Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 162: Hint
Under the faint moonlight shrouded in thin mist, everything appeared hazy and desolate.
Qian Ai remained silent for a long while before asking, “Is your mission to find Du Jinnian?”
Wu Sheng nodded.
Qian Ai looked at him, struggling a bit to say, “Did they specify whether they wanted him alive or dead…?”
Wu Sheng sighed and didn’t answer, as if he also couldn’t clarify.
Qian Ai felt a chill run down his spine. The old man false corpse, the disappeared Du Jinnian, and Second Master Cheng who died last year… These pieces of information just obtained wove into a dark net, casting over the entire Cheng family estate. He couldn’t make heads or tails of it; such information processing definitely required a brain like Wu Sheng’s.
Watching Qian Ai hurry back to the memorial hall, Wu Sheng stood alone in the night for a while longer.
In just this short time, the complex clues formed a network—
- Three disappearances: Cheng Jiming’s death; Old Master Cheng’s death; Du Jinnian’s disappearance.
- Three remaining members of the Cheng family: Cheng Xiaoxan; Cheng Jiming’s second wife, Hai Huiping; Cheng Jiming and his first wife’s daughter, Cheng Yixin.
- Social relations: Du Jinnian was close to Cheng Jiming; Hai Huiping is the younger sister of the young gang leader of the Hai Gang, Hai Yunlong.
- Doubts:
- Old master Cheng fell last year and died this year. Is there anything suspicious about this?
- Cheng Jiming was kidnapped, and the ransom note was denied by the Fushou Gang. Did they really not do it, or are they just denying it?
- Why did Du Jinnian suddenly visit the Cheng family, and what exactly did he discuss with Cheng Xiaonan in the living room of the small building?
The information gathered was like pearls scattered on the ground, and Wu Sheng needed to find the thread that strung them together.
Returning to the western-style building, unexpectedly, Hai Yunlong came with people.
Wu Sheng didn’t recognize Hai Yunlong, but from the way he brought a group of people with him, the slight resemblance to Hai Huiping in their eyes and brows, and the conversation with Master Jiu, he understood—Fushou Gang was imposing on the Cheng family, and Hai Huiping had called her brother to take charge.
However, what puzzled Wu Sheng was that Hai Yunlong seemed to harbor a greater hatred towards the young man by Master Jiu’s side. His eyes were fixed on the young man’s fair face with a gaze like the fires of hell.
The fair-skinned young man, on the other hand, appeared indifferent, not even looking at Hai Yunlong. He had a calm and self-satisfied demeanor, occasionally yawning.
Amidst the undercurrents, Ying Jiu spotted Wu Sheng standing at the door, hesitating to enter, and immediately became amiable. “Mr. Bai, you went to enjoy the moon, didn’t you?”
If one didn’t look into the depths of Ying Jiu’s eyes, he would seem like a very refined person. Even his teasing was done with a benevolent appearance.
Knowing he had been away for a while, Wu Sheng smiled and accepted the tease without explanation, to avoid making things worse.
Meanwhile, his gaze fell on Hai Yunlong, as if he had just noticed him, raising his eyebrows slightly with a mild surprise.
Hai Yunlong narrowed his eyes, snorting coldly with a sneer. “Mr. Bai.”
“……” Great, another “acquaintance”.
Wu Sheng suspected that this Mr. Bai he had transmigrated in was a social butterfly of Jinmen. Otherwise, why would all these big shots recognize him?
The more one talks, the more mistakes one makes, so facing the two big shots, Wu Sheng remained silent, just politely smiling.
Cheng Xiao Nan took the opportunity to join in the conversation, inviting everyone to sit. Fortunately, the living room sofa was large enough to accommodate the four of them while maintaining a polite distance.
Hai Yunlong left four people standing behind him, and the rest were sent outside, giving his brother-in-law’s family some face.
The long night was dragging on, signifying a sleepless night. The four engaged in an awkward conversation that looked like they were sitting in silent judgment rather than talking.
Ying Jiu and Hai Yunlong, being familiar with the underworld, could sit still, but Cheng Xiaonan, merely a wealthy son, wasn’t so adept at handling pressure. He had his servants bring a whole bottle of foreign wine, and in less than a quarter of an hour, he had refilled his glass several times.
Initially, Hai Yunlong was drinking tea but was tempted by the other’s actions. When Cheng Xiaonan poured another drink, Hai Yunlong shouted to a servant for an empty cup, saying he’d join the young master for a drink.
The servant hurried to comply, but just as he turned to fetch it, Cheng Xiaonan’s glass suddenly dropped to the floor. The thick glass didn’t break but made a dull thud upon landing on the carpet.
Looking at Cheng Xiaonan, his mouth was agape, and he was breathing rapidly with one hand clutching his throat and the other pointing at the half-empty bottle of foreign wine on the table. His eyes were filled with disbelief and terror. “The wine… the wine… is poisoned…”
Hai Yunlong, who had been leaning forward to examine the label on the wine bottle, trying to guess its country of origin, saw Cheng Xiaonan poisoned and instantly retreated, slamming back into the sofa to get as far away as possible!
Wu Sheng instinctively looked at Ying Jiu, who was also looking at him. Their eyes met, each lost in thought.
Cheng Xiaonan suddenly bent over, furiously gagging himself. Within seconds, he vomited out all the wine he drank in the evening until only bile was life. Struggling, he raised his head and hoarsely shouted, “Quick… go find… Dr. Gong… Tell him… it’s… aconite poison…”
As the servants rushed off, Cheng Xiaonan grabbed the teapot on the table, gulping down its contents directly into his throat, truly flushing it out.
After drinking, he put down the teapot, gagged himself again, and continued to induce vomiting.
This cycle of drinking and vomiting resembled a stomach wash. Wu Sheng watched this “proficient self-rescue procedure”, his gaze flickering slightly behind his glasses.
Aconite, a kind of traditional Chinese medicine, can cure diseases if used correctly but is highly poisonous if misused.
Soon, Dr. Gong arrived, equipped as a Western doctor, and from the conversation, it was clear he was an old acquaintance of the Cheng family.
Cheng Xiaonan was coughing and wheezing, barely able to speak. But upon seeing the mess on the floor, Dr. Gong knew he had vomited and immediately had Cheng Xiaonan moved to a room to lie down, then started treatment with injections and IV fluids.
The living room was left with the three parties, and all of their positions were awkward by default—they were imposing on the host, and now the host had been poisoned.
“Was your master drinking medicinal liquor?” Master Ying Jiu suddenly turned and asked the servant beside him, who was already scared stiff.
The servant took a long while to respond, then shook his head vigorously. “No, it was just foreign wine, not soaked with any herbs!”
Master Ying Jiu nodded, tapping his finger lightly on the armrest of the sofa, his gaze shifting to Wu Sheng. “Mr. Bai, don’t you find it strange? How was Master Cheng so sure that he had been poisoned with aconite?”
Wu Sheng indeed found it strange, but since he was unclear about Ying Jiu’s intentions, he cautiously said, “It’s common for people to be poisoned by aconite-infused liquor. It’s not surprising for Master Cheng to have seen it and recognized it.”
“What do you mean by that?” Hai Yunlong, naturally speaking up for his sister’s family, said, “Could Cheng Xiaonan have poisoned himself? Is he tired of living?”
Suddenly, a shadow flashed at the stairway.
Wu Sheng instinctively looked over. At the corner of the stairs leading to the second floor, a little girl was hiding in the shadows.
Wu Sheng couldn’t make out her face. He could only see her medium-length hair and, in the darkness, a pair of cold, piercing eyes.
Noticing Wu Sheng’s gaze, the child turned and ran upstairs, her footsteps almost inaudible.
Cheng Jiming’s daughter, ten years old this year—Wu Sheng recalled the information collected by Qian Ai.
About half an hour later, Dr. Gong came out of the bedroom and told them that the amount of aconitum poison Cheng Xiaonan ingested was likely small, and with the correct method of inducing vomiting, he was out of danger but needed to rest in bed and continue with IV fluids to cleanse the toxins as soon as possible.
After saying this, he also kindly advised, “Medicines are poisons in their own right; not everything should be infused in liquor.”
There was no aconite-infused liquor to begin with; it was just ordinary foreign liquor that had been poisoned.
This fact was already clear, but Ying Jiu and Hai Yunlong remained silent. Wu Sheng then changed what he was about to say to, “Dr. Gong, let me walk you out.”
Dr. Gong insisted it wasn’t necessary, but Wu Sheng still escorted him out of the building, all the way to the front yard.
However, just before reaching the gate, Wu Sheng took a turn, effectively dragging him to the memorial hall under the guise of using reason (intimidation) and emotion (enticement), half-forcing him to examine the corpse of the Old Master Cheng.
Wu Sheng initially suspected he might know some inside information, but after observing, he felt it was unlikely, thinking this person was probably just a doctor who had dealings with the Cheng family, so he decided to take a risk.
In the quiet of the night, the vast memorial hall was empty—no one dared approach the recently “resurrected” old master—except for only a few white candles, a table full of offerings, and the lonely figure of Old Master Cheng.
Doctor Gong couldn’t perform a real autopsy; he only examined the eyes, ears, mouth, nose, and limbs, but the more he looked, the graver his expression became. Finally, he said, “Mr. Bai, you might be right. Old Master Cheng likely died from poisoning.”
“Possibly?” Wu Sheng wanted “certainty”.
Doctor Gong shook his head. “Unless we analyze the gastric contents, no doctor can make a definitive diagnosis with just the naked eye.”
After sending Dr. Gong off, Wu Sheng pondered as he slowly walked back to the building. Just as he approached the entrance, he was pulled into the bushes by someone. Before he saw the face, he noticed the bald head.
Wu Sheng unconsciously curved his lips. His heart, which had been tense since Cheng Xiaonan’s poisoning, finally felt a breeze of relief. “You’re not sleeping properly. What are you wandering around for?”
Xu Wang said righteously, “How could I leave you alone to follow the mission thread?”
Wu Sheng laughed, deliberately asking, “Then let me hear; how can you help?”
“……” After a moment of silence, Xu Wang tiptoed and pecked his cheek. “Good luck?”
Wu Sheng felt this encouragement was good, and it was worth continuing.
“Do you suspect Cheng Xiaonan poisoned Old Master Cheng and that the poison was the same as what he was just poisoned with?” After hearing Wu Sheng’s summary, Xu Wang understood his meaning.
“Yes,” Wu Sheng said. “Otherwise, he couldn’t have reacted so swiftly and accurately after being poisoned.”
“But why would he harm his own father? And who poisoned him? What does all this have to do with Du Jinnian’s disappearance?” Xu Wang was still confused.
“We don’t know yet,” Wu Sheng honestly admitted. “But I always feel that the key lies with Cheng Xiaonan. The last person Du Jinnian saw was also him.”
Xu Wang asked, “What’s he doing now?”
Wu Sheng replied, “Lying in the bedroom with an IV drip.”
Xu Wang: “……”
Wu Sheng reassured, “Don’t worry. The Fushou Gang and the Hai Gang both have people guarding. If anything happens to Cheng Xiaonan, those who insisted on staying here tonight can’t escape responsibility, so they are more concerned than anyone.”
Xu Wang was surprised. “How do you know I was worried?”
Wu Sheng smiled. “Because according to typical detective movies, the prime suspect, by this time, should have been killed by the murderer.”
Xu Wang: “……”
There was no movement from Master Yan Yi; he had already gone to sleep. Xu Wang mainly came to ask about Wu Sheng’s situation and to offer some help, but since Wu Sheng himself had no clues, he told Xu Wang to go back to rest and then returned to the building himself.
Just as he reached the entrance of the building, he saw a servant sneaking around behind a column, peeping out at a Fushou Gang brother smoking not far away. He was so focused that he didn’t notice Wu Sheng walking straight towards him.
Only when Wu Sheng approached the column did he let out a startled “ah”, as if caught in the act of wrongdoing.
The Fushou Gang brother, hearing the noise, looked over, puzzled.
Wu Sheng saw no one in the living room and directly asked, “Where are Master Jiu and the young gang leader?”
The servant, taken aback by his question, stuttered for a moment before finding his voice. “Resting, resting.”
“They didn’t leave?”
“No, they’re resting in the guest room.” The servant finally spoke a bit more fluently.
With the host poisoned and unable to rise, the guests indeed had no reason to continue chatting over tea. However, it seemed they were determined to root themselves in the Cheng family.
After a moment’s thought, Wu Sheng said, “I’m also tired. Could you arrange a guest room for me?”
“Of course, sir. This way, please.” The servant immediately led the way.
Wu Sheng followed him to a guesthouse near the small building. Until they were alone, Wu Sheng suddenly asked, “Why were you looking at him?”
The servant stopped in his tracks, his expression a mix of fear and confusion. “Ah?”
Wu Sheng looked at him steadily, this time affirmatively. “You know that Fushou Gang brother.”
The servant shook his head vigorously. “I don’t know. I don’t know!”
“Okay.” Wu Sheng shrugged. “I’ll ask Young Master Hai to inquire. You’ll probably recognize him then.”
Wu Sheng could tell; the entire Cheng family estate was quite wary of Hai Yunlong. If Master Ying Jiu was an unwelcome guest, Hai Yunlong was more like a domineering presence from the mother’s family.
“Don’t, sir. I really don’t know anything. I just, just… caught a glimpse of it…”
Wu Sheng’s heart tightened, his tone becoming unconsciously stern. “Caught a glimpse of what?”
The servant was on the verge of tears. “Last year, after the second master was kidnapped, the kidnappers sent a child to deliver the ransom note… I was the one who opened the door… When I received the note, I saw him peeking from the alley. Our eyes met, and he ran away… Sir, you must not say it was me who told you… The Fushou Gang kills without blinking an eye…”
After repeatedly reassuring and comforting the servant, Wu Sheng sat in the dim and cold guest room, deep in thought, for a long time.
Could it really be the Fushou Gang that kidnapped Cheng Jiming, demanded a ransom, and then killed him?
He had always thought not, but that “testimony” just now made him waver.
“Did the Owl give you the task to investigate the case?” In the quiet night breeze, a voice slipped through the door crack, and then the person pushed the door and entered, as naturally as if entering their own home.
Wu Sheng stared blankly at the young man by Master Ying Jiu’s side, who sauntered in and casually sat opposite him, realizing, “Xiao Xue?”
“You’re wearing glasses now.” Chi Yingxue picked up an orange from the fruit plate on the table and started peeling it for himself.
“When did you recognize me?” Wu Sheng was curious.
Chi Ying Xue popped a segment of orange into his mouth. “When you entered the courtyard with a group of monks.”
“And then?” Wu Sheng didn’t believe he recognized him at that time, as he hadn’t spoken at all while the Fushou Gang was confronting the Cheng family from the perimeter.
Chi Yingxue frowned and tilted his head to look at him, as if to say, “It’s so obvious. Why do I even need to explain?”
“You and one of the young monks were exchanging glances, using the same set of eyes you use when you flirt with the captain.”
Wu Sheng: “……”
Which set is that?!
“Do you like the captain?” Out of nowhere, he threw out this question.
Without hesitation, Wu Sheng replied, “Of course.”
“If you like him, then just tackle him and get down to business.” Chi Yingxue stared at him, asking very sincerely, “Isn’t it frustrating to just satisfy yourself with looks?”
Wu Sheng: “……”
There wasn’t a hint of indecency in his eyes. It was just a straightforward, almost innocent question.
But it was precisely this kind that it was harder to answer!
“Hm?” Not getting an answer right away, Chi Yingxue urged.
Wu Sheng surrendered, throwing out the truth. “I didn’t before, but now that you ask like this…”
It all went unsaid.
Chi Yingxue was very satisfied with this answer that matched his expectations.
“By the way, Qian Ai is also here.” Wu Sheng remembered he had forgotten about a comrade. “He’s a Cheng family servant, now guarding the memorial hall.”
Chi Yingxue nodded and continued to look at him, as if waiting for something.
Wu Sheng adjusted his glasses; behind the lenses, it was all confusion.
Chi Yingxue couldn’t wait any longer and directly asked, “What about Xiao Sijin?”
Wu Sheng then realized. “Still don’t know. Qian Ai said he saw a thief who might be him but didn’t catch him as the person ran away.”
Chi Yingxue threw the orange back into the fruit plate, not eating anymore. His delicate eyebrows wrinkled out of shape. “We’re all here, and he’s not. Did the Owl glitch out again?”
“……” Wu Sheng lamented that he was inferior to this domineering logic of attributing everything that doesn’t go as planned to a bug.
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