Otherworldly Merchant

Li Yuntian nodded, telling me that he was on it. 

I returned to my shop. To my surprise, Yin Xinyue was there, preparing a table full of food.

Seeing that I was back, Yin Xinyue immediately walked forward to clutch my arm smilingly. Li Mazi was angered, and he scolded her for not having any conscience. Yesterday, she’d deceived him, yet he’d still risked his life to solve her problem. However, she didn’t show him any gratitude, and instead displayed her love in front of him.

Yin Xinyue covered her mouth and smiled. “You scoundrel, you don’t know shame or embarrassment. I just said that I was there, yet you hurriedly headed to the apartment. I didn’t force you to go.” 

Instantly, Li Mazi’s thick-skinned face blushed. Awkwardly, he grabbed the chopsticks and dug in like a hungry tiger. 

I just smiled, washed my hands, and started to eat. 

Yin Xinyue’s cooking skills were really good. Although all the dishes were common home-cooked foods, including sautéed fried tofu strips, pak choy, stewed mushrooms and meat, I could taste the sweetness of home in them. 

After the meal, Yin Xinyue worriedly asked how we did in solving the case. 

I said, “We’re almost there. We’ve now got an important clue. If we can trace this clue, we’ll soon be able to eliminate the resentment in that ancient painting!”

Yin Xinyue gave a slight nod, her expression sad. I asked her, “Are you okay?” 

She shook her head. “I’m okay.” 

However, I got the feeling that Yin Xinyue had something she couldn’t find the right chance to tell me… 

We’d been waiting around until nighttime when Li Yuntian finally called me, saying that there was some progress and that we should meet at the tea house we’d previously met at.

After we arrived at the tea house, we found that Li Yuntian had already made a pot of Longjing tea and was waiting for us by a window. 

Li Yuntian immediately handed me the copies of a document. “Mister Zhang, I did as you requested and traced back the deceased’s hometown. You were unexpectedly right! The deceased’s genealogy does write that they were a famous family in the Tang Dynasty during Wu Zetian’s time. And, they did have a Rank 4 Vice Minister of Court of Judicial Review in the family. That year, the Vice Minister of Court of Judicial Review was the one who’d supervised the death sentence of Crown Prince Yide!”

I nodded. It made sense. 

As the executioner was killed tragically, he had a deep grudge against the judge, which had accumulated for thousands of years. Now, it was getting worse. 

The deceased was the descendant of that judge. Perhaps the executioner had mistaken her with her ancestor, and he wanted to retaliate the crime he had suffered in the past! 

I asked if Li Yuntian had investigated the seller of that ancient painting. Li Yuntian shook his head, sighing, “Perhaps only the victim knew whom the previous owner is. I couldn’t find out.”

Oh right, this sort of clue was really hard to find… 

Anyway, I didn’t notice an important matter: Yin Xinyue was there the moment the victim had purchased the ancient painting. 

When we told her that we wanted to find the dealer, Yin Xinyue said, “Perhaps I can help you guys!”

Immediately, I asked, “Yin Xinyue, do you know how to find the previous owner?”

Yin Xinyue nodded. “She’d contacted him more than once. I’m sure there’s records for the calls. You’ll know when you check her call history, right?”

Li Yuntian palmed the table, saying excitedly, “Oh right, how could I forget that?”

Then, he left hurriedly. 

I didn’t go with him, but waited with Yin Xinyue at the teahouse for Li Yuntian’s news. 

Soon after, Li Yuntian called us, telling us that he’d found the seller’s phone number and had made an appointment with him at the teahouse. He asked us to wait a little longer.

I agreed. 

Yin Xinyue was suspicious as she asked, “Why must we find the previous owner? If we find him and return the ancient painting, will everything be solved?”

I forced a smile, shaking my head. “It isn’t as easy as you think. We must find the origins of this painting. As long as we can find its origins, we can think about how to solve it…”

Yin Xinyue sighed. “It’s really complicated. This ancient painting must have passed through many owners. How could we find the real owner that easily?”

Anyway, we didn’t have any other methods. Even if we were facing a great task, for the murder case, we could only use everything at our disposal. 

Not half an hour later, someone I knew arrived. This man also earned his living in the antiques business. He was called Sun Long, alias Brother Long, the ‘Underworld’ businessman. 

Referring to him as ‘Underworld’ didn’t mean that he mingled with gangsters or the likes. It was because he collected antiques with unclear origins, and most of them were goods they’d dug up from tombs! 

As we were living in a society ruled by law, no antique businessman wanted to step on that minefield. But, Sun Long was different. Rumors said that he had someone protecting him. In case he was arrested, it wasn’t different from having free meals and accommodation for a few days. 

As soon as I saw him, I had a headache…

One, this man was really tough to deal with, and two, that ancient painting probably came from ‘underground’. 

Disturbing the deceased’s peaceful rest was already rude. Remember the Blue Head’s event? It almost took the lazybones away.

Sun Long and I could chat, but it didn’t mean that he’d nicely tell me the origins of the painting. 

As soon as Brother Long saw me, he laughed heartily, walking forward. “Oh hey, is that the little boss of the Zhangs? What a coincidence!”

I smiled back at him. “Brother Long, long time no see! How are you doing?”

Brother Long waved his hand. “Don’t mention it. I haven’t had a good deal these days. Boss Zhang, I heard that you’ve recently made easy money. If we get a chance, we should cooperate.”

I smiled and nodded. “No problem. How about we sit and have tea?”

Brother Long waved his hand dismissively, stooping his head. “I don’t have time for tea, do I? I just received a call from the Criminal Police Department, asking me to come to this teahouse. Perhaps those motherf*ckers have their eyes due to some deals I’ve made recently.” 

And then, Yin Xinyue faked a cough, calling, “Brother Long, it wasn’t that long ago, yet you’ve forgotten about me already?”

Hearing Yin Xinyue, Brother Long looked at her in confusion. After observing her for a moment, he finally got it. “Ah, you’re the beauty that bought the ancient painting last time? Oh well, you got a better deal with Boss Zhang here?”

Yin Xinyue rolled her eyes at Brother Long. Brother Long had caused her bestie to die, and he didn’t seem at all embarrassed. “Brother Long, it’s us who asked the Criminal Police Department to contact you. We have some questions we want to ask you!”

The good atmosphere instantly turned awkward. 

Brother Long was bewildered for a while. Then, he sneered and said to Yin Xinyue, who was sitting opposite him, “Oh well, it seems like I stepped on a nail today. Boss Zhang, what game are you playing?”

I told him, “None. I just want to ask you one thing. Where does that ancient painting come from?”

I didn’t want to provoke Brother Long. However, since it had already come to this, I didn’t need to be too careful. I was a man and I couldn’t just stand and watch the girl who liked me being insulted. 

Brother Long burst out laughing. “Tch tch, you know that I like good manners, right? I don’t want to be forced. You want to know the ancient painting’s origins? I’ll tell you. I collected it from a rural countryside. But, which countryside? I’m so sorry, my memory is really bad. I’ve forgotten where already.”

“You…” Yin Xinyue was angry, gritting her teeth. “I feel like you want to go to jail.”

I was a little embarrassed. How could Yin Xinyue threaten Brother Long in this critical moment? 

Indeed, Brother Long laughed haughtily. “Good, I’m waiting to go to jail! Boss Zhang, your little girlfriend here is too innocent. Do you have anything else you want to say? If not, I gotta go now.” 

Then, Brother Long turned around, about to leave. 

Yin Xinyue stopped him with one arm. “Stop, if you don’t make everything clear today, you can’t leave.”

“All right!” Brother Long smiled maliciously. “Little beauty, I can see that your body is really nice. Well, stay with me one night and I’ll tell you. How does that sound?”