Li Xuan turned his head to ask the older woman standing not far away, "May I know who is in charge of the saltpeter supplies in your establishment? Has there been anything unusual about the recent inventory?"
It was already June, and most of the ice cellars owned by the wealthy households had run out of ice. Lanyue House was no exception. However, because Lanyue House was raking in so much money, they could afford to make ice daily using saltpeter. The ice was served to their guests.
"Saltpeter?"
The older woman pondered for a while, "I've been solely managing the procurement of goods for our establishment. Please wait a moment."
She left the crowd and didn't return to the lobby until about half a moment later. When she got back, her expression was strange. "Yesterday, three hundred pounds of saltpeter was brought into the establishment. Yet, when I just checked the records, thirty-five pounds were missing."
This made Li Xuan's spirits soar. "Thirty-five pounds of saltpeter mixed with well water would have been enough to freeze into a large block of ice. That block of ice, if carved into the form of a handprint and pressed against the deceased's back for a long time, could create the appearance of the red handprint we're seeing. I was just thinking that the shape of that handprint was strange; there were no imprints of finger joints. This leads to the conclusion that someone's been framed! But whether my conjecture is correct or not is inconsequential because who's to say there aren't others skilled in using the 'cold palm' technique here at Lanyue House?"
Upon hearing his words, Peng Fulai and Zhang Taishan on either side of him visibly relaxed. Yet afterwards, they both looked at him with mild surprise, disbelieving. The Li Xuan that resided in their memories, Li Qianzhi, certainly did not possess such abilities.
However, Situ Zhong's eyes still held a deep coldness within them. "You have a point. But the suspicion still remains. There's a strong possibility that you're doing this deliberately to confuse everyone."
"What kind of confusion? I think you're just trying to make trouble!" Jiang Hanyun's gaze swept over Situ Zhong irritably. "Say another word, and I'll split you in two," she threatened.
Situ Zhong gritted his teeth, his eyes burning with an antagonistic light. But he managed to hold himself back and saluted Jiang Hanyun. "Then, I'll just patiently wait for the schoolmaster to find out who the true killer is."
"Don't just watch, you should learn to behave as well." Jiang Hanyun huffed. Then she looked at Li Xuan with a beaming smile. "Don't bother listening to his noise, we will immediately start with the investigation and once we uncover the killer, everything will be resolved."
"I obey your orders!" After bowing, Li Xuan then felt that something wasn't right. "Schoolmaster, may I ask when our colleagues from Liudao Division will arrive?"
Jiang Hanyun shook her head softly, her voice a gentle whisper, "There won't be any others. Just us two. Just shortly ago, more than half of the personnel at Zhuque Hall were dispatched to the river. There's been a major incident today, and they've been ordered to carry out a dragnet operation on the river."
Li Xuan was flabbergasted, thinking to himself, with only two of them, how could they handle a case?
In his previous life, Li Xuan was only a forensic doctor. As for his superior, she was known more for her strength than any investigative prowess.
As for the officials from the Ying Tian Government standing nearby, it would already be a blessing if they didn't disturb the proceedings.
Li Xuan then thought of something and looked up at Jiang Hanyun's shoulder, thinking to himself, could it be?
"Rest assured, this case is simple. It's easy to solve!"
Jiang Hanyun removed the three-tailed spirit fox from her shoulder, pointed it towards Cui Hongshu's corpse and commanded, "Go."
Yet what happened next was unexpected. Jiang Hanyun's eyebrows knitted together because the spirit fox did not move at all. It continued to lounge lazily in a ball, swaying its three tails back and forth.
Li Xuan was speechless. From the corner of his eye, he even noticed Situ Zhong gazing at them with interest.
"You glutton!" Jiang Hanyun sighed, and then took a red elixir from her sleeve, holding it up to the Spirit Fox's mouth. "Once you finish eating, make sure to do your job. Don't be lazy."
Unsurprisingly, the three-tailed fox remained indifferent and unmoved.
"Um——" Jiang Hanyun looked confused at first, then her eyebrows furrowed as the cracks in her floor tiles widened with a loud crack.
"I advise you not to go too far, Lei Lei. So many people are watching. At least give me some face," she growled.
"My lady!" Li Xuan couldn't stand it any longer. He gracefully leaned in towards the silver-armored girl and whispered, "Given that this cadaver has been soaked in water for about two-three shichen, even though your spirit pet is a descendant of the divine beast Baize, I'm afraid it might fail to pick up any particular scent."
Jiang Hanyun abruptly stopped, looking completely flabbergasted, her face draining one minute and then turning green the next.
Approximately thirty breaths later, the silver-armored girl casually placed the fox back on her shoulder, then turned to Li Xuan with a bright smile and asked him in a whisper, "Inspector Li, I want to test your knowledge. What normally should be our next step at this juncture?"
"About that——"
Li Xuan felt rather repressed, "If we're really short-handed at Liudao Division, your Ladyship, why not ask for assistance from the Ministry of Punishments in Nanjing? Ask them to dispatch—"
The rest of his words were swallowed back into his stomach as he saw the murderous look in Jiang Hanyun's eyes.
Li Xuan began to break out in a cold sweat. "How about we start by taking testimonies? We need to know where everyone in the establishment was at the time of the murder. Their alibi, whereabouts and even any potential eyewitnesses. We also need to investigate who could have stolen the missing saltpeter. In addition, it would be best if we could perform an autopsy "
His previous examination had only covered the external part of Cui Hongshu's body. However, if they were to perform an autopsy, it would require getting permission from the immediate family members of the deceased.
He did not think that the Cui Family would consent, but it wouldn't hurt to ask, he reasoned.
As far as Li Xuan knew, Cui Hongshu's mother, Princess Boping, stayed in the royal capital most of the time, and his father Cui Chengyou seemed to have gone on official business and was not in Nanjing City.
Nevertheless, getting in touch with Cui Hongshu's immediate family members was not an issue for Liudao Division as they had magical ways to send messages across great distances.
※※※※
Half a moment later, Li Xuan was seated in the grand hall of Lanyue House, watching the bailiffs of Ying Tian Government interrogate everyone relevant to Lanyue House.
He didn't entirely trust these officers subordinate to Situ Zhong. He felt he could only personally supervise them.
The person Li Xuan was most concerned about was Situ Zhong. To save time, he divided everyone into ten groups, assigning Situ Zhong to personally handle one group, which was composed of those who had direct contact with Gui Hongshu.
"Tell me, where were you around midnight yesterday, and do you have any witnesses?"
The first to be questioned by Situ Zhong was a student from Nanjing National University, who stayed in room A on the third floor with Guts Hongshu.
"Around the second watch (9:30 pm), I took the lady back to the room and never saw Cui Hongshu again. Miss Cuiluo can attest to that, as we've been together ever since."
Situ Zhong continued his questioning, "Did you hear anything unusual outside last night?"
The student frowned, "Does someone snoring all night count? It started from the end of Hai-time and lasted till dawn, like thunder, never stopped. It was next door, room Yi on the third floor. I don't know which immoral son of a turtle it was, I could hardly get any rest!"
Zhang Taishan was initially listening happily, but his face turned stern as soon as he heard about the third floor Yi room, staring at the student with a menacing glare.
Next was Miss Cuiluo, who stayed in the same room. She spoke softly, "I also didn't go out after the second watch. Han is right, there was snoring all night, so I didn't hear anything else."
Then it was Zhang Taishan's turn, "I think I returned to my room at the end of Hai-time and stayed there all night. Lady Meng and her maid can testify to that."
Situ Zhong raised his eyes, "So you just spent the whole night sleeping?"
"How is that possible?"
Zhang Taishan reacted indignantly, "They are slandering me!"
Without missing a beat, Situ Zhong directed his question to a lady next to Zhang Taishan, nicknamed Meng Xingyan, "What were you doing last night?"
Meng Xingyan gave Zhang Taishan a sidelong glance, and languidly shrugged, "Snoring, Sleeping!"
This lady, with a pleasant name, was a beautiful, and charming woman. Covering her lips with a folding fan, she laughed mockingly, "I must not be attractive enough. As soon as Mr. Zhang entered my room, he began snoring. The noise was so loud that I had to take refuge in a chamber outside the room along with my maid."
Li Xuan was taken aback, and he turned to look at Peng Fulai beside him, who was also dumbstruck, "Were you sleeping all night? That's a scrape of nature. This is worse than you, Qianzhi. Even though Lady Meng is a bit younger, she will certainly be the hostess of Lanyue House in the future."
"Tsk! So, this is so-called 'nine times a night'."
Li Xuan laughed without humor, "You are robust!"
However, after Peng Fulai exclaimed, he noticed his expression was a bit off and asked curiously, "What's wrong with you? Why are you suddenly drenched in cold sweat? You weren't bluffing too, right?"
"How can it be?"
Peng Fulai first denied it subconsciously but then added hesitantly, "I just didn't make it seven times, but I'm still impressive."
About half a moment later, all eight people who lived on the third floor and had contact with the deceased had been questioned by Situ Zhong.
The next person was a woman of extraordinary beauty, graceful demeanor, and elegant posture. This was Wei Shi, the star courtesan of Lanyue House, who lived in the Shiyi Garden on the fourth floor.
All the rooms in Lanyue House were named after Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, except for Wei Shi's residence, which had the elegant name of Shiyi Garden.
"I spent the night with Mr. Peng. We didn't leave the room, and I didn't notice anything unusual. But my maid did go out twice around midnight, at my request, to fetch water for us."
"Fetch water? Why?" Situ Zhong looked at her puzzled.
Wei Shi hesitated for a moment, then looked apologetically at Peng Fulai. His face turned crimson as if realizing something.
"Mr. Peng seemed to be quite weak. He fell asleep as soon as he entered the room, and he sweated all night, which could also be due to the heat. So I had Yaer bring him some ice cubes."
Peng Fulai immediately wilted and leaned against the table, not wanting to speak.
Li Xuan suddenly realized, "That's what they mean by 'seven times a night'!"
Zhang Taishan, who had kept his head down, now perked up, seizing the opportunity to kick a man when he's down, "This is the top courtesan! What did someone say before? 'Her slim waist and full bust, all well proportioned, good to touch, increase fighting power.' Tsk tsk,...."
Flexing his biceps at Peng Fulai, he declared that he may not be a nine-times-a-night man, but at least, he was not weak
Peng Fulai, having lost all color in his face, wished he could bury himself in a hole. After Wei Shi, it was his turn to be questioned. But sensing the astonishing and mocking glances of those around him, Peng Fulai prepared for a social death.
Li Xuan glanced at the slender and graceful Wei Shi and thought to himself that Peng Fulai must not have used his head when bragging.