Chu Xinian didn't know martial arts, so naturally he couldn't study the principles of Qinggong in this world. But the only thing he was sure of was that Xie Jingyuan's Qinggong was definitely not as powerful as the high technology of later generations.
Chu Xinian wiped off the wax on his face with a handkerchief, and then took off his Taoist robe, revealing the white shirt underneath. He successfully transformed from a bearded Taoist priest into a handsome young man in flowing robes. He raised his eyes and looked at Xie Jingyuan: "General, do you dislike Xinian for not knowing martial arts?"
Xie Jingyuan took off the hat that was in the way: "What if I dislike you? What if I don't dislike you?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Xinian pressed him against the tree trunk. The cool and cold breath from the other person's clothes came towards him, enveloping him completely.
"It's too late for you to regret now, General."
Chu Xinian's deep and magnetic voice rang in Xie Jingyuan's ears, causing his cheeks to feel numb.
Xie Jingyuan's breath was choked. He reached out and hooked Chu Xinian's belt, pulling him closer to him. He raised his chin slightly and narrowed his eyes: "Who said that this general regrets it?"
Chu Xinian put his arm around his waist and said with a low smile, "I know the general will not regret it."
Without any reason, they kissed each other without any warning. Chu Xinian reached out and took off the mask on Xie Jingyuan's face, and as always, he preferred his half-injured face and lowered his head to kiss him.
"Chu Xi Nian..."
Xie Jingyuan's breathing suddenly became rapid. His voice was hoarse, and he could not lift his head. Feeling the wetness and itchiness coming from the side of his face, he closed his eyes uncontrollably.
"Chu Xi Nian..."
He whispered the name repeatedly, then kissed her back vigorously. He bit her lips fiercely and kissed her tongue fiercely, just like the crazy and difficult to calm emotions in his heart.
Chu Xinian's arms around his waist tightened, making it airtight. Just when the two of them were somewhat distracted, Xie Jingyuan's fingertips suddenly tightened, and he paused, whispering in Chu Xinian's ear: "Someone is coming."
Chu Xinian listened for a moment, and as expected, he heard the sound of horse hooves coming from far away. He slowly let go of Xie Jingyuan, stretched out his hand and touched his lips, and his white fingertips were stained with a trace of light red, which was obviously caused by someone's bite.
Chu Xinian raised his eyebrows slightly, then sucked the blood off his fingertips, put the mask back on for Xie Jingyuan, and smiled meaningfully: "Let's go, they are from the Mingjing Division."
Xie Jingyuan looked into the distance and saw that the person leading the way on horseback was wearing a scarlet official robe. It was Mei Fengchen. His brows furrowed and he said in a sinister tone, "Why is it this old man again?"
There are probably only two words that can describe Xie Jingyuan's mood right now, and that is unlucky.
Chu Xinian didn't know what the people from the Mingjing Division were doing here, but it was most likely to investigate a case. He didn't want to get into trouble, so he pulled Xie Jingyuan and was about to leave. However, he glanced out of the corner of his eye and found that a dark red corpse-like thing had floated up from the bottom of the lake. He couldn't help but pause.
"… "
Seeing Chu Xinian not moving, Xie Jingyuan noticed something was wrong and subconsciously looked towards the center of the lake. He saw a female corpse that had been soaked and turned pale floating quietly on the lake. The water-red dress on her body was stained with blood, forming a strange dark red. Her face was rotten and swollen, which was really scary.
She had extremely long black hair, which spread out like a spider web and entangled with weeds, like an invisible twisted hand, adding a bit of weirdness to the silent forest.
Xie Jingyuan had never seen such a scene before, and was stunned for a moment. Where did this body come from? Could it be that Chu Xinian was lucky enough to guess that there was really a ghost here
The two of them stood there in a daze, and missed the best golden time to leave. So when Mei Fengchen got off his horse, he saw Chu Xinian and Xie Jingyuan, the two "suspicious people", and his face immediately froze and his brows unconsciously frowned.
Mei Fengchen looked at the female corpse in the middle of the lake, then at Chu Xinian, with a strange expression, unable to hide his confusion. While ordering his men to salvage the body, he stepped forward and bowed, "I greet General Xie. I wonder why Master Chu and General Xie are alone in the suburbs?"
Xie Jingyuan thought to himself, is this old man blind? They were clearly traveling together, so what does it mean to be "alone" in the suburbs? Just as he was about to speak, he was held down by Chu Xinian.
Chu Xinian guessed that Xie Jingyuan couldn't say anything nice, so he didn't want to offend him, so he took over the conversation first, smiled like a spring breeze, and lied seriously: "Today's weather is fine, and I feel that the spring scenery is hard to miss, so I went out of the city for an outing. I never thought that Master Mei is here too. What a coincidence."
He chose to ignore the body in the lake. Although the reason was convincing, it was hard to find any evidence.
Mei Fengchen said in an ambiguous tone, "I see. What about General Xie? Is he also going out of town for an outing?"
Xie Jingyuan raised his eyelids and said, "Why, can't this general go out of the city to get some fresh air?"
Chu Xinian put his arm around Xie Jingyuan's shoulders at the right time, pretending to be very affectionate: "The general has been bedridden for a long time and has not left the house for a long time. I am very worried, so I will take him out of the city to relax."
Xie Jingyuan coughed twice at just the right moment, and indeed he looked sick, though his face looked a little grim.
Mei Fengchen didn't believe a word of it. He pointed to the lake with doubt and said, "Then what about the female corpse in the lake...?"
After the female corpse was fished out by someone, Chu Xinian discovered that her hands and feet were tied with ropes, as if she had been tied with stones and sunk into the water. As for why she suddenly floated up just now...
It should be related to the explosives that Chu Xinian had just thrown down. He threw the explosives and blew them up directly.
"… "
Chu Xinian paused, but decided to pretend he didn't know. He raised his eyebrows and said, "Master Mei, what do you mean by this? Do you suspect that General Xie and I killed someone here?"
"Mr. Chu, you are worrying too much. This old man has no such intention."
Mei Fengchen really didn't mean that. The son of Marquis Suping forcibly abducted a girl in the street and took her directly back to his mansion. The old parents waited for their daughter to come home but couldn't find anyone to turn to, so they handed the petition to Mei Fengchen.
Mei Fengchen interrogated and tortured the woman all the way, and finally found out that the woman had hanged herself after being defiled. The body was thrown into the lake outside the city by the evil slaves of the Marquis of Suping's mansion. He led people out of the city on horseback just to find the body, but he didn't expect Chu Xinian and Xie Jingyuan to be there.
After hearing Mei Fengchen's explanation, Chu Xinian seemed to understand something. He bowed and said, "I see. Then we won't disturb Lord Mei from investigating the case. I'll take my leave now."
Mei Fengchen actually wanted to discuss his experience in investigating cases with Chu Xinian, but today was obviously not a good time: "Well, if Mr. Chu is free someday, you can come to Mingjingsi to have tea with me."
If we translate this sentence, it probably means the same as the modern "Mr. Chu, if you have nothing to do, please take some time to come to the police station and have a cup of tea."
Xie Jingyuan didn't like Mei Fengchen in the first place, and after hearing this, he felt that the old man seemed to have some serious illness. He pulled Chu Xinian and was about to leave, but when he passed by the female corpse, Chu Xinian stopped and suddenly asked without thinking: "Master Mei, you said that this woman hanged herself and was thrown into the lake?"
Mei Fengchen didn't understand why, but he nodded anyway: "According to what the evil slave said, it is indeed so. Is there any problem?"
Chu Xinian pointed at the mouth and nose of the female corpse. Because she was moved, her chest was squeezed and a lot of white foam came out. "If a person fell into the water and drowned, they would inhale water, and a lot of white foam would come out of their mouth and nose. This female corpse definitely did not hang herself, but drowned."
If the woman hanged herself, the prince of the Marquis of Suping would at most be charged with the crime of defiling a commoner girl. But if the woman was drowned alive, the nature of the crime would be completely different.
At best, Chu Xinian suddenly discovered a suspicious point and mentioned it to Mei Fengchen to avoid making a wrong judgment. In the laws of Dayan, there was a big difference in the sentencing for the crime of defilement and the crime of murder. The former might be punished by a beating, while the latter was punishable by beheading.
Chu Xinian finished speaking, ignoring Mei Fengchen's stunned look, and turned away. Before leaving, he smiled and bowed to him, saying meaningfully: "Tomorrow when I have time, I will definitely come to bother you, sir, and ask for a cup of tea."
Xie Jingyuan couldn't figure it out, and when they were far away, he asked Chu Xinian in an unexpected tone: "Why did you go to drink tea with that old man Mei Fengchen? Can't this general drink with you?"
Chu Xinian smiled but said nothing: "General, just assume that I am very curious and want to take a look at the corpse."
Mei Fengchen had been an official in the Mingjing Division for more than 20 years, first as a deputy historian and later as an official historian. It can be said that he had witnessed all the bloody events of the Great Yan Dynasty over the years, and was even involved in the case of the Xie family Manchus being implicated in treason. Now the family files were sealed in the Mingjing Division.
Xie Jingyuan has many secrets in his heart. If Chu Xinian wants to find out one by one, he has to seek help from outside forces. Meeting Mei Fengchen today is an excellent opportunity.
Xie Jingyuan didn't think much about it, just thinking that Chu Xinian was fascinated by studying those mysterious things. In fact, he was also hesitating about how to tell the other party about his past.
He didn't want to hide it from Chu Xinian.
If I say it, I'm afraid that Chu Xinian will be dragged into the mess.
Xie Jingyuan had always been decisive in killing people, and he had not hesitated for many years. The two of them were each thinking about something, and they were silent for a while.
The next morning, Chu Xinian went to visit the Mingjing Division. Mei Fengchen had given instructions in advance, so the yamen runners at the door led Chu Xinian directly to the autopsy room: "Master Mei is examining the body inside. You can go to the front hall to have tea and wait, or you can go in directly."
It was obvious that the yamen runner was in a dilemma. After all, it was unreasonable to lead a guest to the autopsy room. Mei Fengchen's original words were that he would bring Chu Xinian in directly after he arrived. The words "drink tea in the front hall" were added by the yamen runner himself.
"No problem, I'll go straight to Master Mei, thank you for showing me the way."
Chu Xinian went straight into the autopsy room after he finished speaking. As soon as he pushed the door open, a cold and gloomy air rushed over him. The candlelight on both sides was dim, as if it would go out at any time.
Mei Fengchen was wearing a coarse cloth with a white coat on the outside. He was holding a candle in one hand and carefully studying the female corpse he found yesterday. Hearing someone push the door open, he subconsciously looked up and saw that it was Chu Xinian. He immediately stepped forward to greet him: "Mr. Chu is finally here. I have been waiting for a long time."
Chu Xinian bowed in return: "Sir, are you performing an autopsy?"
Master Mei subconsciously wanted to stroke his beard, but found that his hands were dirty, so he put it down and smiled a little ashamedly: "To be honest, after the last case of the female corpse in the suburbs, I was shocked to find that there are many tricks in autopsy. I have long wanted to ask Master Chu for some advice, but I have never had the opportunity."
Chu Xinian smiled and acted politely as a junior: "It's not that I'm asking for advice, but if Master Mei wants to know something, I will tell you everything I know."
Mei Fengchen is already quite old, and although he is vigorous, he can't hide his old age. He wiped his hands with his white coat and sighed, "Mr. Chu is so broad-minded that he doesn't care about my previous rudeness and is willing to give me advice. It's really embarrassing."
Chu Xinian glanced at the sealed files upstairs without leaving a trace: "Master Mei, don't worry about it. In fact, I am also quite interested in the autopsy. I came to visit you today because I have something to ask of you."
Mei Fengchen paused after hearing this, obviously not understanding why Chu Xinian needed to ask him for help: "Just tell me."
Chu Xinian smiled faintly, "This matter is not big, but it is not small either. I heard that all the lawsuits involving lives in the capital over the years are sealed in the Mingjing Division. I can't help but be curious and want to study them. But I don't have much friendship with other adults in the court, so I would like to ask Master Mei to be flexible."
All the case files of Dayan were in duplicate, one was sealed in the palace, and the other was kept in the Ministry of Justice. Later, the Emperor of Yan established the Mingjingsi to be in charge of the murder cases involving the powerful in the capital, and copied a copy of the case files from the Ministry of Justice.
Lord Mei seemed to be thinking about what he said, but he didn't think much about it. He just thought that Chu Xinian liked to do strange things like investigating cases and autopsies. "If you want to check the files, it's not difficult. Well, it's upstairs. I'll take you there."