Song Zhi truly could not refuse Zhang Xiaobai’s kind gesture.

In the end, he had no choice but to accept the key.

“Young Master Zhang, thank you very much!”

“Between you and me, there’s no need for thanks.”

“This favor, Song will remember in his heart.”

He raised his hands in a cupped salute.

To express his gratitude!

Zhang Xiaobai then watched him leave, his eyes brimming with tears, reluctant to part.

From afar, he called out to Song Zhi: “Brother Song, take care on your journey!”

Song Zhi did not leave the city immediately. Instead, he went to the inn where Ji Yunshu and the others were staying.

But—

Ji Yunshu and the others were not there at all.

After inquiring with the waiter, he learned that they had already left at noon!

Without a sound!

Song Zhi asked: “Did they say where they were going?”

“No.”

“Which direction did they go?”

“I don’t know.” The waiter shook his head.

Having business to attend to, the waiter didn’t continue chatting with him and hurried upstairs with a tray of dishes.

Song Zhi felt regretful in his heart. Unable to bid farewell to them, they had each gone their separate ways, and he didn’t know when they would reunite again.

He let out a sigh!

But the sky was already growing late, and he needed to leave the city quickly.

So he used the silver that Troupe Master Tao had provided him to hire a horse carriage.

Without hiring a driver, he drove it himself!

He left Yiwu!

This place where he had stayed for so many years.

……

But how could he know that on the very night after he left, the Zhao Family Troupe performed the new play he had written.

At first, no one came to watch.

After all, the skeleton case had left everyone in a state of panic.

Fear still lingered in their hearts!

But later, some bold people bought tickets to watch, and once they saw it, they were captivated, and word spread.

So that play became a hit!

Even more popular than “The Ghost Bride’s Burial of Her Husband”!

The Zhao Family Troupe rose from the ashes.

No need to disband anymore!

It was said that the play was called “The Plum Blossom Chronicle.”

The content still dealt with ghosts and spirits!

And it was very tragic.

But as Song Zhi himself had said, it was indeed better than “The Ghost Bride’s Burial of Her Husband.”

So much so that the people of Yiwu quickly forgot their previous panic and became completely immersed in the new play.

At the same time, the skeleton case that had lasted for several days finally reached its conclusion.

Lord Zhuo had already reported to the court, and ordered that three days later, Gao Dali would be taken to the vegetable market entrance to be beheaded for public display.

That Young Master Ji who could perform skeletal reconstruction and portrait drawing also became famous because of this.

Everyone said she was a prodigy!

They wanted to befriend her!

Unfortunately, she was no longer in Yiwu.

So many people began to speculate about “her” identity.

In a certain teahouse.

A group of old acquaintances gathered together, eating melon seeds.

Among them, a man in blue clothes squinted his eyes into slits, made two “tsk tsk tsk” sounds with his mouth, his body leaning forward almost lying on the table.

He said mysteriously: “I heard that the person who helped Lord Zhuo solve this murder case is from Dalin. That person can perform skeletal reconstruction and portrait drawing, and even drew what a pile of bones looked like before death!”

“Yes! I know that too. It seems there were several people traveling with her, and they came here together to do business.”

Just after he finished speaking—

“No, no, no!” A young man with a pointed head immediately refuted, “They weren’t here for business at all.”

“You’ve seen them?”

The pointed-head young man said decisively: “That day I saw with my own eyes when Lord Zhuo sent people to arrest them. Each one of them looked full of heroic spirit, all sturdy and strong, clearly martial artists! If they were merchants, why didn’t they have any goods with them? Obviously they had other identities.”

Good analysis!

Suddenly, a voice came from not far away.

“Those people, I think… I know them.”

Hm?

So everyone turned their attention in that direction upon hearing the voice.

They saw a man with a face full of stubble sitting there, looking uncertain.

Someone asked anxiously: “Do you know them or not? What do you mean by ‘I think’?”

The man pondered: “I went to the capital of Dalin before, and I heard there was a capable person who could perform skeletal reconstruction and portrait drawing.”

“Oh? Could it be this person?”

“I can’t be sure.” The man simply sat up straighter and seriously told everyone, “The person I heard about in Dalin works in the Ministry of Justice as Director of Criminal Justice—a high official! Almost everyone in the capital knows about her, a truly renowned figure.”

Wow!

Everyone was shocked.

The man continued: “There hasn’t been a single murder case or cold case that she couldn’t solve. It’s said that even a case from decades ago within the Dalin imperial family was solved by her, and because of her, quite a few storms were stirred up in the Dalin court. Just the things I heard about her alone would take three days and three nights to tell and still not be finished.”

“Then tell us!”

“Yes, tell us about it.”

So the man recounted everything.

But what he spoke about regarding Ji Yunshu’s deeds was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Mostly about Ji Yunshu solving cases!

Everyone was astonished after hearing it!

The man said: “More importantly, she is a woman, the first female official in Dalin’s history!”

After hearing this, one person immediately refuted him, saying: “That’s not right! You said this capable person is a woman, but the one we’re talking about is a man. That doesn’t match up at all, wrong, wrong.”

He waved his hand!

Everyone also felt it was wrong!

Although the man also had some doubts, he said: “But I heard that before that woman became Director of Criminal Justice, she disguised herself as a man to become an official in the court. Perhaps the person who solved this skeleton case is her.”

“But if she’s a high official, why would she come here?”

“That… I don’t know. I went to Dalin last year, and it’s been so long, I… I’m not clear anymore.”

In other words, he said nothing useful!

There was no direct evidence to prove that the young master was the renowned Director of Criminal Justice from Dalin.

Everyone found it boring and began to discuss noisily again.

No one noticed that in a corner of the teahouse, four men sat around a table.

Several of them had serious expressions, cold and stern brows.

Faces full of fierce looks.

They had heard everything those people said.

One of them said in a low voice: “The young lord and the young lady have already set off to return to Gaoding. You few should go back first to report to the Marquis.”

“What about you?”

“The Marquis ordered us to investigate the background of those people thoroughly. You go first, I’ll follow later.”

“Alright.”

……

On the mountain path, the cold wind rustled.

The sound of carriage wheels came in waves.

Echoing through the valley.

After a long while, they finally reached the official road.

The road surface also became somewhat smoother.

After leaving Yiwu, Jingrong and the others had been traveling for a full day.

Bai Yin drove the horses at the front, his graceful bearing undiminished.

He rode against the wind, imposing and majestic, not at all affected by the fatigue brought on by the journey.

On the contrary, he was in high spirits.

Inside the carriage at this moment.

Ji Yunshu lay on Jingrong’s lap, resting with her eyes closed.

Her delicate face was slightly flushed, sound asleep.

Her long eyelashes trembled slightly in the wind, brushing against her eyelids.

So beautiful!

Jingrong sat quietly, his eyes filled with affection as he looked down at the woman pillowed on his lap, while stroking her smooth black hair with his hand.

Extremely tender!

Such a scene was just like a painting.