Chapter 15: The System’s Case
Chapter 15: The System’s Case
Prefect Wei Tai of Yingtian Prefecture hurried over.
“Your humble servant pays respects to Your Highnesses and Young Marquises.” Wei Tai first bowed to the four of them upon arrival.
“Lord Wei.” Xiao Rui and the other three returned the greeting.
As the local official of the capital, Wei Tai held the third rank, a status no lower than the ministers of the Six Ministries, but his job was fraught with pitfalls. Hearing that two Imperial Princes had personally reported a case, Wei Tai came himself.
“Lord Wei, let’s attend to the murder case first,” Xiao Rui said, taking the lead.
Wei Tai glanced at the scene and was also shocked by the gruesomeness. Five lives, including an infant still in swaddling clothes. This was a major case! How many years had it been since such a tragedy occurred in the Capital City?
He quickly ordered the constables to seal off the area, search the surroundings, and instructed the coroner to examine the bodies.
Soon, the searching constables found a carriage to the west of the woods. The horse pulling it was gone, leaving only an empty carriage. There were no items to identify the victims.
A little while later, the coroner finished the examination.
“My lord, there are five deceased. One female, aged between eighteen and twenty-two; one young man, between twenty and twenty-four; and an elderly couple, between forty-five and fifty. The cause of death for all was…” The coroner paused here.
“There are no outsiders here, speak plainly,” Wei Tai said casually.
The coroner continued, “The cause of death was strangulation, approximately five days ago.”
“Strangulation?” Wei Tai was stunned, then understood the coroner’s hesitation. Once homicide was involved, this became a major case. Failure to solve it would cause panic throughout the capital, and he himself would get into trouble. If it were wild animal bites, then…
Wei Tai felt like slapping himself.
“What else did you find?” Wei Tai asked, keeping his expression unchanged.
The coroner said, “There is flesh and blood under the fingernails of the young male victim, likely from scratching the assailant before being strangled. The other four show no obvious injuries elsewhere. As for the infant, it was suffocated by the swaddling cloth.”
A constable nearby added, “The four also had no items on them to identify them, nor was there anything in the carriage. It seems the murderer took them.”
Wei Tai nodded. “Collect the bodies, take them back to the yamen. Conduct an investigation throughout the Capital City based on the victims’ and the carriage’s appearances!”
“Yes, sir!” The constable clasped his fist and accepted the order.
After giving instructions, Wei Tai looked at Xiao Rui and the other three. “Your Highnesses, Young Marquis, is there anything else you wish to instruct?”
Xiao Rui smiled. “You are the local official of Yingtian Prefecture. How could we overstep? We only hope the case is solved quickly to bring justice to the deceased.”
“Seventh Highness, rest assured. Your humble servant will closely supervise this case and work swiftly to solve it. However, the Capital City has a large flow of people; the investigation will take some time. Once there is progress, I will send someone to report to Your Highness.” Wei Tai’s words left no room for fault.
Xiao Rui smiled and nodded, then the four took their leave, no longer in the mood for hunting.
On the road, the four slowed their pace.
“Seventh Brother, who do you think the murderer is? It’s too cruel, strangling a whole family, even suffocating a child.” Xiao Yan said angrily.
“What kind of hatred could it be?” Tian Boguang also sighed.
Zhang Lianchuan fumed, “The damn murderer. If I catch him, I’ll twist his head off.”
Xiao Rui was about to speak when…
“Ding-dong…”
“New task!”
Xiao Rui was taken aback. The System had issued another task. He closed his eyes to check:
“Name: Xiao Rui
Identity: Seventh Prince of the Great Xia Kingdom
Talent: Does being a transmigrator count? If not, then none
Advent Points: 80/100
New task: Investigate the identities and reasons for the deaths of the victims. Advent Points +10. Time: 20 days. If not completed, Advent Points deducted by 60!”
Now, Xiao Rui grew even more curious about the Advent Points. If the points were collected, could he summon a dragon?
Host, you can only make one wish! — said the System.
My wish is for ten more wishes!
But, knowing the System’s nature, it seemed this murder case wasn’t simple. After all, if it were easy, Yingtian Prefecture could solve it, and he could reap the benefits effortlessly.
Xiao Rui also saw it; the System was always trying to screw over the Host, step by step making him offend people and push him into the abyss.
So, who was it this time?
Xiao Rui was filled with mischievous interest.
That evening, the four dined at Cuiyun Tower.
Gao Quan returned. He had spent thirty thousand taels to buy a two-courtyard house in the Southern District, not far from Xiao Yan’s residence. The Southern District was home to high-ranking officials and nobles, so property prices were high. This expense used up eighty percent of Xiao Rui’s wealth.
Xiao Rui arrived at the house and was very satisfied with its location and environment.
He moved in that same night.
The next day, Gao Quan hired several servants, maids, and guards. The house finally began to feel like a home.
Several days passed in a flash.
It had been four days since the bodies were discovered. Yingtian Prefecture investigated the Capital City but received no reports of missing persons. Thus, they suspected the five were from out of town. They checked all inns, post stations, guesthouses, and rented houses, yet still received no reports.
These five seemed to have mysteriously appeared in the Capital City and then secretly left.
Wei Tai grew anxious. Rumors were spreading throughout the Capital City, and since it involved two Imperial Princes and a Young Marquis reporting the case, even Emperor Xia was paying attention. Though he hadn’t spoken yet, Wei Tai knew that if the case remained unsolved for too long, Emperor Xia would reprimand him.
Now Wei Tai regretted it. If the coroner had declared the cause of death as tiger bites, wouldn’t there be all this trouble?
His big mouth.
During these days, Xiao Rui wasn’t idle either.
Doing what? Attending classes.
He couldn’t keep skipping them, or else Dr. Jin would chew him out again.
During class, Xiao Rui kept thinking about the murder case.
First, it was basically confirmed that the victims were not from the Capital City. For a whole family to come to the capital, including such a young infant, it was likely they were visiting relatives. So, after entering the city, they stayed at a relative’s house, which was why they didn’t stay at an inn or rent a house.
Therefore, the person who killed them was probably the relative they came to visit, rather than a vendetta, bandits, or robbers.
The top priority was to confirm the identities of the five.
But apart from their clothes, they had nothing on them.
Wait, clothes?
Xiao Rui immediately asked Dr. Jin for leave, saying he had a stomachache.
Dr. Jin had a headache, not a stomachache. This guy always used a stomachache as an excuse to run off. Even a ten-month pregnancy would have given birth by now.
“Go on, go on.” Dr. Jin couldn’t be bothered to question him.
Xiao Yan beside him rolled his eyes slyly. “Teacher, my stomach hurts too.”
Dr. Jin took a deep breath and spoke earnestly. “Ninth Highness, you are still young. Don’t follow certain people down the wrong path. His Majesty is watching.”
Xiao Rui was displeased. What does this have to do with me? What does this have to do with me!
“My stomach really hurts.” Xiao Yan rubbed his stomach, looking pained.
“Go!” Dr. Jin had no choice but to agree.
Xiao Yan ran out of the classroom after Xiao Rui. “Seventh Brother, wait for me! Wait for me!”
Dr. Jin rubbed his forehead, trying hard not to get angry.
Outside Jiwen Hall, Xiao Rui glared at Xiao Yan. “Why are you following me? If your stomach hurts, go see a doctor.”
“Seventh Brother, where are you going? Let me come with you?” Xiao Yan grinned.
Xiao Rui sighed, knowing he couldn’t shake him off. “Fine, let’s go to the Yingtian Prefecture yamen to investigate the case!”
“Really? I’m so excited!” Xiao Yan whispered excitedly.