The journey had been bumpy the whole way, and neither of them had managed a full night’s sleep. Now that they had finished washing up, having a little time to rest was a rare luxury.

But the rest was not long before Yuan Wenkui arrived with a servant in tow.

Yuan Wenkui cupped his hands in greeting toward the two of them: “My benefactors, please forgive me if I have been lacking in hospitality.”

Shi Ting said, “Old Master Yuan, you are too kind. We only need a brief rest, then we’ll be on our way.”

“Where have the two of you come from?” After seating them, Yuan Wenkui personally poured the tea.

“We came from Qian Pass. Our master runs a coal mining business, and this time he sent the two of us to Qianjin County to inquire about the local bandit situation. The road through Dagu Mountain is the only route for transporting minerals out of Qian Pass. Word is that bandits run rampant there and many merchants have had their goods stolen. Our master is simply taking precautions.”

Yuan Wenkui slapped his thigh. “You’ve come to the right person. Nobody knows those Dagu Mountain bandits better than I do.”

Shi Ting said respectfully, “We humbly ask for Old Master Yuan’s guidance.”

Yuan Wenkui stroked the sparse strands of his beard, sitting up straight. “I have lived all these years with only one daughter, a girl called Xiu’er. I doted on her like the flesh of my own heart. I had planned to find her a good family in Qianjin County to marry into, so she could live in comfort and luxury for the rest of her days. What I never expected was that one year, Xiu’er went to watch the lantern festival and came home afterward in a daze. Half a year later, she suddenly told me she wanted to get married. I asked about the family, and she said they were of ordinary means. I had always doted on her and never refused her requests, but marriage is a serious matter — I could not be too hasty. So I had someone look into it, and what I found was shocking: the young man Xiu’er had set her heart on was a bandit.”

At the memory, Old Master Yuan showed signs of deep distress. “How could I let Xiu’er marry a bandit? That’s the kind of livelihood where you carry your head on your belt. And what good is a bandit — they either kill or steal. I set my heart firmly against letting Xiu’er marry him, but Xiu’er had a mind of her own. She took advantage of the family being off guard and slipped out through the back gate.”

Yan Qing thought to herself that this Xiu’er had been truly fearless in the name of love — she just wasn’t sure how things had turned out.

Old Master Yuan continued, “Where Xiu’er had gone, I had no idea. I sent people to search for a long time with no results. Then, after about a year, Xiu’er had someone bring back word that she had married and was now living in Shuanghe Town.”

Shuanghe Town lay across a river from Qianjin County. It was the town closest to Dagu Mountain, where Liu Qingnian was stationed — and the very place Shi Ting was heading this time.

“She said her husband’s family name was Ning and that he treated her extremely well. They had bought a three-courtyard compound in Shuanghe Town and lived comfortably. She told me not to worry.” Old Master Yuan sighed. “But how could I not worry? After receiving the letter I went to Shuanghe Town once and met my son-in-law. Though he was a bandit, he was a handsome and capable man who truly treated my daughter well. Well — since she was already married, what could I say? I could only let them live their lives peacefully.”

“And then?”

“A year later, Xiu’er said she was with child.”

“Is that the child from earlier?”

Old Master Yuan nodded. “When I heard she was pregnant, I had a gold locket made. In the center of the locket I had the character for ‘Ning’ engraved, and I sent it over.”

When he thought of his daughter, Old Master Yuan’s face filled with sorrow. “I never imagined I would meet my grandson under these circumstances.”

Shi Ting said, “At the time, the woman was carrying the child when she found us. I saw blood on the soles of her shoes, and someone was pursuing her to kill her. Has Old Master Yuan sent anyone to Shuanghe Town to check? Something may have happened at your daughter’s home.”

Old Master Yuan was visibly shocked at this — he clearly had not yet considered the possibility.

“You are absolutely right, benefactor. I will send someone to Shuanghe Town immediately. Please, both of you, stay here and I’ll have someone see to your needs properly.”

With that, Old Master Yuan left in hurried steps.

Once he was gone, Yan Qing said, “Is it appropriate for us to stay here?”

“Let’s stay for now. We may be able to gather some information from Old Master Yuan.” Shi Ting took her hand and looked at her noticeably dusty, disheveled appearance. He wanted to laugh but felt guilty — she really hadn’t needed to accompany him on this dangerous venture.

“You haven’t had a proper night’s sleep in days. Old Master Yuan isn’t paying attention to us right now. Sleep for a while — by nightfall there may be some news.”

“Alright.” Yan Qing was truly exhausted. From all the traveling, she felt as though blisters were forming on the soles of her feet.

The two of them lay down on the bed fully clothed and fell asleep quickly.

By the time darkness had fallen, the chirping of crickets drifted in through the window, and the calls of summer insects gave the still night a faint breath of life.

Shi Ting was not sleeping deeply. He opened his eyes at the sound of footsteps.

He glanced to the side — Yan Qing was still asleep. He leaned down and gently kissed her on the forehead, then lifted the blanket and tucked it around her.

He got out of bed, put on his shoes, and pushed open the door to go out.

The Yuan Mansion was indeed in chaos. Servants ran in all directions throughout the courtyard, lanterns swinging, some crying, some shouting — someone who didn’t know better would have thought the house was being searched and confiscated.

Shi Ting walked straight into a servant coming the other way. The servant looked frantic, but recognized him at once. “Benefactor, it’s you.”

“What’s happened in the household?” Shi Ting asked.

The servant said in a panicked rush, “Something terrible has happened! Something terrible! The young mistress and her whole family have been killed.”

Shi Ting raised an eyebrow. “The young mistress? You mean the master’s daughter? The mother of that child from earlier today?”

“Yes, yes, exactly — the young mistress.” Seeing that he knew their young mistress, the servant willingly explained further. “The master was worried, so he had someone run over to Shuanghe Town. When they arrived at the young mistress’s compound, they found bodies everywhere — from the family members to the servants, an entire courtyard full of the dead.”

“Do they know who did it?”

“Someone looked into it. Word is that early this morning, before daylight, a gang of bandits stormed the compound and killed without a word — not a single survivor left.”

“Did someone witness this with their own eyes?”

“The neighbors on all sides saw it. It can’t be false.” The servant stamped his foot. “The master was against the young mistress marrying a bandit all along, and now disaster has come upon her. A whole family of over ten people — thank heavens the little young master got away.”

“What is your son-in-law’s name?”

“Our son-in-law’s surname is Qiao, given name Yi Shan. He is said to be the bandit chief of Dagu Mountain.” The servant glanced at the commotion in the courtyard. “Benefactor, I can’t keep talking with you — just look at this chaos inside. The master doesn’t know how he’ll cope. They’ll need to send people over to collect the bodies and report it to the authorities. Oh dear, oh dear — how did things come to this.”

Shi Ting strode back to the room. Yan Qing was already awake, sitting at the head of the bed and looking at him.

“Qing Qing, we need to go to Shuanghe Town.” His eyes were bright with alertness. “That Xiu’er’s husband is called Qiao Yishan. According to the intelligence gathered from Liu Qingnian’s side, the bandit chief of Dagu Mountain is a man by that very name.”

“What a coincidence.” Yan Qing was also startled, and hurriedly picked up her hat to tuck her hair under it. “Let’s go quickly then.”

“Old Master Yuan should be heading to Shuanghe Town himself. We’ll follow along and act as the situation demands.”

“Alright.”

The two dressed and headed to Old Master Yuan’s courtyard. Old Master Yuan had cried until his eyes were swollen red, with his concubines around him — some comforting him, others giving directions.

“Old Master Yuan, are you going to Shuanghe Town?” Shi Ting stepped forward.

“My daughter has died a violent death. I will see justice done for her.” Old Master Yuan slammed the table hard.

Shi Ting said, “My younger brother studied some medicine before. If Old Master Yuan doesn’t mind, the two of us would be glad to accompany you.”

“Good, good, good.” Old Master Yuan seized Shi Ting’s hand with great emotion. “Benefactor, truly, I thank you.”

“Master, everything is packed and ready to go,” a servant stepped forward and announced.

And so, Old Master Yuan led his people in a grand procession to the boats and set off for Shuanghe Town.

By daylight, the Shuanghe Town dock was already within sight.

Shi Ting gently shook Yan Qing’s shoulder. “Qing Qing, we’ve arrived.”

The Yuan family’s boat was large and steady, and Yan Qing had slept soundly the entire way. As she opened her eyes, she saw the sky breaking into dawn and a warm morning light spreading over the surface of the river.

Such a quiet morning, yet because everyone’s spirits were heavy, it carried an unavoidable note of sorrow.

Upon arriving at the Ning family door, someone stepped forward and pushed open the gate. As the doors swung open, a wave of thick, bloody air hit them in the face.

Both Shi Ting and Yan Qing had seen the scenes of extermination cases before — the extermination of the Chen and Xu families remained unsolved and had always weighed on both their hearts.

But in those cases, the victims had all died from a sharp blade to the throat — while cruel, a single fatal cut at least reduced suffering.

The Ning household, however, was not something one could bear to look at directly. The men had been hacked to death with multiple blades, severed hands and feet scattered about. Every woman had been stripped of clothing, all having been violated while still alive.

Old Master Yuan had never witnessed such a scene. He only managed one look from the doorway before his eyes rolled back and he fainted. The servant behind him rushed to catch him.

Everyone else was trembling with fear, unwilling to go in.

Shi Ting and Yan Qing stepped past the others and entered the scene. The heavy stench of blood made their stomachs heave.

“The variety of weapons used.” Yan Qing examined the wounds of the victims and concluded. “Multiple perpetrators.”

With multiple perpetrators, the connection to the Chen and Xu family cases was ruled out.

Yan Qing had never seen such a brutal crime scene before. She felt a lingering dread at the savagery of the killers.

“This should be Old Master Yuan’s daughter.” Shi Ting found a body in the east chamber. The woman was dressed in fine clothing, though her garments had been torn open, her hands were bound behind her back, and blood had pooled across the floor beneath her.

“A sharp weapon pierced her heart. Death by massive blood loss.” Yan Qing crouched down and gently closed the woman’s eyes, which had been left wide open in death.

“I’ll go find a couple of people to arrange the bodies.” Shi Ting said.

Though most of the people Yuan Wenkui had brought were scared half to death, a few were bold enough to follow Shi Ting’s direction and gathered the bodies together, separating men from women and laying them out side by side in rows.

Judging from the clothing, Shi Ting determined that the compound had four family members: two elderly, and two women. Everyone else was servants.

“Old Master Yuan, please come and identify them. Is your daughter here among them?” Shi Ting looked toward the grief-stricken Yuan Wenkui.