Young Master Pei looked at Xie Fifty’s expression and his anger flared.

Was this guy backing out?

Was he even human?

“There’s nothing to think about. As long as we’re careful, there won’t be any major problems.”

Young Master Pei was so disappointed in him. “Besides, if we back out and only the two of them are left, how can they investigate this case?”

“You’re right.”

Xie Zhifei strode out of the study. “I’ll go tell her.”

“Hey, come back here!”

It should be me going to tell her!

Young Master Pei ground his teeth. Damn it, how did he steal the initiative again?

In the courtyard, osmanthus flowers bloomed in full glory.

The moment Xie Zhifei walked out, Yan Sanhe turned around. She’d heard the conversation in the room clearly.

“I sent Tang Mingyue off early this morning. After investigating something as big as Old Censor’s case to get to the bottom of it, I believe we can do the same with the Zheng family case.”

Xie Zhifei moved slightly closer, saying gently, “Nothing I asked you to do has ever scared me.”

“Then let’s begin.”

Yan Sanhe lifted her foot to head to the study, but was stopped by Xie Zhifei.

“By the way, what do you think of Tang Mingyue?”

“Think what?” Yan Sanhe paused.

“Her appearance, personality, character—what do you think?”

“Not bad—quite a sensible girl.”

Xie Zhifei thought of something and suddenly smiled. “I found her somewhat familiar, as if I’d seen her somewhere before.”

Yan Sanhe looked at him with some confusion.

Xie Zhifei moved aside to clear the path. “I was just making conversation. No other meaning.”

“Then let’s get down to business.”

Yan Sanhe walked past him. Xie Zhifei watched her profile and suddenly felt his heart stir.

“Xiaoyou.”

No one answered.

No one turned around.

She continued walking inside as if she hadn’t heard.

“Yan Sanhe.”

Yan Sanhe stopped with a click, turned her head. “What?”

Xie Zhifei stared at her intently, watching the expression on her face. After a long while, he smiled lazily.

“Nothing. Just wanted to call your name.”

What’s wrong with him!

Yan Sanhe turned and walked away.

…

The door closed again.

Yan Sanhe wasted no more words, picked up the first case file, and read word by word.

The room fell quiet.

Li Buyan propped her chin boredly, yawning one after another.

Huang Qi’s gaze alternated between Li Buyan and the window, finally simply standing up to go guard the door outside.

Some people were destined to be unattainable. Rather than look and be unable to see, he’d rather go blow in the cold wind outside.

Ding Yi followed him out. He needed to ask Huang Qi what exactly had happened in the three months he was away.

Zhu Qing added some hot tea to everyone’s bowls and began meditating.

Xie Zhifei reclined lazily on the chaise lounge, his gaze somewhat unfocused, not knowing what he was thinking about.

Only Young Master Pei silently stood behind Yan Sanhe, looking down at each character in the case file.

He recognized each character individually, but when strung together he had no idea what they meant.

His attention was all on Yan Sanhe’s pale, delicate neck, even feeling an impulse to reach out, pinch it, and rub it.

Speaking of which, did she have any feelings for him at all?

Always being so secretive wasn’t a solution. He needed to think of something.

After finishing one volume, Yan Sanhe turned and handed the case file to Young Master Pei. “Standing is tiring. Sit down and read—look carefully.”

She has feelings.

Definitely has feelings for me!

Young Master Pei’s heart leaped with joy. Taking it, as he passed Li Buyan, he gave her a knuckle rap.

“What are you sleeping for? Come look together.”

That single rap woke Li Buyan completely.

She bared her teeth, cursing “bastard” in her heart, but ultimately still poked her head over to look.

After a few characters, she wanted to sleep again. This damn case file was even more sleep-inducing than a lullaby.

“Third Master Xie, don’t slack off—come look too.”

Xie Zhifei glanced at her. Li Buyan was so provoked by the disdain in that look she wanted to curse. “Why don’t you have to look?”

Xie Zhifei coldly replied with four words.

“I can recite it backwards.”

…

They read until the fourth watch.

When the last page closed, Yan Sanhe raised her head, her gaze sweeping left and right.

“Looking for me?”

The voice fell from overhead. Yan Sanhe was clearly startled. “Why are you standing behind me?”

“Just moved here.”

Xie Zhifei walked opposite her. “Did you notice any problems?”

Yan Sanhe passed the last case volume to Young Master Pei. “You read on. I need to organize my thoughts.”

With that, she rose from the grand chair and went to the courtyard to pace slowly, circling again and again.

Xie Zhifei followed out, lifted his long robe rather inelegantly, and sat on the threshold, his gaze tracking that figure.

She’d spent nearly an hour and a half reading through the three case files.

During the reading, her expression was extremely calm, frowning only three times. If she knew she was Zheng Huaiyou, she shouldn’t be so calm.

Was Yan Sanhe calm?

Her back molars nearly ached from clenching.

But reason told her to stay calm, to treat it as resolving an unrelated person’s heart demon.

But her chest still felt tight, so tight she couldn’t breathe.

That’s why she’d rushed out of the study to use her most habitual method—thinking about the case while alleviating the suffocating feeling that came crashing over her.

After walking who knows how many circles, she stopped and turned her head to look at Xie Zhifei.

When their eyes met, Xie Zhifei’s eyes brightened like clouds parting to reveal the sun.

Yet in the next instant, Yan Sanhe gently shook her head.

“No problems?” He blurted out.

Yan Sanhe was slow to speak. Not until Xie Zhifei nervously stood up involuntarily did she lightly expel two words from her lips—

“None!”

The resolute certainty in her tone made Xie Zhifei’s heart jump twice, the disappointment in his eyes impossible to hide.

“How can there be no problems?”

“Use your brain, Third Master. This case happened nine years ago. How many people have seen, examined, and verified these case files?”

Yan Sanhe laughed coldly.

“If I could spot problems at first glance, why would Wu Guanyue and his son have been wrongly accused all these years? Why would Wu Shunian have died in melancholy?”

She walked before him. “Having no problems—that’s what makes sense.”

“I apologize. I was too hasty.”

Xie Zhifei had replied to Li Buyan with the four words “I can recite it backwards,” which actually wasn’t an exaggeration at all.

All these years, he’d turned these case files over and over in his mind who knows how many times. The answer he could reach was also: no problems.

His face showed some remorse. “I was thinking you were Yan Sanhe.”

“Yan Sanhe is also human.”

Yan Sanhe said leisurely, “Also needs to take things step by step, slowly.”

The Zheng family’s massacre case wasn’t actually complicated.

Time: The fifteenth day of the seventh month, Yonghe year eight, second quarter of the hour of the Ox.

Location: Four Lanes Alley, Zheng residence.

People: Several black-clad men wielding broad swords, and one hundred eighty people from the Zheng household.

Course of events:

The black-clad men scouted beforehand, putting knockout drugs in all the Zheng residence wells. Once the entire household fell into deep sleep, they began their methodical slaughter.

Everywhere they went, they encountered almost no resistance.

Only three places were exceptions.