Chapter 126: Do Not Lie to Me

Ding Wu fired a signal flare into the sky to notify the others that they had found the person.

Looking at Wen Jing, who kept her head bowed and knelt beside Qingliu's corpse, Ding Wu scratched his head. They could not just stay like this...

"Lady Seven, the hour is late..."

"Carry Qingliu's body down the mountain," Wen Jing suddenly stood up and said, though her legs were numb and unsteady, making her almost stumble.

Ding Wu hurriedly stepped forward to support her, but Wen Jing waved her hand to indicate she was fine.

Several guards gathered some vines and branches to construct a makeshift stretcher, placing Qingliu's body upon it.

A few timid nuns nervously cleared a path, allowing the guards to carry the body down the mountain first.

Mingqing glanced at Qingliu's corpse, a flash of disgust crossing her eyes, before she turned to scold the terrified Taoist nuns cowering in the distance: "It is merely a corpse, yet you are frightened to this extent. Why are you not returning to your daily devotions at once?"

With their heads lowered, the nuns followed Mingqing down the mountain. Among them was the timid nun. Ding Wu's gaze lingered on her intentionally or otherwise, only to find her shrinking back behind the crowd like a frightened rabbit.

Wen Jing cast a glance at Mingqing's retreating back, a trace of doubt flashing in her eyes. Why was it specifically their team that found Qingliu? Moreover, they had found her with almost no difficulty, and Mingqing showed not the slightest bit of shock, but rather a look of disgust. Recalling what Ding Wu had said earlier, could Mingqing have deliberately led her to this exact spot to find Qingliu?

If so, what benefit could that possibly bring her?

The entire journey back was silent.

Ji Changge looked at Wen Jing, whose expression remained entirely composed. Had he not seen Qingliu's body carried in beforehand, he would have thought Wen Jing had returned with a living Qingliu.

"My condolences," Ji Changge said indifferently.

Wen Jing slightly curtsied and replied, "Thank you, Magistrate Ji. Furthermore, Seven Lady wishes to personally examine Qingliu's remains and earnestly begs your permission."

Ji Changge nodded slightly, a flicker of movement in his eyes: "Very well."

Though Wen Jing did not explicitly state it, her tone made it clear that she intended to personally uncover the killer who murdered Qingliu.

Meeting Ji Changge's intensely warm gaze, Wen Jing averted her eyes. Ji Changge undoubtedly hoped she would participate in the investigation, and since that was the case, she decided to stop holding back. If retreating to a Taoist temple proved useless, she would simply have to forge ahead against the wind. Only by making herself stronger could she protect herself and her family. Qingliu's death had completely opened her eyes to the cruelty of this world.

Human life was treated like blades of grass. In this seemingly feudal and backward world, taking a life was far simpler and easier than in modern times. A single dose of poison could extinguish a life, and provided one had power and influence, one could easily evade the sanctions of the law.

Walking into the room, Wen Jing looked at Qingliu's corpse, which was gradually beginning to decay from the toxins. Donning her gloves, she commenced the autopsy.

"I shall go in and take a look as well," Dongsheng said, somewhat skeptical.

Ji Changge glanced at Dongsheng and said coolly, "You would do better not to enter."

Dongsheng's expression faltered slightly, a touch of displeasure crossing his features. With a flick of his sleeve, he strode inside anyway. It was merely a corpse; surely he was not going to be afraid.

Ji Changge shook his head and followed him in.

The moment Dongsheng stepped inside, he was met with Qingliu's corpse, which was continually oozing a blackish-green fluid. His stomach instantly churned, contents rising uncontrollably. Though observing Wen Jing dissect the Abbey Master and Mingxi's bodies previously had been rather bloody, the corpses themselves had not been quite so horrifying, nor carried such an unbearable, foul stench. Seeing Qingliu's blackish-purple corpse with its tongue protruding, eyes bulging, and limbs rigidly outstretched, Dongsheng felt his scalp tingle. Only then did he realize why Ji Changge had advised him against entering. Lifting his gaze, he met Ji Changge's probing look. Dongsheng coughed dryly and gritted his teeth, forcing down the overwhelming urge to turn around and flee.

Observing the bruise on Qingliu's neck left by the cloth binding, Wen Jing gripped her short blade tightly and made a gentle incision along the muscle tissue. There were no traces of subcutaneous bleeding, which proved that Qingliu had been hanged only after death; for once a person dies, vital reactions cease, and death by hanging inevitably results in subcutaneous bleeding.

Qingliu's entire body was covered in purplish-blue lividity, making it impossible to determine if she had been beaten. The discoloration was evenly distributed and of a similar hue, save for a spot on her chest that was significantly darker.

Fixating on the slightly depressed area on the chest, Wen Jing did not hesitate, using her blade to open the chest and abdominal cavities.

As the knife sliced through, a large quantity of dark greenish-black fluid from the abdomen continuously surged onto the floor, releasing a dense, pungent stench of decay.

"Ugh."

In the end, Dongsheng could not hold it back. His face turned pale, and with a retch, he bolted out of the room.

Paying Dongsheng no mind, Wen Jing used a spoon to scoop away the remaining fluids in the thoracic and abdominal cavities, only to find that Qingliu's internal organs and large intestine were severely decomposed, rendering them completely uninformative.

Judging by the autopsy results, death appeared to be entirely due to poisoning. Yet, judging by the various signs, it was utterly impossible for Qingliu to have hanged herself first and then died of poisoning. Had that been the case, there would have been friction marks on the tree branch, and it was even less possible for someone to die of poisoning and then hang themselves afterward. Once this point was established, no matter how improbable it seemed, the remainder must be fact—even if the killer's method of murder remained temporarily unknown.

Was the killer playing it clever, or was there a deeper meaning? Would it not have been better to simply let Qingliu die of the poison alone? Or perhaps the killer grew impatient, thus staging the illusion of suicide...

"Have you determined the cause of death?"

Ji Changge asked, seeing the deep frown on Wen Jing's brow. In the past, whenever Wen Jing finished an autopsy, she always wore a confident expression before informing him of the results, but this time seemed different.

"Not yet, but I am certain Qingliu was murdered."

Wen Jing stood up, her mind rapidly cycling through every method of murder she knew, yet none of them seemed to fit.

"Yet judging by the signs on the corpse, it appears to be poisoning?"

"The poison should have taken effect only after Qingliu's death. She did not hang herself; rather, it was staged to look like hanging. If Qingliu had died of poisoning, the culprit could simply have abandoned her there. Why go to the trouble of staging the illusion of hanging?"

Ji Changge stared at Wen Jing's slightly reddened left earlobe: "Even if it were murder, there was no need to stage a hanging. The corpse looks no different from one dead by poisoning. In that case, no one would ever suspect murder at all, would they not? Why would the killer go to such superfluous lengths?"

Wen Jing fell silent, a nearly absurd thought flashing through her mind. Could it be... that hanging her from the tree... was meant to ensure she was found by those searching?

The more absurd the thought felt, the more Wen Jing began to suspect that perhaps this was indeed the truth. This bizarre Taoist temple could not be judged by conventional reasoning; overcomplicating things would only lead one into a dead end. If the person who took the sword wanted them to find Qingliu's body, what was their objective?

"Regardless of whether Qingliu was murdered, she ultimately died of poisoning. However, how did she ingest the poison? What kind of poison was it?" Ji Changge looked at Wen Jing and asked.

Wen Jing paused and said, "As to that, I do not know. Perhaps she was bitten by a poisonous insect, or mistakenly ingested a toxic herb."

Her earlobe grew hot. Ji Changge's face was mere inches away. His thin lips curved slightly as he said in a low voice, "You are lying."

Wen Jing felt a slight jolt in her heart, not expecting that telling a casual lie would actually be seen through by Ji Changge.

"Every time you lie, this ear turns red. You have never changed that habit." Ji Changge lightly brushed Wen Jing's left ear, a playful smile blooming at the corners of his mouth.

Wen Jing subconsciously took a step back. This "habit" must belong to Wen Qiniang; she certainly did not have such a habit herself, for this body after all did not truly belong to her.

"Since Magistrate Ji knew I did not wish to speak of it, why ask?" Wen Jing said with a faint smile. Looking at Ji Changge's face, which practically bore the words 'Don't even think about tricking me', she truly wanted to punch him. This black-bellied fox truly could not be underestimated; if one was careless for even a moment, one would be outwitted by him.

Ji Changge did not press further, merely offering a meaningful smile, as though he was not overly invested in the case. Wen Jing, after all, should be far more eager to find the murderer than he was.

Seeing Ji Changge smile so brightly, Dongsheng was momentarily stunned. He had almost never seen Ji Changge look like this; previously, even when he smiled, it was merely superficial, born of the deceitful maneuvers within officialdom.

Dongsheng glanced at Wen Jing once more. What magic did this woman, who bore no resemblance whatsoever to a "distinguished noble lady," actually possess?

Noticing Dongsheng's puzzled expression, Ji Changge's smile faded.

Seeing Ji Changge emerge, Ding Wu hurried forward.

"Were there any anomalies along the way?" Ji Changge asked.

"Your subordinate kept watch in secret the entire time; the two of them showed no abnormalities," Ding Wu replied.

"The two of them?" Wen Jing asked.

Ji Changge detailed the interrogation from earlier to Wen Jing. At present, the most suspicious person was the Taoist nun Mingqing.

"What was the motive for murder? What benefit would killing the Abbey Master bring her?" Wen Jing asked.

"That remains unknown. Perhaps to usurp her position, or for wealth. Mingqing is intimately familiar with all of the Abbey Master's daily habits, and the Abbey Master held no guard against her. She is a plump woman standing roughly four feet and four inches tall—she fits every single criterion," Ji Changge analyzed.

Mingqing was indeed highly suspicious, but these were merely conjectures. Solving a case relied on evidence, and the most crucial task now was gathering proof.

"I shall go to the rear courtyard where the Taoist nuns reside. Being a woman, it will be more convenient for me to see if I can gather any useful information," Wen Jing said to Ji Changge.

"Be careful. Those nuns are not kind souls," Ji Changge cautioned.

Wen Jing curtsied slightly and departed.

Ji Changge exchanged a look with Ding Wu, who understood and followed closely behind her.

"You certainly care quite a bit for this young lady," Dongsheng said, twirling his folding fan as a smile crept to the corner of his mouth.

Ji Changge looked into the distance and teased, "If we wish to solve this case swiftly, we cannot do without her. Or perhaps Young Master Dongsheng wishes to stay and keep these Taoist nuns company for a few more days?"

Dongsheng shook his head hastily, offering a wry smile: "Looking at these plump nuns every single day makes food tasteless. We would do better to solve this case as quickly as possible so we may return early."