Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 18 Suspect Appears
Han Ze was struck by lightning.

He had so much money, money that even a strong wind couldn't blow away, and it just disappeared like that?
"Ah!" Han Ze wailed, "Sister Zhao, I really didn't know Cao Ben had been dead for so long! I wasn't familiar with him at all. It was Huo Ting who made me realize that he was Zhang Ruoqing's moneybag!"

He howled, pondering Zhou Zhao's words, and suddenly fell silent.

"That's not right! Sister Zhao, if Cao Ben died three months ago, then where did Zhang Ruoqing get such a large sum of money to repay me?"

Upon hearing his words, Madam Cao swayed, clenched her fists, and stared intently at Zhou Zhao. "Miss Zhou, is this money the ransom Zhang Ruoqing demanded for kidnapping my youngest son? She's going too far!"

Zhou Zhao did not answer her, but Cao Shi was already trembling with anger.

She wasn't a playboy like Han Ze who only knew how to indulge in pleasure. She had worked her way up over the years and managed to build such a large fortune on her own, not because of her family's wealth or her beauty!
If it weren't for the fact that merchants are inherently inferior, why would she even bother to take a little girl like Zhang Ruoqing seriously!
Cao gritted her teeth and said to Zhou Zhao, "Miss Zhou, I know you are a shrewd strategist. Your father, Zhou Buhai, and your brother, Zhou Yan, are both upright and discerning officials. Now, I can't hide anything from you."

That very night, Cao Ben drowned, and Jian'an immediately sent me on horseback to Fuxiao Garden.

"Cao Ben's death was too outrageous. Before the matter was clarified, I sealed off the entire garden. For the sake of Zhang Ruoqing's reputation, Cao Ben refused to lend Fuxiao Garden again and turned that place into her private banquet and entertainment venue."

"At that time, apart from the servants of my Cao family, there were only the actors performing Nuo opera in the courtyard, and no other outsiders."

“How could a perfectly healthy person suddenly go mad? Under my repeated questioning, Jian’an told me that Zhang Ruoqing said she had been having dreams recently, in which evil spirits were demanding her life, and she was filled with unease. So, the night before she went mad, Cao Ben arranged for a Nuo opera performance for Zhang Ruoqing.”

As Cao spoke, a hint of reluctance flashed in her eyes, and she looked ashamed.

During the meal, Zhang Ruoqing said that she had read in an ancient book that if the blood of the nuns and shamans was used as a sacrifice during the Nuo dance, the true god would descend, suppress the evil spirits, and grant wishes.

"My son is foolish; he's been bewitched by her and actually brought someone in. It was a little girl..."

"Impossible!" Upon hearing this, Zhang Xun nearly went mad. He pointed at Cao Shi, but his eyes were fixed on Zhou Zhao. "She's lying, isn't she? Cao Ben and Ruoqing are both dead, there's no way to verify anything! She's trying to smear my sister!"

"Ruo Qing would never kill anyone."

Zhou Zhao looked at Zhang Xun quietly, "Calm down."

Zhang Xun was somewhat deranged. "How can you expect me to stay calm?"

Zhou Zhao raised an eyebrow. "There are other crimes involved. If you can't calm down now, what will you do later?"

Zhang Xun's mouth gaped open as he stared at the girl in disbelief. Anyone else would have been horrified upon hearing such a thing, but Zhou Zhao remained calm and collected, her composure was infuriating.

She had already figured it out, which is why she was so calm.

He lived under the same roof as Ruoqing, yet knew nothing of her situation, while Zhou Zhao saw through everything.

“Go on, don’t hide anything. Since you asked Jian’an, you should know that there are other witnesses at the scene.”

Madam Cao nodded heavily, and sighed helplessly, "Now that things have come to this, there's no need for me to hide it anymore."

"Cao Ben didn't initially intend to kill anyone; they just wanted to take blood. But the little girl was terrified and struggled violently. In the chaos, the dagger pierced the child's neck..."

"Just as the young lady said, at that time there were not only Cao Ben and Zhang Ruoqing, but also several young men from noble families, including Huo Ting, the nephew of Grand Commandant Huo. After someone died, everyone was terrified."

"At that time, Huo Ting took it upon himself to forbid anyone present from mentioning the matter. The next morning, Jian'an went out of the city and sent the child's body to the mass grave. By the time he returned, Cao Ben had already gone mad." Cao Shi pinched her brow. "Cao Ben is dead, and he died in a very undignified way. He killed someone, and he has already paid for it with his life."

"Whether it's Zhang Ruoqing, Huo Ting, or the other young masters, they are all people we can't afford to offend. At the time, rumors were rampant in the capital that Zhang Ruoqing was going to be the Crown Princess. I even thought that maybe she didn't want my son to be tainted by this, so she sent someone to kill him..."

"So I kept Ben'er's death a secret and spread rumors that he had gone to the capital to do business."

"The servants of the Cao family who witnessed his death at Fuxiao Garden were also sent back to their hometown of Liling. Our family has its own caravan, so we were able to keep it relatively discreet. As for those who perform the Nuo ritual, they know countless dirty secrets of the powerful families and are very tight-lipped, so they won't break the rules easily."

"After some time, they told the outside world that Cao Ben had been killed by bandits while on a business trip."

Zhou Zhao listened attentively, not at all surprised, as what Cao said was almost exactly what she had guessed.

Although the young woman in front of me looks ordinary, she is methodical and has her own way of doing things.

"Did no one come looking for Cao Ben during this time? Did Zhang Ruoqing come by?"

Madam Cao nodded. "Zhang Ruoqing went to Fuxiao Garden. The person who came with her that day was not Huo Ting, but a young man named Zhu Huan. I heard from Jian'an that Zhu Huan was also in Fuxiao Garden the night he committed the murder, and he was also a favorite of Zhang Ruoqing."

"Besides Zhang Ruoqing, there were five other people present that night: Huo Ting, Cao Ben, Zhu Huan, Chen Shanhai, and Liu Qi."

"Jian'an was always by his side, Zhang Ruoqing's maid Linglan was guarding the door, and the other servants were not present."

Lily of the valley?
Zhou Zhao lowered his eyes. "Did Jian'an tell you where that dead little girl came from?"

Cao did not hide anything, "She is a little maid who was recently bought in Fuxiao Garden, named Jianyue."

After Cao Shi spoke her mind, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her heart, and she felt much lighter. However, when she recalled Zhou Zhao's earlier words, she suddenly became anxious again.

“Miss Zhou, I’ve told you everything I know. Now can you tell me who killed my foolish son?”

Zhou Zhao did not answer the question directly, but his ears twitched.

In broad daylight, she vaguely heard that familiar tune from last night: "A child cries in a ghostly dream, all the beasts and gods invite Boqi; wings cover the sky, beaks pierce the earth, a bright mirror hangs high to drive away plague..."

She moved swiftly, following the sound, and crossed a small lotus pond to reach a waterside pavilion.

The pavilion's doors were open, and a masked man chanted in a strange tone while dancing an ancient and sacred sacrificial dance.

Zhou Zhao stood face to face with him, his eyes exceptionally dark and bright, like a dark starry sky, and a crescent-shaped jade pendant hung from his waist.

"Did you see the moon last night when you went to Wujin Lane?"

Zhou Zhao asked seriously. The wind blew up her hair ribbon, and also made the robes of the person in the courtyard billow, making him look as if he was about to take flight.

Upon hearing Zhou Zhao's question, the man stopped what he was doing, removed his mask, and revealed a handsome face.

"This young lady must be mistaken. We were performing the Nuo dance at the Cao family's house all night, and we didn't leave the house after dark. Where would there be a moon on a rainy day?"

(End of this chapter)