The Truth Revealed

Xu Yunfeng stroked his curled mustache with a faint hint of smugness and said:

"Simple. Shen Liu has to die."

Shen Liu?

Zeng Anmin remained silent, continuing to watch Xu Yunfeng.

"A martial artist, a ranked warrior—a perfectly healthy, living man—falls ill, coughs blood, and dies within just a few days. That's a bit suspicious, isn't it?"

"If Shen Liu's death was tampered with, who would be the prime suspect?" Xu Yunfeng's expression was leisurely as he slowly turned his gaze toward Shen Jun: "No doubt, it would be Shen Jun, the one eager to take over the trading fleet!"

"Utter nonsense!!"

Shen Jun's face flushed crimson at Xu Yunfeng's words.

He wished he could charge forward right then and bite that sleazy Xuanjing Division official to death.

"My uncle treated me like his own son—how could I possibly do something so beastly?! Forget taking over the fleet; even if I could give away all the family wealth to restore my uncle, I'd be no son of man if I hesitated for even a moment!!"

Clearly, being slandered like this had crossed his bottom line.

It made him speak without regard for the occasion.

"How dare you! A subordinate attacking a superior—do you want to die?!!!"

One of the Red-robed Guards' faces turned icy cold as he immediately drew the blade at his waist.

The Xuanjing Division didn't care which merchant family's young master you were.

Zeng Anmin gave a faint smile and looked at Xu Yunfeng: "The Right Clerk's words have actually enlightened me."

"Oh?"

Xu Yunfeng raised an eyebrow slightly, a gratified smile spreading across his face: "Younger Brother agrees with my deduction??"

Hearing this, everyone's expression shifted slightly.

Shen Jun's body trembled, and then he looked at Zeng Anmin in disbelief.

Those close to Shen Jun also wore looks of desolation.

Of course, a small handful of people unconsciously clenched their fists, their expressions turning tense and excited...

"No. Your words have only made me more certain that Shen Jun is not a suspect."

"Shen Liu has no heir, and Shen Jun is the only legitimate descendant left in the Shen Family. He only needs to live out his days as a wealthy young master and smoothly take over the fleet after Shen Liu passes."

"Why go to such trouble? He's rich, not insane."

"And more importantly..." Zeng Anmin slowly turned his gaze toward Shen Jun.

Mm?

Xu Yunfeng's hand, which had been stroking his beard, paused as he looked at Zeng Anmin in surprise.

Zeng Anmin curled his lips slightly, walked slowly up to Shen Jun, and said softly: "You've never trained in martial arts?"

Shen Jun's face showed some confusion as he nodded instinctively: "No. I've been frail since childhood; forcing myself to practice martial arts would shorten my life."

"Are you sure?!"

Zeng Anmin's eyes sharpened.

"I'm sure." Shen Jun grew even more puzzled about what Zeng Anmin meant.

Many servants nearby also testified for Shen Jun: "The Young Master truly has never practiced martial arts."

"Yes, we all know that."

"I've watched the Young Master grow up since he was little."

"..."

Hearing this, Zeng Anmin nodded with a cheerful smile. He looked at Zhenzhu, who stood beside Shen Jun, and said softly: "To strangle a woman in her early thirties to death without alarming anyone—"

"Can an ordinary man do that?"

His voice was very light, but everyone present heard it clearly!

With one sentence, the entire line of reasoning fell into place.

"Well..."

"Those two could hear Shen Jun scolding Madam Liu Shen. If Shen Jun had strangled Madam Liu Shen, the commotion would have been far greater than just a few shouts..."

Zeng Anmin's expression was serious as his voice slowly reached everyone's ears.

"Not to mention him—even a strong, sturdy man would be absolutely incapable of that."

"So the killer's identity must be at least a martial artist who has entered the ranks!"

Zeng Anmin's gaze swept over each person one by one.

The impact brought by those Phoenix Eyes was simply too great; many lowered their heads, not daring to look up.

"So that means your deduction is that a guard from the fleet did it?"

The Shen Family's foundation was their fleet, overseeing transport, so they naturally had to maintain some household defenses.

A cold smirk flickered across Xu Yunfeng's face.

"Setting aside whether those guards had a motive, if a guard had done it, these two servants wouldn't still be alive."

Zeng Anmin's gaze was utterly calm:

"Moreover, for the killer to enter the Spirit Hall unnoticed right in front of two servants is impossible—unless it was a martial artist of the Middle Three Ranks acting personally."

"But a mere merchant's wife could never be entangled with a martial artist of the Middle Three Ranks."

Zeng Anmin slowly turned his head, fixing his gaze on the main hall, a scene seeming to play out in his eyes.

It was the very tableau of the Spirit Hall murder that day.

"Strictly speaking, this case is a locked-room murder."

"A locked-room crime, and the killer is a martial artist."

"There also needs to be a motive..."

"Only one person fits all these conditions."

Zeng Anmin slowly looked toward the crowd.

At this point in the case, the puzzle was suddenly solved!!

"Who?!"

Xu Yunfeng blurted out the question involuntarily.

Everyone stared at Zeng Anmin in tense anticipation.

"Shen Liu, inside the coffin."

Zeng Anmin slowly uttered a name that made everyone's skin crawl.

In an instant, the entire courtyard fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.

When you eliminate all impossibilities, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

After reviewing the case files that day, Zeng Anmin had meticulously scrutinized every detail within them.

In fact, before coming to the Shen Manor, Zeng Anmin had never even considered the other victim.

It wasn't until Xu Yunfeng's words gave him a new line of thought.

How could he not see that Xu Yunfeng, while appearing to help him solve the case, was actually steering all suspicion toward Shen Jun?

This Xu Yunfeng—his words were watertight.

But Zeng Anmin could still sense that he was trying to guide his thinking, to make him firmly pin the crime of killing his aunt on Shen Jun and then bring him to justice.

So what was his purpose in doing this?

Zeng Anmin's gaze slowly settled on the main hall of the Shen Manor.

For now, he didn't know.

But he had a vague feeling that Xu Yunfeng's actions were connected to Prince Jiang's Estate.

"This... isn't this too bizarre? I saw my uncle's corpse with my own eyes."

Shen Jun's face was filled with unparalleled absurdity.

He felt like he was listening to a Heavenly Script.

"Once a martial artist enters the ranks, they naturally possess some wondrous abilities."

Zeng Anmin's eyelids lifted slightly: "Feigning death is not difficult."

"This..."

Shen Jun was left speechless.

This deduction was far too bold... he simply couldn't accept it.

"Your aunt seduced you in front of the Spirit Hall; she must have said some unspeakable things, correct?"

Zeng Anmin looked calmly at Shen Jun.

Shen Jun nodded with a grim expression.

Zeng Anmin remained unruffled, his voice still steady:

"That was Shen Liu's motive for murder."

"As for why he faked his death..."

Zeng Anmin cast an imperceptible glance at Xu Yunfeng, then sighed softly:

"He must have offended someone he shouldn't have, and feared bringing trouble to his family."

"Hahahaha!! Preposterous!!"

Xu Yunfeng burst into loud laughter at this. He almost felt Zeng Anmin had lost his mind, laughing with such force:

"In this official's view, Left Historian Zeng might as well resign from the Xuanjing Division and take up a post at a teahouse as a storyteller! The tales you spin are so gripping, you'd surely rake in a fortune!!"

Who couldn't hear the sharp-edged mockery laced in his words?

Zeng Anmin only gave a cold laugh:

"All it takes is a trip to the grave to open the coffin and examine it—wouldn't the truth of what I say be revealed in an instant?!"

"Absurd!!!"

Xu Yunfeng abruptly stopped laughing, lifted his chin, his two whiskers quivering as he cast a chilly gaze at Zeng Anmin:

"The dead are gone. Shen Liu has been buried for days now. Left Clerk Zeng had best hand this case over to this official. Though I am no master of solving crimes, I am still far more reliable than such wild nonsense as yours!!"

Zeng Anmin sneered:

"Just opening a coffin to inspect the corpse—what is Clerk Xu so worried about?"

The ambiguous words made Xu Yunfeng's face shift.