“I’ve already come out,” Pan Chi said irritably from the side. “At least you have some conscience; I was the one who rescued you.”
Pan Chi thought Du Xiaowan was referring to him, but she shook her head repeatedly. “No, not you. There’s another one.”
Hearing this, everyone realized something was amiss. Shen Du turned his interrogating gaze towards Pan Chi.
Pan Chi looked innocent. “It was so dark down there. I only saw her silhouette moving; I didn’t notice anyone else.”
Shen Du then turned back, annoyed, and addressed the others who had arrived. “Lower the rope to rescue the person.”
“Yes, sir.” Several brothers from the Internal Guard quickly lowered the rope, calling out at the well’s opening, but there was no response.
Pan Chi also stopped his angry tirade and furrowed his brows as he peered into the well. When he had fallen in earlier—no when Shen Du had kicked him in—it had been pitch black down there. He couldn’t see anyone, only vague shadows.
Seeing a shadow move, he hadn’t thought much of it and just pushed the person up. During this process, he hadn’t sensed anyone else’s presence or seen any other shadows. Even if someone was incapacitated, they should have said something when they saw someone coming down. But he hadn’t heard a sound.
The brothers called out a few more times at the well’s opening but received no response. It was very strange.
“Is there someone else?” Shen Du also grew suspicious and questioned Du Xiaowan.
Du Xiaowan nodded firmly. “There is another person.”
Shen Du took a lantern from someone nearby and threw it into the well. With the illumination of the candle, everyone could now see the situation in the cellar.
There was indeed another person, but they appeared to be dead. The body was covered in blood and motionless. Everyone’s hearts sank.
“This…” Pan Chi was also shocked. No wonder there had been no sound; it was a dead person. It had been too dark earlier, and he hadn’t noticed at all.
Shen Du glanced at Pan Chi, noting his surprised and confused expression. Taking advantage of his distraction, Shen Du kicked him down into the well again.
The onlookers were bewildered but dared not say anything. They were just grateful that Grand Chancellor Shen hadn’t kicked them down instead.
Falling into the well again, Pan Chi seemed to have anticipated it this time and didn’t make a sound. He looked at the corpse on the ground, his eyes blazing with anger.
Shen Du was doing this on purpose. Pan Chi vowed to get back at him when he had the chance.
Without a word, he hauled the dead body up. Seeing the awkward expressions of those around, he unceremoniously tossed the corpse into Shen Du’s arms.
Shen Du, now covered in filth, frowned but said nothing more, handing the body over to someone nearby.
Pan Chi never dreamed that he, a graceful young gentleman, would be bullied like this by Shen Du. It was utterly disrespectful. If it weren’t for the case and his ulterior motives, he wouldn’t be suffering such indignities here.
As everyone prepared to leave after settling everything, Shen Du suddenly felt uneasy. He had a vague sense that a pair of eyes was watching them, making him very uncomfortable.
He turned to look at the cellar well again. The candle inside hadn’t burned out yet, but its flickering light made it difficult to see inside. He then turned to look at Pan Chi.
Pan Chi immediately guessed his thoughts and pointed at him seriously. “Don’t touch me again. If you do, I’ll lose my temper.”
Seeing Pan Chi’s serious expression, Shen Du said nothing more. Instead, he looked at someone nearby. “Go down and check if there’s anything else amiss inside.”
“Yes, sir.” The person obeyed and went down, but after searching the cellar, found nothing unusual.
Shen Du frowned deeply and looked at Pan Chi again. Pan Chi snorted coldly at him and turned his head away.
This fellow was in a bad mood. Trying to communicate with him now probably wouldn’t yield honest answers. Better to let it be.
“Leave a few people to guard the scene. The rest of you come with me to investigate the surroundings,” Shen Du ordered.
“Yes, sir.”
The well-trained members of the Internal Guard quickly divided into two groups and followed the instructions.
Pan Chi pouted to the side. Still angry, he sat down on a nearby stone stool, ignoring everything.
“You caught the suspect and discovered the clues. If we catch the killer now, you’d be the real hero of this case,” Shen Du said sarcastically as he led people to examine the surroundings. “If you want to give up, I won’t try to persuade you.”
Hearing Shen Du’s words, Pan Chi felt very displeased. Although the words were unpleasant, they made sense. If he didn’t participate now, wouldn’t all his previous efforts be wasted if Shen Du caught the killer?
“Didn’t we catch someone on our way here? How can you be so sure he’s not the killer?” Pan Chi retorted.
Shen Du shook his head slightly. “I can’t be certain he’s not the killer, but my intuition tells me this matter isn’t as simple as it appears. If you don’t believe me, just sit there.”
“The great Grand Chancellor relies on intuition to solve cases?” Pan Chi’s words were laced with sarcasm, his face full of disdain. “If you don’t have solid evidence and make us waste all this time, how will you make up for it?”
Shen Du cast a meaningful glance at him. “If you don’t believe me, just sit there and keep quiet. Don’t disturb us.”
With that, Shen Du said no more. Pan Chi, forcibly suppressing the urge to spit blood, stood up resolutely and came to Shen Du’s side. “What’s your intuition telling you? Tell me, and I’ll help you look.”
“Someone is watching us from the shadows. We’ll search while keeping an eye out for anything unusual.”
After saying this, Shen Du walked away. Pan Chi’s face took on a serious expression. His eyes swept coldly around the surroundings, but the moonlit scene was deathly quiet. In these conditions, even if someone was watching them, it would be extremely difficult to catch them.
After inspecting the area, Shen Du ordered his men to bring Du Xiaowan and the corpse back with them.
On the way back, Pan Chi suddenly seemed to think of something. He walked to Shen Du’s side and asked mysteriously, “I heard that on your wedding day, the Grand Chancellor set ‘three delusions’ for his wife. Is that true?”
Hearing Pan Chi’s sudden question, Shen Du’s face immediately darkened, and he didn’t respond.
Pan Chi smiled leisurely. “The Grand Chancellor’s silence seems to confirm it. If it’s true, isn’t that a bit small-minded?”
Hearing Pan Chi say this, Shen Du finally gave him a cold look. “What happens between my wife and me is none of your business.”
“Ah…” Pan Chi sighed woefully, shaking his head at Shen Du. “If you don’t love her, please let her go. Why bind an innocent person to your emotions?”
“Just mind your own business,” Shen Du said darkly, adding a warning, “Especially regarding matters between my wife and me. I don’t want to hear you ask another question about it.”
“Hehe…” Pan Chi chuckled lightly, unafraid. “I don’t have many hobbies, but I do love to fight injustice. If you don’t let her go, I’ll have to see this through to the end. It’s a matter of chivalry.”