Yan Shian went from house to house to offer thanks, but Shi Buyu was already thinking about what came next.

The emperor had only given Zeng Zheng three days, which meant Prime Minister Zhang had three days to sling mud at Zeng Zheng as well.

Yan Shian’s subordinates were certainly capable, but when it came to understanding the inner workings of the court, no one knew better than those who served in the court themselves.

“Ah Gu.”

Wan Xia came in from outside.

“Go talk to Big Brother about this, see if he has any good news for me. If not, then bring me someone from the Mo family.”

Wan Xia smiled. “If the eldest young master knocks you on the head next time, I won’t help you.”

“He wouldn’t dare,” Shi Buyu huffed. Her older brothers each had their own temperament, and she kept a mental notebook on exactly how to deal with each of them.

Only Wan Xia could handle this matter. Before leaving, she poured out the soup on the stove and handed it to Yisheng, who had been tending the fire. Yisheng never tried to talk the young lady out of her business; she just took even better care of her health when things got serious.

Zeng Zheng’s reputation for integrity was well-earned. After taking over the case, he meticulously reviewed every detail handed over by the Jing Prefecture, then had Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards Qin Hui brief him on everything he knew. After that, he led his seasoned subordinates to the site where the corpses had been found to conduct a personal investigation.

The area had been cordoned off, but the corpses hadn’t been moved.

He walked around the place. It wasn’t exactly remote, but normally only firewood gatherers would come this way. So it made sense if a woodcutter had found the bodies. But a drunkard? What drunk wandered into a place like this?

His men brought the drunkard over.

The drunkard had already met several officials over the past two days. At first, he was feeling pretty smug—he’d never felt so important in his life. But once he heard that the case had reached the emperor’s ears, he nearly collapsed from fear. The moment he saw the high-ranking official from the Court of Judicial Review, he fell to his knees trembling. He answered every question without needing to be threatened, frantically trying to recall if he’d forgotten anything.

Zeng Zheng merely nodded after hearing his story and told him to keep thinking it over, not revealing whether he believed him or not.

“This guy doesn’t look like he was planted,” said You Fu, who had been listening in. Ever since the case was handed to the Court of Judicial Review, he hadn’t left Zeng Zheng’s side.

Zeng Zheng glanced at the coroner examining the bodies nearby. From all known information, it did seem like the drunk had stumbled upon the corpses by accident, and the incident naturally snowballed into public knowledge. But something didn’t sit right with Zeng Zheng. His years of experience told him that something was off—and he trusted his instincts.

“My lord…”

You Fu was anxious. Ever since Zeng Zheng had taken over the case, he’d said very little. You Fu had no idea what he was thinking. But this case was tied to the death of his stepson, and he couldn’t keep calm.

“You Fu, as someone from the Court of Judicial Review, never lose your composure—no matter what.” Zeng Zheng’s tone was cold. “This case doesn’t just concern your stepson. There are twenty-one other lives involved. If you can’t maintain your usual professionalism, then I’ll give you a few days’ leave to go rest.”

Zeng Zheng turned and looked him in the eye. “Rushing in will only cloud your mind. It won’t help you avenge your stepson.”

Tears welled up in You Fu’s eyes. He looked up at the sky for a moment, then lowered his head and said, “I was wrong, sir.”

Zeng Zheng patted his arm. He understood the feeling; if it had been him, he’d be just as furious. “I’ll go up and take a look. You search the area for clues.”

“Yes, sir.”

Zeng Zheng examined the corpses. It was already late October; the ground had frozen. In previous years, snow could start falling as early as mid-November. That explained why the corpses had been preserved.

But…

Zeng Zheng climbed a few steps and stared at the shallow pit, lost in thought. The cold might prevent decay, but it couldn’t stop a body from being damaged. The previous investigators had found traces of wild animals in the area. These animals had sharp senses. With such a shallow burial, the bodies should’ve been dug up long ago. So how were they still untouched?

With this suspicion in mind, Zeng Zheng walked around and discovered that no animals had come closer than about fifty paces from the burial site—on every side. It was as if that spot had become a forbidden zone.

This was no ordinary accidental discovery. But the drunk hadn’t been planted either…

Zeng Zheng looked around. If even the drunk had been part of someone’s plan, then the mastermind must have terrifying intellect. But why?

If the perpetrator was behind the massacre, then logically they wouldn’t want it discovered. If they orchestrated it just to ensure the case was exposed, that would be a provocation. But to what end?

If the perpetrator wasn’t the one who committed the crime, but created the situation to draw attention to it—what did they hope to gain? Could it be that among the twenty-two victims was someone related to them? And that they knew who the killer was, but couldn’t get revenge personally, so they used the court to do it?

“My lord, we’ve finished examining the bodies.”

Zeng Zheng looked at the messenger. Were these people part of someone’s scheme? Or was he, himself, part of it?

Though he was known for his integrity, Zeng Zheng hadn’t climbed this high by being naive. He returned to the Court of Judicial Review without a hint of emotion, and listened as three coroners reported their findings. They matched exactly what was in the original report—nothing new.

Zeng Zheng looked at the oldest coroner. When he saw the man blink slightly more than usual, he understood. He dismissed the three of them and began coughing into a handkerchief.

The reviewing officer nearby paused and glanced over. “Sir, is your old illness acting up? Shall I call the imperial physician?”

“No need. Just prepare a dose using the usual prescription. Oh, and send someone to inform my household that I’ll be late today.”

“Yes, sir.” The officer gathered those on duty, had someone prepare the medicine, and sent a messenger to the Zeng residence. He personally stood watch at the door.

Not long after, the old coroner returned.

Zeng Zheng smiled. “I knew it. Nothing gets past you, Old Shell.”

“Only because you trust me,” the man replied. They had known each other for years. Though their ranks were vastly different, they had a good relationship.

Old Shell knew how precious this quiet moment was, so he got straight to the point. “On the surface, everything looks normal. The preservation of the corpses could be explained. But the fact that the flesh is still soft, and the facial features haven’t distorted—that’s not right. I examined them closely and found some residual medicinal powder beneath the bodies. It’s colorless and odorless. If I hadn’t seen it years ago, I wouldn’t have noticed it.”

“So it is a setup.”

Zeng Zheng’s expression turned grave. Preserving the bodies like this—it was for the scholars to sketch portraits. Whoever did this couldn’t be the killer. A real murderer would try to hide everything, not preserve appearances.

This person was helping him solve the case.

Zeng Zheng paused, then said, “What you told me stays between us. Not a word to a third party.”

“Yes, sir.”