Chapter 419

Jin Ling, Mingze Lane, a two-courtyard residence.

Neighbors on the left and right all knew that this residence was not occupied daily, but someone would come to clean it every year.

It looked like the outer residence of a wealthy family.

In this old lane where old Jin Ling people lived, a two-courtyard residence was not luxurious, but it was definitely not ordinary.

It wouldn't appear shabby, but it wouldn't be too eye-catching either, hidden in the fireworks of the city, rising and setting with the sun, blending in with the dust.

Entering from the main gate, passing through the screen wall, and entering the hanging flower gate, it was an exquisite inner courtyard.

Apart from the main room in the middle, there were east and west wing rooms, but the east wing room door was tightly closed, and a copper lock covered in rust was hanging on the door.

It seemed to be locking away some old secrets that they didn't want outsiders to see.

Although the courtyard looked somewhat old and was not occupied daily, it was cleaned until it was spotless.

The edges of the stone steps in the courtyard were covered with green moss, and the bluestone slabs on the ground reflected a pale yellow soft light in the morning sun.

A sudden heavy rain in the early morning caused water droplets to drip from the eaves from time to time, smashing into broken jade on the stone eaves outside the corridor.

The dripping sound became the only sound in the small courtyard, containing crispness in its monotony and deriving tranquility in its etherealness.

The window of the main room was only slightly opened, allowing fresh air from outside to flow in without letting the people inside be disturbed by the cool breeze.

Lying on the bed was a young woman wearing snow-white soft silk undergarments, her brows and eyes like a painting, pretty and intoxicating, with a head of disheveled hair piled up by the pillow.

There was a strange beauty like carved jade.

It was just that her face appeared too pale, and her soft, tender cherry lips only reflected an extremely faint pink color, lacking the blood-moistened luster it should have had.

The morning sun shone into the room, illuminating half of the dim room.

The woman on the bed seemed to be awakened by the light, her pretty brows furrowed slightly, her long eyelashes trembled gently, and she slowly opened her eyes.

She had had a dark and deep nightmare, full of fear and despair, and she was struggling painfully on the edge of life and death.

In that terrifying nightmare, the only thing that gave her courage and allowed her to endure and support herself was the pair of hands that held her, so warm and powerful.

So much so that it ignited her strong attachment to life. If it weren't for this, she might never have woken up again.

Her consciousness had just recovered, and her whole body felt indescribably soft, so much so that even her fingers were too lazy to move, and what entered her eyes was a completely strange environment.

She turned her head slightly on the pillow and saw a jade-like young man sitting on the rattan chair by the bed, his hands crossed over his chest, sleeping soundly there, with deep exhaustion between his brows and eyes.

She remembered the comforting embrace and consolation when she was on the verge of death, and a wave of tenderness surged in her heart.

Her body moved involuntarily, and a piercing hidden pain came from the wound on her chest and abdomen, and she couldn't help but groan.

Jia Cong, sitting on the rattan chair, woke up suddenly and asked with a face full of joy, "Are you awake? You have been in a coma for two whole days."

Zou Min'er looked confused, her voice also slightly hoarse, and she asked, "I didn't die? Where is this?"

Jia Cong pulled the rattan chair to the bedside and sat down, smiling and saying, "Of course you won't die. That day you were severely wounded. It just so happened that the famous physician from the Love Shenjing, Zhang Youpeng, was in Jin Ling.

I had people invite him, and he arrived in time. Although Mr. Zhang has superb medical skills, it still took a lot of effort to let you escape a disaster.

I was worried that the assassin would know the assassination failed and return to harm you, so I begged Mr. Zhang for help and announced to the outside world that you had died from your severe wounds.

Mr. Zhang also used the miraculous technique of gold needles piercing acupoints to temporarily seal your five senses and life force. Even when the Ying Tian Prefecture coroner examined you, he also determined that you had already died.

This way, there is no need to worry about anyone else assassinating you, and you can rest assured to recover from your wounds.

The killer who wounded you should be the sea bandit Water Rakshasa. Both the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Ying Tian Prefecture have issued edicts to hunt her down.

This courtyard is the old residence of an old friend of Mr. Zhang's. It has been vacant. I didn't have a place to settle you for a while, so Mr. Zhang brought you here to recover from your wounds."

Zou Min'er heard Jia Cong's words, her heart full of surprise and astonishment. It seemed that it would take some effort to sort out these strange and bizarre things that happened after she fell into a coma.

……

That day in the inner courtyard of Clear Sound Pavilion, in order to prevent the Ying Tian Prefecture from collecting the body, Jia Cong deliberately provoked a conflict with Jia Yucun and even made an extreme move of using muskets to threaten them.

The purpose was to create momentum, divert others' attention, and thereby deceive everyone.

The compromise method proposed by Coroner Zhao An of the Ying Tian Prefecture to examine the body on the spot happened to hit Jia Cong's intent. With the cover of Zhang Youpeng's gold needle technique, Zhao An indeed thought Zou Min'er had died.

The cause and effect were connected, truly seamless, and somewhat beyond Jia Cong's expectations.

The severity of Zou Min'er's injury that day was such that even he was almost in despair.

Zhang Youpeng not only had superb skills and pulled Zou Min'er back from the gates of hell,

but his magical gold needle acupoint piercing technique could actually make people enter a perfect state of suspended animation, so much so that even the experienced old coroner of the Ying Tian Prefecture couldn't detect any flaws when feeling her breath and pulse.

Such magical medical means, whether in his previous life or this life, Jia Cong had only heard of in legends and had never expected to see with his own eyes one day.

Jia Cong thought about how every time he encountered Zhang Youpeng treating patients, he could reveal extraordinary medical means, which truly made him somewhat shocked.

Zou Min'er's eyes flickered, and she asked, "That is to say, people outside now have all determined that I have died?"

Jia Cong replied, "That is indeed the case, so your safety is guaranteed. Just focus on recovering from your wounds. When the matter in Jin Ling is over, I will personally send you back to the Love Shenjing.

I will explain things to the Central Vehicle Office myself."

When Zou Min'er heard this from Jia Cong, she just remained silent, not knowing what she was thinking.

She asked again, "Is it just you here? Where is Mr. Zhang?"

Jia Cong replied, "The secret medicine Mr. Zhang used to treat the wound is a unique secret recipe. The medicine he had on hand was only enough for you to apply a few times. I have already helped you apply it twice in the past two days, and there isn't much secret medicine left.

Yesterday, Mr. Zhang saw that your pulse was stable and determined that you were out of danger, so he went out to prepare medicine and will need a few days to return."

Zou Min'er heard Jia Cong's words and suddenly felt something was wrong. Her pale pretty face flushed with a trace of blood, her voice was somewhat weak, and she asked, "Have you been the one applying medicine for me these past few days?"

The place where she was stabbed was on her chest and abdomen, which was the most private part of a girl's body....

Jia Cong's expression was somewhat embarrassed, and he said, "That day at Clear Sound Pavilion, Mr. Zhang spent a lot of effort to apply needles to stop the bleeding and feed you medicine to continue your life. After all, he is old.

So in the end, cleaning the wound and applying medicine were all done by me according to the method he taught. He went out to pick medicine these past few days, so naturally, it all had to be done by me...."

Zou Min'er was being applied medicine and bandaged by Jia Cong, and she only felt her heartbeat accelerating. Her body was already weak from her severe injury and coma, and now with her heart and mind fluctuating, it seemed that even breathing was somewhat difficult.

Suddenly, the corner of her eye saw a wooden basin in the corner of the room, in which were a few pieces of clothing covered in large patches of blood. It was exactly the clothing she had been wearing that day.

Thinking again of the snow-white soft silk undergarments she had newly changed into, her pretty face flushed red, and she very rationally did not continue to think about it.

She turned her head slightly to avoid looking at Jia Cong, pulled up the thin quilt, closed her eyes, and started pretending to be asleep.

Jia Cong felt the atmosphere was somewhat awkward, and in his mind, he couldn't help but think of the flawless, jade-like, delicate... he saw when changing the medicine.

He hurriedly cut off his own reverie, forced a smile, and said, "After coming over that day, I only fed you some rice porridge. You haven't eaten for two days.

I'll go prepare some food for you."

When he went out, he took the wooden basin containing Zou Min'er's bloody clothes with him, looking quite embarrassed.

After Jia Cong went out, Zou Min'er pulled down the thin quilt, revealing her head and face, her pale face full of blushes.

She stared blankly at the ceiling, thinking of the past entanglements with Jia Cong, and found it increasingly difficult to sort out the threads, and from now on, she feared she would never be able to disentangle herself.

The wound on her body was aching again, and she sighed helplessly.

……

Jin Ling, Dazai Gate, Xin Chun Hao Jiangnan General Store.

Qu Hongxiu transferred some manpower from the farmstead east of the city to search for Jia Cong's whereabouts in the city, but where would there be news for a while?

She and Qin Keqing were both restless, but then Jiang Liu suddenly came to the shop, and both of them were pleasantly surprised.

Qu Hongxiu hurriedly asked, "Where have you and Brother Cong been these past few days? You didn't even leave a message."

Jiang Liu replied, "Zhou Niangzi of Clear Sound Pavilion was assassinated and her injuries were extremely severe. To save her, Cong Sanye has been at an old residence in Mingze Lane these past few days.

He asked me to come back and report peace to Sister Xiu, and also asked Sister Xiu to transfer ten people from the farmstead to be stationed in Mingze Lane as support and guards. Don't tell them the reason; Cong Sanye will arrange it himself."

Qin Keqing asked, "How is Zhou Niangzi's injury? Isn't it rumored outside that she died from her severe wounds?"

Jiang Liu replied, "Zhou Niangzi's injuries were originally extremely severe, but fortunately, she was treated by a divine physician, and she luckily escaped danger.

Cong Sanye was worried that Zhou Niangzi would encounter danger again, so he lied to the outside world that she had died from her severe wounds, so that no one would know she had survived and assassinate her again."

When Qu Hongxiu heard this, her brows furrowed, and she asked, "This Lady Zou is just a musician in Clear Sound Pavilion. Why would someone assassinate her, and why does she have so many entanglements with Brother Cong?"

Jiang Liu replied, "Cong Sanye didn't tell me about her identity either. However, last time Cong Sanye and she went to Gusu together, I also accompanied them. Cong Sanye didn't avoid me in his words.

So I know that when they went to Gusu that time, it was to search for Zhou Zhengyang's whereabouts."

Qu Hongxiu and Qin Keqing looked at each other, both having the same thought in their hearts. This Zhou Niangzi, who was intimate with Jia Cong on the surface, was indeed related to the Zhou Zhengyang affair.

……

Just as Qu Hongxiu and Qin Keqing learned the truth, some other figures who didn't know the truth were launching a tight search and retaliation in the city....

It was as if the assassination case in the inner courtyard of Clear Sound Pavilion that day had opened a Pandora's box of disasters. In less than three days, homicides occurred frequently in Jin Ling City.

An antique shop on Yong'an Street in the west of the city had its shopkeeper and two strong assistants killed in the shop overnight, and they had been tortured for confession before they died.

A grain shop near Longtan Port Wharf had its owner and his wife killed silently in their room, and bamboo sticks had been inserted into their fingers before they died.

Their nine-year-old son had been called out to play by neighborhood children halfway through, luckily escaping death.

Within a few days, homicides occurred continuously in the city, and six people had already died, leaving Ying Tian Prefect Jia Yucun in deep panic and loss.

Only Zhao An, the experienced coroner of the Ying Tian Prefecture, discovered amazing similarities among the six victims.

On the day of the assassination in the inner courtyard of Clear Sound Pavilion, Coroner Zhao had examined the body on the spot. Zhou Niangzi had a knife wound on her neck, and the fatal one was a stab on her chest and abdomen.

And the victims of the homicides in the following days also had knife wounds on their necks and chests and abdomens, and the locations of the knife wounds were exactly the same as Zhou Niangzi's.

The killer seemed to deliberately use a consistent method of killing to show off and demonstrate in the dark.

Zhao An also thought of the day in the inner courtyard of Clear Sound Pavilion, when Jia Cong, in order to prevent the Ying Tian Prefecture from collecting Zhou Niangzi's body, did not hesitate to use muskets to threaten them.

It was evident how resentful and crazy he was about Zhou Niangzi's murder.

The criminal chamber secretary of the Prefecture Yamen had originally set a time to find him to record the case, but whether it was at the Ministry of Works or the Jia residence in Xinglong Ward, there was no sign of him.

Thus, Zhao An thought of a terrifying possibility: could it be that Jia Cong could not let go of Zhou Niangzi's death and was actually imitating the scene of Zhou Niangzi's murder, using the same method to kill people in the city to vent his anger?

But later, these victims had no connection to Zhou Niangzi and didn't know each other at all. Would that Firearm Division Director be crazy to such an extent?

Although Zhao An had such a speculation in his heart and it seemed to have some basis, after all, Jia Cong's reaction in the inner courtyard of Clear Sound Pavilion that day was truly too extreme and crazy.

However, Zhao An's speculation was ultimately without any real evidence.

Moreover, Jia Cong was not only the Grade 5 Director of the Firearm Division but also a member of the Jia family of the Love Shenjing, and the hereditary Count of Lord Weiyuan granted by the Emperor.

Regardless of which identity, his background was truly not small. Zhao An did not dare to speak nonsense in front of others because of a groundless speculation.

And he knew the relationship between Prefect Jia Yucun and the Jia family of the Love Shenjing, so he dared not even mention half a word in front of others.

However, with the investigation of the criminal chamber of the Prefecture Yamen into the latter two homicides, quite a few letters and account books were found from that antique shop and grain shop.

It proved that both shops were secret files set up by the great pirate Liu Ao of the East Sea in Jin Ling City.

The few people killed in the two shops were all spies sent by Liu Ao to Jin Ling.

In short, these people were remnants of sea bandits, and each of them deserved to die. Even if they were caught by the government, they would be beheaded.

Thus, although the hunt for the killer was still ongoing, for the Ying Tian Prefecture and even the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the result became somewhat irrelevant.

……

Compared to the mystery and danger in Jin Ling City these past few days, the two-courtyard residence in Mingze Lane appeared exceptionally calm.

Jia Cong went out of the courtyard and bought quite a lot of rice, grain, meat, vegetables, pots, bowls, and ladles, and stewed a pot of vegetable and meat porridge in the kitchen over a slow fire.

Since coming to this world, although he had lived a hard life in the East Road Courtyard since he was young, he was after all a member of the Jia family and had never had the opportunity or experience of cooking for himself.

Therefore, that pot of vegetable and meat porridge in the kitchen was the first time in his life, following the experience of his previous life.

He even washed the clothes Zou Min'er had changed out of in the wooden bucket, hung them in the courtyard to dry, and didn't even avoid the bloodstains on the clothes.

If anyone had seen the dignified Count of Lord Weiyuan washing a girl's clothes as if nothing had happened, it would have surely shocked half the chins in Jin Ling City.

When the fragrance from the kitchen drifted through the inner courtyard,

Jia Cong carried the mushy vegetable and meat porridge into the room. The noble young master, who had always been jade-like and handsome, became a different image in Zou Min'er's eyes.

He was no longer the majestic and noble young count, nor was he the deep-scheming official of the court, but just a warm man exuding worldly fireworks.

Perhaps such a Jia Cong, stripped of his gorgeous glare and melted of the past that made her dim and tangled, was the purer him, a man who had truly moved her.

Jia Cong placed the porridge bowl on the bedside table, then went over to support Zou Min'er, trying his best not to pull her wound, carefully letting her lean on the bed, and placed two newly bought plain gauze soft pillows behind her.

If it were a normal situation, for a maiden to be wearing bed undergarments and be supported by a man in an almost half-hugging and half-holding manner would truly be a great violation of etiquette.

But after the assassination at Clear Sound Pavilion and the struggle and reliance on the edge of life and death, it had already added a layer of strange tacit understanding and intimacy to their already strange relationship.

Or perhaps it was the meticulous bandaging of the wound on her chest and abdomen, and the set of brand-new snow-white soft silk undergarments on her body.

While making Zou Min'er feel shy and helpless, she had abandoned all the defenses of a woman toward the person in front of her.

Was it forced by external factors, or was it some kind of natural outcome? Zou Min'er didn't want to tangle and distinguish it. Let it be a rare moment of confusion; let it be for a while.

Therefore, when she couldn't hold the porcelain bowl herself because her severe wounds hadn't healed, and needed Jia Cong to feed her,

although this made Zou Min'er feel embarrassed and shy, after being fed a few mouthfuls by Jia Cong like this, both of them quickly became composed, as if this were the most normal thing.

Not until Zou Min'er leaned on the bed and saw through the window her own washed clothes fluttering in the wind in the middle of the courtyard did her just-composed state of mind break, and her pretty face burned with heat. (End of chapter)