Detective Di Renjie: The Mysterious Dynasty

Chapter 361 Secret
After agreeing on tomorrow's itinerary, Wen Kai went back to rest, leaving Di Renjie and Li Yuanfang sitting opposite each other in the room.

Li Yuanfang's face was still gloomy, his brows were furrowed, and he was obviously in a heavy mood.

Seeing this, Di Renjie smiled slightly and said, "It can be seen that General Li is very dissatisfied with Xue Qinglin."

Li Yuanfang responded indignantly: "Of course, a scum like Xue Qinglin who does all kinds of evil should be killed by everyone! Today he used tricks again and killed two people. In my opinion, he should be eradicated as soon as possible to prevent him from continuing to do evil!"

Di Renjie shook his head slightly and said earnestly: "Yuan Fang, you are being controlled by your emotions and your judgment has deviated."

Li Yuanfang was stunned when he heard this, and asked in confusion: "What do you mean, sir? Could it be that what I saw with my own eyes could be false?"

Di Renjie thought for a moment and began to pace around the room: "The truth of this case is not yet completely clear, but I am sure that things are much more complicated than you think!"

Li Yuanfang followed Di Renjie's gaze and listened attentively.

Di Renjie continued to analyze: "According to what you said, the murderer tonight was Xue Qinglin's master, but why did Xue Qinglin send a master as a killer?"

"And the sledgehammer used by the murderer weighs dozens of kilograms. Why did that master choose such a heavy weapon to kill people? Isn't this asking for trouble?"

Li Yuanfang thought for a moment and replied, "Perhaps this master is Xue Qinglin's confidant, and happens to be extremely powerful..."

Di Renjie smiled when he heard this, and then said, "This is one explanation. But according to the testimony of the waiter at Pingyang Inn, there were two murderers who killed Ge Bin. If one of them is this master, who is the other one?"

"You only saw the Master sneaking back to the Marquis' Mansion alone, but where was the other person? Did the Master act alone tonight?"

"It was your own judgment that the murderer who stabbed the hammer was not skilled in martial arts. Would Xue Qinglin send a man who was not skilled in martial arts to fight one against two and kill and silence them?"

Li Yuanfang was suddenly speechless and had no answer.

After a while, he blinked, as if he had understood something: "Indeed, one of the two officials who were killed was very skilled. Even if it was a sneak attack, it would not be easy to fight two alone..."

Di Renjie nodded approvingly: "Therefore, I guess there must be something hidden. Moreover, our attention has been limited to these murders, but we have ignored other more important clues."

"What do you mean, sir?" Li Yuanfang was stunned again.

Di Renjie said slowly: "First of all, you explained Xue Qinglin's motive for murder as a secret. What exactly is this secret? How could it turn brothers who have been sworn brothers for many years against each other and even kill each other?"

"The next is Jinniang. Ruyan has already noticed that this child also has a secret. The process of her escaping from the Marquis' Mansion was full of doubts, and the attack in Xiaopu Village was also quite strange!"

Di Renjie paced a few steps in the room and sighed: "Do you remember? We once discussed why His Majesty sent us to Wuping. Now I understand a little bit. The key may not lie in Xue Qinglin, but in the so-called secret!"

Li Yuanfang murmured and repeated Di Renjie's words: "Secret..."

Di Renjie looked solemn and made a conclusion: "I can say that in this small Wuping County, many forces have gathered together!"

Li Yuanfang heard this and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes: "Multiple forces?"

Di Renjie nodded gently: "That's right, Jinniang, the murderer, Xue Qinglin and the five Jiangzhou officials, and even ourselves are also a force, right?"

At this point, Li Yuanfang slapped his head suddenly, and suddenly thought of something: "Oh, right! Last night at the Marquis' Mansion, I saw Xue Qinglin had a female relative, and she sent her maid to secretly deliver a letter! She is also a force!"

Upon hearing this, Di Renjie frowned and asked, "Is there such a thing?"

Li Yuanfang's words seemed to inspire Di Renjie. He paced back and forth in the room, and suddenly a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "Yes, I have missed an important force!" "Oh? Who is it?" Li Yuanfang asked hurriedly.

Di Renjie said simply: "Warm it up!"

Li Yuanfang was shocked when he heard this: "You mean the inner guards?!"

Di Renjie did not answer. His eyes were deep as he muttered to himself, "It seems that the secret hidden in Wuping County concerns Your Majesty..."

Involving the emperor, Li Yuanfang also realized the seriousness of the problem and asked in surprise: "What secret can involve the emperor?"

Di Renjie took a deep breath and sighed: "What else could it be? It can only be related to the Huang Guo case. Alas, that is a thing of the past like floating clouds..."
-
The next morning, the fog dissipated and a fishing boat on the river bank was surrounded by fishermen who were watching the fun and chattering non-stop.

A fishing boat lay diagonally on the water, and the bloodstains on the bow deck were shocking.

The officers from Wuping County Government have surrounded the fishing boat. Li Yuanfang, Lin Yongzhong and Wen Kai have boarded the boat and are conducting detailed investigations.

Two yamen runners, one fat and one thin, ran excitedly to the boat and saluted to Wen Kai and Lin Yongzhong: "My lords, we have found out that this boat is the property of Du Er, the steward of Pingnan Marquis's Mansion!"

Lin Yongzhong looked solemn, and asked again: "Is that the Du Er who was executed?"

The fat and thin yamen runners nodded repeatedly.

Wen Kai nodded slightly, waved his hand to signal the yamen runner to leave, then looked at Li Yuanfang and said, "It's really Xue Qinglin!"

Li Yuanfang frowned, seeming a little confused, and turned to look at Di Renjie.

But Di Renjie was staring at the footprints on the bow of the ship alone, lost in thought.

Seeing this, Lin Yongzhong hurried over and cautiously asked, "Could it be that the old man has discovered something?"

Since they met, Lin Yongzhong has witnessed how powerful Di Renjie is, so he is very worried that he will discover his secrets.

Di Renjie pointed to the footprints on the boat and said, "The footprints on the bow and stern are of different sizes, which means there were two murderers who committed the crime together last night!"

Li Yuanfang sighed in admiration, "You've got it right again. There were indeed two murderers on the boat last night!"

Lin Yongzhong was stunned when he heard this, and asked in confusion: "How come the old gentleman guessed the circumstances of this case in advance?"

Li Yuanfang smiled and explained, "What County Magistrate Lin doesn't know is that I sneaked into the Marquis' Mansion last night and almost figured out the whole story. I also happened to get information about the murderer!"

Lin Yongzhong was almost horrified when he heard this: "What...what? Do you know who the murderer is?"

Li Yuanfang nodded, his expression firm: "Yes, one of the murderers is most likely the master of Xue Qinglin's mansion!"

Lin Yongzhong was so frightened that he could not speak and stood there in a daze.

Wen Kai patted Lin Yongzhong's shoulder gently and consoled him, "We never expected Xue Qinglin to be so bold, but this saves us a lot of effort in solving the case. Today, we will go to the Pingnan Marquis' Mansion to ask for an explanation!"

Lin Yongzhong's face was gloomy and uncertain, and he seemed to be hesitant to speak. In the end, he could only nod reluctantly and agree.

(End of this chapter)