He walked along the riverbank.
The river had frozen over, and the cold wind howled, completely sobering him up from his drunkenness.
Just as he was about to turn back, he heard a woman's cry for help ahead. He went forward to check and saw Cao Jian gripping Xinniang's left wrist tightly.
Cao Jian's face was fierce as he demanded, "Tell me, where did you get this?"
Xinniang was timid by nature and terrified. She struggled and shook her head desperately. "Sir, I don't know what you're talking about. Please, let me go. I really don't know anything."
Cao Jian didn't believe her at all. Blessed with brute strength, he applied a little pressure, and the frail woman couldn't bear it. She wept and screamed in pain, fragile and pitiful.
"Your humble general thinks you're being stubborn!" Cao Jian said as he dragged Xinniang along. "Let's see if you'll still play dumb once you're inside my mansion and I've skinned your hide."
Ning Yuan saw things going south and immediately stepped in to help. Knowing he was no match for Cao Jian in a fair fight, he struck first by surprise, pulling Xinniang free from Cao Jian's grip and shielding her behind himself. When Cao Jian's palm strike came flying, he quickly announced his status: "General Cao, I am Ning Yuan, heir of the Earl of Yuguo."
Cao Jian withdrew his hand and glared with bull-like eyes. "Get out of my way!"
Ning Yuan smiled and cupped his hands in greeting. "General Cao, could there be some misunderstanding? As far as I know, this woman is merely an ordinary pipa player — shy, naive, and rather dull. If she has done anything to offend you, please, for my sake, let her go."
Cao Jian shot a furious glance at the figure behind Ning Yuan. Xinniang shrank into a small ball behind him, trembling with fear.
Ning Yuan: "General Cao?"
Cao Jian roared, "Come out!"
Xinniang only hid, too scared even to breathe.
Ning Yuan spoke again, "General Cao, if Xinniang has crossed you in any way, just say the word, and I will apologize on her behalf."
Cao Jian stared darkly at Ning Yuan, his lips twitching as if he wanted to say something but couldn't bring himself to. Then he snapped, "It doesn't concern you."
He wouldn't explain and yet insisted on taking her. With the two sides at an impasse, Cao Jian simply resorted to force. They exchanged blows.
Mindful of Ning Yuan's title, Cao Jian didn't dare go all out in public, so he left seething with resentment.
Ning Yuan brought Xinniang back to his residence and asked what had happened between her and Cao Jian.
Xinniang only shook her head, refusing to say anything. Pressed too hard, tears streamed down her face, looking utterly pitiful.
Ning Yuan had no choice but to let her go.
To Ning Yuan, Xinniang was just a passing figure among countless people — he didn't take her to heart, and the two rarely crossed paths afterward.
Yan Tongshu frowned deeply.
Looking for something again?
Xiao Jun was searching Cao Jian's mansion for something.
Meng Yi was searching Cao Jian's mansion for something.
Cao Jian was demanding something from Xinniang.
Were these three searching for the same thing?
What could be so important?
Yan Tongshu's mind flashed to the piece of paper found in Cao Jian's mansion, and to the jade pendant pattern on Xinniang's pipa.
The Meng family heirloom jade pendant?
Were all three of them after that?
If all three were seeking the same thing, why was the Meng family pendant in Xinniang's hands?
Did it have something to do with Yinzhou?
Cao Jian had also been investigating what Meng Yi did in Yinzhou twenty-six years ago.
Twenty-six years ago, the Meng family sent Meng Yi to Yinzhou as a patrol officer to gain experience. It was in Yinzhou that he met Madame Meng, who was then living with her distant uncle and aunt. Later, Yinzhou was sacked, and countless people died within the city walls. Madame Meng's uncle's eldest son was killed by mutinous soldiers. The uncle was reassigned away from Yinzhou, and a year later, Madame Meng was brought back with him. It was after that she married Meng Yi.
If the jade pendant really was with Xinniang, and now Xinniang was dead, where was the pendant now?
When Meng Yi and Xinniang last met, had he gotten the pendant back?
After finishing their questions, Ning Yuan respectfully saw Yan Tongshu and the other two out of his residence.
Yan Tongshu looked at Meng Zheng, utterly baffled. "Your family heirloom pendant wouldn't happen to hide a treasure map or some such secret, would it?"
Meng Zheng shot Yan Tongshu a look. "Yeah, right. It hides a secret treasure from a former dynasty — whoever has it rules the world."
Yan Tongshu rolled his eyes right back. "I'm serious. Does your family pendant have any story behind it?"
"No, not really." Meng Zheng himself was just as puzzled. "That pendant is genuinely ordinary — you can't even call it jade. It's said that my great-great-grandfather was orphaned at a young age and survived by begging with an old beggar. After the old beggar died, a years-long famine followed. My ancestor couldn't even get food and was about to starve when a butcher in the city, unwilling to send his own son into the army, bribed my ancestor with two catties of meat to take his son's place as a soldier.
"My ancestor had no name or family, and people used to call him Little Dog Egg. The butcher's surname was Meng, and his son was called Meng Duojin. My ancestor took that name and has been Meng Duojin ever since. About half a year into military service, the front-line general under whom my ancestor served scored a major victory and captured a high-ranking official from the enemy side. That official had embezzled a lot of gold and jewelry, and many soldiers would pocket some valuables while looting. My ancestor, clueless as he was, stole a piece of stone.
"Here's the funny and frustrating part," Meng Zheng continued, chuckling. "Later, when the front-line general did an inventory, he rounded up all the looters for questioning. Everyone else had stolen gold ingots or thick gold chains — and they got properly beaten for it. But my ancestor didn't know any better. He thought anything stone and shiny was precious, not realizing he'd swiped some worthless piece of raw jade that someone had gambled on in a bet and lost. The general and his men laughed at my ancestor and let him go.
"My ancestor felt humiliated, but he wouldn't admit his mistake. He insisted it was a treasure, so he hired a craftsman to carve an odd pattern into it and made it into a pendant.
"After that, my ancestor's luck turned around. He wasn't gifted enough for great feats, never achieved big victories, but he always managed to scrape up small merits. He came to believe the pendant had a spirit — that it had saved him from punishment for stealing and had brought him luck. So he prized it dearly. Later, he retired from the army and lived comfortably on his accumulated merits.
"Before he died, the pendant was passed down through the generations. On one hand, it was a keepsake; on another, the family needed an heirloom token; and thirdly, better to believe in it than not. It was just a psychological comfort. Honestly, it's a worthless rock. It only has value because the Meng family has passed it down for generations."
"No, it does have value." Yan Tongshu's eyes turned sharp. "Its greatest value is that it can confirm identity."
Yes — despite being a worthless stone, with its unique pattern handed down from generation to generation, it was the mark of a Meng family member.
Yan Tongshu turned sideways: "Zhang Jiu, go to Kaifeng Prefecture now and send an urgent dispatch by eight-hundred-li relay to Yinzhou. Investigate Pu Xin's life history in Yinzhou. After that, organize the prefecture's constables to follow Xinniang's daily routine, question the nearby residents, and compile her entire movements from the past half month, even a full month."
Zhang Jiu: "Yes, sir."
As soon as Zhang Jiu left, Yan Tongshu didn't board the carriage either. He moved slowly and aimlessly, his mind racing to piece together the sequence of events.
Suppose Xinniang really did have the Meng family heirloom jade pendant in her possession.
Cao Jian stumbled upon it by chance. Knowing what the Meng family jade pendant looked like, he would certainly be curious.
Then Xinniang was saved by Ning Yuan.
Ning Yuan might not have told the whole truth.
But for now, he had no choice but to take his word for it.
Xinniang was saved, and for the next half month, Cao Jian certainly wouldn't let her off easily. Perhaps Cao Jian harassed her again and discovered something new, which was why he brought up the jade pendant design at Qin Yi's birthday gathering and clashed with Meng Yi.
Then he deliberately lured Meng Yi to Huihua Tower, letting Xinniang run into Meng Yi.
And then Cao Jian was killed unexpectedly.
Xiao Jun might well have discovered something too. Perhaps the jade pendant really did hold leverage over Meng Yi, and Cao Jian used that to gain merit or arouse Xiao Jun's suspicion, prompting Xiao Jun to search Cao Jian's residence for the item.
Then someone used that same jade pendant to lead Meng Yi onto the flower boat.
Or maybe Meng Yi traced the matter back to Xinniang himself and booked the flower boat on his own.
After that, Meng Yi and Xinniang clashed inside the flower boat, and Xinniang was killed.
Now, tracing that entire chain of events, the prime suspect remained Meng Yi.
Cao Jian used the jade pendant to provoke Meng Yi repeatedly, and Meng Yi tolerated it every time, even sneaking into Cao Jian's study to steal the pendant.
That showed how important the pendant was to Meng Yi.
Xinniang had the pendant, and only Meng Yi had a motive to kill her.
And when Xinniang died, the flower boat was sealed on all sides, with only the boatkeeper Ding Shan guarding the exit. Nobody else went in or out.
By all appearances, Meng Yi was the murderer.
Yan Tongshu glanced sideways at Meng Zheng.
If Meng Yi truly was the killer, he certainly couldn't be let off. And when that time came, his friendship with Meng Zheng would likely be severed.
"The matter isn't settled yet," Meng Zheng said in a low voice, noticing Yan Tongshu's gaze. "I know my father. He has lived his life with integrity. He wouldn't kill anyone."
Yan Tongshu hummed in acknowledgment. "Let's go take another look at the flower boat."
The two of them returned to Huihua Tower.
Yan Tongshu found the proprietor and asked whether there was a flower boat identical to the one from the night of the murder.
The proprietor of Huihua Tower replied, "There is one. Its exterior decorations differ, but its size and internal layout are the same."
Yan Tongshu: "Can that one be used right now?"
The proprietor nodded.
Yan Tongshu had the proprietor summon the five singing girls and the musicians who had been present at the time of the murder, paid the proprietor, and ordered the same dishes as on the night in question.
Yan Tongshu had Meng Zheng sit in Meng Yi's seat, and she borrowed a pipa, sitting behind the dancers.
She didn't know how to play the pipa—she was just going through the motions, putting herself in Xinniang's position to seek out the truth.
According to the singing girls, Meng Yi had first walked into the flower boat in silence, guided by Ding Shan.
Then Ding Shan went back down.
Meng Yi sat alone at the wine table and poured himself a drink.
When the singing girls saw that Meng Yi had arrived, they began to play music and dance.
Midway through the performance, Meng Yi suddenly raised his hand and pointed at Xinniang, saying, "She stays. The rest of you, out."
Meng Zheng followed what the singing girls had described, coldly pointing at Yan Tongshu.
Yan Tongshu compared positions. Clearly, midway through the performance, the dance included a formation where the dancers closed together.
At that moment, seated in Xinniang's position, her whole body would be exposed.
If she angled the pipa slightly at that exact moment, Meng Yi would easily be able to see the pattern on the instrument.
Meng Yi had once been threatened with the jade pendant by Cao Jian into going to the brothel.
This time, Meng Yi had also come to the boat for the pendant.
A calculation took shape in Yan Tongshu's mind.
After the others left, only Meng Zheng and Yan Tongshu remained inside the boat.
Yan Tongshu set down the pipa and walked over to Meng Zheng.
If what Meng Yi had said was all true,
then at that time, Xinniang must have seduced him and sat in his lap.
Yan Tongshu sat down in Meng Zheng's lap. "Grab my neck and throw me off."
Meng Zheng froze. "What?"
Yan Tongshu's gaze was sharp. "Do it."
Meng Zheng raised his hand, pressed it against Yan Tongshu's slender, fragile neck, and gave a slight push. Yan Tongshu followed the momentum and crashed onto the boat's floor planks, letting out a muffled grunt.
Yan Tongshu acted far too convincingly—Meng Zheng's heart lurched and he rushed over.
Yan Tongshu stopped him with a single look. "Get out."
Meng Zheng halted, pressed his lips together, swept a heavy gaze over Yan Tongshu, then turned and walked out of the flower boat.
Yan Tongshu surveyed her surroundings. A quarter-hour—fifteen minutes.
Three stab wounds to the abdomen.
A lot of blood.
Extremely painful.
Yan Tongshu bent low over the wooden planks lining the cabin floor, dragging her fingers across them.
No, that wasn't right!
She quickly sat up cross-legged and ran her fingertips over the planks. Xinniang had left many scratch marks on the wood before she died, which meant she had died in agony, and in her desperate clawing at the boards, she had broken two fingernails.
And if she had been in such pain—and being someone so afraid of pain—she should have called for help.
Yan Tongshu tried curling up on the floor and crying out for rescue in a strained, tortured voice.
After just a few cries, Meng Zheng strode in hurriedly, looking anxious. He crouched beside Yan Tongshu. "Are you all right?"
Yan Tongshu sat up. "Meng Zheng?"
He stared at her tensely. "Did you hurt yourself falling just now?"
"That's not the point." Yan Tongshu looked at him gravely. "Go get Ding Shan. Have him follow the exact procedure from the day of the murder—same spot, same position, same questions. Everything must be identical."
Meng Zheng pressed his lips together. "Are you sure you're not hurt?"
Yan Tongshu pushed him lightly. "Go on. I'm truly fine."
After confirming Yan Tongshu was unharmed, Meng Zheng turned and stepped out of the flower boat, summoned Ding Shan, conveyed his instructions, and then re-entered the boat.
Yan Tongshu tried crying out for help in a pained voice.
After just two cries, Ding Shan stood outside the cabin and called in, "Xinniang, is everything tidied up inside?"
Yan Tongshu continued calling for help.
Ding Shan: "Xinniang?"
She cried for help again.
As the cries for help grew fainter and fainter, Ding Shan stopped calling out.
Yan Tongshu and Meng Zheng came out.
Yan Tongshu's sharp gaze fell on Ding Shan like a blade. "Just now, did you hear the cries for help?"
Ding Shan nodded.
Yan Tongshu: "Then why didn't you come in?"
Ding Shan looked baffled. "Honored sir."
He pointed at Meng Zheng. "He instructed me to follow the movements from that day strictly. On that day, I didn't come in, so just now I didn't come in either."
Yan Tongshu's pupils contracted. "On that day, did you hear cries for help?"
Ding Shan grew even more confused, then shook his head.
Yan Tongshu pointed at the spot beneath her feet. "Are you certain that on that day, you stood in 'this very spot' and called in to ask?"
Ding Shan nodded again.
Yan Tongshu fell silent.
The boat windows were bolted shut from the inside. No one was around.
Before she died, Xinniang had indeed struggled, even breaking two fingernails.
But she hadn't called for help.
Had someone covered her mouth?
Was the killer still inside the boat at that moment?
Yan Tongshu asked, "Ding Shan, after you discovered the body, you turned and called for help—and then what?"
Ding Shan recalled carefully: "It was around meal time, and the place was already getting crowded. I was terrified—I shouted 'someone's dead!' and ran like crazy, my mind completely blank. I don't remember anything else. When I came back, a lot of people were gathered around watching."
Could the killer have hidden on the boat beforehand, then slipped away in the chaos?
Yan Tongshu asked again: "Was the pleasure boat cleared before the event?"
Ding Shan: "Before the flower boat hosted honored guests, it was usually thoroughly cleaned and checked. Outsiders were kept out."
The trail went cold again.
If it wasn't Meng Yi, who would kill Xinniang?
Or, thinking differently—maybe the killer's real target wasn't Xinniang, but Meng Yi.
Then who hated Meng Yi most, and knew that a jade pendant could connect Meng Yi with Xinniang?
Cao Jian and Xiao Jun were both already dead.
Among the current leads, only one person was connected to both: Ning Yuan.
But the problem was—Ning Yuan was the eldest son of the Earl of Yuguo. If he wanted someone dead, he wouldn't need to do it himself.
Yan Tongshu returned to the pleasure boat where the crime occurred, searched it meticulously for any clues, and found nothing.
She went back to the Kaifeng office and sent bailiffs to search for onlookers from the day of the incident near the boat.
Then she went to the mortuary to examine Xinniang's body.
Nothing.
The case was stuck again.
Yan Tongshu huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Who? Who was committing crimes with such care, so watertight that not a drop leaked?
Was there really not a single flaw?
Fingerprints, footprints, hair—nothing at all?
Yan Tongshu gnashed her teeth. She blamed this blasted era—no equipment whatsoever. Even a bit of tape would be nice, so she could lift fingerprints off the weapon.
Such a big weapon—there had to be the killer's fingerprints on it. They were just invisible to the naked eye.
Yan Tongshu walked out of the mortuary. Meng Zheng had already left to return to the Imperial Guards.
Pearl brought over a steaming bowl of braised pork trotters with soybeans over rice: "Young master, you've been busy all morning. Eat first."
Yan Tongshu took the meal and sat down at the table with Pearl and Jinbao, digging in hungrily.
"Mmm." Yan Tongshu was moved almost to tears.
Today's braised pork trotters with soybeans was way too delicious.
The trotters were incredibly tender and soft, springy and chewy.
The soybeans weren't cooked completely soft—still a bit firm and crunchy—paired with the tender, sticky trotters, the layers of texture immediately became richer.
The anger Yan Tongshu felt toward the killer was instantly soothed.
She declared that any day with braised pork trotters with soybeans was a good day.
"Wait." Yan Tongshu called out to Xu Qiu, who was bringing food to the jail cells: "Braised fish, stewed lamb, and cabbage soup. Who are those for?"
Xu Qiu held up the tray: "Heh heh, in answer to your honor, Yan—those are for General Meng."
"Don't you dare!" Yan Tongshu put down her chopsticks, swallowed everything in her mouth, and glared fiercely at Xu Qiu: "No special treatment for Meng Yi."
He came in here and acted like a mute—not a word, not a single clue.
She was furious.
People like that deserved to rot in jail.
And they wanted to feed him meat?
Absolutely not!
Xu Qiu was distressed: "But—but—Madam Yan, that's General Meng. The famous General Meng. Are we really going to feed him prison slop?"
Yan Tongshu said huffily: "He's currently the only prisoner, so he should eat prison food. If he doesn't like it, if he can't stand the hardship, then he should just confess honestly."
Xu Qiu hesitated: "This..."
Yan Tongshu snapped: "If he asks, tell him I said so. If he's dissatisfied with the food, he can fight his way out of the dungeon and come settle accounts with me. Hmph!"
A clam without a voice, and he wanted meat? Not a chance!
Xu Qiu weakly tried to reason: "Madam Yan, what if General Meng gets out later, and he holds a grudge against us..."
"Let him." Yan Tongshu snorted: "Besides, he's currently the prime suspect and the only suspect. What if he is the killer and never gets out?"
Xu Qiu muttered: "Even if General Meng is the killer, he can't possibly be stuck in there forever."
Yan Tongshu shot him a glare sharp as a blade, cutting Xu Qiu to ribbons. He slunk off, taking the food back to the kitchen.
Inside the dungeon, Meng Yi looked at a coarse corn bun and a bowl of watery, gruel-thin porridge in front of him and raised an eyebrow slightly.
Xu Qiu explained apologetically: "General Meng, this is the best food we could find. The other prisoners get dark corn buns and porridge with not a single grain of rice."
Meng Yi's voice was steady: "Madam Yan's orders?"
Xu Qiu laughed awkwardly, trying to cover for Yan Tongshu: "Madam Yan is just following proper procedure."
Meng Yi smiled slightly, picked up the corn bun, and ate it slowly with the porridge.
When he finished, Meng Yi turned with a neat movement and lay down on the cold bed.
Xu Qiu: "..."
After wrestling with it, Xu Qiu spoke up: "General Meng, Madam Yan meant that if you're not satisfied with the food, you could..."
Meng Yi closed his eyes: "I'm very satisfied."
Xu Qiu: "..."
Xu Qiu silently carried the bowls out of the cell.
He looked up at the gray sky, wondering—how did these important people's brains even work? Each one more exhausting than the last.
In the afternoon, Yan Tongshu selected several bailiffs to investigate Ning Yuan, while she handled official documents at the office.
Halfway through the paperwork, the investigating bailiffs returned with a report.
Ning Yuan's movements were entirely normal.
On the day of the crime, Ning Yuan left his residence in the morning, met with a few official friends, had lunch at Tonghe Restaurant, and in the afternoon inspected the Earl of Yuguo's estate earnings and offered condolences to the tenant farmers.
After returning home, he spent the rest of the day in the accounting office with his concubine, conducting the year-end audit.
Yan Tongshu's fingers tapped on the desk.
Ning Yuan managed all of the Earl of Yuguo's properties, with constant flows of money back and forth. It would be unrealistic to trace his account ledgers for any payment related to hiring a killer.
Ning Yuan could easily divert funds from the transactions of Tonghe Restaurant or other businesses, making it undetectable.
Was there truly no breakthrough in this case?
...
The dungeon.
Madame Meng sent Meng Yi clean clothes and food.
She sat across from him, feeling both heartbroken and exasperated: "What exactly is the story between you and that pipa girl?"
Meng Yi pressed his lips together: "I didn't kill her."
"Meng Yi!" Madame Meng's voice rose a notch: "Don't go in circles with me here. Now answer me honestly: why did you go aboard the pleasure boat?"
Meng Yi: "Someone sent me a letter."
Madame Meng: "The letter?"
Meng Yi: "Burned."
Madame Meng tried to ask what happened on the boat, but Meng Yi wouldn't say another word.
Madame Meng was furious: "Meng Yi, if you don't speak up now, I swear I'll divorce you!"
Meng Yi rose, then knelt directly before her, folding to his knees: "I won't divorce."
Madame Meng was utterly helpless. How could he be so stubborn?
She asked: "Then what do you plan to do next? Zheng'er has told me everything. On that boat, it was just you and Xinniang. The coroner determined the time of death fell exactly during the period you were with her. There are even your fingerprints on her neck. Every piece of evidence points to you as the murderer. If not for Madam Yan still having doubts in her heart and not rushing to open court, your case would already be a settled verdict."
Madame Meng grew more frantic: “Meng Yi, if you don’t speak, you are the killer. Do you understand?”
Meng Yi pressed his thin lips into a hard line.
Madame Meng grabbed his hand: “Meng Yi, what exactly are you hiding?”
Meng Yi remained silent.
Madame Meng lost her temper: “Do you truly wish to die?”
“Who would dare to make my elder brother die?”
From outside the prison cell came a fierce roar, and Duan Duo, the deputy commander of the Divine Guard, strode in through the door: “Is it that Yan fellow?”
Turning a corner, he caught sight of Madame Meng and lowered his voice: “Ah, it’s sister-in-law. Look at me, making such a racket without any manners. Please forgive me, sister-in-law.”
Madame Meng let out a sigh: “I’m trying to reason with your elder brother.”
Hearing this, Duan Duo looked at Meng Yi with reproach: “Elder brother, why do you keep sitting in this prison cell? It only makes sister-in-law worry. In my view, you should leave this cell at once. The Divine Guard still has countless matters awaiting your command.”
Meng Yi raised his head and fixed his gaze on Duan Duo, his bearing formidable: “Mind your words. This is Kaifeng Prefecture.”
Duan Duo laughed carelessly: “Elder brother, so what if it’s Kaifeng Prefecture? I say that Yan fellow is just looking for trouble. How could you possibly kill anyone? That so-called singing girl — in ordinary times, someone like that could never even hope to see people of our standing. I think she’s just trying to extort money.”
Just as he finished speaking, Meng Zheng, who had followed Duan Duo all the way to stop him from causing trouble, also stepped into the cell.
