Chapter 27

Yang Yuanyi grew increasingly excited the more he listened. Unable to hold back, he jumped up and exclaimed, “I think Miss Yun’s analysis makes a lot of sense! Why couldn’t the killer have broken the vase? There could be several reasons why the killer would deliberately break it. For example, out of pity for the deceased—hoping she’d be discovered quickly and not left soaking in cold water for too long.”

Everyone: “…” He killed her… yet pitied her?

“Or maybe he hated the deceased so much that strangling her wasn’t enough. He wanted to damage the corpse, but had nothing sharp on him. In a heated moment, he smashed the vase, and only then realized the noise might draw others!”

Everyone: “…” This was getting more and more absurd. Trusting what he said felt less believable than thinking the killer had a habit of smashing vases.

Yang Yuanyi, after his dramatic outburst, noticed everyone staring at him speechlessly. He pouted, “Why are you all looking at me like that? I’ve read storybooks for over ten years—those crime-solving tales always say stuff like this…”

“You writing a story or solving a case?!” Magistrate Ding, already frustrated, couldn’t hold it in anymore. He leapt up and gave Yang Yuanyi a hard kick. “This is exactly why you’ll never live up to your father, you fool!”

While the others were acting out their antics, Yun Shuang quietly walked over to the dressing table nearby. It was the last part of the inner room that had been disturbed. She’d only glanced at it briefly before, without inspecting it properly. Now, stepping closer, she saw that a spilled box of orange-red rouge had caused the mess. The powder was strewn across the tabletop. And within that powder was a trail of tiny plum blossom-shaped footprints.

Clearly, paw prints from a dog or cat!

Yun Shuang immediately turned and asked, “Did the victim keep any pets?”

Yang Yuanyi, still nursing the pain from the magistrate’s kick, replied with a wince, “I heard from the victim’s maid that she kept an orange-colored tabby cat. She loved it dearly and took it everywhere with her. I checked the dressing table earlier too—I’m sure it was the cat being naughty and knocking over the rouge, making such a mess.”

Yun Shuang turned to look again. The little paw prints crossed the dressing table, lightly landing on the floor, then leapt up to the windowsill.

Yun Shuang walked over to the window and looked down. Outside was the rear courtyard of the Yiyuan Inn. Directly opposite the window stood an osmanthus tree, blooming with delicate pale yellow flowers—it was the height of the flowering season. The sweet fragrance of osmanthus wafted gently in on the breeze. The tree was some distance from the window. For a person, leaping across would be difficult—but for a cat, it would be effortless.

That cat had likely used the tree to jump down into the courtyard. Where it had gone since was anyone’s guess.

The others noticed Yun Shuang staring out the window and couldn’t help but look puzzled. What was there to see outside? Could there be some clue?

Yang Yuanyi, no longer able to contain himself, leaned in and looked out with her. “Miss Yun, what are you looking at?”

“Nothing,” she replied, retracting her gaze. “Earlier, you mentioned the victim’s maid. Where is she?”

Yang Yuanyi cast a doubtful glance back outside and finally answered, “She’s just outside. We found her as soon as we arrived. We figured we’d check the body and the scene first, and then question her.”

Yun Shuang nodded. “Let’s go now.”

“Alright!” Yang Yuanyi answered at once, scampering after Yun Shuang enthusiastically.

Beside them, Magistrate Ding: “…” He was so furious he didn’t even feel the fire anymore. That sneaky, bootlicking brat—once this case is wrapped up, he’d give him a proper lesson, in honor of his father!

Yun Shuang walked toward the door, mind still on the case. But just before stepping outside, she unexpectedly met a pair of deep, obsidian eyes. Only then did she remember—Jiang Xiao and Yan Fang were still outside. She’d been so focused on investigating that she’d entirely forgotten their presence.

Jiang Xiao stood ramrod-straight, his aura of lethal coldness overwhelming even the eerie chill of the crime scene. Dressed in a fitted, dark black robe with narrow sleeves, and matching high leather boots, his appearance was stark and unembellished, save for the sword at his waist. From the moment their eyes met, he hadn’t looked away—his gaze seemed intent on piercing into her soul. In his eyes lingered a faint, innate coldness.

Yun Shuang’s gaze lifted ever so slightly at the corner. She had invoked his name to lend herself credibility—so no matter how odd others thought she was, they wouldn’t dare voice it. But this man was different. He must think she was downright peculiar by now—a mere village woman, yet utterly fearless in the face of death, and even capable of analyzing the case in such an orderly manner.

But what did it matter if someone suspected her? It wouldn’t cost her a piece of flesh. Everything she did was simply for the sake of giving Goudan and Erya a better life!

And deep down, she felt truly fortunate that the one who suspected her was him. However difficult he was to deal with, there was a tenderness in his heart. If, afterward, he really wanted to dig into the truth, then she’d put on her sincerest expression, craft a convincing story, and—well—explain it all to him properly.

Thinking of this, Yun Shuang instinctively looked away.

By now, they had stepped outside, and Yan Fang—who had clearly been holding it in for a while—hurried over, staring at her in disbelief. “By heavens, Miss Yun, you really know how to investigate a case!”

Although they hadn’t entered the room, they’d heard everything clearly. The beaded curtain to the inner chamber had been drawn, and despite some partitions on either side, they could still more or less make out what had been happening. Earlier, it wasn’t wrong to say that Miss Yun had led the entire investigation.

The young soldier who had escorted Yun Shuang glanced at her sheepishly, profoundly relieved that he hadn’t voiced any of his earlier suspicions. Miss Yun had the endorsement of the General himself. He must’ve been out of his mind to have doubted her!

Yun Shuang gave Yan Fang a faint smile just as Yang Yuanyi approached a petite, pale-faced young woman in pink, so quiet she barely had a presence. Turning to Yun Shuang, he said, “Miss Yun, this is Xiao Die—the maidservant of the deceased Miss He. When we arrived, we saw her standing outside the room along with Mr. Chen and Zhang Da.”

Zhang Da chimed in, nodding quickly. “Yes, yes, miss. After Mr. Chen and I discovered that Miss He had been murdered, we were just about to report it to the authorities when this young lady came running over in a panic. Since then, the three of us have been standing outside this room.”

Yun Shuang nodded and turned to Xiao Die. “Xiao Die, is it? You were Miss He’s maid. Why weren’t you with her when the murder happened?”

Right then, Magistrate Ding walked to the doorway: “…” At this rate, should he just hand over his official hat to this woman already?