bai lifted his robe and sat down on the bench, handing the invitation to Yu Qi. "I was just about to go to your residence to deliver the invitation. I would like to invite the old lady and gentleman to visit my home tomorrow with Yu'er and Du Zhong. My wife has prepared a banquet to entertain you. I hope you will not mind."
Yu Qi took the invitation and saw that it was from Madam Qi. The formality of the invitation suggested that both families were interested in each other. He smiled, closed the invitation, and nodded in agreement, wanting to see if Madam Qi had ulterior motives or if she was truly sincere towards Jiu Li.
Xu Bai was somewhat surprised. He had thought that Xu Bai would make an excuse not to go. Besides, when a man and woman are getting to know each other, although elders are needed to be present, these elders are mostly women, and men rarely get involved.
Jiuli poured him a cup of tea from across the street and pushed it towards him, asking with a smile, "Would you like some shaved ice?"
Xu Bai smiled and shook his head, then asked, "Why are you sitting here?"
Jiuli then told him in detail about the theft at his home, and said, "I was just about to tell Brother Zhang and ask him to look for that Tang Chengguan for us. Your yamen has a legitimate reason, so we're not afraid of not getting our things back."
“That’s easy. I’ll send a servant to the yamen to deliver the message when I get home.” As he spoke, seeing that Yu Qi didn’t respond, he felt bored and got up to take his leave. “Now that the invitation has been delivered to you, sir, I’ll head back now. Please come early tomorrow.”
Jiuli smiled and nodded. After watching him get into the sedan chair, she leaned over and said to Yu Qi, "I wonder how big the Qi residence is, and how easy it is to get along with Madam Qi?"
Yu Qi put down his teacup and smiled, "We'll know when we go and see for ourselves tomorrow."
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the old lady took Yuqing to the street to buy some gifts. Fengqiao hired two carriages from the street, and the four of them went to the Qi family's residence. When they arrived at the Qi family's gate, two gatekeepers were sitting on the threshold talking. When they saw the four of them, they quickly got up and asked if they were from the Yu family. They then politely led the four of them inside.
As you walk in, the lush greenery is dense, and the pavilions are partially hidden. However, due to a lack of manpower in the mansion, many places are neglected, and the excessive growth of branches and leaves gives off a sense of desolation and loneliness. But even just looking at the empty rooms with their doors closed, you can tell that the Qi family was once very prosperous. Now, the buildings remain, but the family is sparse, which makes people sigh with emotion.
The servants, however, still acted like members of a scholarly family, and were very well-mannered. From afar, they saw a young servant respectfully leading two young men into the pavilion, which caught Yu Qi's attention.
He walked at the front and smiled at the servant leading the way, saying, "I didn't expect your household to have so many guests. If I had known, I shouldn't have come to bother you today."
The servant didn't react at first, but when he turned his head and saw someone enter the pavilion, he smiled and said, "Mr. Yu, don't take it to heart. They're not guests, just gardeners who came to trim the flowers and plants. The room is empty anyway, so let them rest and have a cup of tea."
The two men were burly and strong; others might not have noticed, but Yu Qi recognized them immediately—they were clearly martial artists. He smiled slightly, nodded, and followed them forward, his hands clasped behind his back. Xu Bai was already waiting at the hanging flower gate, and he personally led the four of them to a flower hall.
Madam Qi, dressed elegantly and gracefully, was already waiting in the hall with Xu Bai's mother, elder brother, and sister-in-law. Upon seeing them arrive, she greeted them with a smile at the door. After exchanging greetings, Madam Qi took the old lady's hand and invited the women to sit on the couch in the side room, leaving Xu Bai and his brothers in the outer room to serve Yu Qi. After a short while of pleasantries, the banquet began and lasted until late afternoon.
Xu Bai personally saw the four people out, then turned back into the mansion and went straight to the outer study.
He pushed open the door and entered. His elder brother, Xu Yun, was sitting back in a chair beside him. Behind the desk sat another young man in brocade robes, exuding an extraordinary air, who was unfolding a scroll and looking at it. He walked to the desk, bowed, and said, "Your Highness."
It turned out that this person was none other than Prince Zhao, Zhou Yu, who was still staring at the painting in his hand and slightly nodding his chin. "Just now, Xu Yun and I were discussing whether there are strangers in this world who look so alike."
Xu Bai straightened up and looked at the woman in the painting at an angle. "I have looked at this painting many times since the prince gave it to me last time, and I think it looks a lot like Yu'er. But a painting is still a painting. No matter how well it is painted, it is still somewhat unreal. I have never seen the person in the painting, so I dare not make any judgments."
Zhou Yu said, "But I have seen Aunt Quan in person. Such beauty is truly rare in this world."
Xu Yun smiled and said, "But I never heard that Aunt Quan was engaged back then, let alone that she had any children."
Zhou Yu rolled up the scroll and placed it back on the desk, leaning back in his chair with a half-smile. "Within the palace, the rules seem strict, but there are many who act recklessly and willfully in secret. We were all young then, and we didn't know these secrets. I only heard an old eunuch in the palace say that Aunt Quan was also involved in the 'Huang Liang Rebellion,' which is why she later committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Think about it, if there were no personal feelings involved, why would she risk her life to help Prince Feng usurp the throne?"
Xu Yun nodded with a smile, "Your Highness is right. However, Xu Bai has tested the Yu family many times, and they all say the same thing: this Miss Jiu Li is indeed the daughter of Mr. Yu's elder brother. In my humble opinion, the world is full of wonders, and it is not impossible to find two people who look alike."
Zhou Yu remained silent for a moment, then asked Xu Bai, "What about Du Zhong? What exactly is his relationship with the Yu family?"
Xu Bai said, "I heard that he was originally the son of one of Yu Qi's patients. After that patient died, Yu Qi saw that he had no one to rely on, so he took him in as a medical apprentice and raised him in the Yu family. I don't think this is a lie. If Du Zhong and Yu'er are indeed siblings, then it can be said that he is the son of the eldest master of the Yu family."
Zhou Yu stood up and slowly walked out of the table. "Perhaps it's because such handsome young men are so rare, and they happen to be next to a beautiful girl like Miss Yu'er, that everyone would mistake them for twins." He smiled at the flower shadows outside the window. "Actually, sometimes such misunderstandings don't need to be clarified."
He turned his head and said, "No matter what, that Miss Jiuli is incredibly beautiful. If you could marry her, it would be a wonderful thing."
Xu Bai smiled, but her expression betrayed her disappointment. "But Yu Qi's attitude towards me has always been somewhat cold. I don't know if he will agree to this marriage."
"I've heard that Yu Qi is a highly skilled doctor, and that he cured the plague in Nanjing?"
Xu Bai nodded, "That's certainly true. This person is not only highly skilled in medicine, but also meticulous and very capable in investigating and solving cases."
"He's quite a talent, you'd better win over your father-in-law's family," Zhou Yu joked, then, having official business to attend to, he led the two away from the Qi residence.
The two men were dressed in ordinary clothes, but Yu Qi felt they were not ordinary people. They seemed to be from the military, and although they were tall and imposing, they had an ordinary demeanor. They didn't look like military generals in the court, but rather like someone's guards. He closed his eyes and thought, the Qi family was a scholarly family, all civil officials, and their influence had long since waned. Among the people who came and went, there was only one person who needed guards to protect them, and that was Prince Zhao, who had been friends with the Qi brothers in his childhood.
I overheard Bai's tone, saying that he and his brother were only childhood friends with Prince Zhao, and that due to the decline of the Qi family, they grew up in different places and had long since drifted apart. It seems this was just a cover-up. Prince Zhao was probably an adopted prince with an awkward status, so he had to conceal his interactions with officials to avoid being accused of forming a faction in court, especially since the Qi family had once been a thorn in the emperor's side.
Thinking about it this way, it's not surprising to see King Zhao's guards at the Qi residence, but what's strange is why it had to be today.
Today, everyone in the Qi household is busy preparing a banquet for the Yu family. Aren't they afraid of neglecting Prince Zhao? Or is the relationship between the Qi brothers and Prince Zhao so good that they don't distinguish between superiors and inferiors?
Just as they were thinking about this, the carriage arrived at the shop. Everyone got off the carriage one after another and went inside to find Zhang Da sitting in the inner room drinking tea.
Yesterday, Xu Bai had said that he had entrusted Zhang Da with the investigation of the theft. Jiu Li guessed that he was probably here today to report on the matter, so he went into the inner room and asked, "Brother Zhang, have you found my things?"
Zhang Da hurriedly put down his teacup and stood up. "Oh, you're finally back. I've found that little thief, but I'll have to ask you to go to the yamen to identify him."
"Are my things still at the yamen?"
He smiled apologetically, "I'm really sorry, I did find the person, but I didn't see any of the girl's things."
Jiuli's face fell. "Then what do you want me to identify?"
"I need to find out if the person I'm visiting is the Tang Chengguan you're talking about."
Jiuli sat down, fanning himself with a silk fan. “He has a wife at home. Why should I go and claim her? You can have his wife claim her. By the way, his wife still has one of my silk flowers in her hair. Although it’s not worth much, I can’t lose a single thing that’s mine. I’m going to get it all back.”
Zhang Da shook his head. "Don't even mention that woman from the Tang family. I sent someone to summon her to identify people at noon, but she absolutely refused to go."
"What, is she afraid of being implicated?"
"No, that's not it. She's afraid of seeing dead people, and she fainted from fright at home."
"A dead man?" Jiu Li suddenly perked up, straightening his back. "You mean Tang Chengguan is dead?!"
Zhang Da sighed and sat down. "That's right. Look at my luck. This morning, I took two people to Quzhong to investigate Tang Chengguan's whereabouts. As soon as we got there, we heard that a floating corpse had been pulled from the river. I rushed over and heard some of the onlookers say it was Tang Chengguan, so I asked you to identify him."
"If the onlookers say it is true, then it should be true. Would they admit they're wrong?"
“You don’t know, his face was scratched up beyond recognition by something. The person who recognized him wasn’t familiar with him and couldn’t be sure, only saying that he looked like him. Haven’t you seen him before? You can go and recognize him. I’ll ask Tang’s wife to come after she’s recovered.”
Upon hearing about the murder case, Jiu Li was overjoyed. He reminisced about the thrilling days in Liyuan. Since returning home, although he had lived a peaceful and comfortable life, he had lost some of the excitement.
She immediately stood up and said, "Alright! While it's not too late, I'll go with you!"
Unexpectedly, Yu Qi, who had been asking about things at the shop, came in from outside and said, "It'll be dinner time soon, where are you thinking of going again?"
Zhang Da immediately grinned, "Perfect! Mr. Yu, are you coming along too? Our young master's coroner is ultimately unreliable; after examining him for so long, he said it was drowning. I don't think so; I think it's most likely murder!"
Jiuli became even more excited, "How can you be sure it was murder?"
"Go and see for yourself, he's covered in wounds. It's either murder or something!"
Du Zhong, who had overheard a few words outside, came over excitedly, "Someone's dead? Take me to see him!"
The three of them were talking enthusiastically, but Yu Qi remained indifferent. After stepping into the room, he sat down on a chair and stared coldly at Jiu Li and Du Zhong as they chattered on and on.
Zhang Da turned his head and saw his expression. He said apologetically, "I know I shouldn't trouble you, sir. You don't receive a salary from the court, nor do you eat the grain from the government office. You shouldn't be meddling in this matter. Here's what I'll do: after the inspection is finished, I'll treat you to a meal out of my own pocket!"
Jiuli also rushed over to him, acting cute and charming, waving a silk fan near his face, "Uncle, come on, come on, we're just killing time anyway."
Yu Qi snorted, "You're idle while I'm not. You neglect your own business and instead busy yourself with other people's affairs."
Jiuli fanned himself even more vigorously, saying, "It's almost dinner time, and there won't be many patients to see us. The patients also need to eat dinner. Besides, we helped Brother Zhang so much at Liyuan, and we haven't been treated to a meal by him yet."
Yu Qi remained silent for a long time, his eyes fixed on Zhang Da with disgust. After staring at him for a long time, he finally nodded reluctantly.
When the four arrived at the county government office, apart from the yamen runners on duty, all the minor officials had already gone home. There was no one on duty in the coroner's room, only the door was locked. Zhang Da had no way of finding the key to open it. It was a large room with seven or eight bed boards. There was only one corpse on it, covered with a white cloth. It was probably the corpse that had been fished out of the river.
Two small wooden buckets were placed next to the bed. Du Zhong, with his keen eyesight, went to take a look and immediately rushed outside. Jiu Li heard him retching outside the door, scoffed disdainfully, glanced into the two buckets, and then also pushed past Yu Qi and Zhang Da to rush outside.
Yu Qi immediately looked down and saw that one of the items was a stomach and intestines that had been removed, the stomach had been cut open, and the other bucket contained the contents of the stomach.
“Because there were no fatal wounds on the body, the coroner cut open the abdomen, dissected the stomach, and said that there was wine and meat in the stomach, as well as a lot of water, suggesting that the person had fallen into the river and drowned while drunk.” As Zhang Da spoke, he lifted the white cloth, revealing the upper half of the body. “But I don’t quite believe it. If it were that simple, how could there be so many wounds on the body?”
Sure enough, the corpse had many messy wounds on its body and face. Yu Qi was about to open the wounds to examine them when he remembered something, looked up at the door and said, "Weren't you all insisting on coming? This is the time to learn some skills, why don't you come and see?"
The two heard this outside the door. Before Du Zhong could even straighten up, he pushed Jiu Li and said, "Go quickly."
Jiuli glared at him, "Why aren't you going?"
"You're so capable, weren't you just laughing at me?"
Jiuli straightened up, swallowed hard several times to suppress the churning sensation in her stomach, and pulled Du Zhong inside, saying, "Let's go together!"
The two stood far away from the bed board. Jiuli pointed to the two wooden buckets first, "Brother Zhang, move the buckets away. I can't stand seeing those."
Zhang Da pulled the dog up to the wall, laughing, "What's so shameful about this? Haven't you ever eaten pig offal? Isn't this the same as pig offal?"
Jiuli swallowed hard and said, "I won't eat those!"
As he spoke, he and Du Zhong moved over hand in hand. Zhang Da looked at them and found it quite amusing that they looked like two startled rabbits huddled together. "No wonder everyone thought you were twins."
"Who's his twin?" Jiuli rolled her eyes, let go of his hand, ran to Yu Qi's side, grabbed his arm tightly with both hands, buried her face in his arm, and peeked at the corpse with only the corner of her eye showing. "Was his stomach stitched up?"
Fortunately, the white cloth covered his abdomen, so the gaping wound wasn't visible. Zhang Da walked over and said with a smile, "After the examination, we'll put his stomach and intestines back in, and then sew them up."
Jiuli grinned and made a disgusted "Eh?" sound, then instructed Yu Qi, "Uncle, you have to tell me first before you open his belly."
Yu Qi said coldly, "I'm afraid you'll still insist on coming."
She gave an awkward laugh. "I'm not afraid of dead people, I'm afraid of seeing those intestines and stomachs."
Yu Qi took half a step back and said, "You examine the wound. I taught you that last time at Liyuan Garden."
She released his arm, leaned over the corpse's shoulder, first examining the two wounds on his chest, then looking at his face. "Huh, these wounds are very shallow; they couldn't possibly be fatal."
Zhang Da said from across the hall, "Could it be that he bled to death because he had too many wounds?"
She raised her head and shook it. "Impossible. Although there are many wounds, they don't add up to much blood loss and won't be life-threatening." After speaking, she tilted her neck and examined the corpse's face closely. "Hmm, it looks like Tang Chengguan. I can't mistake his thin and emaciated appearance. He looks like a big rat."
Yu Qi then instructed, "Take another look and see what kind of sharp weapon caused the injury."
She then examined the wound closely. "It doesn't look like a sharp weapon; it seems like a scratch from a branch or stone."
“These are scratches from when the deceased was drifting in the river,” Yu Qi nodded.
Zhang Da pinched his chin and stared at the corpse. "That's what the coroner said too, but I still feel something's off. Maybe I'm just imagining things, and this person really drowned?"
People who are used to investigating murder cases usually have some intuition. Yu Qi glanced at him, pulled Jiu Li aside, bent down to examine the case himself, and after a while, he simply lifted the white cloth completely.
Du Zhong and Jiu Li were both caught off guard and quickly turned to the side to cover their eyes. Jiu Li exclaimed, "Why didn't you tell me beforehand!"
Yu Qi glanced at her and continued examining the wound. "There are always more horrible sights than this when a person is dead." He slowly examined the other side, his brow furrowing slightly. "These wounds show no signs of shrinking."
Zhang Da immediately released his jaw. "Contract what?"
He straightened up and covered his chest with the white cloth again. "When a person suffers an external injury, the skin will tighten slightly due to the stimulation, and the wound will have varying degrees of clotting. None of the wounds on this person's body have this condition, so the skin must have been broken after death."
Jiuli put down her hands and walked over. "Could it be that he fell into the river and drowned shortly after, and his body floated in the current, causing these injuries?"
Yu Qi thought for a moment and nodded, "That's possible."
Zhang Dayin asked, "Then it's definitely drowning?"
“It is indeed a case of drowning.” He then pulled out one of the corpse’s hands for the three to see. “You can tell from the corpse’s hands.”
Jiuli stared intently, feeling increasingly disgusted. She clicked her tongue repeatedly. A man, yet he had such long fingernails, and the crevices under them were full of filth. She glared at him, "What's that green stuff?"
“It’s mud and algae from the river. He struggled desperately in the water, grabbing at things haphazardly, so naturally some mud and algae would get under his fingernails.” He then instructed Du Zhong, “Zhong’er, pick out everything from under your fingernails and wrap it in paper.”
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Author's note: Thank you for reading.
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