Twists and Turns

A line of twenty-two riders charged boldly through the intersection under the watchful eyes of several hundred Qian Xiang Country officers and soldiers. They galloped on for more than half a street before Sun Shaozong finally reined in his horse.

"Captain Sun!"

Feng Xin rode up to Sun Shaozong, brimming with high spirits. He raised his thumb high and clicked his tongue in admiration. "I'm truly convinced today, sir. With courage like yours, I'd say you're no less fearless than Duke of Qi Chen Yi in his prime!"

Duke of Qi Chen Yi had been a founding general of Great Zhou and one of the Four Princes and Eight Dukes. His greatest achievement had been leading troops to conquer Qian Xiang Country.

It was said that he had used only thirty thousand soldiers to utterly crush Qian Xiang Country's army of one hundred and sixty thousand. Even now, merely mentioning Chen Yi's name in Qian Xiang Country could still make children stop crying.

"Quit kissing my ass!"

Sun Shaozong shot him an annoyed look. "If Duke of Qi hadn't set such a precedent, do you think we could've gotten out so smoothly?"

To tell the truth, Sun Shaozong had been extremely nervous just then. If the other side had stubbornly refused to clear the way, he might have had no choice but to tuck his tail between his legs and retreat to the embassy.

Fortunately, his gamble had paid off in the end!

"Sir, Duke of Qi may have come before you, but you're no worse than—"

"Shut up!"

Cutting off Feng Xin's flattery, Sun Shaozong ordered in a low voice, "Feng Xin, take half the men to Ruan Wenhao's house. I'll take the rest to Ruan Liangshun's residence first."

"Huh?!"

Feng Xin froze, then asked in confusion, "Sir, that man was the spy who poisoned you. Don't you want to take revenge personally?"

"Why are you talking so much nonsense? Just do as you're told!"

Sun Shaozong snapped impatiently, then led half the men straight toward Ruan Liangshun's residence according to his memory.

Ruan Wenhao had left the embassy more than half a day ago. Unless he was an idiot, he certainly would not still be waiting obediently at home. Sun Shaozong had only brought up Ruan Wenhao at the embassy earlier to raise everyone's morale.

The real priority now was Ruan Liangshun.

As the primary crime scene, his residence was likely to contain many clues. More importantly, Ruan Liangshun's status as the Qinglin Prefecture Governor alone made him worth visiting in person.

One must not forget that the embassy guards were all from Great Zhou. They were unfamiliar with Qian Xiang Country and the situation in Qinglin Prefecture. If they wanted to solve the case quickly, the simplest method was to cooperate with local forces.

And Qinglin Prefecture Governor Ruan Liangshun was undoubtedly their best choice at the moment.

First, the case had occurred at the Wedding Feast for his second marriage. Not only had it ruined a happy occasion, but he himself had also been implicated. Aside from Niu Yongxin, he could be considered the greatest victim, so he was unlikely to be very suspicious.

Second, as the Qinglin Prefecture Governor, he was undeniably the local power. He also had a large number of constables and yamen runners at his disposal, making him ideally suited to assist in hunting down the assassins.

That was why Sun Shaozong had wanted to visit the Ruan Residence first.

Yet there was a saying: plans could never keep up with changes. Though Sun Shaozong's analysis had been perfectly sound, when they reached the Ruan Residence, they encountered an unexpected surprise—Ruan Liangshun had already been taken to Dali Temple to await trial!

He was practically the mayor of the capital. Did they really have to arrest him so hastily?!

"Steward Ruan!"

Still unwilling to give up, Sun Shaozong pressed, "May I ask where Ambassador Niu and the assassins' bodies are?"

"They were taken away. All of them were taken away."

The old steward seemed to have a slice of bitter melon in his mouth as he sighed indistinctly, "Ambassador Niu's body and those of the guards were taken to the Ministry of Rites for burial preparations. The assassins' bodies were sent to the Ministry of Justice."

Damn.

Did that count as "dismemberment"?

Sun Shaozong cursed inwardly, then persisted. "Then could we inspect the scene? If possible, we'd also like to ask a few questions of those who were present at the time."

"They were taken away. Everyone was taken away."

The slice of bitter melon in the old steward's mouth seemed to have grown even larger. He mumbled so vaguely that it seemed as if he might bite his tongue by accident. "Other than the ladies and Young Ladies in the rear courtyard, there's hardly anyone left in this residence. Even my two sons, who serve as managers here, were taken to the Ministry of Justice's main hall."

As he spoke, tears began to well in his old eyes.

It turned out that the old steward had already retired and gone home to live out his remaining years. Only because there was now no one in the residence capable of taking charge had he been forced to return.

Sun Shaozong was thoroughly frustrated. In the end, he could only ask the old steward to lead him to the site where Niu Yongxin had been assassinated for an inspection. But the scene had first been trampled by guests, then examined in turn by Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Rites. It had long since been ruined beyond recognition.

Furthermore, everything related to the case had already been taken back to the Ministry of Justice. Sun Shaozong investigated carefully for half a day, yet found not even the slightest clue.

When he left the Ruan Residence in deep disappointment, Feng Xin had also hurried back, having likewise come up empty-handed.

Thus, Sun Shaozong stood before the gates of the Ruan Residence and looked around blankly, unsure for a moment where to go next.

"Sir."

Though Feng Xin had come up empty-handed, the bold spirit in his heart had not yet run dry. He stepped closer and gritted his teeth. "Why don't we storm the Ministry of Justice's main hall again? I refuse to believe that soldiers wouldn't dare stop us, yet a few yamen runners would have the nerve!"

"You make it sound easy."

Sun Shaozong sighed helplessly. "What good would storming in do? Once inside, would you know where to look for clues? Would you know where the bodies are? Would you know where the witnesses are? By then, they could simply fob us off with a few excuses, and we'd return empty-handed."

Feng Xin was dumbfounded at that. More than twenty men stood in the street staring at one another for a long while without saying a word.

Thud~

At that moment, a muffled sound came from nearby. Everyone turned toward it and saw a "servant" in a Blue-Clothed Cap climb over the wall of the Ruan Residence. The reason servant was in quotation marks was that anyone with eyes could tell that this person was actually a pretty young girl!

After vaulting over the wall, the girl immediately ran up to them excitedly. Her bright, watery eyes swept over the crowd before locking onto Sun Shaozong. She opened her mouth and asked, "Are you that Captain Sun from the Great Zhou Embassy?"

She had come for him!

Sun Shaozong raised an eyebrow and nodded. "That's right. I am Sun Shaozong. May I ask what you need?"

"I wouldn't presume to instruct you."

The girl apparently had not yet realized that her disguise had been exposed. She forced her voice low and rough as she said, "I am Ruan Gu. My father is Qinglin Prefecture Governor Ruan Liangshun, and he is currently detained in Dali Temple. The old steward said you are also investigating the assassination. How about we join forces? You seek vengeance, and I'll help clear my father's name!"

Before Sun Shaozong could answer, Feng Xin beside him snorted with laughter. He brazenly looked Ruan Gu up and down several times and scoffed, "Give me a break! We men don't have a clue, yet a little girl like you dares to make such grand claims?"

"What's wrong with being a girl? How do you know I can't help you?!"

Ruan Gu shouted indignantly. Having stopped putting on an act, her voice immediately became clear and pleasant.

Feng Xin was about to mock her further when Sun Shaozong casually pushed him aside.

"Please don't mind him, miss."

Sun Shaozong gave Ruan Gu another deep bow and asked solemnly, "May I ask, miss, how exactly do you intend to help us uncover the truth?"

"Well... that is..."

Treated so seriously by Sun Shaozong, Ruan Gu instead became somewhat flustered. After stammering for a few moments, she finally managed to say what she wanted. "Li Jiuming, the Head Constable of the Ministry of Justice, was personally promoted by my father back then. He is also one of the people handling this case. I can take you to ask him for help!"

Upon hearing that Ruan Gu could introduce them to the Head Constable of the Ministry of Justice, the guards, including Feng Xin, all beamed with delight, having completely forgotten their earlier contempt for her.

But Sun Shaozong frowned and questioned, "Since the investigator has a close relationship with your father, why seek our cooperation? Wouldn't it be enough to wait for the Ministry of Justice to uncover the truth?"

Ruan Gu pursed her lips and said angrily, "Uncle Li is a good man, but Vice Minister Huang of the Ministry of Justice is my father's sworn enemy! If we don't uncover the truth quickly, what if that man interferes behind the scenes?!"

That reason...

Was plausible enough.

"Very well. Then let's hope for a pleasant partnership!"