Under everyone’s gaze, Miss Li retreated behind Young Master Li.
Young Master Li looked somewhat displeased: “Your Honor, regardless of who the murderer is, it has absolutely nothing to do with my sister and me. My sister is timid, so please don’t frighten her.”
The County Magistrate stared at Young Master Li, then suddenly smiled: “In my years of handling cases, I’ve gained one insight. When a murder occurs, anyone connected to the case is never entirely irrelevant. I hope Young Master Li and Miss Li will cooperate fully.”
“We’ve already said that someone spread false information, otherwise how would we have gotten involved!”
“But with so many devout men and women coming to worship at Lingwu Temple, why would false information be spread specifically to the Li family?” The County Magistrate ignored Young Master Li and instead fixed his gaze on Miss Li, who was hiding behind him. “Miss Li, you knew the deceased Liu Sheng, didn’t you?”
Miss Li’s body trembled, and her face turned pale.
“Your Honor, what do you mean? How could my sister know the deceased?” Young Master Li emphasized his dissatisfaction.
Although local customs were open-minded, and in towns like Qingniu and Da Yang, it wasn’t uncommon for unmarried young women to meet with men they fancied, and people might even turn a blind eye to more improper behavior, being involved in a murder case and questioned openly by an official in front of so many people was quite unsightly.
The County Magistrate paid no mind to Young Master Li’s attitude and smiled slightly: “Miss Li, I’d like to hear what you have to say.”
Miss Li bit her lip hard, her face was deathly pale. Her dry lips trembled incessantly, seeming to be in great inner turmoil.
“Your Honor, my sister is just a young woman. She’s already frightened by witnessing such an event. Please don’t pressure her further!”
The County Magistrate finally hardened his expression and pointed at Jiang Si: “This young lady is also a woman, so why is she so calm?”
His words were meant to be rhetorical, to silence Young Master Li, but unexpectedly, the girl he pointed at smiled gently and spoke calmly: “Because I have a clear conscience. If you do no wrong during the day, you won’t be startled by a knock at night. I’m not guilty of anything, so when I encounter such a thing, I only feel pity for the victim. Why would I be afraid?”
“Well said!” Jiang Zhan felt his sister’s words were refreshing and clapped his hands.
Yu Jin curved his lips to suppress a smile, his gaze lingering on the young woman’s face.
The County Magistrate was stunned. He looked at Jiang Si carefully and praised: “The young lady indeed speaks well.”
Ahem, he hadn’t expected to encounter such a formidable young girl today, who had effectively silenced the Li family’s son.
With the young lady speaking thus, if the Li family’s son continued to prevent questioning, it would only make Miss Li seem guilty.
Sure enough, after Jiang Si spoke, Young Master Li opened his mouth several times but couldn’t utter a word. Miss Li’s face changed color several times before she finally spoke: “I… I did know Young Master Liu…”
Seeing the County Magistrate listening attentively, she bit her lip and explained: “But only as an acquaintance…”
“May I ask how Miss Li came to know him?” The County Magistrate, well-versed in the art of not rushing things, kept his tone steady.
“I often come to stay at Lingwu Temple for short periods, and sometimes I would encounter Young Master Liu here. We gradually became acquainted…” Miss Li glanced nervously at the County Magistrate and quickly added, “We weren’t close!”
The County Magistrate looked towards Xuan Ci and the other monks: “Did Liu Sheng come to Lingwu Temple often?”
The guest-receiving monk said: “He would occasionally stay for a few days.”
“Since Liu Sheng was from Qingniu Town, why would he stay at the temple?”
The guest-receiving monk couldn’t help but look towards Xuan Ci.
Xuan Ci explained: “Some pilgrims enjoy the tranquility of the temple, while others like to taste the temple’s vegetarian cuisine. So even local people sometimes stay for short periods.”
At the mention of “vegetarian cuisine,” not only did Jiang Zhan’s face pale, but several of the staying pilgrims looked even more miserable.
“Your Honor, the coroner has completed the initial examination.”
“Bring him in.”
Soon, the coroner entered: “Greetings, Your Honor.”
The County Magistrate nodded, signaling the coroner to speak.
The coroner, clearly familiar with such situations, spoke concisely without looking at the others: “The deceased’s eyes are protruding, there are clear strangulation marks on the neck, and a stone was tied to his back. The preliminary conclusion is that he was strangled to death and then tied with stones to sink the body. The murderer is likely a man.”
“How can you be certain it was a man?”
The coroner answered: “The deceased’s nails are broken, indicating a fierce struggle. To strangle such a not-so-weak young man to death and then tie stones to sink the body would be difficult for a woman to have the physical strength to do.”
“What about the time of death?”
“Approximately between yesterday afternoon and the hour of You (5-7 PM).”
When Jiang Zhan heard the County Magistrate ask about the time of death, he instinctively became a bit nervous, but upon hearing the coroner’s answer, he couldn’t help but smile.
Fortunately, this County Magistrate and coroner weren’t incompetent.
“Very well, please go and examine the body more thoroughly.”
The coroner withdrew.
The County Magistrate’s gaze swept over everyone present, his face revealing nothing: “Now that we’ve roughly determined the time of death, Jiang Er can be temporarily cleared of suspicion—”
Si Hai couldn’t help interrupting the County Magistrate: “Maybe Jiang Er came yesterday! With so many pilgrims coming to Lingwu Temple every day, it would be hard to notice if he blended in.”
Jiang Zhan scoffed: “Nonsense. We only arrived in Qingniu Town yesterday. The innkeeper and staff can testify to that. Oh, and on our way to Qingniu Town yesterday, about ten li from town, there was a melon stand where we bought a few melons from the farmer. If Your Honor has any doubts, you can investigate all of this.”
The County Magistrate nodded and looked at the assembled monks: “These people traveled together, and they would surely have left traces along their journey. A quick investigation will confirm this. For now, I’ll clear Jiang Er of suspicion, mainly because we can’t find a motive for him, and motive is key in murder cases. Moreover, I’ve observed that it would be more discreet to go from the temple’s guest rooms to the back mountain, while it would be very difficult for a non-staying pilgrim to go to the back mountain without being noticed by the temple staff.”
“Then who could be the murderer?” Xuan Ci asked with a grave expression.
“Based on the current information, the murderer must be familiar with the back mountain, so—” the County Magistrate paused, “The most likely suspects are the temple monks or the staying pilgrims.”
“Amitabha, I hope Your Honor will investigate thoroughly and clear our monks’ names,” Xuan Ci said, palms pressed together.
“Of course. I now plan to conduct individual interviews. Please arrange a room for this, Venerable Xuan Ci.” The County Magistrate then smiled at Jiang Zhan and the others, “You can go rest now. If I need anything, I’ll send someone to call for you.”
A separate room was quickly prepared. Jiang Si’s group stood in the long corridor, with no one feeling sleepy at this moment.
“Fourth Sister, Brother Yu, look, the first to be summoned is the staying pilgrims,” Jiang Zhan, now free of suspicion, felt relaxed and was enjoying the spectacle.
Yu Jin smiled: “We’ve all been questioned, so it’s time to question these pilgrims. This official is indeed interesting. He first lets everyone understand the basic situation, then conducts individual interviews for details. He might gain some insights.”
As he spoke, he gently stroked his chin and looked at Jiang Si: “I have a question I want to ask one of the young men left behind by the village head. Want to come along?”