A dark shadow moved swiftly, landing on Jiang Si’s arm.
Jiang Si reached out to rub the shadow’s head, sighing, “Er-niu, why are you here?”
This shadow was none other than Er-niu, whom she hadn’t seen for some time.
Seeing Er-niu affectionately nuzzling her with its nose, Jiang Si felt both exasperated and amused. It was fortunate that she had detected the familiar scent early on. Had it been any other girl walking in the garden in the dead of night, suddenly pounced upon by a dark shadow, she would likely have been frightened half to death.
“Woof woof,” Er-niu whined pleadingly.
“Come with me first,” Jiang Si stroked Er-niu’s head, knowing they shouldn’t linger, and continued walking forward.
Passing through the moon gate, the Heir’s quarters were quiet, with only the red lanterns along the corridor still lit, casting a soft orange glow.
The entire courtyard of the Heir’s quarters was bathed in this gentle orange light, a stark contrast to the terrifying and thrilling atmosphere of the garden, as if it were another world entirely.
The woman and the dog quickly entered the eastern wing.
Thanks to the secret knock-out powder, Jiang Si wasn’t worried about the two maids, and Jiang Qiao suddenly woke up. After entering the room, she first washed her hands and then led Er-niu to the unoccupied eastern side room.
The eastern side room was slightly larger and more spacious than the western one, but the layout was essentially the same.
Jiang Si sat down without lighting a lamp, observing Er-niu in the light filtering through the window.
“Woof,” Er-niu barked once.
The large dog seemed to understand the current situation well, knowing to lower its voice even when barking affectionately.
“Er-niu, how did you end up here?”
Er-niu stepped forward, suddenly raising its two front legs to stand upright.
Jiang Si immediately noticed that besides the official tag Er-niu already had around its neck, there was now a small silk pouch.
Er-niu, no matter how clever, couldn’t have hung the pouch there itself, which meant this pouch must be from… Yu Qi.
Realizing this, Jiang Si hesitated for a moment.
“Woof woof.” Er-niu wagged its tail vigorously and pushed its large muzzle forward, clearly urging Jiang Si to quickly remove the pouch.
Jiang Si paused, then took off the pouch, inwardly amused at the irony: how peculiar that tonight she had received two pouches, one from a female corpse and one from Er-niu, neither from a normal source.
Inside the pouch was a neatly folded square of paper with a simple sentence written on it: “The Heir of Marquis Changxing is not a good person. Leave as soon as possible.”
The signature at the end was a single character: “Jin.”
As expected, this was indeed a message Yu Qi had sent through Er-niu.
Jiang Si had originally resolved to distance herself from Yu Jin, but seeing this sentence on the paper suddenly piqued her curiosity.
How did Yu Qi know that the Heir of Marquis Changxing wasn’t a good person? Could it be that he had witnessed the Heir privately abducting commoner girls?
Thinking this, Jiang Si suddenly felt the urge to meet with Yu Jin.
If Yu Qi had evidence of the Heir’s crimes, it would be much easier for her to bring the Heir to justice.
She decided to meet with Yu Qi after leaving the Marquis Changxing’s residence.
Having made up her mind, Jiang Si rubbed Er-niu’s thick fur. “I’ve received the pouch. You can go back now.”
Er-niu looked at Jiang Si and sat down.
Jiang Si was taken aback, then smiled. “Don’t worry, your master will know I’ve received it when he sees the pouch is gone.”
Er-niu simply lay down on the ground, lazily sweeping its tail.
“Do you need a reply?” Jiang Si asked in surprise.
Yu Qi’s message contained only a warning; her receiving it was enough. There was no need for a reply.
The large dog glanced at Jiang Si again, then pressed its face to the ground.
So it wasn’t asking for a reply.
Jiang Si studied Er-niu, trying to decipher its meaning.
Er-niu, seemingly dissatisfied that Jiang Si hadn’t guessed quickly enough, swept its tail irritably, then placed its face on its front paws and closed its eyes.
Jiang Si: “…”
“Er-niu, are you planning to stay?”
Er-niu barked twice.
“That won’t do. You’ll be discovered very quickly if you stay here.” Jiang Si frowned, her dissatisfaction with Yu Qi growing. It must have been that scoundrel’s instructions!
Er-niu leisurely walked to the window and leaped out in one bound.
A moment later, the dog’s front paws appeared on the outer windowsill, its furry head poking through.
The meaning was clear: it intended to make its home under the window, and would only leave when Jiang Si did.
“Er-niu, go back now,” Jiang Si said helplessly.
Er-niu looked at Jiang Si, then retreated into the foliage outside the window, pressing its head to the ground and covering its eyes with its front paws.
Not listening, not listening!
Jiang Si: “…”
She’d have to have a serious talk with Yu Qi about this later!
Giving up on persuading Er-niu to leave, Jiang Si closed the window and returned to the western side room.
On the bed, Jiang Qiao was still sound asleep. The knock-out powder should keep her sleeping until dawn.
Jiang Si sat in a chair and took out the pouch she had obtained from the female corpse.
The material of the pouch wasn’t particularly fine, but it wasn’t cheap either. A girl wearing such a pouch likely wasn’t from a poor background.
Jiang Si opened the pouch, and a small safety charm fell out.
She picked up the charm and examined it closely.
The front of the charm reads “Peace and Good Fortune,” while the back has three small characters: “Lingwu Temple.”
Jiang Si had never heard of Lingwu Temple.
It was precisely because she hadn’t heard of it that she felt a glimmer of hope.
Small temples without much fame often attracted worshippers from nearby areas, which could narrow down the search area.
Just like Miss Xiu, the tofu seller’s daughter, whose disappearance would surely have caused a stir in her family.
From the conversation between the two servants, it was clear that at least seven or eight girls had been buried under the peonies in the past two years. But as time passed and beauty turned to bones, it became difficult to find any clues from their remains. Therefore, Miss Xiu’s daughter and the girl who died tonight were key to exposing the Heir of Marquis Changxing.
She needed to quickly identify the girl who died tonight and locate Miss Xiu’s residence.
This being the case, there was indeed no need to stay at the Marquis Changxing’s residence any longer. Previously, she hadn’t been sure when she could bring the Heir to justice and feared that if Jiang Qiao insisted on leaving, it might bring trouble upon them. But now, if she had some time to contact the families of the two girls, she could expose the Heir’s true nature. At that point, she wouldn’t have to worry about Jiang Qiao being innocently implicated.
Having planned all this, Jiang Si changed her clothes again and lay down beside Jiang Qiao, soon falling into a deep sleep.
The moon slipped behind the clouds. In a house with a crooked jujube tree in front of its gate on Quezi Hutong, Yu Jin sat at a stone table under a tree in the courtyard, absently holding a white jade wine cup.
Why had she suddenly gone to the Marquis Changxing’s residence?
He wondered if she would heed the warning and leave that place soon after seeing the pouch Er-niu had brought…
Thinking of the obvious wariness and distance in the young woman’s eyes whenever she saw him, Yu Jin sighed deeply.
She probably wouldn’t listen.
Fortunately, he had anticipated this and instructed Er-niu to stay there.
Er-niu had one good quality: its thick skin was even more impenetrable than his own.
At this thought, Yu Jin’s lips finally curved into a smile.