Did he have the nerve to ask that?
Yan Sanhe snorted coldly, stood up and walked outside.
“Apart from wasting time explaining things to you here, every other moment I’m working on the actual matter.”
Pei Xiao’s expression cracked somewhat.
Ji Lingchuan said in a low voice: “Stop meddling!”
“Uncle, who am I doing this for?”
Ji Lingchuan glared at him. “Stop talking and follow quickly!”
In the courtyard, Xie Zhifei approached, looking at Yan Sanhe. “Any discoveries?”
“Miss, Miss…”
Just then, Li Buyan swept in like a gust of wind.
Seeing everyone standing in the courtyard, her mouth curved in a sweet smile. She walked to Yan Sanhe’s side and whispered a few words while covering her mouth.
After listening, Yan Sanhe turned to look at Li Buyan.
Li Buyan nodded slightly.
Pei Xiao’s expression cracked again—
Bodhisattva, what riddles are these two mystics playing? Can’t they just speak openly?
Damn it, I really want to know!
“Miss Yan?”
Ji Lingchuan was equally curious.
Yan Sanhe looked at him sideways, saying coldly: “First to Heart Lake.”
“May I come to Heart Lake?” Xie Zhifei, who had been left aside, smiled.
Yan Sanhe raised an eyebrow. “Is Commander Xie very idle?”
“Not exactly very idle.”
Xie Zhifei rubbed his chin, smiling again: “Mainly it’s nearly mealtime. I was hoping to request a meal from Uncle Ji.”
The old lady wouldn’t have hidden any secrets at Heart Lake.
Ji Lingchuan quickly said: “Together, together.”
Seeing the victim himself didn’t mind, Yan Sanhe naturally wouldn’t say more. After exchanging a glance with Li Buyan, the two walked side by side toward the exit.
Xie Zhifei grabbed Pei Xiao by the scruff of his neck, pressing his voice low: “Any discoveries?”
“Nothing!”
…
Yan Sanhe had originally thought Heart Lake was just a small river dug out in the Ji residence’s back garden. When she actually saw it, she was greatly surprised.
It was actually quite a large body of water, with a levee in the middle and even a small bridge built on the levee.
Ji Lingchuan pointed to a waterside pavilion by the shore: “The old lady loved to sit there. She’d sit for half the day.”
Yan Sanhe asked: “When was this Heart Lake constructed?”
Ji Lingchuan: “About seven years ago. Previously it was a flower garden. The old lady said water represents wealth, so I had people dig this lake.”
On the side, Xie Zhifei and Pei Xiao exchanged a glance.
The Crown Prince had entrusted canal transport to Ji Lingchuan about seven years ago as well. He must have started embezzling then—otherwise, where would he get the silver to dig such a large lake?
“Buyan, you stay here with them. I’m going to look at the waterside pavilion.”
“Miss Yan, wait a moment. I’ll accompany you.”
An arm blocked the way.
Li Buyan smiled: “Minister Ji, you needn’t follow.”
“This…”
Ji Lingchuan looked at Pei Xiao and Xie Zhifei, somewhat at a loss.
After a moment’s hesitation, Xie Zhifei decided to get to the bottom of it: “Why can’t we follow?”
“Because…”
Li Buyan blinked. “The turbid energy on men’s bodies would affect my young miss’s thinking?”
The men: “…”
Pei Xiao realized she was cursing them in a roundabout way and grew furious. “Li Buyan…”
“I was joking. Why would Master Pei take it seriously? Stay calm, stay calm!”
Stay calm??
Pei Xiao roared inwardly.
Bodhisattva, is there still room in Leifeng Pagoda by West Lake?
Quickly trap this mystic under it!
Amitabha!
…
The waterside pavilion was built quite exquisitely—for enjoying willows in summer’s cool, for warming and admiring snow in winter. It was an elegant place.
Yan Sanhe stood by the water’s edge, her brow tightly furrowed.
Just now Li Buyan had whispered three things in her ear:
First, the Ji residence truly kept no dogs, though several cats had been seen.
Second, the small garden behind the old lady’s courtyard didn’t grow flowers but vegetables. Because no one tended it, it had grown wild.
Third: The old lady hadn’t always lived in that courtyard—she’d only moved there about eight or nine years ago.
The vegetable garden showed that when the old lady was a young girl, her family circumstances were poor. Even in old age, she couldn’t learn the refinement of capital ladies who never touched spring water with their five fingers, only loving to admire flowers and moon.
The courtyard matter raised more doubts for Yan Sanhe:
Logically, elderly people who grew accustomed to a place rarely moved.
Had the old lady truly moved just because she liked that bamboo grove?
Or was there another reason?
If another reason, what could it be?
The process of dissolving obsessions and demons was like peeling an onion, layer by layer revealing a person’s clearest true face—a face that might be beautiful, ugly, or both.
“Old Lady, what kind of person were you really?”
At this moment, Yan Sanhe truly became interested in Lady Hu.
At this moment, Xie Zhifei’s eyes fixed.
She stood by the water, her grayish-blue single robe moving with the wind, just like the lone star at the edge of heaven at daybreak—from afar appearing so solitary, yet so transcendent.
The “lone star” walked toward them, coming before Ji Lingchuan.
“Miss Yan, any discoveries?”
“Heart Lake is very beautiful.”
Ji Lingchuan: “…”
Yan Sanhe looked at him and suddenly asked: “How many people in the residence know about the old lady’s coffin lid not closing?”
Ji Lingchuan hadn’t expected Yan Sanhe would suddenly ask this.
“I told no one. The few old servants watching the gravesite were also transferred from the estate. They’ve followed me for many years—their mouths are tight.”
“Uncle, you really can keep your composure. If it were me…”
“So aside from you, no one else in the Ji residence currently knows about this, including your wife?”
Yan Sanhe finished speaking and glanced at Pei Xiao: Why does this brat love interrupting so much?
Pei Xiao silently rolled his eyes: Why does this mystic love cutting people off so much?
Ji Lingchuan broke into another cold sweat. Gritting his teeth, he said: “To be honest with Miss Yan, since I was dismissed from office, people in the residence have been panicking. The matter of dissolving obsessions and demons is too strange. I…”
Yan Sanhe: “You’re also afraid of exposing some of the old lady’s private matters, aren’t you?”
Ji Lingchuan’s innermost thoughts exposed, his face showed helplessness. “She is my mother after all. What if…”
Yan Sanhe: “Your thinking isn’t wrong.”
“Ah?”
This “ah” escaped simultaneously from Ji Lingchuan and Pei Xiao’s mouths.
“Now we face a problem.”
Yan Sanhe: “You’ve burned all the old lady’s belongings, not leaving the slightest clue. To feel out the truth bit by bit, I need to question three groups of people.”
“One group are those who served the old lady. Another group are the closest sons and daughters-in-law. And another group are the younger generation like Mingting.”
Xie Zhifei: “Miss Yan, am I correct?”
Yan Sanhe: “So you don’t need to sunbathe!” Your brain works fine.
Xie Zhifei’s expression carried some roguish charm: “Many thanks for the praise.”
Yan Sanhe had no time for banter with him.
“I’m an insignificant outsider. Without the mystique of being a mystic, many people won’t tell the truth and will grow suspicious. Master Pei, don’t you agree?”
Master Pei strongly suspected she was pointing at him!
Pei Xiao snorted: “Indeed not much deterrent power, and indeed easy to make people suspicious!”
“So!”
Yan Sanhe’s icy gaze fell on Ji Lingchuan again.
“You must make a choice: either reveal everything openly, or continue hiding it for the sake of face. The former saves time and effort. The latter—we’ll walk many unnecessary detours.”
Ji Lingchuan’s expression grew grave, his brow twisted tightly together. He couldn’t speak for a long time.
“I have an idea. I don’t know if it’s feasible?”
All eyes turned to Third Master Xie. Third Master met Ji Lingchuan’s puzzled gaze: “Does Uncle Ji trust me?”
This question was even harder for Ji Lingchuan to answer.
“If Uncle Ji trusts me, I’ll say this is a Military Patrol Bureau investigation. This way, we can both ensure they tell the truth and prevent them from growing suspicious.”
Xie Zhifei smiled leisurely at Yan Sanhe.
“What does Miss Yan think?”