Taking advantage of the moonlight, Zhuyan and Shen Du secretly infiltrated the Liang residence, making their way to Wei’s separate courtyard with practiced ease.
One had to admit, the Liang family was truly a hidden bunch of social climbers. While they seemed to treat Madam Wei extremely well during the day, as night fell, there wasn’t a single person watching over the entire separate courtyard.
“This Liang Jiren is such a pretender. No matter what, she’s still a madam. How could there not be even one person to care for her?” Zhuyan complained, following behind Shen Du and letting her guard down.
“She was previously the second wife. It’s understandable if Liang Jiren doesn’t care for her. But this Second Master Liang truly tires of the old and favors the new.”
Zhuyan pursed her lips, looking at Shen Du with dissatisfaction. “What about the Second Master? Liang Jiren is still in charge of the entire Liang household. I don’t believe his brother would dare to rebel if Liang Jiren gave an order.”
“Shh…” Shen Du made a gesture for her to be quiet, lowering his voice, “Don’t forget our purpose here. We can discuss these matters when we return.”
Zhuyan quickly nodded, closing her mouth and following behind Shen Du as they quietly entered Madam Wei’s room.
However, the scene inside shocked Zhuyan, who had seen many cases over the years, and even Shen Du was surprised.
Madam Wei was supposed to be a deranged person. Without anyone to care for her, her room should have been in disarray. But now, the entire room was filled with kites, all resembling moths.
Even more chilling was a portrait of Liang Man in the room. The upper half of the portrait was no longer visible, with only the name “Liang Man” written in the lower corner. The upper half had been devoured by a giant moth, its shape terrifying and emanating evil.
Cold sweat formed on Zhuyan’s forehead, and her hand trembled involuntarily. “What… what is this?” Her finger pointed at the half-devoured portrait, her voice filled with fear.
Shen Du protected her behind him, coldly looking at the portrait, and said in a deep voice, “Our target was wrong from the beginning…”
Zhuyan seemed to understand something, but the implications were too horrifying to contemplate. She didn’t dare to stay any longer.
“Let’s go back,” she said, her mind blank, the room’s horror having robbed her of the ability to think.
Seeing Zhuyan’s pale face, Shen Du felt worried. “Alright, now that we know who the killer is, we should go back and get a good night’s sleep.”
…
In the blink of an eye, the first day of the Fast-breaking was approaching, and the various wards had regained some vitality.
The once-deserted Vermilion Bird Street had regained its former bustle, with people coming out to observe the grand Buddhist ceremony presided over by Zhang Baohuan, the Empress’s male favorite.
The streets were crowded with people. Even young women from places like Pingkang Ward and Lanyin Pavilion, usually considered unsavory, came out in droves to visit the temple, seeking to bask in the Buddhist atmosphere and dispel the gloom.
With the country’s liberal policies and the grand Buddhist event, it was naturally a sea of people, difficult to maintain order.
The Local Constablen and the Internal Guard Bureau couldn’t hold back the crowds. The common people were flesh and blood, and they couldn’t use force. After a morning of constant reports, both parties felt deeply troubled.
Today was also the last day within the Empress’s stipulated deadline.
“They have it tough,” Zhuyan sympathized with the Local Constablenand the Internal Guard brothers maintaining order, lightly rubbing her forehead. “With this sea of people, it’s already a blessing if they’re not trampled underfoot. How can they possibly maintain order?”
Beside her, Jinglin also sighed, looking up at the sky. “The country’s openness is a good thing, but with so many people crowded together like little ants, forget maintaining order, it might be difficult even to offer incense.”
“From what you’re saying, you want to go there and get some blessings too?” Zhuyan teased, looking at Jinglin. “If you go, with that face of yours, they’d give you some respect. It would be easy for you to offer incense.”
Seeing Zhuyan tease him, Jinglin pursed his lips. “I don’t believe in ghosts and gods. Even if Madam invited the Buddha himself today, I wouldn’t go to that temple to pay respects.”
“Alright…” Zhuyan drawled, and then the light in her eyes gradually faded. “Today is the last day within the Empress’s stipulated deadline.” Before finishing her sentence, she turned to look at Shen Du sitting behind her. “Have you thought about what to say to the Empress?”
Shen Du’s expression was heavy, one hand rhythmically tapping the table beside him. “What else can we do but tell the truth?”
Hearing their conversation, Jinglin’s expression turned serious. “Should we go to the Liang residence to make an arrest?”
Zhuyan took a deep breath. “Let’s wait a bit longer. Right now, the streets are surging with people. Going to the Liang residence to make an arrest might not be an easy task.”
With that, she turned and sat down on a nearby chair, leisurely sipping tea.
With the case about to be closed, everyone’s hearts were more at ease.
Hearing Zhuyan’s words, Jinglin also relaxed, leaning against the doorframe nearby, casually teasing the birds that had landed in the courtyard.
Shen Du let out a long sigh. This case had dragged on for so long, and it could finally be closed. Now should be the time for him to relax, but for some reason, his heart still felt unusually heavy, as if something bad was about to happen.
Zhuyan also noticed Shen Du’s unusual behavior and stood up to ask, “The case is about to be resolved. You should be happy. Why do you still look so troubled? Do you think there’s still something amiss?”
Shen Du nodded, then shook his head, his somber expression making it difficult to discern what he was thinking.
He stood up and paced to the door, then turned back. “For some reason, my heart is in chaos, as if something major is about to happen. And although the case seems to be resolved, I feel like something’s not right. When I think about it carefully, I can’t figure out what the problem is.”
“Could it be that you’ve been under too much pressure lately, and now that we know who the killer is, you can’t let go for a moment?” Jinglin at the door offered his guess.
Zhuyan nodded in agreement. “The Empress’s deadline is an invisible pressure. But at least we’ve found the killer. You don’t need to think about it so much anymore.”
Shen Du nodded, but the somber look between his brows didn’t lessen at all.
At this moment, Jiang Langxing, a Local Constablenrushed in. He cupped his hands in salute to the two, his expression anxious as he said, “It’s bad. There are too many people on the main street, and we’re short-handed. Even if we want to maintain order, it’s very difficult. If…”
Jiang Langxing didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone understood his meaning.
Today was a Fast-breaking day, and it was understandable that there were many people. The fear was that among these people, there might be some with ill intentions.
If someone were to cause trouble on this day, even if they wanted to investigate, it would be very difficult.
Maintaining order was one problem, but now, Shen Du and Zhuyan seemed to have thought of an even more serious issue.
A flash of insight struck Zhuyan’s mind. She felt as if she had overlooked certain aspects of the case, and now she finally found some connections.
Why did the bodies appear at regular intervals? Why were the hearts missing from the bodies? Why were the faces of the female victims destroyed?
The timing of these bodies’ appearances and the method of the crimes seemed like some kind of ritual. So if they calculated the dates…