Bone Painting Coroner

After a long moment, Wen Panshi spoke, “For many years, all of us have been waiting, preparing ourselves for the day we can finally storm the capital. As we searched for you, the Little Heir, in secret, we prepared the funds for the army by colluding with Official Lin and Magistrate Zuo to smuggle out the relief silvers the royal court allocated for Yufu County. All we have to do now is to assemble the hundred thousand soldiers, and we would have all we need to kill that damned emperor.

“However… I have pondered over your conversation with the prince, and it troubles me greatly. It is true that our army of a hundred thousand has been separated for a long time. Even if we can recruit new soldiers, they will be too weak to fight against hundreds of thousands of troops from the royal court. We have taken everything you said into consideration. But, after the damned emperor ascended to the throne, he killed many innocent men without restraint. Not only did he execute all the officials and generals who were against him, but he also wiped out all their blameless family members. How can we let this go when so many innocent people were orphaned and widowed? We waited for fourteen years, with the hopes of finding the Little Heir and finally overthrow the damned emperor!”

Wen Panshi's speech was impassioned, his tone resolute, and even his eyes had turned red with emotion. As Ji Yunshu listened, she felt as if she could picture the massacre ordered by Qizhen Emperor after he ascended to the throne.

However… Isn't this what all the newly-enthroned emperors do? They make an example out of some men in order to warn others.

Wen Panshi choked up as he spoke, “I raised Lin Feng ever since he was a child. His father used to be a high-ranked official who led the imperial guards. One day, he merely talked back to the emperor at the imperial court, and the emperor ordered his execution a few days later. With how headstrong his father was, he said that he would rather kill himself than being killed and subsequently poisoned himself. Before he died, he held my hand in his and told me to take good care of Lin Feng. He also told me to always be of service to Little Heir. However, I had never expected things to turn out the way it did today!”

Lin Feng had died and this agonized him deeply.

Ji Yunshu sighed in sympathy. After a short while, she asked, “General Wen, since you have found me, does it mean that… you will follow all my orders?”

“Of course.”

“Fine. Then, before we solve the 'Lin Capital Case', none of you are allowed to act impulsively and kill a single person.”

“But, Little Heir…”

“Since you are so certain that I'm the Imperial Duke’s heir and you have spent so many years looking for me, you have to listen to me. Without my half of the command token, you can't mobilze the soldiers either. The only thing you can do now is to wait.”

“Wait?”

“That's right. You have to wait for the day the truth will reveal itself,” Ji Yunshu spoke in a solemn and firm tone of voice.

Wen Panshi’s gaze turned serious. After what seemed like a long deliberation, he finally nodded.

“Fine, I'll obey Your Highness.”

Ji Yunshu heaved a sigh of relief after hearing Wen Panshi’s response.

Right before she stepped out of the prison, Wen Panshi stopped her. “This humble one needs to remind Little Heir that if it's possible, there’s no need to stay too close to that prince.”

Her gaze wavered a little, but without speaking a word, she walked off.

However, she did not leave the prison right away. Instead, she visited Zhao Huai’s cell. Zhao Huai was locked together with many other men. At that moment, he was sitting the farthest from the cell door, with a pose similar to Wen Panshi's.

Ji Yunshu took out a bottle she brought, and placed it on the floor. Then, she told one of the guards, “The prison is very humid and the wound on his hand might get infected. Pass him this medication so that he can apply it on his wound.”

“Sure,” the guard replied.

She stood outside the cell for a moment before leaving for the yamen of Yufu.

When she arrived at the yamen, she could hear a man's yells before she even entered the hall. Zuo Yao had half his body sprawled on that pear blossom chair. Someone had rolled his sleeve up to his shoulder, and there were whip marks all over his arm. Among the marks, some were bright red, some were brownish-red, while others were purple. Tang Si obviously did not show any mercy when she was hitting him.

An old man was applying medicine on the wounds for him. “Milord, please stop yelling. This is a secret prescription handed down by our ancestors. You'll feel better in just a few hours.”

“It hurts!”

“If it doesn't hurt, then it wouldn’t be effective.”

“Be gentle!”

“Yes, lord, but please endure the pain for now.” The old man slowed down, and started to apply the ointment more gently. However, Zuo Yao did not stop shouting in agony.

As Ji Yunshu watched the scene, she thought that Zuo Yao certainly deserved the thrashing, but at the same time, she felt sorry for him as well.

Realizing that someone was here, Zuo Yao quickly pulled down his two sleeves. His eyes were filled with terror as he hurriedly stood up, as if someone had discovered his greatest secret. Much to his surprise, he saw a calm Ji Yunshu approaching. “Little He… Teacher Ji, why are you here?” His voice was shaking.

Ji Yunshu threw him a glance before she studied their surroundings. The yamen was unusually quiet. There was not a guard around, and even the main gate was left unguarded. The place seemed as pathetic as Zuo Yao’s current state.

“Where is Little Xiyue?”

“She is… in the backyard.”

“Hmm,” she replied with a mere hum as acknowledgement. Then, she walked toward the backyard before she abruptly stopped in her tracks. She took out a medicine bottle from her sleeve and passed it to the old man. “This ointment works better than yours.”

The old man received the bottle, and opened the cap to take a sniff of the ointment. His brows furrowed, he said, “This is indeed a good medicine.”

Ji Yunshu replied with a smile before throwing another glance at Zuo Yao. “Magistrate Zuo, since you're still wearing your official’s garb, you should still continue carrying out your responsibilities properly.”

“Yes, sir,” he replied in a sincere tone.

Then, Ji Yunshu headed for the backyard.

In the backyard, Xiyue’s long hair cascaded down her back and over her arms. It was so long it almost brushed the floor.

When she heard the sounds of people arriving, she lifted her head with an expectant look plastered on her face. However, she lowered her gaze once again when she saw the man who was approaching.

Ji Yunshu took a seat by her side and gently ruffled her hair.

“Brother.” Little Xiyue stared at Ji Yunshu with her big round eyes. She looked extremely pitiful. It was a heartbreaking sight to see the few finger marks that were left on her small face.

Ji Yunshu stroked Little Xiyue's face before furrowing her beautiful brows. “Does it hurt?”

“No, it doesn't.” Little Xiyue shook her head. “Mother didn't do it on purpose. In fact, I don't blame her at all. Brother, can you release them? My parents never had the intention to hurt you.”

“I know.”

“Then why did you lock them up?”

“Because… they are too stubborn.” After a long contemplation, that was her only response.

Little Xiyue had read a lot of books, but she could not wrap her head around Ji Yunshu's words. She cocked her head a little to one side and asked, “Then, when can you release them?”

“Very soon.” Ji Yunshu patted her on her head, then she asked, “Little Xiyue, do you like this place?”

Little Xiyue shook her head vigorously. “No, I don't like this place.”

“Then do you want to follow me home?” Ji Yunshu offered her hand to Little Xiyue.

Little Xiyue blinked as she stared at Ji Yunshu for a long moment. Then, she reached out to hold Ji Yunshu's hand, allowing the latter to grasp her tiny hand.

In the meantime, Jing Rong and Mo Ruo were sitting in a room at Anchang Court. Both of them wore a solemn expression, and none of them said a word.

“What do you plan to do?” Mo Ruo asked.

“I don't know yet.”