Chapter 13: Playing Tricks

Ming Huashang didn't dare to stay alone, so she quickly got up and followed Xie Jichuan out.

Ming Huazhang noticed someone was eavesdropping and immediately chased after him. The eavesdropper seemed to know the terrain very well, making full use of the lush trees and walls in the villa by weaving around. He went into the woods and kept looking back. Fortunately, there was nothing behind him, and it seemed that he had gotten rid of the boy.

The man heaved a sigh of relief, and just as he was about to leave, a figure suddenly jumped down from the wall beside him. The figure was light and fast, as agile as a piece of snow, but the movement of the leg was extremely powerful, kicking the man right in the waist.

The attack came out of nowhere and the man was completely unprepared, so he was hit right on the spot. He fell heavily to the ground and rolled around. Before he could cry out in pain, a new attack came.

Ming Huazhang predicted the man's move and did not chase him. Instead, he pretended to lose him and ambushed him behind the wall. As expected, the man took a shortcut from this side and was caught by Ming Huazhang.

After Ming Huazhang subdued the man, he was about to use his grappling skills, but he didn't expect that the man, who seemed to be lying on the ground without any ability to fight back, suddenly raised his hand and sprayed a cloud of white smoke at Ming Huazhang. Ming Huazhang was worried that it was poisonous and immediately retreated. The man took this opportunity to get up from the ground and quickly escaped.

When faced with a life-or-death situation, a person will unleash his terrifying potential. Even though the man was still injured, he ran away like flying. He ran as fast as he could and looked back to see that the boy was stuck in the same place and had not caught up with him. He was feeling smug when a gust of wind suddenly came from the front, so fast that it made the air buzz.

The man instinctively dodged to the side, and only then did he see clearly that there was a red-lined rifle in front of him. Before he could figure out what was going on, he saw the tip of the gun flash with silver light, and then it flew towards him like a dragon.

When it comes to weapons, the longer the better. Guns are known as the king of all weapons. Swords are dangerous when used against experts in guns, let alone an unarmed, half-baked man?

The gun tip was so fast and powerful that the snow was blown up layer by layer wherever it passed. The red tassels in the snow mist were like a fierce snake coming out of a hole, and the direction was completely unpredictable. Soon the man fell to the ground without being able to dodge. He tried to get up, but as soon as he moved, a gust of wind rushed to his throat and finally stopped on his skin dangerously and accurately.

The man was so frightened that his whole body went limp. He turned the tip of his rifle and looked down at the man from above: "Keep running, I'll see how you can continue to play tricks."

Ming Huazhang came over slowly from behind and said, "The matter has not been fully investigated yet, so leave him alive."

When Ming Huazhang was lying in ambush behind the wall, he happened to see Ren Yao chasing after him. He gestured to Ren Yao, signaling her to go to the front to block him, so when the man used an unknown drug powder to attack him, Ming Huazhang did not chase after him.

He pretended to be ambushed by the powder, which was part of his trick. Ming Huashang and Xie Jichuan followed the sound of the fight and chased over. Xie Jichuan was breathing steadily, but Ming Huashang was not. He asked breathlessly, "Did you catch him?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw the man in brown clothes pinned to the ground with a gun.

They were chasing and fighting, making a lot of noise, which also alarmed others. Not long after, Ming Huazhang and his men appeared in the hall and said to Princess Taiping, Prince Wei, Prince Ding and other princes, "Your Highnesses, this man was eavesdropping outside our house, and his behavior was sneaky and very suspicious. I suspect that the ghost cases in the past two days are related to him."

The King of Wei uttered an "oh" and asked in an ambiguous tone, "Are you saying that the strange things that happened yesterday and today were not caused by ghosts, but by people pretending to be ghosts?"

Ming Huazhang half lowered his eyelashes and said, "I am not an official appointed by the court, so I dare not speak rashly. But this man's behavior is suspicious. If we interrogate him strictly, we may gain something.

The hall was full of people who came to inquire about the news. The brave young men and women came in person, while the timid ones sent their trusted maids. Everyone whispered, "Is this true? Is there no ghost, and it's all just people pretending?"

Princess Taiping had a bad look on her face, and even though she was dressed luxuriously, one could tell that she looked very bad.

Princess Taiping said she didn't believe in ghosts, but she was still afraid of ghosts killing her maids one after another. Princess Taiping thought that someone was playing tricks on her and scared her so much that she dared not go out. She made such a big fool of herself in front of so many guests. She was furious and slapped the armrest heavily and said, "Tell me, what's going on?"

After the master spoke, the brown-clothed man kneeling on the ground dared to speak: "Your Highness, I am innocent! I just went to the courtyard of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion and the Marquis of Pingnan's Mansion to ask about dinner in the evening, and I don't know why I was arrested. I am just an errand boy, serving the princess's mansion honestly, and I dare not have any ulterior motives. How could I be so capable of playing tricks? Please understand, Princess!"

The man cried sadly and seriously, and it seemed like he was being serious. The onlookers were a little unsure: "Who is telling the truth?"

Ming Huashang, Xie Jichuan and Ren Yao stood behind the hostages. She looked up at her brother who was standing alone in front and said softly, "Your Highness, if you listen to both sides, you will be enlightened. If you only believe one side, you will be blinded. Why don't you ask the others to come up and ask what this person has done in the past two days? Then you will know who is right and who is wrong."

Princess Taiping was now at a loss, so she raised her hand and asked someone to call the steward. The steward came over quickly and raised his hand with great trepidation: "This old servant pays respects to the princess and the prince."

Princess Taiping waved her hand impatiently: "That's enough. I want to ask you, do you know this man on the ground?"

The steward glanced at him and replied cautiously, "I recognize him. His name is Yang Er. He used to work as a handyman in the Princess's residence. Feihong Banquet was short of manpower, so we brought him here. These days, he should be running errands in the kitchen."

This was consistent with what Yang Er said. Princess Taiping asked again, "What did he do in the past two days?"

The steward frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "Yesterday, the guests had just arrived and there was a shortage of staff everywhere, so I didn't notice what he was doing. Last night, something happened... and the princess didn't allow anyone to hang out outside, so I sent them back early. This morning, there was an avalanche on the mountain, so all the distinguished guests came to get charcoal, and he was busy moving things and delivering things until the evening. I saw that he was familiar with the routes in each courtyard, so I asked him to ask the distinguished guests what they wanted to eat in the evening so that I could ask the kitchen to prepare it."

The onlookers nodded. They had indeed seen Yang Er come to ask for the menu. Ming Huazhang asked, "From the time everyone went back to their rooms last night to 2:45 today, where was he?"

Yang Er was busy protesting: "My dear, I am innocent. I was sleeping in the room the whole time. The seven people who stayed with me can all testify to my innocence!"

Princess Taiping sent someone to investigate, and the person who came back reported: "Your Highness, what Yang Er said is true. He stayed in the room after returning home last night and did not go out until 3:45 pm when the warehouse was short of staff, and the manager asked him to go to the warehouse to help. After that, he stayed with the people in the warehouse and did not leave alone."

This development was beyond Ren Yao's expectation. She thought she had caught the thief, but she didn't expect that there was a witness last night. Wei Zi died between 4:00 and 2:30 in the morning. If Yang Er didn't go out, who would be the murderer?

Is it really a ghost?

The crowd around them also started to stir. They thought they had caught the culprit, so they bravely went out. But all the commotion was fake? Ren Yao couldn't accept this situation and said, "Maybe they colluded to give false testimony! When Chi Lan died, he left a message on the ground. We just need to let him write it and compare the handwriting to know if it's him!"

Someone frowned and said, "Those are clearly words left by a ghost..."

Ren Yao said in a stern voice: "If he killed someone, then that would be the words he left behind!"

Ren Yao raised her eyebrows and eyes, like a female Asura in a Buddhist temple, full of murderous aura. Many people were frightened by her aura. However, the manager showed an awkward look, folded his hands and said: "Madam Ren, you don't know, this Yang Er has never been to school, he doesn't even know how to write?"

Ren Yao was startled, as if he saw a flash of pride on Yang Er's face, and then he changed his face to panic, and said in fear: "Madam Ren, please spare my life. I really can't read. Please don't force me to confess."

It turned out to be a misunderstanding, but the faces of the people in the hall, including Princess Taiping at the top, did not relax, but became worse. Everyone dispersed with a roar, wary and hostile to each other: "I thought you really found something, but it turned out to be just your imagination! That ghost is still out there looking for a scapegoat, did you deliberately trick us out so that you can live in peace?"

Ren Yao blinked hard. Yang Er in front of her still looked scared, but Ren Yao was sure that he had really laughed just now! She pointed at Yang Er angrily and said, "It must be him! Even if it's not him, he must be his accomplice. As long as we interrogate him, we will know the truth!"

Yang Er knelt on the ground, crying and shouting, as if he was afraid of being tortured into confessing, asking Princess Taiping and Prince Ding to make the decision. Ren Yao had no reason to argue, so he was so angry that he wanted to find a gun and interrogate the thief himself.

"That's enough." Princess Taiping snorted unkindly, threw her sleeves coldly and stood up, "This is not a street in my palace, I won't allow you to make trouble. Imprison Yang Er, and when the mountain road is clear, take him back to the Dali Temple for interrogation. This is my family affair, and outsiders are not allowed to interfere. The rest of you can disperse."

It was obvious who this "outsider" referred to. Ren Yao was so angry that she wanted to say more, but Ming Huashang held her arm and shook her head gently.

Ren Yao held back his anger and walked out, his footsteps stomping loudly as if the floor had a grudge against him: "I clearly saw it, why didn't anyone believe me?"

"I believe it." Ming Huashang said softly, "But we have no evidence. Forcibly interrogating the people in the Princess's Mansion will only offend Princess Taiping and Prince Ding. Sister Ren, there is no need for us to fight against the strong with the weak. Please be patient for a while."

Although Ming Huashang did not see any abnormal expression on Yang Er's face, she knew Ren Yao. Even though they had only known each other for two days, she had already figured out that Ren Yao was a hot-tempered person who could not tolerate any sand in his eyes. She pointed at Yang Er in anger, most likely because she really saw something.

However, without evidence, it was useless to say anything. Ren Yao stopped talking, but he was still angry: "So are we just going to let it go?"

Ming Huazhang walked behind. Different from Ren Yao who was filled with indignation, his expression remained calm and indifferent, as if the fact that he had contributed a lot but got into trouble had no effect on him at all.

Ming Huazhang said, "Of course we can't let it go. Looking at the time when the two cases occurred, the murderer is most likely an insider. I am sure that the murderer must be in the villa, and he must have the murder tools and evidence with him."

"That's where the difficulty lies." Xie Jichuan said leisurely, "This is Princess Taiping's villa. Do you dare to offend the Queen's most beloved daughter and forcibly search her and her place?"

This seems to have become a vicious circle. As long as the villa is searched, the murderer can be found. However, it is not certain who the murderer is. Who has the courage to search Princess Taiping's territory?

Ren Yao was furious when he heard this, and he wanted to punch the idiot who was playing tricks behind him to death. The four of them walked and talked, and they heard the sound of footsteps behind them.

Hearing the sound of footsteps, Ming Huashang had already guessed who it was. As expected, Jiang Ling's familiar loud voice came from behind: "Ming Erlang, Ming Erniang, don't go, wait for me!"

The four of them quickened their pace at the same time, but were still caught up by Jiang Ling. He chased them for half of the garden, panting and shouting: "You guys are running really fast! How did you catch Yang Er? Why do you think it was him?"

It was really a case of bringing up something out of nowhere. They were just worrying about this matter, but Jiang Ling had to bring it up. Ren Yao was already very angry, and this dude was coming over to mock him. Ren Yao had a cold face and walked away without giving him any face.

Jiang Ling glanced forward and asked curiously, "Why did she leave?"

Ming Huashang kept smiling, thinking that Jiang Ling was indeed worthy of being the first or second generation ancestor of Luoyang. He never had to read other people's faces, and he had no sense of offending anyone.

She understood that Jiang Ling was just asking a simple question and had no intention of mocking her, but in this situation, combined with his words, what could the listener think?

Ming Huashang said a few simple words to keep things simple, and then she hurried after Ren Yao. Jiang Ling behind her still couldn't understand her expression and was still entangled with her. One of the four people left in anger, one took the opportunity to run away, and the other was a cold master and servant who didn't care about the worldly affairs. What could Xie Jichuan do? He could only smile and deal with Jiang Ling.

It was dark when they were making tea, and then they arrested people and interrogated them. It was already very late when they came out of Princess Taiping's place. Ren Yao walked in front with big strides, and Ming Huashang trotted behind, until Ming Huashang finally caught up with Ren Yao outside the courtyard.

Ming Huashang held onto the gate, panting and pleading, "Sister Ren, you're walking too fast!"

Ren Yao didn't blush or breathe heavily. She was no longer in the mood to drink tea. She pushed open the door of her room and walked in: "I just can't stand that playboy. Even being with him makes me feel that the air is filthy. Why did you follow me?"

Ming Huashang gasped for air. The biggest gain she got from this Feihong Banquet was realizing how useless she was. She hesitated whether she should work harder after returning, and breathlessly comforted Ren Yao: "It was just a chance encounter at the banquet. When you come to your senses, you won't see him again. Why bother to get angry? Sister Ren, calm down. It's not worth it to get upset."

Ren Yao also knew this, but she had a temper that she inherited from her ancestors and she just couldn't control it. She went back to the room angrily and found that the bed had sagged for some reason.

She couldn't help but wonder who was so careless that the corners of the quilt fell to the ground. She walked over to tidy up the quilt and chatted casually with the outside: "I know, but he still...ah!"

Ming Huashang was wiping her sweat when a scream suddenly came from the room. She was so scared that her hands trembled and her handkerchief fell to the ground. She didn't have time to pick it up and rushed into the room: "Sister Ren, what's wrong?"

Ming Huashang saw the scene clearly and her pupils constricted.

On the bed, the quilt that she and Ren Yao had slept on yesterday was slightly bulging, and in the half that was lifted up, a woman in red was revealed.

She lay stiffly on their bed, blood soaking the bedding, her head tilted outwards, with a faint smile on her face, but the most terrifying thing was the two black holes above her.

Her eyes had been gouged out, and she stared at the door motionlessly. Ming Huashang even felt as if she was looking at herself.