Jie Fu Lian paused and scratched the back of his neck as he tried to save himself, "I seemed to have acted out on impulse. My apologies. I am Fu Ming, a rogue cultivator and this is Daoist Hua Tianshu and his disciple Duan Luoyang from the HuiXue sect."
Fan Xue seemed to have recognized the name 'Hua Tianshu' and hence his frown deepened as he questioned, "What reason is there for Respected Daoist Hua Tianshu to come and find me."
Jie Fu Lian couldn't help but gulp as he wondered how different the current Fan Xue was from the one he remembered.
Back then, Fan Xue had always greeted Jie Fu Lian politely and warmly as if Jie Fu Lian were really his real nephew.
Now, he as glaring at Hua Tianshu, clearly unhappy and annoyed with the other's mere presence.
It was the same with Bai YiJun as well. Although he tried to mask his hostility, it was pretty clear that he hated Hua Tianshu. Jie Fu Lian couldn't help but wonder if the people that he had known had changed or if everybody in Xiujiang just hated Hua Tianshu.
"Minister Fan Xue, I am really sorry about last time," Hua Tianshu coughed as he guiltily spoke.
"If you are sorry then compensate us with money," Fan Xue sharply replied, without missing a beat.
"Minister Fan Xue, I am poor." Hua Tianshu shamelessly claimed making Jie Fu Lian stare at him wth an odd expression on his face.
One of the youngest and most respected elders of the HuiXue sect was poor...?! This was absolute bullsh*t!
Fan Xue's frown grew deeper and he looked to be even more pissed off as he spoke, "If you don't want to pay up then don't come here to talk. I don't talk to poor people."
"..."
Why was this conversation a bit weird...?
Jie Fu Lian pulled Duan Luoyang aside and asked in a whispered, "Duan Luoyang, what's the relationship between your master and Uncle Fan Xue? Why does it seem like Uncle Fan Xue holds a grudge against him?"
Duan Luoyang awkwardly scratched the back of his neck as he hesitantly revealed, "About that... Last time Master came here, he was annoyed at Bai YiJun and put the entire city on fire."
Jie Fu Lian blinked and repeated the man's words in his head just to make sure that he hadn't heard wrong.
Burnt a city because he was annoyed...?
Was Hua Tianshu's temper always this low? Was he always this impulsive?
Jie Fu Lian gulped as he glanced at Hua Tianshu and then looked back at Fan Xue.
Well, if that were really the case then it explained Fan Xue's anger.
If they needed to get any information out of Fan Xue, they needed to first calm the man down and improve the relationship between Hua Tianshu and Fan Xue.
However, with Hua Tianshu acting like this, it was quite hard to improve Fan Xue's mood.
In such cases, of course, the knight in shining armor needed to save the damsel in distress.
With a sigh, Jie Fu Lian, the knight in shining armor, stepped up as he asked, "Uncle Fan Xue, it seems that my friend has troubled you. How much were the damages worth? I'll pay up for it."
Hua Tianshu, the damsel in distress, quietly looked at Jie Fu Lian without saying anything.
"Thirty thousand gold coins."
Jie Fu Lian's mood immediately changed, "Uncle Fan Xue, just lock up my friend in a dungeon and we can sit down for a nice cup of tea. He is clearly too poor to pay up. If you don't want to talk to him then talk to me. The investigation must continue."
"Fine."
Just like that, Jie Fu Lian betrayed Hua Tianshu and Hua Tianshu was politely escorted away to the dungeon where he was locked up.
Duan Luoyang didn't know if he was supposed to laugh or not as looked at Jie Fu Lian with a bit of disbelief and asked in a whisper, "Uncle Fu, are we seriously abandoning Shizun?"
"Is your Shizun rich enough to pay me back thirty thousand gold coins?"
"No."
"Then he shouldn't have been impulsive enough to burn down a city."
"..." Duan Luoyang was immediately silenced.
"Take a seat," Fan Xue politely gestured over to the table as he spoke. There was a warm welcoming smile plastered on his face and he finally resembled the Uncle Fan Xue from Jie Fu Lian's memories.
"What investigation were you talking about?" Fan Xue asked as he poured tea into three porcelain cups.
"We are reinvestigating the Yan Sect case."
"The Yan Sect?" Fan Xue repeated with a small frown, seeming to be a bit confused, "The case from seven years ago?"
Jie Fu Lian nodded his head as he picked up the tea cup and took a whiff of the lovely fragrance.
"Wasn't it led by the Jin Sect? Were there any problems?"
"There were no problems."
"Then why investigate again?"
"For personal satisfaction," Jie Fu Lian beamed as he replied.
Fan Xue looked to be even more confused as he heard this and carefully looked at Jie Fu Lian's face as he asked, "Were you acquainted with the Yan Sect?"
Jie Fu Lian once again nodded his head as he confirmed it and spoke, "That's right. I knew a boy called Jie Fu Lian. He was a disciple of the Yan Sect. Due to certain circumstances, I was unaware of the incident when it had happened. I recently returned and found out all about it. My heart was quite broken when I heard the details."
Fan Xue sighed as he heard this and slightly nodded his head as he shared the feelings of disappointment and sadness.
"I was also acquainted with Jie Fu Lian. He was talented and well-mannered. I would have never thought he'd end up like that. It must have been quite a shock for you too."
Jie Fu Lian gulped as he felt a little guilty for lying to the man like this, but he still nodded his head as he agreed.
"But what brings you here?" Fan Xue continued with a question, "As long as I remember, I was never related to the case."
"You weren't related but you might still have some information that would help us."
"I can't think of anything like that."
Jie Fu Lian had already expected this response so he gently smiled as he spoke, "There is no hurry. You just have to answer a few questions. As long as you cooperate, we'll be able to end this meeting soon enough."
Fan Xue nodded his head in understanding.
Duan Luoyang who sat beside Jie Fu Lian, quietly drank the tea, feeling that it would be rude of him to interrupt the conversation.
"Do you remember the city head's wife Bai BaoShi?"
For a second there, Fan Xue looked to be a bit annoyed as he heard that name, but the man was still able to cover up his expressions soon after as he nodded his head and spoke, "I knew her but wasn't too familiar."
"Uncle Fan Xue, when you say 'wasn't too familiar', do you mean to say that you didn't know her that well or do you mean to say that you didn't like her very much?" Jie Fu Lian's question was quite straightforward and even sounded a bit rude but Fan Xue didn't seem to mind it.
"I didn't know her that well and her personality, as I understood it, wasn't one I particularly liked."
Jie Fu Lian had expected to hear this answer. After all, Bai BaoShi was the one who had crippled Bai YiJun. Fan Xue's relationship with Bai Guanyu and Bai YiJun was quite good, hence, he would naturally not have a good relationship with Bai BaoShi.
"Was there anything peculiar about her that you had noticed?" Jie Fu Lian curiously asked as he looked at Fan Xue and secretly analyzed his every expression and action.
This time, Fan Xue took a minute to think about the answer carefully before he spoke, "She was just an annoying woman. Except for that, there wasn't much I had known about her."
Jie Fu Lian wanted to laugh as he heard this but he controlled himself.
Jie Fu Lian didn't really pay much attention to these words since he remembered that in the eyes of Fan Xue, every woman was annoying.
"Then do you remember how she got married to the city head?"
"Ah, that marriage was a bit unexpected," Fan Xue sighed as he recalled the day, "Madam Bai Yaling had just passed away and everyone was a bit shaken by her death. Bai Guanyu had loved her very much so it was expected of him to mourn over her death, but on the same day as her death, he announced his plans for another marriage and on the very next day, he got married to Bai BaoShi."
Jie Fu Lian's eyebrows creased together as he heard this and he carefully asked, "Were there any problems between Bai Guanyu and Bai Yaling around that time?"
Fan Xue shook his head, "No problems. They loved each other very much."
Jie Fu Lian thought Hua Tianshu was an arrogant man who was patient and composed, but I love the fact that we are now getting hints of Hua Tianshu's real personality that Jie Fu Lian was unaware of.
Thank you for reading and don't forget to vote, comment and support the author by adding this novel to your library!~
Take care and stay hydrated <3
"Then was there any mention of Bai BaoShi before Bai Yaling's death?"
Fan Xue shook his head, "There wasn't. Her appearance was quite unexpected."
Jie Fu Lian gulped as he heard this and suddenly had a crazy thought as he asked, "What about Bai Guanyu? When he married Bai BaoShi, was there anything odd about him?"
Since it was suspected that Bai BaoShi was a demon, Jie Fu Lian couldn't help but wonder if the woman had tricked Bai Guanyu into marrying her or not. After all, the sweet words of a demon were hard to ignore and Bai Guanyu was just a normal man, how could he not fall prey?
Fan Xue thought about it for a moment before he shook his head with a sigh, "Except for his impulsive decision, there wasn't anything else out of the place. His behavior was quite normal."
Jie Fu Lian frowned as he heard this and was about to ask another question, but before he could say anything, Fan Xue clicked his tongue as he suddenly added.
"There was one thing that I found odd!"
"What was it?"
"He wasn't sad."
"Huh?"
"Madam Bai Yaling had just died and yet he didn't even shed a single tear over her death," Fan Xue spoke, feeling a bit unhappy as he continued, "I had always thought he was an admirable man for the love he had for his wife, but when I saw him not even shedding a single tear over her death bed, it made me feel as if the person I had known had suddenly changed into a treacherous scumbag."
Jie Fu Lian opened his mouth and closed it just as fast. He tried to put the pieces of the puzzle together but couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something missing.
"Did you talk to him about it?"
Fan Xue shook his head with a scoff as he questioned back, "How could I? I was nothing more than a financial minister. It wasn't my business to meddle into his personal affairs."
"Then let me ask you this," Jie Fu Lian gulped as he slightly leaned in and carefully questioned, "Is it possible that somebody else was pretending to be Bai Guanyu or did it look like Bai Guanyu was under somebody else's control?"
Fan Xue looked to be a bit taken back as he heard this question and he hesitated for a long time before answering, "It doesn't sound possible but if it were the case then a lot of things could be explained."
Jie Fu Lian took a deep breath in and picked up the porcelain tea cup before bringing it near to his mouth and taking a sip.
His eyebrows that were creased together hadn't loosened up just yet. He was deep in thought and felt like he shouldn't have locked Hua Tianshu away in the dungeon. Two heads were better than one. If he had Hua Tianshu, the two could work together and come up with more ideas.
"What about when Bai LiuXian died?" Suddenly, Duan Luoyang decided to break his silence as he questioned, "What was the reaction of Bai BaoShi and Bai Guanyu?"
"Bai Guanyu was just a bit shocked and Bai BaoShi was deeply shaken," Fan Xue sighed as he revealed, "Around that time, Bai BaoShi kept making trouble and eventually, Bai Guanyu also got tired of it and let her go."
Both Jie Fu Lian and Duan Luoyang caught a word and immediately felt as if they had gained a hint.
"What type of trouble?" Jie Fu Lian was the first to ask.
"The investigation pointed at Jie Fu Lian. There was both evidence and witness testimonies proving that he was the culprit, but Bai BaoShi didn't believe it."
"Huh?" Jie Fu Lian's eyes widened with surprise and he suddenly felt that this Bai BaoShi had quite an accurate intuition. While everyone else was blinded by evidence, she could think for herself and accurately guessed Jie Fu Lian's innocence in the case.
"She kept blabbering nonsense."
"What nonsense?" Jie Fu Lian asked with great interest that could hardly be hidden.
Since there was another person who believed in his innocence, he naturally wanted to know more about that person and her thoughts on the case.
"She kept repeating the same thing everyday," Fan Xue sighed with annoyance as he recalled, "She kept claiming that it was a ghost."
"A ghost?!" Both Jie Fu Lian and Duan Luoyang reacted together, looking like two dumbfounded fishes.
"She kept repeating it everyday. At night, she would often scream, saying that the ghost was coming after her next," Fan Xue rubbed his forehead as he spoke.
Jie Fu Lian gulped as he looked at Duan Luoyang who looked back at him with the same incomprehensible expression, they nodded at each other with an understanding.
"Whose ghost was it?" Jie Fu Lian and Duan Luoyang turned to look at Fan Xue at the same time as they asked in unison.
"Madam Bai Yaling."
"!!!"
Fan Xue sighed as he continued, "She had never even met the woman before nor had she ever mentioned that name before it. Suddenly, her son died and she kept claiming that madam Bai Yaling had come back as a ghost and was trying to kill her."
"Is there any reason why she might have believed something like that?" Jie Fu Lian asked with a small frown, "Perhaps she had seen something that made her believed that Madam Bai Yaling had come back as a ghost?"
"It was all because of a nightmare," Fan Xue answered with a sigh, "After her son's death, she claimed to have seen Madam Bai Yaling in her nightmare. Madam Bai Yaling was laughing and cursing at her in the nightmare. Even going as far as to threaten her by saying she was next. After that, Bai BaoShi didn't even dare sleep."
Jie Fu Lian no longer knew if this piece of information was even relevant or not.
There was clearly no way the murderer was a ghost.
In the memory, they had come face to face with the murderer and not only was the murderer not Madam Bai Yaling's ghost, but it was a man that was most probably a half demon.
The nightmare was probably just induced from the guilt and anxiety buried in Bai BaoShi's heart after her son died.
He would be a fool if he were to take nightmares as proof.
"If she truly feared for her life, shouldn't she have stayed?" Duan Luoyang slightly frowned as he questioned, "It would be safer for her to stay here. Why did she decide to leave?"
"Like I said, she had already gone insane and could no longer think straight. She started blaming everything on Bai Guanyu and in the end, she left."
"Uncle Fan Xue, This Bai Guanyu..." Jie Fu Lian gulped as he suddenly spoke up, feeling as if he was seeing something but at the same time, being unable to grasp the core of it, "Why did he collapse?"
"Aiya, isn't it because of loneliness?" Fan Xue clicked his tongue as he shook his head in disappointment and spoke, "His first wife died, his second son died and then his second wife also went insane and left him. Bai YiJun was the only one left in his family but he was a cripple and a lunatic so how could Bai Guanyu look at him for comfort. In the end, it was as if there was no one left by his side and he eventually suffered from the loneliness."
Jie Fu Lian slightly raised his eyebrows as he heard this and asked, "Bai YiJun is a cripple and a lunatic...? Uncle Fan Xue, why is he still pretending? If Bai BaoShi is gone, shouldn't he also be able to leave that roll behind?"
It was a question that Jie Fu Lian had wanted to ask for quite some time but the one he wanted to ask this question to was originally Bai YiJun, however, he had missed his queue and ended up facing Fan Xue with this question.
Fan Xue looked to be a bit shocked as he heard the words of Jie Fu Lian and immediately clenched his jaw as he glared at the man and unhappily asked, "You know?"
Jie Fu Lian was a bit tongue-tied when he suddenly heard this question. He couldn't just blurt out that he had always known it since he was Jie Fu Lian. Bai YiJun was a careful person so it was also unlikely for him to come out and reveal his true nature to someone he hardly knew.
In the end, Jie Fu Lian could only remember that Hua Tianshu also seemed to have already known about Bai YiJun and although he didn't know what the relationship was between Hua Tianshu and Bai YiJun, he still decided to use the man as an excuse.
"Brother Hua seemed to be acquainted with Bai YiJun so I also got to meet him. Although he looked like he couldn't use his legs anymore, there were no issues with his head. It felt unlikely for him to be a lunatic."
Surprisingly enough, Fan Xue believed his words without any hesitation.
What are your theories on the case so far? Let me know down in the comments~
Thank you for reading and don't forget to vote, comment and support the author by adding this novel to your library!~
Take care and stay hydrated <3
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