The flower market was as bright as day, yet the night was devoid of the sound of carriages and horses.
Wen Ningwan stood at the entrance of the alley, staring intently at the tightly shut door in the distance. The surroundings were eerily silent, with every household adorned with red lanterns except for that one home, which bore two white ones.
The lights were still on inside, but Wen Ningwan didn’t dare get too close, fearing danger.
She watched the moving shadows inside the house, pacing back and forth as if packing things away.
Wen Ningwan immediately grew alert. Could she be planning to flee the city tonight?
Given her status, leaving the city after the gates had closed wouldn’t be difficult.
Anxiously, Wen Ningwan glanced back. The alley was deathly quiet. Miao Shiyi’s reinforcements couldn’t possibly arrive this quickly, and even the neighbors had all gone to the streets to watch the lantern performances at this hour.
Seeing the woman about to leave, Wen Ningwan steeled herself and ran forward.
As soon as the door opened, the woman was met with the sight of a young girl suddenly rushing to her doorstep, offering an awkward smile. She froze for a moment, scrutinizing Wen Ningwan up and down.
Tonight, Wen Ningwan wasn’t wearing her purple official robes. Instead, she was dressed in a light blue gauze outfit that made her appear gentle and ethereal. Her innocent, radiant smile made her seem like the well-protected daughter of some noble family, naive and endearing.
“You are?” The woman glanced around suspiciously. Seeing that Wen Ningwan seemed to be here for her, her guard instantly went up.
Wen Ningwan quickly dropped her smile, straightened her posture, and adopted the stern demeanor of the Imperial Preceptor as she stared at the woman, who was carrying a bundle, ready to depart.
“Miss Li, are you going on a long journey?”
Miss Li paused, then nodded. “My father is unwell at home. I’m in a hurry to return.”
“Are you looking for me?” Miss Li asked, eyeing the unfamiliar girl before her with confusion.
“Yes.” Wen Ningwan nodded. Inside the house, the candlelight flickered as a gust of wind blew past, causing the window to creak.
Seizing the opportunity, Wen Ningwan said, “Your window might not be closed properly. Why don’t we talk inside?”
Miss Li turned to look, then back at the girl before her, a mere inexperienced child, hardly worth her concern.
“Please.”
Wen Ningwan forced a relaxed smile and nodded, following her in.
Most of the furniture inside had already been packed away, with several trunks lined up to the side. Clearly, she intended to return for them another day.
“I’m sorry, but there’s nothing here to offer you. If you have something to say, please be direct. I’m in a hurry to return to my family,” Miss Li said with a faint, indifferent smile.
Wen Ningwan sat at the table, glancing around. Apart from the two white lanterns at the door, there was no sign of mourning inside the house.
“At the location where your wife’s body was discovered, we found some washed and dried mushrooms.”
Miss Li’s expression stiffened momentarily, her smile freezing in place. She feigned composure as she closed the nearby window, then turned back with a smile.
“You’re from the Dali Temple?”
Wen Ningwan nodded, shrugging helplessly. “I’m afraid so. Earlier, we went to dine at Zou Yun’s fellow townsman’s place. The proprietress mentioned, quite unintentionally, that you had given her some homemade dried mushrooms that morning.”
Miss Li was taken aback, then let out a resigned chuckle, making no attempt to refute. Instead, she gazed at Wen Ningwan with a dazed expression. “I’d heard before that Vice Minister Wen was a prodigy, how just a few words from you drove Cai’er to confess in desperation. Truly, you’re an exceptional investigator.”
“Everything you’ve said is correct.” Miss Li spread her hands and walked toward her with a smile. Wen Ningwan’s hands, resting on her knees, clenched tightly to steady her trembling legs. Thankfully, the tablecloth hid them otherwise, it would have been utterly humiliating.
“I’m curious why Cai’er would take the blame for you.” Wen Ningwan deliberately kept her tone light as she conversed with her.
The young woman surnamed Li took a deep breath and sat down across from her, leaning on the table to pour a cup of aged tea. “If you don’t mind, care for a cup?”
“Sure.” Wen Ningwan proactively pushed her cup forward.
Miss Li seemed surprised by her response and smiled as she poured a cup of cold tea, handing it over. “Assistant Minister Wen, your interrogation tactics are quite different from those old fogies at the Dali Temple.”
“Because I’m still young. When I get old, I’ll be an old fogey too.” Wen Ningwan chuckled.
Miss Li watched as the other woman took a sip of tea and smiled. “Aren’t you afraid I might have put something in the tea?”
“Pfft! Pah! Pah!” Wen Ningwan immediately spat it out.
Miss Li laughed heartily. “So timid. I was just teasing you.”
Wen Ningwan glanced at the laughing woman before relaxing, smiling wryly. “Miss Li~ That wasn’t a nice way to scare someone.”
Miss Li’s expression faltered momentarily before she smiled again, her gaze softening considerably. Then she lowered her eyes sadly. “Zou Yun used to be just like you laughing as if without a care in the world. It was her pure smile that drew me in, so I did everything I could to marry her.”
Wen Ningwan looked at her helplessly. “But feelings can’t be forced. You’re gentle, beautiful, and dignified, it’s a shame to waste yourself on someone who doesn’t love you.”
Miss Li shook her head, smiling tenderly, her distant eyes brimming with tears. “You’re still young, so you wouldn’t understand. Sometimes, for someone you love, you’re willing to do anything.”
“Including hurting her? Even killing her?” Wen Ningwan frowned slightly.
Miss Li fell silent, merely bowing her head in anguish.
“I don’t approve of that kind of love. The bare minimum of liking someone is respecting their choice of whether or not they like you back. Otherwise, you’ll only taint your own affection.”
“You’re right. It was me who turned my love for her into something ugly.” Miss Li smiled bitterly and shook her head.
“I have no one to blame but myself. If I hadn’t forced her, someone as cheerful as her wouldn’t have drowned herself in alcohol or lingered in pleasure quarters day after day.”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself. Loving someone is a beautiful thing. It’s just that some people’s love is too intense, and they lose their rationality that’s how things end up like this.”
Wen Ningwan gazed sympathetically at the sorrowful woman. “You said I remind you a little of Zou Yun. If I were her, I’d want you to turn back from this path and not spend your whole life drowning in guilt.”
Miss Li looked up at her, laughing bitterly. “Really? Would she think that way?”
“Of course.” Wen Ningwan nodded firmly. “She was a strategist for the Imperial Preceptor’s residence, a very intelligent person. She would definitely want her wife to be someone upright and honorable, not someone who evades responsibility.”
Miss Li smiled and shook her head, taking a deep breath as she looked at Wen Ningwan. “What should I do? Even though I know you’re lying to me, I still want to believe you. I still want her to truly be like you.”
Wen Ningwan nervously clenched her toes against the floor but maintained a relaxed smile. “The choice is yours whether we uncover the truth ourselves or you confess. Either way is fine.”
“She hated people who wasted her time the most.” Miss Li sighed with a faint smile.
“We had a fight, so I went back to my parents’ home. But I missed her too much and returned early in the morning. On the way, I ran into her eloping with someone else. I begged her to stay, but in the struggle, I accidentally killed her.”
Wen Ningwan froze for a moment, her face full of confusion. “What about Cai’er? How did she die?”
“Not me.” The Li girl sat up straight, composed. “I thought she was going to report me, but she didn’t. Instead, she confessed.”
Wen Ningwan frowned slightly. “Could it be that someone wanted to silence her for you?”
The Li girl stiffened, her eyes narrowing, a flicker of panic flashing in them. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “You jest, Magistrate. Cai’er was a top courtesan with close ties to many officials. Knowing you had questioned her, someone might have killed her out of fear of being implicated. That’s hardly unusual.”
“This…”
“Enough!” The Li girl suddenly lost patience and stood up. “Magistrate, please leave. I’ll turn myself in after I visit my father.”
“Oh.” Wen Ningwan rose, puzzled. After a moment’s hesitation, she forced a quick smile and nodded. “Very well. I hope I won’t have to disturb your father tomorrow morning.”
“Please.” The Li girl stepped forward and opened the door.
Wen Ningwan walked out helplessly. When she turned back, the Li girl shut the door without another glance at her.
Dejected, Wen Ningwan walked away.
At the alley’s entrance, she hesitated, a nagging feeling in her gut. “Why did she react like that when I mentioned someone silencing Cai’er for her? She seemed terrified.”
Suddenly, Wen Ningwan froze, a chill running down her spine. The window had been open earlier had someone come in? Had someone been listening to their conversation the whole time?
She immediately turned and sprinted back toward the Li girl’s house.
The light was still on. She kicked the door open and saw a black-clad figure holding a bloodied dagger, turning to glare viciously at the intruder.
In a pool of blood, the Li girl weakly raised a hand, clutching the killer’s pant leg. Her mouth was full of blood as she shook her head in agony, pleading, “She has nothing to do with this. Please, don’t kill her!”