"Division Chief, you're really brilliant. Lying in wait outside and nabbing her just like that," Mo Xu said with a grin as he took one end of the rope from Song Yan. While speaking, he flattered Song Yan.
Song Yan had a lot on his mind and didn't pay much attention to the flattery. He glanced at the man lying on the ground with his eyes still open and frowned.
"What's going on? I told you to take the suspect alive. Why is he dead?"
Everyone fell silent. Finally, Elder Yang stepped forward to explain the whole thing.
After hearing the explanation, Song Yan glanced in A Qing's direction, his gaze a bit complicated.
"In that case, there's nothing we can do. Just take her away," Song Yan waved his hand, and everyone packed up and headed back.
After a busy night, they finally hoped to get a good night's sleep.
"Division Chief, don't forget," A Qing said in a low voice as she passed by Song Yan.
No one else knew what this meant, but Song Yan did.
He had to give an answer for his choice.
After escorting A Qing back to the Investigation Division, Song Yan rubbed his neck. So many things had happened that night, and he needed to go back and rest.
But when he was about to leave, he saw someone unexpected.
"Master Ye?" Song Yan quickened his steps and walked up to Ye Zhiqiu. His voice was tinged with surprise.
After all, Ye Zhiqiu had said he wouldn't come to the Investigation Division to see him again. It was quite rare to see him at the door today.
Ye Zhiqiu just responded indifferently. He looked up in Song Yan's direction, his tone as emotionless as ever. "I heard that Division Chief Song has caught the culprit."
Song Yan wasn't too surprised by this. There weren't many reasons for Ye Zhiqiu to come to him specifically.
He rubbed his neck and said, "Yes, we just caught her. I didn't expect Master Ye to be so well - informed. You knew about it so soon."
"I've been waiting here all night," Ye Zhiqiu knew that Song Yan was suspicious of whether he had someone inside the Investigation Division from his round - about words.
He had known Song Yan's plan when he heard the rumors on the street corner some time ago. He heard that Song Yan was out of the division today, so he guessed that he had gone to catch the culprit.
Ye Zhiqiu didn't know when Song Yan would come back exactly, and he didn't want to go into the Investigation Division, so he just waited outside.
Although he didn't really need to explain so much, he thought it would be bad for him if he didn't clarify things, so he said this.
He didn't know if Song Yan could understand.
"You've been waiting outside for so long. You could have waited inside the division. It's so cold outside. You might catch a cold," Song Yan said anxiously.
Ye Zhiqiu looked at Song Yan's expression. It seemed sincere, but sometimes he really thought that Song Yan was deliberately changing the topic.
"Did the culprit say anything to you today?" Ye Zhiqiu ignored Song Yan's concern and got straight to the point.
"Yeah," he replied briefly. After that, he didn't seem to have any intention of speaking further.
Ye Zhiqiu waited for a while. Finally, he said impatiently, "Since you don't want to say, I can understand. Can I see her?"
"I think this matter is a bit strange," Song Yan paused for a moment and finally said this. He didn't want Ye Zhiqiu to get involved in this strange incident.
Although Ye Zhiqiu was already in the middle of it.
"I just want to ask a few questions," Ye Zhiqiu was very stubborn. He insisted on seeing the culprit.
Song Yan wasn't usually such a hesitant person. He had stopped him several times today. Ye Zhiqiu thought that the culprit must have said something to Song Yan.
It might even be a crucial point.
"Alright," after a long - lasting eye - contact with Ye Zhiqiu, Song Yan finally gave in. He made a compromise.
He led Ye Zhiqiu to the prison of the Investigation Division. When they reached the end, they saw A Qing sitting on the ground. Even in this situation, she still looked neat.
Her hair was neatly done, not a bit disheveled. There was a faint smile on her face, as if she wasn't in a prison but in a side - room somewhere.
She heard the noise and looked up slightly. She saw the two people standing in front of her. A Qing had a faint smile on her face and said in a low voice, "Well, Division Chief Song, are you here to give me an answer?"
Song Yan didn't answer, and A Qing didn't say anything either. For a moment, the atmosphere was eerily quiet. Ye Zhiqiu took a step forward, squatted down, and looked at her at eye - level.
"You've seen the culprit, haven't you?"
He said this directly. It wasn't a question but a statement.
But A Qing just covered her lips and laughed when she heard this. She winked at Ye Zhiqiu and said in a soft voice, "Oh, I don't understand what this young master means. If I really saw that merciless devil, how could I still be alive here talking to the young master? The young master is really joking."
Judging from her attitude, she was determined not to be straightforward. After all, this was an important bargaining chip for her survival. How could she give it up so easily?
"The knife wounds on Jia Xing's body were probably made by the culprit. You must have made some kind of deal with him, which is why you got out unscathed. Or rather... you have some把柄 in his hands," Ye Zhiqiu said in a calm and emotionless voice. As soon as he said this, A Qing stepped closer to him.
"Now that I look at you, you seem a bit familiar," A Qing squinted at him for a long time and said in a low voice, as if she was trying to recall something.
Ye Zhiqiu didn't say anything. He just looked at her indifferently.
A Qing reached out and touched Ye Zhiqiu's face. Suddenly, she burst out laughing. Her voice was hoarse and sounded a bit scary in the dark prison.
"I remember," A Qing laughed. Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed Ye Zhiqiu's wrist. Her strength was quite great, and her nails dug into his flesh, but Ye Zhiqiu's expression didn't change at all.
Song Yan, who was standing beside them, wanted to step forward to stop her, but Ye Zhiqiu reached out his hand to block him.
"He said that you're a person shrouded in misfortune. Happiness has nothing to do with you, and you can't escape. Even when you die, you'll still be alone," A Qing said in a low voice. After that, she burst into wild laughter and let go of Ye Zhiqiu's hand. Ye Zhiqiu looked down at his wrist. There were bloodstains on it where she had grabbed him.
A few drops of blood had also stained his moon - white robe. But soon, the wound on his wrist began to heal.
"What do you mean?" Ye Zhiqiu put his injured hand behind his back and frowned as he said this.
But A Qing just shrugged. Her tone was casual. "What I mean, I think you should understand better than me."
"What exactly did he say to you!"
This was the first time Song Yan saw an expression other than coldness on Ye Zhiqiu's face. His handsome eyebrows were tightly knitted, like an unsolvable knot.
A Qing suddenly stood up, reached out and grabbed the wooden railing, grinned in Ye Zhiqiu's direction, and said in a slightly shrill voice, "I've said that if you spare my life, I'll tell you everything you want to know."
...
This conversation ended in an unpleasant way.
Early the next morning, Song Yan received a summons from the emperor. As he walked in the palace, his mind was in a complete mess.
Everything that had happened the previous day kept replaying in his mind, and he hadn't slept well at all.
"Song Yan of the Investigation Division pays respects to Your Majesty," Song Yan bowed to the emperor sitting on the high platform. He knew why the emperor had summoned him today.
It should be about the culprit caught the previous day.
"I heard that Minister Song caught the culprit who had committed all kinds of crimes in Yuling these days. You truly live up to my expectations. You haven't disappointed me," the emperor walked down a few steps, reached out and gently patted Song Yan's shoulder. His voice was filled with a smile.
Song Yan bowed to the emperor again and told the truth about the culprit from the previous night. "Regarding the culprit last night, she's not the one in the rumors in Yuling these days. She only killed the cloth merchant Jia Xing in the suburbs. I think this case shouldn't be closed so hastily. If Your Majesty could just give me a little more time..."
"Enough," before Song Yan could finish, Qing Jing interrupted him. The hand on Song Yan's shoulder didn't move but pressed down a bit harder.
"Minister Song shouldn't have forgotten the agreement you made with me, right?" Qing Jing's voice was very low. He whispered in Song Yan's ear.
Every word he said was a threat.
"Of course, I remember," Song Yan struggled for a long time and finally said this in a deep voice.
"Since Minister Song remembers, you should also know how much time is left until the agreed - upon date, right?"
"Tomorrow is the final deadline."
"In that case, Minister Song should know what the right choice is. The culprit can be investigated further, but if the Investigation Division can't be saved, what's the meaning of chasing the culprit?"
When Qing Jing said this, he withdrew his imperial authority. He gently patted Song Yan's shoulder and then smiled. "I'm not threatening Minister Song. It's just that I think the Investigation Division is very good, and I don't want it to disappear."
"I... understand," Song Yan said this slowly after a long silence. After that, the emperor ordered that the culprit in the previous rumors had been captured.
And in a few days, the culprit would be punished as a warning to others.
The emperor's proclamation also made the rumors in the city fall apart. He also ordered that no one in the city was allowed to discuss this matter anymore. Those who violated this order would be severely punished.
After that, no one in Yuling dared to discuss this matter privately.
But Song Yan knew that all this was far from a fundamental solution. As long as the culprit was still alive, this matter would never be truly over.
This imperial edict could only maintain a superficial calm.
That was all.