The crowd grew restless because of her words.
“And the killer’s son was among the dead. He was heartbroken, and almost ended his life, until one day…” Ji Yunshu walked up to Zhang Daqi and motioned at the fragile, yellowed piece of paper, “He discovered this piece of paper left behind by his ancestors, and saw the words. This was how he found out about the well under the statue. To stop the strange happenings from continuing again, he set out to finish what his ancestors did not. He completed the ritual.”
The crowd shivered in fear. It was as if they had just felt a gust of cold air.
“Enough of this nonsense!” exclaimed Jing Yi, “What ritual? What 35 words? They’re obviously lies that you have fabricated to save Zhang Daqi’s hide!”
“We have proof. Our claims are not baseless. Isn’t this way better than you convicting Zhang Daqi for the crimes he did not commit with no evidence at all?”
“You…”
“Your Highness, why don’t we all be patient and listen to what elseTeacher Ji has to say?”
“Hmpf!” Jing Yi snorted.
Lord Li could see the burning flames of anger that surrounded the two princes, and he knew that he must put out the fire, “Teacher Ji, where did you find that piece of paper?”
“From Zhang Daqi’s house.” came the reply.
“Then does it not mean that he’s the killer?”
“No, he’s not the killer.”
“Then who is it?”
Ji Yunshu glanced at Zhang Daqi who was trembling on the ground, “It’s his father, Zhang Yicheng.” There was no hesitation in her voice.
Zhang Yicheng?! Chief Zhang was baffled when the name was mentioned. But I know him! “I-impossible! How can Old Man Zhang be the killer? He’s not capable of something like that!”
Zhang Daqi was apparently very upset by the revelation as well. He opened his mouth, but found himself unable to speak.
“Do you have evidence to support your claim, Teacher Ji?” asked Lord Li.
“Of course I do!” She pulled out a handkerchief and showed the tiny black object to the crowd along with the silvery flake obtained from Old Man Zhang’s wheelchair. She then explained the mystery behind the case.
The killer was afflicted by Withering Bones Syndrome, and a tiny piece of his medication was transferred to Gao Meng’s ears when he was killed. Idiot Si, who witnessed the entire incident, was murdered by the killer when the lights at the ancestral hall were blown out.
“If we can track down Old Man Zhang, we’ll be able to find out if there were traces of the medicine on his hands. His ability to hit Idiot Si’s cranium in the dark meant that his eyes were very good. This can be verified by Young Master Mo of the Yuhua Pavillion.”
Heh.. Jing Yi immediately chimed in ,”What about the blood on the rock, Teacher Ji? Aren’t you the one who examined it? Or perhaps it was faked?”
“Oh, of course it’s not.”
“Tell me then, why would Zhang Daqi’s blood on that piece of rock along with the victim’s if he’s not the killer?”
“It seems that Your Highness did not listen closely to me just now,” said Ji Yunshu with a smile. Her disdain for the prince was clear.
“Mixed with blood, within the well under Buddha, This means that the killer must mix fresh blood with the blood of the dead in order to complete the ritual. And that is why he would take blood from the face of his son whenever a victim was killed. It was the cleanest, and freshest source of blood from the human body.”
Eh? “But why are there only seven scars on Zhang Daqi’s face when there were eight victims?” Jing Yi smelled blood, and he was determined to move in for the kill.
But…
“It seems that your eyesight is as bad as your hearing as well, Your Highness.” Ji Yunshu walked up to Zhang Daqi, and brushed aside his hair to reveal and eighth scar that stretched from his ear to his jaw. The truth was finally revealed.
“Aaaaa…” a groan escaped Zhang Daqi’s lips as tears streamed down his cheeks.
Jing Yi felt as though he was backed to a cliff. A bottomless abyss was what awaited him with one small mistake. He refused to let things end as they were. The prince was grasping at straws as he asked the question, “Then why did Gao Meng go to the temple at the hour of the dog? What about the smell of tiger skin on his hands? If you can’t explain that to me, surely it means that the evidence that you’ve just presented is fake!’
Ji Yunshu remained silent. Jing Rong snapped his fingers, and a man entered the hall and threw a roll of tiger skin onto the ground. The pungent smell of the pelt immediately made its way into the nostrils of everyone present.
What’s this?
“This is a high quality tiger skin in Old Man Zhang’s possession. The scent of the tiger still lingers. Like the pelt that Gao Meng brought with him to the capital, this originated from Nanlin.” explained Jing Rong, “Through a series of investigations, I’ve found out that Old Man Zhang went to Nanlin six years ago. He must’ve known Gao Meng, and that was why he knew about the man’s birth date. He knew about Gao Meng’s trip to the capital. It is my guess that he arranged a meeting with Gao Meng at the temple with the sale of tiger skin as an excuse, and slew the man during the negotiation. Thus, he would naturally have the smell of the tiger pelt on his hands”
“Nonsense!” shouted Jing Yi.
“If Prince Yi thinks that what I said was nonsense, perhaps you can try explaining the deaths mentioned by Teacher Ji just now.”
“I…” Jing Yi glanced at Wen Shisan, and the man knew that he was asking for help.
But when Wen Shi
“The circumstances surrounding their deaths are indeed strange. Even I myself finally realized the truth after Teacher Ji and Prince Rong’s explanations. It seems like Zhang Daqi was truly innocent, and the killer is his father, Zhang Yicheng.”
What?! Jing Yi was shocked. His shock then turned into fury as his expression darkened. He did not expect to be bitten by a dog that he thought was loyal. “Shisan, you…”
“I’m merely stating the truth, Your Highness. The evidence presented by Teacher Ji was valid.”
Veins bulged on Jing Yi’s temples as he clenched his fists. There was killing intent in his eyes.
Cough cough cough. Just then, the sound of a man coughing could be heard among the crowd.
A frail man wearing a large bamboo head made his way laboriously through the crowd. His shoes were in tatters and filthy with mud. He removed his hat to reveal an old, wrinkled face.
It was Old Man Zhang!
