Volume 1, Chapter 41: As You Suspected, It Is I

"Sister-in-law, thank you," Ying said.

Li did not speak, continuing to walk inward. She was not doing this for Ying's sake, but for Fan Xiu's. This matter had to be considered carefully; she needed to investigate it thoroughly first.

Before long, the two arrived in front of a house. Li knocked on the door, and it soon opened, revealing a young man.

"Sister? Why are you back?" the youth asked in confusion.

"Li Sheng, where is Father?" Li asked.

"Father is just about to head to the county office."

At that moment, a middle-aged man wearing the uniform of a yamen runner emerged. It was Li's father, Li Siyuan, a yamen runner for Zhiyuan County.

"Chuntao? Didn't you already leave?" Li Siyuan asked, frowning.

Ying looked at Li Siyuan. When she and Fan Xiu had entered the city earlier, they had encountered several yamen runners blocking the road, so she was no stranger to them, though she had not seen Li Siyuan among them.

"Father." Li quickly pulled Li Siyuan aside and whispered, "Just now, while I was cutting through the alley, I saw three men killed. It looks like... it looks like an internal feud."

"What! Three men killed!?" Li Siyuan’s expression hardened. "Come, take me there to see at once."

A murder case had occurred in the county office only a short while ago. If three more people died now, all the yamen runners would face a deduction in their salaries.

The young man watching from not far away wanted to follow, but Li Siyuan suddenly turned back and said sternly, "Li Sheng, go back inside and continue your studies."

"Oh," Li Sheng pouted.

Soon, the three returned to the alley where Ying had committed the killings. The three corpses remained exactly where they were, having attracted no attention. The alley was secluded, and few people ever passed through.

Li Siyuan walked over quickly and examined the state of the three men. His brows knit tightly together.

"Father." Li glanced at Ying and said to Li Siyuan, "These three don't look like good people. Was it an internal dispute over spoils?"

"No!" Li Siyuan shook his head. He stood up, his expression grave. "This wasn't an internal feud; they were killed by someone! And the attacker was clean, efficient, and highly skilled. It is very likely the same person who killed Scarface Zhang earlier!"

Ying cast a deep look at Li Siyuan. Though he was merely an ordinary yamen runner, his observation skills were exceptional—to think he could deduce that much!

"What!" Li's eyes widened instantly. "The... the same person who killed Scarface Zhang?"

She knew about the death of Scarface Zhang. He had died at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion. To this day, the killer had not been identified; it was only known that the culprit was a master who had killed him with a single blow.

Li turned her head to look at Ying in shock. Could it be that this "Liu Yue" was the one who killed Scarface Zhang as well?

"You two should go," Li Siyuan said, waving his hand. "I will handle this matter. You go about your business; don't let Scholar Fan wait too long."

"Yes," Li nodded.

Then, Li and Ying walked out of the alley. Once they were well away from Li Siyuan, Li stopped and asked Ying, "Liu Yue, about Scarface Zhang..."

"Yes," Ying nodded. "Just as you suspect, that was me too."

"Thank you." Li bowed deeply.

Scarface Zhang could be considered the nightmare of the Fan family. He had constantly come to demand repayment of debts, and when Fan Xiu returned to the village after passing the imperial examination, he had been humiliated and his reputation ruined by Scarface Zhang. Every time they thought of him, a dark cloud hung over the entire Fan household. When Li learned of his death, she had even burned incense to thank the heavens for taking away such a bully. She had never expected that it was Ying who had done the deed.

"It was something I had to do. I hope you will keep it a secret, sister-in-law," Ying replied.

"I will, absolutely," Li promised.

Initially, Li had been terrified of Ying because she had killed three men. But upon learning that she had also killed Scarface Zhang, her fear vanished. Scarface Zhang deserved to die; by killing him, Ying had done a service to the people.

At the entrance of the alley, Fan Xiu saw Ying emerge and jumped off the donkey cart. "You finally came out! I thought you had gotten lost in there and was just about to go in and find you."

Ying said, "I ran into your sister-in-law inside and we chatted for a while."

At that moment, Li also stepped out. Her face still looked a bit pale, but she forced a smile. "You brat, what's the rush? Trying to get reincarnated?"

Fan Xiu rubbed his nose. "I was just worried."

Afterward, the three went to the Taiyang Grain Store. After purchasing their supplies, they returned to Qinglin Village together.

On the road, Ying asked, "Fan Xiu, do you know of the Hundred Smiles Pavilion?"

"Hundred Smiles Pavilion?" Fan Xiu paused, then replied, "I do. I actually had a meal with its owner, Chang Chunsheng, back at the Zhiwei Pavilion. Why do you ask?"

When he had dined with Assistant Magistrate Wang and the others, Zhao Defu had hosted Chang Chunsheng as well. During the meal, Chang Chunsheng had even showered praise upon the cold noodles.

"It's nothing," Ying said.

Li, sitting nearby, spoke up, "Chang Chunsheng is not a good man. Be careful of him; try not to have any dealings with him, especially regarding the recipe for the cold noodles. He might try to steal it!"

Li had been present when Ying interrogated the one-eyed man. She had not only seen the killing but had also heard the man's answers.

"Steal it?" Fan Xiu’s brows furrowed. This was indeed a troublesome prospect. The Great Yin Dynasty had no patent protection.

"It's fine," Ying said. "I will protect him. For the next few days, I will follow him everywhere."

Li opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she remained silent. She was afraid of Ying killing again, but if it meant protecting Fan Xiu, she would support whatever Ying chose to do. Fan Xiu was the only hope for the Fan family; nothing could happen to him.

At that moment, a thought struck Fan Xiu. He looked at Ying with anticipation. "Sister Liu Yue, I want to learn martial arts from you. Will you teach me?"

He was truly afraid of another accident. If he had been as skilled as Ying during his previous kidnapping, how could he have been taken? He could have just fought his way out!

"Heh," Ying sneered. "You? Learn martial arts? With those thin arms and legs, can you even hold a sword?"

"Hey? Who are you looking down on? How do you know unless we try?" Fan Xiu was indignant.

Li frowned. "You brat, what madness has taken you? Having Liu Yue protect you is enough!" She did not believe for a second that Fan Xiu could practice martial arts. A bookworm who had done nothing but study since childhood wanting to learn to fight? It was absurd. Besides, learning from Ying? This woman was a killer—what if Fan Xiu annoyed her and she just chopped him down with a sword?

"It's not enough!" Fan Xiu argued. "Can she protect me when I'm in the outhouse? Only by having strength of my own can I truly protect myself!"

"Fine." Ying narrowed her eyes. "I'll teach you right now! Just don't get scared off!"

"Heh! Don't you get scared! I am a peerless genius, one in a million! Tell me, what do I learn first?" Fan Xiu said confidently.

*Smack!*

Ying kicked Fan Xiu right off the donkey cart.

"Hey! Liu Yue! What are you doing!" Li’s expression tightened.

Fan Xiu scrambled onto the ground, nearly falling over, and shouted angrily at Ying.

Ying said, "The first step of martial arts is physical conditioning! Run home behind the donkey cart!"

"What?" Fan Xiu cried out in shock and rage. "You're taking revenge! I'm going to tell my sister!"

"Heh, quit if you want! So much for being a 'peerless genius'—you look more like a 'peerless loser' to me," Ying said with disdain.

Fan Xiu gritted his teeth and roared, "I'll run then!"