Chapter 354 - 352: Such a Strange Thing as Snow (Part 2)

Chapter 354: Chapter 352: Such a Strange Thing as Snow (Part 2)

Mr. Yao immediately nodded and said, "That’s right, for Master Xuan Yin to create the illusion that she’s in the room, she can only do everything in the time when those two young nuns go to the toilet. Just now, we asked those two young nuns, and they both said they didn’t stay long in the toilet, because they were worried that Master Xuan Yin might need them, so they ran back and forth, not exceeding a quarter of an hour.

For Master Xuan Yin to take out the hidden mannequin, arrange it in the room, and leave secretly within a quarter of an hour, it must be impossible to hide the mannequin too far away.

Moreover, we also sent people to ask, although this is the backyard and general pilgrims don’t come here, the backyard often houses many overnight pilgrims. If Master Xuan Yin put the mannequin outside this courtyard, she would definitely have to leave and bring it in from outside, which would be too eye-catching, and she might bump into other young nuns or people staying here."

They also specifically asked if there were any prohibitions in Jingyuan Temple preventing people from approaching Master Xuan Yin’s courtyard, and all the young nuns said there weren’t any.

Aside from not being allowed to enter Master Xuan Yin’s and other young nuns’ residences casually, there weren’t explicit prohibitions elsewhere.

When pilgrims check in, the young nuns would first familiarize them with the surroundings, telling them where they shouldn’t enter.

This shows that the only place Master Xuan Yin can completely control is her own courtyard.

Xu Jing paused slightly when she heard this.

Walking outside the courtyard, moving the mannequin in...

Walking outside the courtyard...

A flash of insight crossed her mind, as if she had caught something, but before she could think more deeply, a government official responsible for searching other parts of the courtyard approached, saluting, "Mr. Yao, Miss Xu, we’ve searched every corner of this courtyard, but found nothing amiss!"

Even though he had an inkling, Mr. Yao still felt a pang of disappointment.

He gritted his teeth and said resolutely, "Search again, this time I’ll join you!"

With that, he was the first to stride forward.

Just as Xu Jing was about to follow, she saw Master Xuan Yin, standing diagonally in front of her, suddenly turn around. Her eyes were fixed on her, and suddenly, a mocking and disdainful expression flickered in her now chilling eyes.

Xu Jing’s hands tightened at her sides, and she couldn’t help but let out a cold smile.

This person, saying she’s arrogant, well, she does have reasons for arrogance.

She is indeed clever, cautious, and bold yet meticulous.

Rather than say she’s arrogant, it’s better to say she’s conceited.

She trusts her own abilities deeply, and secretly looks down on the investigators like them.

Her initial hunch was not wrong.

If they can’t convict her today, it will be difficult to do so in the future.

She coolly met Master Xuan Yin’s gaze for a moment, then turned and walked away.

She didn’t follow Mr. Yao and the others to search further, but instead walked slowly around the courtyard, trying to recapture the fleeting thought she had earlier.

From the current situation, it seems unlikely that Master Xuan Yin hid the item outside the courtyard, as moving it in would be easily noticed.

After all, if her and Mr. Yao’s guesses were correct, the mannequin used as a substitute would be adult-sized, and even if it was covered with cloth, it would definitely attract attention.

If she couldn’t hide it outside, then where on earth did she hide it?

It must be somewhere she thought they would never expect.

Somewhere they wouldn’t think of... which means, they might have fallen into her trap by thinking it’s in the courtyard!

Their initial idea was wrong!

That item is not in this courtyard!

Xu Jing’s heart suddenly skipped a beat, thumping rapidly.

Yes, they had been in a misconception from the start—for the perpetrator, what matters most is not where the item is hidden, but how to move it without being noticed!

If the perpetrator had a way to move it without being discovered, the item might not necessarily be hidden in this courtyard!

But it couldn’t be too far, as time is a limitation that can’t be altered.

To move it without anyone noticing, she couldn’t use the front door!

In fact, the perpetrator might not have used a door at all!

Xu Jing quickly scanned the courtyard, her gaze locking onto the persimmon tree in the upper-left corner that was taller than the rooftop.

It had snowed the morning before yesterday, and since there hadn’t been sunlight for days, the piled snow hadn’t melted.

The young nuns in Jingyuan Temple were diligent, having cleared the snow off most of the main paths in the temple, as well as in Master Xuan Yin’s courtyard.

Oddly enough, there was hardly any snow on the persimmon tree in the courtyard, which shouldn’t be possible without deliberate cleaning, given a tree with so many branches.

She turned and saw Jinglian standing nearby, calling her over, "When you were clearing the snow, did you also clear the snow off the trees?"

Jinglian was taken aback; realizing Xu Jing was looking at the persimmon tree nearby, she understood why Xu Jing was asking and shook her head, "We usually don’t, but Master has high standards for the courtyard environment. When we clean her courtyard, we are extra thorough and clear the snow off the trees with long poles."

While Xu Jing lingered before the persimmon tree, she caught sight of Master Xuan Yin nearby, for the first time that day, slowly retracting the smile on her face, her eyes watching coldly.

Xu Jing couldn’t help but smirk, boldly watching Master Xuan Yin from afar as she spoke, "So clearing the snow off the trees was your master’s requirement?"

Jinglian now realized something and bit her lip nervously, "Yes... Master specifically asked us to keep the trees clear of snow..."

Snow is a troublesome thing for a perpetrator because it records all traces frankly, and it’s not something you can easily dispose of.

Master Xuan Yin was smart to use snow’s characteristics against itself to forge evidence of the victim’s suicide.

But the snow on this tree was evidently not a tool she could use, but an obstacle, hence she commanded its removal.

Why was it an obstacle for her?

Because she needed to use this tree for something, and the snow on the tree would leave traces of her doing it!

Xu Jing looked up at the tree next to the roof.

What is on the roof!

She hurriedly turned to call Mr. Yao over, when a swift shadow suddenly darted before her, making her pause and instinctively turn to see Jiang Yu already climbing onto a branch, agilely leaping up.