The second day’s hunt was supposed to resume, but Fu Desheng’s death the previous night had cast another shadow over the camp, so the hunt was postponed again!
Shortly after daybreak, Liu Yun, who had collapsed from illness, regained consciousness. When he came to his senses and remembered Fu Desheng’s death from the previous night, he immediately summoned guards and questioned them forcefully. Upon learning that Fu Desheng’s body was being kept in a tent, Liu Yun immediately headed there…
At the tent entrance, Yan Chi’s guards were standing watch. Seeing Liu Yun’s approach, they dared not obstruct him and let him enter while sending word to Yan Chi. Upon entering the tent and seeing Fu Desheng’s now-rigid body, Liu Yun’s eyes reddened, and he nearly lost his footing. Only with the guard’s support did he manage to stand steady.
“Young Lord, you must not anger yourself further. You fainted last night, and the Imperial Physician said your condition has worsened. If you don’t control your emotions, it might become even more severe. Now that the General is gone, you are our pillar of strength.”
The guard spoke earnestly, and Liu Yun’s thoughts became chaotic as he listened. Fu Desheng had come with him, and dying in Great Zhou territory meant dying in a foreign land. Moreover, with the strange occurrences during this hunt, Great Zhou couldn’t possibly shirk responsibility! How could he not be furious? Besides, Fu Desheng had been his supporter in Western Liang, and now with his death, the military power would surely be recalled. When he returned to Western Liang alone, what chance would he have?
The more Liu Yun thought about it, the more agitated he became, still hoping this was just a dream.
Everything had been fine at the banquet, and Fu Desheng had merely gone to get medicine for him. How had someone ended up dead?!
As these thoughts ran through his mind, footsteps suddenly sounded outside. The tent flap lifted, and Yan Chi entered. Liu Yun turned to glare at him fiercely. “A whole night has passed! Young Lord, can you give me an explanation now?”
Yan Chi understood Liu Yun’s anger. “The killer hasn’t been found yet.”
Yan Chi’s response was direct, but this only angered Liu Yun further. “The killer hasn’t been caught?! Young Lord, do you plan to brush this off with just one sentence?”
Yan Chi continued, “We’ve increased Imperial Guard patrols in the camp to protect everyone. Whether it’s Crown Prince Tuoba’s case or General Fu’s matter, I will continue investigating. Young Lord need not worry, there will be results.”
Looking at Yan Chi’s stern expression, Liu Yun gave a cold laugh. He had long heard of Yan Chi’s reputation as the “Demon King” and knew Yan Chi wouldn’t take him seriously. After a moment’s thought, Liu Yun strode out of the tent and headed straight for Yan Huan’s main tent. It was still early – Yan Huan had just risen when Liu Yun arrived.
Upon hearing that Liu Yun and Yan Chi had arrived, Yan Huan quickly went to the front hall to receive them. As soon as Liu Yun entered, he said, “Your Majesty, a night has passed, why haven’t your appointed people found any information yet?!”
Yan Huan glanced at Yan Chi, completely unaffected by Liu Yun’s questioning tone, and spoke calmly, “We understand the Third Prince’s feelings, but the killer is no ordinary person. Investigating takes time. We began our search as soon as it happened last night, with absolutely no negligence. The Third Prince can rest assured – we just need time.”
Liu Yun laughed coldly repeatedly. “Time? How much time do you need? Tuoba Hong has been lying there for days now, and his case still has no resolution?!” His face showed mockery as he continued, “Of course, Tuoba Hong didn’t die – he was saved. But now our Western Liang General is dead. Your Majesty, now that a Western Liang person has died, I demand that our case take priority – focus on investigating General Fu’s death…”
Yan Huan and Yan Chi exchanged glances before Yan Huan said, “How does the Third Prince know that General Fu’s death and Crown Prince Tuoba’s attempted murder weren’t committed by the same person?”
Liu Yun was stunned and speechless for a moment before saying, “The same person? Why would the killer target both Northern Wei and Western Liang?! Unless… the killer is from Great Zhou?!”
Yan Huan frowned, feeling that Liu Yun was likely blinded by anger, and said helplessly, “Has the Third Prince not considered what benefit Zhou people would gain from this? Last night’s incident was sudden – the killer wasn’t specifically targeting General Fu’s life. Unfortunately, General Fu was alone last night, and we don’t know what he encountered.”
As they spoke, Yan Che, Yan Qi, and others arrived outside, having heard that Liu Yun was making trouble in Yan Huan’s tent. As everyone entered the tent, Liu Yun grew even more angry at seeing so many people. “Your Majesty needn’t placate me with these excuses. This is Great Zhou’s hunting camp, with so many Imperial Guards on duty, yet such a bloody incident still occurred. If this happened in Western Liang, it would be our shame!”
Liu Yun’s tone was hostile. Yan Qi frowned slightly. “Third Prince, please mind your words!”
Yan Huan raised his hand to stop Yan Qi. Facing Liu Yun’s fury, Yan Huan remained much calmer. Firstly, as Great Zhou’s emperor, Liu Yun’s disrespect couldn’t shake him. Secondly, he understood Liu Yun and didn’t want to provoke him further and make the situation harder to control. “Third Prince, please calm down. This incident occurred in Great Zhou, and indeed our security was inadequate. However, what’s done is done – finding the truth is now most important. Otherwise, how can General Fu rest in peace?”
Liu Yun lifted his chin. “Fine! Then please give me a definite answer in front of everyone – how many days? How many days until you catch the killer? This is Great Zhou – I absolutely cannot wait indefinitely. The killer is in the camp! I don’t believe that in this gathering place of Great Zhou’s elite forces, you can’t find one murderer!”
Yan Huan’s lips tightened as he looked at Yan Chi, who nodded. Yan Huan then said solemnly, “Very well, I’ll give you a deadline – three days. In three days, I will hand the killer over to you!”
At these words, all the Great Zhou people wore serious expressions, but Liu Yun smiled. “Good, Your Majesty has given your royal word. Three days it is. If the killer isn’t found after three days, I’ll immediately take General Fu back to Western Liang. Great Zhou may be rich in resources and strong in military might, but dealing with foreign enemies already requires huge annual investments. Dealing with Western Liang as well probably wouldn’t be so easy!”
Liu Yun spoke angrily, his words forceful. He was threatening that if the killer wasn’t found on time, Western Liang would send cavalry against Great Zhou. This was a threat born of extreme anger, but not impossible – if Great Zhou didn’t give Western Liang an explanation, it would be extremely discourteous, and as Fu Desheng was Western Liang’s general, their emperor would be furious too!
A calculating look flashed in Yan Huan’s eyes as he stared at Liu Yun for a moment before suddenly smiling. “Rest assured, Third Prince. Just wait for the results in three days.”
Liu Yun nodded and looked around at everyone, about to leave in a huff, when he suddenly seemed to remember something. “No, wait! Before General Fu died last night, he said something! He said the word ‘North’!”
With this thought, Liu Yun’s eyes widened. “It was someone from Northern Wei!”
At these words, Yan Huan frowned slightly. Liu Yun excitedly stepped forward. “The killer is from Northern Wei, otherwise General Fu wouldn’t have said that!”
Yan Huan looked at Yan Chi, who immediately said, “To be frank, what the Third Prince says is also a direction we’re investigating. You need not worry – we specifically searched the Northern Wei envoys’ tents last night.”
Liu Yun questioned, “Really?!”
Yan Chi nodded. “If the Third Prince doesn’t believe me, you can have your people ask around.”
Only then did Liu Yun seem half-convinced. “Fine! Remember, you only have three days!”
With that, he finally left in a huff.
As soon as Liu Yun left, Yan Che quickly looked at Yan Chi. “Yan Chi, are you confident about the three-day deadline?”
Yan Chi shook his head, not speaking false words. “No.”
“What? No confidence—”
Yan Che’s brows furrowed into a deep crease, truly anxious now. He was in charge of this hunt, responsible for all the Imperial Guard arrangements and hunting ground preparations, following previous years’ examples. Yet somehow, problems had occurred this year!
Yan Chi narrowed his eyes. “Whether we have a chance depends on today’s re-examination of the body!”
While Yan Che was extremely worried, Yan Chi wasn’t particularly anxious. To him, Liu Yun’s threat of military action was as trivial as children playing house. The people in Lin’an City didn’t know what the border regions were really like, but he understood clearly. Current Western Liang didn’t dare start a war. Of course, this was the worst-case scenario – as members of the Great Zhou royal family, they would naturally prefer friendly relations with other countries rather than hostile ones. However, facing Yan Che and the others, he simply didn’t want to use the formal, diplomatic approach of the court.
“Examine the body? When will that happen—”
Seeing Yan Che’s anxious question, Yan Huan glanced at him. “Crown Prince, have you rearranged the camp’s defenses?”
Yan Che quickly replied, “Father, rest assured, it’s been reorganized! We’ve increased manpower and shortened patrol intervals. It would be extremely difficult for the killer to find any gaps!”
Yan Qi commented coolly from the side, “Ah if only the Crown Prince had made such arrangements earlier.”
Yan Che’s lips tightened. “Who could have known this would happen?”
Yan Huan’s phoenix eyes narrowed. “Crown Prince, Lin Zhang, you two work with Yan Chi to thoroughly investigate this matter. Within three days, we must have results. At worst, this could lead to war; at best, it tarnishes Great Zhou’s reputation. No matter what, in three days I want to see the killer before me. Otherwise, all three of you will be held accountable!”
Lin Zhang and Yan Che were responsible for many camp arrangements, while Yan Chi was the Left Deputy Minister of Justice. If they couldn’t find the killer in three days, their punishment would be justified. Hearing this, Yan Qi smiled.
Outside the tent, Yan Qi looked at Yan Chi. “Who exactly is examining the body? With such an expert by your side, this investigation shouldn’t be difficult, right?”
While Yan Qi didn’t know the examiner’s identity, Yan Che did. He said coldly, “If the Prince of Cheng can’t help, don’t cause trouble. Better to help calm the Third Prince’s emotions. Leave the rest to us.”
Yan Qi snorted lightly. Liu Yun was already unstable, and now he was furious – how could ordinary people calm him?! This matter didn’t concern him anyway, so he naturally wouldn’t meddle needlessly. He just wanted to know who that person was who had examined bodies for the Lin’an Prefecture! Back then, he could have dealt a fatal blow to the Crown Prince, but this nobody had ruined everything!
This time, he was determined to find out who this person was!
Yan Qi raised an eyebrow and smiled. “How dare I cause trouble? I just want to help. With such a capable person by Yan Chi’s side, wouldn’t the Crown Prince want to meet them?”
Yan Che replied coldly, “Now is not the time for this!”
With those words, Yan Che pulled Yan Chi away. Seeing this, Yan Qi immediately concluded that Yan Che knew the person’s identity. Watching their retreating figures, Yan Qi frowned deeply – had Yan Chi already aligned himself with Yan Che?!
If so, he was even more eager to know who this examiner was!
After walking some distance, Yan Che finally said, “The examiner you mentioned is the Ninth Miss of the Qin family, right?”
Knowing that Yan Che was aware of Qin Wan’s forensic skills, Yan Chi nodded. “That’s correct—”
Yan Che nodded and cautioned, “Arrange things carefully, don’t let her identity be exposed.”
Beyond caution, there was concern in Yan Che’s voice. As a man, Yan Chi naturally understood another man’s thoughts, and his brows furrowed slightly. “Ninth Miss has the Empress Dowager and Emperor’s favor…”
At Yan Chi’s probing statement, Yan Che indeed replied seriously, “She’s still a woman. The Prince of Cheng has been searching for who helped me back then. We absolutely cannot let him know it was Ninth Miss.”
Yan Chi’s lips curved slightly. “I remember now, Ninth Miss is the future Crown Princess’s sister. No wonder Your Highness is so cautious.”
Hearing this, Yan Che’s brow remained furrowed, clearly showing Yan Chi hadn’t hit the mark. After hesitating, Yan Che continued, “Anyway, be careful with the arrangements. We not only need to find the killer but also guard against those who would cause trouble.”
This was both a probe and an attempt to draw Yan Chi to his side. Yan Chi smiled and agreed silently.
Watching Yan Che leave, Yan Chi stood motionless for a moment before his eyes darkened.
Meanwhile, Lu Xiao hurried into Yan Qi’s tent. “Your Highness, I’ve found out that last night, only Ninth Miss went to the tent where the body was kept. She stayed for about two incense sticks’ time before leaving.”
Yan Qi raised an eyebrow. “Only Ninth Miss went?”
Lu Xiao nodded. “Lord Yan Chi said Ninth Miss knows medicine, so he had her examine General Fu’s wounds. Ninth Miss happened to be there, and the Emperor approved.”
Yan Qi thought for a moment and shook his head. “No, something’s not right. The examiner should be a man. Keep investigating – did they miss something?”
Lu Xiao frowned worriedly. “Your Highness, that shouldn’t be possible. I had such difficulty bribing someone – they wouldn’t give us irrelevant information. If it was a man, only Guard Bai from Lord Yan Chi’s side went in.”
Yan Qi knew of Bai Feng, but was it him?
Yan Qi remembered that day at the funeral home – the person he saw was much thinner than Bai Feng and considerably shorter.
“It probably wasn’t Bai Feng either. Go investigate again, and see who visits the tent with the body today. Under normal circumstances, no one would randomly go spend time with a corpse.”
Lu Xiao nodded and hurried out.
Yan Qi sat thinking, and suddenly a look of disbelief flashed in his eyes.
After noon, Qin Wan followed Bai Feng to the tent holding Fu Desheng’s body.
A night had passed, and purple postmortem lividity had appeared on Fu Desheng’s body. The tent already had a faint smell of decay. Qin Wan lit incense to dispel the inauspicious air and burned prepared medicine packages made with Atractylodes and other herbs. Once everything was ready, she began examining the body again. First, she wiped Fu Desheng’s arms and upper body with prepared white vinegar. Sure enough, deeper injuries soon became visible. Qin Wan examined them one by one, then focused on checking the wound on Fu Desheng’s neck.
She had prepared a new small knife today. After observing for a moment, she cut along the wound’s exterior toward its interior. With this cut, Qin Wan immediately noticed something strange. “The wound entrance is high but angles downward internally, and the abrasions are mainly on the upper side of the wound. This indicates that whether stabbing or withdrawing, the killer’s force came from above. This suggests the killer was taller than Fu Desheng…”
She moved to examine Fu Desheng’s other wounds. “The victim has very few other abrasions, further proving the killer was skilled in martial arts – whether attacking or grabbing, they were extremely efficient. If so, how did the victim manage to escape?”
Qin Wan carefully examined all the marks on Fu Desheng’s body but still couldn’t solve the puzzle. Looking down, she noticed a new puncture wound on Fu Desheng’s left hand – an extremely small cut that might go unnoticed without careful observation. It looked like a splinter wound. Qin Wan looked up and asked, “Could you take me to see the pharmacy?”
Yan Chi nodded. “Of course. Now?”
Qin Wan nodded, and Yan Chi led her to the pharmacy. Soon, they arrived at the pharmacy where Fu Desheng had been attacked the night before. Guards still stood watch, and the scene remained unchanged since the incident.
Qin Wan entered the pharmacy to find dried blood spatters everywhere. One medicine pot lay overturned on the ground, and bags of medicinal materials around the room were in disarray. Qin Wan particularly examined the medicines and pots meant for Tuoba Hong, frowning slightly. “It seems they were indeed targeting Crown Prince Tuoba.”
As she spoke, she noticed fallen candles and a toppled chair nearby.
Qin Wan’s eyes brightened slightly. “Has anyone moved this chair?”
Yan Chi shook his head. “No, it must have fallen during their struggle.”
“That’s not it.” Qin Wan shook her head and crouched down. She carefully examined the chair and soon discovered a protruding splinter on the left side of the backrest. Looking closer, she found a spot of blood on the splinter.
Qin Wan immediately picked up the chair. “Fu Desheng has a wound on his left ring finger. He must have grabbed this chair and swung it at the killer to buy time to escape. The killer couldn’t keep him in the tent and didn’t dare chase him outside, so they had to let him leave—”
Yan Chi’s eyes brightened. “This chair isn’t light. If it hit someone, it would leave a mark.”
Qin Wan nodded. “It would leave bruising. Bloody clothes can be hidden or washed clean, but body injuries can’t be removed.”
Yan Chi immediately said, “I’ll check the Northern Wei envoys’ tents again.”
Qin Wan nodded, and Yan Chi turned and left. Bai Feng stayed to watch over Qin Wan. She thought for a moment and looked around the pharmacy once more but made no discoveries. After thinking, she said, “Let’s go back and look again.”
Hearing this, Bai Feng naturally led the way. Back at the tent with the body, Qin Wan examined Fu Desheng’s corpse while asking, “The Emperor wants His Highness to solve this within three days?”
Bai Feng nodded. “Yes, the Third Prince said if it’s not solved in three days, he’ll take General Fu’s body back to Western Liang. He even threatened military action. Thus, the Emperor had to promise him three days.”
Three days wasn’t particularly short or long, but no one could guarantee they’d solve everything by then.
Moreover, with Crown Prince Tuoba’s case and Fu Desheng’s case now intertwined, the investigation wasn’t simple.
Qin Wan sighed. “Such an incident happening during a diplomatic visit to Great Zhou – his anger is understandable.”
Even without the three-day deadline, Qin Wan had wanted to solve this case quickly. Now with Western Liang’s threat, she was even more careful. She examined Fu Desheng from head to toe again but still couldn’t find more clues. Indeed, last night’s incident was sudden – Fu Desheng received one fatal blow but few other injuries.
As she pondered this, footsteps sounded outside the tent. Qin Wan raised an eyebrow – had Yan Chi returned so quickly?
Just as this thought crossed her mind, she heard the guard urgently say, “Prince of Cheng, you can’t go in! They’re examining the body…”
The guard’s urgent attempts to block entry made Bai Feng’s heart skip. He was about to stop Yan Qi, but the tent flap was suddenly lifted, and the next moment, Yan Qi strode in!
Seeing Qin Wan standing beside Fu Desheng’s body with her sleeves rolled up, Yan Qi gave a cold laugh. “So it was you.”