Chapter 635 - 404: Ascending the Tower

When Duan Rong and Zhu Peng stepped over the threshold of the Ministry of Justice, the pockmarked face had already taken the documents and slipped into a corridor.

Duan Rong’s eyes shifted, and he casually asked Zhu Peng, "That pockmarked face handling appointments at the door, how many years has he been at the Ministry of Justice?"

"Ah!" Zhu Peng was taken aback by the question and, after thinking for a moment, replied, "I can’t remember exactly. There used to be an old man there, and then they replaced him. It must have been four or five years, at least?"

Duan Rong said, "Is that so? That’s quite a long time!"

Zhu Peng looked at Duan Rong with a strange expression and asked, "Why did you suddenly ask about him?"

Duan Rong smiled. "I’m just asking casually."

Even though he had discovered that the pockmarked face was the person who shot Zhou Wei, he didn’t plan on revealing it.

Having already uncovered the true cause of Minister of the Secretariat Zhu Shizhong’s death and captured the craftsmen involved, his task was essentially complete. Going any deeper and actually capturing the pockmarked face could lead Zhu Cheng in the Ministry of Justice’s dungeon to uncover those behind it.

The matter would only grow bigger, with more entanglements and deeper implications. Zhu Cheng and Zhu Peng, after all, were Zhu He’s blood relatives, who had some concerns. But Duan Rong had no such foundation. If handled poorly, it might even bring harm upon himself.

It’s not worth poking this hornet’s nest. Investigating the case to this extent essentially allowed him to report back to Zhu He. Duan Rong planned to merely go through the motions from here on, waiting a few more days, feeling that this would suffice.

He had planned this strategy before coming: a matter of balance. To report back to Zhu He without delving too deeply, lest the power struggles behind the scenes become further involved, potentially leading to his demise with nothing left.

The pockmarked face’s identity was clearly the boundary of this balance.

Proceeding any further risked disaster.

Duan Rong had decided to stop here.

He and Zhu Peng entered Zhu Cheng’s office, finding him buried in a pile of documents on the case table.

As they walked in, Zhu Cheng glanced up at them.

When Zhu Cheng looked up from the paperwork, his eyes were bloodshot.

Zhu Peng walked over, pressed down the documents in front of him, and said, "Stop it, look at your eyes, they’re red as a rabbit’s! Go home and rest for a bit."

Zhu Cheng brushed his hand away and said, "I’m done with this now."

Zhu Cheng laid several documents on the empty table near Duan Rong and said, "These are the autopsy report and preliminary detailed investigation. See if you two can devise an investigative approach. I can’t take it anymore; I’m going to get some sleep."

Though Zhu Cheng was speaking to both of them, his eyes were only on Duan Rong.

Zhu Peng had no skill in investigation, but he knew Duan Rong was an expert. He wanted Duan Rong to carefully examine the files, hoping he could find a clue.

Duan Rong glanced at the documents and said, "I’ll study them later."

Zhu Cheng nodded, picked up some cold tea from the case table, gulped it down, and then strode out.

After Zhu Cheng left, Zhu Peng lounged with his legs crossed in the Grandmaster’s Chair, filing his nails.

Duan Rong sat there, browsing casually, and after a while, he suddenly looked up at Zhu Peng and said, "What’s fun around the Divine Cloud Prefecture? Take me out for a tour."

Hearing this, Zhu Peng immediately put his legs down in shock, asking, "Now?"

Even if Duan Rong hadn’t said, once the case was closed, he planned to show Duan Rong around and fulfill his duties as a host. But with the case still unresolved, Duan Rong asking to be taken out for a tour seemed a bit excessive.

Yet Duan Rong said matter-of-factly, "Yes, now."

Zhu Peng eyed him suspiciously and asked, "Weren’t we supposed to review the files to find a lead?"

"I’ve looked," Duan Rong said, "but finding a lead requires inspiration. I’m most inspired in fun places."

"Really?"

"Of course, we’re not going out to play. We’re going out to find inspiration for the investigation. Got it?"

Zhu Peng was a little fooled by Duan Rong’s words, yet he also felt like going out. Since Duan Rong suggested it, he could take the opportunity. If something happened, Zhu Cheng would scold him, but he had Duan Rong to bear the brunt.

Zhu Peng lifted himself and said, "The most fun place in Divine Cloud Prefecture has to be the Flame Moon Building!"

"Flame Moon Building?" Duan Rong was intrigued. "Isn’t Li Muping, who was killed by lightning with Zhu Shizhong, from the Flame Moon Building?"

"Indeed. But Li Muping was already an out-of-favor courtesan. Just a thing of the past, otherwise, not even a Minister of the Secretariat might have been able to marry her. The most popular now at the Flame Moon Building is Qin Xueyin. In Divine Cloud Prefecture, there’s a saying that even a thousand gold can hardly buy a glance of Xueyin."

Duan Rong sneered, "In the end, isn’t she just a brothel wench? A thousand gold? With a thousand gold, I could buy the Flame Moon Building!"

Zhu Peng said, "You’re just a country bumpkin. It’s just a saying."

"A saying needs a premise, right?" Duan Rong said.

"Of course." Zhu Peng said, "To see Qin Xueyin, you have to pass the first hurdle: the poetry competition at the Qin Building!"

"Poetry competition at the Qin Building?"

"Yes! Beneath Qin Xueyin’s embellished window, patrons must submit their completed poems in advance to the maid. After submitting the poems, Qin Xueyin will review them. Poems that are selected earn a meeting with her, though it would still be across a curtain."

Duan Rong marveled and asked, "Even selected poems meet her behind a curtain?"