Chapter 50: Seeing Gu Yun Again (4)

Qian Jing sat down on the stone bed, as if lost in thought, a gloom faintly appearing on his young and arrogant face. For a long time, Qian Jing still said in a deep voice: "Three years ago, there was a case that shocked Qiongyue. The national treasury was stolen, and one million taels of gold disappeared overnight. The Emperor was furious. After investigation, it was the then Minister of Revenue who colluded with the Northwest rebels to secretly transport the gold through a secret passage. Such a large amount of gold could not be transported out of Qiongyue so quickly. The Ministry of Justice sent countless teams of men to pursue in all directions. Seeing that the gold could not be transported out, the Northwest rebels transported the gold to a secret rock cave for storage. One of the search teams happened to discover the location of the gold, a group of five people, one of whom went back to report, while the other four guarded the four directions of the rock cave. By the time the general who went to report brought a large force, the gold that was originally in the rock cave had disappeared again. Inspecting every exit, traces of cart tracks were found at the western exit. The small general stationed on the west side was named Qu Ze. He claimed to have been attacked and knocked unconscious, and didn't see who transported the gold or where it was transported to. Unfortunately, the imperial court didn't believe it, judging him to have colluded with the rebels and stolen the treasury silver. After multiple interrogations, Qu Ze refused to plead guilty, and later even escaped from prison. At that time, I had just finished my studies and went down the mountain, determined to become a top bounty hunter. After extreme pursuit, I finally caught Qu Ze and sent him back to the government office. I didn't expect that half a month later, he would be beheaded on the charge of colluding with rebels and stealing treasury silver."

Qu Ze could be said to be the criminal with the highest bounty among those he had caught, and also the most powerful case he had ever handled. But he had never been willing to mention it. He had faintly felt that he seemed to have done something wrong.

Gu Yun organized what he just said in her mind and asked: "Is Yang Lu the person who discovered the gold with Qu Ze and went back to report?"

This woman's mind was indeed meticulous, able to organize and infer the key points of the matter in an instant. Perhaps he really should trust them to help him find the truth.

Nodding, Qian Jing didn't have any concerns this time and replied generously: "Hmm, at that time I was escorting Qu Ze back to the capital. On the way, he kept telling me that he didn't steal the gold, and that the one who knocked him unconscious was Yang Lu, who went back to report. Unfortunately, no one believed his words. Because Yang Lu arrived at the rock cave with the large force, I didn't believe him at the time either. And he was executed too quickly, which made me feel that something was wrong. But people were already dead, so what was there to pursue? Until the day before yesterday, I saw a person with the exact same tattoo on his wrist as the one on Qu Ze's wrist back then. The tattoo pattern was very special, and I wouldn't have misread it. After investigation, Yang Lu was indeed the person who went back to report."

"So you followed him?"

"He had at least a thousand taels of banknotes in his arms. A Protector General couldn't have so much salary, so I concluded he had a problem. I was hiding outside his house at the time, but I was discovered by him. I just mentioned Qu Ze's name, and he was already fierce and started fighting with me. The person in his room also came up together. With no other choice, I used the flying dagger. But I didn't shoot the knife at his chest at the time. Yet he was pierced in the chest and died!" Regarding this point, he really couldn't understand!

"One million taels of gold!" Gu Yun couldn't help but whistle lightly and smiled: "Is this the reason why you were unwilling to tell others?"

"I don't trust these officials. If what Qu Ze said was true, the matter back then was far more than what a Yang Lu could manipulate!" She didn't know how many people in the Ministry of Justice had participated in it back then. She had no idea what rank the person who led this matter held. Under such circumstances, of course, he couldn't say it. Saying it would only make him more dangerous.

Zhuo Qing looked at Gu Yun and sighed: "The matter is indeed more complicated than imagined." Originally, she thought it was just an ordinary murder case, but now it seemed...

Gu Yun shrugged her shoulders, her expression not looking very heavy. No matter how complicated the case was, after peeling the cocoon, wasn't it still the sentence they often joked about—the truth is only one!

Without a trace, she pulled Zhuo Qing to her side. Gu Yun glanced at the shadow at the corner outside the cell door and smiled at Qian Jing: "The person you are waiting for should have arrived, come out."

Just as Gu Yun's voice fell, two figures appeared in the shadow, a man and a woman. The man was dressed in black like ink, with a full head of silver hair; the woman was dressed in red like blood, wearing a pure gold mask on her face. The two appeared so silently and ghost-like.

The man and woman who appeared suddenly, the man in black like ink, with a pale face and a full head of silver hair, were somewhat scary; the woman in red like blood, wearing a pure gold mask on her face, only had a pair of cold eyes exposed. The two appeared so silently and ghost-like, as if they had emerged from the ground. Coupled with their strange attire, Zhuo Qing and Gu Yun were a bit stunned.

The two also stared straight at them. In fact, when they entered, they had already arrived. They had planned to show up after they left, but they didn't expect that the little girl-like woman would actually discover their whereabouts.

Four people, eight eyes, just looking at each other like this. Zhuo Qing and Gu Yun were immersed in the visual impact brought by these two, while they were measuring their strength.

If they kept looking, the sky would be bright! Qian Jing, who was excluded, finally couldn't stand it and introduced: "Ao Tian, Ye Mei, the number one and number two bounty hunters in Qiongyue."

Bounty hunters, Zhuo Qing had seen them. Saying they were number one and number two, she absolutely believed it; the aura of these two was truly too strong.

Nodding lightly to them, Zhuo Qing introduced herself generously: "Qing Ling."

"Are you the woman who dissected a corpse in the palace?" The man in black's voice was very ordinary, not particularly deep, nor very magnetic, but absolutely special. Every word made you hear it clearly, but absolutely without any emotion.

"Yes." Zhuo Qing nodded in a daze. Even he knew this? She thought the news in ancient times was blocked, but now it seemed she was wrong.

The man looked at Gu Yun, and Gu Yun didn't avoid it, smiling: "Qing Mo."

His brows furrowed slightly. Only a quarter of a second was enough for Gu Yun to understand his confused emotion. With a hearty smile, Gu Yun said: "You don't have to think so hard, I don't have any great achievements worthy of the two's attention." She had always been fighting wits and courage with the men in the General's Mansion, so he wouldn't know her.

Surprise, this time it stayed on his face for half a second, then returned to calm. Gu Yun was very interested in him. After all, there were very few people who could control their facial muscles without leaking emotions; he was already very powerful.

Gu Yun studied carefully, but Zhuo Qing was sweating coldly. No one hoped to be read, especially this kind of "expert"! Didn't she see that the cold light shot from the corner of the red-clothed woman's eyes was enough to freeze her to death?! Sometimes she really didn't know if Yun was meticulous or thick-skinned!

Coughing lightly to attract their attention, Zhuo Qing quickly introduced the main topic: "Alright, I think it is necessary to clarify first. Since everyone's goal is to solve this case, there are now two paths. One is to investigate separately; the other is to work together. We are very sincere about cooperating with you, it just depends on your opinion?"

The two were silent for a long time. Just when Zhuo Qing was ready to automatically interpret it as investigating separately, the man said again: "How do you want to investigate?"

Zhuo Qing looked at Gu Yun. This was her specialty. Fortunately, Gu Yun already had a plan and talked eloquently: "First, find the murder weapon. The deceased had thirteen wounds, but only twelve flying daggers. In other words, the murder weapon has been collected. Even if the murderer is some kind of expert who can shoot the deceased from a long distance, they still need to recover the murder weapon. And there are four people who can do this: the deceased's friend Li Zhi, the deceased's wife Madam Yang, and the two big brothers Huang Yi and Wang Wei who arrived later. Even if one of them is not the murderer, they must be an accomplice. The urgent task is to find this person among the four."

Zhuo Qing nodded and said affirmatively: "As long as we can find the murder weapon and do another autopsy comparison, Qian Jing's crime will be cleared by half."

"Second, it's about the gold. Yang Lu's death was too sudden. Obviously, the murderer wanted to frame Qian Jing. The matter behind this should be related to that gold theft case. A large amount of gold absolutely could not disappear into thin air. The case was closed hastily back then, and the gold is still missing. Yang Lu must be an insider, or perhaps it was precisely because he knew too much that he was killed. Finding the profit-sharers related to this case back then might lead to finding the murderer."

Gu Yun looked at the two and said: "I'm done, what do you have to say."

The two looked at each other, seemingly reaching a consensus: "You go investigate those few people, leave the gold case to us. Three days later at the hour of the rat, exchange news here."

Three days, is the time enough? Gu Yun was still thinking, but the two had already left the prison, leaping up with extremely fast skills, and after a few leaps, they jumped out from the skylight and disappeared without a trace.

She still had something to say.

Looking at Qian Jing, who was sitting on the side calmly, Gu Yun asked: "Are they in a hurry?"

Grabbing the blade of grass and biting it in his mouth again, Qian Jing replied unhappily: "Be content, what he said to you is already a lot. Didn't you see he didn't even pay attention to me." Had anyone asked for his opinion on this matter at all?!

"Then that's truly an honor." It seemed so. Gu Yun was relieved and said to Zhuo Qing: "Let's go, it's getting late."

Walking in the prison passage, Zhuo Qing guessed: "Go find Li Zhi tomorrow?"

Gu Yun nodded: "Hmm, taken together, he is the most suspicious, but I still have to look at the interrogation records of those few people first."

"Now?" Zhuo Qing called out softly: "Miss, it's already one o'clock in the morning."

Gu Yun just smiled and replied: "You go back with Lou Xiyan first, I'll wait for you at the gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion at nine o'clock tomorrow morning." There were only three days, she must find out who hid the murder weapon!

"Alright." Zhuo Qing was helpless. Gu Yun was absolutely a workaholic; persuading her was just a waste of time.

When Zhuo Qing and Gu Yun came out, Lou Xiyan had already called for two carriages. Gu Yun leaned against Zhuo Qing's ear and whispered: "Qing, you really have dog-shit luck, you met such a good man, hold onto him." After speaking, she even winked at her. Zhuo Qing was speechless. What kind of dog-shit metaphor was this? Did it mean Lou Xiyan was dog-shit?!

Too lazy to bother with her, Zhuo Qing got directly into the carriage. She only heard Gu Yun whispering something to Lou Xiyan outside the carriage. A while later, Lou Xiyan entered the carriage with a smile on his face, and the carriage ran slowly.

Somewhat curious, Zhuo Qing still asked: "What did she say to you just now?"

"She said." Pausing for a moment, hanging Zhuo Qing's appetite, Lou Xiyan looked at her with a smile and replied softly: "She said, let me cherish you well."

Cherish you well... Zhuo Qing cursed Gu Yun in her heart!

The carriage soon arrived at the Prime Minister's Mansion, and the two walked in together. The night was already very deep. Except for a few lanterns used for lighting, everything had fallen asleep. Zhuo Qing looked at the man who had accompanied her for a whole night and said sincerely: "Xiyan, thank you for today." If it weren't for him, she might not have been able to see Qian Jing so smoothly.

Walking side by side with her on the quiet path, Lou Xiyan's steps were slow, and he replied blandly: "The affairs of the Ministry of Justice are originally what I should supervise. You don't need to thank me for such things."

Zhuo Qing didn't say anything more. She seemed to have become somewhat accustomed to his warmth that didn't cause a burden. Sending her to the front of the Zhaixing Pavilion, Lou Xiyan stared at her for a long time without speaking.

Under the moonlight, the perfect facial features were distinct and upright, right before her eyes, the moist, full lips were pursed, carrying a faint smile. The night breeze blew their clothes, as if they were also going to be entangled together. An ambiguous atmosphere flowed faintly.

"You..." Zhuo Qing opened her mouth, but stiffened there, not knowing what she wanted to say.

"Sleep early." The soft, low murmuring sounded. Zhuo Qing only saw that beautiful face slowly approaching, very slowly, very slowly, slow enough for her to react, but she couldn't move, and didn't want to move.

She thought he would kiss her lips, but he didn't. The light kiss fell on the corner of her lips, light as a feather brushing past, the warm, hot breath sprayed on her face, stroking her cheeks. Zhuo Qing heard her own heartbeat, thumping as if it were about to jump out. She knew for the first time that just such a light kiss, which couldn't be lighter, was enough to make the heart ripple.

A moment of blankness in her mind, she only felt him gently let go of her hand, still turning and leaving slowly like that. Until that figure disappeared from her sight, Zhuo Qing came back to her senses.

At the same time, she couldn't help but groan. What on earth was she doing! It was just a kiss, and it wasn't even on the lips, why was she blushing and having a racing heart!

In the end, it was all Lou Xiyan's fault, kissing her off guard, leaving a sentence and then leaving, sob sob sob...

Not letting anyone sleep tonight!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 51 =====