Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

The doors of Tongtian Pavilion were tightly shut.

Yao Guang tried various methods to open the door, but the door remained completely unmoved.

Ren Fengjue reached out and touched the door, only to feel a chill seep into his bones, realizing that the door was not something that could be controlled by human power.

A shadow guard rushed forward to report: "Sir, His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived."

Why did they have to come at this exact moment?

Ren Fengjue couldn't help but sneer: "You've come at the perfect time. I was just worried that no one would open the door."

He immediately turned around and stood with his hands behind his back.

Before long, the Crown Prince, wearing a crane cloak, was seen being escorted upstairs by his attendants.

Upon seeing Ren Fengjue, Zhao Li visibly paused: "Young Master Ren?"

Ren Fengjue stepped forward slightly and nodded gently: "Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Zhao Li smiled with a hint of inquiry: "What wind is blowing tonight that could bring the renowned Vice Minister of Justice here? It's quite a rare sight indeed."

Ren Fengjue replied, "To be honest, this is my first time here, both professionally and personally."

"Oh?"

Zhao Li slowly approached, scrutinizing him: "That's an interesting question. May I ask, young marquis, what is public? And what is private?"

"Naturally, investigating the case is for public purposes, while drinking is for private ones."

"I don't understand what you're saying."

Zhao Li feigned doubt: "Does the young marquis mean there's a case to investigate here?"

"Exactly."

Ren Fengjue answered confidently and pointed to the pavilion door behind him.

"I suspect that the murderer who killed Zheng Daoyuan, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, is hiding in this 'Tongtian Pavilion'."

Zhao Li chuckled: "This Tongtian Pavilion is the boudoir of Bai Qingshuang, the manager of Fu Lou. Does the young marquis mean that Manager Bai is the murderer of Zheng Daoyuan?"

"I'm not sure."

Although Ren Fengjue replied with those words, his firm attitude clearly indicated that he was determined to investigate.

Zhao Li's eyes were dark, but his face showed no displeasure. He even smiled and said to the maid beside him, "In that case, open the door and let the young marquis go in and investigate."

The maidservant responded and was about to step forward to open the door.

However, before they could get close, the door suddenly opened, and a figure flew out and crashed heavily to the ground.

Ren Fengjue looked closely and saw that it was Yan Zhengchu, so he quickly stepped forward to help him up.

At this moment, another cloud of white mist flew out from inside, circled around, and then drifted downstairs.

Yan Zhengchu hurriedly said to Ren Fengjue, "Miss Xia is inside, go and check on her quickly!"

As he spoke, ignoring the pain in his body, he chased after the direction of the white mist.

Upon seeing this, Ren Fengjue called out to Yaoguang.

Yao Guang naturally understood his meaning, and immediately used her lightness skill to catch up with Yan Zhengchu's figure in a few leaps.

Another uproar erupted downstairs.

No one noticed, but a barely perceptible chill flickered in the eyes of Crown Prince Zhao Li, who stood at the top of the stairs.

Ren Fengjue hurriedly entered Tongtian Pavilion. It was dark all around, and it was difficult to see anything.

He immediately called out, "Miss Xia!"

No one responded from inside the building.

A fragrant breeze wafts by, carrying wisps of smoke that float around the nose and before the eyes, accompanied by the gentle sound of flowing water.

There was not a trace of human life in it.

He had excellent hearing, and upon listening closely, he couldn't help but feel a sense of panic.

Suddenly, something seemed to fall into the water, making a dull sound, and ripples began to spread.

Following the sound, Ren Fengjue quickened his pace involuntarily.

One step, two steps, three steps.

As the sound of water drew closer, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Amidst the smoke, there appeared a pool of hot spring water. Upon closer inspection, the water was a deep red color, with a faint, fishy odor emanating from it, clearly a pool of blood.

Having worked on cases for many years, I have visited countless crime scenes and seen countless corpses.

Where is there no bloodshed?

But with so much blood, it's clear that more than one person died.

Is it...

Ren Fengjue's breath hitched, and his usually rational mind went blank for a moment.

He even instinctively reached into the pool to try and pull the person out...

"Miss Xia?"

"Xia Ximo!"

The sound echoed in the pavilion, but no one responded.

Just then, something seemed to begin rising from the bottom of the water and slowly surfaced.

Ren Fengjue was half surprised and half delighted, but when he looked closely, his expression instantly turned extremely grim.

It was the figure of a woman.

To be precise, it was a female corpse.

To be more precise, it's the last person he wants to see right now.

Xia Ximo.

Ren Fengjue quickly pulled the person out of the water.

Xia Ximo was soaked in blood, and his pomegranate-red cloak looked even more glaringly red now.

Her eyes were closed, her body was ice-cold, and she had no breath or pulse; she was clearly dead.

But Ren Fengjue still held a sliver of hope and hugged the corpse tightly to his chest.

Behind them, Yan Zhengchu returned, and the shopkeeper Bai disappeared into the crowd.

He was about to step forward to tell him when he saw Xia Ximo in Ren Fengjue's arms.

"How...how could this happen?"

Yan Zhengchu felt a chill in his heart, and when he looked at the blood pool next to him, his expression instantly became extremely solemn.

Ren Fengjue glanced at him, but ultimately said nothing.

He picked up the person in his arms, stood up, and slowly walked out of Tongtian Pavilion. He then said to Crown Prince Zhao Li, who was standing at the door, "I'm afraid tonight will spoil Your Highness's refined taste. Not only is Fu Lou suspected of being haunted by evil spirits, but there has even been a death."

"I hereby order the entire Fu Tower to be sealed off and a thorough investigation into this matter will be conducted."

Zhao Li glanced at the woman in his arms, feigning surprise: "How could such a thing happen in this attic?"

"Young Marquis, you must find the murderer and bring justice to the deceased!"

Ren Fengjue gave him another deep look, but his gaze was chillingly cold.

"I will certainly not disappoint Your Highness."

"Your Highness, please!"

Zhao Li raised the corners of his lips slightly, then led his attendants downstairs in a grand manner, just as he had come.

After the Crown Prince and Ren Fengjue went downstairs, Guan Yue and Yu Lang, leading dozens of constables, joined forces with more than a dozen Shadow Guards to block all the exits of the building and detain the relevant personnel.

The guests who had been waiting at the entrance were initially very curious, but upon seeing this, fearing they might be caught in the crossfire, they drove away one after another.

Inside an inconspicuous carriage amidst the crowd.

Mu Zheng lifted the carriage curtain slightly, peering nervously outside. When he saw the face of the woman in Ren Fengjue's arms, he breathed a sigh of relief and lowered the curtain.

"Return to the residence."

After instructing the driver, he immediately took out a brocade box from his pocket. When the box was opened, a bright pearl the size of a pigeon's egg lay inside.

At that moment, a strange wisp of smoke slowly seeped in through a corner of the carriage curtain.

And without Mu Zheng's knowledge, it gradually merged with that bright pearl.