Who in the world does not know you?

Chapter 10 The Death of the Courtesan

When Yun Luobai arrived at Mu Li's boudoir where she had died, the atmosphere inside could only be described as deathly still.

Before that, the only sound he heard was the sound of Ye Zi walking with a limp.

Ye Zi also arrived, standing beside the others in the Rouge Pavilion, and did not stand out.

Liu Niang, the madam of Rouge Pavilion, stood to the side with several girls who had been on good terms with Mu Lisheng, not daring to say a word.

Constable Ning Mu has ordered his men to return the body to where it was found.

It was a huanghuali wood daybed for people to rest on, placed in the center of the south side of the room. The window in the room faced north and was open for ventilation at the moment.

There was no way around it; having a corpse inside would inevitably produce some odor. However, the temperature outside wasn't low, and the hot air blowing in made the smell inside even more unpleasant.

When Ning Qi saw Yun Luobai arrive, he immediately walked up to the latter and raised his hand to block her view.

"Second brother, you're here. Wait a minute, prepare yourself mentally, after all, it's a dead man..."

"It's alright, brother. Since I'm here, I've already prepared myself mentally..."

Yun Luobai replied with a smile, while simultaneously removing Ning Qi's hand that was blocking her view.

He looked around and immediately noticed the middle-aged constable standing silently in front of the rosewood couch.

Ning Mu had a thin face and stood tall; his mere presence was enough to silence everyone else present.

When their eyes met, Yun Luobai's smile became even gentler.

"Uncle, I came here specifically for my father, hoping to lend you a helping hand. If I am too dull-witted to help, it will certainly not affect your progress in solving the case. Please forgive me."

Yun Luobai bowed to Ning Mu, whose previously tense face instantly broke into a wide smile.

"Oh! My good nephew, I heard from your father that you're back. I've been busy at the yamen and haven't had a chance to see you, but Ning Qi said you look well, which puts my mind at ease. Come here and let me see you. Oh my, it's wonderful news that you're still alive! You have no idea, ever since you returned to Ningzhou Prefecture, your father's mouth has been agape every single day!"

Ning Mu beckoned to Yun Luobai, who obediently walked over.

Ning Mu reached out and patted Yun Luobai's shoulder, deliberately making the movement gentler.

His impression of Yun Luobai was still that of a frail body that had contracted tuberculosis at a young age.

Yun Luobai looked down at Mu Li lying beside him. Even though the once incomparable courtesan of Rouge Pavilion was dead and gone, her still beautiful face made people believe how charming and alluring she had been in the past.

Mu Li was wearing a light pink gauze dress with delicate and exquisite cloud patterns, which must have been quite valuable.

A patch of blood had spread across her chest, but no weapon was inserted.

There were obvious bruises on both sides of her snow-white neck, as if they had been pinched hard by both hands.

When Ning Mu saw Yun Luobai's gaze fall on Mu Li's corpse, he gave up the idea of ​​catching up with this junior who had escaped death.

"Luo Bai, you've been smart since you were little. If you can solve the mystery of the courtesan's death, not only will it solve your father's problem, but I will also have to thank you."

"Uncle is joking."

Ning Qi also approached at this moment.

He had already examined Mu Li's body. After the body was carried back to the yamen, the coroner had completed the autopsy and given his findings.

Although Ning Qi also believed that Yun Luobai was much smarter than himself, as a member of the government, he naturally had more clues than Yun Luobai, who had just intervened in the case.

He thought to himself that if Yun Luobai had any doubts, he would answer them from the side. If the brothers worked together, they could always solve any problem.

"Second brother, you must also be wondering why she was both strangled and stabbed to death, right? Let me tell you..."

"Brother, I know even if you don't say it, the fatal wound is the sharp weapon that pierced her chest."

Ning Qi's eyes widened upon hearing this; he had no idea how Yun Luobai knew such a thing.

How did you know?

"If she had been strangled, her face would have shown some bluish-purple discoloration. The fact that her face hasn't changed much after being left on the body for so long indicates that she wasn't strangled. The person who strangled her must have used a lot of force, but she was probably just unconscious at the time, so that person thought she was dead..."

Yun Luobai murmured to himself, pondering the possible scenes that might occur when Mu Li died.

Since that person didn't strangle her, she should have had a chance to survive, but unfortunately, she couldn't escape her fate in the end...

"Big brother, have you found the weapon that killed her?"

Yun Luobai pointed to the bloodstains on Mu Li's chest. Although it is common for murderers to take the murder weapon after killing someone, finding the murder weapon would definitely help in solving the case.

He noticed that the fatal wound on Mu Li's chest was very small, unlike what one would expect from a sword or knife. Even a delicate, small dagger wouldn't leave such a small wound.

Before Ning Qi could reply, Yun Luobai's casual glance noticed a few unusual spots on Mu Li's dark hair.

Those are bloodstains.

His gaze followed the trail of blood and finally settled on a crystal-clear white jade hairpin inserted in Mu Li's hair.

"Could it be that?"

"..."

Ning Qi, who was about to respond, was speechless for a moment.

He felt as if he had no purpose in life.

He knew Yun Luobai was clever from a young age, but after becoming a constable in the yamen, he had also participated in solving many cases and was quite experienced. However, compared to Yun Luobai, he always felt that being a constable was meaningless...

"If that's the case, then it makes sense... Those women felt that Mu Li's death was caused by evil spirits, because if the murderer thought that Mu Li had been strangled to death, he would have fled the scene, and if he realized that Mu Li had not been strangled to death, he would have tried again."

Yun Luobai reached out and pulled out the white jade hairpin that was stuck in Mu Li's hair. While carefully examining the bloodstains on the tip, he talked to the Ning father and son next to him as if they were having a casual chat.

"After the first murderer fled the scene, the second murderer discovered that Mu Li, who had lost consciousness, was only unconscious but not dead. He decided to take her life on a whim, but since it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, he hadn't prepared a weapon beforehand. It's understandable that he used the jade hairpin in Mu Li's hair to stab her to death. However, even so, there was no reason for the murderer to put the white jade hairpin back in its original place after stabbing Mu Li to death..."

Yun Luobai turned to look at the people from Rouge Pavilion standing to the side, a smile appearing on his lips.

"So you think Mu Li was possessed by a ghost, pulled out the hairpin from her hair, stabbed herself to death, and then put the hairpin back into her hair?"

Everyone was taken aback by what they heard, and they all nodded.

Yun Luobai scoffed at this.