Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 39: Death is a Reasonable Thing

"Li Weining..."

"The 'victim' of the first case is the 'murderer' of the second case?"

"But this does explain why these Annan people are behaving so strangely..."

Just as Hai Yue had said to Li Yuying before, he originally suspected that there was another "Thirteen Guardians" in the killer group who could come up with such a vicious plan to kill someone with a borrowed knife.

Otherwise, many of Mo Zhengyong's subordinates could not even speak Chinese and belonged to the lower class of Annan. It was unlikely that they would be able to come up with such advice and ideas.

This is the first doubt.

The second doubt is that even if the other party's plan goes as they wish and Mo Zhengyong and his group die, it will still be difficult to explain after returning to Annan. Mo Dengyong, who killed his master and established himself as the emperor, will still not let go of these subordinates who failed the mission!
Now the answer is revealed.

The real Annan prince Li Weining was captured by another group of Annan assassins and gave them advice, which accidentally led to the "Blood Totem" rebellion.

"So, Mo Zhengyong's plan actually succeeded!"

"He had a group of assassins impersonate the diplomatic corps and actually lure out the fleeing Annan prince. Another group of Annan assassins lurking in the area successfully captured him..."

"It's just that Mo Zhengyong was too calculating. He killed his double in the academy and fabricated the murder of Prince Annan. As a result, his identity was exposed and his plan failed!"

Thinking of this, Hai Yue shook her head and asked in a deep voice, "Where is Li Weining?"

The horse-faced strong man made a gurgling sound in his throat. He knew he was going to die, but he was unwilling to say anything.

Hai Yue sneered, "Are you covering up for your enemy? He fooled you all and then left peacefully. Do you accept this outcome?"

The horse-faced burly man glared angrily, stretched out his hand with difficulty, pointed at the wall that had not yet been closed, and tilted his head.

After making sure that the man had breathed his last, Haiyue pulled out the gun, threw the body aside, and walked in cautiously.

As expected, as soon as I stepped in, I felt a strong wind blowing in my face and hidden weapons flying through the air.

Hai Yue looked calm, and the spear in his hand shook lightly. The tip of the spear was like a spirit snake spitting out its tongue, knocking down the attacking hidden weapons one by one, and then facing the killer who was rushing towards him.

The passage was narrow and the walls were tight, making it difficult to use the spear at full strength. Fortunately, there were not many enemies, so there was no need to use large-scale attacks.

A cold light flashed, and within a few moves, several Annan killers fell to the ground, blood splattered on the wall, and the sound of fighting came from deeper inside.

After stabbing the last killer to death, Hai Yue quickened her pace and rushed inside, only to see two figures fighting with each other.

After a little identification, Haiyue took decisive action and shot the Annan killer who had the upper hand.

When the corpse was opened, the man who was confronting it shook and fell to his knees.

Haiyue checked and found that he was stabbed in the abdomen and back. The injuries were not fatal, but the fight just now caused the wounds to burst and a lot of blood to flow. She immediately pulled off her sleeves and bandaged him simply.

The man groaned, but seemed to be unable to care about himself. He pointed behind him and said, "Help! Help!"

Haiyue had already seen that deep in the secret passage was a simple prison cell, in which was imprisoned a scholar in his forties. He held the wooden bars tightly with both hands, his long hair was disheveled and hung messily on his shoulders, his clothes were ragged and stained, and he looked in a miserable state.

"Inspector Wu?"

"I'm Wu Lin!"

Haiyue shot the lock on the prison door and released the people inside.

"Thank you for the rescue, brave man!" Wu Lin was obviously quite weak. It was not because of physical torture, as there were no obvious injuries on his body. It was mainly due to mental stress and fear.

After all, being locked up in this dark prison with a bunch of vicious foreigners would drive any ordinary person crazy. Yet, he looked at her with a certain scrutiny, obviously trying to determine Hai Yue's identity. Then, he remembered the man who had just fought a life-or-death battle: "This is Envoy Li from Annan. He was also kidnapped here by those thieves. If it weren't for his intercession and protection over the past two days, I would have died here long ago!"

"Oh?"

Hai Yue took a deep look at the man lying on the ground, groaning in pain, and said in a deep voice, "I'll take him out, and Inspector Wu will follow behind."

"I'm here to help too!"

Although Wu Lin was still weak, he stepped forward to support the other shoulder of the seriously injured man and walked out with difficulty.

"Master! Master!"

As soon as he came out of the secret passage and returned to the previous room, the voice of the strong man Xiang Ang came in, and Wu Lin immediately looked relieved.

Obviously, the inspector was worried that those who came to rescue him might not be kind people, and he didn't want to escape from the tiger's mouth and fall into the wolf's den. Now Xiang Ang's appearance made him completely relieved.

Haiyue also noticed the other party's distrust, but didn't take it seriously: "Inspector Wu, go and meet up with Xiang Zhuangshi. I'm here."

Wu Lin then saluted solemnly and said, "May I know your name, sir?"

"Qiongshan Haiyue, a student of Dongpo Academy."

When Wu Lin heard the name, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He obviously remembered the case of the diplomatic mission, but he didn't say much. He bowed again and staggered out.

Hai Yue continued to support the man out, but unexpectedly, he also uttered a hoarse voice: "Hai Yue? The young master Hai who exposed Mo Zhengyong's true face?"

Haiyue said: "It's me."

The man hurriedly said, "That horse-faced thief is called Ruan Si. He is Mo Zhengyong's right-hand man. He is the leader who gives orders here. He must be killed!"

Hai Yue said: "He is dead. I was able to find the secret cell because of this person who showed me the way."

"Good! Good death!"

The man breathed a sigh of relief.

Hai Yue said calmly, "Do you think that since Ruan Si is dead, there is no one to accuse you, and that you are the mastermind behind the Blood Totem Rebellion?"

The man trembled slightly and raised his head: "It seems that Mr. Hai has known who I am for a long time?"

Hai Yue said, "Prince Li Weining of Annan, your name has spread throughout Qiongshan recently. I'm afraid it won't be long before everyone in the Ming Dynasty knows about it."

"Ah!"

Li Weining pulled up the corners of his mouth and smiled helplessly: "Please put me down, there is no need to go out!"

Hai Yue said, "I'm afraid this is not up to you, Excellency."

Li Weining smiled and said, "I really have the final say. I was poisoned by 'Red Scale Marrow', a highly toxic poison from Annan. It's soluble in water and tasteless. Mo Zhengyong killed that stand-in with the same poison... Is it inevitable that the real and fake Annan princes died from the same poison?"

Haiyue paused, put him down, and looked at the tired and thin man.

Li Weining leaned against the wall and straightened his clothes. Although his collar was stained with blood, he exuded an air of nobility. His face was calm and he said, "Mr. Hai, you are the benefactor of the diplomatic corps. While I still have a little time, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I will tell you everything I know without reservation!"

(End of this chapter)