They said they were sending something for him to look at, so why was the handkerchief completely empty?

Wasn’t this just toying with people?

Muruo had originally wanted to come ask yesterday, but hearing that Jingrong and Ji Yunshu had gone to the abandoned temple to investigate the dry well case, he had waited a day.

Today he came specifically to ask!

Ji Yunshu looked at the light and flimsy handkerchief in her hand, her brow gradually furrowing.

She couldn’t make sense of it!

“How could there be nothing inside?”

Had a ghost eaten it?

Jingrong immediately summoned Lang Bo and asked, “The item Master Ji asked you to send to Young Master Mo—why has it disappeared?”

What?

Lang Bo was astonished.

“How could it have disappeared? This subordinate handed it over to his men unchanged to deliver to Yuhua Pavilion. They’ve always been careful in their work and would never lose what was inside.”

Muruo questioned, “Are you certain your men didn’t make a mistake when they delivered it?”

Well…

Although Lang Bo trusted his subordinates, he still summoned the person.

That person said, “This subordinate never opened that handkerchief. If Master Ji says there was something inside, then when it was delivered, there definitely was something inside. It absolutely could not have been lost.”

Absolutely certain!

Ji Yunshu said to Muruo, “What was wrapped in the handkerchief was something I scraped from inside the deceased Gao Meng’s ear—a slightly sticky black substance. I smelled it and it seemed like medicinal herbs, which is why I had someone send it to you to look at.”

“A black substance?”

“A very small piece, and I’m certain that when I gave it to Brother Lang, the item was still inside.”

“How strange then.” Muruo swore he truly hadn’t seen anything inside.

Jingrong said, “Think carefully—when you opened the handkerchief, did you accidentally drop the item? After all, it was a small black thing. If it fell, it’s possible you wouldn’t have noticed.”

So he thought through everything from beginning to end, murmuring, “Could it be… that girl lost it?”

Suspicion?

“Who?”

“Besides that crazy girl causing chaos in my pavilion all day, who else could it be?” Muruo looked distressed as he spoke, swaying forward a few steps with deeply furrowed brows. “When the item was delivered to Yuhua Pavilion that day, I happened to have business in the palace. When I returned, I saw Tang Si clutching the handkerchief, wanting to interrogate me about it. She said the handkerchief was sent by some young lady and insisted on pestering me endlessly. But afterward, when I asked that crazy girl and the servant boy, they both said when the handkerchief was opened, they didn’t see anything inside.”

It had disappeared for no reason!

Strange!

Which link had gone wrong?

Everyone could only think through it from beginning to end.

No result!

Ji Yunshu could only say, “Let’s hope that item has nothing to do with the case. Otherwise, if it truly is an important piece of evidence, it could very likely affect the truth of the entire case.”

As they say, one wrong link throws the whole chain into chaos.

Now they could only pray that item was useless.

After dropping this matter—

Muruo inquired, “So after you went to that abandoned temple, did you find anything useful for the case? You should know that right now you’re racing against Prince Yi. Whoever runs ahead is the victor!”

Ji Yunshu replied, “We learned quite a lot, but it’s too fragmented, too chaotic.”

They knew how the deceased was killed.

They knew the deceased’s name.

They knew the murder weapon was a dagger.

They also knew the killer only murdered people born in yin year, yin month, yin day, and yin hour.

…

But there were almost no clues about the killer’s identity.

Jingrong suddenly said, “I think we should start investigating from the angle of yin year, yin month, yin day, and yin hour.”

Hmm?

He explained, “Those deceased were all thrown into the dry well beneath the great Buddha. This might truly be related to some kind of sacrificial ritual, and this ritual might also be connected to Zhang Family Village.”

With this explanation, Ji Yunshu began to understand somewhat.

But Lang Bo asked, “Your Highness, what does this have to do with Zhang Family Village? Why do you say that?”

“Don’t you remember what Village Chief Zhang said?”

“I remember.”

So Ji Yunshu picked up the thought, “You mean the so-called ghost and spirit tales of Zhang Family Village?”

He nodded. “Exactly. Ever since cracks appeared in that great Buddha statue at the abandoned temple over ten years ago, Zhang Family Village has lost one or two young people every year. It’s as if the entire village is under some curse. Those deceased all died by extremely strange methods, and after death, they were all thrown into the dry well beneath the great Buddha. One can imagine this case is definitely related to the great Buddha, and the great Buddha is connected to the ghost and spirit tales of Zhang Family Village. So I think right now we shouldn’t be putting all our energy into how the killer moved the great Buddha, but rather… into the secrets of Zhang Family Village.”

Uh!

The secrets of Zhang Family Village?

A broken-down village, a group of ignorant villagers—what secrets could they have?

But his words struck a chord with Ji Yunshu.

She nodded in agreement.

So Jingrong immediately ordered Lang Bo, “Hurry back to Zhang Family Village and question those villagers. You must investigate clearly—what exactly are the secrets of Zhang Family Village?”

“Yes!” He accepted the order.

Just as he was about to leave—

“Wait.”

He was called back.

Jingrong reconsidered, “No, you can’t go. If… Zhang Family Village truly has some unspeakable secret, even if those villagers know about it, they won’t speak of it. Moreover, you already went yesterday and they recognize you. They’ll definitely be on guard. It would be better to… send someone new.”

“This subordinate understands. I’ll arrange it right away.”

Just as he finished speaking—

“I’ll go!”

A sharp, thin voice came from outside the door.

Looking toward the sound, they saw Tang Si rushing in.

She strode in with bold steps, raising her eyebrows. “Why not let me go! These past few days I’ve been cooped up in Yuhua Pavilion until I’m about to go crazy. Since I’m idle anyway, I might as well make the trip. I guarantee I can investigate it clearly.”

Full of confidence!

Volunteering herself!

But big sister, with your ability to handle matters being basically zero…

Muruo pulled her aside, glaring fiercely. “What chaos are you stirring up?”

“I’m not stirring up chaos.”

Clearly she had good intentions.

Muruo said, “This is a matter of life and death, not some brawl. If there’s even the slightest mistake, could you bear the responsibility? Always looking for trouble.”

“I…”

Ji Yunshu also said, “Miss Tang, it’s not that we don’t trust you, but this matter isn’t about catching thieves and bandits. You’re not familiar with the capital either, so it’s not suitable for you to participate in this.”

Tang Si pressed her lips together. “A’Ji, do you really not trust me that much? I’m telling you, back in Houliao, as long as it’s something I want to know, there’s nothing I can’t get people to tell me. I have over a thousand methods to make people speak the truth.” She quickly explained, “But don’t misunderstand—when I say over a thousand methods, I don’t mean using force. And didn’t you say those villagers recognize you? There’s no need to worry about that at all. When it comes to disguise, if I claim second place, no one dares claim first. Otherwise, do you think I could have easily run from Houliao to your Great Lin?”

Proud face!