Seeing Lu Ying’s sharp gaze that could kill, Wang Daxia showed no guilt. “Of course I came to ask Commander Lu for my private money back.”

Lu Ying asked, “Didn’t you come back earlier? Why did you only come when it got dark?”

Wang Daxia said, “The weather was sweltering. I found a place to drink tea and eat, waiting for the sun to set so it wouldn’t be so hot before coming over.”

Wang Daxia was trying to cover his tracks for this period of time.

Lu Ying didn’t suspect anything and brought Wang Daxia to report to Commander Lu Bing.

Lu Ying had worked almost all night investigating the case. Learning that there had been major progress and that the book boy had been struck dead by lightning, Lu Bing was concerned about Lu Ying and had stayed at the office. Even after dark, he hadn’t left to go home.

As soon as they entered, both smelled medicinal aromas—Lu Bing was drinking medicine.

Lu Ying immediately cast aside his fatigue, his face showing concern. “What’s wrong with Commander Lu? Where do you feel unwell?”

“It’s nothing, just a summer tonic prescription from the imperial physician.” Lu Bing rinsed his mouth and had someone bring a plate of lychees. Under the plate were ice blocks, with about twenty lychees arranged on top, their branches and leaves still fresh. He said:

“The south sent tribute of a basket of lychees. His Majesty rewarded me with half. Since I’m taking medicine, it’s not convenient for me to eat such cold, dispersing foods. You eat them.”

Lychees were definitely a rare delicacy in early summer Beijing.

Wang Daxia’s mouth watered with appetite. “Commander Lu, could this commoner have a taste?”

Lu Bing smiled and nodded. “I heard you pried open the book boy’s mouth. Merit should be rewarded—eat up.”

Wang Daxia was not polite at all, grabbing a large handful and peeling the soft shells to greedily suck the snow-white lychee flesh inside.

Lu Ying was focused on solving the case and had no appetite. He recounted the ten-year grudge between the Chen and He families. “…Now it seems the biggest suspect is Second Miss He who escaped back then. She’s seventeen now. Comparing with the guest list from Sijia Inn, only a little widow named Wei Caiwei matches the age.”

“Not only that, all three consecutive murders occurred in the seven days after she entered the capital. Moreover, she’s a traveling doctor who walks the streets daily treating patients. This would allow her to track Chen Dalang’s movements undetected, and the poisoned needle on Chen Qianhu’s saddle also fits.”

Wang Daxia, eating lychees on the side, interjected: “But according to her testimony yesterday, the day after staying at Sijia Inn, she had a dispute with the innkeeper over the room fee. The innkeeper also confirmed this. If she were really the killer and had gotten her great revenge, she should have immediately left the capital. Why didn’t she leave, but instead dragged things out until past noon the next day, arguing with the innkeeper?”

Wang Daxia was deflecting suspicion, trying to reduce Wei Caiwei’s guilt. “This commoner finds it contradictory. If it were me, I’d kill and run. Moreover, the previous three acts of revenge were all meticulously planned, watertight, leaving no evidence or clues. How could such a person make the mistake of oversleeping and arguing with an innkeeper over a small room fee? This is the second contradiction.”

Bang! Lu Ying slammed the table, making even the ice blocks in the plate tremble. “Since you question my judgment, then you tell me—who is the killer?”

Wang Daxia peeled his seventh lychee. “I’m good at eating, drinking, and playing, but an amateur at investigating cases. Certainly not as capable as Commander Lu with his family tradition. I’m just thinking—if I were the killer, what would I do? First, I definitely wouldn’t stupidly fill in real registration information on Sijia Inn’s guest register, especially age. Dress older, write twenty-seven instead of seventeen—no problem, right? The innkeeper couldn’t care less.”

“Second, after killing Chen Qianhu, all the people who harmed my sister back then would be dead. What would be the point of staying in the capital? Wait for the authorities to come arrest me? I’d definitely check out early the next morning and flee. I certainly wouldn’t leave a Beijing address on Sijia Inn’s register for investigators to easily track down.”

Wang Daxia swallowed a whole piece of lychee flesh and said, “So I think Commander Lu shouldn’t fixate on Wei Caiwei. Look more carefully through the register for women in their twenties or thirties, or even young men—female disguised as male would be more concealed. I looked at this register—about ten people filled in addresses that turned out to be fake, right?”

This stumped Lu Ying, who said, “A total of eleven guests’ addresses were falsified. We still haven’t found these people.”

Wang Daxia picked up his eighth lychee. “I think the killer is probably among these eleven people.”

Lu Ying snorted coldly. “You keep defending this little widow—are you seduced by her beauty?”

Wang Daxia was panicked inside like tangled hemp, but smiled outwardly. “I’m famously a true gentleman who sits unmoved by beauty. I didn’t even touch the former courtesan Yingying, yet I’d fancy a slightly attractive little widow? What a joke!”

Wang Daxia wasn’t just skilled at making trouble—he also knew how to provoke, saying: “Forgive me for judging a gentleman’s heart with a petty person’s mind, but Commander Lu fixates on Wei Caiwei because a little widow is easiest to bully and simplest to arrest. Apply some torture devices and guarantee the little widow will confess everything. Commander Lu can solve the case quickly and gain fame.”

“As for the eleven suspects who falsified information on the inn register…” Wang Daxia’s eyes showed mockery. “Finding them is like fishing for a needle in the ocean. This case would become unsolved—difficult to crack, so no merit to be gained.”

“You bastard!” Lu Ying was furious, grabbing Wang Daxia’s collar and dragging him from his chair, pressing him against the wall. “You’re eager for merit, desperate to get your private money back, so you think everyone else is as unscrupulous as you!”

“I will definitely summon Wei Caiwei to the Embroidered Uniform Guard again, and I’ll continue investigating those eleven suspects whose identities can’t be verified. I, Lu Ying, solve cases with real ability—I would never bully a little widow with forced confessions just to gain merit.”

Wang Daxia thought: Like hell I believe you! The Embroidered Uniform Guard nearly shot me dead on the spot that night! If the little widow hadn’t kindly warned me, I’d already be shot full of holes by you people.

Wang Daxia and Lu Ying engaged in verbal combat, with Lu Ying even getting physical.

Lu Bing remained composed, lowering his head to peel lychees, using chopsticks to remove the pits and placing toothpicks on the prepared flesh. “You haven’t eaten dinner yet, have you? No wonder you’re so irritable from hunger. Can’t find the killer, so you’re fighting your own people. Eat something first to fill your stomach.”

Lu Ying still wouldn’t let go, glaring angrily at Wang Daxia.

Lu Bing sighed. “When I was young, I was like you—when busy, I’d forget to eat and sleep, ignoring everything else. Now I’m old with all kinds of ailments, having to take these bitter peace-inducing prescriptions even when healthy. Don’t follow in my footsteps—your health matters.”

Only then did Lu Ying release his grip and return to his seat to eat lychees.

Wang Daxia crouched in the corner, not daring to sit back down, complaining to Lu Bing: “Commander Lu’s explosive temper is worse than my father’s. I can’t stand it—return my private money and let me go!”

Wang Daxia was playing hard-to-get to perfection, using this to clear himself of suspicion. He actually wanted to stay at the Embroidered Uniform Guard office to “supervise” the investigation, constantly muddying the waters of a case that originally had clear leads.

Lu Bing, with a fatherly heart, continued peeling lychees for Lu Ying. “You want to eat my lychees then wipe your mouth and leave? Not so easy. Until this case is solved, you can forget about leaving.”

Lu Ying said, “Commander Lu, please go home and rest first. I’ve already sent people to summon Wei Caiwei again. I’ll stay at the office tonight and interrogate Wei Caiwei through the night—I won’t go home.”

“No rush. Finish the lychees first—you’ve lost weight these past few days.” Lu Bing continued peeling lychees.

Wang Daxia was craving more and sidled over, reaching toward the lychees in the ice basin.

Smack! Lu Bing swatted Wang Daxia’s hand away like shooing a fly. “You’ve eaten too many. Be careful of getting heatstroke.”

“Thank you for Commander Lu’s concern. This commoner isn’t afraid of heatstroke.” Wang Daxia reached out again.

Just as Lu Bing was about to swat his hand again, the surveillance agent suddenly returned to report, out of breath: “Both Commander Lus, this subordinate followed Wei Caiwei to a women’s bathhouse. After a long time without seeing her come out, I had no choice but to reveal my Embroidered Uniform Guard identity and force the bathhouse proprietress to talk. The proprietress said she never entered the bathhouse—she left through the back door. She’s probably fled in fear of punishment.”

Finally proving his judgment correct, Lu Ying put down his toothpick and demonstratively raised his chin at Wang Daxia. “Pass my order: have artists draw her portrait. Issue a nationwide warrant for suspect Wei Caiwei.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a soldier ran from the entrance to report: “There’s a woman at the gate claiming to be the traveling doctor Wei Caiwei, insisting on meeting Commander Lu.”

Now not only Lu Ying but even Wang Daxia was stunned: What’s going on? Isn’t the little widow hiding at Yingying’s place? Why would she walk into a trap? Did she forget my instructions?

Wei Caiwei followed the guard inside, her face showing panic. “Commander Lu, this commoner woman discovered someone sneakily following me this afternoon. I don’t know if it’s for money or lust, or related to Commander Lu’s case—perhaps the culprit wants to silence witnesses. This commoner woman’s room that night indeed had a view of Shuntian Prefecture’s entrance. But I swear I truly saw nothing unusual. Now that bad people are targeting me, and I live alone, I’m worried about my safety. I beg Commander Lu to assign protection and quickly catch the stalking criminals.”