"Who is the master of this household, venerable sir? Do you reside here year-round?"
After drinking the hot tea, Qin Yi'an's freezing body finally began to thaw. As he moved his hands and feet, they no longer felt so stiff. Shen San, whose face had turned purplish-blue from the cold earlier, was also regaining some color in his cheeks.
Uncle Zhang stood before Shu He, his demeanor deeply respectful. "Replying to the officer, I have lived here for many years. The master of the house is a merchant from the south who frequently travels to Yuancheng on business, which is why he bought this estate in the outskirts."
Qin Yi'an nodded. Such records could be checked in the county archives, so there was no way it could be forged. He had only asked casually; his real purpose was to inquire about Lady He.
"When did Lady He enter your master's household?"
"Lady He was brought here from the south by the master two years ago."
Shu He lowered her head, a flash crossing her eyes. She had not expected Baili Moqing to be somewhat compassionate after all! After all, had he not given the word, Uncle Zhang likely would not have stepped forward to help.
Qin Yi'an asked again, "Does Lady He have any children?"
Uncle Zhang's expression shifted slightly. After a pause, he answered, "No."
"Is that so?" Qin Yi'an looked at Shu He. Her head was bowed, and the dry, unkempt strands of hair falling about her temples obscured the greater part of her face, making it impossible to read her expression.
Knowing that pressing further would yield no results, Qin Yi'an stood up to take his leave.
Uncle Zhang and Shu He accompanied the two men to the front gates. Qin Yi'an offered a salute, saying, "We have troubled you both, and I thank you for the hot tea."
Uncle Zhang waved his hand with a smile. "It was nothing. You officers work hard in the line of duty."
Withdrawing his salute, Qin Yi'an offered a warning. "A few days ago, a family was wiped out at an estate in the West Suburbs. The culprit was a female servant from that very household who turned to murder because she could no longer endure the abuse of her masters; several people died. Old man, you would do well not to be too eager to help outsiders of late, lest you fail to see them for who they are and end up inviting wolves into the house."
With that, he kept his eyes on Uncle Zhang while sweeping a sidelong glance across Shu He's face.
Uncle Zhang's expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed in shock, "There are such servants? How dare a slave kill her master?! That is a grave crime indeed!"
Qin Yi'an continued, "Indeed. Regardless of the reason, a life has been taken. Sympathize as I might as a constable, my duty is still to bring the culprit to justice. I only hope that female servant will surrender herself voluntarily; perhaps explaining the circumstances might earn her some leniency. That would certainly be better than dragging a child around while hiding and wandering the ends of the earth."
"That female servant has a child?" Uncle Zhang was startled, his gaze instinctively turning toward Shu He. Qin Yi'an caught this exchange instantly, and his suspicions regarding Shu He rushed back in full force.
"Yes, around two years of age. Reportedly very frail."
Uncle Zhang's back bent a little lower as he instinctively lowered his brow, doing his utmost to conceal the emotions roiling within him.
"Uncle Zhang, who is lingering at the door?"
Nan Qi strode through the snow in a black robe bearing dark patterns. His tall frame and capable demeanor gave him an exceptionally striking presence.
"Young master, it's officers from Yuancheng. They said they were passing by on official business and stopped for a cup of hot tea." Uncle Zhang clearly played his part with practiced ease, as if in the eyes of outsiders, Nan Qi had always been the master of this house.
With his sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, Nan Qi actually carried the air of a young aristocrat when he put on a stern face.
Slightly nodding, Nan Qi turned and cupped his hands toward the two men. "Have the two officers finished your tea?"
Just as Qin Yi'an nodded, he heard Nan Qi's faintly chilly voice ring out, "In that case, we won't delay your official duties any further." With that, he turned to Uncle Zhang. "Uncle Zhang, do not open the door again for no reason. The wind and snow are too heavy, and whatever warmth managed to build up inside will all be lost!"
Qin Yi'an froze, a look of awkwardness passing over his face. Shen San, who was incapable of hiding his feelings, was immediately provoked by Nan Qi's attitude. He glared with raised brows, demanding, "What kind of attitude is that?"
Nan Qi spared him a downward glance without a word and turned back inside toward the inner rooms.
"We are officers of the law! How dare the son of a merchant treat us with such disdain?!"
Ignored by Nan Qi, Shen San moved forward in a rage, but Qin Yi'an quickly intercepted him. "Shen San, don't be impulsive!"
Our leader, that punk is—"
"Enough!"
Without lingering any longer, Qin Yi'an led Shen San back out into the thick snow.
Closing the front gates, Uncle Zhang cast a complex look at Shu He. Feeling somewhat uneasy, Shu He murmured, "Uncle Zhang need not worry. I am not the female servant he spoke of."
With that, she hurried off in the direction Nan Qi had gone.
Uncle Zhang clenched his fists, his face filled with anxiety and doubt.
He had seen the water she used after washing up—it was blood-red. At the time, he had wondered if it was the blood of some animal, or perhaps from her own injuries. He never imagined it could be blood left behind from a murder!
Would the young master be alright?
No, Nan Qi's martial arts were so formidable; there was no way he couldn't handle a mere woman. He must be worrying over nothing. The young master was so clever, he surely would have guessed that this woman's origins were extraordinary, right?
As Uncle Zhang stepped inside as well, the elegant figure of a woman emerged from the corner of the front hall.
Gleaming with a sinister and venomous light in her eyes, Nanggong Xiyun pulled up the hood of her cloak, pushed open the front door, and walked out toward the two figures in the distance.
Meanwhile, Shu He followed Nan Qi back into Baili Moqing's study. Xiao Yi'er was fast asleep on the long couch. At some point, a folding screen had been placed directly opposite the window, completely blocking out the wind and snow that occasionally drifted in.
By the window, Nan Qi was presenting a cup of hot tea to the man's side. Without even lifting his head, the man was entirely absorbed in the book in his hands, paying not the slightest heed to her arrival. Nan Qi, however, cast an uncharitable glare in her direction, as if she were nothing but trouble.
An unnatural look crossed Shu He's face as she murmured, "Thank you."
Seeing her scoop up Xiao Yi'er and prepare to leave, Nan Qi called out, "Aren't you going to explain?"
"Explain what?"
"The murder case those two were talking about just now!"
With a calm expression, Shu He simply uttered a "hmph" and carried Xiao Yi'er out of the study.
Not until Shu He's figure completely vanished did Nan Qi's face fill with intense fury. "This woman... she—she just left like that?"
"What an ungrateful wretch!"
Baili Moqing's lips curled slightly as he raised his eyes to look at her. "She did say thank you, you know."
Hearing this, Nan Qi's expression grew immensely complicated.
What on earth had gotten into their master today? Didn't he usually detest women? Why was he speaking up for a woman over and over again today? And a married woman with a child at that!
Surely he hadn't fallen for what that woman said—that the master had taken a fancy to her, had he?
At this thought, Nan Qi hastily spat out a few times, shocked that such a thought had even crossed his mind. What kind of person was his master? How could he possibly harbor feelings for a widow!
Catching the mercurial shifts in Nan Qi's expression out of the corner of his eye, Baili Moqing felt a wave of helplessness and merely said, "Go send a message to Bei Ji."
Nan Qi's mind remained so preoccupied that when he sat down to write the letter, he made mistake after mistake. It took him several attempts before he could finally make do and dispatch the carrier pigeon—resulting in Bei Ji later twitching uncontrollably at the sight of the message and muttering darkly that this brat spent every day slacking off and couldn't even write properly anymore, and truly needed a good thrashing!
Before long, Qin Yi'an and Shen San, who were keeping watch outside Anhe Residence, actually saw Shu He holding a "bundle" and heading next door to the Zhang Residence.
Rubbing his freezing ears, which felt as though they might snap off from the cold, Shen San asked excitedly, "Chief, this woman definitely has issues! Can we go back and report this to the county magistrate now?"
"Let's observe a little longer." Qin Yi'an felt it was still not entirely certain; he wanted to be sure.
"What else is there to observe? Didn't that Miss Nanggong from Anhe Residence already say that this so-called Lady He isn't from Anhe Residence at all, and only appeared this morning? Combined with the Zhang family servant and that woman both lying to us, isn't the truth already clear? Why do we still need to confirm it?"
Qin Yi'an remained silent, but Shen San knew that once his superior made up his mind, he wouldn't easily change it. A thought suddenly occurred to him. "Chief, don't we have a witness? Why don't we go back to the West Suburbs and fetch a witness to identify her, and the truth will come to light?"
Qin Yi'an's expression shifted slightly. That was actually a good idea!
"Chief, it's too cold. If we keep standing guard like this, we'll freeze to death here before we even catch the murderer!"
"Alright, let's go find the witness!"
Once the two men departed, the empty and desolate outskirts returned to a state of stillness. The swirling snow quickly covered the traces they had left behind.
Back at the Zhang estate, Shu He bypassed the front hall and saw Xiao Duo slumped on the ground, trembling uncontrollably as the heavy snow threatened to bury his legs.
Opposite him lay the corpse of a bandit half-covered in white snow. At this moment, the snow over the body had been scraped away, revealing a headless neck mangled in bloody gore amidst the pristine white. Not far away, a snow-ball shaped like a human head rested quietly on the ground, seemingly echoing that severed wound from afar.
The sight was bone-chillingly terrifying.