Hu Maoxi said with sinisterly, "Sun Wucai, what is going on? Tell me the truth."
Deputy Sun looked pitiful, but his expression was mixed with resentment and fear.
However, it was too late to shift the blame.
After all, the two maids had seen him kick the door down. He could not deny it, so he answered bravely,
"It's true that I kicked down the door in Elder Zhao's house. I'm willing to be punished."
Well kicked!
Hu Maoxi almost voiced his thoughts.
He wanted to praise the old fellow, but when he saw their angry faces, he immediately pulled a long face and scolded fiercely,
"You damn old man, I asked you to accompany Madam Chu to investigate the case. Why did you kick the door open? Are you deliberately embarrassing me?"
Deputy Sun was speechless and started stuttering again. His previous majestic and glorious air vanished.
Chu Nanzhi did not want Deputy Sun to be scolded again, so she said to everyone,
"County Magistrate Hu, don't make things difficult for the deputy magistrate. I asked him to kick down the door."
"What?"
Elder Zhao's expression turned even uglier. He turned livid and scolded, "Madam Chu, there is no grudge between us. Why are you harming me?"
"Elder, you must be joking."
Chu Nanzhi grabbed Lin Ruijia' hands and said calmly,
"Magistrate Hu entrusted me to investigate this case for him, so I must do my best to give an explanation to you and His Excellency."
"So you ordered Deputy Sun to kick down my door?"
Elder Zhao looked grim.
"It's true that it was inappropriate."
Chu Nanzhi could not help but laugh awkwardly, but she immediately reverted to her serious image.
"However, if I didn't forcefully kick open this door, I'm afraid the secrets buried in this courtyard would never see the light of day."
"You evil woman, what nonsense are you talking about? What secrets can my grandmother's courtyard hold?"
Second Master Zhao glared at her.
Mdm Yu cried even harder and more sorrowfully.
"My Lord, I don't want to see this woman again. Ask her to leave quickly. She has destroyed this courtyard and disturbed my mother's spirit. If my mother knew about this, she will definitely blame me for being disrespectful to her."
She made it sound so serious that Elder Zhao gradually clenched his fists and bit his lips. He immediately grew furious.
Hu Maoxi trembled and tiptoed to the side.
Deputy Sun rubbed his hands together and subconsciously crossed them over his chest.
Elder Zhao's expression darkened. With a wave of his hand, a few guards surrounded them.
"Wait."
Chu Nanzhi shouted as she immediately moved to protect Lin Ruijia.
Elder Zhao remained silent as the guards moved forward.
"Do you still want to believe that your son is just missing?"
Chu Nanzhi's doubled her volume and she roared loudly, shocking the guards.
Elder Zhao was expressionless. After pondering for a moment, he calmly gestured behind him.
The guards retreated.
Hu Maoxi swiftly walked to Chu Nanzhi's side.
Deputy Sun slowly lowered his hands and secretly followed.
Seeing that the crisis was over, Chu Nanzhi asked calmly, "Elder, do you think there's anything strange about this courtyard?"
After a pause, she quickly added, "Smell."
Everyone sniffed carefully
Hu Maoxi answered first, "The taste of vinegar, mixed with what seems to be the fragrance of bamboo leaves."
"Not bad."
Chu Nanzhi nodded in satisfaction.
"So what?"
Elder Zhao took a walking stick made of pure gold from a servant and rested his hands on it. "A few days ago, I was worried that some insects had appeared in my late mother's courtyard, so I specially asked the servants to buy some bamboo vinegar to protect it against insects and odors."
"That's right. It's true that bamboo vinegar protects against insects."
Chu Nanzhi smiled and reminded him, "But didn't Elder Zhao say it just now? Bamboo vinegar can also remove odors."
Elder Zhao frowned. "What do you mean?"
Everyone was puzzled.
"I heard from the servants that it was your wife who came to clean the house this time. Is that right?"
Madam Yu stopped sobbing and covered her face as she nodded girlishly. Then, she clutched Great Elder Zhao tightly.
"But I also heard that ever since Old Madam Zhao passed away, it has always been the servants who have been cleaning this courtyard. Why did you come personally this time? Why did you spend so much effort to sprinkle bamboo vinegar all over the courtyard?"
Chu Nanzhi felt that her actions were very ridiculous and she laughed coldly.
"Everyone here has been searching for the Young Master since his disappearance. As the mistress of the household, instead of focusing on finding the Young Master, you had the time to care about whether there were insects in Old Madam's courtyard. I'm afraid that was a little too deliberate."
Hu Maoxi felt that it made sense and immediately complained unhappily.
"Elder, don't blame me. You made me go through so much trouble and didn't hesitate to make me mobilize the third class of bailiffs. You even turned the entire Luyan Harbor upside down to search for your son. Meanwhile, you and your wife were spending your efforts on an abandoned courtyard. This doesn't make sense."
After a pause, he felt that his summary was not comprehensive enough. He immediately added in a humble tone,
"Even if you miss your late mother, you can always clean the courtyard anytime. Why do you have to do it at such a critical moment? It will inevitably arouse suspicion."
Elder Zhao had not expected such a small matter to cause so many doubts. He frowned guiltily. "My wife is inexperienced and did not consider the matter appropriately. Brother Hu, don't blame her."
Upon hearing these words, Madam Yu felt that she had suffered a huge grievance and cried again.
"My Lord, don't listen to these people's nonsense. They can't find Yan'er and now they're talking nonsense. Mother's courtyard has been in disrepair for a long time. A few days ago, a servant reported that there were insects and rats in the courtyard. I've been taking care of the family's affairs and did not have the time to attend to it. A few days ago, Yan'er disappeared. I had been uneasy all day, so I wanted to do something for you and Mother to calm myself."
When he heard that, Elder Zhao reached out his age-spotted hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes. He comforted her gently.
"Don't be afraid. As long as I'm around, they won't dare to make things difficult for you."
Looking at the loving couple, Chu Nanzhi's gaze unconsciously turned towards the well.
She wondered what the old man would think after he found the corpse.
One could never be reconciled to the murderer of one's son.
She deliberately laughed coldly. "Even if you can hide the stench in the courtyard and maintain a peaceful appearance, I'm afraid you can never get rid of the stench in your heart. There's a shameful secret hidden in this courtyard. How can you can sleep peacefully every night? Aren't you afraid of vengeful spirits taking your life?"
When Madam Yu heard that, she was so frightened that her hair stood on end. She hid in Elder Zhao's arms and cursed,
"You evil woman, stop spouting nonsense and pretending to be mysterious."
Second Master Zhao was also very angry. He pointed at Chu Nanzhi and shouted indignantly,
"Madam Chu, I didn't want to argue with you because you're a woman. However, you've been stirring up trouble ever since you entered this courtyard. Not only did you destroy my grandmother's courtyard, you've implied that my Brother Yan has been murdered. Yet there is no trace of his body. If you continue to make such a fuss without any evidence, I won't hold back."
"Alright, since you want to see the corpse, I'll let you see with your own eyes if there are corpses hidden in this courtyard."
Chu Nanzhi's eyes gradually turned cold.