Chapter 108 The Case of the Corpse Under the Bed in the Inn
Standing at the door of the coroner's office, Li Jin overheard the part about "Is he sick?"
He paused for a moment, crossed his arms, and glanced at Zhou Zheng beside him: "You went to the palace yesterday?"
Zhou Zheng nodded solemnly: "Send the letter to the study."
Seeing Li Jin's gaze fixed on his face, he coughed lightly and looked away.
One letter to the Imperial Study, and another to Consort De.
He didn't know what the contents were, but hearing the familiar voice inside, he could guess what the letter said.
Li Jin took a deep breath, his face displaying an expression of "that's really something," and lifted his foot to walk inside.
All that could be heard from inside the room was Li Qian's serious voice: "Prince Jing is so righteous; he always does things with a purpose."
Li Jin, who had been flattered for no reason, raised an eyebrow in surprise and stopped in her tracks.
“After the incident, His Majesty ordered that the chief coroner be strictly prohibited from interfering in any matters concerning the princes. In other words, Lord Yan became a mere figurehead in the Six Doors.” She waved her hand and sighed. “That’s why he went to great lengths and spared no expense to find someone who could be of use to him.”
“Now that you’re leaving, he’ll have to start all over again. The Great Wei is so big, we should still be able to find a decent coroner.”
“But…” she laughed, “whether he’ll be lucky enough to wait for the next person to appear is another question.”
Inside the room, although Li Qian appeared nonchalant, her gaze remained fixed on the face of this "Mr. Jin".
Based on her female intuition, she almost immediately concluded that Kim Soo was a woman.
Thus, Li Qian understood half of the intention behind Yan Zhao sending her a letter.
She could tell, Yan Zhao could tell, which meant that Li Jin definitely knew from the beginning that this Mr. Jin was a woman.
The imperial edict summoned her to watch the spectacle; so this is what the spectacle is all about. That heartless fellow has actually blossomed, keeping a mistress in a golden cage.
If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she really wouldn't have believed it.
Seeing that Jin Shu remained silent, Li Qian added fuel to the fire: "Oh dear, although he has a sour face, is unapproachable, and most of the time his methods are quite despicable."
“But,” Li Qian smiled, “has he always stood by you? Never allowed anyone to question your professionalism? Never given anyone a chance to hurt you? Has he always had absolute trust in your words?”
These four sentences touched the softest spot in Jin Shu's heart.
Jin Shu knew all of this; she was a firsthand witness and a participant in what she was saying.
Li Jin, sharp-tongued but kind-hearted, always ready to stand up for her despite her constant complaints, always there for her...
She chuckled softly, a warmth spreading through her heart.
“Actually, Prince Jing has had a tough time. Several times, the Ministry of Justice wanted to lend you out, but he held them off all by himself. Moreover, the Crown Prince is very interested in you. You don’t know this because you’re not in the palace, but the Prince almost got into a fight with the Crown Prince in the Imperial Study just to protect you.” Li Qian laughed. “Even His Majesty says he’s a stingy prince.”
Li Qian glanced at Jin Shu's smiling face, sipped her tea, and shook her head: "You're just leaving like this. He'll definitely make sure you get away unscathed, but will he even be able to find another coroner in his lifetime..."
She put down her teacup, stood up, and bowed: "That's hard to say!"
After saying that, he walked out of the house with a smug and happy expression.
Women understand women, and Li Qian, observing Jin Shu's indifferent expression, had a general idea of what was going on.
Either she has already made up her mind, then nothing I say will make a difference.
Either she never intended to leave, and she's just being too talkative, and if she gets caught, she'll inevitably get a scolding.
As she thought this, she looked at the bright sunshine outside and stretched at the doorway.
"Wow!" he exclaimed with satisfaction as he stretched, feeling that the first task he had undertaken for Yan Zhao was excellent and perfectly executed.
Before I could even gloat, my ear started hurting, and I cried out, "Ouch, ouch, ouch!" as I was dragged to a corner.
Li Jin, his face dark, wouldn't let go, but smiled "amiably" and leaned close to her: "Oh, Your Highness, did Consort De know you'd sneaked in here? Did Father Emperor know?"
Seeing him immediately play his trump card, using his mother and father as leverage, Li Qian's nostrils twitched, and she said indignantly, "If you dare to complain, I'll accuse you of keeping a mistress!"
The two stood facing off tensely for a while, until Li Jin snorted coldly, released his grip on her ear, and gave in.
"...I'll let you off this time since you didn't cause any trouble today."
Li Qian rolled her eyes at him: "I helped you so much, and instead of thanking me, you want to settle scores with me?"
Before his eyes, Li Jin's lips twitched more and more violently. He rolled up his sleeves, picked up a fan, and raised his hand with a "pleasant expression."
Seeing that things were going badly, Li Qian suddenly spoke rapidly: "Let me tell you, if you keep acting like this, I'm going to make sure Father Emperor agrees to let me take your Mr. Jin out to play during the Zhongfu Ritual! You just wait!"
Before he could finish speaking, he had already slipped away.
Li Jin took a deep breath and rubbed his temples. Everything was going wrong; even this crazy girl had to join in the fun.
Standing at the door of the coroner's office, he hesitated for a long time before finally sighing, turning around, and stepping out.
He didn't know what expression to wear when facing Jin Shu.
He was afraid she would say that she still chose to leave.
That afternoon, unexpectedly, someone from the Ministry of Justice arrived and stood respectfully before Li Jin: "Your Highness Prince Jing, a robbery occurred in Shenghua Ward at noon, and a middle-aged man died. The Ministry of Justice apprehended the suspect in less than an hour."
Li Jin narrowed his eyes slightly, waiting for him to say the next thing.
"But..." the person in front of him raised his hand and bowed, "but in the inn room where the suspect was staying, a corpse was found in full view of everyone."
Li Jin remained calm and chuckled lightly, "You can speak frankly without beating around the bush."
The person in front of him paused for a moment, then pursed his lips and said, "After the case of the young master of the Chen family, our Ministry of Justice has truly realized the gap between our case-handling level and that of the Six Doors. The body was discovered in full view of everyone. If we cannot solve the case, it will damage the foundation of the country. Therefore, we hope that His Highness Prince Jing can lend a helping hand to find the suspect."
They speak fluent and proper official jargon.
Li Jin stared at the poorly written preliminary investigation report from the Ministry of Justice in his hand, remaining silent for a long time.
What do you mean by "in the public eye" and "damaging the foundation"? It's just that the Ministry of Justice doesn't want to take on this hot potato and wants to pass it on to the Six Doors.
In this way, if the case is solved, it's a credit given by the Ministry of Justice; if the case isn't solved, it's the Six Doors' fault for failing to handle the case properly, and has nothing to do with the Ministry of Justice.
That's quite a clever scheme, very efficient.
"Could the corpse under the bed be related to the robbers at noon?" Li Jin raised her eyebrows and stared at his face.
The person before him bowed respectfully, as if wearing a smiling mask: "The Minister has investigated, it's alright."
Xu Weiyou, Minister of Justice.
The answer that it was unrelated was within Li Jin's expectations.
He closed the notes in front of him and nodded: "Please tell Lord Xu that the Six Doors have taken over this case."
Only by taking on this case can we possibly uncover some possibility that it is related to Lin Zhongyi.
Before leaving, Li Jin stood at the entrance of the coroner's office once again, looking at the peaceful courtyard inside, hesitating whether to call Jin Shu to go with him.
He hesitated for a long time, stood there for a long time, and then turned around and left in silence.
At the entrance, beneath the six-door gate, Jin Shu, holding the box containing the "Corpse Whisperer" knife, smiled slightly in the dazzling light.
She said, "I'll do my best to help you until you find someone better."
In that instant, the wind rose and the flowers bloomed. He glanced at her face and smiled from the bottom of his heart.
Li Jin lowered his head slightly and walked towards her with a hint of shyness. As they brushed past each other, he patted her on the shoulder.
"I've taken on an urgent case. If I can't solve it, I'll have four taels deducted from my monthly salary."
With just one sentence, the smile on Jin Shu's face vanished instantly.
Li Jin turned around, a smile playing on his lips: "If it's broken, five hundred taels will be given as a bonus, and that will be wiped clean."
The woman before him seemed to be ignited with a fierce fighting spirit. Looking at her, Li Jin's feelings, which had been weighing on his mind for many days, suddenly became as clear and refreshing as a sunny day. Seeing her in such a good mood, he smiled, a rare occurrence for him.
Jin Shu's good mood didn't last long. Looking at the highly decomposed corpse in front of her, which even her parents might not recognize, she pursed her lips and frowned.
"She's been dead for at least two months now, looking at the blackened, supine female corpse in front of her, and sighed."
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