Zhu Yan cautiously looked at Shen Du. His deep eyes finally showed a hint of wavering, and the corner of his mouth curled up. “You’re not wrong in your thinking.”
Seeing Shen Du respond, Zhu Yan quickly continued,
“At the Duke of Ying’s residence, Lai Luozhi’s arrival was too coincidental, both in timing and about the case. It was as if a scene was deliberately staged to embarrass us. He took away the person you had caught in front of so many people. Not only is his relationship with Chen Huoe deep, but I also suspect Princess Yong’an might be involved in this whole affair.”
After hearing Zhu Yan’s words, Shen Du didn’t respond immediately. He raised his cup, took a sip of wine, gently put it down, and began to eat.
“Are you even listening to me?” Seeing Shen Du unmoved, Zhu Yan thought she might have said something wrong and quickly asked.
Shen Du still didn’t react, only putting down his chopsticks and looking at Zhu Yan with interest,
“Some things you can think of, others can too. Not answering your question doesn’t mean I disagree with your thoughts. Let’s not discuss the case while eating; it affects the appetite.”
“…” Zhu Yan was a bit confused. Mealtime was a rare moment of peace when the two could discuss the case in detail.
If they couldn’t use mealtime when would be the most appropriate time to discuss the case?
Zhu Yan lowered her eyes, pondered for a moment, then looked at Shen Du and asked what was on her mind.
Shen Du’s lips curled into an unusual smile, full of meaning, his deep eyes unfathomable, “In bed.”
These simple words struck Zhu Yan like a thunderbolt. She couldn’t believe he had come up with such an idea.
But he wasn’t wrong. Discussing the case in the quiet of the night would indeed be more suitable than at the dining table.
Zhu Yan pursed her lips and said no more, afraid that if she said something inappropriate again, Shen Du would shut her down once more.
She picked up her chopsticks, ready to eat in peace, when suddenly a young man with a serious expression but dressed like an ordinary person approached the two.
“Master,” Double Eyes whispered in Shen Du’s ear, and Shen Du immediately understood his meaning.
After a moment’s hesitation, as if considering something, Shen Du said, “Just say the case hasn’t been cleared up yet. Keep it simple, especially about Lai Luozhi’s involvement. Gloss over it, understand?”
“Understood.” Double Eyes seemed to understand Shen Du very well. Although the instructions were brief, he grasped Shen Du’s meaning.
As he turned to leave, Zhu Yan looked at Shen Du, puzzled. “Who was that?”
“Double Eyes,” Shen Du said calmly and resumed drinking.
“I’m not asking for his name. Are you doing this on purpose?” Zhu Yan pouted angrily, glaring at Shen Du.
Shen Du ignored her completely. After taking another drink with a half-smile, he said, “He’s my informant in the palace, tasked with reporting what I’ve discovered to His Majesty.”
Zhu Yan finally understood, but still didn’t quite grasp Shen Du’s approach.
“If that’s the case, why didn’t you tell the Empress about Lai Luozhi’s connection to this case?”
Shen Du’s face was full of meaning, the curve of his lips revealing something enigmatic,
“Lai Luozhi has helped the Empress remove many thorns in her side and is considered a favored official. Even if we told the Empress everything, would she do anything to him because of this?”
Zhu Yan nodded thoughtfully. Shen Du’s concerns were not unfounded and aligned with reality.
Rather than telling the Empress about these trivial matters now and irritating her, it would be more practical to wait until they had the most damning evidence, enough to make the Empress completely lose faith in Lai Luozhi.
Yunque was carried to the Shen residence by Jinglin, cursing and struggling all the way, but Jinglin paid no attention.
It wasn’t until they stepped through the main gate of the Shen residence that Jinglin put Yunque down on his shoulder and said irritably, “Miss Yunque, can’t you see I’m trying to help you?”
“Help me?” Yunque was so angry she could barely stand still, wanting nothing more than to give Jinglin a good beating.
Not only had he ruined her time with Shen Du, but now he dared to claim he was helping her. It was truly laughable.
Jinglin nodded seriously and explained,
“Think about it. Our Grand Secretary is known as the White King of Hell. His face was already that long, and you were still pestering him. What if he got angry and twisted your head off? It’s not impossible.”
Hearing Jinglin’s explanation, Yunque’s lips twitched. Although it sounded a bit far-fetched, there was some truth to it.
She pursed her lips, rolled her eyes, and reluctantly bowed to Jinglin, saying “Thank you!” while still glaring at him.
At this point, it was too late to go after Shen Du and the others, but she was still very concerned about the culprit in the Jinxiu Lane case.
Jinglin was close to Shen Du and often worked on cases with him. Perhaps she could learn some inside information from him.
“Brother Jinglin.” Her mood changed faster than turning a page. The angry face from moments ago suddenly broke into a smile,
“Do you know who the culprit in the Jinxiu Lane case is?”
Jinglin was startled by Yunque’s sudden change, but her question made him wary.
“I don’t know,” Jinglin said calmly, but then, as if remembering something, he began to chat with Yunque,
” I’ve always been curious about something. How deep is the relationship between your Cloud family and Kong Xianrong’s family that makes you work so hard to overturn their case?”
“Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand.” Yunque lowered her head, her face showing a hint of grievance.
“Why don’t you try explaining it to me? Maybe I’ll understand something,” Jinglin felt there must be an unusual relationship and pressed on.
Yunque shrugged, her expression resigned,
“Although our two families only have business dealings, our relationship is indeed very good. After the Jinxiu Lane case happened, my parents even set up a memorial altar for Mr. and Mrs. Kong Xianrong at home to mourn them.”
Jinglin pondered for a moment, “If the relationship is so deep, why was the evidence submitted and then returned, and why was the Kong family executed while the Cloud family remained unaffected?”
Just as Yunque was about to explain, she suddenly realized the implication of his words. Jinglin was suspecting her parents.
Yunque became annoyed and glared at Jinglin as she explained, “My parents are just businesspeople, very conventional, and they treat others well. Do you think there weren’t enough wrongful deaths in that case already?”
“No, that’s not what I meant at all,” Jinglin quickly explained. “I just thought that by learning more about the inside story, I might be able to help somehow.”
Hearing Jinglin’s explanation, Yunque calmed down a bit, “It’s been so long since everything happened. It won’t be easy to thoroughly investigate now. I hope the Grand Secretary can solve the case soon and clear the names of so many wronged souls.”
Jinglin said no more. This Yunque girl seemed very naive, and her words were straightforward. She didn’t seem like a girl with hidden depths.
Moreover, she was pleading for so many wronged souls. If she were suspicious, she wouldn’t have come to stir up this case voluntarily.
Realizing this, Jinglin dismissed his doubts about Yunque, but he still informed Shen Du about the close relationship between the Cloud family and the Kong family.
In the quiet of the night, candles still burned in Shen Du’s study.
His eyes were very dark as he pondered what Jinglin had just told him, while also harboring some suspicions about Yunque’s identity.