By the time Zou Mo returned to his residence, it was already the second watch.
He did not enter the inner quarters, but went straight to the study, shut the door, and stood before the desk without moving for a long while.
"Someone!" Zou Mo suddenly called out. "Go to the guest room and ask him to come here!"
"Yes."
Before long, the door opened, and an old servant entered.
He was over fifty, stooped, dressed in worn gray cloth, his face furrowed like ravines, his eyes half closed.
At first glance, he seemed the most inconspicuous of old servants, someone who swept floors, watched gates, or served tea.
What official's household in the Capital did not have a few such men?
"My lord." The old servant bowed.
But the moment Zou Mo saw him, he strode forward, seized his collar, and hauled him up onto his toes.
"You bastard!" Zou Mo said under his breath, biting out every word. "Who told you to kill He San?! Why didn't you report to me?!"
"Do you realize that once a man dies, his testimony becomes evidence set in stone!
He San was the only witness. By killing him, you nailed this case shut! You..."
"My lord! My lord!" Though held by the collar, the old servant did not panic. He loosely cupped his hands and said urgently, "We weren't the ones who killed him!"
At that, Zou Mo's hand froze.
"What did you say?"
"We didn't even know there was a man named He San!" the old servant explained. "Stone Record employed far more than one broker or idler in the Capital.
There were over a dozen names on the roster who ran errands, carried messages, and delivered gifts, most connected through separate, single lines of contact.
Our people had never