Chapter 51: Seeing Gu Yun Again (5)

The morning sun of early summer was dazzling, shining directly on the bed curtain through the half-open window. The person on the bed grabbed the silk quilt beside her and covered her face, intending to continue her good dream.

Bang bang bang...

A series of intense knocking sounds were almost deafening. Even if she covered her ears, she couldn't ignore them, and the visitor seemed to have perseverance, with each knock heavier than the last. Zhuo Qing cursed low, and had to wake up from her beautiful dream!

Opening her hazy eyes, Zhuo Qing struggled to open the door.

Just as the door opened, she heard the apologetic voice of Fei'er, the little maid Lou Xiyan sent to take care of her: "I'm sorry, Madam! I'm sorry, this young lady just wouldn't wait for me to announce her, and broke in by herself, I'm sorry, Madam."

"Alright, alright." Zhuo Qing waved her hand, looking at Gu Yun, who was standing at the door with a solemn face. Zhuo Qing guessed that something must have happened again, and she was in such a hurry to find her, could it be another murder case?

"Come with me." Grabbing her wrist, Gu Yun was about to pull her out.

Zhuo Qing grabbed her collar and asked anxiously: "Wait, Miss, at least let me put on some clothes!" Although the nightgown she was wearing now couldn't be considered exposed, it was just a thin cover-up.

Releasing her hand, Gu Yun urged: "Hurry up."

Gu Yun's face was extremely bad, and Zhuo Qing also felt the urgency of the matter. She grabbed a plain white long dress and put it on, and patted her face casually with the face-washing water on the bedside table. Fei'er wanted to step forward to help her comb her hair, but Zhuo Qing waved her hand, and while casually tying her long hair into a long braid, she asked: "What happened?"

Gu Yun replied in a deep voice: "Li Zhi is dead."

Dead?! Zhuo Qing was stunned and asked: "When? What was the cause of death?"

"Last night. Initially determined to be poisoning. Dan Yulan is currently interrogating the guards who were on duty last night and the yamen runners who delivered the food. I want to hear your opinion." Li Zhi was actually poisoned to death in the Ministry of Justice prison. This murderer had great ability!

Tying her hair, Zhuo Qing nodded and replied: "I'm ready, let's go." The two walked out only two steps when Zhuo Qing suddenly stopped and said to Fei'er, who was standing blankly at the bedroom door: "Later, go tell Prime Minister Lou that Qing Mo and I are going to the Ministry of Justice, and we will be back in the evening." Although he had said she could freely enter and leave the Prime Minister's Mansion and he wouldn't interfere with or restrict her actions, since he could be so tolerant and trusting of her, she should also give an account of her actions.

"Yes." Fei'er nodded.

Gu Yun raised her eyebrows slightly. When had Qing ever been so obedient and even reported her whereabouts? She remembered that Qing was often so busy working that she wouldn't be seen for days and nights without any news, which frustrated the corporate elite who had been chasing her for two years until he finally gave up. Today, she took the initiative to explain her whereabouts. Lou Xiyan was truly not simple.

If it were usual, she would definitely tease her properly, but today wasn't the time. Pulling Zhuo Qing, the two hurried out of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

On the small path beside the main gate of the Prime Minister's Mansion, the two who were about to go out stopped their steps.

"A woman, out and about all day, don't you care about her? Such a woman is not worthy of being your wife." The low voice was filled with deep displeasure, and Lou Muhai's dark face fully declared his dissatisfaction. He had just returned to the mansion and heard that Xiyan was going to get married, and didn't expect it to be such an ignorant and low-status woman.

Smiling at that plain white back, even in simple decoration, she was already so beautiful. Completely ignoring the anger of the person beside him, Lou Xiyan smiled lightly and replied: "I think she's quite good."

If Qing Ling were also as cautious and careful as the so-called young ladies of wealthy families, he wasn't sure if he would still want to cherish her as he did now.

Lou Xiyan's undisguised partiality made Lou Muhai even more disgusted with Zhuo Qing, and he roared: "If you really like her, just take her as a concubine. Princess Zhaoyun is dignified and beautiful, and has long been infatuated with you. She is the best choice for a wife. As a Prime Minister and a member of the Lou family, you should consider more about how to balance the relationships, instead of doing whatever you want!"

Lou Xiyan snorted lightly. He had already done enough for the Lou family! A flash of deep hatred and disdain crossed his eyes, and Lou Xiyan replied coldly: "In two more months, it will be the once-every-three-years prayer ceremony. I plan to get married to Qing Ling after the ceremony. By then, I will send the invitation to the Zhenxi General's Mansion."

"Lou Xiyan! I am your father!" Lou Muhai scolded angrily. Every time he came back, he was either ignored or defied like this. Why couldn't they be like other fathers and sons?!

Father? Looking at the man before him who was glaring at him and labeling his identity, Lou Xiyan found it funny. When Xiwu was born, during his growth, and before his mother died, why hadn't he seen this father of his? Raising a sarcastic smile, Lou Xiyan replied coldly: "I like this woman, and I am going to marry her as my wife, and she will be the only one. I am different from you. I, Lou Xiyan, don't need to rely on women to balance my official career."

After speaking, regardless of how the person behind him reacted, Lou Xiyan turned and left the Prime Minister's Mansion, leaving only Lou Muhai, whose face was iron-blue and full of pain, staring at that thin back, unable to move for a long time.

The ice cellar was just as biting cold, and the oil lamps were still shaking violently. This was Zhuo Qing's second time in the Ministry of Justice's autopsy room.

Everywhere was ice and coffins. Gu Yun simply sat on the coffin beside her, listening to Zhuo Qing's autopsy analysis.

"According to early body phenomena such as rigor mortis and livor mortis, the time of death of the deceased was ten to twelve hours ago."

"Uh... sorry, Madam Lou." The small official sitting in the corner, huddled up and recording, asked in confusion: "What does this 'hour' mean?" He had to do every day was record the results of the autopsy, which had to be detailed and accurate, especially for this Madam Lou. Dan had ordered that every word she said during the autopsy must be recorded word for word.

How could she forget there was someone else? Seeing Gu Yun reminded her of the time they worked together, and she was used to saying hours, so it just slipped out. After thinking for a moment, Zhuo Qing replied: "You can just write ten to twelve hours."

"Oh." The small official hurriedly lowered his head to record.

"The face of the deceased is dark blue, the eyeballs are protruding, and there is dirty blood flowing from the mouth, nose, and eyes. The body skin is pale blue, the fingernails are dark blue, and the abdomen is slightly swollen."

The deceased hadn't undergone an autopsy. Zhuo Qing asked: "Has Dan Yulan performed the autopsy?"

Shaking her head, Gu Yun replied: "Early this morning, I was about to go find him when he sent someone to invite me. When I arrived at the prison, I discovered that Li Zhi was dead. Dan Yulan just took a simple look and said he was poisoned to death, and asked me to invite you over for an autopsy, while he stayed in the prison to interrogate the guards on duty last night." Apparently, Dan Yulan was very clear that Qing's autopsy technique was much higher than his.

Picking up the surgical tools prepared on the side, Zhuo Qing carefully dissected the abdominal cavity for a deep autopsy.

"There is a small amount of black-red fluid in the chest cavity of the deceased, and the positions of the organs in the chest cavity are normal. The esophageal mucosa is slightly corroded, there is food residue in the stomach, the mucosa is adherent, and there are three corrosive holes in the stomach wall."

The cause of death was already very obvious. Zhuo Qing gently took off her gloves and said: "The cause of death is indeed food poisoning. But there are no conditions for specific toxicological analysis, so it cannot be clarified for the time being what kind of poison he died of."

Li Zhi couldn't have brought poison with him when he was locked in the Ministry of Justice prison. Even if he really brought it, he could have taken it directly to commit suicide; he didn't need to eat it in the food. This case was undoubtedly a murder case.

"Let's go." Jumping off the coffin, Gu Yun left first, and Zhuo Qing followed behind her out of the ice cellar.

Along the way, Gu Yun was silent, her face solemn. Zhuo Qing asked: "What are you thinking about?"

It was already midsummer, and the sun was a bit dazzling. Gu Yun stopped under a big tree by the road, leaning lazily against the tree trunk, Gu Yun replied distressedly: "The opponent is far more powerful than we imagined. The prisoner in the Ministry of Justice prison actually died just like that, and it was such a coincidence, just at the moment he was about to reveal the inside story of the gold case! This person really is omniscient and omnipotent. We are in the light, he is in the dark, it's not easy to dig him out."

"Do you suspect Dan Yulan?" After all, knowing that Li Zhi was about to collapse, and being able to kill in the Ministry of Justice prison, the most likely person was Dan Yulan.

"He shouldn't be stupid enough to this extent." Gu Yun shook her head and analyzed: "If he were the mastermind, he could have done this matter more beautifully. I guess it was precisely because of Dan Yulan's intervention that the mastermind panicked and spared no cost to destroy all evidence. Now Yang Lu is dead, Li Zhi is dead, and there are two other guards who were stationed at the rock cave together back then. One was transferred to the East Sea garrison, and the other has resigned and disappeared. The clues seem to be broken, just waiting for the news from Ye Mei and Ao Tian tonight."

Hope they have good news. But with only three short days, can they investigate the gold case that has been sealed for a long time? The evidence that should have been destroyed should have been destroyed long ago, right?

It was too hot, fanning herself with her hand, Zhuo Qing suddenly lit up and smiled: "Actually, there is one more insider who hasn't died, right?"

One more?! Gu Yun snapped her fingers lightly and smiled: "Right, let's go find her."

The two unconsciously quickened their steps, hoping she wouldn't also meet with misfortune.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 52 =====

Su Yu was stunned, not having reacted to what she said, and Gu Yun continued to ask: "Answer the question, are you a virgin?"

"Are you joking... a virgin! How could I possibly still be a virgin!" Su Yu was practically roaring.

Gu Yun nodded with satisfaction and smiled: "That is lying."

Staring daggers at Gu Yun, Su Yu said urgently: "I am not!"

Patting his shoulder, Gu Yun replied with a look of pity: "Alright, if you don't want others to see that you're lying next time, then please don't hesitate or repeat yourself stiffly when you lie, and don't subconsciously step back or swallow your saliva."

Su Yu looked down at his feet; he really had stepped back unconsciously just now. How could this be?! The feeling of having one's lie exposed was truly terrible, especially with such an embarrassing question. Hesitating and not knowing what to say, Su Yu saw Gu Yun staring at his face and smiling: "That expression right now is called embarrassment."

Su Yu was rendered speechless by Gu Yun, his face turning somewhat red, unsure if he should be embarrassed or angry.

Zhuo Qing really couldn't help but burst into laughter. Unable to save face, Su Yu retorted unwillingly: "What's so great about that? How do you know she wasn't faking it?"

As soon as Su Yu finished speaking, Gu Yun mercilessly lifted her foot and stomped hard on the top of his foot.

"Ah—" It hurt him to death! Glaring at Gu Yun, Su Yu growled: "Damn it! What are you doing!"

Gu Yun explained with a straight face: "The pain and anger you just felt were your true expressions. The expression of emotion is subconscious and basically difficult to suppress or hide. Micro-expressions are very intense, hidden expressions that occur in an instant, so if one of her expressions lasts longer than a second, it's fake."

So that was it. Su Yu began to think seriously, but who would have thought that Gu Yun, who had just been so serious, would mock him again: "I was just saying it casually; you don't need to try so hard to think. With an IQ like yours, no amount of effort will have any effect."

What did she mean by that! Just as he was about to explode, Zhuo Qing also walked to his side, patted his shoulder, and said sympathetically: "Poor little chick, who told you to run into this vicious-mouthed woman? Rest in peace."

After saying this, the two women burst into laughter again.

"You... Hmph!" He was a dignified general; why did he have to be here letting them mock him?! Su Yu flicked his sleeves and left in annoyance.

Watching his retreating back, the two simultaneously suppressed their smiles. Zhuo Qing asked in confusion: "Why did you drive him away?" Gu Yun was a person who was indeed quite direct at times, but she was definitely not someone who didn't know what was good for her or liked to mock and tease others. If she did this, she must have had her reasons.

Gu Yun shrugged slightly and replied somewhat helplessly: "When I was checking Li Zhi's biography yesterday, I discovered an interesting coincidence."

"What?"

"He was actually one of the four people who were waiting at the exit of the rock cave together with Qu Ze back then." She wanted to find some clues from Li Zhi, but she didn't want Su Yu to get involved in this old gold case.

Zhuo Qing understood: "And Yang Lu was actually willing to keep lending him money, perhaps just because he also knew the secret of the gold case back then?!" Finally having made some progress, Zhuo Qing pulled...

(End of chapter)