A heavy snowfall had transformed the high and low roofs of Luocheng City into a white world.
Only in Tongji Street, the pristine white snow on the ground was trampled into black mud by the constant foot traffic of the Spy Department’s soldiers, with every household’s doors and windows tightly shut, fearing to invite trouble.
Among the ruins of the blown-up mansion, dozens of spies were clearing the collapsed debris, attempting to uncover useful clues.
Jin Zhu reflected, "Everyone says a timely snow promises a good harvest, but I just can’t feel happy... How much longer will it take to dig through the rubble?"
"Sir, we’ll be done soon. You should eat something first. This is Weng’s Buns I just had someone buy, they’re quite famous in Luocheng."
"Eating buns at a time like this... But they do smell good haha. The meat filling is from a castrated pig that was bled just last night, no stench of blood. The seasonings include star anise, green onions, ginger, sesame oil... and it seems like there’s also their own secret blend of oil, quite fancy!"
A small leather military tent was set up in the courtyard, with a small stove burning inside, boiling water.
Jin Zhu sat nonchalantly in the tent, devouring the steaming hot Weng’s Buns.
At that moment, a spy crouched into the tent and whispered, "Sir, the ruins have been cleared. Apart from some normal household items, there’s nothing out of the ordinary."
Chewing on a bun, Jin Zhu asked ambiguously, "How many firearms did the assassin use?"
"Judging from the fragments of the bamboo tubes we found, it appears to be two."
"What does the forensic doctor say?"
The spy reported, "The forensic doctor has examined the victim’s injuries. There are forty-two wounds from metal fragments on the body, one lethal cut to the neck, and a penetrating wound in the thigh. Strangely, the upper body only has minor scrapes and is not seriously harmed."
Jin Zhu paused with half a bun in hand, "I’ve seen the power of those firearms myself; two of them blew up the house, but his upper body is unscathed? Either he is a cross-trained martial artist from Cangzhou or a Bell Striking Warrior from Kujue Temple in the Jing Dynasty... The Jing Dynasty? Go shave the victim’s head completely, check if there is an ascetic scar on the scalp!"
The spy hurried outside, knelt beside Manager Yuan’s body, a knife in one hand and Manager Yuan’s hair in the other, and shaved it off, "Sir, there is an ascetic scar!"
"So he really is a monk from Kujue Temple, probably a thief from the Jing Dynasty. They’ve stolen the Cultivation Path from the temple before," Jin Zhu crammed the remaining half of his bun into his mouth and gulped it down, "Odd, odd, why would an assassin hurry to kill him?"
Jin Zhu was confused: The victim seemed to be a thief from the Jing Dynasty, and the assassin also seemed to be from the Jing Dynasty. Why would they turn on each other?
"What do the residents of Tongji Street say, did anyone recognize him?"
The spy shook his head, "No, the neighbors say the house has been empty for over a year, and no one has seen anyone come in or out. We found a broker to ask questions, and the deed owner of the house is a Hui merchant from the south. He kept a concubine here in previous years but has already given her to Magistrate Zhang Zhuo, and he has not been to Luocheng in a long time."
Manager Yuan’s clothing was stripped, his appearance unrecognizable, the house still abandoned, and before Gui Lin left, he took Manager Yuan’s clothes and removed the other’s human skin mask, suddenly leaving the case without a clue.
At that time, outside the mansion, a spy rode in on horseback, dismounted with a leap, and called out in a loud voice, "Sir, sir?!"
Jin Zhu lifted the tent flap and walked out, "What’s all the shouting about? You look so flustered; the sky hasn’t fallen on the Spy Department yet."
The spy answered hoarsely, "Sir, I negotiated with Luocheng Military Department last night and they readily agreed to close the gates and set up checkpoints. But this morning, I went to the city gates and saw that all four gates of Luocheng were still open as usual, with no checkpoints in sight. When our people asked what was happening, the Military Department’s personnel said no one informed them about closing the gates. Looking at the hundreds of civilians coming and going, the snow tracks outside the city are also destroyed!"
The spies were instantly seething with killing intent. Who would dare to double-cross the Spy Department like this, be it in the Imperial Capital or Jinling?
A spy whispered, "Sir, as for Liu Zhen from Luocheng Military Department, should we capture him and bring him to the inner prison for questioning first?"
Jin Zhu remained silent for a long time, then said with a smile, "It’s no use capturing him. Maybe the Liu Family is just waiting for us to capture Liu Zhen, with their countermeasures ready... The Liu Family really covers the sky with one hand in this Henan Province. Did you pass by the Prefecture Government Office?"
"We did. Both the Magistrate and the Prefect weren’t in the office. A minor official said that last night when it started snowing, both gentlemen left to set up porridge shelters at the river embankment, comforting the workers there."
Jin Zhu laughed in exasperation, "Good, very good, this is the civil servant of my Ning Dynasty! Civil officials ruining the country!"
A trusted spy quietly said, "Sir, now within the bounds of Luocheng, civil servants are avoiding us at all costs, the Liu Family is obstructing us, and within the Luocheng Spy Department, there are traitors working for the Jing Dynasty..."
Jin Zhu felt the situation getting more complicated, the key being that he didn’t know who was the Jing Dynasty’s inside agent. From now on, even if they discovered any clues, the Jing Dynasty would be informed.
He whispered, "Starting today, you lead our own men in investigating last night’s firearms incident. Don’t let the local spies get involved."
The spy hesitated, "But we only brought twelve spies from the Imperial Capital, and everyone is not familiar with Luocheng. We still need someone reliable and familiar with Luocheng to lead us..."
Jin Zhu suddenly said, "I’ve got someone in mind. Prepare a horse, I’ll go find him myself. You don’t need to follow!"
...
...
Anxi Street was shrouded in silver, brimming with festivity, with children running around as if chasing fun, snowballs flying through the air.