Chapter Nineteen: Returning Once More to the Drunken Moon Pavilion

I know this place like the back of my hand!

As the number one VIP of Drunken Moon Pavilion, Li Yunjie could name every building in the vicinity as if reciting from memory. Without delay, he picked up a brush and began sketching on a sheet of rice paper. In no time, a simple map emerged beneath his hand.

“Impressive, young master!” Eleven gave a thumbs-up.

Li Yunjie grinned with satisfaction. “Now, tell me—where did that guard die?”

Eleven glanced at the paper, closed his eyes in thought for a few moments, and then pointed. “Here!”

His right index finger landed on a narrow alley diagonally across from Drunken Moon Pavilion.

Li Yunjie lowered his head for a look and clicked his tongue. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely,” Eleven replied with conviction. “One of the girls from the Pavilion even greeted me from behind when it happened. I remember it perfectly.”

Li Yunjie drew a deep breath and continued, “When did he die?”

“Around the fifth watch. That’s what Chief Wang said.”

“How was he dressed?”

“In the crimson armor of the Imperial Guards.”

So, the deceased was on duty today. And the fifth watch coincided with the guards’ patrol schedule.

Li Yunjie pondered for a long moment.

If his memory served him right, the alley Eleven had just indicated was a dead end—a cul-de-sac! He knew it, and the Imperial Guards certainly did as well. Normally, a patrolling guard wouldn’t enter such a trap without reason. No thief in their right mind would dash into a dead end unless in sheer desperation.

Another odd point: the victim was alone. According to the law, ninth-rank guards patrol in groups of five; eighth-rank, groups of three; only seventh-rank guards may patrol alone.

In other words, the deceased must have been at least seventh rank.

A seventh-rank martial artist would have their vital energy flowing smoothly—sudden death was nearly impossible.

“It seems this matter is far from simple,” Li Yunjie mused aloud.

“I think so too,” Eleven said, scratching his head. “Who dies with a smile on their face, anyway?”

Li Yunjie’s pupils contracted. “A smile?”

“Yeah.” Eleven nodded, then mimicked the expression he’d seen on the corpse, looking downright eerie.

“Eleven.” As a seasoned detective fiction enthusiast, Li Yunjie’s curiosity was instantly piqued. “Want to help me investigate?”

Eleven nodded enthusiastically. This was far more interesting than being cooped up in the Chancellor’s mansion all day!

Li Yunjie shot a glance at the guards by the door and signaled Eleven with a look.

Eleven caught on immediately.

“Someone! I need to use the privy!”

……

Lin’an Street.

The crime scene.

Li Yunjie and Eleven blended into the crowd of onlookers.

“Young master, what if Miss Qingmeng finds out?” Eleven whispered nervously.

“What can she do?” Li Yunjie muttered. “Eat me alive?”

Just as he finished speaking, the capital’s constables began to tidy up the corpse.

Li Yunjie nudged aside the head of a middle-aged man in front of him for a closer look.

Sure enough, the dead man’s face was adorned with a faint, unsettling smile.

Suddenly, something metallic caught Li Yunjie’s eye—a cold gleam. He frowned.

On closer inspection, the guard’s sword had been drawn an inch from its scabbard.

“This was definitely murder!”

“What makes you say that, young master?” Eleven asked, puzzled.

“If he’d died suddenly, why draw his blade?” Li Yunjie replied with a soft chuckle.

Enlightenment dawned on Eleven’s face. “To notice something so subtle—no wonder you’re the young master!”

As the officials carried away the body, the crowd dispersed. Li Yunjie and Eleven quietly followed the constables to the mortuary.

“Young master,” Eleven asked, pinching his nose, “what are we doing here?”

“An autopsy!”

Li Yunjie’s eyes were sharp as he pulled a tinder from his sleeve and struck a flame.

“Undo the armor.”

Eleven obeyed.

In the dim firelight, Li Yunjie searched the corpse for the slightest clue.

Time seemed to blur away. The actions of the deceased in his final hours unfolded before Li Yunjie’s mind’s eye as if he were there.

He closed his eyes, placing himself on Lin’an Street, seeing every movement and stillness as if present.

He followed the solitary guard on his patrol.

After days of rain, puddles dotted the flagstone road. The guard, unable to avoid them, stepped in mud. He brushed past a candied hawker, brown sugar sticking to his cloak and leaving a stain. Melodies drifted from Drunken Moon Pavilion, and a peach blossom petal, tossed by a dancer, fluttered out the door and landed in the guard’s boot.

Passing the alley where the crime occurred, the guard noticed something amiss within the shadows. He paused, hand on his sword, drawing it an inch as he prepared to investigate.

Suddenly, a strange fragrance enveloped him.

Li Yunjie jerked his head around. A woman had appeared silently at the guard’s side!

She placed her hand naturally on his shoulder—a sign of familiarity, or at least someone he did not need to guard against.

So the guard smiled.

But in that instant, he collapsed and died—his friendly smile twisting into something ghastly.

At the same time, the woman vanished without a trace!

The vision froze there.

Li Yunjie glanced around, but the woman was gone as if she had never existed. Where had she gone? He frowned deeply.

Suddenly, a thought struck him. He spun and looked up at Drunken Moon Pavilion.

“Young master? Young master?” Eleven tapped him on the shoulder. “Why are you spinning around like that?”

Li Yunjie slowly opened his eyes, returning from the vision.

He leaned close to the corpse’s left shoulder and sniffed carefully.

“This fragrance… I’ve smelled it before…”

Li Yunjie’s keen sense of smell was a legacy of the body’s previous owner—a notorious libertine. Before Li Yunjie took possession, that man’s favorite game at brothels was “Guess the Lady by Her Perfume,” a blindfolded hide-and-seek relying on recognizing the unique scents each courtesan wore.

The game had once caused quite a stir, with the city’s young rakes all eager to imitate. For a while, face powder and perfume nearly sold out across the capital.

“Drunken Moon Pavilion!” Li Yunjie suddenly cried out.

Without another word, he strode off toward the pavilion.

“Young master, you just escaped from there,” Eleven said helplessly as they stood outside the doors once more. “If Miss Qingmeng catches you, she’ll lock you up for another ten years!”

Li Yunjie hesitated, muttering angrily, “What a mess. Every time I try to get things done, it’s either Drunken Moon Pavilion or the Pleasure Bureau. How is it always like this…”

He sighed deeply.

With a frown and a steely resolve, he walked straight inside.

Business was slow today—after all, a murder at the door would dampen any revelry. Only a few scattered customers remained.

In the southeast corner, the man in black who’d had his girl bought away with a silver note last time looked startled. Hugging the girl in his arms tightly, he swore to himself he would never let go again!

“Young Master Li, it’s been too long!” Madam Qin hurried forward to greet her most generous patron—after all, the fortune he’d spent last time could keep the place running for three months!

“What brings you here today, Young Master Li?”

Li Yunjie brushed past her and headed straight for the stairs. “The usual.”

“Call every girl in the house up to see me!”

The man in black: ...