After Ji Yunshu came out from the prison.

Jingrong stood there waiting for her like a guard, respectfully and deferentially.

He didn’t even inquire about the results she’d obtained.

This instead puzzled Ji Yunshu.

So she asked him, “Don’t you want to know?”

He shook his head. “Tomorrow in the court hall, this prince will sit comfortably and listen. That’s always more comfortable than standing to listen.”

She smiled without speaking.

A moment later, Jingrong nuzzled against her small, thin shoulder. “Little vixen, this prince has been thinking about something just now.”

“What thing?”

“When you touched Old Master Zhang’s body, how was it different from touching this prince’s?”

Embarrassing—could your thoughts be a bit purer?

Ji Yunshu once again mercilessly rolled her eyes at him several times.

Really speechless!

Jingrong’s jar of vinegar had spilled all over the floor. Wanting to get to the bottom of it, he complained, “If you could touch this prince the way you touched Old Master Zhang, whether you want to investigate cases or meddle in other affairs in the future, this prince won’t stop you anymore.”

Ji Yunshu’s mouth twitched.

She seriously considered this, her eyes turning, and shot back, “If you were a corpse, never mind touching you—I’d even sleep with you.”

After all, in modern times, sleeping alongside skeletal remains was common for her.

After tossing out this line, she strode away.

Jingrong, left in place, was first stunned, then suddenly understood.

His complexion turned livid.

He quickly chased after her.

The jailers guarding the cells on both sides looked bewildered!

Thinking to themselves, the relationship between this prince and that Mister Ji was really damn confusing!

Ji Yunshu and Jingrong didn’t return to the inn but went to the yamen to wait for Liu Zhiliang to come back.

They heard Lord Liu was still investigating the theft of the Guanyin Seal from the Zhang household. The First Madam had made a huge fuss, and every servant and maidservant in the house had been beaten.

Yet still no answers were extracted.

The entire Zhang household had been turned upside down, but the Guanyin Seal still hadn’t been found.

During the wait, Ji Yunshu called Shi Zijin over, whispered a few instructions in her ear, then had her quietly make a trip to the Zhang household.

Very mysterious!

Also because the wait was somewhat boring, Ji Yunshu left Jingrong behind and made a trip to the yamen’s study.

Wanting to flip through a few books to pass the time.

In the study, on two opposing bookshelves, books were piled high. On that wide desk, writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones—everything was complete, arranged neatly and orderly.

But the only strange thing was that not just the desk, but even the bookshelves were covered in dust.

It didn’t look like a place frequently entered or used.

Completely just for show!

Though it wasn’t surprising—Liu Zhiliang’s office was purchased. A purchased office is just a purchased office. On the surface wearing an official’s hat, but actually just wanting to collect the court’s salary.

Not entering the study wasn’t surprising either, since he wasn’t any genuine scholar material.

She picked a few books and was about to leave when she caught sight of a case file tossed in the corner of a bookshelf.

Curious, she picked it up and flipped through it.

It turned out to be a yamen record book of reported cases!

Written all over it were numerous cases of people who had come to the yamen to report crimes. Nothing particularly unusual, except…

The more she flipped, the more something felt wrong!

It recorded many reported cases. Some cases were solved, some still unsolved to this day, and those unsolved cases were all theft cases.

Remarkably, these theft cases all came from an establishment called the Lin’an Inn. The complainants all claimed they had lost items or goods at the Lin’an Inn.

From four years ago to a month ago, totaling thirty or forty cases in all—not a single one solved.

Even stranger was this.

This establishment called the Lin’an Inn was precisely the one Du Sanniang ran.

She was puzzling over this, trying to figure it out.

Suddenly—

Woof woof woof…

A dog’s barking came from outside the door.

Closing the record book, she tucked it into her sleeve.

Going out to look, she saw a dog barking at a wall.

It was the same dog from daytime!

And also the same wall from daytime, just looking at the back side now!

She walked over. The dog seemed somewhat afraid of her, running to the side in panic, yet still barking forcefully at that wall.

This wall?

She stared curiously at that wall—just about two meters high, no different from an ordinary wall, even somewhat dilapidated.

“Stupid dog, barking there again.”

The old man from daytime chased out and once again grabbed the dog.

The old man bowed slightly to Ji Yunshu and apologized, “Sir, don’t mind it. This dog is just stupid and loves to bark.”

She smiled warmly and returned the courtesy. “No problem. But old sir, why does this dog bark at this wall?”

“I’m not clear either. Since last month, it’s been barking at this wall constantly. Sometimes, I can’t even pull it away. I wonder if there are bones hidden inside this wall.”

“Then normally, what smell is this dog most sensitive to?”

“This…” The old man thought for a moment, then his eyes suddenly brightened. “Gold! Every time it smells the scent of gold, it likes to pounce on it. Sometimes when taking it out, passing by gold shops, I have to drag it to get it to walk.”

Gold?

Ji Yunshu pondered this.

She stared at this wall for quite a while.

After the old man left, she picked up a sharp stone from the ground and scraped the wall a few times. The white coating on top fell down in flakes, and she caught some with her handkerchief.

She rubbed it between her fingertips for a while, examining it.

Finally, she smiled!

Yes, very interesting.

At this moment—

“Mister Ji.” A constable hurriedly ran over, saying, “Mister Ji, the magistrate has returned. His Highness asks you to come over.”

She nodded, carefully wrapped the powder she’d scraped off in the handkerchief, and hid it in her clothes.

Following the servant to the court hall, she saw Liu Zhiliang so tired his eyes looked vacant, yet he had to respectfully stand beside Jingrong.

Jingrong was drinking tea, leisurely and carefree!

“Lord Liu, has the theft case at the Zhang household been solved?” Ji Yunshu asked.

Liu Zhiliang sighed mournfully and began to complain, “You tell me if that First Madam is strange or not? At first she was clamoring to investigate, but who knew she’d turn around and say not to investigate anymore.”

“Oh? Why is that?”

“Don’t know. Not investigating is fine too. She made such a huge fuss, the Zhang household was nearly uprooted by her. She’s truly a formidable woman.”

At this, Ji Yunshu actually laughed and comforted Liu Zhiliang, “If that’s the case, isn’t that best? Lord Liu can also rest a bit more.”

“That’s true, but…” He walked toward Ji Yunshu and asked, “Mister Ji, what this official is most concerned about now is Old Master Zhang’s death. You examined the body and inspected the scene—do you have any results?”

“Mm…” She drew out a long note. “Let’s wait. We’ll know when dawn breaks.”

“Why wait for dawn?”

“Because some things are better handled at night.”

This…

Left Liu Zhiliang confused.

Jingrong sat in the pear wood chair, poured two cups of tea, and pushed one cup to the empty seat beside him.

Then he said to Ji Yunshu, “Mister Ji, have a seat. There are still many hours until dawn.”

“Alright!”

Very obediently, she sat down beside Jingrong.

Picking up the tea, she took a delicate sip and frowned.

Holding up her teacup, she said to Liu Zhiliang, “Lord Liu, the tea in your yamen isn’t very fresh. If you have time, you should have someone buy some new tea leaves.” Then she quickly added, “Oh, right, also hire someone to clean the study. With so many books and case files in there, if they get covered in dust, it would be such a waste.”