Green Mountain
Chapter 106 - 80, As Easy As Turning Over One’s Hand_2

Chapter 106: 80, As Easy As Turning Over One’s Hand_2

Chen Ji smiled, "If it’s gone, it’s gone; just visit Taiping Medical Hall less often in the future."

The manager laughed angrily, "That’s your own statement!"

Chen Ji nodded, "Yes, I said it myself."

The manager swept his sleeve and left; his arrival was swift, and his departure was swift as well, seemingly unwilling to waste more time here.

At this moment, Bai Li poked his head out from the corridor behind, "Were you arguing with your housekeeper?"

"Yes."

Bai Li spoke softly, "With your intelligence, you must have seen that he certainly doesn’t want you at the Chen Mansion the day after tomorrow. None of the mansion’s housekeepers are fools; they wouldn’t offend people for no reason. This manager deliberately spoke harshly to provoke you into saying something impulsive, which he could then report back to your father... You shouldn’t fall for his tactics."

Chen Ji turned to look at Bai Li and said with a smile, "Going back to Chen Mansion or not doesn’t matter; I never planned to return."

Bai Li responded, "If not returning, then so be it. Come on, let’s make dumplings!"

"Alright," Chen Ji looked out towards Anxi Street, and as the sounds of ’chop, chop, chop’ from chopping the dumpling fillings drifted from the backyard, his mood instantly calmed.

...

...

Night.

The usually bustling Hongyi Lane had suddenly quieted down.

On the long street paved with blue stone, striking red lanterns hung high as usual, yet there were no pedestrians or clients. The songstresses and dancers stood listlessly by the railings.

Finally spotting a guest turning into the alley from the west, the girls were about to shake the red sleeves in their hands, but upon seeing the conical hat above the guest’s head, they fell silent like cicadas in winter and retreated back into the houses.

Yingke Restaurant was closed for business; the guest hall was pitch-dark without even an oil residue lamp lit.

Six spies dressed in black, each holding a long knife, leaned against wooden pillars, like statues awaiting their prey.

In the silent darkness, someone suddenly asked, "West Wind, did the lord mention who he called to assist with the investigation? An assistant for the investigation who acts so high and mighty, making us wait an entire day, just wastes our chance to achieve merits."

"It’s almost midnight with only thirty minutes left from 9 to 11 PM; why hasn’t anyone arrived?"

The spy named West Wind lifted his head, and his sharp gaze under the conical hat swept across the crowd, "The lord said to wait, so we wait."

Someone spoke quietly, "West Wind, it looks like you’re about to be promoted to Hai Dongqing. Don’t let others delay your achievements. If you handle this case well, you could be promoted to Hai Dongqing and reassigned. If Lord Jin Zhu could help move to southern Huai and northern Huai, and seize a few small salt merchants, you might be able to build a substantial fortune."

But West Wind sneered, "You think seizing properties is so easy? Each salt merchant has a significant background, and the civil servants in the south collectively resist our Ritual Supervision; it’s not so easy to influence them."

"Hehe, brother West Wind, you don’t know. A spy under Treasure Monkey from my hometown told me that each time a new Hai Dongqing takes office in Huai, the salt merchant’s guild would sacrifice one or two small merchants to establish authority for the new officer. You can raid their houses or behead them; after that, everyone is at peace, and it’s honorable for all. After three years in office, you can enjoy endless beauties and wealth."

West Wind mocked, "Do you think the Criminal Justice Department is there for show? If such leverage falls into others’ hands, it could be manipulated by others in the future. I follow Lord Jin Zhu to accomplish great things; how can I risk the important for the unimportant?"

A spy suddenly tried, "I heard that Lord Jin Zhu has a grudge against the Xu Family of Shanghai, is that true?"

West Wind’s voice cooled, "Have you guys tired of living, daring to pry into the lord’s private matters? Want me to send you to the inner prison to cool off?"

"No, no, no, just bored... By the way, when is the person Lord Jin Zhu mentioned arriving?"

As the words fell, the door to Yingke Restaurant was pushed open with a creak.

Everyone became serious, returning to their solemn demeanor.

West Wind turned his head to look, but noticed the newcomer wore a conical hat and was masked with grey cloth.

He paused for a moment, instinctively glancing at the newcomer’s legs, which moved normally and did not seem like someone injured.

Strange.

West Wind, following closely behind Jin Zhu, knew of Chen Ji’s capabilities and that Chen Ji was a local of Luocheng City, so he had assumed Chen Ji would be the one coming tonight.

But it seemed the newcomer was not Chen Ji.

West Wind asked sharply, "Why are you late? Do you know that delaying could let Jing Dynasty thieves escape?"

Chen Ji stood opposite the six men, not answering West Wind but said in a low voice, "Are you Lord Jin Zhu’s spies?"

West Wind paused, "Yes."

Chen Ji nodded, "Lord Jin Zhu has ordered that from now on you report to me, to help me capture the Jing Dynasty spies."

The six spies exchanged glances, their eyes filled with ambiguous meanings.

Lord Jin Zhu hadn’t informed them about following his commands; everyone had thought that West Wind was in charge, and that the other man was merely here to assist with the investigation.

After a moment of reflection, West Wind didn’t argue with Chen Ji. Giving the other spies a signal with his eyes, he then bowed to Chen Ji, "Sir, let me first take you to the scene of the killings, see if you have any strategies."

His expression grave, he led Chen Ji to the backyard, where six spy corpses lay untouched, the blood stains still fresh.

West Wind looked at Chen Ji, speaking softly, "Sir, the killer murdered six spies here last night. The bodies and items haven’t been moved. Please investigate."

Having said this, West Wind fell silent, unwilling to say another word.

The gaze of the six spies was intense as they observed Chen Ji. They all understood West Wind’s expression—it was meant to intimidate Chen Ji, to make him understand that without real skills, he could not be their leader.

Chen Ji briefly glanced at the six men, then slowly walked around the courtyard, deep in thought.

The spies exchanged looks under their conical hats, their eyes constantly shifting, and eventually, they all looked to West Wind: if he’s not capable, we’ll support you.

West Wind was only a step away from reaching Hai Dongqing’s position; if an outsider claimed the credit, West Wind might have to wait another year.

It wasn’t about loyalty; it was almost an instinctive choice to exclude outsiders when they were present.

Time ticked by, and Chen Ji remained silent, deep in contemplation.

A spy suggested with his eyes that West Wind should take the initiative, but West Wind could also keep his cool. If Chen Ji wasn’t speaking, neither would he.

Suddenly, Chen Ji moved.

The spies all watched him as he went to a corner of the courtyard, touched a crossbow arrow nailed on the wall, and calmly stated, "The killer entered the courtyard from here, first attacking one person with a short knife, piercing through the lungs and kidneys of a spy, then hiding behind the wounded spy to avoid the hand crossbow."

He took two steps forward, arriving next to a prone body, "The killer left the wounded spy here, and entered the crowd. He broke the long knives of the spies with his short knife, and then..."

The six spies looked at each other again, their pupils shrinking.

Unable to contain himself, West Wind asked, "Sir, how do you deduce there was only one killer? We never mentioned such a thing. There are two types of knife wounds on the bodies of the six spies, likely inflicted by two people."

Chen Ji casually replied, "The two types of knife wounds appeared because he seized a spy’s knife midway, not because there were two people."

West Wind fell silent.

They had been continually reconstructing the killer’s process since last night, old spies experienced in fighting working with several forensic doctors at the crime scene; it took four hours to deduce the killer’s entire process.

And now this temporary supervisor could reconstruct the crime scene in just thirty minutes after a single glance?

Had they known he was capable of this, why would they have troubled themselves in the morning?

West Wind immediately abandoned the idea of challenging Chen Ji.

Little did he know, Chen Ji was also marveling: it turned out reasoning could be this easy; all he needed to do was recount what he had done.

As easy as turning over one’s hand.

West Wind dropped his probing attitude, unable to help asking, "Sir, the murderer broke the knife as easily as drinking water; I’ve never heard of such sword skills in the Jianghu. Do you know who it might be?"

Chen Ji didn’t answer, merely stating placidly, "There’s no rush to conclude; I need to ask you, was this the only place the killer acted last night?"

West Wind explained, "There’s another scene, on Tongji Street."

"Take me there."

As they walked towards the exit of Yingke Restaurant, Chen Ji and West Wind moved side by side through the hall.

However, as the two approached the entrance, about to step out, West Wind suddenly hesitated, letting Chen Ji step ahead, while he silently followed behind.