The earring bead had a warm, lustrous sheen, no bigger than half a grain of rice — identical to the pearls on the threaded earring chain Luo Shu had worn the day before.

Though Zhang Huailu was a bit indecisive by nature, he had considerable skill when it came to solving cases.

A single earring bead found lodged in Yao Susu’s teeth proved nothing on its own.

Even if Luo Shu immediately admitted the bead was hers, it could still have been planted by someone else to frame her.

Zhang Huailu said sternly, “Did this official say it was you?”

Then he asked, “Was this the bead you were wearing yesterday?”

Luo Shu nodded, stammering, “This — this is a bead from my earring chain.”

“Then think carefully — did you lose your earring chain anywhere yesterday? Or did someone else touch it? Or perhaps, during your quarrel with the second young miss Yao, did she snatch it from you?”

Luo Shu’s eyes were full of fear. She thought hard for a moment, then said mournfully, “I can’t remember clearly.”

That was understandable — yesterday, she had first discovered Yao Susu and Pei Lan’s tryst, then been pressured by Yao Susu into giving him up. Her mind had been in such turmoil, how could she have paid attention to her own earring chain?

Even if it had truly been torn during the struggle, she wouldn’t have noticed.

“I only remember that when I left home yesterday, the earring chain was intact. When I returned home last night, one of the beads was missing.”

“However,” Luo Shu added after another moment’s thought, “besides Susu, I don’t believe anyone else touched my earrings yesterday.”

Zhang Huailu fell into thought.

Whether what Luo Shu said was true or false remained uncertain, and even if it were true, it wouldn’t be of much use to the case, because he could not draw conclusions based on a single earring bead alone.

Naturally, if Yao Susu really had been killed by Luo Shu, then hiding such a bead in her own mouth just before dying would have been a deliberate act to identify her killer.

But if Yao Susu’s death was not Luo Shu’s doing, and the bead had been planted by the real culprit, then what purpose would that serve? To frame Luo Shu? That seemed unlikely — an earring bead wasn’t a murder weapon, so how could planting it alone frame someone?

Zhang Huailu couldn’t make sense of it.

His instincts told him this case was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. It looked like a crime of passion, and after a rough screening, the only suspects were Luo Shu and Pei Lan — and if it were Pei Lan, it would have to be a hired killing.

But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something about the case was deeply wrong.

Decades of experience as an official had taught Zhang Huailu to steer clear of such a hot potato.

Moreover, the interrogation had reached the point where the next steps would involve corporal punishment and private questioning.

Luo Shu was the daughter of a fourth-rank Household of the Privy Council Academician, and Pei Lan was a general — neither was someone he could afford to subject to torture.

Worse still, this case touched on Yao Susu’s reputation while she was alive, and even if there were hidden details no one knew of, the Yao household would surely not divulge them easily. If he pressed too hard, he risked offending the Privy Councilor himself.

As Zhang Huailu mulled this over, his thoughts drifted from how to close the case to how to quickly wash his hands of it.

As it happened, at that very moment, a constable came to report: “Prefect Zhang, His Highness Prince Yun and Official Yao have arrived!”

No sooner had he spoken than two figures strode quickly through the hall’s entrance. One of them wore a purple-brown python robe, his features strikingly handsome with a charm bordering on effeminate, yet without any hint of softness — instead lending his handsome features an air of roguish allure. This was none other than the current fourth prince, His Highness Prince Yun.

Zhang Huailu rose hastily and, along with Cheng Chang and Cheng Ye, bowed to Prince Yun. He then looked to Yao Hangshan, who stood half a step behind the prince, and offered his condolences. “Official Yao, please accept my deepest sympathies.”

Yao Hangshan, upon hearing of his daughter’s wrongful death, had already wept bitterly in the palace. He had calmed somewhat now, though his eyes were still bloodshot, and he said hoarsely, “Where is Susu? This official… wishes to see her.”

Zhang Huailu said, “The coroner has just finished the examination. The body has been moved to the hall in the back courtyard. Madam Yao has already gone to see her.”

So saying, he signaled to a nearby constable, who obeyed and led Yao Hangshan toward the back courtyard of the yamen.

Zhang Huailu then turned to Prince Yun, asking hesitantly, “May I ask what brings Your Highness here today?”

Prince Yun said, “Father heard that the second young miss of the Yao household has passed away, and that the case implicates both the Pei and Luo households. Given the gravity of the matter, he has ordered this prince to come collect the relevant evidence and case files.”

Prince Yun oversaw the Court of Judicial Review. If he had come personally to collect the files…

“Does His Majesty mean for the case of the second young miss Yao to be transferred to the Court of Judicial Review from now on?”

Prince Yun nodded. “Precisely.”

Zhang Huailu felt as though he’d been granted a pardon. He hurried the clerks and scribes in the hall to organize all the case files and evidence, and while this was underway, he gave Prince Yun a thorough briefing on the general course of the case, the witnesses and suspects involved, and the leads currently available. He managed to send this formidable figure off just before nightfall.

With the case thus temporarily concluded, everyone else naturally began to disperse and go their separate ways.

Yun Xi had been preoccupied all along with the matter of having let the scarred man go the night before, and wanted to explain herself carefully to Cheng Chang. Before she could open her mouth, a constable hurried over and bowed to her. “Constable Yun, Prefect Zhang has heard you’ve been promoted to commandant and would like you to come by his office.”

This was likely so he could help Yun Xi complete the handover of her duties before the imperial decree of promotion arrived at the Marquis’s residence.

Since Zhang Huailu meant well, Yun Xi did not want to refuse him and simply nodded. “Very well.”

She then said to the constable, “Please tell my sister-in-law to wait for me before heading back to the residence.”

She glanced back and saw, unexpectedly, that Cheng Chang was standing still at the entrance of the hall, his eyes on her.

Their gazes met, and he gave her a slight nod. Yun Xi had originally wanted to ask Cheng Chang to wait for her, but on second thought, considering how eventful the night and day had been, and that the third young master hadn’t slept at all, he must be utterly exhausted by now.

Never mind, then — she could simply sleep a little less tonight and rise early tomorrow, making an extra trip to the Censorate before dawn to tell the third young master about the scarred man.

With this thought, she followed the constable to his office.

Sun Haiping and Zhang Dahu had been waiting outside the Capital Prefecture the entire day. Seeing Cheng Chang emerge, they hurried over. “Young Prince, you’re finally out! Shall we head back to the residence, or go find some diversion somewhere?”

Cheng Chang had meant to say they’d return to the residence, but recalling the look on Yun Xi’s face earlier, he paused and said instead, “I’ll wait here a while.”

“Wait? Wait for what?”

Cheng Chang had meant to say he was waiting for Yun Xi, but somehow, when the words reached his lips, he found he couldn’t get them out.

Seeing his young lord fall silent, Sun Haiping didn’t dare press further.

He produced a cattail-leaf fan from somewhere and began fanning Cheng Chang for coolness while chattering, “Heh, Young Prince, you came out a bit late — you missed quite the spectacle!”

“What spectacle?”

“Just now, when the Yao household carried out their daughter’s coffin, Snowball happened to be crouched by the roadside waiting. When the Yao household saw the cat, they flew into a rage, saying that if their daughter hadn’t chased after it, she wouldn’t have died so pointlessly last night. A few of the hot-tempered ones — looked like a concubine and young master from the Yao household — grabbed hold of Snowball right then, saying they’d beat it to death. If not for that official from the Yao household still having some sense left, saying the cat had been a gift from the Imperial Noble Consort and ordering them stopped, Snowball would probably have been torn to pieces by now.”

Hearing this, Cheng Chang froze for a moment, then asked, “So where is Snowball now?”

“Slipped away while no one was looking, of course.”

“Slipped away to where?”

Sun Haiping thought for a moment, then pointed toward a nearby alley. “Over there.”

Without a second thought, Cheng Chang strode toward it. Dusk had gathered, and the alley was dim. Zhang Dahu borrowed a wind lantern from someone at the yamen. Cheng Chang had gone only a few steps when he heard a few faint, low cat cries coming from within the alley.

Cheng Chang called out, “Snowball?”

The crying paused, and then a dark shape limped out from around the corner of a wall. Cheng Chang, holding up the lantern, crouched down to look — it was indeed Snowball.

One of its legs had been injured and it limped badly, with several bleeding wounds on its body. Fortunately, it had been quick enough to escape, and the injuries were not too severe.

Cheng Chang reached out a hand toward it and said gently, “Snowball, come here.”

Snowball approached and nuzzled against his palm, letting out a long, soft “meow—” that seemed filled with sorrow.

Snowball had a certain intelligence to it, and Yao Susu must have treated it very well while she was alive. That morning, after Cheng Chang had carried it to the Capital Prefecture, it seemed to sense that its owner had died, and had refused to eat or drink, crouching at the street corner and waiting — until Yao Susu’s coffin was carried out of the yamen, at which point it had rushed forward, only to meet such cruelty.

Cheng Chang found it absurd.

What was even the point? The person was already gone, the matter already settled — how could anyone take their unresolved grief and bitterness out on a harmless cat?

Cheng Chang handed the lantern to Zhang Dahu and picked up Snowball.

Zhang Dahu asked, “Young Prince, are you going to keep this cat?”

Sun Haiping chimed in as well, “What’s this, Young Prince? Giving up on dogs and switching to cats now?”

Cheng Chang was silent for a moment, then answered with a simple “Mm.”

Just as he stepped out of the alley, he saw Yun Xi walking briskly toward him from the opposite direction.

Their eyes met. Yun Xi froze for a moment; so did Cheng Chang.

After a moment, Yun Xi, somewhat embarrassed, looked away, her gaze falling on Snowball in Cheng Chang’s arms. “Did the third young master go looking for this cat?”

Earlier, while handing in her sword, she had run into Zhang Dahu coming to fetch the lantern, and guessed that Cheng Chang had not yet left. After finishing her handover, she had hurried out to find him, never expecting he would catch her looking so flustered and eager.

Cheng Chang gave an “Mm,” and for a moment found himself at a loss for what to say. After a while, he asked, “Do you want to hold it?”

Snowball was small and dainty, with a pair of eyes like sapphire beads — hard for anyone not to adore.

Yun Xi nodded and stepped closer, reaching out her hands.

Snowball, well-behaved, and seeming to understand Cheng Chang’s intent, leapt from his arms into hers.

From a distance, the two of them now stood extremely close together — lanterns lit at the yamen entrance, and under the moonlight, their shadows nearly overlapped.

“Chang’er.” Just then, the voice of Princess Consort Cong came from the end of the alley.

No one had noticed when she had arrived. She approached slowly, glancing once at Yun Xi without saying anything, then spoke warmly to Cheng Chang. “You’ve been away from the residence a full day and night — you had your mother so worried. I sent someone to inquire this afternoon and learned there was a major case at the yamen. How did it go — is there nothing more for you to attend to?”

Cheng Chang said, “Nothing more.”

“Good, that’s a relief.” Princess Consort Cong said. “Your father has something he wishes to ask you, and he’s waiting at home now. There’s no time to lose — let’s head back.”

Cheng Chang answered with an “Mm,” then looked to Yun Xi and said, “I’ll be going, then.”

Yun Xi nodded slightly and handed Snowball back to Cheng Chang. As if remembering something, she added softly, “Third young master, that matter…”

How had she forgotten? The reason she had rushed out here was to tell the third young master about the scarred man.

But Cheng Chang seemed to have already understood, and answered, “I know. Tomorrow morning, once I’m free, I’ll send a servant to fetch you from your residence.”

After a moment’s thought, he added, “You’ve had a long day and night — rest well first. No need to rise early.”