The corpse’s throat was cut open, the charred skin and blood merging together, emitting waves of nauseating odor.

Jingrong frowned without speaking.

Ji Yunshu calmly set the knife aside, extended both hands into the corpse’s cut throat, and with force in her five fingers, snapped off a section of the throat bone.

When she took it out from the flesh, it was still covered with blood threads, dripping with viscous blood.

Because she wasn’t wearing gloves, Ji Yunshu’s hands were now covered in fresh blood, yet she was like someone playing with a toy, turning that section of throat bone over and over to examine it.

Not feeling disgusted in the slightest!

Jingrong beside her could no longer describe what he was feeling at this moment.

He had been on the battlefield, killed people—the souls lost by his hand numbered in the thousands if not tens of thousands. With corpses strewn everywhere, he wouldn’t even blink.

However, this was the first time he’d seen someone dismantle parts from a corpse and hold them bare-handed.

That scene was truly mind-blowing!

“Have you discovered anything?” Jingrong wrinkled his nose.

“The deceased died from poisoning, so we need to know what kind of poison.”

“What poison?”

“Don’t know yet.”

Ji Yunshu tapped that section of throat bone with her hand, pondered for a moment, then walked out holding the blood-dripping throat bone.

Fu Bo outside had just finished inserting the incense when he saw Ji Yunshu emerge.

“Fu Bo, is the white vinegar water boiled?” she asked.

Fu Bo nodded and raised his hand to point at a small room in the courtyard. “Knowing you’d need it, I boiled it long ago. Remember to change the water after you’re done.”

“Got it.”

She answered briskly, carrying the throat bone toward that room.

Jingrong followed like a little tail!

Just as he reached that room, Jingrong froze. His footsteps stopped at the doorframe as if stuck with glue, moving inch by inch inside.

In the dim room, only one flickering candle was lit. All four surrounding walls had shelves of varying heights.

And on the shelves were piled countless urns of ashes!

Ji Yunshu walked to a large pot where steaming white vinegar water was boiling and tossed that section of throat bone into it.

Glancing at Jingrong, probably guessing his thoughts, she said, “Your Highness need not be alarmed. These ash urns contain nameless, anonymous travelers from afar. Fu Bo couldn’t bear to abandon their corpses in the wilderness, so he cremated the bodies and placed the ashes in these urns.”

“Little scholar, when has this prince ever been alarmed?” Jingrong retorted.

Ji Yunshu’s lips pressed downward.

Stubborn duck with a hard mouth!

During their exchange, Jingrong had already walked to her side. Seeing her toss the throat bone into the boiling white vinegar, he became puzzled.

“What are you doing?”

“Cooking bone broth.” Ji Yunshu almost blurted it out.

At that moment, Jingrong felt as if the back of his head had been lifted open and a gust of cold wind drilled inside!

Just as he was feeling “cold” and caught off guard, Ji Yunshu exclaimed, pointing at the pot of white vinegar water.

“Your Highness, look quickly.”

Jingrong glared and looked over. He saw the originally clean white pot of vinegar water gradually turning black.

“Why is this happening?” He was astonished.

“Didn’t this humble one already say? All five corpses had throat bones that were soft in the middle and hard on top and bottom. This kind of sign indicates death by poisoning. Then the bone marrow in the deceased’s throat bones must also contain poison. This humble one uses boiling white vinegar water to cook the bone, which can separate the bone marrow and poison inside the throat bone. The black liquid that flows out is naturally the poison.” Ji Yunshu explained.

Jingrong learned something again!

The next instant, Ji Yunshu pulled out a white handkerchief from her sleeve and dipped it in the pale black vinegar water. One corner of the handkerchief was immediately dyed black.

“This poison’s toxicity must be very strong. Otherwise, such a small throat bone couldn’t possibly release so much black liquid.”

Ji Yunshu examined the black mass on the handkerchief carefully, puzzled.

“Does Master know what poison this is?”

“This humble one is neither a physician nor a poison maker. How would I know from just looking?”

“If we find out what poison this is, can we find the murderer?”

“No.” Ji Yunshu answered definitively.

Jingrong’s brows twisted together. “Then you’re wasting time investigating this? This prince has no patience to fool around with you.”

“Who says this humble one is fooling around?”

“Then you’re investigating these useless things.”

“Can’t this humble one’s curiosity overflow? Can’t I want to know what poison the deceased was poisoned with? If Your Highness feels it’s a waste of time, why drag this humble one here to investigate the case? On a cold night, it’s truly suitable for sleeping in one’s room.”

Ji Yunshu’s words were like pearls, every single one making perfect sense!

And Jingrong had only said one sentence, yet this little scholar said so many in response.

A “chuan” character appeared between Jingrong’s brows. He waved his hand and said, “Fine, fine. Since this prince is asking for your help, naturally I have no right to rush you. It’s just that those five people were all this prince’s subordinates. They followed this prince’s orders to return to the capital to report, yet unexpectedly suffered such a vicious fate.”

This troubled Jingrong, having shed his frivolous attitude and wickedly cunning nature, carrying that slightly pained and furrowed gaze, was truly quite charming!

Men should be like this!

Ji Yunshu tucked the handkerchief into her waist, and that handkerchief, having been stained with her bloody handprints, looked especially disturbing.

She turned and stepped forward. “Your Highness, don’t you want to investigate? Then let’s hurry.”

“…”

Jingrong obediently followed.

Just after they left, Fu Bo went in.

Every time Ji Yunshu came, he would always boil a large pot of white vinegar water for her to cook bones!

But looking at the blackened white vinegar water in the pot, he couldn’t help shaking his head.

“This child always forgets to change the water.”

In the end, Fu Bo changed the water himself.

Returning to the five corpses, Ji Yunshu’s eyes were somber, her face serious. Disregarding her bloody hands, she rolled up her sleeves, and her slender jade-like hands tilted the corpse’s head slightly to the side.

Using her index and middle fingers together, she pressed hard on the back of the corpse’s neck. After a moment, she picked up that wide blade again and cut into the back of the corpse’s neck, continuing upward until the back of the skull was exposed.

While analyzing, she said, “Since the deceased had traces of combat with the murderer, then the deceased’s body must have left traces of the murderer. If we can find some wounds, we can find the murderer’s behavioral characteristics.”

“For example?” Jingrong asked.

“For example, whether the murderer is tall or short, male or female, whether they habitually used their left or right hand when killing, whether they attacked from the front or from behind, and so on.”

It sounded far too mystical!

Although Ji Yunshu had found the murderer based on the condition of the Zhou family’s young lady’s corpse, Jingrong was still somewhat skeptical.

“Can you find so much from one corpse?”

“If the deceased wants to tell us, then we definitely can.”

After a moment, Jingrong became puzzled again. “Isn’t Master a sketch artist at the yamen? How can you also do a coroner’s work? And even do what an investigating magistrate should do!”

Yes, how did he remember that when she took the position at the yamen, she was a sketch artist!

Ji Yunshu had asked herself many times. She was clearly a facial reconstruction specialist, clearly doing the elegant work of a sketch artist, yet she had strayed onto this “wrong path.”

Who to blame? Blame her for having a father who was a forensic medical examiner!