That day, Bao Zhu used the excuse of being severely shocked from visiting the murder and burial site to claim sudden illness, lying in bed to catch up on sleep and conserve energy for her planned nighttime escape. Though Bao Lang didn’t believe someone of her courage would be frightened, he sent people to check on her. Seeing that she was indeed bedridden, he had no choice but to temporarily give up and let the matter rest.
Yang Xingjian seized this opportunity to vent his anger even more dramatically, scolding everyone within sight from top to bottom. He berated the servants for being lazy and stupid, demanded calming and spirit-soothing pills, and rushed the kitchen to brew tranquilizing soup. If all the monks in Xiagui County hadn’t been locked up, he probably would have summoned several to perform exorcism rituals.
This continued until midnight, exhausting everyone to the point where they feared the sight of the father and daughter duo. Yang Xingjian finally dismissed the servants and stayed alone by Bao Zhu’s side to attend to her. Wei Xun indeed returned, his face bearing a trace of bewildered expression.
Bao Zhu rolled out of bed, hurriedly putting on her shoes while asking impatiently, “Did you get up there?”
Wei Xun nodded, “I did get up there, but I didn’t discover any mechanisms. The pagoda only contained this item.” He then pulled out a bundle from his chest, inside which was wrapped a square lacquered box.
The box was only seven inches in size, yet extremely exquisite. Its exterior used gold and silver inlay techniques, decorated with the Buddhist Seven Treasures of gold leaf, silver fragments, agate, glass, and giant clam shell. The box lid featured painted designs of celestial beings offering treasures, while the interior was lined with soft padding of brocade silk embroidered with golden thread in auspicious floral patterns.
Without even considering what it contained, just this empty lacquered box alone was a meticulously crafted treasure.
Bao Zhu held the lacquered box and examined it, asking, “This is probably the container that held the White Snake Pearl, right? It looks like the craftsmanship of artisans from the Changzhou area, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Wuwei Military Commissioner.”
She turned the lacquered box over and indeed found the small characters “Your humble servant Cui Keyong respectfully offers” at the bottom. In the corner’s edge were the characters “Faming,” which should be the craftsman’s name. This vessel specially made for the imperial family was exceptionally elaborate—even the inscribed text was written with such dignified elegance, completely different from common folk’s items.
Wei Xun removed the brocade padding from inside the box to examine it, occasionally bringing it to his nose to smell.
Speaking of making offerings to the emperor, every minute detail had to be perfected, yet this brocade had a walnut-sized transparent stain. Though it had dried completely and was barely visible unless examined carefully, it felt slightly hard to the touch and still carried a faint fishy odor.
Wei Xun thought to himself that he had personally climbed high into the pagoda to investigate, relying on his martial arts skills to force his way in. However, once inside the pagoda, he had touched every roof tile and every floor brick, and indeed found no exploitable gaps or evidence of an underground chamber. As long as the main door was sealed, the pagoda would be a sealed room to anyone else.
Therefore, he was puzzled—could there really be a second person in the martial world who possessed skills matching his own? And this person just happened to appear in this small Xiagui County town at the same time as him? Wei Xun was quite proud of his supreme lightness skills, and now with his youthful competitive spirit aroused, he was determined to discover who had stolen that snake pearl and dared to frame the Green Shirt Guest.
Seeing that Wei Xun could actually break into that twenty-zhang-high stone pagoda under heavy guard and bring back evidence from the major case, Yang Xingjian was naturally shocked and asked, “Did you see a note inside the pagoda?”
Wei Xun asked, “What note?”
Yang Xingjian said, “Wu Zhiyuan said that after the thief stole the treasure, he left a note inside the lacquered box. He only had time to glance at it.”
Wei Xun shook his head, “There was no such thing.”
Yang Xingjian said, “Then Bao Lang must have taken it. This is strange—it’s clearly important evidence in the case. Why wouldn’t he show it to everyone to help identify the handwriting?”
Wei Xun laughed, “That’s simple—I’ll go ask him for it.”
Bao Zhu said angrily, “I told you not to provoke him! At least not now. Today, let’s first see what Luo Chengye’s house looks like, then decide what to do.”
Wei Xun asked, “Why are you interested in that headless constable chief again?”
Bao Zhu said, “Although Luo Chengye’s house is right next to Lianhua Temple, after the stone mill wife-burying case, I think it might not necessarily be the same culprit as the pearl theft case. On the morning when the White Snake Pearl was discovered stolen, Luo Chengye was actually still alive—isn’t that strange? What if, like the other cases, someone foresaw that the pearl theft would have far-reaching implications and deliberately framed someone? After all, you’re already carrying one accusation—a few more would be perfectly logical.”
Wei Xun said, “Then I could simply go take a look by myself. Why must you wade into such murky waters again?”
Yang Xingjian never expected to find himself agreeing with this man, and quickly joined in persuading her, “Yes, yes, please Princess, treasure your health and don’t take such risks. Leave these matters to others.”
Bao Zhu snorted and said to Wei Xun, “You don’t know the difficulty of being confined. Yesterday the county magistrate’s wife insisted on inviting me to drink tea and do needlework with her female relatives. Holding a needle while being scrutinized and judged, afraid of saying the wrong thing and revealing my identity—that feeling was too bitter.”
Wei Xun knew she was frustrated from being cooped up and wanted to find an excuse to go out for some air. Thinking that with him accompanying her, nothing serious could happen, he no longer tried to dissuade her. Yang Xingjian wanted to continue persuading, but Bao Zhu glared at him, forcing him to retreat and stroke his beard with long sighs.
Wei Xun went out again to scout the route, while Bao Zhu took the opportunity to use her eyebrow-darkening stone ink to make rubbings of the inlaid patterns on the lacquered box. Since it was evidence from a major case, it certainly couldn’t be kept for long and would eventually need to be returned to its original location to avoid arousing suspicion among the pagoda guards.
When the ugly hour arrived—the time when everyone in the city slept most deeply—Wei Xun came to the Reflection Study to collect her.
Bao Zhu stepped onto the windowsill, expecting Wei Xun to carefully carry her down or let her ride on his back. Instead, he pushed her from behind, and as she lost her balance, he grabbed her back waistband and carried her down like a sack of rice. Though the landing was steady, she broke out in cold sweat. Bao Zhu felt displeased but couldn’t think how to complain, so she straightened her clothes with a stern face and asked huffily, “Which way should we go?”
Her earlier talk about Luo Chengye becoming a national ghost after receiving the sovereign’s salary was just something she had fabricated to comfort herself. In truth, having to actually visit a crime scene where someone had died horribly had left her anxious all day. Now, seeing that pitch-black street ahead, her heart was pounding. Just then, a passing stray cat let out a wail, startling her so badly she shrank back with her arms wrapped around herself, her ten parts of courage immediately shaking down to three parts.
Seeing her cowardice, Wei Xun found it somewhat amusing. After thinking for a moment, he said to her, “There’s something I planned to return to you when you were released, but since we’re out tonight anyway, you might as well take it now.” With that, he leaped up and disappeared into the dense canopy of a large scholar tree, returning moments later with some items.
Bao Zhu looked and was delighted—it was her bow, arrows, and quiver that she had left at the Sun family inn. She had mentioned to Wei Xun once that the bow’s size and draw weight were perfectly suited to her, and even if she spent money to buy another later, it probably wouldn’t feel as comfortable. She didn’t know when he had retrieved them from the Sun family inn and hung them on the tree branches for temporary storage.
With her weapons in hand, Bao Zhu immediately straightened up with her head held high, feeling her courage return. Wei Xun laughed, “Now that’s better. If you see Luo Chengye’s ghost, you can shoot him with an arrow first.”
Bao Zhu nodded seriously, “Exactly like Li Guang shooting the tiger—even if I miss, I’ll win in terms of momentum.”
The two went together to Luo Chengye’s house next to Lianhua Temple. Under the guidance of a professional night traveler, they encountered neither night watchmen nor patrolling officials, arriving smoothly without incident. When they reached the alley entrance, a small figure in monk’s robes with a shaved head was waiting there—it was Shisan Lang.
Bao Zhu exclaimed with delight, “How are you here? If I had known you were coming, I would have brought some pastries out.”
Wei Xun laughed, “He’s not as delicate as you—going hungry for a couple meals is nothing.”
Shisan Lang rubbed his head embarrassedly and said, “I’m staying in the courtyard with the traveling monks, and I don’t know anyone, so it’s boring talking to them every day. When Senior Brother brought food and mentioned this, I was immediately interested, thinking you’d always need someone to keep watch.”
Bao Zhu said happily, “Now we have everyone together. One more pair of eyes means one more measure of vigilance.”