The words struck like a thunderbolt, reverberating in his ears.

“Did she say that?”

Teng Yuyi was surprised by Lin Chengyou’s reaction and nodded, “Yes, that’s exactly what she said.”

Recalling the scene from two days ago, she added, “At the time, the Hereditary Prince’s wife came out of the room on the right side of the second-floor stairs. After saying those words, she took her servants downstairs to rest in the meditation chamber.”

Lin Chengyou stared intently at Teng Yuyi. Suspecting something was one thing, but having it confirmed was another entirely. All the unusual aspects of Young Lady Jiang’s case finally emerged in clear outline, thanks to this piece of testimony from Teng Yuyi.

This scheme was virtually flawless.

If Young Lady Jiang had been killed by other means, even if the case appeared perfect on the surface, as long as her death remained an isolated incident, investigators would routinely examine every aspect of her life.

As the investigation deepened, the hidden loves and hatreds beneath the calm surface would inevitably emerge one by one, causing investigators to naturally grow suspicious and turn their scrutinizing gaze toward that person.

However, incorporating Young Lady Jiang’s death into a series of murders changed everything.

Anyone looking at these cases would consider Young Lady Jiang just another victim in this series of fetus-snatching murders. Whether the killer was caught or still at large, no one would question the killer’s motives.

Thus, even the most brilliant investigator wouldn’t suspect that person, let alone imagine that the third case had another participant behind the scenes besides the apparent killer.

There could be no more complete method of revenge.

Lin Chengyou fell silent, thinking of all he had learned in the streets these past two days, of all the “coincidences,” of that person’s manipulations behind it all. His heart was filled with mixed emotions. What depth of hatred must someone harbor to spend such a long time plotting?

Beyond this, another matter troubled him. This person must have had prior connections with the true culprit behind the scenes, otherwise, they couldn’t have known the case’s setup in advance and seized the opportunity to participate in the third murder.

Lin Chengyou remained quiet for a long while. Teng Yuyi grew suspicious – could there be something wrong with Young Lady Jiang’s words? She blinked, suddenly thinking of a possibility, but as soon as the thought arose, she dismissed it as absurd. Even if that person might have harmed Young Lady Jiang, they couldn’t possibly—

So no matter how she pondered it, she couldn’t understand what connection those words had with the killer.

“Young Lord, is there something wrong with those words?”

Lin Chengyou came back to himself. Teng Yuyi wasn’t privy to the case’s details, and explaining would require considerable effort. Moreover, the killers hadn’t been caught yet, and there might still be variables at play.

So he simply smiled and said, “Oh, this case has several unclear points, and your words have given me a lead on catching the killer.”

“Oh?” Teng Yuyi exclaimed, “Earlier, Changgen returned saying the killer had been caught by you, was that not true?”

Lin Chengyou stroked his chin. “The one caught today is just a scapegoat. The real killer is someone else.”

“A scapegoat?” Teng Yuyi started. “So they were framed just like Zhuang Mu?”

Lin Chengyou lowered his eyes in thought for a moment. “I suspect today’s captive is in league with Zhuang Mu. When the real killer was setting up Zhuang Mu, they had already planned how to deal with this person. They first pushed Zhuang Mu before the Court of Judicature, then naturally pinned the crime on today’s scapegoat, while the true killer remains hidden behind the scenes of the case.”

Teng Yuyi was stunned for a moment, trying to organize her thoughts. “Young Lord, are you saying two factions are struggling in secret, and both Zhuang Mu and today’s captive were framed by the other group?”

Lin Chengyou made a sound of agreement. “More or less.”

“But sometimes being too clever backfires,” he said mockingly. “The true killer was so meticulous in plotting against others that they accidentally revealed their hand. Now I’ve pretty much figured out who they all are, but to unmask their true faces, I’ll need to arrange things carefully.”

Teng Yuyi pondered silently. Was Lin Chengyou going to Tongzhou to deal with the killer? After all, the first case had occurred there.

“By the way, Young Lord, did you check the East Wing earlier? Is there something wrong with Lady Duan?”

Lin Chengyou didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he picked up a twig that had fallen on the edge of his robe and twirled it absently. The twig had probably been blown onto the roof beam, and there were several flower petals beside its thin branches.

He continued spinning the twig between his fingers while considering how to respond.

As soon as he arrived, he had begun investigating this matter. First, he borrowed two tall monks from Abbot Yuanjue, asking them to make up an excuse to invite Duan Qingying and her servants to the front courtyard. Then he sneaked into the East Wing to search Duan Qingying’s room.

He knew that if Duan Qingying were truly possessed, she couldn’t escape Abbot Yuanjue’s discerning eye, so the problem couldn’t be with Duan Qingying herself. To understand what mischief she was up to, he had to search her room.

He had looked through everything in the room – food, drink, and personal items… there were no signs of evil spirits at work.

Fortunately, he finally found a sachet under the bedboard. Opening it, he discovered a love letter inside.

So that was what it was all about.

No wonder this Lady Duan had been behaving so strangely.

“Young Lord?” Teng Yuyi asked again.

Lin Chengyou turned to face her. Teng Yuyi’s face was full of curiosity as she still waited for his answer.

But even with his thick skin, he felt he couldn’t speak of it.

After a moment’s contemplation, he simply smiled and said, “You don’t need to know about this. Just know that I’ve figured out what’s going on.”

Though he said this, he was thinking to himself that if Teng Yuyi hadn’t rushed into the meditation chamber that day to save someone, thereby discovering the flaw in the killer’s clothing, even he might have believed Zhuang Mu was the killer.

This was the biggest flaw the true killer had revealed so far.

Thanks to Teng Yuyi informing him of this, he was able to turn the situation to his advantage and understand the true killer’s entire plot in an extremely short time. If he had mistakenly believed Zhuang Mu was the killer and continued investigating along that wrong path, by the time he realized his error, the true killer might have obtained more Moon Phase Child Lords.

If that happened, Chang’an would surely face disaster.

Tonight’s incident with Duan Qingying was even more telling – if Teng Yuyi hadn’t sent someone to notify him in time, how could he have known that even after searching every corner, they would inevitably miss something and that this oversight wasn’t elsewhere but right here in Dayin Temple?

Teng Yuyi had helped him so greatly, perhaps he should give her something in return…

Thinking this, he turned his head to glance at Teng Yuyi. Tonight she wore a smoky purple dress, and her black hair, besides ornaments, had caught several white flower petals, probably blown down from the branches while she sat in the courtyard earlier. Her hair was pinned with two rows of small pearl flowers, presumably chosen to match her dress as they were also smoky purple.

These two touches of color were quite innovative, setting off the snow-white complexion of her neck.

After examining the ornaments in her hair, he thought to himself that though he’d been too busy catching criminals to help her find the step-shake in the underground palace, he could give her something else.

Teng Yuyi had expected Lin Chengyou to tell her Duan Qingying’s secret, but he had merely brushed her off with those words. This made her unhappy – after all, she was the one who had sent him the message about Duan Qingying. For him to figure it out but keep it from her seemed rather disloyal.

After waiting a while with no further explanation, she prepared to reason with him: “Young Lord, this isn’t right.”

But before she could continue, Lin Chengyou tossed aside the twig in his hand and stood up, asking, “Were you practicing lightness skills earlier?”

Teng Yuyi looked up at Lin Chengyou. He probably wanted to leave now that he’d learned what he came to find out.

She gave him a sideways glance, and though quite dissatisfied, she could only dust off her hands and stand up. “Yes.”

“Want to learn?”

“Of course.” She had been having Duan Fu teach her whenever she had free time.

“I’ll teach you,” Lin Chengyou suddenly said.

Teng Yuyi thought she had misheard and looked at Lin Chengyou suspiciously.

“You’ve helped me several times. Teaching you some martial arts is only natural,” Lin Chengyou felt he spoke quite sincerely. After teaching her, he would return directly to the Court of Judicature to set his plans – there was still time.

“Really?” Teng Yuyi’s eyes lit up.

Seeing how happy this made her, Lin Chengyou’s eyes unconsciously gained a trace of a smile, though his voice remained serious: “Take out the Xiaoya sword.”

Teng Yuyi found it strange – wasn’t he going to teach lightness skills? Why did she need a sword? Though puzzled, she still took out the sword.

Lin Chengyou drew the Soul-Locking Beast from his chest, muttered several incantations and the Soul-Locking Beast flew out like a silver snake, instantly wrapping around the blade in Teng Yuyi’s hand.

Before Teng Yuyi could react, she felt a wave of heat transmitted through the Soul-Locking Beast, climbing up the Xiaoya sword and along her arm, then crashing into her heart.

This sensation wasn’t unfamiliar – it had been similar the last time Lin Chengyou taught her the final move of the Peach Blossom sword technique. Lin Chengyou manipulated the Soul-Locking Beast, unhurriedly wrapping it several times around Teng Yuyi’s sword. Teng Yuyi secretly felt that strange force growing more powerful with his movements. Unable to withstand this strange power, her feet stumbled.

“Don’t move,” Lin Chengyou said, one hand behind his waist, the other controlling the Soul-Locking Beast to help steady her.

Though he had only caught a glimpse earlier, he had more or less seen how Teng Yuyi tried to leap onto the roof beam. Her form wasn’t wrong, but she still couldn’t make it up – this could only mean her internal force was insufficient.

But Teng Yuyi had developed seven or eight years worth of internal force from the Fire Jade Spirit Root Decoction, and with an expert like Duan Fu teaching her, after learning for so long, she should be able to leap onto a roof beam.

After much consideration, it could only be that the Peach Blossom sword technique he had taught was causing trouble.

Though this sword technique could help her overcome the Fire Jade Spirit Root Decoction extremely quickly, because the true qi pathway it drew out was extremely domineering, it would spontaneously form a barrier within the student’s body. Afterward, no matter who tried to impart internal martial arts to Teng Yuyi, they would be blocked by this true qi barrier.

So no matter how Duan Fu taught her, Teng Yuyi’s internal force could only remain at the beginner’s stage.

He suspected Duan Fu had been puzzling over this matter for quite some time.

Speaking of this, it was truly a muddle. If Teng Yuyi hadn’t insisted on learning by any means necessary back then, he wouldn’t have taught her this sword technique.

After Teng Yuyi learned this sword technique and then tried to learn Duan Fu’s technique, of course, her lightness skills couldn’t progress. To improve her lightness skills in a short time, there was only one method – he would have to use his internal force to help her break through the barrier within her body.

After transmitting for a while, Lin Chengyou estimated it was about enough. With a flick of his wrist, the Soul-Locking Beast shot back into his sleeve like an arrow.

“How is it?”

Teng Yuyi steadied her breathing and carefully sensed the changes. She secretly felt much more strength throughout her body, and even her footsteps seemed lighter.

“Young Lord, did you just transmit true qi to me?” she asked doubtfully.

Lin Chengyou didn’t answer this question. Instead, he walked to the edge of the eaves, looked back at her once, and said: “Watch carefully.”

With that, he spread his arms and floated down from the roof beam.

Teng Yuyi hurried to follow. In the moonlight, she saw only Lin Chengyou’s clothes floating gracefully, without hearing the slightest sound.

After landing, Lin Chengyou turned back to look at Teng Yuyi on the roof: “Did you understand? Try it.”

Teng Yuyi looked down, her expression somewhat hesitant. Wasn’t the technique too simple? Lin Chengyou hadn’t even taught her any mental techniques.

“Scared?” Lin Chengyou smiled and said, “Teng Yuyi, I didn’t expect you to have timid moments. Since I promised to teach you lightness skills, how could I let you fall? Trust me and jump down.”

Teng Yuyi steeled herself and, like Lin Chengyou, spread her arms and lightly leaped down. As soon as her body moved, she felt something different from before. True qi spontaneously rose from within her abdomen, supporting her as lightly as a kite.

She didn’t even have time to ponder what was happening before her feet had already landed steadily on the ground. She looked up in surprise, meeting Lin Chengyou’s smiling eyes.

“How was it?” he smiled.

“Oh, have I learned it?” Teng Yuyi was both shocked and delighted.

Lin Chengyou smiled again. “Now watch this.”

He looked up at the roof beam, lifted his robe, and stepped consecutively onto the corridor pillar, leaping onto the roof in one bound.

“Come up,” he said, standing on the roof beam.

Though Teng Yuyi was happy, she didn’t expect to learn it all at once, especially this move – going down was easy, but going up was difficult. But since she wanted to learn martial arts, how could she hesitate? Especially since Lin Chengyou was teaching at this time – not only was his martial arts outstanding, but his movements were also elegant. She had envied this for a long time.

Such opportunities were rare, and at worst, Duan Fu was still in the courtyard, so she wasn’t afraid of falling.

“Alright.” She ran a few steps forward, gathered her breath, and kicked off the corridor pillar beside her. She had learned this move before but always fell. Though she expected the same this time, she unexpectedly shot up in one go. However, when climbing onto the tiles, she couldn’t get a firm grip due to unfamiliarity with the technique and fell backward.

“Ah!”

As her body plummeted, she was about to call out “Duan Fu,” but before Duan Fu could leap over, something flew down from above and wrapped around her waist. Lin Chengyou manipulated the Soul-Locking Beast with one movement, pulling her up.

Lin Chengyou waited for Teng Yuyi to steady herself, then withdrew the Soul-Locking Beast. “Are you still afraid?”

Teng Yuyi’s heart was pounding, but she quickly waved her hand and said, “Young Lord, teach with confidence. I wasn’t afraid to begin with.”

“Is that so? Then let’s go again.” Lin Chengyou returned to the edge of the roof beam and once again floated down.

Teng Yuyi practiced with Lin Chengyou repeatedly, falling eight or nine times before finally succeeding in leaping onto the roof beam on her ninth attempt.

Teng Yuyi stared at the roof tiles beneath her feet in disbelief, the overwhelming joy in her heart nearly spreading to her face.

Had she… had she learned it?