Chapter 51 You are his chess piece
On the other side, Chen He, Zhou Yan'an, Chu Yue, and Gu Yu hurried out of the palace gate.
The palace gate is in sight.
The guards at the gate had already received instructions and did not try to stop them.
Outside the palace gate, you will see the bustling streets of the capital.
There is a lot of traffic and people talking.
Compared with the solemn silence in the palace, it seemed like two different worlds.
Zhou Yan'an walked slowly behind him, his eyes still deep and solemn, his thoughts running wildly in his mind like a wild horse, repeatedly chewing over every detail of the account book and Xue Minglan's elusive expression.
Suddenly!
"Ouch!" A sudden cry broke the silence around.
A figure stumbled and slammed into Zhou Yan'an's arms as if drunk. The force was so great that he staggered a few steps involuntarily, but he still managed to steady his body with his extraordinary concentration.
Then, an extremely strong, almost solidified fishy smell suddenly hit the air, so pungent that it made people feel nauseous.
The one who bumped into him was a man in a coarse cloth short shirt. He had a wretched face, flickering eyes, and a look of panic, as if there was an evil ghost chasing him.
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry to this official!"
The man apologized repeatedly, but before he finished speaking, he flashed and took advantage of Zhou Yan'an's inattention to swiftly stuff a hard little paper ball into his palm.
All this happened in a flash, so fast that it was almost impossible to catch!
Then, without even looking back, the man squeezed straight into the bustling crowd and disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.
Only the pungent smell of fish still lingered at Zhou Yan'an's nose.
Zhou Yan'an was startled and subconsciously clenched the paper ball in his hand.
Who is it?
This fishy smell...
Seeing this, Chu Yue frowned slightly and turned to look at Zhou Yan'an.
Chen He also stopped and swept his cold eyes in the direction where the man had just disappeared, as if thinking about something.
Zhou Yan'an calmly put his hand back into his sleeve and shook his head.
"Nothing." His voice was hoarse, with a hint of barely perceptible tension, "Let's go."
Chen He looked at him deeply, asked no more questions, turned around and continued walking.
Zhou Yan'an fell behind and twisted the paper ball with his fingertips.
Rough paper texture.
He unfolded quietly.
A line of crooked handwriting came into view——
[Shen has investigated Ren Xinzhai and discovered he has other plans. You are his pawn. The evidence is in the inner room.]
Zhou Yan'an's pupils suddenly shrank!
Chen He...has other plans?
Is he just her pawn?
The evidence is in the inner room of Renxinzhai?
Who gave him this note?
Is he an enemy? Is he a friend?
Is it Xue Minglan's people? Or the Queen's people? Or some other faction?
Zhou Yan'an's gaze involuntarily turned to the slender yet tall figure in front of him.
Chen He...
This woman exuded a sense of mystery from the very beginning.
Her calmness, her scheming, and her knowledge of palace secrets are not like those of an ordinary young lady.
Could it be that the jade bracelet she was investigating was fake, and the secret hidden behind Ren Xinzhai was the real one?
And he, Zhou Yan'an, spent so much time and effort, but in the end, he was just a pawn for her to pry out the truth?
An inexplicable feeling of irritability and doubt surged into my heart.
He didn't trust Shen He at all.
At this moment, this thin piece of paper further deepened the gap in his heart.
no.
This note cannot be shown to her.
At least not now.
He has to judge for himself.
Zhou Yan'an clutched the note again and hid it deep in his sleeve pocket, his face returning to its usual cold and hard expression.
The group of four, each with their own thoughts, walked through the bustling streets and soon arrived at the door of Renxinzhai.
Compared with the bustling shops around it, Renxinzhai seems a little too quiet.
The vermilion lacquered door was tightly closed.
There's not even a hint of medicine.
"Strange," Chu Yue stepped forward and asked in confusion, "It's already so late, why isn't Renxinzhai open yet?"
Most of the pharmacies in the capital open their doors to customers at dawn.
Chen He's eyes narrowed slightly, and he stepped forward and gently pushed the door.
The door was ajar.
With a slight "creak", the door was pushed open a crack.
A faint smell, a mixture of medicinal herbs and blood, drifted out faintly.
Chen He, Chu Yue, and Zhou Yan'an's expressions changed at the same time!
Zhou Yan'an has been dealing with corpses for many years and is most sensitive to this smell. He instantly understood what happened!
He took a step forward and pushed the door open!
The scene before them made everyone gasp!
The lobby of the drugstore was in a mess!
The counter overturned and the herbs were scattered all over the floor.
In the midst of the mess, a slightly plump middle-aged man wearing a brown brocade robe was lying on his back on the cold ground.
His eyes were wide open, and an expression of horror and disbelief still remained on his face.
There was a dagger stuck in his chest.
The blood had already solidified into a dark red color, staining his clothes and the ground beneath him.
The owner of Renxinzhai...
Dead!
Chu Yue's eyes were full of horror.
Gu Yu was so frightened that his face turned pale. He hid behind Chen He, covered his mouth, and said tremblingly: "Boss... Boss..."
Zhou Yan'an walked quickly forward, squatted down to examine the body, his brows furrowed into a frown.
"He just died."
"One blow killed him, straight to the heart."
His voice was icy cold without a trace of warmth.
Chen He stood at the door, his eyes sweeping across the tragic scene, finally landing on the face of the boss who died with his eyes open.
The slender fingers tightened slightly in the sleeves.
A step too late.
Or...
Is this a destined part of the game?
Xue Minglan...
Queen...
The muddy waters of the capital city were deeper and bloodier than she had imagined.
She looked at the sleeve pocket where Zhou Yan'an hid the note, her eyes gloomy.
The owner of Renxinzhai died.
The clue seems to be broken.
But that mysterious note...
But it points to a new direction——
Inner room.
Zhou Yan'an's eyes were fixed on the door leading to the inner room.
【The evidence is in the inner room.】
You are his chess piece.
The words on the note were engraved in his mind like a brand.
He took a deep breath and suppressed the waves in his heart.
"I'll go check the inner room."
He tried to keep his voice steady and unobtrusive.
"According to the rules, every part of the crime scene must be searched carefully. You stay here while I go to the inner room to check if the murderer has left any clues."
This reason is reasonable and impeccable.
Chen He raised her eyes, her cold gaze falling on his face, as if she wanted to see something from his eyes.
Zhou Yan'an met her gaze without dodging.
moment.
Chen He nodded slightly.
"Okay."
"Chu Yue, you and Gu Yu stay outside and guard the door. Don't let anyone get close."
Chu Yue responded, "Yes, Miss."
Guyu also nodded nervously, her little face pale.
Zhou Yan'an no longer hesitated, turned around and pushed open the heavy wooden door.
The door hinge made a slight creaking sound, which was particularly harsh in the quiet pharmacy.
The inner room was dimly lit and filled with the smell of stale medicinal herbs mixed with dust.
Compared to the mess outside, this place seems quite tidy.
There were several tall medicine cabinets against the wall, and some account books and abacus were scattered on the table.
Zhou Yan'an's eyes swept over quickly.
Where will that "thing" be?
He walked to the desk and picked up an account book to look through it.
Absent-minded.
His attention was entirely focused on finding any possible evidence that could prove that Shen He had "other intentions."
Just then!
"Bang--!"
A loud bang!
The wooden door behind him was suddenly closed from the outside!
Then, there was the heavy sound of the door bolt falling!
Zhou Yan'an's face suddenly changed!
He turned suddenly, rushed to the door and pulled hard!
Not moving at all!
The door was locked from the outside!
"who?!"
Zhou Yan'an shouted sternly while banging on the door.
"Open the door!"
There was no response from outside.
only……
A pungent smell of burning grease quickly spread!
Zhou Yan'an's pupils suddenly shrank!
He suddenly looked under the door!
Fire!
The orange-red flames were licking in frantically from under the door!
Thick smoke also rolled in!
"not good!"
"It's set on fire!"
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