Chapter 457: Interrogation at the Shi Residence, Capturing the Suspect

Shi residence.

The morning light, tinged with a hint of chill, slanted across the bluish‑gray tiled eaves.

On the stone path outside the room, the Shi family members formed a crooked long line, the rustle of fabrics and fragments of chatter wrapped in the morning mist.

Some clutched their cuffs and rubbed them repeatedly, others repeatedly tiptoed, looking toward the courtyard gate, even their breathing was taut.

Shi Woyu hunched his neck, his shoes leaving shallow marks on the ground, his gaze passing over the shoulders of the two ahead, scanning the tightly shut door.

The yamen officer at the door wore a soap‑colored official uniform, hand on the knife at his waist, standing as upright as a pine, his solemn vigor making him subconsciously swallow a mouthful of saliva.

He quietly tugged Shi Xiuwen's sleeve, lowered his voice, his tone full of confusion: "Elder brother, Lord Chen Yan only had the County Magistrate interrogate yesterday; why is he coming himself to question today?"

Shi Woyu couldn't understand why the same matter had to be repeated a second time.

Moreover, the scope of questioning was expanded...

Even members of the third and fourth branches were summoned!

Shi Xiuwen, upon hearing, slowly shook his head, his gaze passing over the queue and landing on the tightly shut door.

The entwined‑vine lotus pattern carved on the door panel glowed with a cold, hard wood tone in the morning light, as if it would lock all the house's movements inside.

His Adam's apple rolled slightly, his voice pressed down extremely low: "How could I, brother, possibly know Lord Chen Yan's thoughts?"

He paused, a sidelong glance catching the officer's hand on the knife hilt, then continued: "Lord Chen Yan solves cases like a deity; we only need to cooperate honestly..."

Today's interrogation procedure has also changed...

This time it's random; no one knows who will be next!

But precisely because of that, Shi Xiuwen couldn't help feeling that perhaps Lord Chen Yan had a plan in mind...

"Oh!"

【9】 Shi Woyu let the trailing tone drag, replying with a sound.

Shi Wo Yu's trailing tone dragged across the airport, and he responded with a sound.

He subtly pursed his lips, his foot scuffing the ground, crushing the osmanthus petals stuck to his cotton shoes into fragments, his voice full of impatience: "I don't know how long until it's my turn..."

Speaking, he suddenly remembered something, his eyes brightening then quickly dimming, instinctively raising his hand, his fingers rubbing his palm as if holding the Dufang's dice, "I still want to go to Wangchuan Dufang to play a few hands!"

As a regular at the gambling hall, Shi Woyu hasn't been there for over a day since yesterday, his hands truly itching...

Shi Xiuwen glanced at Shi Woyu, frowning silently, when suddenly his arm was gently tugged, and a childish voice close to his sleeve sounded: "Elder brother, look!"

"Eldest sister‑in‑law is out!"

He looked down following the voice and saw his ten‑year‑old younger brother looking up with a chubby finger pointing straight at the door that had just creaked open.

Following that slender fingertip, Su Linyue was walking out of the house with his head down, moving extremely slowly.

Shi Xiuwen reached out, grasped Su Linyue's arm as he approached, his fingertips cool, the grip not heavy, his voice low: "Linyue, what did Lord Chen Yan ask you?"

Su Linyue's body stiffened slightly, his lips moved but he hadn't spoken yet, and Shi Woyu leaned in, his eyes more eager than Shi Xiuwen's, his voice a bit higher, then quickly lowered: "Yes, elder sister‑in‑law, what questions did that person inside ask?"

Su Linyue lowered his eyes, his pupils still with red veins, pursed his lips, and said: "It's almost the same as what the County Magistrate asked yesterday..."

These words let Shi Woyu quietly exhale, just as he was about to speak, Su Linyue suddenly raised his eyes as if recalling something, and continued: "Only one question is different..."

Shi Woyu leaned forward, his voice full of urgency: "What question?"

Su Linyue blinked his beautiful eyes, the corners still wet, as if the question had left him dazed, then slowly said: "Lord Chen Yan asked me, may I know what trades the Duke engaged in when he was young?"

Speaking, his brows slightly furrowed, his face full of bewildered doubt, he subconsciously repeated a sentence, his tone a bit at a loss: "How could I possibly know these!"

She has only been married in for a few years?

Father never mentions these...

"Ask father about his youthful trades?"

Shi Woyu murmured the repetition, silently noting the question in his mind.

But, as a son, he also didn't know...

After all, when he was born, the Shi family was already wealthy.

And his father rarely spoke of such matters.

Just as the words fell, a clear male voice came from ahead, crisp: "Steward Shi, the Lord asks you to go in for questioning!"

Everyone looked toward the voice and saw Gao Jiong standing at the left side of the door, the hem of his official robe fluttering slightly in the wind, his gaze sweeping the queue before settling on Steward Shi.

He then raised his right hand toward the half‑open door, making a beckoning gesture.

Steward Shi, who had been standing at the head of the line, folded his hands in front of him, and upon hearing the summons, slightly bowed and replied: "Yes."

His voice was steady, revealing no emotion, but a sidelong glance into the doorway made his fingers at his side curl subtly.

He said nothing more, lifted his foot and walked toward the door.

When the teal steward's robe brushed the threshold, Gao Jiong stepped back half a step; once his figure vanished completely inside, he lifted his hand and gently closed the door.

This steward actually didn't bear the surname Shi; Steward Yuan granted him the Shi name in gratitude for his merits.

An hour later.

The sun had risen higher, its rays filtering through the trees and casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Shi Woyu leaned against a weathered lacquered wooden pillar in the courtyard corner, his back warmed by the sun, yet he still couldn't suppress his inner restlessness, the Blue Bricks at his feet marked with shallow scuffs.

He watched the silhouettes coming in and out of the doorway—

Elder brother, Fourth Sister, the accountant, even the old kitchen maid had already emerged, his heart growing more uncertain, yet mixed with a few impatient urges.

"It's been so long, why haven't they gotten to me yet!"

He couldn't help but purse his lips, his voice louder than before, tinged with clear impatience, his hand instinctively reaching for his waist.

There it was empty; at this hour he should have already been at Wangchuan Dufang, slamming his silver on the table and shouting "Deal!"

He hadn't gone yesterday, and today he still wanted to play more.

The door creaked open again, cutting off Shi Woyu's muttering.

Gao Jiong walked out of the room with steady steps, his gaze sweeping the dwindling queue before finally landing on someone in the courtyard corner, his voice clear and crisp: "Second Young Master Shi, the Lord asks you to go in for questioning!"

The summons struck his heart like a stone tossed into a lake, instantly jolting Shi Woyu; the body that had been leaning against the pillar snapped upright, and he muttered unconsciously, "Finally it's my turn..."

Before the words fell, he quickly cleared his throat and shouted toward Gao Jiong, "I'm here!"

"This way, please!"

Gao Jiong, seeing this, turned his body toward the doorway and made a "please" gesture.

Shi Wooyu followed Gao Jiong through the door, and a sudden chill enveloped him, starkly different from the warm sun outside the courtyard.

He instinctively glanced around the interior.

There were no superfluous furnishings; only a long table stood in the center, with a wooden chair on each side.

Light poured straight down from the skylight above, illuminating the space before the table and giving the room a somewhat solemn air.

Gao Jiong led him to a chair at one side of the long table and stopped; Shi Wooyu looked up and saw Chen Yan seated opposite, his dark robe making his features appear even more composed, his gaze landing on him with a sharp, scrutinizing edge.

His heart tightened, and he quickly bowed, his voice much more restrained than outside the courtyard, "I have the honor of meeting Lord Chen Yan!"

"No need for formalities!"

Chen Yan raised his hand in a wave, his tone flat and calm, pointing to the chair before him, "Sit!"

Shi Wooyu quickly glanced at the minimalist arrangement, feeling the room so quiet he could hear his own heartbeat, and promptly replied, "Thank you, sir!"

Then, he gingerly pulled the chair out and sat down, his hands instinctively resting on his knees, even his fingertips tingling with stiffness.

At my age, this is the first time I've encountered such an oppressive setting…

Chen Yan lightly rested his fingertip on the table edge, his gaze slowly sweeping over Shi Wooyu's tense shoulders, finally resting on his anxious eyes, the corner of his mouth curving into a half‑smile.

The room was so quiet that only the occasional rustle of leaves outside the window could be heard, and he finally spoke slowly, "Second Young Master Shi, my household would like to ask: are your elder brother and sister‑in‑law harmonious as a couple?"

"What kind of question is that??? …" Shi Wooyu was startled, his already stiff body tensing further, his face full of incomprehension, but after a brief thought he carefully replied, "Since my elder brother and sister‑in‑law were married, they have always treated each other with respect; I have never seen them quarrel!"

Shi Wooyu was somewhat at a loss…

This doesn't concern his father at all—why is he probing their family matters instead?

Chen Yan slowly nodded, tapping his fingertip on the table edge twice, then sighed meaningfully, "So they are indeed extremely harmonious!"

No trace of joy or anger could be heard in that tone.

He paused, then twitched the corner of his mouth again, the smile in his eyes not reaching his pupils, and continued, "Second question: how is your relationship with your esteemed father?"

"How do you get along on a daily basis?"

Shi Wooyu hesitated not at all, immediately looked up and answered, his tone deliberately earnest, "My father has been quite kind to me…"

Then, as if fearing his words were insufficiently sincere, he added, "Although I am unlearned, I was raised under my father's guidance since childhood!"

Chen Yan smiled increasingly mischievous, his eyes sharpening like polished steel, and said, "But my household heard that Second Young Master Shi, you and Gentleman Shi have recently had many disputes and quarrels?"

"You've been smashing things a lot, haven't you?"

The words struck him like a bolt of thunder, causing him to jerk his head up; the earnestness on his face froze, replaced by sheer panic, his lips trembling as he reflexively retorted, "Ah?! Sir, you even know about this?!"

Evidently, he never expected that Lord Chen Yan knew so clearly…

"It is my household asking you!" Chen Yan snapped his fingertip on the tabletop, the crisp sound piercing the quiet room, his tone growing colder.

Shi Wooyu shivered all over, his voice immediately trembling, "Yes…yes…"

As the words reached his mouth, he hurriedly raised his eyes to defend himself, his gaze darting away, "Because I occasionally like to gamble a hand or two, my father disapproves of such behavior and often reprimands me…"

"When he gets angry, he likes to smash things…"

Before the words finished, cold sweat already streamed down his temples, soaking his collar.

He instinctively raised his hand to wipe his forehead, his fingertip touching a cold dampness, his heart pounding even faster.

He had just tried to hide these matters, but now even his old secrets were about to slip away.

Chen Yan clasped his hands in front of his chest, leaned back slightly, and with a teasingly scrutinizing tone asked, "Gentleman Shi withheld the silver you used for gambling and repeatedly prevented you from going to the gambling house; do you bear a grudge?"

Hearing the words "harbor a grudge," Shi Wooyu shook his head violently as if scalded, his voice changing tone, "How could that be possible?"

"That is my father…"

He began to speak, intending to add a few more sentences, but stopped abruptly as his pupils suddenly contracted, as if he finally realized something; he leaned forward, astonished, and retorted, "Wait! Sir, you aren't suspecting me, are you?!"

Chen Yan smiled calmly, saying evenly, "In the eyes of a gambling fiend, there is no such thing as familial affection…"

Then, raising his hand, he waved lightly, turned his gaze to Gao Jiong beside him, and ordered, "Enough. Capture the linked outlaws, kill the murderer of Gentleman Shi, bring them back to the county office, and execute them with the utmost severity!"