The quilt on the bed was dark blue. Two pillows lay on the bed, and the blanket had been thrown aside.
Signs of kicking and struggling lay near the foot of the bed, but that alone offered no useful clue.
Turning around, Ning Yan asked Zhenniang, “Is this room the victim’s usual bedroom?”
“No,” Zhenniang replied, pointing toward the rear courtyard. “The girls all have their own rooms back there.”
Ning Yan nodded and examined the floor carefully. The footprints were so numerous and jumbled that nothing useful could be distinguished from them. She walked to the window and pushed it open.
At some point, Zhang Xingben entered the room and now stood behind her. “The window was bolted from the inside,” he said quietly. “The yamen investigators checked it. There were no signs of forced entry.”
Then he pointed toward the door. “The door was intact too. No signs of tampering.”
Ning Yan turned to study the wooden door. The latch was a simple horizontal bar. To open it, one only needed to lift the left side out of its slot. However, the gap between the door and the frame was so narrow that it was difficult to manipulate from the outside.
“Were any valuables missing from the scene? And what was the murder weapon?” Ning Yan asked.
Zhang Xingben froze for a moment, surprise flashing across his face. He had not expected Ning Yan’s questions to be so professional. With the way she had carried herself since entering the room, she looked like an experienced investigator. But she was supposed to be nothing more than a young maid raised in an ordinary household. How did she know any of this? A mixture of surprise and confusion lingered on his face for a moment. With no time to dwell on it, he continued answering her questions.
“The murder weapon was my second son’s belt. The county office has already confiscated it. Nothing was stolen from the scene. My second son said the jade pendant and money pouch he left by the bedside were both still there.”
Without realizing it, Zhang Xingben had begun answering her questions much more seriously.
Ning Yan fell into thought. She inspected the dried fruits and pastries, then stopped beside the spittoon near the foot of the bed. There was vomit inside. Squatting down, she leaned closer and sniffed it. A strong smell of alcohol was mixed into it.
Zhang Xingben stared at Ning Yan without blinking.
Ning Yan asked Zhenniang, “Do you clean this room every day?”
“Of course. We clean it as soon as the guest leaves. How could we let it sit until night? The smell would be unbearable,” Zhenniang replied. “Did someone throw up? Second Master Zhang drank quite a lot last night.”
Ning Yan nodded. “Does everyone who drank with the victim know that?”
“Yes, yes. Constable Qiao asked about that this morning too. Shall I make another list for you?”
“Thank you,” Ning Yan said.
Zhenniang immediately ordered a servant to write down the names of everyone who had been drinking with the victim the previous night.
Ning Yan continued to examine the room’s details. Her inspection was meticulous. Every movement was calm and deliberate, never hurried. Even the people gathered outside to watch gradually fell silent as they observed her methodical manner. Surprise and curiosity grew on their faces as she worked with steady confidence.
“This orchid,” Ning Yan said, bending down to examine it closely, “has a broken leaf.”
A young maid outside the room immediately called out, “How is that possible? Last night, when I came in to make the bed, it was perfectly fine.” She was the one responsible for caring for the orchid.
“It was broken recently.” After studying it for a long time, Ning Yan noticed that the leaf had bent and fallen toward her side. She pushed the window open and looked outside.
Beyond it was an alley. The building wasn’t very high, so climbing up wouldn’t have been particularly difficult. If someone had broken the orchid leaf from where she was standing, the leaf should have bent toward the window. Instead, it bent toward the inside of the room. Could someone have broken it by climbing in through the window? But the window had been bolted from the inside.
She closed the window, lit a candle, and crouched down to examine the footprints on the floor.
Numerous overlapping, smudged footprints covered the floor, pointing in every direction. Ning Yan found nothing suspicious among them.
“The list is ready,” Zhenniang said.
Ning Yan took it and read through it. It listed two men and four women.
“The one called Mudan is the murdered girl,” Zhenniang explained.
After reading it, Ning Yan asked, “If it was one hostess per drinking companion, why is there one extra person?”
Zhenniang froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. “You really are observant.” She then added, “Among these names, Mudan and Qingzhi were both accompanying Second Master Zhang.”
Ning Yan raised an eyebrow.
Just as she was about to ask another question, Zhenniang pushed a young girl forward. “This is Qingzhi.”
Qingzhi was fifteen or sixteen, with delicate, youthful features. She spoke softly and hesitantly as she recounted the previous night’s events. She explained that Second Master Zhang had originally patronized Mudan, but about half a month ago he had decided to shift his favor to her instead.
Last night, when Second Master Zhang arrived, he had actually asked for Qingzhi. However, Mudan learned of it and came over as well. Second Master Zhang did not object, so both women stayed.
“Then why did Miss Mudan end up attending to him later in the evening?” Ning Yan asked.
“Because Second Master Zhang got drunk,” Qingzhi replied. “Sister Mudan said it would be more convenient for her to take care of him, so she helped him back to his room.”
Ning Yan nodded. She then asked whether anyone had heard any commotion coming from the room that night.
One of the maids said that sometime after midnight, Mudan had requested a pot of hot tea. A while later, Second Master Zhang vomited, and the two of them started arguing.
The argument was loud enough that not only the maids but many others had heard it.
“How long did the argument last?” Ning Yan asked.
“Not very long,” the maid answered. “Just a dozen or so exchanges. Second Master Zhang said, ‘Who I choose to keep is none of your business.’ Sister Mudan then asked, ‘Weren’t you going to redeem my freedom? How can you go back on your word like this?’”
The little maid repeated the exchange word for word.
In essence, Mudan had accused Second Master Zhang of transferring his affections to someone else. The two argued for a few moments, and then the room fell quiet again.
“Could it be…” someone muttered softly, “that the argument escalated into violence?”
Zhang Xingben flew into a rage. “Would my son really kill someone over a courtesan?”
Even if he meant to free her, it was only a matter of money. There was no reason to murder her.
“Well, who knows?” someone replied. “People do foolish things when they’re angry.”
Another courtesan lowered her voice and said, “When Second Master Zhang is doing that sort of thing, he also likes to… likes to play certain games.”
Ning Yan’s interest was immediately piqued. She had just been wondering whether the death might have been related to something that happened during intimacy.
“What kind of games?”
“Tying up hands and feet, hanging someone from the bedframe, or making them act like a dog, putting a collar around their neck and tightening it,” the courtesan said with a giggle. They had seen such things countless times and didn’t think twice about discussing them.
Zhang Xingben’s face grew extremely unpleasant. “What is there to ask about such nonsense? Why don’t you get on with the investigation?” he said impatiently.
Ning Yan fell into thought. She carefully examined the door latch and the gap around the door. There were no signs of tampering whatsoever. The window was the same.
In other words, if Second Master Zhang was not the killer, then this was a locked-room murder—no wonder the authorities had advised Zhang Xingben to find a scapegoat. Every piece of evidence pointed directly at Second Master Zhang.
“Let’s go to the yamen and look at the body,” Ning Yan said.
Zhang Xingben did not object and took the lead, guiding the way.