The victim was a woman in her thirties, dressed in a light‑green jacket and a pea‑green pleated skirt. She was tall, now lying face‑up and slanted in the alley. Blood had pooled beneath the back of her head, and beside her lay a stone, about the size of two men’s fists, stained with blood. Next to the body crouched an elderly man in gray cloth garments, his hair already white. He was carefully examining the corpse—clearly the coroner summoned by the Capital Yamen.
Su Liuyue had previously focused on Shopkeeper Yuan, but now she studied the victim closely. Though her clothing was intact, it appeared disordered. The jacket and skirt were wrinkled, and her belt, though tied, was knotted crudely—not in any of the fashionable styles, but as if hastily fastened.
Su Liuyue’s eyes darkened. When she noticed the victim’s embroidered shoes, she froze, leaning forward unconsciously. The shoes were clean and delicate, clearly new and recently worn. Yet the heels showed obvious wear, starkly out of place compared to the rest of the shoes. She glanced at them for a while, then suddenly turned toward Shopkeeper Yuan. He wore plain gray‑blue cloth shoes, old but well‑kept, with no visible damage or dirt.
Su Liuyue fell into deep thought. The victim’s shoes had worn heels, but Shopkeeper Yuan’s shoes did not. What did that imply?
At that moment, Zheng Yaozu, under questioning by Assistant Prefect Lu, spoke up: “Reporting to Lord, our shopkeeper’s wife came to the bookshop this morning. At that time, Ergui and I were both present. Miss Sun had taken leave briefly because her mother was ill, and she only arrived just as Madam was about to leave…”
Assistant Prefect Lu immediately asked: “When exactly did your Madam arrive? Did she often visit the bookshop?”
Zheng Yaozu frowned, thinking. “I… I don’t recall the exact time. Perhaps shortly after *si* hour (around 9 a.m.). Madam didn’t usually come often, but recently she has been visiting more frequently…”
Assistant Prefect Lu’s brows furrowed. This matched Liu Ergui’s testimony, so it seemed he hadn’t lied.
“Why has Madam been coming more often lately?”
Zheng Yaozu shook his head. “I don’t know. Each time she came, she asked about the shopkeeper’s whereabouts. Today as well—Ergui told her where he was, and then she left. It must be… it must be that she had business with our shopkeeper.”
“Why wasn’t your shopkeeper at the bookshop today?”
Zheng Yaozu replied: “Shopkeeper said yesterday that he had an appointment at Jinyang Pavilion to discuss a business deal, and wouldn’t return until the afternoon…”
Before he finished, Liu Ergui, standing beside him, suddenly exclaimed in surprise: “Shopkeeper, you’ve come?”
Everyone turned to see that he was staring at Miss Sun, who sensed something, turned her head, and saw that just a hand’s breadth behind her stood a tall, slender man in a pale‑blue robe, scholarly in appearance.
At his side was an officer, holding his arm as though he had hurriedly dragged him there. The man was slightly out of breath, clearly in a rush.
Miss Sun froze, then quickly stepped aside, lowering her head, “Shopkeeper Cao, you’re here.”
The officer who had brought him forward bowed and reported: “Assistant Prefect Lu, as Liu Ergui suggested, I took a clerk from a nearby shop who could recognize Shopkeeper Cao to Jinyang Pavilion to find him. Before we even arrived, the clerk spotted him on his way here, so I immediately brought him over.”
Shopkeeper Cao steadied his breathing, hurried forward a few steps, and asked in a panicked voice: “Where is my wife? The officer who brought me said… my wife…”
One of the officers beside Assistant Prefect Lu glanced at him and stepped aside. The corpse lying on the ground came fully into view.
Shopkeeper Cao’s face went pale. He staggered back a step, his expression filled with disbelief. “No… impossible… impossible… Yueniang, how could… how could this be…”
The onlookers, seeing the victim’s husband arrive, grew even more excited, whispering among themselves:
“Good heavens, has Shopkeeper Cao been so absorbed in business that he didn’t notice? His wife was carrying on an affair that cost her life, and he knew nothing…”
“Exactly! That clerk surnamed Zheng said she’d been visiting the bookshop often lately. I’d wager she wasn’t there for business, but to meet her lover! I work at the clothing shop opposite, and I saw it clearly—every time she came, she always stopped by *Manyifang* for pastries.”
“Are *Manyifang’s* pastries really that irresistible? To buy them every time? Tsk. Look at her wrinkled clothes—could it be she was with her lover right before she died?”
Shopkeeper Cao’s face grew even paler. He looked helplessly at the gossiping crowd, then suddenly turned toward Shopkeeper Yuan, whose expression was growing darker.
Shopkeeper Yuan stammered in panic: “Don’t… don’t talk nonsense! Madam Ding only came to our shop for pastries. Her youngest daughter loves our mung bean cakes and snowflake crisps. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Madam Ding’s maid!”
Madam Ding was the deceased.
The world is never short of people eager to stir up trouble. Someone immediately shouted: “You think we’re fools? Madam Ding’s maid must be her confidante—how could she ever say anything against her mistress?”
“Speaking of which, why isn’t the maid who usually follows Madam Ding around here today? Could it be that Madam Ding deliberately sent her away so she could secretly meet Shopkeeper Yuan?”
Shopkeeper Yuan, already injured, broke into a sweat as he listened to these filthy accusations, completely at a loss as to how to defend himself.
At last, Assistant Magistrate Lu, his face full of impatience, barked: “This is an official investigation! Idle chatterers, silence!”
The surrounding murmurs finally subsided.
Assistant Prefect Lu cast a glance at Shopkeeper Cao, who stood nearby looking lost and broken, then chose to ignore him for the moment. Turning to Miss Sun, he asked: “According to Zheng Yaozu, you saw the deceased when you arrived at the bookshop today?”
Miss Sun looked flustered and panicked. She bit her lip hard and said: “Yes… yes, sir. When I came to the bookshop today, I happened to see Madam rushing out. She seemed in a hurry to do something…”
“After leaving the bookshop, which direction did she go?”
Miss Sun trembled, then suddenly turned her head to glance at Shopkeeper Yuan. “Madam… Madam went in the direction of *Manyifang*…”
As soon as she spoke, the crowd’s eyes all turned toward Shopkeeper Yuan, their expressions saying *so it was him after all*.
Shopkeeper Yuan’s face instantly drained of color. He fell to his knees with a thud, crying out: “My lord, please see clearly! I truly never saw Madam Ding today! I am being framed! Around the end of *si* hour (about 11 a.m.), a little beggar gave me a note. It said I must meet someone in the nearby alley, or else *Manyifang* would face ruin. I hurried there, but as soon as I entered the alley, I saw Madam Ding lying on the ground. I was just about to check what had happened when I felt a sharp pain at the back of my head. When I woke up, I was lying beside her, and the note was gone.”
“If I am lying, may thunder strike me down, may my descendants be cursed as beasts! If you do not believe me, I can find that beggar who delivered the note…”