Wang Quan’an’s brow furrowed deeply.
Impossible.
Zhong Jinyin had been dead for so many years. Her body would have long since decayed to bare bones; there was no way to detect gelsemium poison.
Zhang Jiu came up with several constables in tow.
One of them tossed a cloth sack onto the ground.
Zhang Jiu cupped his hands in salute. “Lord Yan, we took hounds to inspect the cemetery. The dogs detected something unusual in the second Miss Wang’s grave. After digging it up, we found these beneath her burial plot.”
At Zhang Jiu’s gesture, the constable emptied the contents of the sack.
They were all rotten partridges, of every kind, reeking of decay.
Another constable brought out a cage. Inside was a rat on the verge of death.
Zhang Jiu said, “We fed this rat the partridge meat. As expected, it displayed symptoms of gelsemium poisoning.”
Yan Tongshu’s sharp gaze cut toward Wang Quan’an. “What do you have to say for yourself now?”
Wang Quan’an had spent every day at the cemetery recently. His face was already gaunt, his cheekbones jutting out. Now, twisted by resentment, his gloomy features looked even more sinister.
Wang Quan’an spoke in a chilling voice. “A wager is a wager. I, Wang Quan’an, have lost. But Lord Yan—how did you find these? Could it be that someone saw me?”
Yan Tongshu replied calmly, “You were careful. You chose an exceptionally open burial ground and bought all the surrounding land. Naturally, no one would have seen you.”
Wang Quan’an stared at Yan Tongshu like a venomous serpent.
Unmoved, Yan Tongshu continued, “I simply put myself in your place. I asked myself how I would have administered the poison if I were the murderer. You could not appear at the scene; the method could not be obvious; and you had to have an alibi. That left only one option: delaying the onset of the poison.
“Gelsemium acts so quickly. How could you delay its effects enough to avoid suspicion? There was only one way—the stomach. While the hunter was distracted, you forced the poison into the partridges’ stomachs, preventing their gastric juices from digesting it. So long as the stomach acid did not come into contact with the poison, the partridges would not be poisoned.
“But how could digestion be slowed? By coating the drug in something—a protective shell that had to be digested before the partridges could come into contact with the poison and truly ingest it.
“What substance could most effectively resist a partridge’s stomach acid? My men discovered that you purchased sugar and pork—specifically hind leg meat, the part with the most connective membrane. If properly prepared, sugar can take two or three hours to digest completely.
“You coated the gelsemium in sugar, then wrapped it in fatty membrane, layer upon layer. This could greatly delay digestion in the stomach. Each layer of membrane could be used to adjust the timing. But the greatest difficulty was determining exactly how long digestion would take, so that everything would proceed as planned.
“There was only one way: experimentation. Trial after trial. That was why you used Gao Shengmei’s fondness for partridge as an excuse to buy partridges again and again and bring them home to cook. Partridges are birds—they cannot speak for themselves—and they are mild-tempered creatures that do not normally attack people. The one that pecked the cook’s hand had been driven into a stress reaction by your repeated torment, and its stomach was uncomfortable as well.”
“Correct.” Wang Quan'an admitted it bluntly. “I was the one who poisoned them. I coated the gelsemium with a layer of sugar, then wrapped it in layer upon layer of oily membrane to delay the onset of the poison. Too many partridges died, and I couldn’t dispose of them carelessly. If the hunting dogs or snakes and insects nearby ate them and died, it would draw attention. There were also vagrants around the cemetery who stole food offerings from graves—I had to guard against them too. So I could only bury the partridges in Wang Chuning’s freshly filled grave. But, Lord Yan, I admit to the crime of killing Ning Yuan. What about the Earl of Yuguo’s household?”
He shouted, “How is Ning Yuan’s murder of my wife and daughter to be accounted for?”
“You’re talking nonsense!” The Earl of Yuguo immediately rushed forward. “My son is already dead, and you still want to smear his name!”
“Otherwise, how could it all be such a coincidence?” Wang Quan'an strode up to the Earl of Yuguo and glared at him like a wolf. “The moment I threatened him, my wife and daughter died. Then, right afterward, that bitch who caused his son’s death and made Tantai Mingzhu miscarry died too. All of them fell into the water and drowned! How could there be so many coincidences in this world? If your people didn’t do it, then who did?”
Yan Tongshu’s gaze shifted to Tantai Mingzhu.
Tantai Mingzhu kept her head lowered, meek and quiet.
The Earl of Yuguo shoved Wang Quan'an away. Wang had not bathed in a long time, and the stench clinging to him was unbearable. “Wang Quan'an, I warn you—do not speak recklessly. Whether it was Gao Shengmei, Wang Chuning, or Wang Yuyan, their deaths had absolutely nothing to do with the Earl of Yuguo’s household.”
“Is that so?” Wang Quan'an enunciated each word. “I. Don’t. Believe. You.”
The Earl of Yuguo was furious and resentful. He wanted to kill Wang Quan'an, yet had no way to do so. In the end, he could only grit his teeth and curse, “You madman.”
Wang Quan'an sneered. “That’s right. I, Wang Quan'an, am a madman. You’d better get this madman out of here alive. Otherwise, the moment I breathe my last in prison, everyone in the Earl of Yuguo’s household will be buried with me.”
Bang!
The crack of the judge’s block cut off the quarrel between Wang Quan'an and the Earl of Yuguo.
Yan Tongshu said sharply, “Since Wang Quan'an has confessed, bailiffs, take him to the dungeon. In seven days, he will be executed at the Caishikou execution grounds.”
“Yes, Your Honor.”
Wang Quan'an did not resist in the slightest. He had already made every arrangement. Once he died, the Earl of Yuguo’s household would be buried with him.
That would make it worthwhile.
After Wang Quan'an was led away, Yan Tongshu said to the Earl of Yuguo, whose face had gone dark, “Earl of Yuguo, the case is closed. You may leave.”
Then she looked ahead. “Everyone else connected to this case may also depart. Tantai Mingzhu, remain behind. We must handle the matter of restoring your status as a free commoner.”
Tantai Mingzhu inclined her head. “Yes.”
Once everyone else had left, Yan Tongshu beckoned to Tantai Mingzhu, asking her to come closer.
Yan Tongshu studied Tantai Mingzhu’s eyes.
Tantai Mingzhu’s eyes were large and beautiful, clear black and white, reflecting everything in this world.
This world had not treated her fairly.
Yan Tongshu asked, “Is there something you wish to say to me?”
Tantai Mingzhu’s gaze was bright and clear. “Perhaps it is Your Lordship who has something to say to me.”
Yan Tongshu pressed his lips together. “Dantai Fu is a gambler. You know men like that have no humanity—they would kill or set fires for their own gain. So you made overtures to him, hinting that if Ning Yuan were gone, you could treat him well. Then you let him into the Earl of Yuguo’s residence. You were creating enough risk for Ning Yuan to die.”
Tantai Mingzhu watched Yan Tongshu in silence, neither confirming nor denying it.
Yan Tongshu continued, “At first, Ning Yuan drank chicken soup while he was ill. The chickens came from the Earl of Yuguo’s own estate, and the household also had trusted suppliers for vegetables. There was no weakness to exploit in the residence. So you took the initiative to create the first opening: quail.
“Under the pretext of nourishing Ning Yuan’s health, you deliberately chose quail, which was difficult to obtain in spring, and made a deal with a hunter. You introduced an element of uncertainty and gave Wang Quan'an an opportunity.
“On the day Ning Yuan died, you noticed something unusual about the quail through your observations. Then you sent someone to inform Magistrate Jin, telling his men to enter the residence at the hour of the Dog to retrieve something. Why did you know it would be the hour of the Dog? Because the quail soup was in your hands. You could control the exact time of Ning Yuan’s death whenever you wished.
“Halfway through the hour of the Dog, you deliberately allowed the Earl of Yuguo to discover that something fatal had gone missing. The entire household began searching, drawing everyone’s attention away. When Ning Yuan was poisoned, there was no one left to answer his call for help.”
Tantai Mingzhu’s delicate lashes trembled faintly. “I admit that, at Magistrate Jin’s request, I helped him investigate clues and search for the account book. But, Lord Yan, Wang Quan'an and I have never been acquainted. How could I possibly know what he was thinking? And how could I have known that he bore a grudge against the heir?”
“You knew.” Yan Tongshu’s sharp gaze locked onto her eyes. “You had stayed at Ning Yuan’s side for years. You were his concubine; your very person was in his hands. He guarded against you, yet did not truly guard against you. With your attentiveness and intelligence, it would have been easy for you to notice the conflict between him and Wang Quan'an—and to uncover something from it.
“Then you bribed the constable guarding Wang Yuyan and delivered a letter to her. The letter was burned, so there is no way of knowing what you wrote. But clearly, Wang Yuyan chose to sacrifice herself, ensuring that Wang Quan'an would meet his death.
“Wang Yuyan’s death made Wang Quan'an—already deeply suspicious—even more convinced that the deaths of Wang Chuning and Gao Shengmei had not been accidents. Evidence was irrelevant. For a man like Wang Quan'an, positioned at the heart of the web of interests, where there are only eternal interests and no friends, suspicion itself is a conviction.
“Perhaps Wang Quan'an even perceived your purpose. He knew someone was watching his back, and the two of you arrived at an unspoken understanding. That was why, once you noticed something amiss with the quail, you immediately had Fenghe hurry the cook, ensuring that Wang Quan'an’s plan would not fail.”
Tantai Mingzhu smiled faintly. “I am pleased. In Lord Yan’s eyes, I am so clever. But—”
Tantai Mingzhu abruptly changed the subject. “Lord Yan, to catch a thief, you need stolen goods; to catch adulterers, you need both parties in the act. Where is your evidence? Everything you said earlier is merely speculation. Even if every guess of yours is correct, what law have I broken? I did not kill anyone. I did not order Wang Quan'an to do anything. And Dantai Fu was never someone I could control. From beginning to end, no one died by my hand.”
Yan Tongshu pressed her lips together and said nothing.
Indeed, Tantai Mingzhu had not killed anyone, and Yan Tongshu had no evidence for any of it.
Even if she could prove it, what then?
Tantai Mingzhu had merely revealed a flaw at precisely the right moment, placing people already incapable of controlling their own desires into exactly the right positions.
Everything had been their own choice. They had committed their crimes with their own hands.
At that moment, Yan Tongshu suddenly thought of Cen Xu.
Cen Xu had once said that he was mad. When he discovered that he could effortlessly see through the desires in others’ hearts—and use those desires to make people slaughter one another—his blood had boiled and his soul had screamed.
He feared that part of himself. He feared that one day he would become something less than human, which was why he had deliberately set himself a principle, a boundary.
A line he could never cross, even in death.
Tantai Mingzhu could likewise see through other people’s desires and exploit them with effortless precision.
But Tantai Mingzhu was different from Cen Xu. Cen Xu had realized that he, too, was being controlled by that urge to destroy. Tantai Mingzhu, on the other hand, lived by one rule: if no one wronged her, she would wrong no one; but if someone did wrong her, she would pursue them to the ends of the earth.
Forget it.
What was the point of dwelling on truths so ambiguous and elusive?
Yan Tongshu sighed. “Go. Reclaim the status of a free commoner that should have been yours. Afterward, find somewhere safe to lie low. Do not return to the Earl of Yuguo’s estate. I imagine you have already found such a place.”
Tantai Mingzhu’s lashes fluttered. “Yes, I have. At the Earl of Yuguo’s estate, I was only responsible for making money. As for where the annual profits went, they always kept it from me and would not let me know. I helped Magistrate Jin search for the account books, and Magistrate Jin promised to restore my free status. I never expected that, before then, Lord Yan would already have granted me this wish. Thank you, Lord Yan.”
Yan Tongshu asked curiously, “The account books have already been found. Have you been auditing them all this time? Why haven’t you arrested anyone yet?”
Tantai Mingzhu shook her head. “The Earl of Yuguo’s estate is very cunning. Even their own ledgers are a mixture of real and false entries. They themselves know which are genuine and which are fake, but outsiders do not. Magistrate Jin and I both believe there must be a pattern in them, but unfortunately, we have not found it.”
“That is easily solved.” Yan Tongshu smiled faintly.
Tantai Mingzhu stared at her in astonishment.
Yan Tongshu said with a smile, “Go to the Ministry of Revenue and request their files. They have caught many major embezzlers, and every one of them had no fewer than three bookkeepers specializing in falsifying accounts. If ordinary accountants cannot uncover the truth, let those people examine the ledgers. They will not get it wrong.”
Tantai Mingzhu was overjoyed. “Thank you for your guidance, Lord Yan.”
She turned to leave, but Yan Tongshu caught hold of her. “Not so fast. Take the Circuit Judge with you, and make sure he participates in the entire process.”
Tantai Mingzhu looked at her in confusion. Yan Tongshu smiled. “Magistrate Zhang was the tanhua scholar of the thirty-third year of Qianfeng. He has a special talent.”
Though Tantai Mingzhu still did not understand, she nodded to show that she would comply.
Yan Tongshu released her hand. “Go on, then. But don’t do the same thing again.”
They both knew exactly what “the same thing” referred to, and neither needed to say it aloud.
Once the case had been heard, the courtroom emptied. Yan Tongshu rose to her feet and stretched from side to side.
Keeping up this official bearing was truly exhausting. Every time she had to put on the magistrate’s airs during a hearing, her back ended up aching.
Fortunately, the trial was over.
She could finally relax.
After loosening up her waist, Yan Tongshu cheerfully went to find Pearl.
…
Tantai Mingzhu had Fenghe go ahead to the safe house Jin Chi had prepared for her. Once the household registration alteration procedures were complete, she found Zhang Jiu. After she explained the situation, Zhang Jiu immediately understood and accompanied her to the official residence.
Jin Chi was rather surprised to see the two of them arrive together.
After Tantai Mingzhu relayed Yan Tongshu’s words, it was as though Jin Chi had suddenly seen the light. He immediately entered the palace to report to His Majesty, then took the imperial decree to the Ministry of Revenue.
The Minister of Revenue, Yi Yingda, was an old official who had served the late emperor. On the surface, he supported neither Prince Ming nor the Emperor.
Precisely because he supported neither side, Prince Ming had gone to great lengths to arrange a marriage between Ning Yuan and Wang Quan'an, hoping to bring Wang Quan'an—the Right Vice Minister of Revenue—into his fold as a key ally.
After retrieving the relevant files from the Ministry of Revenue, Jin Chi swiftly went to the places of punishment to collect people.
Before long, he had assembled ten individuals skilled at falsifying accounts.
The account books Meng Zheng had slipped into the Earl of Yuguo’s residence to steal for Jin Chi were only the first step.
First, they had to remove the false entries from the Earl of Yuguo’s account books and reconstruct the genuine accounts. Then they needed to compare and organize them against the Jiangnan tax and grain accounts from Jin Chi’s time as Transport Commissioner in Jiangnan. Based on the evidence they uncovered, they would quietly arrest people at the money houses and seize their ledgers, then return to compare everything again.
It was an enormous undertaking.
The ten men worked through the night without rest, and no one knew when the reconciliation would finally be finished.
Inside the official residence, Divine Guard soldiers stood watch on all sides. From morning until night, the clatter of abacuses rang endlessly through the halls.
Yan Tongshu idly spun a writing brush between her fingers.
She had heard yesterday that Ning Yuan had been buried.
In great haste.
She had also strengthened the guard around the Kaifeng Prefecture dungeon. Wang Quan'an had threatened the Earl of Yuguo, telling him to rescue him or be buried alongside him. Clearly, he had prepared a contingency plan.
Yet the Earl of Yuguo’s residence had remained completely still until now.
What were they secretly plotting?
Oh, damn.
The brush in Yan Tongshu’s hand clattered onto the desk.
Could they be planning a prison break?
No.
Wait.
Had her brain turned to mush? How had she failed to realize it before?
Wang Quan'an held the Earl of Yuguo’s incriminating secrets. If Wang Quan'an died, the Earl of Yuguo’s household would perish as well.
A man as suspicious as Wang Quan'an would never truly trust anyone.
Every connection he had was bound together by profit.
The only person he had ever genuinely trusted was Gao Shengmei, who had once rolled in the mud with him.
Which meant that before he died, he would hand everything over and drag the Earl of Yuguo’s household down with him—not that he had already arranged people to rescue him.
Ever since Gao Shengmei’s death, Wang Quan'an had been building her tomb.
She was such an idiot!
Only now did she realize.
The thing was inside Gao Shengmei’s grave!
“Pearl, hurry—go get people! Gather the constables, immediately! Tell them to bring their weapons!” Yan Tongshu spoke with such urgency that even her voice trembled. Pearl did not dare delay and rushed off at once to summon the constables.
Ever since Wang Quan'an had been thrown into prison, the Earl of Yuguo’s residence had made no move. They were likely pursuing two options at once: rescuing Wang Quan'an, and finding the evidence to destroy it.
They had to move fast!
Too many days had already been wasted.
The Earl of Yuguo’s residence might well have found the same lead and set their sights on the graveyard.
While the constables were assembling, Yan Tongshu drafted an official dispatch and sent someone to deliver it to Zhuo Yue, the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Divine Guard Army, requesting his assistance.
It was said that Zhuo Yue, the new commander, was not much of a scholar but was frank and straightforward. He obeyed only military orders and no one else. A person like that might not respond to her written order. If she waited for Zhuo Yue to take it up the chain for approval, it would be too late.
She could not wait.
Yan Tongshu drew a deep breath, readied herself, and mounted her horse. With the constables behind her, she raced without pause through the city gates toward Gao Shengmei’s grave.
Before the Kaifeng Prefecture party had even reached the burial ground, they saw people digging up Gao Shengmei’s grave.
The men were powerfully built, their muscles knotted beneath their clothes. Their eyes were fierce, their faces masked, and weapons hung at their waists.
The head constable immediately left two men behind to protect Yan Tongshu, then stepped forward and shouted sternly, “Kaifeng Prefecture is conducting official business! Who are you? Stop at once and surrender!”
Before his words had faded, more than twenty men across from them spun around as one and drew their weapons.
Clearly, before they unearthed what they had come for, they would rather die than retreat.
The head constable’s expression darkened. Kaifeng Prefecture’s men were ordinary constables, not battle-hardened soldiers.
But their opponents—one look at their physiques was enough to tell they had undergone rigorous professional training.
Still, no matter how afraid they were, they could not back down.
They were Kaifeng Prefecture’s men.
They belonged to Kaifeng Prefecture.
And this was Kaifeng Prefecture!!!
The head constable’s eyes widened fiercely. “With me!”
“Yes!” the constables shouted in unison.
A fierce wind howled over the wilderness, scattering funeral paper across the graveyard.
Yan Tongshu gripped her reins tightly, her gaze fixed on the battle. If the situation turned dire, she was ready to order a retreat at any moment.
She was no fool.
If they truly could not win, why sacrifice the lives of Kaifeng Prefecture’s people? If the evidence was lost, they could always search for it again later. People were what mattered most.
A few moments later, the gap in strength was becoming clear. If the fighting continued, Kaifeng Prefecture would soon suffer casualties.
Yan Tongshu raised her hand at once. “Retre—”
She had barely uttered the first syllable when a white-feathered arrow tore through the air, aimed straight at a masked man’s face. The man swung his blade to block it. With a sharp clang, the arrow fell to the ground. Seizing the opportunity, the head constable drove his longsword fiercely into the man’s abdomen.
“Attack!”
At the sound of that cold command, hoofbeats thundered and armor clanged as countless Divine Guard soldiers charged forward.
Yan Tongshu whirled around.
Meng Zheng sat tall in the saddle, his gaze fixed on the scene ahead like a hawk’s. His jaw was taut, his entire body radiating a keen, formidable presence. In his hand, his sword gleamed with a chilling edge beneath the dark clouds overhead.
Meng Zheng clamped his legs around the horse’s belly and leapt down. With his long sword in hand, he charged into the enemy ranks, cutting through them like a hot knife through butter.
Before long, the masked men were forced to retreat. Meng Zheng sheathed his sword and returned to Yan Tongshu’s side, his eyes sweeping carefully over her from head to toe.
“Are you all right?”
Yan Tongshu shook her head. “How did you know I was here?”
Meng Zheng’s jaw tightened. “Zhuo Yue received your official dispatch and went to the Divine Guard for instructions. I was afraid something might happen, so I brought troops and rode here as fast as I could.”
“Thank you.”
“Mm.”
After they finished speaking, Yan Tongshu dismounted. A Divine Guard soldier hurried over.
“Boss, those masked men blew up the grave. But apart from a corpse and some gold, silver, and burial treasures, there was nothing inside.”
Yan Tongshu walked over. Gao Shengmei’s coffin had been pried open, revealing the already-rotting remains within.
Wang Quan’an had loved Gao Shengmei deeply. Even if he intended to hand over the evidence, he would never have allowed anyone to dig up her grave. So the evidence could not possibly be inside the tomb.
But Wang Quan’an had been building the outer wall around the graveyard.
Yan Tongshu reminded them, “Tear down the outer wall. Dig beneath the foundation.”
The Kaifeng constables immediately followed her order, and Meng Zheng sent the Divine Guard over to help as well.
The entire outer wall was demolished, and the foundation was dug up. There was nothing underneath.
That was strange.
If it wasn’t in the tomb or beneath the outer wall, where else could it be?
Yan Tongshu turned her gaze toward the thatched hut.
She would tear the place apart piece by piece. She refused to believe she wouldn’t find it.
Yan Tongshu led her men over and had them knock the thatched hut down entirely. They searched through it piece by piece, but still found nothing.
Could she have guessed wrong?
And if she had guessed wrong, had those masked men also been searching in the wrong place?
Yan Tongshu surveyed the entire graveyard.
Everything that could be torn down had been torn down.
All that remained was a field of ruins.
Where else had they not searched?
She needed to look at the problem from another angle. What was their blind spot? What was the one place no one would think to search?
“I know.”
Yan Tongshu instinctively looked toward Meng Zheng.
He immediately asked, “Where?”
“Come with me.”
Yan Tongshu led Meng Zheng to Wang Chuning’s grave and said to the constables nearby, “The men who brought hunting dogs here to search for the buried partridge, step forward.”
Three constables stepped out.
Yan Tongshu asked again, “Where did you dig up the partridge?”
One of them pointed to the southeastern edge of Wang Chuning’s grave mound.
Yan Tongshu ordered, “Good. Dig here. Keep going deeper.”
The head constable was puzzled. “Lord Yan, this place has already been searched.”
“Then search it again,” Yan Tongshu said sternly. “Dig deeper.”
“Yes.”
The head constable acknowledged the order and, despite his confusion, began directing the men to dig.
Sure enough, it wasn’t long before they unearthed a box wrapped in oil paper. The head constable handed it to Yan Tongshu.
When she opened it, she found a bundle of secret letters between Wang Quan’an and Earl of Yuguo’s household, along with account books documenting the shortfall in the Ministry of Revenue.
Wang Quan’an had been conspiring with the Earl of Yuguo’s household to embezzle tax silver from the imperial treasury all along.
That bastard Wang Quan’an.
He had hidden the account books and secret letters beneath the rotting partridge. If his poisoning of Ning Yuan had not been exposed, he would have been able to escape punishment.
If the matter were exposed and Zhegu were dug up, no one would investigate a place that had already been searched. That way, he could keep the secret safe and continue threatening the Earl of Yuguo’s household.
Yan Tongshu carefully put the items away. The head constable organized the Kaifeng Prefecture escort, and they all set off back to the city.
Yan Tongshu and Meng Zheng rode side by side at the front of the group.
After they had traveled for a while, the setting sun gently veiled the horizon in gauzy light.
Keeping his eyes ahead, Meng Zheng asked, “Who are you planning to give it to?”
“I haven’t decided yet. Who do you think would be the best choice?” Yan Tongshu turned his head toward Meng Zheng.
Meng Zheng pressed his lips together. “Magistrate Jin. He’s investigating the Earl of Yuguo’s household.”
Yan Tongshu agreed at once. “All right. Once we’re in the city, I’ll have the Kaifeng Prefecture constables return. We’ll go to the official residence together.”
“Mm.”
After entering the city, the Kaifeng Prefecture constables returned, and Meng Zheng also sent the Divine Guard soldiers back to their barracks.
The two of them walked into the official residence together.
Magistrate Jin had been investigating the accounts lately. Soldiers stood guard at every level around the residence, so they had to send word in first.
Yan Tongshu and Meng Zheng waited in the courtyard.
The sun sank in the west. Streaks of evening cloud slanted across the sky, while the pond in the courtyard shimmered with reflected light. Lotus leaves covered a third of its surface.
The two of them stood in silence.
Suddenly, Yan Tongshu said, “Thank you for the lantern. It’s especially exquisite—so much prettier than the little lantern I made.”
