CH 19

The stupid girl was sitting on the snowy ground, her entire person shrinking into a ball as her shoulders trembled, and she kept her head lowered, refusing to meet anyone in the eye. Huò Wēi Lóu gave the stupid girl a sidelong glance, as if he did not anticipate that a xiao yatou would be arrested as well.

Bó Ruò Yōu said in a low voice: “Hou’ye, she’s the aforementioned stupid girl.”

When the servants within the residence were being inspected last night, the stupid girl was not conspicuous at all since she was standing in the corner, thus this was the first time Huò Wēi Lóu was meeting her. In a lowered voice, she recounted the predestined relationship that the Da Furen and stupid girl had, which made Huò Wēi Lóu knit his eyebrows even tighter.

All of the embroidered emissaries in the vicinity were standing erect with sheathed swords, and Huò Wēi Lóu was even more oppressive with his imposing manner, so Bó Ruò Yōu stepped forward and crouched down, speaking to her in a gentle voice: “Stupid girl? Why are you here?”

The stupid girl curled into herself even more, so Bó Ruò Yōu said: “Look at me, you’ve previously met me.”

The stupid girl went still, and only then did she slowly raise her eyes to look at Bó Ruò Yōu, but her gaze was slow-witted, her expression vacant, as if she had completely forgotten when she met Bó Ruò Yōu.

It was common knowledge that the stupid girl was foolish and muddle-headed, hence Bó Ruò Yōu was not surprised by the fact that she could not recognise her. However, as she stared into those pair of eyes, she felt that it was lacking the spiritedness it possessed that day. Even though it was still pretty, it was also inexplicably familiar underneath the fire’s illumination. That scar was still cutting across her face, of which Bó Ruò Yōu had merely caught a glimpse of that day, but now that she was inspecting it carefully, she felt that it was more frightening than their previous encounter.

A peculiar inkling slid past Bó Ruò Yōu’s heart as she asked again in a soft voice: “What are you doing here?”

Even though this was close to the ancestral hall, it was desolate. Moreover, since the ancestral hall had just been torched, the air was pervaded with the smell of fire and smoke; why did she run here when she had no business being here?

The stupid girl lowered her eyes again, shrinking her shoulders without uttering a word.

This was going to be slightly difficult; it was quite evident that she was more afraid of people than before.

Bó Ruò Yōu gave her a one-over. She was still wearing that plain and unadorned robe from the last time, and her shoes were stained with snow and mud. It could not be denied that there were no perceivable anomalies from her, and her legs were not nimble; it was unlikely for her to commit a violent act.

Only the footprints of the embroidered emissaries and stupid girl were here. By comparison, the stupid girl’s footprints were extremely distinct since her left leg was injured, which caused her footsteps to consistently alternate between deep and shallow, and her footprints were much smaller than the embroidered emissaries. Bó Ruò Yōu went to the side of the bamboo forest to have a look, then looked at the trail that the murderer left behind once more.

The wormwood grass was withered and yellowed, and the snow was accumulated in layers, which made the tracks that were going back and forth extremely obvious. Bó Ruò Yōu did a meticulous comparison, only feeling that it was the same as the footprints she saw outside Zhèng Wén Yàn’s study courtyard. Of course, she could also see how it differed from the stupid girl’s footprints.

Bó Ruò Yōu frowned briefly, “The person min’nü encountered just now did not appear crippled, and they were wearing a winter lined robe of a different design. It probably wasn’t the stupid girl, but she’s not willing to speak, and she will not answer why she was here.”

Out of all the possible suspects, the most troublesome type was the likes of the stupid girl who were dull-witted or suffering from insanity. Huò Wēi Lóu made a prompt decision and said: “Bring her to the front courtyard and ask the stewards who stays with her.”

The embroidered emissary complied verbally, and it was also at this moment where Hè Chéng rushed over. Having learnt that Bó Ruò Yōu encountered the murderer on his way here, he was filled with lingering fears as he chided her on first sight: “Xiao Bó ah, never come out on your own alone, it’s too dangerous.”

Bó Ruò Yōu quickly responded in agreement. Huò Wēi Lóu threw a look at Hè Chéng, and an embroidered emissary happened to step forward and say: “Hou’ye, the area has been thoroughly searched. There are quite a number of tracks, and they are very complicated and disorderly. All of the crucial roads in the various parts of the Marquis Residence have guards, and this subordinate suspects that the murderer has been making a detour in this desolated area to avoid the lockdown. Further north of this bamboo forest is a plum forest, and beyond the plum forest are the tall walls of the back courtyards.”

Once those words sank in, Bó Ruò Yōu caught a faint of whiff of plums in a belated fashion.

Huò Wēi Lóu proceeded to raise his feet and tread towards the plum forest. Hè Chéng and Bó Ruò Yōu tagged along, and shortly after, a yellow plum forest came into view. The bamboo forest was not being taken care of by anyone, and this area was even further north, so it was all the more desolate. Despite that, it was the winter of the first month in the lunar new year, the winter plums were blossoming; under the illumination of the torches, light-yellow flowers were clustered on branches, its dark fragrance floating and drifting, suffusing an intoxicating and intense scent.

The embroidered emissary raised a hand to point, “The plum forest also has signs of human activity, but it’s spacious and empty so it’s difficult to hide a person, though there is a dried up well at the northmost side. The subordinates checked it just now, there was no one hiding inside.”

The bamboo forest’s density could still hide someone, but the plum trees of the plum forest were sparse, and it could be surveyed with one sweeping glance. Huò Wēi Lóu looked at the distant tall walls, muttering to himself irresolutely for a while before bringing his entourage back to the front courtyard.

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With the murderer’s sudden appearance and near-capture, Huò Wēi Lóu ordered his men to search the entire Marquis Residence. After the smaller part of a double-hour, Zhèng Wén Ān and the other residents were gathered in the front courtyard’s main hall again, and everyone including Zhèng Wén Róng had alibis tonight.

Zhèng Yún Ní arrived the latest. Just as she stepped through the courtyard entrance, she promptly saw the stupid girl standing outside the hall. The stupid girl had her head lowered as she stood there quietly, but she turned around upon hearing the approaching footsteps. Fear immediately emerged on her features when she caught sight of Zhèng Yún Ní, and she retreated a few steps, back knocking into the railing of the corridor.

Bó Ruò Yōu was standing at the door so she happened to witness this scene.

Zhèng Yún Ní looked at the stupid girl coldly, as if she was dissatisfied with the fact that she was here, but upon noticing that Bó Ruò Yōu was looking towards the door, her chin lifted, and she stepped into the hall with a graceful demeanour.  

Zhèng Wén Ān, who was in the middle of the hall, was speaking: “Having received Hou’ye’s orders, zaixia has been at the ancestral hall overseeing the clean-up of the fire site the whole time. The stupid girl acts clumsily whenever she runs errands, and all the servants that were called for the physical labour were older servants (that usually keep guard or run errands), zaixia does not know why she ran to that side either.”

“Hou’ye,” Zhèng Yún Ní opened her mouth at this time, “She was going to pick some yellow plum blossoms for Mother. Although the residence has a myriad of plum flowers, Mother solely favours yellow plum blossoms, and only that northern plum forest has yellow plum blossoms.”

Even though they finally had an explanation now, ordering a dull-witted person to pluck flowers in the middle of the night was honestly a little strange.

Huò Wēi Lóu gave Zhèng Yún Ní a fleeting glance, then looked towards Zhèng Wén Ān once more, “The clothes that your mother was wearing back then, has it been burnt for certain?”

Zhèng Wén Ān said hesitantly, “It was burnt by the Mother’s maidservant whom Third Brother ordered. The personal effects of the departed, most people wouldn’t keep it, would they? Furthermore, that gown is neither gold, silver, pearl, nor jade…”

His phrasing implied that he did not personally witness the gown being burnt.

Huò Wēi Lóu glanced at Hè Chéng, and Hè Chéng proceeded to leave through the hall door.

Upon seeing that Huò Wēi Lóu maintain his silence even though he was done speaking, Zhèng Wén Ān asked in a hesitant manner: “Hou’ye, was there another clue?”

Huò Wēi Lóu had searched the Marquis Residence without divulging the reason, and once everyone had gathered, he asked about the stupid girl first. Hence, everyone was still unaware of what happened tonight. Huò Wēi Lóu’s eyes congealed slightly, “Tonight, the murderer appeared in the eastern bamboo forest wearing that lined robe, though the encounter was accidental.”

Once those words were uttered, everyone’s expressions distorted, especially Zhèng Wén Ān who stood rooted to the ground, “What… Met the murderer by accident?”

Zhèng Yún Ní also asked: “Was their appearance clearly seen?”

Huò Wēi Lóu’s tone was heavy, “It was not.”

Standing at the side, Zhèng Wén Róng said, “Then they must be hiding themselves in the bamboo forest. Perhaps they were there for the past few days; the residence has a number of areas that are equally desolate, Hou’ye can dispatch more people to search it.”

Fu gonggong sighed, “Fourth Master, it has already been searched. It’s true that there were a lot of human traces in the vicinity, but that person wasn’t found, nor do we know where they have hidden themselves. Everyone should be more cautious for the next few days, lest they are harmed by the murderer.”

Zhèng Yún Ní’s pale fists were clenched around her sleeve cuffs, her expression grave. Zhèng Wén Ān was ruminating about something as well, and he looked preoccupied in mind. At this moment, Hè Chéng entered the hall door, and when Huò Wēi Lóu noticed that he was actively stopping himself from speaking, he ordered everyone to withdraw. 

Once everyone had withdrawn outside, Hè Chéng stated: “Hou’ye, inquiries have been made. The person who burned the clothes that day was Lao Furen’s maidservant Mò Yí, who handed the clothes to a coarse-labour older woman-servant for burning. That older woman-servant was slightly wary of taboos, so she threw the clothes into the fire brazier and left. According to the older woman-servant’s account, when she went to carry the fire brazier later, quite a few items of little value were also being burnt inside, and she could no longer see the robe, hence she presumed that it was fully incinerated.”

If it was not seen with their own eyes, then there was still reason for suspicion. At this moment, another embroidered emissary stepped through the door and said: “Hou’ye, the stupid girl usually stays in the servants’ rooms, and she shares a courtyard with more than a dozen coarse-labour older woman-servants. Owing to how she is favoured by Da Furen, she has her own small wing-room.” After giving a pause, that embroidered emissary added: “The coarse-labour older woman-servant who burned the clothes that day, is also staying in that courtyard.”

Huò Wēi Lóu’s brows twitched, “Bring some men to inspect her room.”

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Similarly, Bó Ruò Yōu felt a hint of bafflement rise in her heart. This kind of coincidence, could it be that she had thought wrongly?

She gazed outside the hall and saw the stupid girl shrinking herself in the corner, trying to avoid Zhèng Yún Ní and the rest the best she could. After a moment of hesitation, she walked towards the stupid girl, tugging on the stupid girl to make her follow her into the room. Perhaps it was Bó Ruò Yōu’s goodwill that made the stupid girl blindly follow suit and enter the hall with her. Bó Ruò Yōu closed the doors and crouched in front of the stupid girl, speaking in a light voice: “Stupid girl, I am a physician, let me see your old injuries, alright?”

The stupid girl stared at Bó Ruò Yōu blankly, as though she was slightly surprised. On one hand, she did not dare to, and on the other, she could feel Bó Ruò Yōu’s amiability, so she did not put any resistance. Subsequently, Bó Ruò Yōu’s hand roamed upwards, starting from her ankle.

Further upwards was her thin shins, and her calves were basically a layer of skin and flesh stuck to the bones. The scar was crude, and under delicate observation, she could feel the vestige of the bone fusing back together after breaking. Bó Ruò Yōu was frowning at first, except she exhaled audibly afterwards. She rose to her feet and gently caressed the crown of the stupid girl’s head. “Your injury is all healed, it’s fine now.”

The defensiveness at the bottom of the stupid girl’s eyes relaxed by a degree. Bó Ruò Yōu brought her outside first, and when she crossed the threshold again, she declared, “The injury on her leg is real; her leg being crippled is also a fact. It’s not possible for her to commit a violent crime.”

…

The author has something to say: When everyone thinks that that it is absolutely impossible to unravel, that is when the truth is close.