Detective Di Renjie: The Mysterious Dynasty

Chapter 375 Ping Nanhou ≠ Xue Qinglin

The first ray of sunlight outside the window penetrated the mist, illuminating the entire room, and seemed to put an end to this long night.

Wen Kai rode his horse back at a gallop, looking anxious, as if he was carrying some extremely important information, and rushed into Di's house in a hurry.

In the main hall, Di Renjie and Zhao Ji once again took out the files of Feng Wanchun, Zhang Xiangong and others from Jiangzhou, looking for some clues.

Zhao Ji browsed through the official files in his hand with great interest: "Before Feng Wanchun and Ge Bin were released from prison, they were all fishermen outside the city; Zhang Xiangong was a poor scholar who made a living in Jiangzhou City by writing letters and fortune-telling for others."

"Although Xue Qinglin has fallen on hard times, he can still be considered a nobleman. How could he make friends with these people? Even calling them brothers in the martial arts world?"

Di Renjie exhaled slowly and said in a deep voice: "Of course, the only thing that can make these people connect everything is the sensational Huang Guo case!"

Zhao Ji nodded, then changed the subject and mentioned another detail: "Have you noticed the ages of Feng Wanchun to Huang Wenyue?"

Di Renjie was stunned when he heard this: "Age?"

Zhao Ji smiled slightly and continued, "According to official records, Xue Qinglin should be 42 years old this year. The oldest of the six brothers, Feng Wanchun, is only 49 years old, and the fourth brother, Ge Bin, is even less than 40 years old."

"But Yuan Fang heard Feng Wanchun call Xue Qinglin the fifth brother. In this case, doesn't it mean that the fifth brother is younger than the fourth brother?"

Di Renjie frowned and narrowed his eyes. "The Pingnan Marquis Xue Qinglin we met, judging from his appearance, is no more than thirty years old, still very young, and definitely not more than forty years old! How could this be? Is there something wrong with the official records?"

Zhao Ji's smile was full of meaning. He shook his head slightly and pointed to the core of the problem: "Rather than saying that the official records are wrong, it's better to say that there are problems with these people!"

"These people call each other brothers, and many of them are skilled in martial arts. Xue Qinglin, a nobleman, chose to befriend these commoners and be their fifth brother. The most important thing is that their ages don't match. Don't these things arouse suspicion?"

Di Renjie's frown gradually relaxed, as if he had realized something, but he looked at Zhao Ji in disbelief.

"what do you mean?"

Zhao Ji paced slowly, his expression becoming more and more solemn: "Perhaps, the Pingnan Marquis we see before our eyes and the Xue Qinglin recorded in the official files are not the same person!"

Di Renjie's expression froze. He closed his eyes and thought, and all the details of the incident flashed through his mind like a kaleidoscope.

Seeing this, Zhao Ji smiled again. He knew that he didn't need to waste any more words.

At this moment, Wen Kai rushed in, breaking the silence in the room: "Your Highness! Lord!"

Di Renjie was interrupted by Wen Kai's voice. He opened his eyes and looked at Wen Kai sharply: "What's wrong, Wen Kai, did you find anything?"

Wen Kai said impatiently: "You are really amazing, Lord. I went to Xiaopu Village and visited many families. As expected, I found out that Jinniang is not Wu Si's biological daughter!"

"She came to Xiaopu Village about a year ago. Because she was alone and helpless, she was adopted by Wu Si. Half a year later, she was forcibly taken into the Marquis' Mansion by Xue Qinglin!"

Di Renjie nodded slightly, his eyes sparkling with brilliance: "It seems that we are getting closer to the truth of the case!"

Wen Kai heard this and his face was filled with irrepressible joy: "You mean, we can find the secret letter?"

Di Renjie couldn't help but laugh when he saw Wen Kai still obsessed with the secret letter.

He immediately said in a serious tone, "Go to the county government office and find the two yamen runners who encountered the ghost in the morgue last night. If you want to find the secret letter, you have to find them."

Wen Kai quickly agreed: "Yes, I'll go right away!"

After saying that, he was about to run away, but Zhao Ji gently stopped him and whispered to him, "Be sure to act secretly and don't let others notice."

Wen Kai was stunned at first, but then he immediately understood something and left. Di Renjie and Zhao Ji looked at each other and smiled knowingly, saying everything.
-
In the east wing, Jinniang sat on the couch in a daze, not moving at all.

Ruyan came in with water and called softly, "Jinniang."

Jinniang slowly turned her head, looked at Ruyan, and said with a silly smile: "Mother..."

Ruyan felt a pang of sadness in her heart. She sighed and forced a smile, saying, "Jinniang, I am your elder sister!"

Jinniang still smiled foolishly and imitated, "Sister?"

Ruyan smiled gently, as if coaxing a child: "Yes, it's sister. Do you want some water, Jinniang?"

Jinniang suddenly clapped her hands and laughed, "Drink water, drink water!"

But she smiled, not knowing what to do. Ruyan had no choice but to hand the bowl to her mouth.

Jinniang opened her mouth and sucked in small sips. She was completely unaware of the amount of water she drank in, far less than what she spilled.

Seeing this, Ruyan couldn't help but burst into tears.

When Jinniang saw Ruyan crying, the smile on her face disappeared instantly and she shouted anxiously: "Mom, don't cry, don't cry..."

Ruyan quickly wiped away her tears, wiped the wet lapels of Jinniang's clothes with a handkerchief, and hugged her tightly in her arms.
-
In the main hall of the Di Mansion, two yamen runners, one fat and one thin, knelt on the ground, begging with sad faces, "Your Excellency the Imperial Envoy, I have explained everything I can! I hope you will be merciful and give me a lighter sentence!"

Di Renjie held a bunch of petitions in his hand and sneered, "Humph, you two did all kinds of evil when Huang Wenyue was in office. You two little magistrates, but the people have filed so many petitions against you!"

"Even if this court is willing to forgive you, the people of Wuping will not forgive you either! Come on! Capture these two and punish them severely according to the law!"

The Qianniu Guards outside the door rushed in and quickly dragged out the yamen runner who was crying and begging for mercy.

Just at this moment, Zhang Yi was brought over by Li Lang and passed by the wailing yamen runners. His eyes flashed and he couldn't help feeling a chill in his heart.

But soon, he seemed to realize something, straightened his back, and strode into the hall.

Zhang Yi's face was as cold as frost, and he said righteously: "Your Excellency, I, Zhang Yi, did everything in this case. I have avenged my great vengeance, and I only ask for death! As for the rest, I have nothing to say!"

Di Renjie looked at Zhang Yi's resolute expression and shook his head helplessly.

Zhao Ji laughed dumbly and motioned Zhang Yi to sit down: "Don't be nervous. We invited you here not to make things difficult for you. It's just that you keep saying that Xue Qinglin has a grudge against you, but I don't know what the grudge is that makes you so desperate to seek revenge even at the cost of your own life?"

Zhang Yi glanced at Zhao Ji with disdain, gritting his teeth in hatred: "What hatred, what grudge? Xue Qinglin has committed numerous evil deeds and killed more than 30 members of my family. This hatred is irreconcilable! I wish I could grind his bones to dust!"

Zhao Ji nodded, but pretended to be puzzled and asked: "Xue Qinglin and Huang Wenyue are indeed notorious in Wuping and have done all kinds of evil, but what hatred do Feng Wanchun and Zhang Xiangong have against you? Why do you want to kill them?"

Zhang Yi said as a matter of course: "These people are Xue Qinglin's accomplices, they also deserve to die!"

Upon hearing this, Di Renjie curled up his lips into a smile.

Zhang Yi's words could be said to be a confession of his own doing, which basically confirmed some of his and Zhao Ji's speculations.

Finally, there was a sound of crisp footsteps outside the door, and the real owner Lin Yongzhong arrived accompanied by Zhang Huan.

"Sir, you are looking for me..." He walked in unprepared, his eyes suddenly caught sight of Zhang Yi's figure, and he froze in place.

(End of this chapter)