Ye Jingtang stepped down from the carriage, opened the oil-paper umbrella, and looked up at the street.
The area around Zhujie Street was a residential district, mostly inhabited by middle-class people such as wealthy merchants and retired minor officials. The street was very tidy. Behind the street, one could see the outlines of the mansions with white walls and green tiles, as well as the branches of willows and osmanthus trees protruding.
At this moment, at an alley entrance on the street, there were quite a few common people gathered, including scholars and vice directors. They were holding umbrellas and whispering to each other:
"How did Old Man Zhao die?"
"I heard he was killed, probably for his money."
"He has no children, and to suffer such a misfortune in his old age, it's really... Eh? Who's coming?"
The crowd heard the sound of the carriage and looked back. Their faces showed surprise, and they quickly stepped back to the side of the street, bowing their heads and saluting.
Ye Jingtang held the umbrella above Dongfang Liren's head, who was wearing a silver python robe, and motioned with his hand.
"..."
Dongfang Liren didn't know why, but when she saw Ye Jingtang, she remembered the "new knowledge" she had just acquired, and she felt very awkward inside. She looked straight ahead and led the way towards the alley entrance.
Ye Jingtang walked beside her, paying attention to any signs of trouble around. After reaching the alley entrance, in front of a courtyard house deep in the bluestone alley, four constables could be seen standing.
The Three Judicial Departments Yamen was commonly known as the "Six Gates" and was an official judicial institution. Their uniforms were exactly the same as those of the Black Yamen. The only difference was that the word "Constable" was embroidered on the chest of the official officers, while the constables of the Black Yamen were considered "volunteer police" and had no patterns on their clothes.
The official officers standing outside the courtyard house noticed that Jingwang had come. One of them went in to report, and the others quickly came over and bowed to salute:
"Paying respects to Your Highness."
"Dispense with the formalities. I passed by here and heard about the homicide case, so I came to take a look. What happened?"
"Zhao De, a minor official of the Ministry of Works who lived here, was killed by villains the day before yesterday. The body was only discovered this morning..."
While talking, Ye Jingtang came to the door of the courtyard house.
The courtyard house had two courtyards. The first courtyard was planted with flowers and plants, but most of them were damaged at this moment. There were also marks of damage on the courtyard walls and corridor pillars.
Five official officers were holding umbrellas and inspecting the courtyard. There was a body covered with a white cloth lying in the main hall. Several people quickly walked out. The leader was a middle-aged man wearing a gauze hat, dressed in a red official robe and wearing an official sword. He had sword-shaped eyebrows and tiger-like eyes, looking quite imposing. When he saw Jingwang, he stopped and cupped his hands in salute:
"I, Yuwen Chengde, pay my respects to Jingwang."
Dongfang Liren walked into the crime scene, put on a thoughtful frown, and looked around:
"You all continue with your official business first. An old official of the court was killed under the feet of the Son of Heaven. This is no small matter. You must solve the case as soon as possible and give an explanation to the imperial court."
Yuwen Chengde knew that Jingwang wanted to get involved in this case, but he didn't dare to say anything. He nodded respectfully:
"I will definitely live up to Your Highness's high expectations."
After saying that, he went back into the room and continued to examine the body with the coroner.
Dongfang Liren maintained a thoughtful look, with her hands behind her back, and stopped under the courtyard wall. She seemed to understand everything, but after looking for a long time, she didn't say anything.
Ye Jingtang stood beside her holding the umbrella. After waiting for a long time and seeing that Dongfang Liren didn't respond, he whispered:
"Didn't Your Highness come to investigate the case?"
Dongfang Liren stood with her hands behind her back and replied in a low voice:
"How can a person in a high position attend to everything personally? There are coroners and chief constables to conduct the autopsy and pursue the murderer. My duty is to supervise."
"Supervise... Then what should I learn?"
"You only know how to fight. In the future, when you encounter such a situation, just act like She Long, pretend to understand, say some vague words to deal with it, and then ask and discuss privately later. This is to avoid being looked down upon by your subordinates or giving blind instructions, which will make your subordinates caught in a dilemma and mess things up."
The last time Ye Jingtang was tested on his saber technique by She Long, the Iron-Armed Grim Reaper, he could tell that She Long was someone who pretended to know everything and was talking nonsense with a serious face.
At this moment, he also understood the meaning. Benben had come to teach him how to be a leader who "stood with his hands behind his back and his belly sticking out to inspect and take credit".
Ye Jingtang glanced at the Princess's waist out of the corner of his eye. There was a jade belt around her waist, and it was slender enough to be encircled with one's arms. There was no sign of a belly, but the way she stood with her hands behind her back and a thoughtful expression had a bit of the air of Di Renjie.
Ye Jingtang found it a bit funny, but since they were at the crime scene and the deceased was not far away, out of respect for the dead, his expression remained profound and serious.
The five official officers were carefully examining the traces in the courtyard.
Yuwen Chengde was conducting the autopsy in the hall. Perhaps feeling that with Jingwang present, it was not right to either pay attention to or ignore her, he came to the front again and looked at the marks on the wall:
"After my investigation, the murderer used a sword, but I have always been unable to confirm which move left these marks. I wonder if Your Highness has any insights?"
The marks on the wall were left by the sword move "White Crane Sweeping the Tail", a very common sword move in the martial arts world. As long as one had a bit of a foundation in martial arts, one could tell. Yuwen Chengde said this obviously to give Jingwang a sense of participation.
Seeing that Yuwen Chengde was so perceptive, Dongfang Liren was quite approving in her heart and explained seriously:
"The marks were caused by the sword move 'White Crane Sweeping the Tail'. Judging from the strength, the martial arts skills are not low..."
Originally, with Jingwang's participation in this statement, she could have returned to the mansion.
Yuwen Chengde, having received Jingwang's "guidance", would write Jingwang's name at the top when closing the case and write in praise that "Jingwang has sharp eyes and can perceive the slightest detail", and he would inevitably be taken care of by Jingwang in the future.
But before Yuwen Chengde could say, "So that's how it is. Your Highness has a brilliant opinion", he noticed the black-clothed guard standing behind Jingwang shaking his head and saying:
"Don't talk nonsense. This was cut by a saber."
?!
As soon as these words were spoken, the official officers, coroners, and even the constables of the Black Yamen in the courtyard fell silent.
Dongfang Liren's words stopped abruptly. Her hands behind her back clenched tightly, and she glanced at Ye Jingtang.
（→_→）!
The corner of Yuwen Chengde's eye twitched. He thought to himself: Where did this crazy person come from, daring to undermine Jingwang's authority in person...
But when he looked back and saw Ye Jingtang's appearance, Yuwen Chengde understood. He was so handsome, but his clothes were not like those of a nobleman's son. Most likely, he was a male favorite that Jingwang had brought out for a stroll. No wonder he spoke without restraint...
Yuwen Chengde's expression became serious, and he motioned to the marks on the wall:
"I think Your Highness's opinion is correct. The marks left by a sword and a saber are very different. The coroners and yamen runners present all think these are sword marks. This young master says they are saber marks. Do you have any other opinions?"
Ye Jingtang spoke up because he was afraid that Benben would talk nonsense and be noticed by the professional people present that something was wrong, and then they would realize that everyone in the courtyard was a bit foolish.
Seeing everyone looking over, Ye Jingtang couldn't just tell a blatant lie and follow the crowd, saying that he had misidentified. So he really explained to everyone:
"The marks were indeed left by the move 'White Snake Sweeping the Tail', but it looks very strange. It's too heavy to be a sword mark and too light to be a saber mark. It seems that a master who has used a saber for a long time used a saber similar to a sword and used a sword move to fight the enemy..."
??
The official officers in the courtyard were slowly confused.
Yuwen Chengde frowned and thought about it for a while. He felt that these words were even stranger and asked:
"Where did you see all these from, young master?"
Ye Jingtang made this judgment based on his long-term feeling of using a saber. He couldn't really explain it in detail. After thinking for a while, he said:
"When you hold a saber for a long time, you'll be able to feel it. Hmm... the sense of the saber!"
"..."
Yuwen Chengde had been holding an official sword for more than twenty years, which was even longer than Ye Jingtang's age. When he heard these words, his eyes showed a complicated look. If it weren't for Jingwang's presence, he would probably have had a match with this kid who was talking nonsense.
Dongfang Liren knew how capable Ye Jingtang was. Seeing how serious he was, her gaze softened, and she said seriously:
"Handling a case requires solid evidence. Relying solely on feelings, if there is even one mistake, it will lead to a wrongful case. You said it was a saber. Can you give a definite explanation?"
Ye Jingtang thought for a moment, then handed the umbrella to Dongfang Liren and started to examine the marks on the flowers, plants, and walls in the courtyard...