Hot flashes

As a layer of gray-white mist rose in the east, the outline of Jiangling City gradually became clear in the morning fog. In the distance, the shouts of vendors opening their morning market could be heard, as usual—vegetable sellers, firewood sellers, and steamed bun sellers.

Zhou Heng walked back to the desk and blew out the lamp that had been burning all night.

Chen Shen is back.

He stood at the doorway, watching Zhou Heng's retreating figure, and said in a low voice, "Young Master, you haven't slept all night, why don't you rest for a while?"

Zhou Heng did not answer.

"How's the investigation going with that peddler?"

Chen Shen paused for a moment, then said, "There's news."

Zhou Heng turned around and looked at him.

Chen Shen's expression was not good: "Last night, someone found a corpse in the mass grave in the south of the city. It had been dead for seven or eight days and was almost unrecognizable due to decomposition. But judging from the clothing and build, it should be that peddler."

Zhou Heng remained silent.

"The coroner examined the body," Chen Shen continued, "and it was strangled. The body was dumped there after death, pretending to be a corpse abandoned in the wilderness by a vagrant."

"Also," Chen Shen lowered his voice even further, "we've found out who the peddler last saw before he died."

Zhou Heng looked at him.

Chen Shendao said, "He's an official."

"What kind of official?"

"The prefectural judge of Jiangling is surnamed Zheng, named Zheng Mingyi. He's in charge of criminal cases and holds the rank of sixth grade." Chen Shen paused, "He's Xie Xun's distant nephew."

"Zheng Mingyi," Zhou Heng repeated the name. "He's in charge of criminal cases?"

"Yes."

"So that means," Zhou Heng said slowly, "that all cases in Jiangling Prefecture will have to go through his hands?"

Chen Shen nodded.

Zhou Heng walked to the window and opened it. The morning breeze blew in, carrying a coolness and the hustle and bustle of the distant morning market.

Did that peddler leave anything behind before he died?

Chen Shen said, "Yes. The coroner found a hidden pocket on his body containing a note. The note was in Zheng Mingyi's handwriting and had a name written on it."

"Who?"

"Zhou Bing".

Zhou Heng paused for a moment. The name sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

Chen Shen added, "Zhou Bing was the military supervisor of Ningwu Pass in the previous dynasty. Before the prince raised his army, it was he who withheld military pay and intercepted requests for reinforcements, causing General Huo Yi to be trapped in Cangyun Ridge and his entire army to be wiped out. He fled on the day the prince entered Ningwu Pass. He has never been found."

Zhou Heng remembered.

That corrupt official. The one who indirectly caused Huo Yi's death. Xiao Jue once sent people to investigate him, but they never found him.

"What else was written on the note?"

"Just one name and one address: Willow Lane, South of the City, the third house."

Zhou Heng remained silent for a while.

"Have you checked that address?"

"I checked," Chen Shen said. "It's an empty house; no one has lived there for a long time. But the neighbors said that someone did rent the house three months ago, but left after less than a month. The person was a middle-aged man who said he came from the north to do business."

Zhou Heng remained silent.

He was thinking about something: why would a peddler who traveled the streets and alleys of Jiangling City have Zhou Bing's name and address hidden? Who told him to hide it?

The peddler could no longer answer these questions.

But there is one more person who can answer.

"Where is Zheng Mingyi now?" Zhou Heng asked.

Chen Shen said, "He's at the Jiangling Prefectural Government Office. He's on duty today."

Zhou Heng turned and walked out.

Chen Shen chased after him: "Young Master, are you going to go and take them directly?"

Zhou Heng did not stop.

"Zheng Mingyi is Xie Xun's nephew. The Xie family is in Jiangling—"

Zhou Heng stopped and looked back at him.

After that one glance, Chen Shen didn't say anything more.

Zhou Heng continued walking forward.

As he walked out of the inn, he suddenly stopped.

"Chen Shen".

"exist."

"Have someone investigate who Zheng Mingyi has met in the last three months. Especially—" He paused, "people who have dealings with people in the capital."

Chen Shen's pupils contracted slightly: "Yes."

Zhou Heng walked into the morning light.

The Jiangling Prefectural Government Office is located in the north of the city, and is a large courtyard with three courtyards. Two stone lions stand in front of the gate, baring their teeth and claws, staring at everyone who passes by.

When Zhou Heng arrived, the government office had just opened. Several yamen runners were sweeping fallen leaves in front of the gate. When they saw him, they all stopped what they were doing, their eyes filled with inquiry and vigilance.

Zhou Heng ignored them and walked straight inside.

"Hey, you—" A constable tried to stop him, but was pulled back by someone next to him. That person winked at him and whispered, "Don't mess with Lord Zhou from the capital."

Zhou Heng walked through the front yard and into the main hall.

Zheng Mingyi was sitting in the hall, several case files spread out in front of him. He was in his early thirties, with a fair complexion and a light beard, wearing a blue official robe, and looking relaxed. Hearing footsteps, he looked up, saw Zhou Heng, paused for a moment, then stood up and bowed.

"Lord Zhou, what brings you here?"

Zhou Heng looked at him without saying a word.

Zheng Mingyi felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and gave a dry laugh: "Lord Zhou, what official business brings you to the government office so early in the morning?"

Zhou Heng remained silent.

He just stood there, looking at Zheng Mingyi.

Zheng Mingyi's smile gradually froze.

"Lord Zhou?" His voice was a little dry.

Zhou Heng finally spoke.

"Judge Zheng," he said, "do you know that peddler?"

Zheng Mingyi's expression changed for a moment, then returned to normal. He frowned, feigning a strained recollection: "Peddler? What peddler? I handle many cases daily and meet many people; I wonder which peddler Lord Zhou is referring to?"

"That guy from Willow Lane in the south of the city," Zhou Heng said. "The one who went from street to street selling needles and thread. He's been dead for seven or eight days. He was strangled and dumped in a mass grave."

Zheng Mingyi frowned even more deeply: "This... I seem to recall something like this. There was such a case, and my subordinates reported it. But these nameless and faceless vagrants, once they die, they're gone. No one claims them, and the yamen can't find anything, so it's been shelved."

He sighed, looking helpless: "As Lord Zhou knows, Jiangling Prefecture is so big, with many cases and few people. We really can't handle cases like this that have no victims or clues."

Zhou Heng listened to him finish speaking.

Then he took a step forward.

Zheng Mingyi subconsciously took half a step back.