TWWDS - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

After hearing what Chao Qingxiu had to say, the others assumed that she was merely young and curious, deliberately asking about the late Gang Leader Shangguan. But with all their lives hanging by a thread, and every last trace of the gang destined to vanish from the world within an hour, there would be no harm in speaking of the past.

Yue Zhiwen rallied himself and said, "All right." With a sigh, he continued, "In truth, what happened to the late Gang Leader Shangguan was so sudden. None of us expected it that day..."

He recounted the events one by one, and his account was broadly consistent with what Ruan Shifeng had told her. Chao Qingxiu kept watching the others' expressions. As Yue spoke, Yan Kaixian and the rest never changed expression, showing nothing more than grief. It seemed they endorsed his account.

Chao Qingxiu lowered her head and pondered for a moment, then asked, "On the day it happened, you all went to pay your morning respects to Gang Leader Shangguan, did you not?"

Yue Zhiwen nodded, and the others murmured their agreement.

Chao Qingxiu went on, "Then in the afternoon, when you went to pay your respects to Gang Leader Shangguan again, you found that she had already passed away?"

Ruan Shifeng sighed and nodded in silence.

Chao Qingxiu asked, "Could you tell me whether you ever determined when the late Gang Leader Shangguan died?"

Xiao Xiangyu said, "The late Gang Leader Shangguan practiced martial arts and regularly took medicinal tonics, so her body changed more slowly after death than an ordinary person's. Besides, we were all her subordinates. How could we presume to damage her remains? We dared not examine her closely. We only confirmed that the cause of death was indeed alcohol-induced counterflow of vital energy and blood. However, we noticed that some of the food delivered at noon had been touched. Since she was in the study, the incident most likely occurred after the noon hour."

Chao Qingxiu asked, "How did you know that this was the lunch the late Gang Leader Shangguan had eaten?"

This time Ruan Shifeng was the one to answer. She looked at Chao Qingxiu and said, "The late leader could sometimes be rather... particular about her dishes. Of everything that was served, only the steamed quail had been sampled, and no more than two chopstickfuls at that. If an outsider had tampered with it, why pretend that the food had merely failed to suit her? Moreover, no one had been left to attend her in Mingsi Hall, and few people knew her disposition."

Chao Qingxiu asked, "Who was responsible for the late Gang Leader Shangguan's meals at the time?"

Yan Kaixian said, "We took turns keeping watch over her every day. After the incident, we jointly inspected the leftover food and questioned the gang members in the kitchen. We confirmed there was no problem."

Perhaps it was only her imagination, but as Yan Kaixian spoke the word "questioned," Yan Kaixian seemed to radiate a murderous aura.

Chao Qingxiu looked at Yan Kaixian, then at the others' reactions. She felt she could avoid investigating the entire questioning process.

According to Ruan Shifeng's account, however, the gang members left as soon as they set the food down at the door of Mingsi Hall. Normally, there was a gap between the food being set down and the late Gang Leader Shangguan retrieving it.

But Chao Qingxiu was now in a world of martial artists.

Given the late Gang Leader Shangguan's abilities, no one could have approached Mingsi Hall without her noticing.

Chao Qingxiu confirmed, "The late Gang Leader Shangguan was wounded that day. Was her hearing any worse than usual?"

Tian Changtian shook his head. "The late leader's inner strength was profound. Even though she was injured, her hearing and sight remained as sharp as ever. It would be difficult to conceal any movement within Mingsi Hall from her."

Chao Qingxiu said, "May I ask one more question? From noon until the late Gang Leader Shangguan was found to have been murdered, where was each of you? Who can testify to your whereabouts?"

Yan Kaixian answered without hesitation, as though she had turned the matter over in her mind thousands of times. "I spent the whole morning in meditation. In the afternoon, word suddenly came from the branch office outside. I then discussed the arrangements for delivering goods across prefectures with Brother Guan and the others for a while."

Chao Qingxiu gave a slight nod.

It seemed that Yan Kaixian had a witness, but the witness was one of her own subordinates, which inevitably invited suspicion.

Yue Zhiwen was well versed in many fields, but his inner strength was not sufficiently refined, and his breathing had already grown short. When he noticed Chao Qingxiu's gaze turn toward him, he braced himself against the back of his chair and said with difficulty, "I had nothing urgent to attend to, so I spent some time reading. After having lunch with Third Brother Tian at noon, I drew him into a game of chess, and we played until evening."

Tian Changtian nodded on the other side, corroborating his account.

Xiao Xiangyu said, "After the morning, I went into the city for a stroll, then went to an entertainment hall to hear a storyteller. Later, when Guardian Yan checked my whereabouts, she found people who remembered where I had been."

Ruan Shifeng did not wait for Chao Qingxiu to ask. "I was handling gang affairs myself. Though I dare not say someone was beside me at every moment, for most of the time, people came to me to report news from the gang."

In other words, everyone present who had learned Dazheng Palm and knew the taboos surrounding the late Gang Leader Shangguan's recovery theoretically had no opportunity to commit the murder.

Yet witnesses could be bought. That was why Yan Kaixian and the others could not trust one another's accounts.

Chao Qingxiu said, "May I ask one question? Could that palm print have been left by the late Gang Leader Shangguan herself?"

Ruan Shifeng said, "We considered that possibility. If the palm print had been left by the late leader, she would most likely have been indicating that the attacker had learned Dazheng Palm."

The more she spoke, the more downcast Ruan Shifeng became.

What had remained impossible to investigate more than ten years before was still shrouded in fog more than a decade later.

Ruan Shifeng sighed. "Perhaps Guardian Yan has taken the right path after all. Since none of us will ever be able to avenge the late leader, dying together here may be the only way to avenge her and redress our grievance."

As this former senior member of the Zizhuo Gang, now a chief constable of the Six Doors, spoke in bitter regret, Miss Chao spoke again.

Chao Qingxiu leaned against the back of her chair, wearing a thoughtful expression. "After hearing you all out, I have a few tentative suspicions."

Everyone present looked shocked. Yan Kaixian gripped her armrests so hard that she unconsciously cracked them. If her internal strength had not declined after swallowing the poison, she would have been unable to restrain herself from rushing over to Chao Qingxiu.

She took several breaths before steadying herself. "Miss, do not jest."

Chao Qingxiu did not take it to heart. "At this point, even if I make a few jokes, I suppose they will do no harm." She then added, "I have heard Chief Constable Ruan mention a few details about what happened years ago." Her gaze shifted to Ruan Shifeng. "Chief Constable Ruan once said that when she first saw the late Gang Leader's body, she thought the old leader was merely sitting in meditation in the study."

Ruan Shifeng nodded, unable to see what was wrong with the statement.

Chao Qingxiu asked, "If Chief Constable Ruan could make such a mistake, does it prove that there were essentially no signs of a struggle in the study?"

Otherwise, given Ruan Shifeng's meticulous nature, her first concern upon arrival would have been whether an enemy had come to attack.

Ruan Shifeng nodded. "Exactly. That is why we all believed that someone she knew had caught the late leader off guard, attacked suddenly, and subdued her."

Chao Qingxiu shook her head. "It is precisely for that reason that something about it seems wrong to me."

"The late leader died after wine caused her vital energy and blood to boil. Moreover, the study was not in disarray, and the only thing left on the table was an empty wine bottle. You assumed that someone close to her had suddenly struck, subdued the late leader, and then poured wine into her mouth. But that raises a question. If the late leader had already been subdued, why would the killer have had to force her to drink wine?"

Her voice was not especially loud, yet to Yan Kaixian and the others, it struck like a bolt of thunder.

After they discovered that the late Gang Leader Shangguan had been murdered, Yan Kaixian and the others had suspected one another and accused one another of the crime. None had sat down to examine the case in detail.

After all, there were few people within the gang whom they had grounds to suspect. The senior members had focused on one another's alibis instead of closely studying the method of the murder.

Chao Qingxiu said, "You were all too closely involved to see clearly, so no wonder. If I were one of you and harbored ill will toward the late leader, after subduing her, I would naturally choose a method that would not reveal my identity."

"The killer's use of wine and the decision to leave the bottle behind were like a deliberate proclamation that the killer was an important member of the gang."

Ruan Shifeng let out a long breath. "So that is what it means. Your words have truly opened my eyes, Miss."

Her tone was unusually sincere, perhaps carrying a hint of regret that after spending years in the Six Doors, she had learned no more than during a few words of conversation.

Chao Qingxiu smiled without replying.

There was plainly a wall between the worlds of martial artists and detectives. Even when people of the martial world committed murder, they had no patience to study methods honed through countless refinements. Even if they thought of using a scheme to conceal themselves, they would not pay particular attention to details. The situation was perfectly suited to the theoretical experience Chao Qingxiu possessed, allowing her to improvise.

Yan Kaixian remained composed. "But if the attacker was not an important member of the gang, how would he have known that the late leader was critically wounded? Why would the study also happen to contain both a palm print and a wine bottle?"

Chao Qingxiu replied, "Naturally, because someone who knew the inside truth passed the information along."

Ruan Shifeng frowned. "We also considered whether members of the Baihe Gang might have been involved. However, the skills of the few people from the Baihe Gang in this area were hardly outstanding. If they could have subdued the late leader so easily, I find it difficult to believe."

There were few martial factions around Gaofang Prefecture. Otherwise, in all the years since the Zizhuo Gang had been destroyed, someone would have seized its territory.

Her view was reasonable, and the other members of the Zizhuo Gang tacitly agreed.

Chao Qingxiu said, "Since Chief Constable Ruan says so, we shall first assume that the Baihe Gang had nothing to do with this." She continued, "Now let us go over the matter from the beginning."

"The late Gang Leader Shangguan died after wine caused her vital energy and blood to boil, so she must have drunk wine at some point between the morning of the incident and her discovery that afternoon. The food delivered at noon was examined afterward and found to be unproblematic, and we have already ruled out the possibility that someone poured wine into her mouth after subduing her."

"If she was not forced to take it, she must have drunk it willingly. Since the late leader would not knowingly drink wine for no reason, I boldly suspect that she consumed it without realizing what it was."

At this point, Chao Qingxiu continued, "Wine on its own would arouse the late Gang Leader Shangguan's suspicion, so it had to be concealed before it reached her lips. To begin with, suppose the wine was mixed into another liquid, such as tea."

"If so, however, the killer would have had no reason to place a separate empty wine bottle on the table as cover. Whether it was an empty wine bottle or an empty teacup, it would make little difference to investigators. Therefore, I believe the wine was mixed into the food."

"But you investigated the matter at the time and confirmed that the food delivered from within the gang was unproblematic. That means there must have been another meal that did contain a problem."

Xiao Xiangyu could not help interrupting. "Who could sneak another meal into Mingsi Hall without the late Gang Leader Shangguan noticing?"

Anyone truly possessed of such skill would not have needed to devise such a roundabout way to murder her.

Chao Qingxiu replied, "Miss Xiao is right. That is why the food was not delivered behind the late leader's eyes and ears, or rather, she had deliberately arranged it herself." She turned to Ruan Shifeng. "I have just thought of something. Chief Constable Ruan mentioned yesterday that the late leader was somewhat particular about her food. She also said that she would occasionally disguise herself as an ordinary commoner and visit the marketplace."

"Since the food delivered by the gang had been touched only a few times when you found the late leader's body, perhaps Gang Leader Shangguan had someone bring her another meal. It is not impossible."

As Yan Kaixian listened to Chao Qingxiu, a sudden dizziness swept through her. Despite her present cultivation, she could not stop her heart from racing.

At that moment, the hall became exceedingly quiet. Even the sound of everyone's breathing could be heard clearly.

The truth buried for years was slowly revealing its original face to everyone present.

Chao Qingxiu's voice was gentle and flowing. "Think carefully. Mingsi Hall stood close to the street and was not in the central part of the gang's territory. The late leader specifically chose to recuperate there for reasons of her own."

Modern people were, of course, no strangers to ordering takeout, so Chao Qingxiu did not need to sneak out to order food. Before transmigrating, whenever she bought something to eat at night, the courier would soften his footsteps upon arriving, would not call, and would send an online message to tell the customer that the food had arrived, ensuring that the entire process remained quiet and inconspicuous.

Chao Qingxiu never expected that such a small lesson from everyday life would help clear her mind and unravel the case.

"With the late Gang Leader Shangguan's abilities, having someone deliver food near Qingbo Street and then climbing over the wall to collect it would not be difficult. Moreover, Chief Constable Ruan mentioned that the late leader did not casually grant audiences to the gang's members. If they had business to report, they had to seek an audience several times before she would summon them. Perhaps this was because she did not remain in Mingsi Hall every moment of the day. Sometimes she stayed elsewhere and only hurried back when she heard gang members outside asking to see her. If she sometimes received people immediately and at other times kept them waiting for a while, people might have guessed that she had slipped out privately. But because she always delayed slightly before granting an audience, no one would have been able to notice."

"With that in mind, the matter becomes easy to explain. One of the people present secretly colluded with an outsider and revealed the late leader's secret. The outsider then had someone add wine to the food the late Gang Leader Shangguan had ordered. After she finished the meal, her internal injuries flared, her vital energy and blood surged, and she died. The person who delivered the food then slipped quietly into Mingsi Hall, carried the late leader's body into the study, and filled her mouth with peach blossom wine to deceive those who discovered her. Because the actual cause of death was indeed related to wine, you would not have thought twice when you saw the empty bottle. If the killer were truly a master who subdued Gang Leader Shangguan first and then forced her to drink, one sip would have been enough. Why drain the bottle and leave it behind?"

"As for the palm print, the culprit only had to know the exact time when the late leader went out to collect the food. While she was away, he could slip into Mingsi Hall and leave the print without alerting anyone. Later, the others would see it and assume that it had been left at noon or shortly afterward."

Chao Qingxiu spoke at length, while the others listened in shock and wonder, completely captivated. Her account sounded at first like an unconstrained flight of imagination, yet on careful consideration, every part of it made sense. The late leader's habit of going out in secret without attendants was also entirely consistent with her character.

Ruan Shifeng murmured, "If so, then everything we established before..." Her gaze swept across the others, but she did not finish the sentence.

Chao Qingxiu said, "Actually, there is one more thing I would like to ask."

Ruan Shifeng was now completely won over by Chao Qingxiu and had begun to believe that, with her here today, she might truly uncover the fog that had shrouded the old case. "Please go ahead, Miss. I will answer without reserve."

Chao Qingxiu asked in a gentle voice, "Gang Leader Shangguan presumably would not have chosen food from an unknown source, so the meal delivered that day should have come from a long-established restaurant in the city. May I ask which restaurant she favored? Cai's?"

Yue Zhiwen looked astonished. "It was indeed Cai's. How did you know, Miss Chao?"

Chao Qingxiu nodded. "I heard something in the city before. I only just remembered it."

She calmly rose, lightly ran her hand over the old side table beside the chair, and felt around it for a moment. Then she pulled a paper parcel from underneath and walked over to Yan Kaixian. Taking a pill from the parcel, she held it to Yan Kaixian's lips and asked with a smile, "Is this the antidote? Take it. I still have something I need you to do."

Yan Kaixian did not have time to ask how Chao Qingxiu knew where she had hidden the antidote. Out of trust in her, she opened her mouth, swallowed the pill, and asked without hesitation, "What do you need me to do?"

Chao Qingxiu stepped back two paces, moved to Yan Kaixian's side, and then gestured ahead. In a gentle voice, she said, "Now that matters have come this far, bringing the owner of Cai's here to answer a few questions will reveal the truth."

As she spoke, her gaze fell upon Tian Changtian, whose face had somehow turned as white as snow. She said,

"I was not entirely certain it was you, Brother Tian, but the way you look now has given you away. Guardian Yan, please help me. Do not let Brother Tian attack me. I have questions for him."

The antidote took effect swiftly. Yan Kaixian gathered her vital energy, flashed forward, and planted herself in front of Tian Changtian. She extended her arm and reached for him in a sudden lunge.

Tian Changtian raised his hand to block her, but his martial skills were inferior to Yan Kaixian's even under normal circumstances. Poisoned as he was, his stance was already scattered. In a single move, she seized him at a vital point in his chest.

Yan Kaixian turned toward Chao Qingxiu, her voice exceptionally firm. "What do you want to ask him?"

Chao Qingxiu's gaze was gentle, and her voice was even softer. At an unhurried pace, she said, "I would very much like to ask Brother Tian why someone so vicious and ruthless did not take the life of the owner of Cai's back then. Did he tell you that, if he himself ever died, the evidence he had secretly left behind would certainly be made public?"

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